Idema, a Dutch Sinologist（汉学家）, has served as the director of the Chinese Languages and Cultures Department at Leiden University of the Netherlands and was also director of Harvard's Fairbank Center for East Asian Research.He has studied ancient Chinese plays, novels and literature, and has authored or translated a number of influential books published in English and other languages.

    The 70-year-old Dutch Sinologist recalled his half-century-long romance with Chinese culture during a recent visit to Beijing.As a child,the vivid descriptions of China in Nobel and Pulitzer Prize-winner Pearl S.Buck's books sparked Idema's interest in the country.He later read classic Chinese literature and spent whole days pouring through works at the National Library of China.

    While many other experts on China focused on the country's economic transformation, Idema continued to study traditional Chinese literature."There were scholars studying law, religion and society, but not traditional Chinese literature,which was my personal interest," Idema explains.

    Finding reference books for his research,especially regional publications,used to be a huge challenge,and Idema used to spend a lot of time collecting books and other materials during visits to China.Now it is much more convenient with the Internet.

    Idema usually chooses less-known subjects for his research and tries to get firsthand materials.In recent years, he has devoted himself to translating Chinese folk tales and writing about Chinese folk society and folk culture.

    "Traditional Chinese culture is a passion.I have been studying it for 50 years and will continue to do so,"says the retired professor.

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    Some people have the feeling that nothing can be done about their poor reading ability(能力）. They feel hopeless about it. Can you learn to read better or must you agree that nothing can be done about it?

    To be sure, people are different. You cannot to do everything as well as certain other people do. All the students in a class tried out for basketball, some would be very good players; others would be very poor; and many would be in between. But even the very poor players can become much better players if they are guided in the right way, and with plenty of practice. It is the same with reading. Some seem to enjoy reading and to read well without any special help. Others find reading a slow and tiring job. In between, there are all degrees of reading ability.

    Many experiments have shown that just about every poor reader can improve his reading ability. In these experiments, the poor readers were given tests of reading ability. After some of the causes of their poor reading were discovered, they were given special instruction and practice in reading. After a few months, another test of the same kind was given. In nearly all cases, these people had raised their reading scores.

    Next time you raise an eyebrow at the views of your partner, friend, sibling （兄弟姐妹） or colleague, remember they could be helping to make you smarter. New research shows that intelligence is not fixed but can be improved throughout adulthood by family members, bright mates and intellectually challenging careers. The study challenges the commonly held belief that intelligence is fixed by the age of about 18.

    Scientific consensus suggests that intelligence is controlled by genes, with environmental factors such as schooling and nutrition playing a partial role up to this age. After this point, IQ scores become steady（稳定的）. But James Flynn, professor of political studies and psychology at the University of Otago in New Zealand, argues that people can "upgrade" their own intelligence throughout their lives. He believes intellectual stimulation（刺激）from others is important as the "brain seems to be rather like a muscle - the more you use it, the stronger it gets". However, the opposite is also true - so people sharing a home or workplace with those who are intellectually challenged risk seeing their IQ levels nosedive as a result.

    Professor Flynn analyzed US intelligence tests from the last 65 years and created new IQ "age tables". He found a bright ten-year-old with brothers and sisters of average intelligence will suffer a five to ten point IQ disadvantage compared to a similar child with equally bright brothers and sisters and special educational treatment to help pull them up.

    Professor Flynn also concluded that although genetics and early life experiences determine about 80% of intelligence, the remaining 20% is linked to lifestyle. This means that people can raise their IQ, or allow it to fall, by ten points or more. He suggested the best way to improve IQ levels is to mix with bright friends, find an intellectually challenging job and marry someone cleverer.

    You can tell a lot about a country by what's on its television sets. Britain's TV screens are completely steeped in class, and have long been so.

    From laughing at poor people in reality shows to laughing at posh people in Downton Abbey, this is how Britain likes to unwind in the evening: by laughing at other classes, and laughing at people for laughing about class.

