This Monday, the nation will start to celebrate Presidents' Day, just seven days before George Washington's birthday. Everyone agrees that day is a holiday. but is it just to celebrate George Washington's Birthday? What about Abraham Lincoln? Some government offices call it Presidents' Day. Others say the holiday is officially Washington's Birthday. Confused yet?

    George Washington was elected the country's first President on April 30,1789. Soon after, Americans began publicly celebrating his birthday. Presidential historians say the actual date of George Washington's birth is February 11,1732. But a change inthe calendar system 20 years later shifted all dates, making Washington's birthday February 22, which is now well accepted. In 1879. Congress made Washington's birthday an official federal holiday. It was the first federal holiday to celebrate an individual's birthday. In 1968, Congress passed the Monday Holidays Act, which moved the holiday to the third Monday in February. The new law did not change the holiday's name. It was still called Washington's Birthday, even though some law makers wanted to call it Presidents' Day to include Abraham Lincoln, whose actual birthday is February 12.

    Many people argue that the holiday should celebrate all past Presidents. They feel Lincoln should be honored for his role in preserving the nation during the Civil War and helping to free slaves. Others feelthe holiday should only honor Washington. the country's first President. They say shifting the focus away from Washington would mean future generations of kids would not know about the Father of Our Country.

    Laws have been introduced in Congress over the years to requireuse of the term “George Washington's Birthday.”but none of those laws have been passed. Meanwhile, many stategovernments and school districts now use the term “Presidents' Day．”Many stoles also use it to promote holiday sales.

    Should the holiday honor Washington, Washington and Lincoln, or all past Presidents? Write to emailbag@timeforkids, com and tell us what you think.

    The world itself is becoming much smaller by using modern traffic and modern communication means.Life today is much easier than it was hundreds of years ago,but it has brought new problems.One of the biggest problems is pollution.To pollute means to make things dirty.Pollution comes in many ways.We see it,smell it,drink it and even hear it.

    Man has been polluting the earth.The more people,the more pollution.Many years ago,the problem was not so serious because there were not so many people.When the land was used up or the river was dirty in one place,man moved to another place.But this is no longer true.

    Man is now slowly polluting the whole world.

    Air pollution is still the most serious.It's bad for all living things in the world,but it is not the only one kind of pollution.Water pollution kills our fish and pollutes our drinking water.Noise pollution makes us angry more easily.

    Many countries are making rules to fight pollution.They stop people from burning coal in houses and factories in the city,and from putting dirty smoke into the air.Pollution by SO₂ is now the most dangerous kind of air pollution. It is caused by heavy traffic.We are sure that if there are fewer people driving,there will be less air pollution.

    The earth is our home.We must take care of it.That means keeping the land,water and air clean.And we must take care of the rise in pollution at the same time.

    “A good book might clarify something you knew little about, transform your world view, or move you in ways you didn't think possible. The Soul of an Octopus(章鱼)delivers on all three, ”the magazine New Scientist commented.

    After writing about birds, pigs and tigers, US naturalist Sy Montgomery decided to choose these many-footed animals as the subject of her latest book, The Soul of an Octopus: a surprising exploration into the wonder of consciousness.

    “Here is animal with poisonous liquid like a snake，a beak(喙)like a parrot，and ink like an old-fashioned pen. It can weigh as much as a man and extend as long as a car, yet it can pour its baggy; boneless body through an opening the size of all orange. It can change color and shape. It has a tongue covered with teeth. It can taste with its skin.” Montgomery explained to the National Geographic on why octopuses inspired her.

    What Montgomery is able to show in The Soul of an Octopus is that octopuses are creatures who exhibit personality, intelligence and emotion, despite having nervous systems completely different from our own. She uses different experiments to show that they possess consciousness as well as individual personalities. For example, based on her research, she finds out that Octavia, an octopus caught in the wild, is friendly and good at multi-tasking. And Kali, another octopus，who has been living at the New England Aquarium, is playful and loves exploring.

    Montgomery is a good storyteller. Through her study of, and communication with, these extraordinary creatures she shares what she learns from both science and her experiences. Her skillful writing presents facts together with personal description, which makes the book very informative but easy to read.

