We all know that listening to music can soothe emotional pain, but Taylor Swift, Jay-Z and Alicia Keys can also ease physical pain, according to a study of children and teenagers who had major surgery.

    The research was carried out because of a very personal experience. Sunitha Suresh was a college student when her grandmother had major surgery and was put in intensive care (重症监护). This meant her family couldn't always be with her. They decided to put her favorite music on an iPod so she could listen around the clock.

    It was very calming, Suresh says. “She knew that someone who loved her had left that music for her and she was in a familiar place.”

    Suresh could see that the music relaxed her grandmother and made her feel less anxious, but she wondered if she also felt less pain. That would make sense, because anxiety can make people more sensitive to pain. At the time Suresh was majoring in biomedical engineering with a minor (兼修) in music cognition (认知) at Northwestern University where her father, Santhanam Suresh, is a professor of pediatrics (儿科).

    So the father and daughter decided to do a study. And since Dr Suresh works with children, they decided to look at how music chosen by the children themselves might affect their tolerance for pain.

    It was a small study, involving 60 patients between 9 and 14 years old. All the patients were undergoing big operations that required them to stay in the hospital for at least a couple of days. Right after surgery, patients received narcotics (麻醉药) to control pain. The next day they were divided into three groups. One group heard 30 minutes of music of their choice, one heard 30 minutes of stories of their choice and one listened to 30 minutes of silence via noise canceling headphones.

    After a 30-minute session, the children who listened to music or books reduced their pain burden by 1 point on a 10-point scale. Sunitha Suresh says it's equal to taking an over-the-counter pain medication like Advil or Tylenol.

    The findings suggest that doctors may be able to use less pain medication for their pediatric patients. And that's a good thing, says Santhanam Suresh, as children are smaller and are more likely to suffer side effects. So the less pain medication, he says, the better.

    Paul and Jason were brothers who lived and worked on neighboring farms. For 35 years they farmed side by side, sharing machinery and goods as needed, without a single problem.

    However, one autumn, things changed. It began with a tiny disagreement about a horse, which grew into a major difference. The difference led to angry words, followed by weeks of silence between the two brothers.

One morning there was a knock on Paul's door. He opened it and saw a builder holding his toolbox. "I'm looking for a few days' work." the builder said. "Are there any jobs here I could help with?"

"Yes," answered Paul, extremely pleased to see the builder. "I do have a job for you. Look at that farm across the creek(小溪).That's my brother's farm. That creek used to be a grass field, but last week my brother dug a path from the river and made the creek. But I'll go him one better. See that pile of wood? I want you to build me a fence, two meters tall, so 1 won't need to see him anymore."

The builder said thoughtfully. "I think I understand the situation and I'll be able to do a job that pleases you."

    Paul had business in town that day and left the builder to his work. When he returned, the builder had just finished his job. Paul was shocked. Instead of a fence there was a bridge, stretching from one side of the creek to the other.

As Paul stood on the bridge, staring in amazement, his younger brother Jason, came across, and took Paul's hand. "You are a good man to have built this bridge after all I've done," said Jason.

Then, Paul, with tears in his eyes, said to the builder who was packing his bag to go, "Thank you so much. Please stay. I have much more for you to do."

"I'd love to." the builder said quietly, "but, I have many more bridges to build."

    Imagine this: You're at the movies seeing the latest box-office hit. The leading actor chases down the film's bad guy before winning over the beautiful leading lady. What does he do next? He sucks on a cigarette.

    What's wrong with this picture? Doesn't the beautiful woman see her hero's yellow teeth? Doesn't she smell his smoky breath? And wouldn't the good guy have trouble chasing, since smoking causes a person to cough?

    But you don't see any of that when someone smokes cigarettes in the movies. And there is a lot of smoking in movies. Actors light up in more than 50 percent of youth-rated (G, PG, PG-13) movies, according to the American Legacy Foundation, which aims to put an end to smoking among young people. That means that Hollywood is showing 14 billion images of smoking to young people every year.

