【推荐1】Pandemic (流行病) lock-downs (封锁) might be common, but not all our movements are limited. This has led to a rise in dance, as people search for connection. Live classes online have increased rapidly, headed by the likes of dance legend Debbie Allen. Living rooms are becoming party scenes thanks to live-streaming (视频直播) dance parties by celebrity dancers Diplo and D-Nice.

Because of the recent increase in virtual events, geographically separated groups of strangers are moving in the same direction to the same rhythm without speaking a word. Recent research has shown that even our earliest ancestors (祖先) recognized the social benefits of dance.

According to a recent study published in the Public Library of Science’s Genetics Journal, creative dancers share two similar genes with good social communicators. These researchers believe our prehistoric ancestors who were good dancers used those skills for a close relationship and social interaction. We dance to celebrate harvests, ask for much-needed rain and bring healing.

In the Guadeloupe Islands, dance was once one of the only means of communication for an entire population. West Africans were brought over to the French Caribbean as slave (奴隶) labor. Members from various places speaking different languages began to find common ground in rhythms and dances. This art form became Gwoka. Each Gwoka rhythm shows a specific human experience, such as love, sadness and the celebration of Carnival (狂欢节).

I learned to speak a bit of this language at a Guadeloupean folk dance school. Gwoka shared similarities to the Bomba dance that I had tried in Puerto Rico. Bomba, in turn, had reminded me of the tambu in Aruba. As I continue to dance with more people, I build more links in a global chain of movement and rhythm.

So, in this new times of COVID -19, I’m not surprised how dance has been the solution for hundreds of thousands of people around the world.

【推荐1】Marnie Baker, a doctor from Saddleback Medical Center in Laguna Hills, California, gave us the explanation on growing pains and what parents can do to help their kids through this painful stage of growing up.

“There is no scientific proof that growing pains are truly caused by rapid bone, muscle or ligament (韧带) growth,” said Baker. “But any parent can tell you they are real,” she added. Health experts don’t know the exact cause of growing pains, but they may be linked to a child’s level of activity during the day.

The major symptom of growing pains is discomfort in the lower legs-thighs, calves, behind the knees, ankles-that most often occurs at night. Baker says her patients describe the pain as deep and aching. The pain usually occurs in both legs and it may keep your child from falling asleep or wake him up at night. Growing pains can affect kids when they are between the ages of 0-2 and then again between the ages of 8-12.

“Growing pains have specific features that help distinguish them from other potentially more serious conditions,” noted Baker. They occur in a generalized location, such as both knees, or the lower legs, but not in any one specific spot. Baker explained that there are no physical findings along with growing pains. In other words, there shouldn’t be any sweling (肿胀), redness or warmth in the location of the pain. Growing pains should not cause limping (跛行) or keep kids from being active during the day. They should also occur at intervals, and not for long periods of time. If your child experiences any of these other symptoms or if the symptoms seem to keep them from heading out to play during the day, Baker says it’s time to get them checked out by a doctor.

Growing pains are alarming for parents and upsetting for kids, but the best thing you can do for your kids is to reassure them with a hug or a kiss. To help relieve the pain, try a gentle massage, a few minutes with a heating pad. “Teaching your child that growing pains are common and if they are awakened by them, to give their legs a rub and go back to sleep is the simplest way to ensure a good night’s sleep for all,” says Baker.

【推荐2】A new Chinese snooker(斯洛克台球) star is on the rise.

At age of 20, Yan Bingtao, defeated four-time world champion John Higgins to win the Snooker Master title on Jan 17. This made him the youngest Masters champion since Ronnie O’Sullivan won the title at the age of 19 in 1995.

It was Yan’s first appearance in such a major event. But he managed to defeat famous players Neil Robertson, Stephen Maguire and Stuart Bingham, making his victory all the more impressive. Yan’s coolness under pressure made experts believe that he is sure to be great. He kept calm under extreme pressure.

A native of Zibo, Shandong province, Yan took up billiards(桌球) at age 7, soon moving onto snooker. In 2009, his father quit his job to take him to Beijing for professional training. His mother later got cancer, stayed behind to earn money for the family.

In 2016, Yan went to the United Kingdom to start his professional career. There, he trained seven hours a day. “It is a boring process. For example, he needed to practice a ball routine(路线) for thousands of time each day.”

As Yan became a hit, people would make a comparison between Yan and another well-known player, Ding Junhui. Yan said “Ding is a legend for China. It would be so hard for anyone to achieve more than he did for the modern young players. All I can do is to be the best Yan Bingtao.”

It is clear that he hasn’t failed. “He could be a world champion without doubt, so China is very lucky to have him.” Higgins told BBC.

【推荐3】You might have heard someone say that a song changed their life. And maybe you used to hate tomatoes, but now you like it. No one doubts that we change as we grow older. But do we change in major ways? Can we really change who we are? People used to believe we stay pretty much the same throughout our lives, but researchers are increasingly finding that we can and do change in big ways.

Psychologists have identified five dimensions that help us understand someone’s personality, which are called the “Big Five.” They are: 1. Openness: How open are you to trying new things? 2. Conscientiousness (尽责性): How responsible are you? 3. Extroversion (外向):How friendly, outgoing, and enthusiastic are you? 4. Agreeableness: How caring, trusting, and generous are you? 5. Emotional stability: How calm are you, especially when problems arise? Everyone has different levels of the big five dimensions. For example, Harry Potter has high levels of openness to experience, while Hermione Granger would score high in conscientiousness.

Scientists used to think that each person’s “Big Five” stayed the same their whole life, but newer research suggests that the dimensions do change. People who took a personality test as teen-agers scored very differently when they took the same test 50 years later. Three dimensions usually changed more than the others, which are emotional stability, conscientiousness, and agreeableness. In fact, most adults were more emotionally stable, more conscientious, and more agreeable than when they were younger. Researchers considered this a sign that we mature over time, perhaps learning to get along better with others.

Even though people change over time, the relationship between dimensions often remains similar. For example, someone who was very open to new experiences but who was not agreeable as a teenager was likely still more open to new things than agreeable as an adult. Scores changed, and sometimes changed a lot, but they didn’t change randomly.