Family structure is the core of any culture. A major function of the family is to socialize new members of a culture. As children are raised in a family setting, they learn to become members of the family as well as members of the larger culture. The family provides the model for all other relationships in society. Through theobservations and modeling of the behavior of other family members, children learnabout the family and society including the values of the culture. Familystructure and their inherent relationships and obligations are a major sourceof cultural difference.

        The family is the center of most traditional Asians' lives. Many people worry about their families' welfare,reputation, and honor. Asian families are often extended, including severalgenerations related by blood or marriage living in the same home. An Asianperson's misdeeds are not blamed just on the individual but also on the family—includingthe dead ancestors.

        Traditional Chinese, among many otherAsians, respect their elders and feel a deep sense of duty toward them.Children repay their parents' sacrifices by being successful and supportingthem in old age. This is accepted as a natural part of life in China. Incontrast, taking care of aged parents is often viewed as tremendous burden inthe United States, where aging and family support are not honored highly.

        The Vietnamese family consists of peoplecurrently alive as well as the spirits of the dead and of the as-yet unborn.Any decisions or actions are done from family considerations, not individualdesires. People's behavior is judged on whether it brings shame or pride to thefamily. Vietnamese children are trained to rely on their families, to honorelderly people, and to fear foreigners. Many Vietnamese think that theiractions in this life will influence their status in the next life.

        Fathers in traditional Japanese familiesare typically strict and distant. Japanese college students in one study saidthey would tell their fathers just about as much as they would tell a totalstranger. The emotional and communication barrier between children and fathersin Japan appears very strong after children have reached a certain age.

        Although there has been much talk about"family values" in the United States, the family is not a usual frameof reference for decisions in U.S. mainstream culture. Family connections arenot so important to most people. Dropping the names of wealthy or famous peoplethe family knows is done in the United States, but it is not viewed positively.More important is a person's own individual "track record" ofpersonal achievement.

       Thus, many cultural differences exist infamily structures and values. In some cultures, the family is the center oflife and the main frame of reference for decisions. In other cultures, theindividuals, not the family, is primary. In some cultures, the family'sreputation and honor depend on each person's actions; in other cultures,individuals can act without permanently affecting the family life. Somecultures value old people, while other cultures look down on them.

(Adapted from R. L. Oxford & R. C.Scarcella, "A Few Family Structures and Values Around the Globe")

    I'll admit I've never quite understood the obsession (难以破除的成见) surrounding genetically modified (GM) (改变) crops. To environmentalist opponents, GM foods are simply evil, an understudied, possibly harmful tool used by big agricultural businesses to control global seed markets and beat local farmers. They argue that GM foods have never delivered on their supposed promise, that money spent on GM crops would be better channeled to organic farming and that consumers should be protected with warning labels on any products that contain genetically modified ingredients. To supporters, GM crops are a key part of the effort to sustainably provide food to meet a growing global population. But more than that, supporters see the GM opposition of many environmentalists as fundamentally anti-science, no different than those who question the basics of man-made climate change.

    For both sides, GM foods seem to act as a symbol: you're pro-agricultural business or anti-science. But science is exactly what we need more of when it comes to GM foods, which is why I was happy to see Nature devote a special series of articles to the GM food controversy. The conclusion: while GM crops haven't yet realized their initial promise and have been dominated by agricultural businesses, there is reason to continue to use and develop them to help meet the enormous challenge of sustainably feeding a growing planet.

    That doesn't mean GM crops are perfect, or a one-size-fits-all solution to global agriculture problems. But anything that can increase farming efficiency—the amount of crops we can produce per acre of land—will be extremely useful.GM crops can and almost certainly will be part of that suite of tools, but so will traditional plant breeding, improved soil and crop management—and perhaps most important of all, better storage and transport infrastructure (基础设施) especially in the developing world.(It doesn't do much good for farmers in places like sub-Saharan Africa to produce more food if they can't get it to hungry consumers.) I'd like to see more non-industry research done on GM crops—not just because we'd worry less about prejudice, but also because seed companies like Monsanto and Pioneer shouldn't be the only entities (实体) working to harness genetic modification. I'd like to see GM research on less commercial crops, like corn. I don't think it's vital to label GM ingredients in food, but I also wouldn't be against it—and industry would be smart to go along with labeling, just as a way of removing fears about the technology.

    Most of all, though, I wish a tenth of the energy that's spent endlessly debating GM crops was focused on those more pressing challenges for global agriculture. There are much bigger battles to fight.

    Almost every machine with moving parts has wheels, yet no one knows exactly when the first wheel was invented or what it was used for. We do know, however, that they existed over 5,500 years ago in ancient Asia.

    The oldest known transport wheel was discovered in 2002 in Slovenia. It is over 5,100 years old. Evidence suggests that wheels for transport didn't become popular for a while, though. This could be because animals did a perfectly good job of carrying farming tools and humans around.