    All that exposure to on-screen smoking can influence teens to smoke. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) argues that 44 percent of teens who begin smoking do so because they've seen smoking in movies. The CDC reports that teens are two to three times more likely to start smoking after seeing repeated smoking scenes in movies than teens who are lightly exposed to smoking in movies.

    Several organizations are working to remove smoking in youth-rated movies. And adults are not the only ones who care about this issue. Many teens are actively involved. Livia Clandorf, 16, of Chatham, New York, is a member of Reality Check, an organization that educates teens about what it considers to be the manipulative(巧妙处理的) practices of tobacco companies. Livia participated in an event called a "movie stomp(跺脚)". Reality Check rents out a movie theater and screens a youth-rated film that shows smoking, they stomp their feet and show disapproval by shouting “boo”.

    Skeptics are a strange lot. Some of them refuse to admit the serious threat of human activities to the environment, and they are tired of people who disagree with them. Those people, say skeptics, spread nothing but bad news about the environment. The "eco-guilt" brought on by the discouraging news about our planet gives rise to the popularity of skeptics as people search for more comforting worldviews.

    Perhaps that explain why a new book by Bjorn Lomborg received so much publicity. That book, The Skeptical Environmentalist, declares that it measures the "real state of the world" as fine. Of course, another explanation is the deep pockets some big businesses with special interests. Indeed, Mr. Lomborg's views are similar to those of some Industry-funded organizations, which start huge activities though the media to confuse the public about issues like global warming.

    So it was strange to see Mr. Lomborg's book go largely unchallenged in the media though his beliefs were contrary to most scientific opinions. One national newspaper in Canada ran a number of articles and reviews full of words of praise, even with the conclusion that "After Lomborg, the environmental movement will begin to die down."

    Such one-sided views should have immediately been challenged. But only a different review appeared in Nature, a respected science magazine with specific readership. The review remarked that Mr. Lomborg's "preference for unexamined materials is incredible (不可信的)".

    A critical (批判的) eye is valuable, and the media should present information in such a way that could allow people to make informed decisions. Unfortunately, that is often inaccessible as blocked by the desire to be shocking or to defend some special interests. People might become half-blind before a world partially exhibited by the media. That's a shame, because matters concerning the health of the planet are far too important to be treated lightly.

Dear Students,

    I am delighted to be your guest.

    I would like to tell you about myself. I have been a news reporter for the past fifteen years. I chose this job so I could travel the world, but the job has taught me many unforgettable lessons. The work is sometimes difficult. I have seen famines, wars, earthquakes, poverty and death. But I have also seen courage, hope and happiness.

    In India, I visited a city where there were many homeless children. Some were as young as four years old. They lived in the streets and survived by begging or stealing. But then a wonderful lady called Rosa opened a home for them. Within one year, she was looking after two hundred children. She clothed them, fed them, and taught them. She gave them hope.

    Another time, I was in Turkey after a terrible earthquake, in one place. I found an old lady whose house was in ruins, her son was missing and rescuer workers said there was no chance that he was still alive. But the old lady did not give up hope. For four days, she moved heavy stones one at a time by herself. She did not stop until she found her son. He was alive.

    Here in China, I met a young boy with a serious condition. He had undergone twenty operations and spent nearly his whole life in hospital. I thought he would be sad, but when I met him, his smile was so warm and welcoming.

    In life, we need role models that we can admire and learn from. When my life is difficult, I try to remember the courage and goodness of these three people.

    I have been surprised each time my child has come home from school with a message saying his teacher wants to see me.

    I know my son seems very naughty(淘气的). He cannot concentrate(专心)on reading, he makes silly mistakes in his homework or often fails his exams.

    Whenever such things happen, his teacher shouts," Ask your parents to come here." And then I have to go with my tail(尾巴) between my legs to find out what's going on with my son and to listen to the teacher scold(训斥)him.

    I really feel sorry for my son's mistakes and usually feel personally responsible.

But I can't help feeling angry with him after a meeting with his teacher.

    Gradually, I have realized that anger will do him no good, and that actually he needs my help.

    On the other hand, I think that to educate our "little emperors(皇帝)",there needs to be more understanding and cooperation(合作)between teachers and parents to help him find his mistake.