1 . Rainforests are home to a rich variety of medicinal plants, food, birds and animals. Can you believe that a single bush in the Amazon may have more species of ants than the whole of Britain! About 480 varieties of trees may be found in just one hectare of rainforest.

Rainforests are the lungs of the planet-storing vast quantities of carbon dioxide and producing a significant amount of the world’s oxygen. Rainforests have their own perfect system for ensuring their own survival; the tall trees make a canopy (树冠层) of branches and leaves which protect themselves, smaller plants, and the forest animals from heavy rain, intense dry heat from the sun and strong winds.

Amazingly, the trees grow in such a way that their leaves and branches, although close together, never actually touch those of another tree. Scientists think this is the plants’ way to prevent the spread of any tree diseases and make life more difficult for leaf-eating insects like caterpillars. To survive in the forest, animals must climb, jump or fly across the gaps. The ground floor of the forest is not all tangled leaves and bushes, like in films, but is actually fairly clear. It is where dead leaves turn into food for the trees and other forest life.

They are not called rainforests for nothing! Rainforests can generate 75% of their own rain. At least 80 inches of rain a year is normal-and in some areas there may be as much as 430 inches of rain annually. This is real rain-your umbrella may protect you in a shower, but it won’t keep you dry if there is a full rainstorm. In just two hours, streams can rise ten to twenty feet. The humidity (湿气) of large rainforests contributes to the formation of rainclouds that may travel to other countries in need of rain.

3 . At the beginning of the 20th century, a large number of writers combined creative writing with statement of national identity. China’s Lu Xun is a familiar example, along with W.B. Yeats, Ireland’s greatest poet and the founder of the patriotic “Celtic Twilight” cultural movement. A third great literary patriot is the Bengali and Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore(1861-1941).

Tagore renewed Bengali writing, introducing the common people’s language into poetry and writing about the common people too. By showing the value of Bengali literature, he showed the reasons for the independence of India as a nation. It’s no surprise that he strongly supported his country’s independence from the British.

Tagore wasn’t just a poet, but also an novelist, a playwright, and an essayist. The range of his talents made him famous not only in India, but across the world.

His fame led to invitations to travel; on his journeys abroad he met with other famous figures in the arts, politics and sciences. He was W.B, Yeats’ guest in Ireland and once meet Einstein, as well as meeting many world leaders. The inspiration that came from such a varied life fed into his work, giving it an international character.

Since it is so varied, it’s difficult to generalize about Tagore’s writing. But it’s impossible not to notice a strong awareness of loss in it. Take these lines from his poem Golden Boat, included in a book that won him in 1913, world literature’s highest honor, the Nobel Prize. Tagore imagines life as a boat which floats on, leaving him, a dead man, on the shore “All I had achieved was carried off on the golden boat-only I was left behind.”

5 . Among the many things that Brisbane (布里斯班), Australia, does really well is the care for kids. Here’s a list of places that we think will be suitable for your kids.

Swimming pools

Simple way for happiness: mix kids with water. Of course, this is a choice for the hot summer months.

Entertainment Parks

Free outdoor fun — that’s what Brisbane’s parks offer kids of all ages. Parks encourage imagination and activity for little people and a place for parents to let them run wild.

The Children’s Art Centre

The Children’s Art Centre has proven very popular with their programs and exhibitions. We love the artist-run workshops and performances (unusually you must pay some money) specially designed for children too.

South Bank Parklands

South Bank Parklands has everything you need to keep little ones amused. Take them for a swim at the man-made beach, play on one of the playgrounds by the river. On weekends, go through the arts market or go to a cheap movie at the South Bank cinema. South Bank Parklands often hosts free events and performances too.

Roma Street Parkland

Close to bus transport, this inner city parkland is easily accessible (可进入的) and ideal for kids of all ages. Younger kids can take a trip on the Jelly Bean Express, a 1.3 km trackless train ride around the parkland or there’s a playground to explore. Free entry and open daily.

Skating and climbing

We love the places that let the kids expend all that youthful energy. Take them roller skating or ice skating. Or try rock climbing at a variety of indoor and outdoor places around Brisbane.

6 . People usually become more personal and hide less of themselves when using email. Researchers from Open University in Britain have found in a recent study that there are good reasons for this.

The team of researchers asked 83 pairs of students, all strangers to each other, to solve a problem. They had to discuss this question: If only five people in the world could be saved from a world disaster, who should they be?The pairs of students had to talk over the problem either face to face or by computers. Dr. Johnson said, “They told their partners four times as much about themselves when they talked over the Internet as when they talked face to face. When the computers were fitted with cameras so that students could see each other, this limited the personal side of the conversation.”

Generally the information was not rather personal. It was mainly about things such as where they went to school, or where they used to live. But some students discussed their love stories, and personal childhood experiences.

Dr Johnson believes that emailing encourages people to focus on themselves. And when they do this, they become more open, especially if there are no cameras. “If you cannot see the other person, it becomes easier to talk about yourself. This is because you are not thinking what the other person is thinking of you. So emailing has become the modern way of talking,” said Dr. Johnson. However, this style of talking is not quite new. “In the 19th century people started to use the ‘telegraph’ to communicate. Now the same kind of thing has happened and people ended up speaking more freely.

Dr. Johnson thinks that emailers need to know about these effects of emailing, especially when they start work in a company. “If you don’t know about it, you could find yourself saying more about yourself than you wanted to.”

7 . Losing something important can be a very anxious experience. If someone finds it and returns it to you, it is often a great relief. Authorities in Guangzhou have created a new regulation (规定) to encourage more people to return lost items.

The regulation says that people who hand in lost belongings will get 10 percent of the item’s value as a reward from public security authorities (公安部门). If the owner can’t be found, the finder will still be rewarded with 10 percent of the item’s value after it is sold at a public auction (拍卖). The rewards will come from government funding.

The regulation has caused heated public debate. Opponents say that it will rob the act of its nobility (高尚), adding that such good behavior should be done out of selflessness, Qianjiang Evening News reported.

However, there are also people who welcome the regulation, saying it will encourage more people to do the right thing, Beijing Daily reported. After all, not everybody is willing to return lost property (财物) to its owner. Finders will have to take care of lost items and spend time looking for their owners. The regulation gives finders the right to ask for a reward, which is in the best interest of both parties.

Countries like Japan and Germany already have similar laws. According to Japan’s Lost Goods Law, people who find a lost item should quickly return it to the owner or turn it over to the police. The owner should provide the finder with a reward of 5 to 20 percent of the item’s value.