Where Is Spring Break

    Where is Spring Break going to be? The options are endless. Do you want to get your blood pumping from thrilling travels? Look no further! These tours and destinations will keep you on your toes all week long.

    Panama: This underrated destination is a little-known secret of the most travelers! Through this tour you'll get to hike, snorkel (浮潜) and explore all the best sights this beautiful country has to offer! Eight days tours for $ 250 / day.

    Canada: This diverse country is full of options. Explore the East of Canada and visit cities such as Montreal, Quebec or Toronto. If you're feeling adventurous, explore the Western part of the country with a Canadian Rockies Tour. During this twelve days tour you will hike a glacier to beautiful scenery and wander through postcard-worthy villages. Tours to Canada for $200 / day.

    Iceland: Check off one of the seven wonders of the world with a tour of the Northern Lights and Golden Circle. Spend seven days full of adventure like hiking glaciers, snowshoeing through Thingvellir National Park, relaxing in the Geysir Hot Springs and of course experiencing the glory of the Northern Lights! Seven days tours for $ 300 / day.

    South Africa: Discover the diverse culture and wildlife that makes up South Africa. Your tour plan includes a journey along the coast known as “Rainbow Nation.” Here you will enjoy beautiful scenery, a hunting travel through Addo Elephant National Park and the wildlife in Tsitsikarnma National Park. Nine days tours for $230 / day.

    Welcome to Reading Museum's Hands – on Learning service

    Reading Museum has been offering learning opportunities to schools for over 100 years, and with your support we hope to continue this tradition for the next 100 years.

    SESSIONS AT READING MUSEUM

    Victorian Schoolroom

    The session takes place in a superb reconstruction of a schoolroom in a late nineteenth century Board School. The children will experience a range of Victorian style lessons and use slate boards and dip pens. The session leader plays the role of a Victorian teacher but will come out of the role during the session the reassure the children. We supply costume for all children.

    Victorian Toys

    Our Victorian nanny delivers this interesting session. The nanny will help children to explore the differences between rich and poor children's toys from the past. During the session the children have the opportunity to make a toy to take home.

    Victorian Christmas

    In a specially decorated room the children will find out how the Victorians introduced many of our Christmas customs. They will make a simple card or present to take home and take part in a mini pantomime.

    HOW TO BOOK AN EDUCATIONAL VISIT

    For up to date prices and session details, please visit our website www.readingmuseum.org.uk/schools/sessions/

    For all session bookings please phone us on 01189373400. We ask that you book at least 4 weeks in advance. Please be ready to tell us when you wish to come, the session(s) you wish to book and the year group of pupils.

Our sessions take place between 10:00 and 12:00 or 12:30 and 14:30.

    The maximum group size is 35 pupils. We recommend that you bring 5 adults for each group.

    Time for an adventure?

    Are you a bit bored with your nine-to-five routine? Have a look at our exciting range of holidays and decide what type of adventure you'd like.

    Activity holidays

    Our activity holidays are for everyone, people who love danger or who just like sports. We have a huge variety of water, snow or desert holidays. We'll take you SCBA diving in the Red Sea or kayaking and white water rafting in Canada. If you prefer snow, you can try skiing or snowboarding in the. Alps or even igloo building. For those who like warmer weather, we also have sandboarding (the desert version of skateboarding) or camel safaris.

Polar expeditions

    Take an expedition to Antarctica or the northern Arctic; explore a land of white natural beauty and wonderful wildlife. Our experts will explain everything about the two poles as you watch the penguins in Antarctica or whales and polar bears in the Arctic, There's no greater adventure than travelling to the ends of the earth. A once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Cultural journeys

    Our cultural journeys will help you discover ancient civilizations: India, Thailand, Egypt and many more. Visit temples, palaces and ancient ruins—just remember to bring your camera! Get to know local ways of life by exploring markets, trying exotic foods and meeting local people.

Wildlife holidays

    We organize small - group tours to get closer to nature in Africa, Asia or South America. Go on safari in Africa and watch lions and giraffes. Meet the famous turtles off the Galapagos Islands, Look for tigers in India, or take an elephant safari in Sri Lanka. We use local guides and stay in a range of accommodation, from tents to tree houses.

    In America, the number of people killed in car crashes in 2016 was above 40, 000 for the first time in a decade, data released on Wednesday shows.

    "Americans believe there is nothing we can do to stop crashes from happening, but that isn't true. We are behind the rest of the developed world in addressing highway fatalities(死亡). We just haven't been willing to do what needs to be done, "said Deborah A. P. Hersman, president of the National Safety Council.

