The pupils of Grangetown High have been busy getting to know their newest and tallest classmate — a 7-meter-tall giraffe outside their school.

    The giraffe is a huge sculpture (雕像) made by a local artist. The school's headmaster noticed the sculpture in the artist's garden as he drove past one day, and thought it would be perfect for his school. “I knew everyone would love it,” he said, “because our basketball team is known as the Grangetown Giraffes, and they wear giraffes on their shirts. So I asked them to write a letter to the artist, asking how much it would cost to buy the giraffe. He was very kind and got it ready to deliver (递送) in six weeks — all for nothing! It was expected to arrive one Sunday morning, so that the pupils would see it when they got to school on Monday — at that time they had no idea that we were getting it.”

    The artist, Tom Bennett, was a university professor (教授) of chemistry before he left that job in 2006 and only took up metalwork a couple of years ago. “I've always drawn pictures,” he said. “I can even remember doing it on my first day at school — I drew a horse. I wanted it to be the best horse picture ever, but I don't think I succeeded.” Tom's first metalwork was a bicycle for two that he and his wife could go cycling on together. “It was the most uncomfortable bike ever created,” he said, “so I gave up making bicycles and went into sculpture instead.”

    Meanwhile the pupils at Grangetown High are very happy with their new classmate. “We're going to hold a competition to give it a proper name,” said one girl. “Everyone likes the expression on its face, so perhaps that will give us some ideas.”

    We know cats like to hide in boxes and knock things over. But if you make a square on your floor, what will your cat do? Turns out a lot of cats will get inside it. Amazed cat owners repeated the experiment, often with tape(带子), but others with squares made out of ribbon, sheets of paper and even shoes.

    Cat experts weigh in

    So what makes cats so interested in a square on the floor?

    “We know that cats like safe spaces. It's possible that the mark on the floor creates some illusion(幻觉) on the floor that doesn't actually exist,” says cat behavior expert Mikel Delgado. “It might have enough similarity to a low-sided box that a lot of cats are attracted to it for safety.”

    Another cat behavior expert Ingrid Johnson agrees. “I would imagine they probably feel as if they are 'in' something. Though shallow, still comforting, offers the idea of sides,” she says. Johnson points out that cats have poor close-up sight, so they may have the idea that the tape is actually the sides of a square area. “Their sight is built for distance and speed, watching a mouse run across the field,” she says. “Close up, they're blind 8 to 12 inches off their noses.”

    Kitty curiosity(好奇心)

    Another reason cats are attracted by the square? Pure curiosity.

    Because cats are very sensitive to their environment, the tape square might be attracting them just because it's new and different, she says. The same thing would likely happen if you put a piece of cardboard or a paper bag on the floor. A lot of cats would check it out.

    The following notice is posted in the bus station.

    Time Table:

    Buses leave the Railway Station, New York City, from 7:00 am and every half-hour there after, until 11:30 pm (7 days a week)

    Buses leave Brennan Station 20 minutes before and after every hour from 6:20 am to 11:40 pm (7 days a week)

    Evening rush hours (5:00 pm to 7:00 pm): Buses leave the Railway Station, New York City every minutes. (Monday- Friday)

    Holidays Buses leave every hour on the hour, each direction. (Trip time: 30 minutes each way)

    All tickets must be bought at Window 12, the Railway Station, New York City, or at the Brennan Station Window BEFORE boarding buses.

    Some of the people who created many popular apps are telling kids to put their phones away — at least, a bit more often. The Center for Humane Technology is made up of people who used to work for big tech companies like Google, Facebook and Twitter. Now they want kids to stop using those apps and websites so much.

    In early February, the center started a campaign called The Truth About Tech. Its goal is to teach students, parents and teachers about the dangers of spending too much time on smart phones and computers.

    According to studies about kids and technology, more than 95 percent of elementary school-aged children spend at least part of every day using a computer or smart phone. About 78 percent of teens check their phones every hour, and more than half of them sleep with their phones in case they get a call or message during the night.

    The Center for Humane Technology says that the apps and websites we use every day are purposely designed to keep us chatting, playing or watching online as much as possible. That includes social media like Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, websites like YouTube and online games. It also says that the tech companies talk only about the good aspects of their products and don't mention the side effects.

    Some physical problems, like headaches, eyestrain (眼疲劳), and neck pain are caused by using phones or computers too much. Students spending too much time online may find it hard to be focused on school work. Children and teenagers are more likely to have these problems because their brains, bodies and social skills are still developing.

    One goal of The Truth About Tech campaign is to make sure that kids understand how technology affects them so they can make better decisions. The people behind the campaign also want governments and the tech companies themselves to take steps to protect children. When the leaders of the big technology companies are designing tech tools for kids, they should think about what they would want for their own children.

    Like many other people, I love my smart phone, which keeps me connected with the larger world that can go anywhere with me. I also love my laptop, because it holds all of my writing and thoughts. In spite of this love of technology, I know that there are times when I need to move away from these devices and truly communicate with others.

On occasion, I teach a course called History Matters for a group of higher education managers. My goals for the class include a full discussion of historical themes and ideas. Because I want students to thoroughly study the materials and exchange their ideas with each other in the classroom, I have a rule —no laptop, iPads, phones, etc. When students were told my rule in advance of the class, some of them were not happy.

    Most students assume that my reasons for this rule include unpleasant experiences in the past with students misusing technology. There's a bit of truth to that. Some students assume that I am anti-technology. There's no truth in that at all. I love technology and try to keep up with it, so I create to my students.

    The real reason why I ask students to leave technology at the door is that I think there are very few places in which we can have deep conversions and truly engage complex ideas. Interruptions by technology often break concentration and allow for too much dependence on outside information for ideas. I want students to dig deep within themselves for inspiration and ideas. I want them to push each other to think differently and make connections between the course materials and the class discussion.

    I've been teaching my history class in this way for many years and the evaluations reflect students' satisfaction with the environment that I create. Students realize that with deep conversation and challenge, they learn at a level that helps them keep the course materials beyond the classroom.

    I'm not saying that I won't ever change my mind about technology use in my history class, but until I hear a really good reason for the change, I'm sticking to my plan. A few hours of technology-free dialogue is just too sweet to give up.

    A new Magic Bench designed by Disney Research lets you interact (互动) with lovely animated (动画的) character—and no special glasses or earphones are required. Instead, the complete environment-the seat, the sitter and the cartoon characters-is mirrored on a screen opposite the bench making it possible for others to watch the scene unfold.

    How does the illusion work? A camera and sensor catch images and gather depth information about physical objects the bench and the person. And then computer translates them into the 3D animations. Meanwhile sensors of touch built into the bench deliver shaking that is happening at the same time and speed to animated actions on the screen, creating the illusion that the animated figures are occupying real-world space next to the user.

    "Our goal for this project was: hear a character coming, see them enter the space, and feel them sit next to you," said Moshe Mahler, principal digital artist at Disney Research. Unlike the traditional mobile technology, one of whose limitations is that only a single user can see its illusion, the Magic Bench allows groups of people to gather in a single environment and collectively participate in an augmented—reality (扩充实境) experience, all at the same time.

    In a video show, a small cartoon donkey runs into view and kicks the bench, causing sharp sound and making the seated person jump in surprise. Another test shows two people on the bench, reacting as they feel an animated rabbit skip up beside them and jump up and down. When a user passes his hand over the rabbit, a shadow moves across its head, as though it were occupying the same physical space as the person next to it.