Buy One Give One

    Buy One Give One (BIG1) is a Singapore-based business and non-profit organization with a job to create a world full of giving. We help businesses around the world give back in meaningful ways so that they can create measurable and long-lasting influence. Since 2007, we have worked with more than 1,600 businesses creating more than 88 million giving activities.

    Our business allows consumers, who may feel disconnected from the problems of the developing world, to become involved in social problems while still purchasing (购买)tor themselves. For example, shoe brands like TOMS promise to donate one pair of shoes for every pair purchased. Soapbox gives soap to a needy child with every purchase. Watch company WeWood plants a tree every time you buy a watch. They have helped socially-conscious consumers purchase products and feel good about providing help to others.

    See what some of our members say about being a part of BIG1.

    *Karen Ormerod

    Every product purchased at our store influences the lives of disadvantaged people in the world. I had never imagined I would be operating a business that could change people's lives. We are making a real difference by just doing what normally do. It is a wonderful experience.

    *Ben Baker

    What a good way of giving resources to where they need to be giving people the gifts of giving, and adding value to organizations along the wav. We have already made 160,000 giving activities through BIGI. Giving has become a necessary part of our everyday business. It's truly brilliant.

    BIGI focuses on the influence of giving on people's lives rather than simply the amounts donated. Our programs stress giving habitually in order to create growing influence around the world. When you join the BIGI giving program, you create your own unique giving stories.

    We do hope you can become a member of us!

    Four days after Dad's 67th birthday, he had a heart attack. Luckily, he survived. But something inside him had died. His enthusiasm for life was gone. He refused to follow doctor's orders, and his sour attitude made everyone upset when they visit him. Dad was left alone.

    So I asked Dad to come to live with me on my small farm, hoping the fresh air would help him adjust. Within a week after he moved in, I regretted the invitation. He criticized everything I did. I became frustrated. Something had to be done.

    One day I read an article which said when given dogs, depressed patients would be better off. So I drove to the animal shelter that afternoon. As soon as I got there, a pointer's eyes caught my attention. They watched me calmly.

    A staff member said: “He got here two weeks ago and we've heard nothing. His time is up tomorrow.”

    I turned to the man in horror. “You mean you're going to kill him?”

    “Ma'am,” he said gently. “We don't have room for every unclaimed dog.”

    The staff member's calm brown eyes awaited my decision. “I'll take him,” I said.

    I drove home with the dog on the front seat beside me. I was helping it out of the car when Dad walked onto the front porch. “Look what I got you!” I said excitedly.

    Dad wrinkled his face. “I don't want it,” he muttered, turning back towards the house. Then, suddenly, the dog pulled free from my grasp. He sat down in front of my Dad.

    Dad's anger melted, and soon he was hugging the dog.

    This was the beginning of a warm friendship. Dad named the dog Cheyenne. Together they spent long hours walking down dusty lanes and relaxing on the banks of streams.

    Dad's bitterness faded, and he and Cheyenne went on to make many friends. Then, late one night two years later, I felt Cheyenne's cold nose burrowing(搜寻) through my bed covers. He had never before come into my bedroom at night. I ran into my father's room and found that he had passed away.

    Two days later, my shock and grief deepened when I discovered Cheyenne lying dead beside Dad's bed. As I buried him near their favorite stream, I silently thanked the dog for restoring Dad's peace of mind.

    Science is always advancing over time. A self-driving car from the Google may be coming to a street near you. However, you won't be able to buy it now. “We're working to build the world's most experienced driver,” Kraft, director of the project, said. “Everything that we learn in one of our cars gets passed to all of our cars. But you may need to get over the idea of traditional car ownership along the way.”

    Google's software has already driven 5 million miles in U.S. cities, including an “early rider” test in Phoenix last April. Since then Google has grown confident enough to remove the “auxiliary wheel”: a human “safety driver”. Powering the vehicle's self-driving functions is a series of cameras, radars and sensors on the car's roof, which detect everything nearby from other vehicles and passers-by to cyclists.