    Like it or loathe it, many see the class system as a quite essential element of British life, together with our obsession for tea and cake and talking about the weather.

    Whether you are a lord, a lady, or just the king of your own middle class kingdom, everyone in the UK fits into the class system. How the class system works is a hard question even for a British person to answer.

    There are four main groups in the British class system: lower, working, middle and upper class. Although recently the BBC has tried to confuse everyone even more by adding three more categories.

    The British are very aware of class; it is often said that we have an in-built 'class radar'; we pick up on subtle social clues which indicate which class a person comes from. Class is not just about your job, where you live and how much you earn. It's about who you are.

    The Franklin Institute is one of the oldest and most beloved science museums in the United States.

    Why visit

    In 1824, the Franklin Institute opened in Independence Hall in memory of Benjamin Franklin and his scientific achievements. In 1934, with the construction of the current building and the nearby Eels Planetarium, it became a hands-on science museum.

    Today, it holds the distinction (荣誉) of being Pennsylvania's most visited museum. In the museum's rotunda (圆形厅), a 20 foot-tall marhle statue pays respect to the Founding Father and famous scientist.

    Must-See

    While the entire museum offers interactive (交互式的) fun, highlights include the high-tech Your Brain exhibits (展品), which offers a glimpse into the inner workings of the human brain; Sports Zone, which focuses on the scientific aspects of sports; Two Escape Rooms, where participants solve puzzles and riddles before lime runs out; and the on site Virtual Reality Demonstration Space.

    Pricing

    General Admission to the Franklin Institute includes access to three floors of hands-on science exhibits including permanent (永久的) interactive exhibits, Live Science programs, the Joel N. Bloom Observatory, and one show in the Fels Planetarium. Discounts are given for groups of 15 or more.

    To buy tickets, please click the ticket price to be directed to our online ticketing page where all the ticket prices are available. If you prefer to order tickets over the phone, please call 215-448 1200 (9: 00 a. m.—5: 00 p. m.)

    Member Tickets

    Members of the Franklin Institute receive exclusive (独有的) ticketing benefits, including discounted prices and no service fees. Please select your Membership level before buying member tickets.

Norwegians would perhaps highlight their custom of "gå på tur"— going on a journey on foot or on skis. In Denmark, everyone knows what "hygge" is — to freely enjoy the good life with the people you love. They're the issues of "intangible cultural heritage", things that cannot be physically touched such as traditions, stories, music, dance and craft skills.

In 2003, UNESCO, the education, science and culture organization of the United Nations, adopted an agreement to "preserve the intangible" and many developing-world countries were quick to get their traditions included on the official list. But it would take almost 10 years for "Agreement for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage" to be approved by the Scandinavian countries.

Annika Sjöberg is responsible for managing the work of the agency in Sweden. She has been, and continues to be, flooded with suggestions of intangible cultural heritage worthy of protection, submitted by committed citizens and organizations wanting to see their particular traditions included on the list that should be ready sometime in the next couple of years.

Suggestions have also been received concerning various maritime traditions: old shipwright skills such as the building of wooden hulled vessels, are in decline and at risk of being lost forever.

"Our work has attracted considerable attention as it is regarded as being a little out in left field," says Sjöberg. "In addition, it's also opened people's eyes to the fact that the things we can't physically touch indeed have a major bearing on the way in which we live. Even in an urbanized society, there is knowledge we carry with us that we've inherited from previous generations-knowledge that's important to preserve and take care of."

Sjöberg explains that the point is not to preserve this cultural heritage in a stony rigid form, as traditions must be allowed to change and evolve. She also emphasizes that her work should not be interpreted as a nationalistic project, rather as a means of multicultural spreading.

It's actually a matter of documenting the knowledge that exists in the various traditions. What is most exciting is the diversity that now exists and the ways in which different cultures interact with each other.