【推荐1】When the tornado (龙卷风) passed, Lewis returned to her house after that awful night, and the Bible was the first thing she looked for. She had bought it 35 years earlier, at the start of her marriage. Like many folks, she’d used it to preserve the family’s history: decades-old photos, newspaper obituaries (讣告) of loved ones, a handkerchief from her great-grandmother, even a piece of a scarf her uncle bad brought back from the Korean War.

The Bible was not where she d last seen it, on top of an antique dresser in her bedroom. The only thing left was the solid pieces of marble that had been on the top of the furniture. After an hour of searching, one of the volunteers ran up to her and found the bible while clearing through ruins. She had tears streaming down her cheeks. It had flown about ten feet from the dresser. Surprisingly, while many books had been destroyed beyond recognition, the Bible was still intact, even though it had sat in the rain for days. “It was a miracle,” says Lewis.

A few of the Bible’s treasures did go missing. Yet ever so slowly, they, too, began reappearing in Lewis’s life. Days after the Bible was found, volunteers discovered one of the newspaper obituaries outside the home. Two weeks later, a neighbor found another newspaper clipping (剪辑) by her house. “It was a shock,” say Lewis.

Now the Bible already has its well-deserved place of honor, on the dresser. She knows that while every good book tells stories of disastrous weather and unlikely survival, this one actually lived it.

【推荐3】The Terror of the First F5 Tornado

The nonstop high plains wind suddenly fell dead still, leaving the evening air hot and heavy over Lubbock, Texas. Impossibly dark clouds hung low in the sky.

Standing in the yard outside her family’s trailer home, 12-year-old Cindy Keele saw the worry appear in her grandmother's face. “Go in and put on your shoes,” Keele’s grandmother said flatly (断然地). “We have to get to the storm cellar.”

The girl dashed inside. As soon as the screen door slapped shut behind her, hail (冰雹) began rapping against the roof. Keele yelled to her mother, “Grandma says we have to get to the storm cellar!” Then a hailstone the size of a softball smashed through the kitchen window. Another one punched a hole in the ceiling. And then came the sound: the unmistakable, ear-splitting roar of an approaching tornado.

Cindy Keele’s mother was suddenly on the same page. But getting herself, her three kids, and her mother to safety was no simple matter -the shelter was at the opposite end of the trailer park. If they didn’t drive, they’d never make it.

The five moved quickly to the family car, trying to avoid pieces of hail. At last, everyone was in the car.

“My purse!” Keele’s grandmother shouted, “My purse is still in there!”

Keele jumped out of the car and ran back into the house. She fetched the purse and dashed back into the maelstrom (漩涡). She almost made it, “As I ran to the car,” she says, “an enormous hailstone hit me in the back of the neck. I was told it was the size of a soccer ball.” The next few minutes were a blur for the girl. Her next clear memory was of inside the shelter.

“I guess there were 60 of us in there, plus dogs and cats,” Keele says. “The sound outside was deafening. And then, all of a sudden, it got quiet.” Cautiously, the group went up from underground.

“My mother ran straight for our street. What she found was-nothing.” The place where our house had been were pieces of houses, but not pieces of our house. “I’d never seen my mom cry,” Keele recalls softly. “But she was on her knees. She was broken.”

May 11 marks the 51st anniversary of the 1970 Lubbock tornado, the first such storm ever to be classified F5.

【推荐1】A new UBC Okanagan study finds children not only get the benefits of working with therapy dogs — they enjoy it too.

“Dog lovers often have an assumption that dog-assisted therapy is going to be effective because other people are going to love dogs.” says Nicole Harris, who conduct this research while a master student in the School of Education. The research saw 22 children from the Okanagan Boys and Girls Club take part in a series of courses to help them build their social skills. Over six weeks, the children were accompanied by therapy dogs from UBC Okanagan as they completed lessons.

Each week the children were taught a new skill, such as introducing themselves or giving directions to others. The children would first practice with their given therapy dog before running through the exercise with the rest of the group. In the final time, the children — accompanied by their new furry friend and volunteer handler — would practice their new skills with university students located in the building.

