1 . For people suffering from depression, there’s an all-natural treatment they should use — getting more exercise. It could help fight depression, even if people have a genetic risk, new research shows.

For the study, researchers collected information from nearly 8,000 people and found those with related genes were more likely to have depression over the next two years after examining them. But that was less likely for people who were more active at the study’s start, even if they had a family history of depression. Higher levels of physical activity helped protect even those with the highest genetic risk of depression.

Both high-intensity (高强度) exercise and low-intensity activities were associated with a reduced risk of depression. Adding four hours of exercise a week could lower the risk of a new episode (一段经历) of depression by 17%, according to the study. “Our findings strongly suggest that, when it comes to depression, being physically active has the potential to remove the added risk of future episodes in individuals who are genetically risky,” said lead author Karmel Choi. “On average, about 35 additional minutes of physical activity each day may help people to reduce their risk and protect against future depression episodes.”

Depression is a common mental illness globally, with more than 264 million people affected. “Depression is so ubiquitous, and that underlines the need for effective approaches that can impact as many people as possible,” Choi said. And mental health and primary care providers can use the findings to advise patients that there’s something meaningful they can do to lower their risk of depression.

2 . Young children are significantly more likely than adults to have their opinions influenced by robots, according to a new research. The study, conducted at the University of Plymouth, compared how adults and children respond to an identical task when in the presence of both their peers (同龄人) and robots.

It showed that while adults regularly have their opinions influenced by peers, something also demonstrated in previous studies, they are largely able to resist(抵制) being persuaded by robots. However, children aged between seven and nine were more likely to give the same responses as the robots, even if they were obviously incorrect.

The study asks people to look at a screen showing four lines and say which two match in length. When alone, people almost never make a mistake but when doing the experiment with others, they tend to follow what others are saying.

When children were alone in the room in this research, they scored 87% on the test, but when the robots join in their score drops to 75%. And of the wrong answers, 74% matched those of the robot.

Professor Belpaeme said, “People often follow the opinions of others and we’ve known for a long time that it is hard to resist taking over views and opinions of people around us. But as robots will soon be found in the home and the workplace, we were wondering if people would follow robots.”

“What our results show is that adults do not follow what the robots are saying. But when we did the experiment with children, they did. It shows children can perhaps have more of an affinity (亲和力) with robots than adults, which does pose the question: What if robots were to suggest, for example, what products to buy or what to think?”

3 . Scotland is packed with beautiful places to visit and you could honestly spend months and months exploring everything this wonderful country has to offer! Next I’m going to take you through some of the best place to visit in Scotland, based on where we have personally visited so far!

If you asked me where my favourite place to visit in all of Scotland is... I would say, Glen Coe. The whole area of Glen Coe constantly had my face in shock due to the beauty that I was witnessing1 was witnessing (亲眼看见). It’s just a stream of dramatic mountains, lakes, rugged (崎岖的) beauty and more.

Fort William is probably one of the most well-known places to visit in Scotland. It’s a popular tourist destination thanks to being home to the UK’s tallest mountain: Ben Nevis. Fort William is also the starting point for one of the world’s most famous train rides: The Jacobite. Harry Potter fans will recognize it as the Hogwarts Express, and this train ride will take you through the beautiful countryside, crossing some iconic Harry Potter filming locations such as the Dumbledore’s Grave and the Glenfinnan Viaduct!

This island feels totally different from other parts of Scotland and is truly rugged and ready! There are many hot spots to explore including the Old Man of Storr, the Fairy Glen. I even stayed on a private island with its very own lighthouse, which was one of the coolest places I’ve ever visited and one of the most romantic places stay in Scotland.

This is the largest national park in the UK so it’s another popular place to visit in Scotland and it’s no surprise why. It’s absolutely beautiful and there’s so much happening at the Cairngorms National Park! From skiing or meeting local reindeers, you’ll not go bored and you’ll be surrounded by beauty the entire time.

4 . Diners in Japan could soon be able to taste the flavour of a bowl of soup without having to worry about their salt intake.

In what they claim is a world first, researchers have developed chopsticks that artificially create the taste of salt, as part of efforts to reduce sodium (钠) levels in some of the country’s most popular dishes.

The chopsticks work by using electrical stimulation (刺激) and a mini-computer worn on the eater’s wristband. The device (设备) transmits sodium ions (离子) from food, through the chopsticks, to the mouth where they create a sense of saltiness, according to Homei Miyashita, a professor at Meiji University in Tokyo, whose laboratory developed the device. The team said they hoped to make the chopsticks available to consumers (消费者) next year. Miyashita said, “Our device could find large consumers in Japan, where the traditional diet tends to be high in salt due to the use of ingredients such as soy sauce (酱油).”

The average Japanese adult consumes about 10 grams of salt a day, double the amount recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). The health ministry has proposed reducing daily salt intake to a maximum of 7.5 grams for men and 6.5 grams for women.

