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　　I travel a lot, and I find out different “styles” of directions every time I ask “How can I get to the post office?”

　　Foreign tourists are often confused in Japan because most streets there don’t have names; in Japan, people use landmarks in their directions instead of street names．For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, “Go straight down to the corner．Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market．The post office is across from the bus stop．”

　　In the countryside of the American Midwest, there are not usually many landmarks．There are no mountains, so the land is very flat; in many places there are no towns or buildings within miles．Instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances．In Kansas or Iowa, for example, people will say, “Go north two miles．Turn east, and then go another mile．”

　　People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map; they measure distance in time, not miles．“How far away is the post office?” you ask．“Oh,” they answer, “it’s about five minutes from here．” You say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it?” They don’t know．

　　It’s true that a person doesn’t know the answer to your question sometimes．What happens in such a situation? A New Yorker might say, “Sorry, I have no idea．” But in Yucatan, Mexico, no one answers “I don’t know．” People in Yucatan believe that “I don’t know” is impolite．They usually give an answer, often a wrong one．A tourist can get very, very lost in Yucatan!

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　　To get an extra 14 years of life, don't smoke, eat lots of fruits and vegetables, exercise regularly and drink alcohol in a proper amount．That is according to a study published this Monday in the Public Library of Science Medicine Journal．

　　After tracking more than 20,000 people aged 45 to 79 years in the United Kingdom from about 1993 to 2007, Kay-Tee Khaw of the University of Cambridge and his colleagues found that people who adopted these four healthy habits lived all average of 14 years longer than those who didn't．

　　“We've known for a long time that these behaviors are good things to do, but we've not seen this benefit before, ”said Susan Jebb, head of Nutrition and Health at Britain's Medical Research Council．“The benefit was also seen regardless of whether or not people were fat and what social class they came from．”

　　Study participants(参与者)scored a point each for not smoking, regular physical activity, eating five servings of fruits and vegetables a day and moderate alcohol intake．

　　Public health experts said they hoped the study would inspire governments to introduce policies helping people to adopt these changes．But because the study only observed people rather than testing specific changes, it would be impossible to conclude that people who suddenly adopted these healthy behaviors would surely gain 14 years．

　　“We can't say that any person could gain 14 years by doing these things, ”said Dr．Tim Armstrong, a physical activity expert at the World Health Organization．“The 14 years is an average across the population of what's theoretically(理论上地)possible．”

　　“Most people know that things like a good diet matter and that smoking isn't good for them, ”Susan Jebb said．“We need to work on providing people with much more practical support to help them change．”

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　　It was a beautiful Sunday morning, and Maggie and I were returning from our walk through the woods．We were only a couple of blocks from home when I spotted a cell phone and a credit card sitting on the road．We took them home．We always find amazing things on the street and she looks upon them as a movable feast-a chicken wing here or a barbecue rib(肋骨)there．

　　I found another cell phone a few years back, too, and called a number in its phone book．I explained the situation to the guy who answered．He said it was his sister's and that he'd come to pick it up, which he did．

　　And that was that．No verbal thank-you, no written thank-you, no “here's a box of chocolates” thank-you．

　　I didn't have time to call anyone on my latest found cell phone．I was pouring myself coffee when it started to shake and dance across the kitchen counter．

　　“Who's this?” someone asked when I picked up．

　　“Who's this?” I countered(反问)．“Sarah?”

　　She was surprised at my knowing her name until she realized her name was on the credit card．“Could you send them to me?” she asked．

　　She lives in Arlington, which is 2 miles from my house．

　　“Hmm, no, ”I replied, adding that I thought she could come to get them, and that if I wasn't at home, they would be in my mailbox．

　　A day later, when I was out for a run, someone got them back．There wasn't even a piece of paper put in the mailbox with “Thanks” on it．In this age of e-mail and cell phone, there's really no excuse．Years ago, I found something more precious than a ＄100 bill on the street：a driver's license．I saw that its owner lived a couple of blocks from me, so I called him up．He asked whether I could slip the license through his front door．

　　“I guess I could, ”I replied．

　　And that was that．

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　　Preparing for a medical emergency involving your pet is always best accomplished before the event takes place．This series is designed to help guide you through the important decisions about first aid, as well as how and when to transport your pet quickly and safely to a veterinary hospital or emergency ability．

　　VeterinaryPartner．com has provided this complete reference book online for you to skim through, expanding your knowledge of dog and cat first aid；however, we encourage you to buy the book to keep in your home or car as a quick reference during an emergency．

　　This book is an emergency preparedness ready-reference for dogs and cats．Wise preventive measures, intelligent use of first aid principles, coupled with recognition of abnormal symptoms and treatment of disorders, diseases, and problems, lead to effective health care．

　　A working knowledge of this information will help you get rid of some potentially dangerous circumstances and help you prepare for emergency situations．

　　It includes information on what to do and what not to do in specific emergency situations．The authors encourage careful reading and occasional rereading．We have tried to make this book easy to understand, avoiding technical terms as often as possible, but defining(下定义)them in context when they are necessary．

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　　Broken rubber bands and flat tires requiring replacement could soon be a thing of the past．

　　French researchers have developed a new kind of rubber that can repair itself when broken．The new rubber is made from widely available materials including vegetable oil and a common industrial chemical．All the materials are considered safe to the environment and can be easily reused

　　The best part is that the new rubber can be repaired and used again and again without losing its strength or ability or stretch．When cut, the rubber can be made new again, simply by pressing the two broken ends back together．

　　The product can be repaired at room temperature, around twenty degrees Centigrade；other self-healing materials require higher temperatures for repair．

