【推荐2】Experts believe that the best time to teach kids language skills is when they are babies. Most of the time the task is easily accomplished with parents reading or talking to their babies. However, in some cases that is not possible due to busy work schedules or when kids are born deaf. Now, an adorable blue-eyed robot, a human avatar, and some high-tech neuroscience may be able to assist parents with this important developmental task.

The Robot AVatar thermal-Enhanced system, or RAVE, is the brainchild of a team of researchers led by Laura-Ann Petitto, an educational neuroscientist, at Washington, DC's Gallaudet University. The learning process begins when the robot's camera, which is focused on the baby's face, detects tiny changes in his/her body temperature. This, combined with the baby's facial expression, causes the robot to turn its head and guide the baby's attention to a computer screen, on which a human avatar starts to communicate with the baby, much like what a parent would do. For example, if the baby points towards the screen, the avatar might respond, "Are you pointing to me?" and follow that up with a nursery rhyme, fairy tale, or some essential social communication, all in American Sign Language（ASL）. The "conversation" continues until the kid loses interest.

The researchers, who have been testing the system for three years, found that babies as young as 6 to 8 months old began to move their hands in a rhythm similar to ASL after interacting with RAVE for just a few minutes. Petitto says natural language, whether communicated through speech or sign, activates the same parts of the brain and believes the rhythmic motions prove that the babies are learning the essential elements of communication.

What sets this technique apart from other methods, such as showing educational videos or television shows, is its interactive nature and real-time response to the baby's actions. The researchers say that while it is too early to determine the system's long-term influence on baby communication, the initial response has been very encouraging. Next, they plan to introduce an avatar that can both sign and speak to babies.

【推荐3】At the age of twelve years, the human body is at its most vigorous. It has yet to reach its full size and strength, and its owner his or her full intelligence; but at this age the likelihood of death is least. Earlier, we were infants and young children, and consequently more vulnerable; later, we shall undergo a progressive loss of our vigor and resistance which, though imperceptible at first, will finally become so steep that we can live no longer, however well we look after ourselves, and however well society, and our doctors, look after us.

This decline in vigor with the passing of time is called ageing. It is one of the most unpleasant discoveries which we all make that we must decline in this way, that if we escape wars, accidents and disease we shall eventually "die of old age", and that this happens at a rate which differs little from person to person, so that there are heavy odds in favor of our dying between the ages of sixty-five and eighty. Some of us will die sooner, a few will live longer—on into a ninth or tenth decade. But the chances are against it, and there is a virtual limit on how long we can hope to remain alive, however lucky and robust we are.

Normal people tend to forget this process unless and until they are reminded of it. We are so familiar with the fact that man ages, that people have for years assumed that the process of losing vigor with time, of becoming more likely to die the older we get, was something self-evident, like the cooling of a hot kettle or the wearing-out of a pair of shoes. They have also assumed that all animals, and probably other organisms such as trees, or even the universe itself, must in the nature of things "wear out".

Most animals we commonly observe do in fact age as we do, if given the chance to live long enough; and mechanical systems like a wound watch, or the sun, do in fact an out of energy in accordance with the second law of thermodynamics (热力学) (whether the whole universe does so is a moot point at present). But these are not analogous to what happens when man ages. A run-down watch is still a watch and can be rewound. An old watch, by contrast, becomes so worn and unreliable that it eventually is not worth mending. But a watch could never repair itself—it does not consist of living parts, only of metal, which wears away by friction. We could,at one time, repair ourselves—well enough, at least, to overcome all but the most instantly fatal illnesses and accidents. Between twelve and eighty years we gradually lose this power; an illness which at twelve would knock us over, at eighty can knock us out, and into our grave. If we could stay as vigorous as we are at twelve, it would take about 700 years for half of us to die, and another 700 for the survivors to be reduced by half again.

【推荐1】Would you give your Social Security Number to the clerk at the grocery store? Of course not, right? Yet, if you’re like most people, you wouldn’t hesitate to give out a different, but equally important number to the same person.

Experts now say that your cellphone number may be more pivotal than any other personal information in the eyes of spammers (垃圾邮件发送者) and identity thieves. In other words, instead of handing it out, you should guard that cellphone number with your life.

Today, your cellphone number will likely be with you for a very long time. That means if spammers get your cellphone number, it will be much harder to get rid of them. It also means that over the years, your cellphone number will be linked to a lot of personal information—from contact lists（通讯录) to bank card numbers, all information that hackers（黑客）would love to get their hands on.

