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　　A wallet that looks like a piece of newspaper, an atlas, or an express parcel receipt?Or a business card that looks like a notepad?No kidding．

　　Bai Minghui, a Beijing-based designer, creates his artwork using Tyvek, a synthetic paper material which is difficult to tear, waterproof and, more importantly, totally recyclable．

　　Born to a worker family in 1983 in Tangshan, Hebei Province, Bai worked as a graphic designer at a financial magazine in Beijing after graduating from Minzu University of China．

　　In the spring of 2008, Bai visited an exhibition about Tyvek in Beijing’s 798 art zone, and then worked with the material, trying to bring his designs to life．The first thing that came into his mind was the paper wallet, a must-try handicraft assignment(手工作业)that most Chinese students do in elementary school．

　　“A paper wallet is definitely more useful than a paper crane or frog,”Bai told Beijing Review, smiling．“At first, many people have no idea what it is, because it looks like a piece of newspaper or an express parcel receipt, and feels like real paper．But it’s hard to tear．”

　　“The completed, folded wallet is seamless, which creates so much fun for a designer．To be honest, I didn’t think about profits at all,”he said．

　　After months of research and development on printing and designing, the first generation of his paper wallet made a stunning debut(上市)in May 2008．The second generation, which offers a greater range of pattern options, was put on the market at the beginning of 2009．

　　“You can have graffiti(涂鸦)or write down phone numbers on it, or paint whatever you like．I would like people to be able to use it easily,”he said．“I don’t want to do things without creative ideas．Now my focus is on how to create better design rather than the wallet itself．”

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　　The summer holidays are upon us again Here is our guide to summer holiday fun in Peterborough!

　　Peterborough Museum

　　The Age of the Dinosaurs’is the museum’s main attraction this summer．Get up close to prehistoric creatures via some great hands－on exhibits!Watch out for monsters lurking around every ember!The museum is open from 10∶00am to 5∶00pm Monday to Saturday, and from 12∶00pm to 4∶00 pm on Sundays in August．

　　Call 01733 864663 for details

　　Saxon Youth Club

　　School holiday fun：Young people aged 13－19 will be able to produce their own music, compete in spots activities, or try their hand at cooking at Saxon Youth Club, Saxon Community Centre, Norman Road．Peterborough every Monday and Wednesday from 3∶00pm.PLUS an aero ball tournament will take place on Thursday 12th August between 3∶30pm and 6∶30pm.

　　Call 01 353 720274 for details

　　Houghton Mill

　　Alice through the Looking Class－a new production of the family favorite on Monday 30th．August．Bring rugs or chairs to sit on and a picnic if you wish to eat during the play．Gates open 5∶30 pro, performance 6∶30pm－8∶30pm.Tea room will be open until end of the interval．Adult ￡10．Child ￡7．Family ￡20．

　　Booking advisable on 0845 4505157．

　　Farmland Museum and Denny Abbey

　　Farmland Gaines：From Wellie Wanging to Pretend Ploughing matches, come and join the Farmland Team．Collect your sporting stickers and create a colorful rosette that is fit for a winner!No need to book, just turn up between 12∶00pm and 4∶00pm on Thursday 19th August Suitable for children aged four and above, each child should be accompanied by an adult and all activities are included in the normal admission price Tickets Cost ￡7 per child．

　　For further information, call 01223 810080．

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　　Taste is such a subjective matter that we don’t usually conduct preference tests for food．The most you can say about anyone’s preference is that it’s one person’s opinion．But because the two big cola companies-Coca-Cola and Pepsi Cola-are marketed so aggressively, we’ve wondered how big a role taste preference actually plays in brand loyalty．We set up a taste test that challenged people who identified themselves as either Coca-cola or Pepsi fans：Find your brand in a blind tasting．

　　We invited staff volunteers who had a strong liking for either Coca-Cola Classic or Pepsi, Diet Coke, or Diet Pepsi．These were people who thought they’d have no trouble telling their brand from the other brand．

　　We eventually located 19 regular cola drinkers and 27 diet cola drinkers．Then we fed them with four unidentified samples of cola one at a time, regular colas for the one group, diet versions for the other．We asked them to tell us whether each sample was Coke or Pepsi; then we analyzed the records statistically to compare the participants’ choices with what mere guesswork could have accomplished．

