Ever order a drink, and feel cheated on the pour? Before you trouble the waiter, take a closer look at the size of your glass. “People will generally think there being less in larger containers, than in smaller ones.” Says Theresa Marteau, a behavioral scientist at the University of Cambridge, in England.

    She and her workmates had analyzed（分析）how larger amounts—and larger plates—trick us into eating more food. And they wondered: could the same be true for alcohol?

    So the researchers convinced the employees at a local bar to run an experiment: every two weeks, for four months, they'd change the bars wine glasses from the standard 300 milliliter size, to either slightly larger—370 milliliters, or slightly smaller—250 milliliters. They saw how the size of the glass affected customers' drinking habits, even though the pour, the amount of alcoholic drinks, was unchanged.

    It turned out that serving wine in smaller glasses had no measurable effect. But the large glasses increased wine sales 10 percent-even after controlling for day of the week, temperature, holidays and so on. The reason? “When the wine, the same amount, is being served in a larger glass, people are probably thinking they've got less in there.” Which, she says, means they might drink more, believing they haven't hit their nightly limit. Or, they might just feel less satisfied with the pour, and buy another round. The study appears in the journal BMC Public Health.

    Marteau says that, if later studies confirm this effect, public health officials might consider directing a certain average glass size. “Stating clearly the largest size in which wine can be sold could be a measure to reduce the overconsumption（过度消耗）of alcohol that seems to be shown by the glass size.” Until that happens, the bar in the study now always serves its wine in the larger glasses.

    I was never very neat, while my roommate Kate was extremely organized. Each of her objects had its place, but mine always hid somewhere. She even labeled（贴标签）everything. I always looked for everything. Over time, Kate got neater and I got messier. She would push my dirty clothing over, and I would lay my books on her tidy desk. We both got tired of each other.

    War broke out one evening. Kate came into the room. Soon, I heard her screaming. "Take your shoes away! Why under my bed!" Deafened, I saw my shoes flying at me. I jumped to my feet and started yelling. She yelled back louder.

    The room was filled with anger. We could not have stayed together for a single minute but for a phone call. Kate answered it. From her end of the conversation, I could tell right away her grandma was seriously ill. When she hung up, she quickly crawled（爬）under her covers, sobbing. Obviously, that was something she should not go through alone. All of a sudden, a warm feeling of sympathy rose up in my heart.

    Slowly, I collected the pencils, took back the books, made my bed, cleaned the socks and swept the floor, even on her side. I got so into my work that I even didn't notice Kate had sat up. She was watching, her tears dried and her expression one of disbelief. Then, she reached out her hands to grasp mine. I looked up into her eyes. She smiled at me, "Thanks."

    Kate and I stayed roommates for the rest of the year. We didn't always agree, but we learned the key to living together: giving in, cleaning up and holding on.

    All over the world, children in hospital are being treated with a new kind of medicine：Laughter. Lucy is 23 and works for Theodora Children's Trust. She is one of many clown (小丑) doctors who bring a smile to the faces of sick children.

    “I'm a Theodora clown doctor. I call myself Dr Looloo. I spend two days a week in children's hospitals, making funny faces, telling jokes, and doing magic tricks. As I walk into the wards(病房) I blow bubbles, shake hands with the kids, and make up nonsense songs for those children well enough to sing. I take special balloons to make 'balloon animals' and tell funny stories about them.

    I'm naturally a very cheerful person. I've always been a clown. In fact my father's a clown and I started working with him when I was eight years old. I knew it was just the job for me and I became a clown doctor because I think it's a great way to cheer up sick, frightened children in hospital.

    Being a clown in hospital is very tiring both physically and emotionally. We have to learn not to show our feelings, otherwise we'd be useless. Clown doctors are sensitive but this is not a side most people see. To the children we're happy all the time. I'm still learning to allow myself to feel sad occasionally. There working with a very sick little girl from Bosnia who speaks no English, so our only common language is laughter.

    At weekends I participate in events to raise money for Theodora Children's Trust. It's a charity, so we are paid with the money people give. Being a clown doctor makes the worries of everyday life seem small. All in all I feel honoured to do this job.”

