Welcome to your future life!

    You get up in the morning and look into the mirror. Your face is firm and young-looking. In 2035, medical technology is better than ever. Many people your age could live to be 150, so at 40, you're not old at all. And your parents just had an anti-aging(抗衰老的) treatment. Now, all three of you look the same age !

    You say to your shirt, “Turn red.” It changes from blue to red. In 2035, “smart clothes” contain particles(粒子) much smaller than the cells in your body. The particles can be programmed to change your clothes' color or pattern.

    You walk into the kitchen. You pick up the milk, but a voice says, “You shouldn't drink that!” Your fridge has read the chip (芯片) that contains information about the milk , and it knows the milk is old . In 2035, every article of food in the grocery store has such a chip.

    It's time to go to work. In 2035, cars drive themselves. Just tell your “smart car” where to go. On the way, you can call a friend using your jacket sleeve(袖子). Such “smart technology” is all around you.

    So will all these things come true? “For new technology to succeed,” says scientist Andrew Zolli , “it has to be so much better that it replaces what we have already.” The Internet is one example --what will be the next?

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Choose Your One-Day-Tours!

    Tour A - Bath &Stonehenge: including entrance fees to the ancient Roman bathrooms and Stonehenge -￡37 until 26 March and ￡39 thereafter.

    Visit the city with over 2,000 years of history and Bath Abbey, the Royal Crescent and the Costume Museum, Stonehenge is one of the world's most famous prehistoric monuments dating back over 5,000 years.

    Tour B - Oxford & Stratford  including entrance fees to the University St Mary's Church Tower and Anne Hathaway's -￡32 until 12 March and ￡36 thereafter.

    Oxford: Includes a guided tour of England's oldest university city and colleges. Look over the "city of dreaming spires(尖顶）"from St Mary's Church Tower. Stratford: Includes a guided tour exploring much of the Shakespeare wonder.

    Tour C - Windsor Castle &Hampton Court including entrance fees to Hampton Court Palace -￡34 until 11 March and ￡37 thereafter.

    Includes a guided tour of Windsor and Hampton Court, Henry VIII's favorite palace. Free time to visit Windsor Castle (entrance fees not included).With 500 years of history, Hampton Court was once the home of four Kings and one Queen. Now this former royal palace is open to the public as a major tourist attraction. Visit the palace and its various historic gardens, which include the famous maze (迷宫)where it is easy to get lost!

    Tour D -Cambridge including entrance fees to the Tower of Saint Mary the Great -￡33 until 18 March and ￡37 thereafter.

Includes a guided tour of Cambridge, the famous university town, and the gardens of the 18th century.

    The number of giraffes is becoming smaller across Africa, according to the Giraffe Conservation Foundation. The total population has dropped by 40 percent in the last 15 years. Surprisingly, even scientists haven't given much attention to giraffes. We are learning more about their ecology, but what we know is still way behind what we know about other species. "It's a silent extinction," said Dr. Julian Hennessy, a wildlife scientist.

    "The main reason for the smaller number of giraffes is their loss of living places," said Hennessy, "as an increasing part of land is used for farming. But hunting also has a big influence." You might wonder why hunters would focus on giraffes. First of all, once a giraffe is brought down, there is lots of meat with a small amount of effort. Besides, there is another thing encouraging the hunting. In Tanzania, Hennessy says, the latest word on the street is that eating giraffe meat could cure AIDS. Fresh giraffe heads and bones can be sold at prices of up to $140 per piece.

    Another widespread misconception about giraffes is that they are everywhere. Look at kids' books which are full of giraffes. They are always in zoo collections. They can be seen easily, so you don't think we have to worry about them. But the truth is that they are in danger of extinction. There is a lack of right and true data.

    Hennessy and other researchers are now pulling together the data needed to improve the situation of the entire giraffe species and all nine subspecies (亚种). The information will be used to change the giraffe's listing on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List, which now lists the species as of "least concern" but two subspecies as "endangered". "It's a lot of work to gather the necessary information," Hennessy says. "And several other giraffe subspecies will be recommended for endangered listings next year or the year after." He hopes that the world will finally start to take notice of how endangered these beloved animals have become.

