【推荐1】We can create learning moments that students remember forever if we open up our classrooms to awe and wonder.

Toward the end of my high school year, our Spanish teacher organized a trip to see an Andean band perform in Philadelphia. My classmates and I egged one another on ironically (讽刺地): Who could enjoy the show? The performers’ clothing seemed odd. The instruments, strange. But then the performers kicked in, dancing to their bombo and wancara drums around the stage and the panpipes and quena announced a kind of sound—new to us.

We had spent too little time discussing the culture of the Inca in social studies but its traditions came alive for us that evening. Once the wonderful performance lit up the stage and the hall filled up with music, my teenage cynicism disappeared. I rose out of my chair to dance with honest joy.

I have spent the last seven years living and working in South America. But my thirst for cultural exploration and a desire to understand the world outside my language and country has been alive longer than that. Sometimes I think that night dancing to those ancient rhythms unlocked this fascination. Why do I remember it so clearly decades later?

In his recent book Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life, psychology professor Dacher Keltner explains that “brief moments of awe are as good for your mind and body as anything you might do.” Besides being a memorable emotion, awe boosts curiosity, builds humility, helps with critical thinking, and makes people feel more connected. It even makes us happier. “Twenty years into teaching happiness,” Keltner writes about how to find deep happiness, “I have an answer: FIND AWE.”

Moving forward, let’s do our best to build instances of awe into our curriculum (课程). So when our former students approach us on the subway years later, they will recall the magical moments from their days spent in our classes.

【推荐1】Although midnight snacks or being too tired to exercise could make people get fatter,there may now be a more scientific reason. A study has shown short or restless sleep changes the way people’s DNA works and makes the body store fat. Fat stores begin to rise when people lose as little as one night’s sleep, the researchers found.

Sleep researchers from Uppsala University in Sweden did a study on people after two lab tests — in one they slept for over eight hours and in the other they did not sleep at all. Researchers then examined the make-up of fat and muscle tissue (肌肉组织), as well as measuring sugar levels in the blood.

The researchers found after just one night of sleeplessness, the body began to store more fat and to lose muscle strength. The body’s decision to store more fat when a person is tired appears to be related to a break in the body clock. When sleep times are changed, it disrupts (扰乱) the way DNA is used by the body and changes which processes are seen as most important, the scientists say. Sleep loss was already known to contribute to overweight but the scientists say they are the first to ever notice the physical changes that lead to putting on weight.

“We saw that the tissue is attempting to increase its ability to store fat following sleep loss,” said study author Jenathan Cedernaes. “We observed signs of breakdown of muscle. We also noted changes in the levels of proteins (蛋白质) related to dealing with blood sugar and this could help explain why the people’s sugar sensitivity (敏感度) was damaged following sleep loss. Taken together,these observations may partially explain why long-term sleep loss can increase the risk of putting on weight as well as the risk of serious diseases.”

The researchers say their findings are important because high levels of body fat increase the risk of the world’s biggest causes of death: cancer and heart disease.

【推荐2】Life can be fun, amazing and happy; however, your life may also be stressful, anxious and extremely busy.     1    , but we believe that too much stress can be harmful to your health. One of the best remedies (疗法) to relieve worry, anxiety, and stress is to laugh. A big advantage is that laughing doesn’t cost anything but the benefits are enormous.

    2     ! Two of the physical benefits of laughter are an increase in our ability to avoid being affected by infection and disease and lowered blood pressure. Additional health benefits are increased oxygen flow, reduced stress hormones and relaxed muscle tension. Some studies have shown that people who laugh often have increased life expectation.

Laughter provides so many positive emotional rewards! When we laugh, hormones which help promote our emotions and moods are released. Emotional benefits of laughter include reducing anxiety and increasing our sense of happiness.

Socially, laughter assists in maintaining friendships.     3     . Stronger social and family connections help us acquire a greater sense of health and happiness.

Get together with friends who have a fantastic sense of humor, enjoying their company often. Create a humor notebook with empty pages where you can put down cartoons and jokes that make you laugh. Take some silly family pictures and display them.     4     .

Add humor and laughter to your day.     5     . Increase your sense of humor by consciously choosing to include laughter into your life.

【推荐3】Protecting Your Eyesight

Nowadays most people have bad eyesight. Don’t take your eves for granted. Here are some tips on protecting your eyesight.

Protecting your eyes starts with the food on your plate. Nutrients such as vitamin C and vitamin E may help avoid vision problems.     1     You can choose green vegetables, eggs, beans and other non-meat protein sources.

    2     Choose sunglasses that block 99% to 100% of both UVA and UVB rays. If you wear contact lenses, choose the ones that offer UV protection. It’s still a good idea to wear sunglasses for more protection.

Smoking makes you more likely to get cataracts, optic nerve damage, and macular degeneration (黄斑退化). If you have tried to quit smoking before and started smoking again, keep trying. The more times you try to quit smoking, the more likely you are to succeed.

Staring at a computer screen can cause so many problems: dry eyes, headaches and neck, back and shoulder pain. To protect your eyes, you can position your computer so that your eyes are level with the top of the monitor. This allows you to look slightly down at the screen. Try to avoid glare on your computer from windows and lights. Use an anti-glare screen if needed. Every 20 minutes, rest your eyes by looking 20 feet away for 20 seconds.     4    

Everyone, even young children, should get their eyes examined regularly.     5     They can also find some eye diseases, such as glaucoma (青光眼). The earlier diseases are found, the easier they are to be treated.