【推荐3】It was the homecoming parade in Rockwall, Texas, and cheerleader Tyra Winters was riding on one of the school’s floats (彩车). As it slowly made its way down the avenue, the 17-year-old enthusiastically waved at the crowd, all the while absorbed in the music, laughter, and applause.

Suddenly, a terrible scream came from the cheering crowd. Looking down, Winters saw a two-year-old on the sidewalk gasping for air and his mother desperately begging for help. The boy had been enjoying a piece of candy when it slid down the back of his mouth, sticking in his throat and blocking his windpipe (气管).

“I saw a little bright red face and his mom’s begging for help,” Winters told KTVT.

“There was no coughing; there was no breathing,” the mother, Nicole Hornback, later told news station NBCDFW. “He was just gasping for air. ” No one seemed to know how to help.

Except for Winters. A senior with dreams of becoming a doctor, she had learned the first-aid method of Heimlich maneuver and CPR. Knowing that the clock was ticking, she jumped off the moving float and ran to the child. By the time she got to him, his face had turned purple. “I got him!” she yelled to Nicole as she grabbed the boy from her. “I held him face down and gave a good three back pushes,” she told the local CBS station. Soon, the boy coughed up the piece of candy, and began breathing again. Without another word, Winters handed the boy back to his mother and ran back to her float before it could leave her behind.

It all happened so fast. Nicole never had time to thank the teen. “She didn’t need to,” says Winters. “I knew how she was feeling. I saw her tears. I saw her face. ”

And for Nicole, she says, “I don’t really have any words,” she says. “The words that you would say to anyone who does something for you is ‘thank you. ’ But that doesn’t seem good enough. ”

【推荐3】For years considered as a foxy politician, Thomas Cromwell has been greatly rehabilitated (恢复……的名誉) by Hilary Mantel’s prize-winning novels, Wolf Hall (2009) and Bring Up the Bodies (2012). It’s true that he planned Anne Boleyn’s fall, and made a large fortune in a dishonest way, but he was also a good husband and father, charming and modest, a self-made man.

Certainly, he is one of the outstanding figures from Henry VIII’s court. Extremely hard-working, he was a productive reporter. It was not unusual for him to start work as early as 5 am and finish well after midnight.

Yet in researching the biography of Cromwell, I have discovered frustrating gaps in sources, particularly in relation to his early life.

The man who would one day become the most powerful in England was raised from such humble (卑微的) origins that nobody knows when or where he was born. As the son of a blacksmith, he suffered a miserable childhood.

I had the portrait (肖像), which now hangs in the Frick Collection in New York, of a thoughtful but rather bad-tempered official in mind. It seems to describe a cruel man of business, which was what I thought before I read Wolf Hall. But Mantel’s portrait of a rude but intelligent man who was as loyal to his family and friends as he was cruel to his enemies is really convincing.

His last letter to Henry VIII, written from the Tower in June 1540, is desperately moving. “Most gracious Prince,” he wrote with his trembling hand, “I cry for mercy, mercy, mercy !” Henry was said to have read the letter three times. But it was not enough to save Cromwell from the axe.

Within weeks of Cromwell’s death, his royal master was regretting the loss of “the most faithful servant”. But Henry’s daughter Mary destroyed all of that. Debate has taken place ever since — among historians, novelists and film-makers alike — as to who was the real Cromwell.

【推荐1】As for long-distance holidays, there are some unique destinations that actually offer you great value for your money, even if you’re on a budget.

Tokyo, Japan

Food lovers should head to this busy city which has the lowest cost for dining out — you could even bag a three-course evening meal for two, with a bottle of house wine, for just under £ 34. For sightseeing there are plenty of free museums and attractions, while tour bus ticket prices start from as little as £ 11.56.

Bangkok, Thailand

Thailand's capital is second to none as the best value long-distance city. Although there isn’t a huge difference across all prices compared to the other cities, it is accommodation that really makes it stand out. I you’re only stopping for a long weekend, then make sure to check out the awe-inspiring The Grand Palace, a complex of breathtaking temples.

Beijing, China

The Chinese capital took third spot with a total basket price of £ 337.49. If you only do one cultural day out during your stay, make it a trip to The Forbidden City. There are some seriously beautiful and delicate buildings from the Ming and Qing dynasties, not to mention they're home to priceless artificial objects from China's historical milestones.

Dubai, UAE

Although Dubai does have a reputation for being quite the splurge (挥霍金钱) when it comes to holidays and if you’re going to addict yourself to a spot of shopping or hit the roller-coasters, it actually provides quite good value for what you pay. The city also offers some cheaper prices across its museums, galleries and attractions as well as airport transfers.

