Alexander sang all the time. He sang in the shower, he sang while he did his homework, and he sang while he walked to school. He simply loved singing. One day during a break, he heard Kevin talking about the tryouts(选拔)for the City Choir(合唱团).

“Yeah, I’m attending the tryouts this weekend,” Kevin announced. “With my voice, I’m pretty much guaranteed a spot. I don’t even need any practice as I am so talented. Imagine they’ll want me to perform lots of solos(独唱),too.”

Everyone knew that Kevin had a fantastic singing voice. Normally, Alexander just ignored him, but he couldn’t help imagining himself as a member of the choir. Wouldn’t it be fun, he thought, to sing with other kids every day and have someone actually teach him about singing?

On the tryout day, Alexander took a deep breath, walked into the building, registered at a large table, and then waited nervously in the hallway. The only one who didn’t look nervous was Kevin. And why should he be? He has performed as a soloist many times. Alexander, on the other hand, had never taken a musical lesson in his life, much less had performed for an audience.

After a while, the choir director, Mr.Robeson, walked in and told the kids that they were to sing a song individually, sing as a group and answer some questions. Soon the individual test began. When Alexander stood on the stage, he tried to calm down and pretended he was singing in the shower. He felt satisfied when he was done, at least until Kevin’s turn came. As Kevin³s confident voice filled the room Alexander realized that he would never sound that good.

Next, Mr. Robeson put the kids into groups of four or five and asked them to sing together. Kevin’s group sang right before Alexander’s, and even with four other boys singing, Kevin’s voice clear and distinct; it seemed to reach the farthest corners of the room.

Then came the time for Alexander to sing with his group.

Finally Mr.Robeson told Alexander that he made it, not Kevin.

2 . Have you ever suddenly developed an appetite from a passing glance at a freeway billboard featuring a brightly colored cheeseburger, or decided to step into a candy or ice cream store displaying a window full of lively shades and hues (色调)of sweet treats? If so, you are in good company. Unless we are medically restricted or strictly dieting, we are not likely to resist inviting fare simply because we recognize the lack of nutritional value.

Devina Wadhera and Elizabeth D.Capaldi-Phillips in A Review of Visual Cues Associated with Food recognize the impact of sensory cues (信号)on food consumption and enjoyment, and the potential they have to promote healthy eating behavior. They cite previous research in providing some interesting examples of the visual impact of different color schemes (方案)on taste and food enjoyment. They note that pink food on a white plate was considered sweeter and more flavorful than the same food on a black plate. Apparently, we consume with more of our senses than we realize. So given the rainbow of colors around us when faced with so many appealing food choices, is there any way to control our appetite? Thankfully, some research says yes.

Oliver Genschow demonstrated that when it comes to eating less colors impact consumption. They specifically researched the effect of the color red. They found that people ate fewer pretzels when using a red plate, as opposed to white or blue, and drank less from a red cup than a blue cup. They suggest that the color red reduces food and drink intake by functioning as a stop signal.

But when it comes to healthy eating, instead of putting on a pair of sunglasses to block the inviting hues of food cues, consider the value of discipline. Healthy eating involves intentional choices, not mindless responses to sensory cues. And before you invest in many red tableware to slim down, remember that what goes onto those plates is much more important.

3 . From changes in daylight across seasons to the artificial lighting choices in workplaces, it’s clear that the quantity and quality of light that a person encounters can significantly impact mood. Now, scientists at Brown University think they know why.

In a new study published in a science magazine, the research team used functional MRI(磁共振) to reveal how light-intensity signals reach the brain, and how brain structures involved in mood process those signals. The study demonstrated that some regions of the cerebral cortex(大脑皮层) involved in cognitive(认知的) processing and mood show sensitivity for light intensity.

The discovery has implications for understanding mood problems like seasonal affective disorder and major depressive disorders, as well as how to treat them, said lead study author Jerome Sanes. “Identifying this pathway and understanding its function might directly promote development of approaches to treating depression,” Sanes added.

The findings build on previous research by study co-author David Berson, a neuroscience professor, who in 2002 discovered special light-sensing cells in the eye. To determine whether light intensity adjusts the human prefrontal cortex, the researchers used functional MRI to explore whole-brain activation patterns in 20 healthy adults.

In a relatively simple experiment, according to Sanes, participants viewed four different levels of light intensity through glasses. They viewed light intensities ranging from dark to bright, for 30 seconds each. To keep them alert, they concurrently performed a task requiring them to state the difference between two tones.

