2 . Most able-bodied people take their ability to perform simple daily tasks for granted — when they reach for a warm cup of coffee, they can feel its weight and temperature and adjust their grasp accordingly so that no liquid is spilled. People with full sensory and motor control of their arms and hands can feel that they’ve made contact with an object the instant they touch or grasp it, allowing them to start moving or lifting it with confidence.

But those tasks become much more difficult when a person operates an artificial arm, let alone a mind-controlled one.

In a paper published in Science, a team of bio engineers from the University of Pittsburgh describe how adding brain stimulation that generates tactile (触觉的) sensations makes it easier for the operator to use a brain-controlled robotic arm. In the experiment, combining vision with artificial tactile feedback cut the time spent grasping and moving objects in half, from 20.9 to 10.2 seconds.

Study participant Nathan Copeland, who was left with limited use of his arms after a car crash, is the first person in the world who was implanted with tiny electrode arrays (电极阵列) in his brain. Arrays allow him to not only control the robotic arm with his mind, but also to receive tactile feedback.

In a series of tests, where Copeland was asked to pick up and move various objects from a table to a raised platform, providing tactile feedback through electrical stimulation allowed him to complete tasks twice as fast compared to tests without stimulation.

“Even though the sensation isn’t natural, that never bothers me,” said Copeland.

“When even limited and imperfect sensation is restored, the person’s performance improved in a pretty significant way. We still have a long way to go in terms of making the sensations more realistic and bringing this technology to people’s homes, but the closer we can get to recreating the normal inputs to the brain, the better off we will be,” said Robert Gaunt, co-senior author of the study.

3 . Feeling unhappy, depressed or lonely could speed up the ageing processes more than smoking or even certain diseases, researchers have suggested. While everyone has an age based on their date of birth — their “chronological age”, they also have what is known as a “biological age”, based on the ageing of the body’s functions, influenced by gene is, lifestyle and other factors. Studies have previously suggested the higher the biological age, the higher the risk of various diseases, and the risk of death.

Now researchers say they have created a digital model of ageing, revealing the importance of psychological health. “Your body and soul are connected — this is our main message,” said Fedor Galkin, a co-author of the study and lead scientist at the Hong Kong startup Deep Longevity.

“We demonstrate that psychological factors, such as feeling unhappy or being lonely, add up to 1.65 years to one’s biological age,” they write. While Galkin said the figure is an estimate, not least as the model assumes that different feelings such as hopelessness or fearfulness are independent of each other, the study highlights the importance of psychological state in how fast we age.

“Taking care of your psychological heath is the greatest contributor that you can have to slowing down your pace of ageing,” he said. The team also report that people who smoke are predicted to be 15 months older than their non-smoking peers, while being married reduces biological age by around seven months. People living in rural areas are predicted to be almost five months older than their urban peers.

“But,” he said, “it is unlikely that isolation and loneliness are truly worse risk factors for health than smoking because the study only looked at data collected at one point in time. The researchers did not follow up participants to show that those with psychological distress actually aged more rapidly,” he said. “It will be important in the future to test whether these predictions are fulfilled by repeating testing over a number of years.”

4 . The French couple, Katia and Maurice Krafft, shared an attraction to volcanoes, one that perhaps approached an addiction. There are many people interested in volcanoes, but very few who are willing to climb an erupting crater(火山口) and approach the flowing lava(岩浆). Katia and Maurice did a lot of work, shooting photographs and films of volcano eruptions, always being the first on the scene of an active volcano, and the ones who fearlessly came to just a few feet from lava flows. They were not only highly respected by volcanologists all around the world, but also envied.

The couple metinthe1960s when they were both students at the University of Strasbourg, and got married in 1970. Both of them were attracted to volcanoes since childhood. Upon graduating, Katia and Maurice pursued their careers as volcano observers with no financial support at all, just their own savings, which they spent on a trip to Stromboli to observe the eruption of the volcano.

They took an incredible and valuable set of photographs of the near-continuous eruption. People were curious about the photographs, while public officials working on threatening volcanoes found them useful. This interest in their work helped the French couple to establish a career in documenting eruptions. Now able to obtain financial support for their work, Katia and Maurice visited hundreds, if not thousands, of volcanoes around the globe. They traveled and recorded eruptions, always getting closer to the danger than anyone else.

In June 1991, along with 40 other people, the Kraffts set out to film the eruption at Mount Unzen in Japan. A sudden and unexpected flow took place and all the people in its path were killed. Later investigation revealed that Katia’s and Maurice’s bodies were closest to the volcano crater. They were 44 and 45 years old respectively.

In their 25-year-long career, the couple documented hundreds of volcanoes, and their work consists of thousands of sill photos, 300 hours off film materials, a number of books, and scientific articles published in Bulletin of Volcanology.

5 . In 2016, when I was on the graduate scheme (计划) at Deutsche Bank, Marie Inafidon, chief executive of Stemettes, who encourages girls to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM), was also working there. I didn’t meet her at the time, but I did read an article about her and her career.

