The Brown Bear

    My wife Laura and I were on the beach, with three of our children, taking pictures of shore birds near our home in Alaska when we spotted a bear. The bear was thin and small, moving aimlessly.

    Just a few minutes later, I heard my daughter shouting, “Dad! The bear is right behind us!” An aggressive bear will usually rush forward to frighten away its enemy but would suddenly stop at the last minute. This one was silent and its ears pinned back—the sign of an animal that is going in for the kill. And it was a cold April day. The bear behaved abnormally, probably because of hunger.

    I held my camera tripod (三脚架) in both hands to form a barrier as the bear rushed into me. Its huge head was level with my chest and shoulders, and the tripod stuck across its mouth. It bit down and I found myself supporting its weight. I knew I would not be able to hold it for long.

    Even so, this was a fight I had to win: I was all that stood between the bear and my family, who would stand little chance of running faster than a brown bear.

    The bear hit at the camera, cutting it off the tripod. I raised my left arm to protect my face; the beast held tightly on the tripod and pressed it into my side. My arm could not move, and I sensed that my bones were going to break.

    Drawing back my free hand, I struck the bear as hard as I could for five to six times. The bear opened its mouth and I grasped its fur, trying to push it away. I was actually wrestling (扭打) with the bear at this point. Then, as suddenly as it had begun, the fight ended. The bear moved back toward the forest, before returning for another attack—The first time I felt panic.

    Apparently satisfied that we caused no further threat, the bear moved off, destroying a fence as it went. My arm was injured, but the outcome for us could hardly have been better. I'm proud that my family reminded clear-headed when panic could have led to a very different outcome.

    People who multitask all the time may be the worst at doing two things at once, a new research suggests. The findings, based on performances and self-evaluation by about 275 college students, indicate that many people multitask not out of a desire to increase productivity, but because they are easily distracted and can't focus on one activity. And “those people turn out to be the worst at handling different things,” said David Sanbonmatsu, a psychologist at the University of Utah.

    Sanbonmatsu and his colleagues gave the students a set of tests and asked them to report how often they multitasked, how good they thought they were at it, and how sensation-seeking (寻求刺激) or imperative (冲动) they were. They then evaluated the participants' multitasking ability with a tricky mental task that required the students to do simple mathematical calculations while remembering a set of letters.

    Not surprisingly, the scientists said, most people thought they were better than average at multitasking, and those who thought they were better at it were more likely to report using a cellphone while driving or viewing multiple kinds of media at once. But those who frequently deal with many things at the same time were found to perform the worst at the actual multitasking test. They also were more likely to admit to sensation-seeking and impulsive behavior, which connects with how easily people get bored and distracted.

     “People multitask not because it's going to lead to greater productivity, but because they're distractible, and they get sucked into things that are not as important.” Sanbonmatsu said.

    Adam Gazzaley, a researcher at the University of California, San Francisco, who was not a member of the research group, said one limitation of the study was that it couldn't find out whether people who start out less focused tend toward multitasking or whether people's recognizing and understanding abilities change as a result of multitasking.

    The findings do suggest, however, why the sensation-seeker who multitask the most may enjoy risky distracted driving. “People who are multitasking are generally less sensitive to risky situations.” said Paul Atchley, another researcher not in the group. “This may partly explain why people go in for these situations even though they're dangerous.”

    Global warming threatens to hold back human progress, and make unachievable all UN targets to reduce poverty, according to some of the world's leading international and development groups.

    In a report published today, Oxfam, Greenpeace and other groups say rich governments must immediately address climate change to avoid even “unbearable levels” of worldwide poverty.

     “Food production, water supplies, public health and people's livelihoods are already being damaged and weakened,” the report says. “There is no approach possible. The world must meet its commitments to achieve poverty reduction and also deal with climate change, which are closely linked.”

    The report, which draws on UN predictions of the effects of climate change in poor countries over the next 50 years, says poor countries will experience more flooding, declining food production, more disease and the extinction of entire eco-systems on which many of the world's poorest people depend.