The chopsticks use “very weak electricity — not enough to affect the human body — to adjust the function of ions to change the perception of taste by making food seem to taste stronger or weaker“, Kirin said in a statement. Miyashita and Kirin said clinical tests on people who follow a low-sodium diet had confirmed that the device increases the salty taste of low-sodium food by about 1.5 times. They said participants given reduced-salt soup had commented on the improved ”richness, sweetness and overall tastiness“ of the dish.

High salt intake can contribute to high blood pressure, which is the single biggest cause of heart attacks and strokes. “To prevent these diseases, we need to reduce the amount of salt we take,” said Kirin researcher Ai Sato. “If we try to avoid taking more salt in a conventional way, we would need to bear the pain of cutting our favourite food from our diet, or bear eating tasteless food.”

5 . Waiting for the bus every morning and going to school has never been better for Ryder Killam, a 5-year-old boy in a wheelchair from Westerly, Rhode Island who was born with disability (残疾) .He no longer has to wait for the school bus in the open air thanks to Westerly High School students.

The goal of the boy’s father, Tim Killam, was to keep his little kid protected from the bad weather while waiting for the bus every morning, and getting some kind of shelter (避雨处) was actually his idea. He asked for an unused bus shelter on Facebook. After not being able to find a suitable one, he decided to contact the high school which had already finished several building projects.

The students from Westerly High School construction (建造) class, among whom is one of Ryder’s brothers, quickly put their hands to work. The bus stop was designed by pupil Mason Heald, who was in regular contact with the Killams for feedback.

The construction class, led by Dan McKenna, teaches its members building skills and is part of the high school’s Career and Technical Education programme.

“This was a design to final products and delivery (传送;递送) .It’s the best we could have asked for. It’s really what these programmes should be about,” said Michael Hobin, Westerly High School’s principal (校长) .

More people from the local community chipped in to help make the project happen. One of McKenna’s former students transported(运输)the shelter from the high school to the Killams’ address with his truck. And another neighbour helped to properly position the shelter by the bus stop.

Not only did Ryder’s daily life improve, but the students also learnt an unforgettable life lesson. They saw that with their skills and knowledge they can make a real difference in someone else’s life.

7 . Kobe Bryant is no doubt a legend. How did he do it? Simply put his work principle. He showed up to training every day, no excuses. Without a doubt, it is quite evident that Kobe’s desire for success was directly correlated with his work principle.

Kobe Bryant’s work principle is what helped him become the legend he is today. But what also must be understood about Kobe Bryant is that he was relentless (不停的；严格的). He had a mental toughness and steely focus that was driven by his over-the-top competitiveness.

In short, Kobe wanted to be the best, and would do whatever it took to achieve this mental goal. If he had a weakness in one area, he would commit to mastering that weakness. If there was a lack of strength in his shot, he would get to work exhausting all options to correct that lack of strength, researching and then applying the routines that instructed him on how to get stronger. Similarly, if his weakness was a lack of   speed, he would put in the time and effort to overcome the limitation. And there lies his secret to success. The willingness to learn and then apply what he learned to move himself closer to his goals.

“When I am retired, I don’t want to have to say I wish I would have done more. I don’t want that.”— Kobe Bryant.

As such, Kobe Bryant’s success principle can be summarized as a relentless focus on the end result. The great news is the ability to be relentless is in all of you.

8 . More and more people like bicycling and it is no surprise. It is fun, healthy and good for the environment. Maybe that’s why there are 1.4 billion bicycles and only 400 million cars on roads worldwide today. Bikes can take you almost anywhere, and there is no oil cost!

Get on a bicycle and ride around your neighborhood. You may discover something new all around you. Stopping and getting off a bike is easier than stopping and getting out of your car. You can bike to work and benefit from the enjoyable exercise without polluting the environment. You don’t even have to ride all the way.

Folding bikes work well for people who ride the train. Just fold the bike and take it with you. You can do the same on an airplane. A folding bike can be packed in a suitcase. You can also take a common bike with you when you fly. But be sure to look for information by getting on airline websites. Not all airlines are bicycle-friendly to travelers.

Health Benefits of Bicycling:

It helps to prevent heart diseases.

Bicycling helps to control your weight.

A15-minute bike ride to and from work three times a week burns off five kilos of fat in a year.

Bicycling can improve your mood (心情).

Exercise like bicycling has been shown to make people feel better, more relaxed and self-confident.

Bicycling is healthier than driving.

9 . Now he is 22 years old and has become an example of young people because of his story of success.

Michael was born in a very poor family. His parents worked in Vietnam before they moved to Britain in 1980. They couldn’t find jobs in Britain because they spoke little English. The whole family had to live on benefits and they lived in a small house in Hackney, a poor area in East London. Growing up is not easy for Michael, but he never gave up.

At the age of ten, he made up his mind to go to Cambridge University. It was not easy, either. Michael studied at a school, which used to be called “the worst school in Britain”. However, young Michael made up his mind to try his best, no matter what kind of school he was studying at. The smart boy studied very hard and did well in every subject at school. Once he made a bet with his friend to learn further maths. As a result, after just spending four months teaching himself from a textbook, he got an A in AS-level further maths.

Now Michael is the star medical student in St John’s College, Cambridge and has just won an award for his excellent grades. He hopes he will be an example for other young people from poor families.