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　　Last week, we explained that the planet Mars had passed“opposition．”It passed a point opposite the Sun．This week, we tell about the planet’s surprising motion among the stars．

　　For thousands of years, people have recognized that planets travel among the stars．The planets generally follow the path taken by the Sun through the sky．The Sun’s path is called the ecliptic．The groups of stars along the ecliptic are called the Zodiac(黄道带)．

　　The motion of the planets can be confusing at times．Everyone knows the Sun rises in the east and sets in the west．But this is caused by the turning motion of the Earth．Planets generally move from west to east．

　　However, Mars will appear to move backward for about two months this year．This happens because the Earth is overtaking Mars on its way around the Sun．Mars began its backward, or westward, motion on May 11th．It will start moving eastward again on July 19th．

　　Mars’ apparent motion has been a mystery to astronomers for hundreds of years．Most early theories of tilt solar system argued that the Sun and planets turned around the Earth．But the sudden westward motion of Mars presented problem．Why would Mars move west for two months when it nears“opposition”?

　　In 1543, a Polish church worker named Nicolas Copernicus published a different theory．His theory said the Earth and planets moved around the Sun in perfectly circular orbits．Copernicus’ theory was simpler．But his Sun-centered system still did not explain the observed motion of Mars very well．

　　Finally, a German mathematician named Johannes Kepler published a complete theory of the motion of the planets in 1619．He had carefully studied the motion of Mars for many years．

　　Johannes Kepler discovered that the planets do not move in circular orbits around the Sun．Instead, they travel in flattened orbits called ellipses(椭圆)．Mars’ elliptical orbit is the cause of its unusual brightening this year and its apparent large size．

　　During the next several weeks, you can see for yourself why the mysterious motion of Mars has caused so many people to wonder．

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　　When someone gives you advice, listen without judgment, try to find value in what you’re hearing, and say：“Thank you”．This wise advice is easy to understand yet hard to practice．I’ll give you an example from my life when I totally blew it in term of practicing what I teach．

　　In my work I travel constantly．I always put off going to the airport until the last second．My wife, Lyda, was sitting next to me in the front seat．I was racing along and not paying much attention．Lyda cried out：“Look out!There is a red light up ahead．”

　　Being a trained behavioral science professional－who teaches others the value of encouraging advice－I naturally screamed at her：“I know there is a red light up ahead!Don’t you think I can see?”When we arrived at the airport, Lyda didn’t speak to me．I wondered why she seemed mad at me．

　　During the flight to New York, I did a cost-benefit analysis．I asked myself：“What was the cost of just listening when Lyda called out the warning?Zero．”I then reasoned：“What was the potential benefit?What could have been saved?”Several potential benefits came to mind, including her life, my life, and the lives of other people．

　　I landed in New York feeling ashamed of myself．I immediately called Lyda and told her my cost-benefit story．I convinced her：“The next time you help me with my driving, I am just going to say,’Thank you!’”

　　A few months passed, and I had long forgotten the incident．Again, I was racing off to the airport, when Lyda cried out：“Look out for the red right!”I was embarrassed, and then shouted：“Thank you!”

　　I’m a long way from perfect, but I’m getting better．My suggestion is that you get in the habit of asking the important people in your life how you can do things better．And be ready for an answer．Some people may tell you things like“Look out for the red light．”When this happens, remember that there is possibly some potential benefit．Then just say：“Thank you．”

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　　When it comes to intelligence, human beings are the top dogs of the animal kingdom．But in recent years, scientists have been documenting surprising intelligence and emotional depth in animals ranging from honeybees to elephants．Here are some amazing examples．

　　Artistic Monkey Business

　　Jannet Schmid, director of the Little River Zoo in Norman, Oklahoma, learned a lot about the intelligence of capuchin monkeys．She and her husband adopted a young male, named Bailey．The capuchin particularly liked taking car rides, insisting that he insert the key and ride in the front passenger’s seat．