Learning at 21 years old about the career of a young black woman’s succeeding in a traditionally white male-dominated industry was one of the most influential things that ever happened to me. It gave me confidence that it was possible to do well in the office and work on personal external project at the same time.

Role models can play a central role in shaping a young professional’s career. They are especially important if you belong to an under-represented group for whom a lack of representation in the workplace can lead to feeling isolated and lacking in confidence. They can help those just starting out, whether or not they are a graduate as I was, to believe in their own abilities.

There’s a growing need to have accessible role models. Given the tendency to exaggerate (夸大) success stories, hearing from women who talk honestly about the challenges they have faced, either when starting a business or forming a new career path, is much more effective. A study revealed that 70 per cent of girls say they think differently about their futures after hearing from women role models.

I’m frequently asked about what businesses could be doing to increase racial diversity in the workplace. A good starting point is to actively promote and support the voices of the people in the organisation that are leading positive change and inspiring others. This makes a real difference. Unlike the tokenism (装样子) I still come across, which results in individuals being made the lone representative for a group without real support from the organisation.

Things came full circle for me when I interviewed Ms. Inafidon for my book in 2019. I was able to tell her of the incredible impact her passion and confidence had had on me as a graduate trainee and how grateful I would always be for that.

6 . Books That Celebrate Diverse Holidays and Traditions

It’s important to remember there are a diverse set of holidays available to explore. Below are a few books that help introduce children to different holiday cultures and traditions.

Too Many Tamales by Gary Soto, illustrated by Ed Martinez

While helping her mother with Christmas celebration, Maria is tempted to try on her mother’s diamond ring. After getting caught up in the joy of the holiday and playing with her cousins, Maria realizes the ring is missing! That’s when she and her cousins come up with a plan to eat all of the tamales, in hopes of finding the ring.

Together for Kwanzaa by Juwanda G. Ford, illustrated by Shelly Hehenberger

This is a story about a little girl named Kayla who wants to see her older brother Khari come home so they can celebrate Kwanzaa together as a family. Khari is stuck at college when a snowstorm hits and his car breaks down. Will he make it home in time for Kwanzaa?

A Child’s Christmas in Wales by Dylan Thomas, illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman

This book is a funny, nostalgic tale of Christmas Eve afternoon through Christmas night in Wales, and is full of unique imagery and poetic prose. It will arouse a sense of familiarity for some young readers while introducing them to different aspects of Christmas traditions.

We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga by Traci Sorell, illustrated by Frane Lessac

The word otsaliheliga is used by members of the Cherokee Nation to express gratitude. This is an amazing story that describes a journey through the seasons with a modern-day Cherokee family. Cherokee history and traditions are also woven into the story in a very kid-friendly way.

7 . Sometimes accommodation can feel restricting when you’re traveling. If you’re in an unfamiliar country, it might be tempting (有吸引力的) just to go and stay in a hotel. It doesn’t hurt to step out of your comfort zone from time to time though, and there are plenty of accommodation options that aren’t hotels that are easily accessible and not too hard on the wallet.

Home Swap

There is a way to stay in a beautiful home for a minimal cost. The hidden disadvantage? A stranger is also staying in your home. Home swaps are increasing in popularity and there are sites dedicated to giving you peace of mind so that you can enjoy your holiday in the comfort that your home isn’t being messed up.

Houseboat

The perfect option for those who love the water, houseboats come in all levels of luxury, so you should be able to find one that suits your budget. It could be tough to get the hang of controlling your home if you’re unfamiliar with boats, but it a skill that you should pick up relatively quickly!

Igloo

Obviously not an option in anywhere warm, staying in an igloo for a night is actually a lot warmer than you think! Don’t worry about accommodation experience, there are plenty of igloos around the world that can provide services as varied as ice bars and hot bathtubs, so you can survive this odd experience in comfort and without freezing.

Cottage

A great way to provide freedom and a “home away from home” feeling is to rent a cottage on your holiday. A cottage can give authentic, home y feel to a foreign country. Most can comfortably fit a family and give children plenty of space to play, so a cottage is a great option for the family holiday.

9 . Sometimes, determining which projects you should devote your time and energy to first takes energy you don’t have to spare (which is why we have tips for how to do it). But even when you know what tasks need to be done, you still need to figure out how to prioritize them. Try the 3-3-3 method.

This technique comes from Oliver Burkeman, author of Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals($13.99). He advocates planning each workday around a 3-3-3 model, first devoting three hours to deep work on your most important project. Next, complete three other urgent tasks that don’t require three hours of focus. Finally, do three “maintenance” tasks, like cleaning, answering emails, or scheduling other work.

What distinguishes this method from other approaches are those first three hours of deep work. Jumping into them first means you’ll be fresh, focused, and more likely to be able to jump into a task without getting distracted. Keep those three hours free of emails, texts, chats, or other menial duties, to the best of your ability. (Check out our full guide to engaging in deep work here.)

Deep work produces major productivity, so you’ll get a lot accomplished if you commit to it, but you can’t stay in that mindset (思维模式) forever. You’ll top out after about three hours, so it’s best to have those three other, smaller tasks lined up and ready to go so you can stay productive even while slowing down into less demanding responsibilities.