    Kraft stressed that Google's cars aren't connected—they don't need a 5G wireless link to go anywhere. “The car has everything it needs to drive on the car itself.” He said, “There are no signals coming from outer space or something telling it to turn right.” The resulting ride may not be too exciting but safe. Kraft added. “We can see three football fields down the road, we would come to a stop before we ran into these crowds.”

    Google's system has a major advantage over the semi-autonomous（半自主的）systems of Tesla and Cadillac, both of which need continued human attention. Kraft said Google plans to have service in every major city by 2028 with thousands of cars driving themselves.

    My senior year of high school was a very hectic one, to say the least. If I wasn't studying or worrying about my grades, I was working on after-class activities. It seemed as if my life had turned into one crazy cloud of confusion and I hoped to find some sort of direction.

    Finally, I got a part-time job at the local coffee shop. I had thought it would be easy and, for the most part, stress-free. I pictured myself pouring coffee and becoming close friends with my customers.

    What I hadn't expected was the people with so many orders. There were moments when I was very angry simply because I couldn't seem to please anyone. There was always too much sugar, too little ice, or not enough skim milk. However, I kept at it.

    One day, one of my customers came in, depressed. Before he left, I handed him a bag along with his iced coffee. He looked at me questioningly because he hadn't ordered anything but the coffee. He opened the bag and saw his favorite doughnut (甜甜圈) I had given him. He smiled and thanked me before heading out into the rain.

    The next evening, he came. Instead of ordering something, he handed me a single pink rose and a note.

    “Thanks for being so sweet and thoughtful yesterday. It is so nice to meet someone who's warm and unselfish. Please don't change your ways because I truly believe that you will do better. Have a great day!”

    As time went on, I did come across some customers really particular. But anytime I felt depressed, I thought of that man and his kindness. Then I would smile, hold my head up high, clear my throat and ask politely, “How can I help you?”

    Most dog owners believe their dogs experience guilt, but animal behaviorists say the "guilty look" of a dog is simply a reaction to you and that dogs lack the ability to feel shame.

    Alexandra Horowitz, a psychology professor and principal investigator at the Horowitz Dog Cognition Lab at Columbia University once carried out a study on dog "guilt". She videotaped 14 dogs in a series of trials and observed how they reacted when their owners left the room after instructing them not to eat a treat. When the owner was gone, Horowitz gave some of the dogs the forbidden treat. Then she would tell the owners whether their dogs had eaten the treat or had behaved. However, Horowitz wasn't always honest with them.

    Horowitz found that the dogs' "guilty looks" had little to do with whether they'd eaten the treat or not. In fact, dogs that hadn't eaten it but were scolded by misinformed owners tended to exhibit the most elements of the "guilty look".

Horowitz says this shows that the dogs' body language is actually a response to their owner's behavior—not an experience of shame for a misdeed. Why then, do dogs look so ashamed when we scold them?

Maybe that look of guilt is the result of a learned association. When you scold your dog for chewing up a pair of slippers, he quickly learns that if he lowers his head and tucks his tail, the undesirable response—raised voice and angry expression—is more likely to disappear.

    Technology makes listening to holiday music easier than ever. There are endless sources to help you find your favorite Christmas tunes and many other songs. People have explored how to listen to holiday music with high-tech devices (设备).

    Apple Music

    This is the first year you can use Apple Music to listen to holiday songs. Apple  Music has more than 30 million songs and is available (可获得的) in over 100 countries.

    Tell voice assistant Siri to "play holiday music" to open the music program on your iPhone, iPad or Apple TV. Have an Android phone? Apple Music app is available in the Google Play store, but not with a voice assistant. For the first three months, you can use it for free. After that, users have to pay a subscription (订购) fee.

    Google Play Music

    Google Play Music is also in the holiday spirit. Go to the Google Play Music Holiday page and search for "holiday music."

    Google Play Music is available for free if you don't mind the advertisements. If you do, buy a paid subscription to avoid them. Google Play Music offers more than 30 million songs from 58 countries.

    Tune In Radio

    Listen to radio stations with Tune In Radio. This is an online service and offers stations from all seven continents in the world, including Antarctica. Tune In Radio is available on your computer and is free to online users. In the United States, Britain and Canada, a paid subscription gives you more stations without advertisements.

    If you want to know more, please click here.