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　　Wouldn’t it be great to get paid not to work? This isn’t just a dream at companies that offer sabbaticals(休假)．Employers say they’re a valuable way to give their workers a change of scenery and prevent them from being tired out．Unfortunately, only 3％ of companies offer paid sabbaticals(带薪休假)(12％ offer unpaid), according to the Society for Human Resource Management(SHRM)．But even if you’re not lucky enough to work for one of them, you can still enjoy a break．Three choices：

　　Chunk of Time．To get a longer break than normal, save long weekends for vacation time, delay your days off till need year, borrow some time from next year to use now, or use extra time off for overtime hours, suggests Bonnie Michaels, president of the Society．

　　Unpaid Time．If your family has no money problem, ask for a longer leave without pay．“But do your homework first, ” says Michaels．Research the costs for your break, plan your break at a time during which your company is not operating if possible, then be business-like and present your leave proposal so that your manager will believe that you’ll work better if you are more energetic after the leave．

　　No Time．Just can’t get away? Read How to Take a Sabbatical Without Taking More than a Week Off(Simon ＆ Schuster), by Pare Ammondson, which shows an eight-week program to renew your energy and reduce your stress even while you’re working．

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　　American magician David Blaine left the glass box in which he has lived for 44 days without food on October 19．Hundreds of people came to watch the end of his starvation experiment, which has become one of London’s main tourist attractions．

　　Looking thinner and darker, 30-year-old Blain was taken out of his box over the River Thames and immediately went to hospital．He was then reintroduced to food, a process(过程)doctors say could be life threatening．He had been drinking only water since September 5．

　　A native of Brooklyn, New York, Blaine first became known as a street magician in the early 1990s．He soon found himself doing magic tricks in bars for the likes of American actor Leonardo DiCprio and his super model friends．

　　Over the last decade(ten years)Blaine has become famous with a combination of breathtaking magic and clever tricks aimed at getting a lot of attention．

　　In 1999, he was buried in a coffin(棺材)for one week and, in 2000, he spent 62 hours in a giant block of ice．Last year he stood on top of a 25-meter pillar(柱子)in the center of New York for 35 hours before jumping into a pile of boxes．

　　“I think a lot of people are unable to accept that they’re able to do what they can do, ” he said．“They don’t realize we can survive．The human being is an amazing creation．”

　　But he seems to have suffered from spending so long in the glass box．He said that at times he was unable to see, had serious back pains and lost his sense of taste．

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　　Researchers are placing robotic dogs(机器狗)in the homes of lonely old people to determine whether they can improve the quality of life for humans．Alan Beck, an expert in human-animal relationship, and Nancy Edwards, a professor of nursing, are leading the animal-assisted study concerning the influence of robotic dogs on old people’s depression, physical activity, and life satisfaction．“No one will argue that an older person is better off being more active, challenged, or stimulated(应急的),”Edwards points out．“The problem is how we promote that, especially for those without friends or help．A robotic dog could be a solution．”

　　In the study, the robot, called AIBO, is placed for six weeks in the houses of some old people who live alone．Before placing AIBO in the home, researchers will collect baseline data for six weeks．These old people will keep a diary to note their feelings and activity before and after AIBO．Then, the researchers will review the data to determine if it has inspired any changes in the life of its owner．

　　“I talk to him all the time, and he responds to my voice,” says a seventy-year-old lady, “When I’m watching TV, he’ll stay in my arms until he wants down．He has a mind of his own．”

　　The AIBOs respond to certain orders．The researchers say they have some advantages over live dogs, especially for old people．Often the elderly are disabled(行动不便的)and cannot care for an animal by walking it or playing with it．A robotic dog removes(免除)exercise and feeding concerns．

　　“At the beginning, it was believed that no one would relate to the robotic dog, because it was metal and not furry．” Beck says，“But it’s amazing how quickly we have given up that belief．”

　　“Hopefully, down the road, these robotic pets could become a more-valuable health helper．They will record their masters’ blood pressure, oxygen levels, or heart rhythms．AIBOs may even one day have games that can help stimulate older people’s minds．”

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　　Searching for love is no longer just a favorite subject for songs．It has also become a huge industry．Researchers say the online dating industry in the US earned 649 million dollars in 2006．They expect this number to increase to more than 9 million dollars by 2011．