【推荐2】ROME— four people, including the wife of the factory's owner, died on Wednesday after explosions （爆炸）at the Barcelona Pozzo di Gotto fireworks company, Italian media reported.

According to online reports by La Republic and TGCOM24, at least one other person is missing and three others are seriously injured, with two of them in dangerous condition. Among the dead was 71-year-old Venera Mazzeo, the wife of the factory owner Vito Costa. Mazzeo reportedly died on the scene. Antonio Costa, the owner's son, was seriously injured and was transported to a hospital in the regional capital of Palermo for treatment. Less seriously injured persons were moved to the nearby Milazzo Hospital to be treated for burns and other injuries. Many were transported by local people who reached the scene before ambulances could arrive, reports said.

The factory, located near the northeast of the southern Italian island of Sicily, near the city of Messina, has been in operation for more than ten years without any accident. Police reports showed that two separate explosions took place, with the first explosion likely causing the second one. Media reports said that police have guessed that sparks （火花）from a repairing project reached some of the explosive material stored in the factory and was likely the cause of the first explosion.

Reports also showed that firefighters were able to control the flame, which burnt buildings on the factory and threatened nearby structures.

【推荐3】People have been enjoying the benefits of cycling（骑自行车） in Amsterdam(阿姆斯特丹) for years. It is a good city for cycling because it is flat and there are plenty of places for bicycle parking. Today some people call Amsterdam “City of Bicycles” because of the convenience for bicycles there.

However, more than thirty years later, the “white bike’ is back in town--this time with a computer chip（芯片） to record its every move! To take a bicycle, you have to insert(插入) a special card. The new “ white bike” is not actually white but is an unusual design with bright colours. The bikes are parked at special parking places and people who want to use them have to take them to another special parking place that has enough room.

There is already less traffic in central Amsterdam, because both locals and tourists have been using the white bikes. Instead, thanks to the good ideas of lots of people, like the cycling fans in the 1960s, many people around the world have been enjoying city centre streets without cars many years.

【推荐1】The year 2114 will be an eventful one for art.In May of that year in Berlin,the philosopher-artist Jonathon Keats’“century cameras”-cameras with a 100-year-long exposure time-will be retrieved from hiding places around the city to have their results developed and exhibited.Six months after that,the Future Library in Oslo,Norway,will open its doors for the first time,presenting 100 books printed on the wood of trees in the distant past of 2014.

As Katie Paterson,the creator of the Future Library,puts it:“Future Library is an artwork for future generations.”These projects,more than a century in the making,are part of a new way of“slow art”intended to push viewers and participants to think beyond their own lifetimes.They aim to challenge today’s short-term thinking and the brief attention spans of modern consumers,forcing people into considering works more deliberately.In their way,too,they are fighting against modern culture-not just regarding money but also the way in which artistic worth is measured by attention.

In a similar fashion,every April on Slow Art Day,visitors are encouraged to stare at five works of art for 10 minutes at a time-a tough ask for the average museum visitor,who typically spends less than 30 seconds on each piece of art.

Like the Future Library,the century cameras are very much a project for cities,since it’s in cities that time runs fastest and the pace of life is fastest.“Since I started living in a city,I’ve somehow been quite disconnected,”Anne Beate Hovind,the Future Library project manager,who described how working on the library drew her back to the pace of life she knew when she was growing up on a farm in her youth,told The Atlantic magazine.

Works like Future Library and the century cameras raise all sorts of questions.Will any of the cameras survive?Will any of Future Library works be any good?What will future generations make of century art,and will they see it as the gift that it’s intended to be?More specifically,for those of us struggling with“a crisis of attention”,the question seems to be:How can we adopt this attitude now,in everyday life?When we struggle to look up from our mobile phones,how can we look beyond the present moment and think broadly and generously across time?

【推荐2】One day I was walking around in a national park when I saw a beautiful tarantula (狼蛛) crossing a path. I just stopped and decided to observe its walking.

Behind me there was a family going up the same way and they also noticed the tarantula. Without doubting it, a kid shouted, ''Quick, Dad, kill it. '' His brother also encouraged their dad to do that.

Then I stopped their dad. ''Wait. This is the last place the tarantula has to live in. Do you really want to kill it? ''

''Well, it's dangerous and we have kids here…''

''Why not stand still and let it cross safely? Then you can go and admire the rest of the park. ''

After some discussions I persuaded them to stand still and watch. Soon, the tarantula crossed and hid into the bushes.

Their dad thanked me and said, ''You're right. I was about to make a mistake. '' The children even said good bye to the tarantula and they learned something too.