“A photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically with asmart phone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website” is the definitionof “selfie” in the Oxford English Dictionary. In fact, it wasn't even in thedictionary until August of last year. It earned its place there because peopleare now so obsessed with (对……痴迷) selfies ─ wetake them when we try on a new hat, play with our pets or when we meet a friendwhom we haven't seen in a while.

But is there any scientific explanation for this obsession?Well, you should probably ask James Kilner, a neuroscientist(神经系统科学家) atUniversity College London.

Through our lifetime we become experts at recognizing andinterpreting other people's faces and facial expressions. In contrast,according to Kilner, we have a very poor understanding of our own faces sincewe have little experience of looking at them ─ we just feel them most of thetime.

This has been proved in previous studies, according to the BBC.

Kilner found that most people chose the more attractive picture.This suggests that we tend to think of ourselves as better-looking than weactually are. To further test how we actually perceive our own faces,Kilner carried out another study. He showed people different versions of theirown portrait ─ the original, one that had been edited to look less attractiveand one that was made more attractive ─ and asked them to pick the versionwhich they thought looked most like them. They chose the more attractiveversion.

But what does it say about selfies? Well, isn't that obvious?Selfies give us the power to create a photograph ─ by taking it from variousangles, with different poses, using filters (滤色镜) and so on ─that better matches our expectations with our actual faces.

“You suddenly have control in a way that you don't have innon-virtual(非虚拟的)interactions," Kilner told the Canada-based CTV News. Selfies allow you“to keep taking pictures until you manage to take one you're happy with”, heexplained.

    Homestay provides English language students the opportunity to speak English outside the classroom and the experience of being part of a British home.

    What to Expect

    The host will provide accommodation and meals. Rooms will be cleaned and bedcovers changed at least once a week. You will be given the house key and the host is there to offer help and advice as well as to take an interest in your physical and mental health.

    Accommodation Zones

    Homestays are located in London mainly in Zones 2, 3 and 4 of the transport system. Most hosts do not live in the town center as much of central London is commercial and not residential. Zones 3 and 4 often offer larger accommodation in a less crowded area. It is very convenient to travel in London by underground.

Meal Plans Available

*Continental Breakfast

*Breakfast and Dinner

*Breakfast Packed Lunch and Dinner

    It's important to note that few English families still provide a traditional cooked breakfast. Your accommodation includes Continental Breakfast which normally consists of fruit juice, cereal, bread and tea or coffee. Cheese, fruit and cold meat are not normally part of a Continental Breakfast in England. Dinners usually consist of meat or fish with vegetables followed by dessert, fruit and coffee.

Friends

    If you wish to invite a friend over to visit, you must first ask your host's permission. You have no right to entertain friends in a family home as some families feel it is an invasion(侵犯) of their privacy.

    Self Catering Accommodation in Private Homes

    Accommodation on a room-only basis includes shared kitchen and bathroom facilities (设施) and often a main living room. This kind of accommodation offers an independent lifestyle and is more suitable for the long-stay student. However, it does not provide the same family atmosphere as an ordinary homestay and may not benefit those who need to practice English at home quite as much.

    Young sunflowers turn and swing every day. New findings add to evidence that the plants are animal-like.

    Harmer, a professor in the University of California at Davis, Department of Plant Biology, carried out a series of experiments on sunflowers in the field, in pots outdoors and in indoor growth chambers.

    By staking plants so that they could not move, Harmer showed that he could destroy their ability to track the sun. He also noticed that sunflowers prevented from moving were not as tough and leafy as those that were free to move. When plants were moved indoor with a settled overhead light, they continued to swing back and forth for a few days.

    The indoor plants did start tracking the “sun” again when the apparent source of lighting was moved across the room. The plants could reliably track the movement and return at night when the artificial day was close to a 24-hour cycle, but not when it was closer to 30 hours.

    When sunflowers track the sun, the east sides of their stems grew more rapidly than the west sides. At night, the west sides grew faster as the stem swung the other way. The team identified a number of genes that were expressed at higher levels on the sunward side of the plant during the day or on the other side at night. A plant growth-regulating hormone (激素), called auxin, appears to be a key driver.

    The “dance” to the sun cycle obviously slows when the sunflower matures (成熟) and its flowers open up. At that point, the plants stop moving during the day and settle down facing the sun in the east.

    “Bees like warm flowers.” Harmer said, adding that the bees are cold-blooded, so landing on a warm flower saves them energy and perhaps feels really good.

    “The morning warmth changes the flowers in a way to make them more appealing to insects, perhaps causing them to release more attractive scents earlier in the day.” he said “We're currently testing this idea.”

    If you follow these insider tips, your photos will look like you had the place to yourself at the popular tourist attractions.

