Computers have beaten human world champions at chess and, earlier this year, the board game Go. So far, though, they have struggled at the card table. So we challenged one AI to a game.

    Why is poker(扑克) so difficult? Chess and Go are “information complete” games where all players can see all the relevant information. In poker, other players' cards are hidden, making it an “information incomplete” game. Players have to guess opponents' hands from their actions—tricky for computers. Poker has become a new benchmark for AI research. Solving poker could lead to many breakthroughs, from cyber security to driverless cars.

    Scientists believe it is only a matter of time before AI once again vanquishes humans, hence our human-machine match comes up in a game of Texas Hold's Em Limit Poker. The AI was developed by Johannes Heinrich, researcher studying machine learning at UCL. It combines two techniques: neural(神经的) networks and reinforcement learning(强化学习).

    Neural networks, to some degree, copy the structure of human brains: their processors are highly interconnected and work at the same time to solve problems. They are good at spotting patterns in huge amounts of data. Reinforcement learning is when a machine, given a task, carries it out, learning from mistakes it makes. In this case, it means playing poker against itself billions of times to get better.

    Mr Heinrich told Sky News: “Today we are presenting a new procedure that has learned in a different way, more similar to how humans learn. In particular, it is able to learn abstract patterns, represented by its neural network, which allow it to deal with new and unseen situations.”

    After two hours of quite defensive play, from the computer at least, we called it a draw.

    Finding time to read is an important part of developing reading and writing skills for all kids. And there are many easy and convenient ways to make reading a part of each day — even when it's tough to find time to sit down with a book.

    Car trips, waits in checkout lines and the doctor's office are all opportunities for reading. Keep books or magazines in your car, or backpack to pull out whenever you're going to be in one place for a while. Even if you can't finish a book, read a few pages or discuss some of the pictures.

    Encourage kids to bring favorite books and magazines along wherever you go. While it's attractive to provide electronic games and readers, be sure to alternate electronic media with plenty of opportunities to read traditional print books.

    Reading opportunities are everywhere you go. While riding in the car, for example, encourage kids to spot words and letters (on billboards, store signs, etc.), turning it into a game (“Who'll be the first to find a letter B?”).

    Even daily tasks like cooking can provide reading moments. Kids can assist you as you cook by telling you how much flour to measure. Give your child a catalogue to read while you sort through the mail. Ask relatives to send your child letters, e-mail, or text messages, and read them together. Help your child create letters or messages to send back to the relatives. These types of activities help kids see the purpose of reading and of print.

    Even when you're trying to get things done, you can encourage reading. While cleaning, for instance, you might ask your child to read a favorite book to you while you work.

    Make sure kids get some time to spend quietly with books, even if it means cutting back on other activities, like watching TV or playing video games.

    Most important, be a reader yourself. Kids who see their parents reading are likely to imitate them and become readers, too!

C

   The English are often described as unfriendly people who don't talk to strangers (陌生人). But not London taxi drivers. I once asked one cabby to describe his life to me and he didn't stop talking until I arrived home half an hour later. He told me many interesting stories and this is one of them.”Some strange things happen late at night. The other day I was taking a woman home from a party. She had her little dog with her. When we got to her house, she found that she'd lost her key. So, I waited in the cab with her dog while she climbed in through the window.”

    “I waited and waited. After hour of ringing the bell I decided to find out what was going on. I tied the dog to a tree and started to climb in through the window: The next thing I knew was that the police came. They thought I was to rob the house! Luckily, the woman came downstairs. She'd gone to sleep and forgotten about me and the dog. I was in such a hurry to get away that I forgot to ask her for the fare.”

    Recently, South Korean star PSY's “Gangnam style” video has been popular on the Internet. It has become most people's favorite music.

In fact, the song has set the Guinness World Record for the most popular video in the history of the Internet. More than two million people have said “like” since the song was on the Internet on July 15.

    PSY's special dance moves and funny horse riding style have attracted many people. Although many people do not understand the language, the video has become the talk of the Internet. The song has come to first place in the music charts in 31 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada.

    “I just sang for my South Korean fans. I have never expected it to be popular in other countries,” PSY told the reporters on a concert. The song was so popular that a few of South Korean's politicians showed PSY's moves to attract supporters.

    “The song came out in mid-July. It sings about the rich life of South Korea--especially Gangnam in Seoul, where a lot of rich people live.

    Millions of people have watched the video. Many stars, such as Katy Perry, Robbie Williams and Nelly Furtado said that they love the song. These stars performed part of the song at a recent concert.

    Riding high on the success of “Gangnam Style”, PSY was signed by Scooter Braun to Braun's Schoolboy Records, a label distributed by Universal Republic.

    PSY has written many hit songs of varying styles for different singers. Prior to “Gangnam Style” his most famous composition perhaps was Lee Seung Gi's debut(首次亮相) song “Because You Are My Woman”.

    Icelanders have a beautiful tradition of giving books to each other on Christmas Eve and then spending the night reading. This custom is so deeply rooted in the culture that it is the reason for Christmas Book Flood, when the majority of books in Iceland are sold between September and December in preparation for Christmas giving.

    “Books get attention here.” says Baldur Bjarnason, a researcher who has written about the Icelandic book industry.

    The small Nordic island, with a population of only 329,000 people, is extraordinarily literary（文学的）. They love to read and write. According to a BBC article, “The country has more writers, more books published and more books read, per head, than anywhere else in the world... One in 10 Icelanders will publish a book.”

    It seems there is more value placed on physical, paper books than in North America, where e-books have grown in popularity. One bookstore manager said, “The book in Iceland is such an enormous gift —you give a physical book. You don't give e-books here” The book industry is driven by the majority of people buying several books each year, rather than the North American pattern of a few people buying lots of books.

    It sounds like a wonderful tradition, perfect for a winter evening. It is something that I would love to incorporate（吸收）into my own family's celebration of Christmas.

    Some spiders hunt on the ground, others build webs to trap their food, but the grass water spider catches its prey by running along the surface of the water.

    This special water spider lives on the grassy banks of streams where mosquitoes, damsel flies and other insects come to feed and breed.

    Although it is one of the largest spiders in New Zealand, it has an unusual ability. It doesn't disturb the water as it waits for its meal, and there is barely a ripple(波纹) when it skims(掠过) across the surface at lightning speed to catch its prey.

    Grass water spiders deal swiftly with larger insects like damsel flies by pulling their heads under the water and holding them there until they drown.

    After a meal, the grass water spider spends up to half an hour grooming(修饰) itself. It wipes its eight eyes, brushes its antennae(触角), and takes special care to clean the hairs on its body.

    It is the hairs that trap tiny bubbles(泡沫) of air so that the spider can run down a blade(叶片) of grass and stay underwater for up to an hour when it is frightened. The hairs also keep the spider dry, even underwater.

    It is only when the female spider is caring for the young that she does not hunt on the water. After mating, she produces a large egg sac(囊), which she carries around for five weeks. Once the eggs start to hatch, she attaches the sac to some blades of grass or a thistle. She then tears the sac open and releases the tiny spiders into the nursery web.