    We are the CEOs. We are the head designers. We are the top engineers. We are the senior creators. We are the inventors. We are the only maker of our own happiness.

    However, we still have learned that people's views on happiness often change with many outside things. Some people smile happily beside their new cars and homes. Students feel excited when they get better grades. Babies laugh loudly when they get new toys. Maybe true happiness has been lost in these things.

    How could we have allowed ourselves to be cheated for so long? Something outside may give us happiness, but what directs us to real happiness is inner (内在的) spirit.

    Our spirit is so easily broken, yet it is the single strongest thing we own. Why do people with terrible diseases still smile? Why do those with a broken heart still find joy? The inner spirit is powerful, and it is the only thing on earth that can be broken into pieces but can perfectly mend itself with time. Think about those who suffer a lot but still feel happy. Their inner spirit is very strong.

    Our inner spirit will be the greatest gift that we give ourselves. It is our compass (指南针) to happiness, but we are the tour guides.

We were on the way from Hutchinson to Chicago for a short spring break. For many years I had wanted to take my family on the train. We all went to Chicago four years ago, and the kids loved it. Chicago is one of my favorite cities, too, so the thought struck me again last fall to ride the train to Chicago. Of course, flying would have been faster. But I don't think flying is easier, especially these days, with all the security and waiting in lines at airports.

Though we were tired in the middle of the night, the kids got on the train with the exhilaration of this adventure. "We're moving," my son William shouted happily with big eyes as the train began to pull away from the Hutchinson station.

I removed my shoes and lay down to try to finish my night's sleep. The sleeper car would have better enabled that, but the ordinary train seats were not too bad. An airline flight is a more miserable experience for me：not enough room, two hours of pain with my knees almost touching my chin, the hard seatback in front cracking my kneecaps (膝盖) with every move of the body planted in front of me. On the train I could almost outstretch all of my 6­foot­2­plus body in the generous legroom.

The journey didn't feel at all as long as it was. We all found the train ride a joy. The car ride would have felt every minute of 13 hours. But on the train you are free to walk around, sit in the observation carriage for a while and enjoy the scenery out the windows, have a nice meal in the dining car, read a book, or play a board game.

In short, the train is all about enjoying the trip, which isn't something I do so much when travelling by airline or by car, when the trip seems more of a mission (任务) to get there than an experience to enjoy along the way.

Chicago offers much to do for a family. This time, getting there was half the fun.

On an autumn afternoon, a remote sheep farm in southern Greenland is quiet. The silence is abruptly broken when dozens of sheep come thundering across the hills overlooking the farm. Walking after them are Lars Nielsen and his 37-year-old son Kunuk Nielsen.

The Nielsen family has owned and run the farm since 1972. Kunuk says the summers now are longer than when he was a child and that drought has become a problem. The fields are not so green as those in the old days. He has to buy hay (草料) from European countries.

The effects of a warming climate are obvious on the land. While he intends to struggle on, his older brother Pilu has chosen a different path.

Pilu, 40, lives in Qaqortoq in the south of Greenland -- a town of about 3,000 people. Ten years ago, he got his helicopter pilot's license and is now part owner of a small company called Sermeq Helicopters. It caters to construction and telecommunication workers and an increasing number of foreign tourists.

Pilu says he loves his family's sheep farm. But he saw that warming temperatures were making remote areas of Greenland more accessible and wanted to look for other opportunities. His company's most popular tours include a visit to Greenland's glaciers.

The warming temperatures are also affecting traditional ways of life, particularly hunting. The sea ice is changing; it's becoming less so that hunting on ice becomes more difficult. When there's no sea ice, it's difficult to use dog sledges (雪橇), and the whole culture around having dogs and dog sledges and doing traditional hunting on the ice is sort of diminishing.

Besides, many Greenlanders, like Pilu, are leaving the countryside for towns and the capital city Nuuk, where opportunities are greater. A report found that Nuuk's share of Greenland's population grew from 17.2% in 1977 to 29.2% in 2014. If there were enough houses in Nuuk, the share would even be bigger.