　　Traditionally, rubber substances are made from huge molecules(分子)connected by strong chemical links, or bonds．The new rubber is made of smaller molecules．The molecules are linked together using hydrogen bonds．When connected in this way, the molecules act like one long molecule, forming what is called supramolecular networks(超分子网)．When the rubber is cut, the molecules attempt to connect with whatever molecule is near them．When pressed together, the molecules are able to repair themselves at the molecular level, making the repaired rubber like new．

　　However, time is an important element in the process．If the broken ends are not brought together quickly, a repair is not possible．This is because molecules will form bonds with molecules on their own side．The inventors say the surfaces of the rubber can be repaired within a week of being separated．

　　The rubber is the creation of scientists at the Industrial Physics and Chemistry Higher Education Institution in Paris．The organization is part of France's National Center for Scientific Research．The new material is described in greater detail in the research publication Nature．

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　　Thomas Lagos graduated from Wittenburg University in Ohio in only one year．His father, a Greek immigrant(移民), said, “Whatever Tommy do, he’ll like to do fast．”

　　Thomas studied at Showee High School．He taught himself to read 750 words a minute．While he was in high school, he took of the 36 credits(学分)he needed to graduate from university．He took another 12 credits at the university simply taking examinations without attending the courses．The remaining credits he took by the old fashioned method of attending classes．

　　He studied very well, so he graduated with the greatest honours．Now at the age of nineteen, he has entered the graduate school of Michigan University．He is studying law．

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　　In the 19^th century, Americans from the eastern states moved out west to settle in the rich new lands along the Pacific Coast．The most difficult part of their trip was crossing “the Great American Desert” in the western part of the United States by horse and wagon．

　　The western desert can be very dangerous．There is little water and there are few trees．But the desert also has scenery of great beauty．Tall towers of red and yellow stone rise sharply from the flat, sandy valley floor．The scene has been photographed many times and appears in movies and on TV．

　　In Arizona, man-made dams across the Colorado River have made two large lakes in the middle of the dry desert country．At Lake Powell, the red stone arch of Rainbow Bridge rises high above the blue lake．

　　There are few roads．Many areas of Lake Powell’s shore can only be reached by boat or on foot．But hikers in this empty desert land sometimes find very old native American pictures, painted on the rocks．

　　In Death Valley, California, the summer temperature rises to 130°F－165°F．There is less than inches of rain each year．Death Valley is the lowest place in America－925 metres below sea level．In the 1800s, many travelers died when they tried to cross this waterless valley in the terrible heat．

　　Although the desert is dry and seems empty, there is plenty of life if you look closely．Snakes and rats have learned how to live in the desert heat．They live underground and come out at night, when it is cool．Plants such as cacti need very little water．When it does rain in the desert(sometimes only once or twice a year), plants grow quickly, and flowers open in a single day．For a short time, the desert is covered with brilliant(very bright)colours．

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　　How many coins have you got in your pocket right now? Three? Two? or One?

　　With a phonecard you can make up to 200 calls without any change at all．

　　1．What do you do with it?

　　Go to a telephone box marked “Phonecard”．Put in your card to start, make your call and when you have finished, a screen tells you how much is left on your card．

　　It costs no extra for the cards, and the calls cost 10p per unit, the same as any other pay-phone call．

　　You can buy them in units of 10, 20, 40, 100 or 200．

　　2．Now appearing in a shop near you

　　Near each phonecard place you will find a shop where you can buy one．They’re at bus, train and city tube stations．

　　At many universities, hospitals and clubs, restaurants and gas stations on the highway and shopping centers．

　　At airports and seaports．

　　3．No more broken payphones

　　Most broken payphones are like that because they’ve been damaged．There are no coins in a cardphone to excite thieves’ interest in it．So you’re not probably to find a broken one．

　　Get a phonecard yourself and try it out．Or get a bigger wallet．

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　　From Monday until Friday most people are busy working or studying, but in the evenings and on weekends they are free to relax and enjoy themselves．Some watch TV or go to the movies; others take part in sports．It depends on individual interest．There are many different ways to spend our spare time．

　　Almost everyone has some kind of hobby．It may be anything from collecting stamps to making model airplanes．Some hobbies are very expensive, but others don’t cost anything at all．Some collections are worth a lot of money; others are valuable only to their owners．

　　I know a man who has a coin collection worth several thousand dollars．A short time ago he bought a rare fifty-cent piece worth ＄250！He was very happy about his purchase(buying)and thought the price was reasonable．On the other hand, my youngest brother collects matchboxes．He has almost 600 of them but I doubt if they are worth any money．However, to my brother they are extremely valuable．Nothing makes him happier than to find a new matchbox for his collection．

　　That’s what a hobby means, I guess．It is something we like to do in our spare time simply for the fun of it．The value in dollars is not important, but the pleasure it gives us is．

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I moved to this area seven years ago．For years I have had noisy neighbours．Ever since I moved into this flat, I’ve had to put up with noise during the night．I decided I’d had enough and I’ve been looking for a new flat since the beginning of the year．I haven’t found anything till now．Every week I go to the estate agent’s(当地房地产代理人的)office, but it’s the same story．“I might have something by the end of the week” he says, or, “Wait till next week．I think I might have a few flats by then．” I’ve seen a few flats during my search, but I don’t like any of them．One flat I saw has been empty for two years．“It’s got a busy road on one side and a railway on the other!” I said loudly, “I want peace and quiet．” Last week I visited the agent again．“I won’t leave till you show me something,” I said．“I’ve got just the flat for you．” I went to see it and I was frightened．“But it’s next to a cemetery!” I cried．“But you won’t have noisy neighbours,” my agent said．“It’s exactly right for peace and quiet!”