If you like texting and are trying to lose weight, a new study found that using texting(发短信) to track diet and exercise habits may help you lose weight.

    Previous research has shown that keeping food and exercise diaries improves the likelihood of success when you are using it to lose weight. Using a computer or a pen and paper to record information, however, can be a burden and cause some people to give up.

    Duke University researchers said using text messages to track eating and exercise habits can save time, and increase the chances that people will stick with their weight-loss rules.

    The study included 26 obese/fat women with an average age of 38. The women used daily texting as part of their weight-loss program. The text messages focused on tracking personalized goals, such as avoiding sugary drinks or walking 10,000 steps a day. Messages also provided brief feedback (反馈) and tips.

    Every morning, the women received a text from an automated system that said, “Please text yesterday's personal information of steps you walked and how many sugary drinks you had.” Based on the women's responses to the text message, the system sent another text with personalized feedback and tips.

    After six months, the women who used daily texting lost an average of nearly 3 pounds, while another group of women who used traditional methods to keep food and exercise diaries gained an average of 2.5 pounds, according to the study, which was published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research.

    “Text messaging has become popular and may be an effective method to simplify tracking of diet and exercise behavior,” Dori Steinberg, who was responsible for this research, said.

    Steinberg said, “Text messaging offers several advantages compared to other self-monitoring methods. Unlike web-based diet and exercise diaries, data in a text message can be entered quickly on nearly all cell phone platforms so it is very convenient to receive feedback. Besides, because of the limited number of words used in text messages, it saves time.”

                                                                        Bangkok Transportation Public buses

    The Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) is charged with providing bus service to people living and working in Bangkok and the nearby provinces. As of February, 2005, the BMTA operated a total of 113 routes, served by 3,526 buses, of which 1,665 were regular buses and 1,861 air-conditioned buses. There were also privately-owned buses operated under the BMTA with a total of 3,535 regular and air-conditioned buses and 1, 067 minibuses including 2,325 small buses which provide services in lanes. An average of 3.4 million people use these services daily.

    Types of Buses and Fares

Fare Exemptions

The following passengers are eligible for bus fare exemptions：

⒈BMTA bus inspectors

⒉Mailmen in uniform while on duty

⒊Holders of BMTA employee ID cards

    Half-Price Concessions

    The following passengers are eligible for half-price fares when using the service of regular buses.

⒈The blind with a certificate from the Association of the Blind

⒉Soldiers and policemen in uniform

⒊Holders of official certificates or medals as specified by the Regulation on Bus Fare

    Fare Concessions for Air-conditioned Buses

    Holders of the following official certificates and medals are eligible for air-conditioned bus fare reductions.

⒈Victory Medal(Off-spring of this medal are also entitled)

⒉Border Service Medal

⒊Free-Mall Protection Medal

⒋European Royal War Medal

⒌Non-active War Veterans Classes 1 2 3 and 4

⒍BTMA Employee ID cards

    Search for bus route here

    @Bangkok Tourism Division

    Daily physical activity is an important part of a healthy lifestyle. For this reason, many architects and designers are working to create buildings that encourage people to make exercise a part of their ordinary routine. The movement to promote healthy activity through architecture is called active design. It began in 1998 as part of a university public health program, and it has since gained popularity in cities around the world. Active design uses a number of techniques to encourage the occupants of a building to be more active.

    One of the most important strategies of active design is inspiring people to make walking part of their routine. A particularly successful tool for promoting walking is the skip-stop elevator. These elevators stop only on every second or third floor, leaving riders to take the stairs in order to reach their destination. Another strategy of active design is to make stairs more pleasant and inviting. Instead of creating dark stairwells that are located in isolated parts of buildings, active design uses well-lit and centrally placed stairs to encourage more foot traffic. Skip-stop elevators and appealing stair design are both effective tools of active design because they offer incentive and opportunity for exercise. In fact, researchers studying a building that employs both skip-stop elevators and more attractive stair design said that 70 percent of building occupants reported using the stairs every day.

    Active design encourages physical activity using not only the interior features of a building, but the relationship between a building and its surroundings as well. A building that employs active design may integrate outdoor space in order to make the environment more engaging and promote physical activity. Some elements that architects use to incorporate the exterior with the interior are glass walls, interior gardens or park spaces, and courtyards with open ceilings, all of which de-emphasize the boundaries between inside and outside. These elements make the building more physically and mentally invigorating. Similarly, by increasing the number of entrances and exits to a building, architects can help keep a building's users interested in their surroundings by providing a variety of routes for them to use. If people continue to be stimulated by new sights or experiences, they are less likely to choose the quickest and easiest path to their destination and may instead choose a more physically challenging route.

    Directions Choose a book from the list below and bring it to class by the due date. You will have approximately one trimester，from September 14 to November 16，to read the book and complete your report. It is okay to switch your book if you do not like your original choice. Students are encouraged to check out the book of their choice from the public library.

    The purchase of a book is optional.

    We all carry fear, and accepting the type of fear you carry is the first step in punishing past it. So, here's a breakdown of the fear archetypes(典型) and how to make them work for you. We also invited Dr. Alicia Hodge to give us her feedback in a few of them.

    The procrastinator(拖延症患者)

    The procrastinators often obsess(痴迷于) over the outcome of whatever they're doing and insist on it being perfect. Because of this, they tend to spend too much time planning and researching instead of simply diving in.

    For procrastinators, it's important to push past that fear of starting. Hodge suggests setting a deadline for when your planning and researching period will end and when you'll actually get started.

    The people pleaser

    Those who have the people-pleaser archetype struggle with the fear of being judged and worry most about disappointing others. They have a hard time setting clear boundaries and saying "no."

    "Having boundaries often sounds scary to someone who is used to putting others first" Hodge says. "Remind yourself that you deserve to be prioritized, just as much as other people in your life."

    The self-doubter

    This archetype is dominated by the fear of not being good enough, those who self-doubt tend to feel not confident about their capabilities.

    A good way to overcome self-doubt is to step outside your comfort zone every once in a while – and take note of the outcome. Practice being proactive about your life, you'll be surprised to see just how much you are capable of.

Foldable phones are once again facing questions about their durability(耐久性).The Galaxy Z Flip and the Motorola Razr are now both available to buy in the US-but early reports suggest the screens are easily damaged.

One media published photos of two layers of the Razr's display separating, affecting the touch screen. The Galaxy flip, meanwhile, boasts(自夸)a "flexible glass" display—but tests appear to show it scratching(刮擦)as easily as plastic.

In a statement, Samsung said the display had a protective layer, and had undergone extensive testing. "While the display does bend, it should be handled with care, "it said.

The Z Flip's "pretty thin glass" is one of Samsung's primary marketing messages for the new phone. But a durability test conducted by popular Zack Nelson, a regular buyer, suggested it was no more durable than soft plastic screen, and could even be dented(痕)by fingernail.

Nelson said Samsung's screen scratched exactly how plastic screen would react. "I don't know what material this is, but Samsung definitely shouldn't be calling it glass," he said. He found that the screen of the Motorola Razr scratched as easily but it is not marketed as "glass".

The Motorola Razr was put on sale 13 days ago in the US, but Raymond Wong, an editor says the flexible screen on his handset has already broken. The upper layer of the Razr's screen separated from the bottom, creating "a giant horizontal air bubble" for no apparent reason. He wrote that the fault appeared after 45-minute train ride during which the phone was in his pocket. The screen was completely warped from hinge-to-hinge with the top layer raised like a poorly applied screen protector. But Mr. Wong said that apart from the visual problem, the damage has affected the responsiveness of the touchscreen.