　　Getting all four samples right was a tough test, but not too tough, we thought, for people who believed they could recognize their brand．In the end, only 7 out of 19 regular cola drinkers correctly identified their brand of choice in all four trials．The diet-cola drinkers did a little worse-only 7 out of 27 identified all four samples correctly．

　　Both groups did better than chance would predict, but nearly half the participants in each group made the wrong choice two or more times．Two people got all four samples wrong．Overall, half the participants did about as well on the last round of tasting as on the first, so tiredness, or taste burnout, was not a factor．Our preference test results suggest that only a few Pepsi participants and Coke fans may really be able to tell their favorite brand by taste and price．

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　　The key to happiness is how quickly you can get back your focus on what’s important．

——Anonymous

　　Sixteen years ago I learned this lesson in the back of a New York City taxi cab．Here’s what happened．I hopped in a taxi, and we took off for Grand Central Station．We were driving in the right lane when, all of a sudden, a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us．My taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded, and missed the other car’s back end by just inches!

　　The driver of the other car, who almost caused a big accident, started yelling bad words at us．My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy．And I mean, he was friendly．So, I said,“Why did you just do that?This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!”And this is when my taxi driver told me what I now call“The Law of the Garbage Truck．”

　　Many people are like garbage(rubbish)trucks．They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment．As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it．And if you let them, they’ll dump it on you．When someone wants to dump on you, don’t take it personally．You just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on．You’ll be happy you did．

　　I started thinking, how often do I let Garbage Trucks run right over me?And how often do I take their garbage and spread it to other people at work, at home, or on the streets?It was that day I said,“I’m not going to do anymore．”

　　Good leaders know they have to be ready for their next meeting．Good parents know that they have to welcome their children home from school with hugs and kisses．Leaders and parents know that they have to be fully present, and at their best for the people they care about．The bottom line is that successful people do not let Garbage Trucks take over their day．What about you?What would happen in your life, starting today, if you let more garbage trucks pass you by?Here’s my bet．You’ll be happier．Life’s too short to wake up in the morning with regrets．So, Love the people who treat you right．Forget about the ones who don’t．

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　　Communication technologies are far from equal when it comes to conveying the truth．The first study to compare honesty across a range of communications media has found that people are twice as likely to tell lies in phone conversations as they are in emails．The fact that emails are automatically recorded－and can come back to haunt(困扰)you－appears to be the key to the finding．

　　Jeff Hancock of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, asked 30 students to keep a communications diary for a week．In it they noted the number of conversations or email exchanges they had lasting more than 10 minutes, and confessed to how many lies they told．Hancock then worked out the number of lies per conversation for each medium．He found that lies made up 14 percent of emails, 21 percent of instant messages, 27 percent of face-to-face interactions and an astonishing 37 percent of phone calls．

　　His results, to be presented at the conference on human-computer interaction in Vienna, Austria, in April, have surprised psychologists．Some expected emailers to be the biggest liars, reasoning that because deception makes people uncomfortable, the detachment(非直接接触)of emailing would make it easier to lie．Others expected people to lie more in face-to-face exchanges because we are most practiced at that form of communication．

　　But Hancock says it is also crucial whether a conversation is being recorded and could be reread, and whether it occurs in real time．People appear to be afraid to lie when they know the communication could later be used to hold them to account, he says．This is why fewer lies appear in email than on the phone．

　　People are also more likely to lie in real time－in an instant message or phone call, say－than if they have time to think of a response, says Hancock．He found many lies are spontaneous(脱口而出的)responses to an unexpected demand, such as：“Do you like my dress?”