    But it could also be because of a difficult situation. While wheels need to roll on smooth surfaces, roads with smooth surfaces weren't going to be constructed until there was plenty of demand for them. Eventually, road surfaces did become smoother, but this difficult situation appeared again a few centuries later. There had been no important changes in wheel and vehicle design before the arrival of modem road design.

    In the mid-1700s, a Frenchman came up with a new design of road—a base layer (层) of large stones covered with a thin layer of smaller stones. A Scotsman improved on this design in the 1820s and a strong, lasting road surface became a reality. At around the same time, metal hubs (the central part of a wheel) came into being, followed by the pneumatic tyre (充气轮胎) in 1846. Alloy wheels were invented in 1967, sixty years after the appearance of tarmacked roads (柏油路). As wheel design took off, vehicles got faster and faster.

    We all love our children and we all know how competitive the world is these days. What's it going to be like when our children leave school? Will they have the skills they need to stay ahead of the competition?

    All children need two basic skills to succeed. They must be able to read and they must be able to write. And with so much information available to them these days, they must be able to read quickly and accurately. That's why your children need to be able to speed-read.

    It's ironic (讽刺的) that at this time of space-age technology, we've gone back to one of the earliest forms of mass communication—the written word. The Internet has introduced a revival (重新流行) of writing, and if you can't keep up, you'll be left behind. You certainly don't want your children to be left behind.

    You can help to make sure that your children are excellent writers—you can help them to learn how to use their language. Better still, you can learn with them!

    You and your children can spend time together in a worthwhile pursuit (事业)—learning how to write. Forget the theme parks, the computer games, the expensive movies and interesting sports. If you want your children to have treasured memories of time spent with you, learn together.

    For less than you would pay for tickets to a theme park, you can invest in your children's future—help them learn to write well with my six-part writing course.

Don't stand by while your child is left further and further behind.

    At least 20 people died and hundreds were injured in a bridge collapse in the eastern Indian city of Kolkata Thursday. Witnesses said many people and vehicles, including two buses carrying more than 100 passengers, were under the bridge when it fell. They also said construction workers had set up camps near the bridge site where they would sleep and cook.

    Before rescue teams arrived, local residents and firefighters used their bare hands to try to rescue people trapped under the debris. The collapsed bridge is in a busy commercial area of Kolkata. Its location has made it difficult for rescue operations. Access to the area is blocked on both sides by buildings, and the streets are blocked with heavy traffic.

    Reuters (路透社) reports that the Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, rushed to the scene of the collapse. She said that rescuing those trapped is her “top priority”. Banerjee said those responsible for the disaster will be punished. Yet she faces questions about the safety of the construction project. The Telegraph newspaper reported last November that Banerjee wanted the bridge — already five years overdue — to be completed by February. Project engineers said they were concerned over whether this would be possible, the newspaper said at the time. Construction workers had been on a strict schedule to complete the bridge. The disaster could affect the West Bengal election next month. An Indian company, IVRCL, was building the 2­kilometer bridge, its website said. IVRCL's director of operations said the company was not sure of the cause of the disaster.

No matter where I direct my gaze, the landscape is dotted with the skeletal frames of new structures taking shape. The familiar neighborhoods of my youth, once adorned with the charm of time-honored edifices, have largely vanished, replaced by the sleek silhouettes of contemporary high-rises. There is a rationale for this transformation: residents are in pursuit of the amenities that modern living promises.

However, the question that lingers is, how can the younger generation grasp and uphold their cultural heritage if the tangible remnants of it are continually erased? The advocacy for the conservation of historical buildings transcends mere sentimental yearning for the past. Economic considerations also lend strong support to the cause of preservation.

The restoration and safeguarding of historical districts can serve as a catalyst for economic growth, enticing tourists and small enterprises to the locality. A case in point is the historic Al Bastikiya neighborhood in Dubai, which annually attracts a multitude of visitors from across the globe. It also draws the interest of local inhabitants who are keen on exploring the history of their city.

Critics often contend that preserving historical monuments is an expensive endeavor, but numerous recent initiatives have shown this belief to be unfounded. In fact, the process of refurbishing an existing structure for alternative use can be approximately £40 per square meter less costly than even the most elementary new construction, all the while retaining the architectural elegance of the original structure. Moreover, despite the common assertion that older buildings are less energy efficient and thus have a larger environmental footprint, architects and environmental specialists assert that the most eco-friendly building is the one that already exists. New construction typically has a more detrimental environmental impact, as it necessitates the procurement and transportation of brand-new materials over potentially lengthy distances, rather than utilizing recycled materials that are readily available on site.

In essence, we recycle many other items in our daily lives, and the same principle should be applied to buildings. The act of preserving historical structures presents a multitude of opportunities; in stark contrast, demolition is an irreversible act. Once these architectural gems are lost, they are gone forever, severing an integral thread in our cultural tapestry that can never be regenerated. The decision to preserve or demolish is thus not merely one of aesthetics or economy, but also one of heritage and legacy.