　　Experts say that the industry has grown because traditional social ties have weakened．Many young people leave behind a close community of friends and family to find work in bigger cities．People work longer hours, so they have less time to meet new people．

　　This helps explain the popularity of online dating．Some estimates say120 thousand marriages a year result from matches made on the Internet．

　　The dating industry has also been expanding in new ways．Many companies offer personalized services for finding the perfect mate．These companies are answering a large demand by single people．They are willing to invest their time and money to find love with carefully planned methods, instead of leaving love to chance．

　　AskRomeo is a company in Virginia．It provides single people with advice on how to meet a person for the first time．

　　Also in Virginia, the company True Life Partners provides a more costly and detailed dating service．The company hires a team of professional persons who help couples meet．But this level of service comes at a high price．Men pay thousands of dollars for the service．But women get to take part at no cost．

　　There are lots of other costs linked to dating．And we wonder how the economic recession(衰退)has affected dating in the US．

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　　Another small animal that tigers eat in Ranthambhore(a wildlife park in northern India)is the porcupine(豪猪)．These animals are spread widely across India in open areas and grasslands; they often live in the earth and between rocks．They are good diggers, and in Ranthambhore are nocturnal(夜出的); they only come out at night．They weigh 12 to 16 kilograms and reach the length of 80 to 90 centimetres．They live usually on vegetables and fruit and seem to have a good sense of smell．Porcupines defend themselves when attacked by moving backwards with their quills upright, often making a strange noise．

　　Several times, I have found the remains of quills where a tiger has killed and eaten a porcupine, but I have never actually seen the kill．In spite of the quills, experienced tigers will try to kill clearly by biting the porcupine’s head, its weakest spot．But the quills are very sharp and can give painful injuries to young tigers．If the quills have gone in very deeply or if they are stuck in the tiger’s paw, it will try to pull them out．Often, it will be successful, and the wound will get better．But, if the quills have gone in very deeply or if they are stuck in the tiger’s neck or mouth, where they cannot be reached, the wound will often turn bad．If this happens, the tiger is in pain and is less able to hunt animals．It has to look for easier prey and so may turn to cows on the edges of the forest．From this, it is a small step to becoming a man-eater．

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　　In November, 2010, the CPI(consumer price index)went up by 5.1 percent year-on-year(同比)．The price grew by 4.9 percent in cities and 5．6 percent in rural areas．The food price went up by 11.7 percent while the non-food price increased by 1.9 percent．

　　Grouped by commodity(商品)categories, in November, of the eight categories of commodities, six of them experienced prices rise and two witnessed prices decline．Of which, prices for food went up by 11.7 percent; prices for tobacco, liquor and articles rose by 1.6 percent; price for clothing went down by 0.7 percent; prices for household facilities, articles and maintenance services went up by 0.7 percent; health care and personal articles rose by 4.0 percent; transportation and communication went down by 0.7 percent; recreation, education, culture articles and services grew by 0.6 percent, and housing went up by 5.8 percent．

　　In November this year, the month-on-month(环比)change of consumer price was up by 1.1 percent．Of which, price in cities went up by 1.0 percent and that in rural areas went up by 1.3 percent．

　　The food price rose by 2.0 percent and the non-food price increased by 0.6 percent．The price of consumer goods grew by 1.5 percent, and the price of services went down by 0.2 percent．

　　Grouped by commodity categories, in November, prices for food rose by 2.0 percent month-on-month, of which the price for fresh vegetables decreased by 1.9 percent; prices for tobacco, liquor and articles increased by 0.2 percent, price for clothing went up by 1.6 percent, prices for household facilities, articles and maintenance services increased by 0.4 percent, health care and personal articles grew by 0.7 percent; transportation and communication maintained the same level, recreation, education, culture articles and services dropped by 1.0 percent, and housing went up by 1.8 percent．

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　　Chinese tennis player Li Na didn’t win the Australian Open Championship on Saturday, but she still made the history books．

　　Li, who lost to Kim Clijsters of Belgium in three sets(3-6, 6-3, 6-3), is the first player from China to make it to a Grand Slam final．