　　Hancock hopes his research will help companies work out the best ways for their employees to communicate．For instance, the phone might be the best medium for sales where employees are encouraged to stretch the truth．But given his result, work assessment, where honesty is a priority, might be best done using email．

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　　There is one difference between the sexes on which every expert and study agrees：men are more aggressive than women．It shows up in 2-year-olds．It continues through school days and persists into adulthood．It is even constant across cultures．And there is little doubt that it is rooted in biology．

　　If there's a woman’s trait(特点)which is the same as men’s aggressiveness, it's what social scientists refer to as the result of“education”．Feminists have argued that the caring nature of women is not biological in origin, but rather has been forced into women by a society that wanted to keep them in the home．But the signs that it is at least partly inborn are too numerous to ignore．Just as tiny infant girls respond more readily to human faces, female toddlers(学步者)learn much faster than males how to pick up nonverbal cues(非言语暗示)from others．And grown women are far more skilful than men at interpreting facial expressions：A recent study by University of Pennsylvania brain researcher Ruben Gur showed that they easily read emotions such as anger, sadness and fear．The only such emotion men could pick up was disgust．

　　What difference do such differences make in the real world?Among other things, women appear to be somewhat less competitive--or at least competitive in different ways--than men．At the Harvard Law School, for instance, female students enter with qualities just as outstanding as those of their male peers．But they don' t qualify for the well-known Law Review in proper numbers, a fact some school officials owe to women' s discomfort in the incredibly competitive atmosphere．

　　Students of management styles have found fewer differences than they expected between men and women who reach leadership positions, perhaps because many successful women deliberately imitate men．But an analysis by Purdue social psychologist Alice Eagly of 166 studies of leadership style did find one difference：Men tend to be more“autocratic”-making decisions on their own--while women tend to consult colleagues more often．Studies of behavior in small groups turn up even more differences．Men will typically dominate the discussion, says University of Toronto psychologist Kenneth Dion, spending more time talking and less time listening．

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　　Brittnie Pemberton listened attentively as Jim Herrick took her and her mother, Tanya, on a brief tour of San Diego State University on Thursday．Her dream is much closer to reality after she received a promise from the university．The university promised that she would get a full four-year scholarship to the school as long as she met the entrance requirements．

　　Brittnie, 10, laughed．Her mom cried．

　　They live at the Salvation Army Door of Hope, a living center for homeless women and their children．Photojournalist Linda Solomon met them in August when she came to the facility and taught boys and girls, ages three-and-a-half to 13, how to take pictures．She gave them all disposable cameras and told them to capture images that reflected their dreams．The children's images-a big house, a church, a playground, a backyard and more - are kept．This is a project called“Pictures of Hope”organized by the Salvation Army

　　“I wish to go to college, so I took a picture of the sign out in front of San Diego State University,”Brittnie said last month．The Fletcher Elementary School fifth-grader was pointing to the Christmas card bearing her photograph．

　　Adrienne Finley, development director at the Salvation Army, hosted a reception for Solomon, who told Finley about the president of a small university who gave a child the scholarship she dreamed of last year．

　　Finley called his old friend, Herrick, who serves as the SDSU President．“We have a wonderful opportunity here to make a difference in a little girl's life,”Finley said．Soon her mom and Brittnie were face to face with SDSU President Jim Herrick．

　　“You must be Brittnie,”he said, reaching out to shake her hand．She quickly pulled her hands out of the pockets of the new SDSU sweatshirt she had been given that morning．

　　They sat down at a table in his office and talked about college, about science, about her love of math and his hope that she and other girls wouldn't lose interest in those subjects, as happens to many girls as they grow older．

　　Then they talked about how much discipline she would need over the next eight years to make her dream come true．Both signed the paper outlining their agreement to the terms of the scholarship．Back outside on the sunny campus, Brittnie admitted she's tempted sometimes not to do her homework．“But not anymore,”she said．

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　　Many people think the search for cleaner energy leads only to renewable resources like sun, wind and water．But it also leads to a fossil fuel．Natural gas is considered the cleanest of the fossil fuels, the fuel created by plant and animal remains over millions of years．Burning it releases fewer pollutants than oil or coal．The gas is mainly methane(甲烷)．It produces half the carbon dioxide of other fossil fuels．So it may help cut the production of carbon gases linked to climate change．

　　Russia is first in what are called“proved reserves”of natural gas．The United States is sixth．Over the years, big oil and gas companies recovered much of the easily reached supplies of gas in America．They drilled straight down into formations where gas collects．As these supplies were used up, big drillers looked for similar formations in other countries．