     “Climate change needs to be addressed now. The poor will bear the great consequence of it. The frontline experience of many of us working in international development indicates that communities are having to fight more extreme weather conditions.”

    Climate change will cause great damage to agriculture and water supplies and will increase diseases. “By 2025 the number of the world's population living in countries of significant water stress will almost double, to 6 billion people. Tropical (热带的) and sub-tropical areas will be hardest hit — those countries already suffering from food shortage”.

    Poor countries mostly do not need hi-tech solutions, but would most benefit from education, research and being shown how to farm better. The report says unchecked global warming, more than wars or political upheaval (政变), will displace millions of people and unsettle many countries.

    When you're having a hard time with your homework or when you're preparing for your term paper, these student-focused websites can help you with just about anything you need. The key to getting the most out of these online resources is to know how they can best be used to your advantage.

Facebook

    Although Facebook can be one of your biggest time-wasters and distractions when you are supposed to be getting work done, it can also be one of your most valuable resources. Most of your classmates will probably have a Facebook account, so anyone you need to connect with about a class you missed or about a problem is usually just a few clicks away.

SparkNotes

    With a free library of history timeline, philosophy study guides and library summaries, SparkNotes has covered just about any reading-related jam you find yourself in. Just run a search for the book, play, or short summary of the material you are supposed to read.

Amazon.com

    Do you finish every term with many expensive textbooks you will never open again? Instead of letting the money spent go to waste, get back some of your cash by selling your books on Amazon.

RateMyProfessors.com

    Choosing new classes can sometimes be like trying to pick out your clothes in the dark, a total guessing game. Which teacher gives out the hardest problem sets? How much homework will that history professor give you every week? At RateMyProfessors.com, students all over the country rate their professors on quality, helpfulness, and how hard their classes are.

 Wikipedia

    While Wikipedia isn't aimed specifically at students, it is difficult to think of another website that does more to reduce the pain of paper writing and researching. Wikipedia gives you a quick way to find sources and get the details of almost any topic you need to research — all without walking to the library.

    Weaving hammocks is an art that takes a sharp eye, a skilled hand and lots of patience. But in Lenwood Haddock's case, being blind works to his advantage. His trained, sensitive hands are acutely aware of every step of the process. Since beginning his craft in 1986, Lenwood has woven about 145, 000 perfect hammocks.

    Lenwood lost his sight in 1973, at age 18, during a hunting accident. “My whole working career has been blind,” he says. He first found a job as a woodworker, but when that organization closed, the North Carolina Division of Services for the Blind connected him with Hatteras Hammocks. On his first day of work. “I did a total of one hammock,” Lenwood recalls, laughing. “And then I came home and lay down to sleep. I lift weights, but I wasn't as tough as I thought until I started weaving.lt takes a lot of energy, and you're standing up all day.”

    In time, however, Lenwood found he had a knack (窍门) for the job. At first he worked on-site at the company, but after a year Lenwood moved his operation to the home workshop where he had worked for 10 years during his woodworking days.

    There, he creates dozens of hammocks each week from ropes in a variety of sizes. One day, he realized the step counter on his phone recorded him walking eight miles without ever leaving his shop.

    The process of weaving a hammock involves making and catching hundreds of loops (环). A single missed stitch (织针) creates a hole that can widen and make the hammock uncomfortable or even dangerous to use. Experienced weavers miss loops sometimes, but to his company's knowledge, Lenwood has never turned in a hammock with even one dropped stitch. Lenwood's skilled fingers are quick to catch and fix any mistakes.

    The company has acquired other brands and changed its name to The Hammock Source. Today, it is the world's largest maker and seller of hammocks, all built by hand.

    However, Lenwood's routine has changed little. He works his fingers back and forth across the rows, looping the rope and pulling it. With every hammock, Lenwood presents himself a perfect product. “I'm not sure how sighted people do it,” he admits.