“Therapy dogs are often able to reach children and help their growth in surprising ways. We saw evidence of this in the social skills of children when they were paired with a therapy clog.” says Dr John-Tyler Binfet, associate professor in the School of Education and director of BARK. “The dogs helped create a non-threatening climate while the children were learning these new skills. We saw the children practice and train their social skills with and alongside the dogs.”

“Findings from our observations suggested that dog-assisted social and feeling learning activities can provide unique advantages.” says Harris. “Our team saw that by interacting with the therapy dogs, the children’s moods improved and their engagement in their lessons increased.”

“Dogs have the ability to provide many stress-reducing and confidence-raising benefits to children.” says Harris. “It was really heart-warming to see the effect the program had on the kids.”

【推荐2】What Does the Length of Your Fingers Say About You?

Are you the peace-loving type or the ambitious go-getter? Your finger length might be a clue. Take a look at your fingers. Would you believe me if I told you that the length of your fingers in relation to one another can predict your personality? I know that it sounds like one of those silly tests you see on Facebook, but I have to admit that it is exactly correct for me. Here's how it works.

Look at your three middle fingers of your hand. Is your   index   finger longer than your ring finger? Is your ring finger longer than your index finger? Or are the two of the same length? Find the situation that best matches your hand and see if what follows is an accurate   description of your personality.

●Longer ring finger: The Sweet Talker

If your ring finger is longer than your index finger, research shows that you're likely a charming type, and you can probably talk yourself out of any situation. Others often find this personality type irresistible and will go to great lengths to help you. You're more likely to take risks, and you're good at problem-solving. People in this category make great engineers, soldiers and crossword-puzzle solvers.

●Longer index finger: The (Over) Confident One

If your index finger is longer than your ring finger, chances are you are full of confidence—possibly even to the point of being over-confident and proud. You are not necessarily introverted（内向的）,but you do enjoy time to yourself, especially when you're trying to complete a project. You are a dream pursuer who can make things happen, but you may be shy when it comes to taking the first step in a relationship. You are also probably happy with what you have, but you're always wishing for more.

●Index and ring finger are of the same length: The Peacemaker

If your index finger and ring finger are roughly of the same length, you are likely to avoid conflict at all costs and seek to keep the peace in your relationships. You are well-organized, faithful and sympathetic. But deep down under all of that caring and peace-loving, you also have a hot-tempered side that can appear unexpectedly when you're pushed too far. You will try your hardest to avoid a fight.

How well do these descriptions match your personality? I was surprised at the accuracy in     my case, but I'm not going to tell you which one it was!

A．	B．
C．	D．

【推荐3】In recent times, with the emergence of electric cars, the concept of powering them with solar energy has also started picking up steam. Electric cars—even though they run on electricity and don’t use fossil(化石) fuels—are still NOT GREEN! People suffer from the misconception that not using fossil fuel means “green” which is kind of ridiculous, considering the electricity we use is generated by burning the very same fuels!

However, what if your car had solar panels that could charge it? Now that would indeed be a green machine! Basically, as much as we would like to incorporate this energy source into our car, the efficiency of the currently used solar panels is subject to the fulfillment of different criteria.

Firstly, solar panels occupy a large amount of area. An average car has an area of 10-25 sq. ft. on the roof, which can generate between 50-150W under ideal conditions. This is hardly enough power to light a small bulb! Also, moderate sunny temperature needs to be ideal, as extremely high temperatures can reduce the efficiency of the solar panels. Cars must work in all weather conditions, so if a solar panel limits the car’s functionality, it becomes practically useless. More importantly, the cost of the panels and development required to power the electronics using the sun’s energy outweighs the benefits that solar panels provide.

Most cars today that have solar roofs, use the solar energy to power only a few basic functions of the car. While there is still time before we will be able to drive cars fully powered by solar energy, there are some alternatives, such as solar power stations, which are being designed to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels for electricity.

Solar-powered vehicles are surely the future, but not the near future. As the cost of solar panels continues to fall and their efficiency increases, things will begin to look much “brighter” for this alternative and sustainable option!