　　But now the industry is taking a new look．Companies are developing gas supplies trapped in shale(页岩)rock two to three thousand meters underground．They drill down to the shale, then go sideways and inject high-pressure water, sand or other material into the rock．This causes the rock to fracture, releasing the gas．Huge fields of gas shale are believed to lie under the Appalachian Mountains, Michigan and the south-central states．Gas shale exploration is being done mainly by small to medium sized companies．Eric Potter, a program director, says more than half the gas in the United States is now coming from these new reserves．

　　But hydraulic(液压的)fracturing can also produce debate and anger over the risk of groundwater pollution．This method of drilling is not federally supervised under the Safe Drinking Water Act．Some in Congress want to end that exemption(豁免)from the law．

　　Natural gas provides Americans with about one fourth of their energy．And, unlike oil, most of it is produced in America．Gas producers invested heavily in reaching new supplies when prices were high．But prices are down sharply now because the depression cut demand for energy．So energy expert Eric Potter says it is too early to know how the changing market prices will affect the market for gas shale exploration．

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　　We already know the fastest, least expensive way to slow climate change：Use less energy．With a little effort, and not much money, most of us could reduce our energy diets by 25 percent or more－doing the Earth a favor while also helping our wallets．

　　Not long ago．My wife, PJ, and I tried a new diet－not to lose a little weight but to answer an annoying question about climate change．Scientists have reported recently that the world is heating up even faster than predicted only a few years ago, and that the consequences could be severe if we don’t keep reducing emissions(排放)of carbon dioxide(CO₂)and other greenhouse gases that are trapping heat in our atmosphere．

　　We decided to try an experiment．For one month we recorded our personal emissions of CO₂．We wanted to see how much we could cut back, so we went on a strict diet．The average US household produces about 150 pounds of CO₂ a day by doing common-place things like turning on air-conditioning or driving cars．That’s more than twice the European average and almost five times the global average, mostly because Americans drive more and have bigger houses．But how much should we try to reduce?

　　For an answer, I checked with Tim Flannery, author of The Weather Makers：How Man Is Changing the Climate and What It Means for Life on Earth．In his book, he had challenged readers to make deep cuts in personal emissions to keep the world from reaching extremely important tipping points, such as the melting of the ice sheets in Greenland or West Antarctica．“To stay below that point, we need to reduce CO₂ emissions by 80 percent,”he said．

　　Good advice, I thought．I’d opened our bedroom windows to let in the wind．We’d gotten so used to keeping our air-conditioning going around the clock．I’d almost forgotten the windows even opened．We should not let this happen again．It’s time for us to change our habits if necessary．

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　　Our brains work in complex and strange ways．There are some people who can calculate the day of the week for any given date in 40,000 years, but who cannot add two plus two．Others can perform complex classical piano pieces after hearing them once, but they cannot read or write．

　　Dr．J．Langdon Down first described this condition in 1887．He called these people idiot savants．An idiot savant is a person who has significant mental impairment(损伤), such as in autism(孤独症，自闭症)or retardation．At the same time, the person also exhibits some extraordinary skills, which are unusual for most people．The skills of the savant may vary from being exceptionally gifted in music or in mathematics, or having a photographic memory．

　　One of the first descriptions of a human who could calculate quickly was written in 1789 by Dr．Benjamin Rush, an American doctor．His patient, Thomas Fuller, was brought to Virginia as a slave in1724．It took Thomas only 90 seconds to work out that a man who has lived 70 years, 17 days, and 12 hours has lived 2,210,500,800 seconds．Despite this ability, he died in 1790 without ever learning to read or write．

　　Another idiot savant slave became famous as a pianist in the 1860s．Blind Tom had a vocabulary of only 100 words, but he played 5, 000 musical pieces beautifully．

　　In the excellent movie Rain Man, made in 1988 and available on video cassette, Dustin Hoffman plays an idiot savant who amazes his brother played by Tom Cruise, with his ability to perform complex calculations very rapidly．

　　Today we more clearly recognize that the idiot savant is special because of brain impairment．Yet not all brain impairment leads to savant skills．Some studies have shown that people who have purposeful interruption of the left side of the brain can develop idiot savant skills．However few people wish to participate in such experiments．There are many excellent reasons for not undergoing unnecessary experimentation on one’s brain．The term idiot savant is outdated and inappropriate．Virtually all savants have a high degree of intelligence and are thus not idiots．