A few years ago, German security researcher Karsten Nohl showed what he could obtain using only a person’s cellphone number. California Congressman Ted Lieu was given a new cellphone for a day and Nohl was given that cellphone number. Using just that number, Nohl was able to find Lieu’s location and movements throughout Los Angeles, read his emails and text messages, and record phone calls between Lieu and his staff. And Nohl did all of this from his office in Berlin using just a cellphone number.

Still think it’s a good idea to post your number on a noticeboard?

It’s safe to assume that Nohl is an expert when it comes to hacking, but even the ordinary thief can use your cellphone number to cause harm to you. When you sign up for an account online, you usually provide your email address and a password (密码). But if you forget that password, many of these companies will send you a password retrieval code (检码）via your cellphone. Let’s say you post something for sale online and you include your name, email, and cellphone number. You’ve now given a potential thief everything he needs to hack into any of your online accounts. Therefore, it just makes sense to protect yourself by guarding that number as closely as you would guard any other personal information.

【推荐2】A shark attacked a 14-year-old girl near a Florida beach on Saturday, though a surfer tried to save her. The surfer pulled the girl from bloody water and frightened the shark away with his fists（拳头）.

Can sharks really smell blood in the water? Yes. Sharks have a good sense of smell, and blood happens to be a very attractive smell. Sharks also use sight and hearing to discover their food. In particular, hungry sharks like to hear the sounds which are made by swimming fish. They also look for something bright. Attacks on people can sometimes be a case of mistaken recognition. Sometimes, a shark could confuse shining stones for food.

The sharks’ eyes, ears, and nose are all near their mouth. But sharks also search for their food with sensory receptors（感受器）. These receptors can feel any movement in the water. When a shark gets very close to a food, it can use electroreceptive organs（电觉器官）, which sit the wall of little holes on the shark’s nose. Living things in salty seawater produce a weak electrical field（电磁场）that the shark can feel at a short distance, so it allows the shark to find out creatures that bury themselves in the sea floor. Muscle（肌肉）movements also produce little electrical fields that a shark can feel.

The surfer who tried to save the girl said he protected himself by frightening away the shark with his fists. Is that a good idea? Some experts think frightening away a shark with fists should only be the last choice. It won’t be wise for you to stay still in water. Swimming away rapidly seems to be a better choice. If you can’t swim away right away, hit the shark on the face or nose—where it has a high concentration of sensory receptors like humans—to drive off your attacker and give you enough time to escape. When you are beside a shark’s face, try sticking your finger in its eyes.

【推荐3】The unforgettable characters are often the ones that we can identify with.

Chibi Maruko-chan(樱桃小丸子），the main character from the Japanese anime series of the same name, is one of them. Maruko-chan is a primary school girl who often makes mistakes and puts herself in difficult situations. Yet, for those who were born in the 1980s and 1990s,Chibi Maruko-chan helped them to feel better about themselves as a kid.

But as these young people grew up,Maruko-chan, did not. Last month, however, Momoko Sakura, the creator of the popular cartoon series, passed away at the age of 53.

“I feel so sad about her death, which came too early," wrote Soichi Aida, editor-in-chief of Ribbon magazine,which first published Chibi Maruko-chan in 1986. “But the bright smiles of Maruko-chan and her friends will keep shining in the minds of readers."

Unlike many popular characters, Maruko-chan isn't pretty, nor does she have any kind of special ability. In fact, she's lazy and hates to do chores. But this is what makes her so popular among so many people, young and old. "Maruko is not perfect and owns all the qualities of a 9-year-old girl -she's naughty, funny, and occasionally depressed. She is afraid of exams and leaves her homework until the last day of the holiday,"reported Chinese website Huxiu.com.

Later,as Maruko-chan gradually learns the ways of the world, she comes across a lot of problems, but her intelligence helps her out.The carefree girl is known for her funny yet wise sayings,such as,"Leave happiness to the last in a bittersweet life,"and ＂Self-reliance is the secret to consistent happiness."

Maruko-chan's facial expressions are also what stay in viewers' minds. Whenever she feels awkward, lines suddenly appear on her face, or sometimes an unexpected gust of wind will blow above her head.These expressions show her real feelings when she's in an uncomfortable environment, which most young people can relate to.

Though Maruko-chan has always been a grade-three student, her idea of being true to herself teaches us a lot.Her creator may be gone, but Maruko-chan's spirit and attitude will live on for many more years.