    The Ministry of Construction has released the names of the first group of 20 national parks, including 9 Suzhou classical gardens: Zhuozheng Garden, Liu Garden, Wangshi Garden, Huanxiu Villa, Lion Grove, Yipu Garden, Ou Garden, Tuisi Garden and Canglang Pavilion.

    National parks refer to the famous city parks and gardens. Suzhou classical gardens are parts of China's precious cultural heritage (遗产) (all the 9 gardens are on the list of World Cultural Heritage) as well as a necessary part of the life of Suzhou citizens, not to mention they are also world-famous tourism resorts (胜地). In fact, their unique historical and cultural background serves to contribute to their ranking among national parks.

    The earliest classical gardens in Suzhou can date back to the Song Dynasty. However, the gardens impress their visitors not only with their age-old history but also with their delicate scenes, particularly Canglang Pavilion, Zhuozheng Garden, Lion Grove and Liu Garden, the most famous four that represent different styles of dynasties of Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing.

    In 1978, an imitation（仿造物） of a Suzhou classical garden was set up by Chen Congzhou (the author of the book Suzhou Classical Gardens) in the City Museum of Art in New York, US, which was the first time ever to directly introduce Chinese ancient architecture to Westerners.

    Chinese people are, quite rightly, proud of their food. However, when foreigners like Britons and Americans think of Chinese food, their impression of it is different to what you might think.

    Growing up in the UK, the Chinese food I was used to eating was food I now recognize as being from Guangdong. For example, a typical dish I would order would be pork in sweet and sour sauce, probably with some rice and spring rolls on the side. This is the type of food we generally eat because most Chinese immigrants(移民) to the UK have come from Guangdong. You can tell, because when most British people try to copy the sound of Chinese, they actually copy the sound of Guangdong people—hearing the real Putonghua is sometimes a shock to British people who have grown up thinking it sounds completely different!

    British attitudes to Chinese food may be changing, though. Chinese-American chef Ken Hom has been on British TV for 30 years, and he told BBC Food: "Chinese food at the beginning of the 80s (in the UK) was sweet and sour pork, mainly. Most Brits had the unchangeable view of Chinese food. Now you are seeing more local Chinese food from Sichuan, Hunan and other areas of China. It is no longer just Guangdong food." Similarly, to most Americans, Chinese food doesn't go too far past orange chicken and fortune cookies, but more Chinese local dishes are becoming successful, especially in big cities like New York.

    Attitudes have not quite changed completely, though. Many foreigners who live in China will be familiar with this question from a relative back at home: "Have they given you dog yet?" Yes, perhaps because people still know too little about Chinese culture, many people believe that Chinese people love to eat dog meat. And of course, some people do eat dogs, which to Americans is like "eating a member of one's family" according to Vision Times. Also, Chinese people eat many other things people in the West do not—chicken claws, duck heads and some animals' organs.

    But what do foreigners think when they come to China and taste real Chinese food? You'll be glad to know that in my experience, the impressions have been very good.

Walk in London's cobblestoned streets, cross centuries-old bridges and wander through covered markets — before the morning drizzle (毛毛雨) has given way to afternoon sun, history will become alive before you. The city's old buildings, black taxis and red double-decker buses all have long and complicated stories that are deeply rooted in London's traditions. So do fish and chips. Apart from being a fast-food favourite, fish and chips are also typically served as a Friday meal, in schools for lunch and at home for dinner. Former British prime minister Winston Churchill famously called fish and chips "the good companions".

More than 229 million portions of white fish fillets are sold each year in England, each one coated in a light batter (面糊) and deep-fried, and served alongside fat fried slices of potatoes. For many English people, fish and chips are best served wrapped in newspapers and wolfed down with a combination of a wooden fork and greasy fingers, preferably seaside.

Most historians agree that it was in London, not on the coast, that the first fish and chip shop opened its doors. It was here too that the city's working class pushed the dish into popular cooking culture. And it is in London that one of the oldest surviving chippies still stands today.

This is an understandable source of despair for nutritionists: Fish and chips may contain an abundance of vitamins and minerals, but both main ingredients are also deep-fried in oil that often contains unhealthy saturated fats. For all its traditional popularity, however, according to a 2016 study by the U. K. Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, fish and chips consumption has lost significant market share in recent years to other takeaway items such as pizza and kebabs.