1 . 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 was spot-on for me.

Look at your three middle fingers of your left hand. Is your index finger (食指) longer than your ring finger? Is your ring finger longer than your index finger? Or are the two the same length?

Category 1: A longer ring finger. 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.

Category 2: A longer index finger. 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 too proud. You are not necessarily introverted, but you do enjoy time to yourself especially when you’re trying to complete a project. You are a determined go-getter who can make things happen, but you may be shy when it comes to taking the first step in building up a friendship. You are also probably happy with what you have, but you’re always wishing for more.

Category 3: The two are the same length. If your index finger and ring finger are roughly 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 fiery core (暴躁的本质) and can lash out unexpectedly when you’re pushed too far.

How well did these descriptions match your personality? I was surprised at the accuracy in my case.

2 . I’d done it before, and so I had no reason to believe that this time would be any different. I was sure that when I returned home from my mission trip. As always, I’d bring back nothing more than some mud on my boots. A hole or two in my jeans and, of course, a lot of great memories.

The summer before my high school graduation, I went to West Virginia with others as volunteers to repair the homes of those in need. Arriving at our destination, my group was assigned the task of rebuilding sections of a home that had been damaged by fire. No sooner had we parked on the home’s dirt driveway than we saw an excited little girl, no more than six years old, standing in the doorway of the family’s temporary home. Shoeless and wearing dirty clothes and the biggest smile I’d ever seen, she yelled, “Ma, Ma, they really came!” I didn’t know it then, but her name was Dakota, and four more days would pass before she’d say another word near me.

Behind Dakota was a woman in a wheelchair — her grandmother, we’d soon learn. I also discovered that my job that week would be to help change a fire-damaged dining room into a bedroom for this little girl. Over the following days, I noticed Dakota peeking at us every now and then as we worked. A few times, I tried talking with her, but she remained shy and distant, always flying around us like a tiny butterfly but keeping to herself.

By our fifth and final day, however, this was about to change. Before I went to work on her home on that last morning, I spoke for a moment or two with the grandmother. I was especially pleased when she told me how much Dakota loved her new room — so much. As we talked, I noticed something I hadn’t seen before — Dakota was hiding behind her grandmother.

Cautiously, she stepped into view, and I could see that just like her clothes, her face was still dirty. But no amount of soil could hide those bright blue eyes and the big smile. She was simply adorable. Slowly, she began walking toward me. It wasn’t until she was just inches away that I noticed the folded piece of paper in her tiny hand. Silently, she reached up and handed it to me. Once unfolded, I looked at the drawing she’d made with her broken crayons on the back of an old coloring book cover. It was of two girls — one much taller than the other — and they were holding hands. She told me it was supposed to be me and her, and on the bottom of the paper were three little words that instantly broke my heart. Now almost in tears, I couldn’t control myself anymore — I bent down and hugged her. She hugged me, too. And for the longest time, neither of us could let go.

I left for home early the next morning. I was returning with muddy boots and holes in my jeans. But because of Dakota, I brought back something else, too — a greater appreciation for all or the blessings of my life. I’ll never forget that barefoot little butterfly with the big smile and dirty face. I pray that she’ll never forget me either.

3 . A new study on the link between chili (辣椒) and dementia (老年痴呆) may be bad news for spicy food fans as researchers have found that eating lots of chili may cause an increased risk of dementia.

The study, led by Zumin Shi, associate professor at the College of Health Sciences of Qatar University, analyzed 4,582 Chinese adults aged 55 and above between 1991 and 2006 and found evidence of faster cognitive (认知) decline in those who consistently ate more than 50 grams of chili a day.

“Chili is one of the most commonly used spices in the world and particularly popular in Asia compared to European countries,” Li said in the press release. “In certain regions of China, such as Sichuan and Hunan, almost one in three adults consume spicy food every day.”

“Chili consumption was found to be beneficial to body weight and blood pressure in our previous studies. However, in this study, we found negative effects on cognition among older adults,“ Shi said in a press release published on Tuesday.

Chili intake included both fresh and dried chili peppers but not sweet capsicums or black peppers, explained Ming Li of the University of South Australia, an author of the study. Capsaicin is the active component in chili which reportedly speeds up metabolism (新陈代谢) and fat loss, and inhibits vascular disorders (抑制血管紊乱), but this is the first longitudinal (纵向的) study to investigate the association between chili intake and cognitive function, researchers said. The researchers said people of normal body weight may be more sensitive to chili intake than overweight people and so their memory and weight suffer a lot.

Worldwide, around 50 million people have dementia, and Alzheimer's disease is the most common form that may contribute to 60 to 70 percent of the cases, according to the World Health Organization. At present, no treatment can cure dementia or change its progressive course.

5 . The morning she left for Camp Kanawa, Maria awoke with an ache in her stomach. She had gone on plenty of parties. She'd even spent a whole weekend at Aunt Jolie and Uncle Ed's. So what happened to her？

No breakfast today, she thought, imagining the ache turning into throwing up and a horrible road trip after a full meal. As usual, Maria felt hungry as soon as the room smelled of French toast. On the other hand, maybe a good breakfast was exactly what she needed.

"There's my big camper!" said her mom. Then, she walked to the stove, placed two pieces of French toast on a plate and powdered sugar snowing down. "Just like you like it." At the meanwhile, Maria was already in position, armed with knife, fork, napkin and a full glass of milk.

"Get started while it's hot. Your father's coming down in a minute. I told him to shave. I don't want the beard﹣I mean, the bushy black beard. "

"Okay, okay," Maria's dad said with a smile. "Clean as a whistle. Just like you ordered."

"Really" Maria's mom shrugged.

"I think it's fashionable," Maria said.

"Well, your old man is fashionable," her dad said, moving his head the way he did when he wanted to look like a cool surfer man but looked more like an Egyptian robot." In fact, I was the most popular kid at my camp."

"For the record, it was a science camp," Maria's mother reminded her, looking her straight in the eyes." In all seriousness, Maria, popularity is not important and finding the people who like you for you-that's what matters."

"Your mom speaks the truth, sugar," said Maria's dad, wiping his thick beard with a napkin." Just be yourself. You'll enjoy it."

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10 . At eleven, I decided to learn to swim. There was a pool at the Y. M. C. A. offering exactly the opportunity. My mother continually warned against it, and kept fresh in my mind the details of each drowning in the river. But the Y. M. C. A. pool was safe.

I had a childhood fear of water. This started when I was three years old and father took me to the beach. The huge waves knocked me down and swept over me.

The pool was quiet. I was afraid of going in all alone, so I sat on the side of the pool to wait for others. Then came a big boy. He yelled, “Hi, Skinny! How'd you like to be ducked?” With that he picked me up and threw me into the deep end. I landed in a sitting position, and swallowed water. But I was not frightened out of my wits—when my feet hit the bottom, I would make a big jump, come out of the surface. It seemed a long way down. I gathered all my strength when I landed and made what I thought was a great spring upwards. Then I opened my eyes and saw nothing but water. I tried to yell but no sound came out. I went down, down, endlessly.

When I came to consciousness, I found myself on bed in hospital. I never went back to the pool. I avoided water whenever I could. This misadventure stayed with me as the years rolled by. It deprived(剥夺) me of the joy of boating and swimming. Finally, I decided to get an instructor. Piece by piece, he built a swimmer. Several months later, the instructor was finished, but I was not. Sometimes the terror would return.

This went on till July. I swam across the Lake Wentworth. Only once did the terror return. When I was in the middle of the lake, I put my face under and saw nothing but bottomless water.

I laughed and said, “Well, Mr. Terror, what do you think you can do to me?”

I had conquered my fear of water.