　　The boss defeated a bit of the feel-good story for China and for Li, who on Thursday defeated No．1 player Caroline Wozniacki in the semifinals in Melbourne．Li is ranked fifth．

　　In an interview Li said she was proud of her effort．“I think I play great tennis,” she said．“ I mean, she plays better than me．After the match, I make a joke：tennis should only play one set．”

　　Bai Yan, a member of China’s men’s national team member and Li Na’s friend, said the loss was disappointing, but still a bright starting point．

　　“To tell you the truth I feel a little bit down, all of us．But you know she is still the best, and she’s still our hero in everybody’s eyes,” said Bai．“This is just the start．”．

　　Win or lose, Li’s appearance in the Australian Open finals was seen as a major victory for tennis in China, where badminton and table tennis rules．

　　Fans across China gathered to watch the match．Li’s mother joined fans at a restaurant in her hometown of Wuhan．In Bejing, fans crowded together to watch China’s national tennis match．

　　“Tennis is still relatively a new sport in China,” said Michael Chang, the Chinese-American who was the first Asian grand slam champion, in an interview with CNN．“ To be able to see Li Na have as much success as she has… this could be the start of something very special for tennis in China．”

　　“Li will definitely change the sport of tennis in China and that is a great thing,” Chang said．

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　　“Dinning out” and “eating out” are phrases people use in Britain when they eat in a restaurant or pub(小酒馆)．Eating out is more popular in Britain today than it has ever been．In 2006, for the first time ever, British people spent more eating out than cooking for themselves and eating at home．It seems that many British people are becoming increasingly interested in how good their food tastes, and also how healthy it is．

　　However, eating out can also be expensive．As British people do not eat out every night of the week, eating in a restaurant is often seen as a special occasion．When going on a first date and wanting to impress him/ her, or if celebrating an anniversary or a birthday, many people like to go to a restaurant to eat, and people often also eat in a restaurant before going to the cinema or the theater．

　　As in all cultures, there are many rules of etiquette(礼仪)surrounding food and eating．The knife and fork should be used in the correct way! It is also impolite to have your elbows(肘部)on the dinning table when you are eating．

　　Almost all British cities have a vast range of food as well as traditional British food, and all from the very cheap to the very expensive---French, Italian, Indian, Chinese, Greek, Thai, Japan and many, many more．In fact, when asked which was their favorite food, more British people said an Indian curry(咖喱菜肴)than any other dish!

　　As well as dining in a restaurant, when people are too tired to cook after work they often get a “take-away”．This means that they order from a take-out restaurant by telephone, and then go to collect it and take it home to eat．Many take-out restaurants also deliver it your house．While you can normally find a take-out restaurant for almost any food, the most popular are Italian, Indian and Chinese and then all of you have to do is to open the door, pay and eat!

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　　Ok, I admit it：Emoticons(表情符号)are popular．Some people even think they are fun．Many seem unable to get through an e-mail or Instant Message chat sentence without using one．Some feel that they add feeling and character to otherwise cold digital communications．

　　Some, however, such as editor and Hollywood scriptwriter John Blumenthal, blast the use of emotions as “ infantile(幼稚的)just like the people who use them”．He believes that words themselves should be enough．“If you’re being funny, happy or sad, that should be apparent from the comment that goes before the emoticons,” he argues．

　　In the eyes of Blumenthal, the use of emoticons is a gender issue．“Men don’t use emoticons very much．Maybe not at all．,” he said．“Teenage girls and women seem to use them a lot．Maybe there’s an emoticons gene．”

　　It’s an interesting opinion, but it is not shared by all．

　　In an interview with The New York Times, Dacher Keltner, professor of psychology at the University of California, said that emoticons are popular because our brains are programmed “to seek out representations of humanity”．He believes that they appeal not because they are shortcuts for the lazy, but because they tap into(输入)something beyond language．They reach to our need to be with and communicate with people．

　　All of these arguments may be somehow valid(正确的)．Each one of us will choose to communicate in our own way．I do not have much time for emoticons．I tried to use one once and felt like I was stealing into a primary school class that I had no place being in．I’d rather let my words do the talking．

　　Friends, however, send me messages and e-mails full of emoticons．I have no problem with this, I don’t regard any of my friends as lazy or immature．It’s just a question of individuality．