　　Now Bailey has become a devoted painter．He uses brushes to create colorful, abstract paintings, and prefers not to be disturbed．

　　Prairie Dog Sound

　　Through a variety of birdlike sounds, prairie dogs warn each other of approaching creatures．They demonstrated a surprisingly complex communication system．In his 25 years of study, Slobodchikoff, a professor of biology, has recorded them pronouncing ten nouns including hawk, deer and coyote, a number of adjectives to identify color, size and shape, and even some verbs to indicate speed．

　　In an ongoing study, Slobodchikoff learns that their brain contains a very extensive vocabulary．He once used his best prairie dog sound to say coyote, and they just looked at him in anger as if he had said a bad word．

　　Ivy League Parrot

　　One African grey parrot Alex is said to have the cognitive abilities of a five-year-old child．Alex can identify 50 different objects, seven colors, five shapes, quantities up to six, and the concepts of bigger, smaller, same and different．

　　Also Alex is considered to make reasoned decisions．During an experiment, researchers gave Alex different-colored blocks in sets of two, three and six．When asked which color group had five blocks, Alex replied,“None．”And he answered the same in repeated tests．Obviously, he interpreted the concept of“none”as an absence of quantity all on his own．That’s a lot like a high school student answering questions on a quiz show．

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　　Britain’s most popular lie has been disclosed, with one in four people admitting using“sorry I had no signal”when returning a missed mobile phone call, a survey found．

　　Researchers found the average Briton tells on average four lies every day or almost 1500 every year．Almost one in six men admitted they were most likely to lie to their wife or girlfriend, on average at least twice a day．The most popular lie was saying you had no mobile phone signal, with one in four people admitting regularly using the little white lie．It usually came after they hit the“ignore”button when their mobile rang．

　　Three quarters of people think women are better liars．The research found 46 per cent of girls have been caught lying, compared to 58 of men．

　　The second most common fib(无关紧要的谎言) is“I haven’t got any cash on me”when asked for money by tramps (流浪者), beggars and Big Issue sellers．“Nothing’s wrong－I’m fine”came third followed by“You look lovely”and“Nice to see you”．

　　Modern technology turned out to have contributed to many lies with“I didn’t get your text”in 18th,“Our server was down”in 20th and“My battery died”in 26th place．

　　Other lies to make the top ten included“I’ll give you a ring”,“We’re just good friends”and“We’ll have to meet up soon”．“I’m on my way”and“No, your bum doesn’t look big in that”completed the top ten．

　　Men tell the most fibs, coming out with five every day compared to women who lie just three times．

　　In many cases perhaps it is better to flatter with a fib than destroy someone with the truth, according to a spokesman for OnePoll, which carried out the research of 4,300 adults．

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　　It looks exactly like other handicraft (手工艺品) shops in a traditional Chinese hutong, or alley, except that each item has a story．The city’s first-of-its-kind charity shop, owned by Nathan Zhang, sells Chinese handicrafts along with used books, clothes and other items．The concept is that money from what is sold is donated to help rural (农村的) women in China．

　　“Many NGOs (non-governmental organizations) produce their own things but don’t have a place to sell it,”said Zhang, who returned to Beijing in 2008 after working in Canada for nearly a decade in the telecommunications world．“A rural women’s group tried to open a little shop but only sold two things．When they put their products in my shop, everything sold out．”

　　Located in Wudaoying Hutong in Dongcheng district, Brand Nu’s walls are lined with handicrafts from a number of different NGO supported projects aimed at benefiting women across the country．The other half of the space is filled with almost brand-new clothes that have been donated from Beijing citizens．The jackets, dresses, tops and pants sell for around 30 yuan (＄4.40) each．

　　Most of the money Brand Nu gets goes directly to the Beijing Cultural Development Center for Rural Women．The NGO offers a number of programs for poor women, including literacy classes (识字班), support networks and mental health education．