    The National Safety Council data shows a 6 percent increase in deaths in 2018 when compared with 2015 and a 3 percent increase in the number of miles Americana drove in 2016.

    "Motor vehicle fatality numbers have been ringing the alarm for two years, "Hersman said." Unfortunately, we have been blind to the data and the killings on our roadways. If we fail to take action, the death tell will continue to rise. "

    "The trend is clear：After years of progress, highway deaths are heading in the wrong direction, "said Jonathan Adkins, a state safety official.

    The number of people killed reached a record low of 32, 675 in 2014, according to NHTSA statistics. That record followed a fairly steady downward track for the past six years that experts attributed it primarily to safety features that have been built into cars and trucks.

    Safety advances including increased seat-belt use, air bags, anti-lock braking, stability controls and electronic warnings and cameras.

    The bad economy and high gas prices also influenced the reduction in deaths. Now, with unemployment and gas prices both low, more people are driving for work and pleasure trips.

    "It's not just that Americans drive more miles when the economy improves; it's the kind of miles they drive,"said Adrian Lund, president of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

    The annual World Economic Forum took place in Davos, Switzerland, in Jan. 23-26, 2018. What did Chinese entrepreneurs(企业家)speak in the forum? Are there some quotable quotes for you?

    ★Jack Ma, founder and executive chairman of Alibaba Group

    "I think globalization cannot be stopped — no one can stop globalization, no one can stop trade. If trade stops, the world stops. Trade is the way to dissolve (结束) the war not cause the war," said Ma in Davos, "Google, Facebook, Amazon and Alibaba — we are the luckiest companies of this century. But we have the responsibility to have a good heart, and do something good."

    ★Richard Liu, founder and chief executive officer of JD

    "Business is not only a way to make money but also a way to contribute yourself, to help people," Liu said in a speech in Davos. "How can we face the fractured (分化的) world? That's the topics of the Davos this year. I think a very important thing in business is cooperation. If we can unite, work together, if we work very closely, I think we can bring more hope to the people and we can build more trust between the people, countries and companies and partners," he said.

    ★Jane Sun, CEO of Ctrip

    "Tourism is a sunrise industry. Since I entered Ctrip, every year there are new comers, which, first of all, shows that tourism is booming." Sun told Sina.com in Davos. "We invested heavily in ABC.A refers to AI, B is big data, and C is cloud computing. As we continue to expand overseas, these three will be very good weapons for us. So we think those mean opportunity," she said.

    ★Hu Xiaoming, president of Aliyun

    "In 2018, people will see the development in various countries more closely connected with cloud computing. More manufacturing enterprises and financial institutions will start to use 'cloud', and cloud computing will increase the efficiency of technology and finance," Hu told Xinhua in Davos.

We all know how it feels to get lost in a great book. But what's happening in our brains as we dive into it? How is it different from what happens as we experience real life? Now, a new study led by Dr Leila Wehbe and Dr Tom Mitehell of Carnegie Mellon University have provided partial answers to these questions. 

Since reading comprehension is a highly complex process, earlier studies tried to break that process down and focus on just one aspect at a time: mapping fMRI signatures（特征）associated with processing a single word or sentence, for example. "It's usually not like reading a book, and usually the stimulus（刺激物）consists of out-of-context sentences designed specifically for the experiment"

To address these issues, the researchers developed a computer program to look for patterns of brain activity that appeared when people read certain words, specific grammatical structures, particular characters" names and other aspects of the story—a total of 195 different "story features". In the study, they first asked eight volunteers to read Chapter 9 of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and recorded their brain activity using an fMRI scanner（扫描仪）. Then the researchers fed the volunteers' fMRI data into their computer program and had the program identify the responses of different brain regions to the 195 features mentioned above. 

The result showed that when the volunteers read descriptions of physical movement in the story, there was significantly increased activity in the posterior temporal cortex, the region involved in perceiving real-world movement. Besides dialogue was specifically related with the right temporoparietal junction, a key area involved in imagining others thoughts and goals. "This is truly shocking for us as these regions aren't even considered to be part of the brain's language system," Wehbe says. 

Next, Wehbe and Mitchell hope to study how and why language processing can go wrong. "If we have a large enough amount of data", Wehbe says, "we could find the specific ways in which one brain—for example, the brain of a dyslexic（诵读困难的）person—is performing differently from other brains." And this, the researchers think, may someday help us design individually tailored（特制的）treatments for dyslexia and other reading disorders.