【推荐2】Check out these places and have the vacation of a lifetime in Greece!

1. Lovely Ithaca

Located on the Ionian Sea, Ithaca is a combination of the greenest landscapes in Greece, the most wonderful swimming waters and a lively local atmosphere. When going around the narrow island, you will be attracted by the hilltop village Stavros and the beautiful fishing village Frikes. For motorists, Kaminia beach, hidden in a peaceful cove, is the perfect destination for a day of relaxation.

2. Breathtaking Meteora

Although when you go to Greece, you often go to the beaches and islands, one of the must-visit destinations in Greece is definitely the breathtakingly beautiful Meteora, located on the mainland next to the village of Kalabaka. It is a natural attraction and the second most important monastic area in Greece, which is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Meteora’s landscape is made special by the rocks shaped like columns (柱状物) over time, on which the Monasteries (修道院) of the area were built around the 14th and 16th centuries.

3. Ios－the favorite destination of the future

Ios may be left out of many people’s plans as it is known as a party island, but in fact the party season only lasts from about half of June to mid-August. In the off-season, the island is very quiet compared to popular destinations such as Santorini. Of course, Ios is an absolute destination for party-goers even in midsummer. Ios is dotted with a number of small churches. What makes Ios interesting is its setting for an ideal holiday without crowds and noise. Here is a guaranteed hit of the future, waiting to be discovered!

【推荐3】This is the time when we start thinking of travel plans for the coming holiday. Will we go back to our old favorites? Try somewhere new? The following list will give you fresh ideas of where to stay.

Matca, Transylvania (Romania)

Matca, which means “queen bee” in Romanian, is a nickname for the hotel. Transylvania’s rural landscapes have long been a favorite of those in the know — the UK’s royal family has a house two hours north — and hilltop Matca renews its 16 rooms with the spirit of Romanian traditions, from hand carved beds to traditional carpets over the floorboard. Expected to be open in March.

Maria, Helsinki (Finland)

The Maria has been the first choice for Helsinki travelers since it met the public last month, with its “spa suites” plus private saunas (桑拿) or steam rooms. The hotel sits across four protected buildings dating back to 1885, and as such the look is modern classic, with plenty of copper and iron gray and big windows to let as much of that light as possible into the supersized rooms.

Casa Lucia, Buenos Aires (Argentina)

Though Argentina looks set to be entering a period of financial uncertainty in 2024, this new Buenos Aires hotel is looking for new ideas by turning to the city’s golden age a century ago. Featuring “royal suites” and opening soon in April in the Edificio Mihanovich, a skyscraper in the Retiro district, the Casa Lucia is an upgraded version of the former Sofitel.

The Leinster, Dublin (Ireland)

For all too long, there’s only been room for one famous hotel on Dublin’s Merrion Square. The Leinster is about to change that. Opening next month, it’s bringing an almost Kit Kemp style of boutique chic (精品时尚) to the historic square, with lively patterned headboards brightening the modern rooms. The other hotel on the square — The Merrion — had better look to its laurels.

【推荐1】When traditional treatments fail to help patients with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD强迫症)，an implant that shocks the brain with electrical pulses (脉搏) just might, a new research review shows. It found that the treatment — known as “deep brain stimulation,^” or DBS — can offer significant relief to as many as two-thirds of such patients.

“OCD involves forced and bothersome thoughts that the individual cannot silence, and repetitive behaviors performed to reduce the anxiety.” said study author Dr. Sameer Sheth, a professor of neurosurgery at Baylor College of Medicine. Examples of OCD include repeated handwashing, ordering and arranging, repeating words in one’s head, and checking and double-checking.

Enter DBS for the brain. “It consists of a stimulator typically put under the skin in the upper chest and connected to an electrode (电极).”Sheth said. “The electrode is placed in specific regions in the brain, aiming that by restoring activity in these areas to a more balanced state, DBS settles the symptoms of OCD.”

To find out whether it works, Sheth’s team reviewed the findings of 31 studies conducted between 2005 and 2021. Altogether, the studies included 345 adult OCD patients, at an average age of 40. The review showed that after a treatment period of about two years, DBS had produced obvious symptom improvements in two-thirds of the patients. Significant depression relief was also owed to DBS treatment. About one in five patients experienced at least one serious side effect of DBS. Still, Sheth stressed that the upside is hard to ignore. He added, “there is actually little risk of DBS for appropriately selected patients.”

“Since the DBS electrodes are placed in the brain regions contributing to OCD, it is not a surprise that it works.” said Dr. Gopalkumar Rakesh, a professor at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine. “Although it’s not a brand-new treatment, DBS really is in the more-research-needed stage of development. So I would say that the results of this study point to the need for even more research to determine which patients would really adjust to that treatment to have the greatest benefit.”

【推荐2】How Do Different Animals Sleep?

Big Sleepers

Predators, such as lions and wolves, tend to sleep more than their prey. They also spend more time dreaming, although scientists don’t know why.

Light Sleepers

Giraffes don’t get very much sleep — only a few hours a day. For giraffes, sleeping is awkward and leaves them weak to their enemies. So giraffes mostly take short naps while standing up. But they do need to lie down for half an hour or so of deep, dreaming sleep. It can take a whole minute for a giraffe to get back up on its long legs again.

A Comfortable Bed

Most animals like to find a safe, comfortable place to sleep. Gorillas make themselves sleeping nests of branches and leaves on the ground or in a tree. Every gorilla makes a fresh new nest every night, even if they haven5t moved far from the one they used the night before.

Half-asleep

Dolphins are air-breathing mammals that swim in the sea. But how do they sleep? If they stop swimming to take a nap, won’t they sink and drown? Scientists studying seals and dolphins have discovered a surprising answer — these animals can sleep with one half of their brain while the other half stays awake! While the right half of the dolphin’s brain is asleep, the left half stays awake. This lets the dolphin keep its nose above the water so it can breathe. After about 20 minutes, the sides switch, allowing the other half of the dolphin’s brain to sleep.

Do Bugs Sleep?

Bugs don’t sleep in the same way we do. But they do have periods of rest every day. Dragonflies often have a favorite spot that they return to time after time to rest.