　　Zhang is also working with a local Scottish designer to create a clothing line made from the fabric (织物) of second-hand garments．And he is collecting books and raising money to help the NGO build a library near Beijing．He plans on expanding his product line soon as well, engaging more disadvantaged women to make sweaters, soaps and other items that he can sell in Beijing to help raise their socioeconomic status in the countryside．

　　Yet with ambitions come worries．Right now Zhang is operating on a shoestring budget and looking for work on the side to support both his business and his family．“I wanted to do something meaningful,”said Zhang．“If you can help one woman, you can help an entire family．”

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　　Anchors on China Central Television (CCTV) will need to do some fast talking to replace the popular English acronyms(首字母缩略词) they’re now banned from using．Shanghai Daily reports that“anchors at China Central Television [CCTV]have been banned from saying the English acronyms NBA, CBA, GDP, and the like in their programs．”

　　The replacement for those handy acronyms?Chinese presenters must use the full Chinese name, standardized by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television．

　　Although CCTV (oops, we mean China Central Television) presenters must already have a score of at least 94 in their government-rated oral Mandarin proficiency exam, saying the full name of organizations like the CBA or WTO－10 and 6 character’s long separately－is sure to challenge even the most skillful anchors．CCTV sports anchor Sun Zhengping tells Shanghai Daily,“A full Chinese explanation of the English initials must be followed if my tongue slips．It is a little trouble but a necessary one because not every audience member can understand the initials．”

　　Although the government isn’t giving any official explanation for the shift, it is believed to have to do with a proposal by Huang Youyi, director of the China International Publishing Group, at March’s NPC meeting．In his speech, Huang said,“With more and more publications mixing Chinese with English, measures and regulations should be adopted to avoid English invading Chinese．If we don’t pay attention and don’t take measures to stop the expansion of mixing Chinese with English, Chinese won’t be a pure language in a couple of years．”

　　Although China is far from the first country to take measures to protect local languages (the French and Quebecois beat them to it by a long way), acronyms are more about saving time than they are about corrupting a language, we would think．Good luck to the CCTV anchors．

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　　Archaeologists believe they are on the turning point of throwing light on the life of William Shakespeare－by excavating(发掘)what may have been the playwright’s dust hole．

　　Experts have begun excavating the ruins of New Place, Shakespeare’s former home in Stratford-upon-Avon, which was destroyed 250 years ago．Although little remains of the property, the team, led by Birmingham Archaeology, believes it has identified a dust hole used by the 16th century poet．

　　Small pieces of pottery(陶瓷)and broken clay pipe have already been found from a muddy hole on the site, which they claim could yield some of the most significant discoveries about Shakespeare in decades．The dig focuses on three areas of the property, which Shakespeare bought in 1597 when he returned to his home town from London having achieved fame－including the so-called knot garden at the back of the building．

　　Dr Diana Owen, Director of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, which owns the site, said,“We do not know if the knot garden was an area used by Shakespeare－it may have been a yard simply used by his servants．But this could actually yield some fantastic results, especially if it was an area where rubbish was thrown or the dust hole was located．”

　　Kevin Colls, from Birmingham Archaeology, added,“Through documentary evidence we know Shakespeare lived at New Place but we have very little information regarding the layout(布局)of the house and gardens at this time．Through archaeological fieldwork, in particular the dig of structural remains and the recovery of artefacts, we hope to fill in the blanks．”

　　Until October, visitors will be able to watch archaeologists and volunteers at work as they excavate the remains of the house, which was knocked down in 1759．Experts hope to unearth evidence to support theories that Shakespeare wrote many of his most famous works at the property．

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　　Women might have a higher position at work, but at home their careers tend to give way to their husband’s job, with women most likely to quit when both are working long hours, according to a U．S．study．

　　Researcher Youngjoo Cha, from Cornell University, found that working women with a husband who worked 50 hours or more a week found themselves still doing most of the housework and the care giving and were more likely to end up quitting their jobs．

