A Powerisers

The ability to jump two meters in the air may not be something you have thought too much about. And most people have never considered running at 30 kilometers an hour. But just stop for a moment and think about how our new product could change your life.

Your daily journey to your place of work is probably a mad dash for the bus. There is no point in taking your car because there are traffic jams, and anyway the car parks are probably very expensive or, worse still, full. Here is where Powerisers can help. It takes just a couple of minutes to put them on and then you are away, going past others or even jumping over the object which blocks your way.

That is the practical use for our product, but then there is sport and exercise. Powerisers are set to be the next extreme sport and the deep-fit tools. You can imagine the 100 meters, the high jump or basketball performed by athletes wearing Powerisers. And what better way to build your muscles and keep fit?

Our product is very simple. It is powered by a superlight spring, which uses the gravitational(重力的) pull from your body weight and pushes you with superhuman strength. There have been no records of serious injury related to the use of Powerisers, but extreme caution is recommended. We strongly advise the wearing of protective clothing, including at least a helmet(头盔).

Powerisers make you feel as if you were walking on the moon. Now we make two different models: Basic and Professional. The Basic model is designed for the occasional users and costs around $ 500. The Professional model, which is designed for the competitive use, has a strongly-made structure and different springs, though that comes at the increased price of $800. Our Powerisers are guaranteed for two years and will be replaced without question if they fail during that period. That is how confident we are.

When I was nine years old, I loved to go fishing with my dad. But the only thing that wasn’t very fun about it was that he could catch many fish while I couldn’t catch anything. I usually got pretty upset and kept asking him why. He always answered, “Son, if you want to catch a fish, you have to think like a fish.” I remember being even more upset then because “I’m not a fish!” I didn’t know how to think like a fish. Besides, I reasoned, “How could what I think influence what a fish does?”

As I got a little older I began to understand what my dad really meant. So, I read some books on fish. And I even joined the local fishing club and started attending the monthly meetings. I learned that a fish is a cold-blooded animal and therefore is very sensitive to water temperature. That is why fish prefer shallow water to deep water—the former is warmer. Besides, water is usually warmer in direct sunlight than in the shade. Yet, fish don’t have any eyelids and the sun hurts their eyes. The more I understood fish, the more I became effective in finding and catching them.

When I grew up and entered the business world, I remember hearing my first boss say, “We all need to think like sales people.” But it didn’t completely make sense. My dad never once said, “If you want to catch a fish you need to think like a fisherman.” What he said was, “You need to think like a fish.” Years later, with great efforts to promote long-term services to people much older and richer than me, I gradually learned what we all need was to think more like customers. It is not an easy job. I will show you how in the following chapters.

Enjoy the challenge of a new term

The new term is finally here, which means, of course, it's time to return to school.

For many students across China, that also means having to leave home for the next several months and move into a school dormitory.

Being away from our family for a long time, however, often leads to homesickness, a feeling that most students have experienced at some point.

A study by the UK's National Union of Students found that up to 70 percent of UK students living away from home experience homesickness within their first few weeks of being away.

But homesickness isn't just a feeling of sadness that happens in our mind; it can also affect us physically.

“You feel homesickness in your stomach—it's an unease in which you feel uncomfortable, nervous, stressed because you're in a place or situation that's not familiar,” Joshua Klapow, a professor of public health at the University of Alabama, us, told HuffPost.

According to Klapow, the body reacts physically when it's placed in an unknown situation such as being separated from one's familiar surroundings for a long time.

“It's an evolutionary(进化的) thing that makes us protect ourselves from danger when something is unknown," he told the HuffPost.

“When we think about home, we know that the sense of unknown … is not happening there, so we want to return.”

So, how can we overcome these physical reactions?

Ruth Hardy of the Guardian offered advice for students who are feeling the effects of being away from the safety of home.

“Try and establish routines(常规) quickly. This can make your new environment feel more stable and will hopefully make you feel more settled,” she wrote.

Making friends with others who are in your situation is also a great way to feel less homesick, according to Hardy.

The most important thing to remember, however, is that homesickness is completely normal and is nothing to be ashamed of.

And once it's gone, you're free lo enjoy the adventures and challenges of a brand new school year.

Tim Berners-Lee. If you don’t know his name, you’ve surely used his famous invention—the World Wide Web, a system we use to search for information on the Internet.

On Oct. 29, the Internet officially turned 50 years old. “This birthday must mark the moment we take on the fight for the Web we want.”

Speaking at the University of California, he pointed out three problems today: Web-criminal behavior, ad-based clickbait websites, and offensive online communication. These problems led Berners-Lee to create the Web Foundation and a contract for the Web. Both aimed to protect Internet users.

In the contract, he mentioned the need for companies to make sure that everyone had access to the Web, and called for a reduction in offensive material and more personal data privacy. The latter is a hot topic right now. Big companies, like Facebook, have misused users’ personal information by sharing it with advertisers.

Despite all of these bad sides, we shouldn’t forget about all the benefits the Internet brings.

In this digital age, the Internet connects the world through social media, and cashless payment has become an instant source of information. It can also make a positive difference through activities that push for positive change, education or aid.

One such campaign is Movember. The movement, held every November, encourages men to grow moustaches for the whole month, post pictures online, and donate. The charity promotes physical health, mental health, and suicide prevention for men.

Not to mention, the Internet is also a source of fun. From funny kitten videos on Weibo to your very own Tik Tok videos, the Internet allows you to share what you create.

As to the Web Foundation, Berners-Lee said, “The Web has become a public square, a library, a doctor’s office, a shop, and a school, and it has given marginalized groups a voice.” 

“In the next 30 years, if we give up trying to build a better Web...we will have failed it. We need to come together as a global community.”