    Vatican Museums: Vatican City

    The Vatican draws more than five million people each year, and queues can reach four hours during peak season. Christie Hudson, senior communications manager at Expedia, recommends, choosing a skip-the-1ine tour. "This not only lets you avoid the ticket counter, but also includes the use of a private partner entrance." Extra time to visit the Sistine Chapel? Yes!

    Bamboo Forest: Kyoto, Japan

    Bamboo Forest is the most worthy sight in Kyoto. If you're longing to enjoy the pathways and take pictures in total quietness, Kyoto Arashiyama Travel Guide recommends hitting the famous Bamboo Grove Path as early in the morning as possible—think 7 a.m. if you're up for it. Don't miss these hidden treasures you can only witness in Japan.

    Chichen Itza: Yucatán, Mexico

    Home to E1 Castillo and the Temple of the Warriors, Chichen Itza is a must-see. Want to beat the rush? Schedule an early tour that takes place before a site opens to the public. Led by an archaeologist guide, it's full of fascinating insights and facts—without tons of pack-wearing tourists.

    Louvre Museum: Paris, France

    The Louvre is one of the most popular museums on the planet. If waiting around in line to get in isn't the way you prefer to spend your time in Paris, consider purchasing a reserved ticket. This will give you entry to the pyramid within a half-hour window. The Louvre is also open until 9:45 p. m. on Wednesdays and Fridays, if you're up for some late-night art visits.

    Reading books and looking at pictures is great, but nothing facilitates (促进) learning like travel, especially for teenagers. Not only do they get to see a world beyond their neighborhood, they also get to experience it, feel it, taste it, hear it and better understand the world around them.

    After nearly four decades in the classroom and traveling the world, Phyllis Duvall Bailey knew this perhaps better than anyone else.

    Becoming involved in the work in AKA Sorority Inc in US, she worked to educate children about the United Nations. There was no doubt in Bailey's mind that the lessons would mean so much more if the students could see things for themselves.

    Starting in 2015, Bailey, 82, set out to take her students to the UN Headquarters in New York City to give them a "Window Seat to the World", and thus transformed them into global citizens.

    Indeed, it is a great opportunity to give students national and international exposure. Since Bailey saw the students as future leaders, she was desperate to expose them to the UN, its mission, its agendas (议程) and its supporting organizations.

    She decided to give $10, 000 of her own money to pay for the late June trip, enough to take 10 students aged 14-17 on a four-night stay in New York. There, they had guided tours of the UN Headquarters and the New York City Harbor (海港).

    It was Quenyaun Payne's first trip to the city and Taylor Sappington's second. Payne, 17, is a senior at Mceachem High School in the state of Georgia, US. Sappington, 15, is a junior at Therrell High School in Atlanta, Georgia, US. Both said their visit to the UN was inspiring.

    "I like not only how countries are working together but they're focused on common goals like global warming and keeping peace," Sappington said.

Payne commented, "The trip was amazing. I'm so thankful Mrs. Bailey made it possible."

    Actually, there are a lot of people grateful for the retired teacher's effort. The United Nations Association of Atlanta recently gave Bailey its Humanitarian Award, and the United Nations Association of the US-awarded her with the National Education Award.

    But Bailey wasn't looking for recognition or even gratitude. Over those four days in New York, she'd already felt it and seen it in the eyes of those 10 teenagers, Payne and Sappington included, who made the trip.

    "It has been a real joy to get to see and watch their reaction to new experiences," she said.

    Yoga is an ancient physical and spiritual practice originating in India. The word '"yoga" comes from Sanskrit (梵文) and means to join or to unite, symbolizing the union of body and mind. Today it is practiced in various forms around the world and continues to grow in popularity. Recognizing its universal appeal, the United Nations declared 21 June as the International Day of Yoga in 2014 to raise awareness worldwide of the many benefits of practicing yoga.

    Yoga is an invaluable gift from an ancient tradition. It's not just about exercise but a way to discover the sense of oneness with yourself nature and the world. There is no written record of who invented yoga. Yoga practitioners (从业者) passed down the principles to their students. The earliest written record of yoga is generally believed to have been written by Patanjali, an Indian master who lived somewhere between 2,000 and 2,500 years ago.

    Various yoga types give you multiple choices. Hatha yoga is the most widely practiced type and is excellent for beginners. It is gentle with slow and smooth movements. Kundalini yoga combines a singing session besides body and mental control. Bikram yoga is practiced in a heated room. It is to loosen muscles and to sweat to clean the body and remove symptoms of disease and pain. Ashtanga yoga is taught as a difficult workout where you move quickly from one gesture to another to build strength and patience.

    In recent years, the World Health Organization has urged countries to help their citizens reduce physical inactivity, which is among the top ten leading causes of death worldwide, and a key risk factor for non-communicable diseases, such as cancer and diabetes. Yoga is a proper exercise. It is known for its ability to ease stress and anxiety. It may also help reduce several risk factors for heart diseases and promote a better sleep.