They found that light suppressed(压制) activity in the prefrontal cortex in proportion to the light intensity. In this study, the researchers also showed that the prefrontal regions of the human brain have light-sensitive signals, which, Sanes said, may explain the effects of light intensity on complex emotional and cognitive behaviors.

4 . One of the things we were able to offer at our program before COVID(新冠病毒)forced us into lockdown was pre-loved clothing. We would set it up on tables once a month for our members to look through and take what they needed.

We had a lady join our program who was under government protection after escaping domestic violence. You could tell she’d been through a lot as she was shy and nervous but somehow had a kind of strength about her.

I soon noticed that she wore the same sweater every time she came. When our “market day” came around and we had our clothing laid out, I took her by the hand and told her to take what she needed. She refused as she didn’t have any money, but when I assured her it was free, she smiled and started to look through the piles.

We found quite a few things in her size and I urged her to take them to the bathroom to try them on. She took most of them and left that day very grateful and feeling a little better about herself.

She arrived the following week with a plate of baked cookies. I told her how much we appreciated her taking the time to make them as she handed me the plate.

She took me by the shoulder, kissed me on both cheeks, and looked me in the eye as she said thank you.

She had been treated with such cruelty and disrespect and this small gesture had a great impact on her. We hugged one another warmly.

From that day on, I put aside anything I thought she would like as we sorted the new donations. By the time she was moved to a new safe house, she had a whole new cupboard of clothes.

Now that Emily was 12, she could walk to school without her parents. And even better, she could go with her best friend, Heidi, who lived on the same street as her.

The only problem was that Emily had to walk the long way round, which took them a good 15 minutes longer. She just could not take the shortcut through the park.

But Heidi never complained. They had been hanging out at each other’s houses for as long as they could remember. The best times were when they had sleepovers and could sit up late talking about anything and everything and everyone.

So if anyone understood why Emily could not walk through the park, it was Heidi.

Emily was a sweet girl except that she was frightened at dogs! So she had to avoid certain places where they might be. She was always conscious of where she went and got quite good at finding ways to avoid encountering any of them. She planned ahead good and proper before she headed outdoors or to a friend’s home. She could even spot one a mile away!

But the strange thing was, she didn’t dislike dogs. In fact she was quite fond of the idea of them. She was feeling that her fear was preventing her from living life to the full. She was starting to become tired of constantly avoiding her big fear. She wanted so badly to be able to pet a dog like “normal” people did. She tried to overcome her fear, but it usually ended in tears and a feeling of disappointment.

As her best friend, Heidi couldn’t stand by. She believed that power of friendship could help Emily overcome the fear.

One day Heidi got a dog.

After several restless nights, Emily went to Heidi’s house and rang the bell.

6 . A new study focused on birds examines how the movements of rivers in the Amazon have contributed to that area’s exceptional biological diversity.The research team, led by the American Museum of Natural History, found that as small river systems change over time, they spur the evolution of new species. The findings also reveal previously unknown bird species in the Amazon that are only found in small areas next to these dynamic river systems, putting them at high risk of extinction.

The lowland rainforests of the Amazon River basin harbor(藏匿) more diversity than any other ecosystem on the planet. It is also a globally important biome(生物群落) containing about 18 percent of all trees on Earth and carrying more fresh water than the next seven largest river basins combined. Researchers have long wondered and hotly debated how the Amazon’s rich biodiversity arose and accumulated.

“Early evolutionary biologists like Alfred Russel Wallace noticed that many species of primates and birds differ across opposite riverbanks in the Amazon,”said the study’s lead author Lukas Musher. “Moreover, accumulating geological evidence has suggested that these rivers are highly dynamic, moving around the South American landscape over relatively short time periods, on the order of thousands or tens of thousands of years.”

To investigate how the movement of rivers across the landscape has influenced the accumulation of bird species in the Amazon, the researchers sequenced the genomes(基因组) of six species of Amazonian birds.

Because these rivers move around the landscape at different time scales, their movements can have varying outcomes for bird species: when river rearrangements occur quickly, populations of birds on each side can combine before they’ve had time to differ; when river changes happen slowly, species have a longer time to diverge from one another.

7 . Contrary to “popular opinion”, the scientific pursuit for knowledge is not a predictable process. To make new discoveries, researchers need the freedom to be creative, fail, and learn by chance. This aspect is similar to art. This is why Wageningen scientists look to artists for inspiration and exchange ideas about how to increase creative freedom.

