Iceland has become one of the hottest places for adventure seekers and foodies alike as a result of its majestic lunar landscapes, heavenly food, and warm people. In the summer months, tourists pack into the island nation. But if you feel crowded, fall and spring are also good.

Kex Hostel

So where should you head? Reykjavik, the capital city, is home to many artists and young professionals from all over Europe. The Kex Hostel is a favorite. With its great food, large local beer selection and endless book and game offerings, Kex plays host to many local musicians and of course a truly unforgettable hamburger.

Snafellsnes Peninsula

If you have time for some outdoor exploration, the Snafellsnes Peninsula is a must. Driving along the coast, you suddenly feel as though you have been in a quiet world, where you hear nothing but the wind. The only livings are birds and sheep.

Hotel Budir

Hotel Budir offers great views, including some of the northern lights. The hotel, which used to be a farm house, will let you reconnect with nature or stay comfortable inside. Enjoy beautiful views of the landscape in the hotel’s reading room. Head to the rooftop to watch the stars.

Blue Lagoon

Another must-visit place is the Blue Lagoon, which National Geographic named a world wonder. Interestingly, the lagoon was formed following the building of the Svartsengi power factory in 1976. The sea water and silica mud (硅泥) will make your feel energetic. The best way to end the visit is to stop by Lava, a restaurant which is led by one of Iceland’s most famous cooks, Thrainn Freyr Vigfússon.

Got a weekend to spare? Iceland is calling!

Benny’s story is one of coming from the poor streets to a life of pets. The little cat was found on the streets after he was discarded out of a truck. He was saved and brought to the Wood County Humane Society, where he was able to recover from his injuries.

Benny was adopted (收养) by Anna Burwell, the adult services manager for Swanton Public Library and she started to bring him to work. Benny lives a good life at the library and takes on the role of protector. Of course, he goes home for the night and does not actually live in the library.

Benny spends his days making his way around the library, walking through the empty bottom shelves and driving the children into Storytime. In just a few weeks, he has made a perfect impression on the community.

Now, the library is considering using Benny as a treatment cat. That’s because he is a good listener and makes the children feel comfortable.

Library cats have been in the library for a long time. In fact, cats were kept in libraries during the Middle Ages to keep mice from eating the books. And they have been an important part of library life around the world ever since.

In 1745, cats were invited into the royal (皇家的) palace by Russian Empress Elisabeth to control mice in the library. The descendants (后代) of these cats still live in what is now the Hermitage Museum.

The most famous library cat was Dewey Readmore, who lived in the Spencer Public Library in lowa. He was discovered in the library’s drop box when he was only 8 weeks old in 1988 and lived there for almost 20 years.

The custom of library cats is still very much alive and well, as Benny is the newest model of the Swanton Library.

Praised writer Jessica Khoury was only four years old when she began to write. Today, she has printed several books for young people, including The Mystwick School of Musicraft Series, The Corpus Trilogy, and The Forbidden Wish. Her latest novel is called The Ruby Code.

I recently spoke with Khoury about her new science fiction (小说) for middle-graders. The book, she told me from her home in South Carolina, is for anybody who has ever thought, “What would it be like for a video game world to come to life?”

Set in a future New York City, the book is, in Khoury’s words, “a high-action scary book.” Readers are introduced to 13-year-old Ash, a silent young gamer. His life circles around his love for virtual (虚拟的) reality games. They offer a chance to stay away from his bad stepfather and the cold-hearted people who laugh at him.

Ash’s life takes an unexpected turn when he is given a small metal box after helping a man in need. It contains an old-style video game called “The Glass Realm”. To his surprise, Ash meets a character named Ruby who was created by artificial intelligence (AI). Her abilities are so huge that she can even rewrite the game.

Ruby’s secret knowledge leads Ash on a painful but exciting adventure. At last, he is able to learn the truth behind a dishonest company.

In The Ruby Code, Khoury seeks the advantages and disadvantages of rapid technological progress. Like many people, she wonders how AI will change life.

“As a writer,” Khoury said, “I think all the time about how long it will be before the robots take my job. But I’m not a person who’s scared of technology. I like to consider not just the worst-case situation but also the best-case situation.”

An ocean researcher, Peter Bromirski, at the University of California, San Diego, says waves have been getting bigger and stronger since 1970. There are also more big wave events than ever before. A big wave is about four meters tall or more.

When large waves reach the coast, they bounce back and run into new waves. The crash sends energy through the ocean floor, where it can be recorded by seismographs (地震仪). Those records allowed Bromirski to decide the strength and size of waves over a period of 90 years.

Bromirski said he found the seismographic information by chance. Before the discovery, he said “it was almost impossible” to compare waves from the past with those from the present.

It took a lot of work to put the information together. Much of the information was on paper. Bromirski and his team of student researchers had to enter the information into a computer so they could study the information easily. The slow process (过程) took years.

They found that the height of most waves in the winter along the California coast had grown by about 30 centimeters since 1970. Starting that year, waves of over 4 meters happened more often as well. Between 1996 and 2016, the large waves happened twice as often as they did from 1949 to1969.

1970 is the year scientists believe the warming of the planet began to speed up. Bromirski says the new information shows that climate change is making ocean waves taller and stronger. That means they are more likely to harm the coast, roads and buildings.

Bromirski said his research may be a warning that bigger and stronger waves are ahead. With more warming, sea levels will rise and waves will get stronger, causing flooding and more damage (损坏) to land. The California coast has already been damaged by big waves in recent years.