Online shopping has become more and more popular these years. Women have jumped ahead of men for the first time in using the Internet to do their holiday shopping, according to a study published last week in the US.

    For years men have been more likely to shop on the Internet than women, but during the 2013 holiday season 58 percent of those shopping online were women.

    “It shows how popular the Internet is becoming,” said Lee Rainie, director of the Pew Internet and American Life Project group, which carried out the study. Rainie said it was only a matter of time before women shoppers caught up with men. This is because women traditionally make decisions about spending.

    Users were more likely to shop online to save time. Internet users between the ages 18 and 29 were responsible for some of the surprising increase in the online gift-buying population this time around.

    However, three-quarters of the US Internet users did not buy holiday gifts online in 2013. They worried about credit card security(信用卡安全), or just compared online prices with off-line prices, then dashed off to the shops to get the best deals.

    “But even if shoppers don't buy online, websites are becoming promotion(促销) tools for stores,” said Dan Hess' vice president of Com Score Network Inc. Hess said that actually most stores, websites can make customers fully believe the security of their credit card numbers. And most are able to ensure that gifts arrive on time.

    “It's all about making the shopping experience more efficient(效率高的), more reliable and more comfortable.” Hess said.

    Years ago, the American writer Kurt Vonnegut often said there was one story that would always make a million dollars: Cinderella.

    Cinderella made more like $ 70 million in ticket sales when it opened last weekend. But the movie got a mixed reaction. David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter praised the movie and said, “Anyone will find something to enjoy in it.” Steven Rea of The Philadelphia Inquirer called the movie “a winning re-do”. Richard Corliss of Time magazine wrote that “Disney finally got Cinderella right. ” Other people were not as happy with the movie. Sara Stewart of the New York Post wrote, “This Cinderella is all dressed up with nowhere very interesting to go.”

    Although different people think differently towards the movie, what is clear, however, is the movie's business success. It is not only popular in the theaters but also in sales. And Disney has widened its usual market for Cinderella products.

    There are products connected to the Disney movie targeted (面向) not only at little girls, but women, too. For example, the famous shoe designer Jimmy Choo worked with Disney to create Cinderella's shoes”. You can buy them for about $ 5,000. At that price, you would not want to lose one at the party, even if that is the way you get your prince (王子).

    The make-up (化妆品) company MAC quickly sold all its products connected to Cinderella. HSN is a popular website selling clothing and objects for the home. The marketer is now also selling Cinderella products.

    So, is there anything left for the children, those people we think of as the traditional audience (观众) for the age-old tale? Yes, you can find toys and other children's products at the American store JCPenney. Of course, you can also visit a Disney store.

    Shenzhen is a shopping paradise for visitors. Following is a list of the most popular shopping areas in the city.

    North Huaqiang Area

    The most prosperous shopping area in Shenzhen, it is home to dozens of market places for electronic products, home appliances, timepieces, clothing and jewelry. Some market places each house hundreds of shops, from flagship stores selling big brands to small boutiques where you can bargain.

    It is also a great place to dine, with plenty of restaurants offering various Chinese cuisines and foreign brands like Pizza Hut, Hagen Dazs and AijiSen.

    Dongmen Area

    One of the oldest commercial centers in Shenzhen, this area highlights a walking street flanked by humming stores. It is a good place to buy clothes, handbags, fashion accessories, jewelry, handicrafts, toys and small electronic gadgets.

    MixC Shopping Mall

    It is the city's largest shopping mall and one of the most luxurious, selling clothes, cosmetics and fashion accessories.  There is a large indoor ice skating rink, a movie theater and a super market selling many imported goods. You can also find quite a few foreign restaurant brands here, including Pizza Hut, Starbucks and a Japanese noodle house.

    Shekou

    Sitting by a beautiful cove in western Nanshan District, this quiet place is frequented by many expatriates living in Shenzhen. There are stores selling antiques, collectibles, handicrafts and souvenirs, as well as bars and restaurants offering Western food.

    (CNN) — A 12 -year-old girl who had a feeling that she might be quite clever has taken a test and proved she was absolutely right.

    Lydia Sebastian achieved the top score of 162 on Mensa's Cattell III B paper, showing she has a higher IQ than well-known geniuses Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking. The comparison doesn't sit well with the British student, who's currently in Year 8 at a selective girl's grammar school in Essex, England.

    "I don't think I can be compared to such great intellectuals as Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking. They've achieved so much. I don't think it's right," Lydia told CNN.

To explain Lydia's mark's level, the top adult score in the Cattell III B test, which mainly tests verbal(语言) reasoning, is 161. A top 2% score — which allows entry to Mensa, the club for those with high IQs — would be 148 or over. Lydia scored 162, placing her in the top 1% of the population.

    Lydia's not quite sure what she wants to do when she leaves school, although she's leaning toward something "based on Maths, because it's one of my favorite subjects." "All I'm going to do is work as hard as I can, and see where that gets me," she said.

    When we talk about famous UK writer Agatha Christie, it seems that her famous detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple are must-reads. So, of course, are her best-selling novels Murder on the Orient Express (1934) and Death on the Nile (1937).

But when the readers around the world were asked to name their favorite Christie novel to mark her 125th birthday on Sept 15, And Then There Were None (1939) topped the list, reported The Guardian.

    It may surprise you to learn that it is a crime novel without a detective. What it does have is suspense (n.悬念) and a very sinister (adj.邪恶的) atmosphere. It is “on a knife edge”, as Mathew Prichard, Christie's grandson, told the newspaper.

    Ten people get an invitation to come to a house on a small island near Devon in South West England. Nobody refuses these invitations since each one promises something the person wants: a job, a holiday, a chance to meet up again with an old friend.

    These people are all responsible for deaths. Some are directly responsible, others are responsible because of what they did not do. Anthony James Marston, for instance, killed two children while driving dangerously. He did not feel guilty and actually complained when he was banned from driving. Another, Emily Caroline Brent, is a harsh person who threw out a young servant for becoming pregnant while unmarried. The servant later killed herself.

    When they arrive at the house they are played a recording. The voice gives details of the wrongdoing of each of the guests. Starting with Marston, each is killed in a way that fits their crime. The series of deaths is completed with a hanging, “and then there were none”, as the title suggests.

    Christie can be quite a predictable writer. Some of her stories are a little unoriginal. But this book is full of clever writing. Look it up to find out what this hugely successful mystery writer, the “Queen of Crime” as she was called, could do at her best.

    Lily went to London with her parents for a two-week vacation. She sent postcards to her friends.