“Science and art are two different ways to make something understandable. They both provide a perspective on reality,” says Biochemistry Professor Dolf Weijers. “From the outside, the research process looks very formal and the artistic process looks somewhat messy. But the scientific process can also unfold in an unpredictable way.”

“Scientists can learn a lot from artists,” says Weijers. “Association and creativity are central to art. Those aspects require more attention in science as the creative process is the key of science.”

“As a scientist, you use different methods, but it is equally about how you visualize(可视化) your understanding of reality and the connections that there are. This is sometimes just as visual as art,” says Weijers. One example is a recent special project in which Weijers and his colleague Joris Sprakel, professor of Physical Chemistry and Soft Matter, measured the forces that act on plant cells. A molecular(分子的)sensor was used to visualize the different forces. They showed the results in colorful images, each representing a different force.

What science and art also have in common is that they are topics of discussion in society. There are people who say that they do not value art and people who mistrust science. Weijers says, “It often creates the wrong impression because only the results of scientific studies are presented, and people do not have any insight into the process leading to discovery. As a scientist, you are doubted if you say that something is different a few years later. Then you are viewed as unreliable. But what is often poorly understood is that there are no final results in science. What we scientists can achieve in the coming period is to provide more chances for people to focus on the process. Personally, I think that the connection with art can help to lead the focus on the process than the result.”

8 . For Damen Fletcher, chess is much more than a game. This inspiring California man uses chess to coach young people from some of the most disadvantaged neighborhoods in Southern California and beyond to develop self-confidence, and find purpose in their lives.

Why does Fletcher choose chess to help kids and teens make the right moves in life? The answer lies in his own life story. Fletcher, who learned to play this game of strategic skill at the age of 13, grew up in Compton, California. After heading farther to college, he returned home to find his friends struggling. As he explains: “Some of them had fallen into prison. Homeless and unemployed... and I just wondered, ‘Why did I have such a different outcome?’ And it was chess.”

So he set about building his own organization “Train of Thought” to help inner city kids find their own king or queen and life goals by learning problem solving, teamwork, and forward planning skills at an early age through chess, while enjoying themselves.

Fletcher highlights in an interview with Fox News that every game of chess is 75 to 100 moves, and every single move that your opponent makes presents a new problem for you to solve, so chess is a game in which the weak can turn out stronger. As Paige Stevenson, a 7th grader and already a keen chess player thanks to Fletcher’s enthusiasm, tells the channel, “He has taught me not to give up because you can move and find a way out instead of losing.”

His organization has partnered with more than 100 schools to date and has taught more than 50,000 students the game of Kings in California, with plans to expand in the US. It is an old proverb that children learn from play, and this is something that Fletcher is keen to stress. And as his website also explains: “If you think chess is just a game, you’re not playing it right.”

A month before my first marathon, one of my ankles was injured and this meant not running for two weeks, leaving me only two weeks to train. Yet, I was determined to go ahead.

The idea that I was “not athletic” stuck with me for years. When I started running in my 30s, I realized running was a battle against my own body and mind.

The night before my marathon, I had a nightmare that I couldn’t even cross the finish line. I woke up sweating and nervous. My wife still encouraged me to prove something to myself. She is my biggest fan, who never minded the alarm clock at 4 a.m. or questioned my expenses on running.

It was winter but people from all walks of life crowed along the course, enjoying the marathon in their own ways. Without a cloud in the sky, the light took on a magical color. Shortly after embarking on the journey, my shoelaces became untied, so I stopped to readjust. Not the start I wanted!

At mile 3, I passed a sign: “GO FOR IT, RUNNERS!”

By Mile 17, I became out of breath and the once injured ankle hurt badly, for which I had prepared myself well in advance. Despite the pain, I stayed the course walking a bit and then running again.

By mile 21, I was starving! The only thing I could do to strengthen my body was to take a few sips of water. I realized that I was left behind, but it didn’t matter a bit to me, because I kept telling myself that it was not a competition with other participants, but a test of will.

As I approached mile23, I couldn’t feel my feet anymore, feeling like floating in the air. However, what happened next second changed this ordinary day—immediately a vehicle lost its control and dived into the canal beside the course! The crowds just rushed to the bank and saw a woman behind the wheel in the sinking car.

I knew that there was no time to waste.

I was one of the final runners to finish, only with my wife waiting behind the line.