3 . An advance in electronic publishing could make the e-book you are reading seem as dated as a silent film. Publishers hope to explore the growing success of e-books by releasing versions with added soundtracks(电影配音) and musical accompaniments.

The noises in the first multimedia books — released in Britain on Friday — include rain hitting a window in a Sherlock Holmes tale. When the plot of a book reaches the most exciting part, background scores will create tension.

Supporters argue that sound effects are the next logical development for e-books and will add excitement for younger readers. Critics, however, will argue that the noise will ruin the simple pleasure of having the imagination stimulated by reading.

Caroline Michel, chief executive of the literary agency, said the new generation of computer- literate readers was used to multiple sensory input. She said, “Young people have split computer screens where they may be watching television and replying to an email at the same time. If that‟s what the market wants then we should respond to the market.”

Book track‟s sound effects work by estimating the user‟s reading speed. Each time you turn a page, the software reassesses where you have reached in the text and times the sounds to switch on accordingly. If the soundtrack becomes out of synch (同步), a click on any word will reset it.

Some authors fear that a soundtrack could destroy the peace and quiet of libraries and ruin the pleasure, of reading. David Nicholls, author of Our Day, the bestseller now released as a film, said, “This sounds like the opposite of reading. I have enough trouble reading an e-book because I‟m constantly distracted by emails.”

Stuart Mat Bride, the crime writer whose novel Shatter the Bones was an e-book bestseller, sells 18% of his books as electronic downloads. He said, “If I‟m reading, I will do the noise in my head. I don‟t need someone to tell me what tea cups clinking sounds like. That would irritate(激怒) me.”

5 . Online Events at Natural History Museum in December

Dinosaur Activities for Families

Catch up on our Nature Live Program and find out everything about dinosaurs with Museum scientist Paul Barrett. You can learn to bake tasty biscuits with footprint-shaped holes. You can also follow our simple instructions to draw a cartoon T-Rex and read on to find out how artists bring dinosaurs to life with their pictures.

Dates: All day and every day.

The Science of Whale Earwax

What can a whale’s earwax tell us about its life, health and the quality of the oceans over many decades? Join Museum researcher Richard Sabin to discover some of the fascinating ways we study whales, and how vital museum collections are in helping us to understand and conserve these amazing animals.

Date: December 28 (12:00-12:45)

Darwin’s Fossils

Join Museum scientist Lorna Steel to discover how Darwin’s study of fossils shaped his scientific thinking. You can ask questions while the talk is happening. Head to the video on YouTube and type your question into the chat box during the broadcast.

Date: December 24 (10:30-11:15)

Love Naturally

Attracting a mate can be a tricky business for any species. How can birds do it? Have a night with Lates Online. Take a drink, turn on your computer, and join researcher Juan Camilo on the Friday of every week. You can explore the wilder side of dating. And you can rewatch past Lates Online events on the Museums YouTube channel.

Time: From 19: 30.

6 . The 2020 Advertisement Design Competition

The Advertisement Design Competition is international design contest organized by the A’ Design Award and Competition, which is the word's largest design competition awarding best designs, design concepts and products & services. This Competition primarily targets to highlight the best advertisement design ideas in Graphics Design. Award Winners usually get recognition   opportunities, appear on various publications and get press attendance.

How to join

Joining the Advertisement Deign Competition is easy: Crete an account at the A’ Design Award and Competition, login to your account and send your work. When you submit your work,it will be checked by the preliminary judges for necessary qualities. Then, your design will be either Approved or Rejected to take part in the competition. If your design is approved you can continue recommending your design by paying the necessary processing fees.

Benefits for Award Winners

A unique public relations campaign will be made for the Advertisement Design Award winners. Your work and your details will be communicated to thousands of press contacts, and also we will prepare a media kit for you. You can use this professionally prepared media kit to contact local press contacts. The winning design and the designer or the design studio will also be featured in the design annual and yearbook which distributed by Design PR Wire to key figures in the design industry such as famous editors, press members and multi-national companies. All Winner Designs will be included in the winners’ book free of charge. The winners will be listed as co-editors of the work.

Submit your design by 25 November 2020. You will be informed of the outcome by 25 December 2020.

7 . To ensure an excellent experience during your tour of the Mark Twain House, here are some guidelines and general information:

To ensure an optimum (最佳) experience, house tours are limited to 14 people, first-come, first-served. If your group has more than 10 people, call (860) 280-3130 to reserve a discounted group tour in advance of your visit. If you have a party of fewer than 10 people feel free to purchase tickets online: We will hold them at Will Call. The tour schedule is usually online about a month in advance.

The Webster Bank Museum Center at the Mark Twain House & Museum is always your first and last stop as it houses our ticket counter, museum store, film, exhibits and cafe. All tours gather in the museum center before heading over to Mark Twain’s historic 1874 home. Mark Twain’s historic carriage house is the third building on our property, but is generally not open to the public. The hayloft (干草棚) has been repurposed into offices and the main floor of the barn is a space available for rent for parties and meetings.

The Mark Twain House offers only a few coupons and discounts. The price you pay for admission helps us maintain the beauty of this icon of American architecture. If you are lucky enough to find one of those special offers online or at your local library, keep in mind they are good only for the general Mark Twain House Tours. No passes or discounts may be applied to our specialty tours.

8 . Cool Inventions

For Light Sleepers

Millions of people have trouble falling asleep each night,   which is why LightSleeper was created.

Developed in the United Kingdom，LightSleeper’s makers say it can help a person fall asleep and also help a person fall back to sleep after waking up in the middle of the night.

LightSleeper works by projecting (投射) a light onto the ceiling while the person is lying down. The idea is to watch the light, because the light moving in a circle has a relaxing effect.

One of the advantages of the product is that it won’t disturb other people   in the room.   The product can be easily moved and will switch itself off after 30 minutes to save power.

Stop the Snoring (打鼾)

Here’s a new product designed to slow down the frequency and level of your snoring.   The Snore Stopper has a sensitive instrument that will detect when you’re snoring.   Once it does that,   it will send a very mild electronic signal to your wrist.   This consequently changes your sleeping position to stop you from snoring. The Snore Stopper won’t cause any damage to your body.

Get Your True Colors

Photoshop features a pen that will copy the color settings of what you are monitoring on screen to use as a color in your program.   Now an off­line product allows you to pick a color when not using the computer software.

The Color Picker is a concept pen. After placing the pen against an object, the user just presses the scan button. Color sensors (感应器) inside the pen send information to a box,   which then mixes red,   green and blue to produce the desired ink color.

Keep It Fresh

More high technology products are showing up in the kitchen.   A new Bagel dome   (圆顶形物)   advertises that it will keep your baked goods fresher for longer periods of time. The product, which is able to remove air, works for bread rolls, cakes and other perishables. To use it, you just push a button at the top.