　　An analysis of 8,484 professional workers and 17,648 nonprofessionals from dual-earner(双职工)families showed that if women had a husband who worked 60 hours or more per week it increased the woman’s possibility of quitting her paid job by 42 percent．Cha said the possibility of quitting increased to 51 percent for professional women whose husbands work 60 hours or more per week, and for professional mothers the possibility they would quit their jobs jumped 112 percent．

　　However, it did not significantly affect a man’s possibility of quitting his job if his wife worked 60 hours or more per week, according to the study published in the American Sociological Review in April．For professional men, both parents and non-parents, the effects of a wife working long hours were negligible, according to the study．

　　“As long work-hours introduce conflict between work and family into many dual-earner families, couples often solve conflict in ways that prioritize husbands’ careers,”Cha, who used data from the U．S．Census Bureau, said in a statement．“This effect is magnified(突出)among workers in professional and managing occupations, where the criterion of overwork and the culture of looking after children tend to be strongest．The findings suggest that the popularity of overwork may lead many dual-earner couples to return to a traditional family pattern－breadwinning men and homemaking women．”

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　　①It’s“laughably absurd”on one blog and a“magical revolution”on another．Bloggers are talking about the same device－the Apple iPad, which hit store shelves last week．

　　②Tech-heads hate the iPad because it has many functions－you can e-mail, browse the Web, read books－but it has no specialty．There are other devices on the market that do all its functions faster, cheaper and more efficiently．Get a Blackberry to scan e-mails or any old laptop to access the Internet．

　　③This first version of the iPad lacks many basic features．Tech-heads dislike the device not because of what it offers, but because of what it doesn’t offer．It doesn’t have Flash, and it doesn’t have a camera．It can’t access many of the world’s mobile applications, and it has a very restricted apple store．Based on purely technological grounds, the iPad is said to lack more than it gives．

　　④But if you are not a crazy tech-head, and you love the iPod and iPhone,“this device is for you,”said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO．The iPad will take online activities truly mobile．It will allow you to read the news in bed, check a recipe in a busy kitchen or view a large-scale Google map．

　　⑤Perhaps most important to the masses, it is a traditional computer without trouble．There are wireless, but it’s totally mobile．You press a button and it comes on in seconds．To add a program, you just download it from the Internet．Since almost everyone uses a computer in the office or at school, the need for the traditional desktop model at home is disappearing．Slate Magazine’s Farhad Manjoo calls the iPad the perfect alternative to the home computer system．

　　⑥But no matter how you feel about the iPad, as a tech-head or an everyman, there’s no arguing with its appeal．Love it or hate it, the iPad sold over 600,000 units on its opening weekend, surpassing the iPhone’s record sales in 2007．

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　　Making greener choices and encouraging healthy lifestyles can promote your health and benefit the environment．Here are some guidelines to follow：

　　Americans have never had such a variety or abundance of food to choose from．Besides so many choices, we now hear about our“food print”, the amount of land needed to supply one person’s nutritional needs for a year．Do we buy cherry tomatoes from Mexico or tomatoes grown locally in a hothouse?Do we get the Granny Smiths from the farmers’ market or the supermarket?Is organic produce healthier for us and the planet?

　　These are very complex issues that require analysis of many criteria, including the energy used in producing and transporting the food, as well as the type of soil and methods of raising the food．

　　Despite the complexities, there are some general guidelines you can follow．For instance, eat less meat or eat low on the food chain．Your doctor may have recommended you to restrict your consumption of red meat because of its too much fat content．Beyond that, there are environmental reasons, too．Raising food animals contributes substantially to climate change because a meat-based diet requires more land, energy and water than a plant-based one．

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　　Drinking plenty of fluids is significant during hot weather or when exercising．But is bottled water the way to go?You may not think so when seeing the true costs．Based on a survey, manufacturing the 30-plus billion plastic water bottles can produce more than 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide and use three times the amount of water in the bottle．Adding in transportation, the energy used comes to over 50 million barrels of oil equivalent(等价物)．Consequently, skip the bottled water and drink tap water, both at home and at restaurants．Additionally, bottled water is not necessarily cleaner than tap．