    A young woman carrying a three-year-old child got on a bus. The conductor hurried to give her a warm welcome and then kindly asked the other passengers to make more room for the woman and her kid. On seeing this, people were surprised and began to talk." You know this conductor used to be very rude. Now suddenly he has changed his bad behavior, "said a middle-aged man.

    "Yes, he should be praised and we must write a letter to the company," said a second passenger." That's right," another lady said, "I wish a newspaper reporter were here so that more people could learn from this conductor."

    Just then a gentleman who looked like a teacher turned to the conductor and said, "Excuse me, but can I know your name, please? Your excellent service must be praised…"

    Before he could open his mouth, the three-year-old kid sitting on the young woman's lap interrupted, "I know his name; I call him Dad."

    NEW HAVEN, Connecticut—A surprise awaited students in Yale who showed up for Professor Laurie Santos's class. They got slips of paper that said, "No class today." There was only one rule for the students' unexpected free time—They were not allowed to study, but to relax. Since exams and papers were coming up, everyone was tired and stressed. At this moment they were touched. With around applause, nine students hugged Santos, and two burst into tears.

    Yet, cancelling class was not just a break. It was also a challenge, as she was asking them to stop worrying about their grades, even if it was just an hour. One student went to the Yale University Art Gallery for the first time in her four years at Yale. A group of students went to a recording studio and played a new song. More people were outside, and more were smiling. That's why about 1, 200 students were taking Santos's class, called "Psychology and the Good Life," the largest class in Yale's 317-year history. Even non-Yale students had the chance to take Santos's class. It was offered as an online course and she immediately became an Internet hit.

    Skyler Robinson, one of her students, was at a loss for a while about what to do during his break, and then decided to take a nap. "It was a great nap," he commented. Santos designed the class after she realized that her students kept busy through long days that seemed far more depressing and joyless than her own college years. "They feel they're in this crazy rat race. They're working so hard that they can't take a single hour off. That's awful."

    The ideas behind the class are simple. Santos said, "It is the hope that science can help students find peace among all the stresses and difficulties they face at college." The lessons include showing more gratitude, performing acts of kindness and increasing social connections. The students really wanted to learn to lead a happy life in a science -driven way. Santos also noted the psychological happening of "mis-wanting", which led people to work towards the wrong goals in life.

    One week, Santo asked students to exercise. Another week, she wanted them to get more sleep. They worked hard to keep some new habits. Social science research led to many new understandings of how people find happiness. She thinks her class can change Yale, or rather, not just Yale.

    A Hobby is a regular activity that is done for enjoyment, typically during one's leisure(闲暇的) time. By continually taking part in a particular hobby, one can acquire practical skill and knowledge in that area. Is travel a good hobby? Travel, in the youngest sort, is a part of education and, in the elder, a part of experience. Some may think otherwise. To them, visiting churches, castles, libraries, etc. is an absolute wastage of time. They may further say that one can read the account of these or see the films of the important places of the world. They forget that touch of actuality gives a different type of sensation and satisfaction.

    Travelling may be an expensive hobby but it makes up for the financial loss. If a traveller has interest in life and its manifestations(表现), one can find much to keep oneself absorbed and happy. A student of any stream can definitely find something of his own interest and studies. One can definitely find everything that satisfies his cravings for knowledge and feelings.

    As a hobby, travelling keeps us busy during leisure time; it is the best method to make use of time. Till a person breaks from dull routine, physically and mentally, one cannot find satisfaction. Travelling helps us to achieve this break. At a new place, one is curious to know and eager to gather all the unknown information about the place which he has neither read nor heard before and he gets thrills and surprises which keep the interest and enthusiasm alive and encourage us to keep our journey on.

    While travelling, one comes across a number of people from varied backgrounds and places. By interacting with them, he comes to know about their traditions also. In case one has psychological bent of mind, one increases one's experience and power to understand others. Understanding human nature is, perhaps, the best part of education. Travelling satisfies all demands of a good hobby-it is absorbing education and refreshment to the mind, body and soul.