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　　In my living room, there is a plaque(匾)that advises me to “Bloom(开花)where you are planted．” It reminds me of Dorothy．I got to know Dorothy in the early 1980s, when I was teaching Early Childhood Development through a program with Union College in Barbourville, Kentucky．The job responsibilities required occasional visits to the classroom of each teacher in the program．Dorothy stands out in my memory as one who “bloomed” in her remote area．

　　Dorothy taught in a school In Harlan County, Kentucky, Appalachian Mountain area．To get to her school from the town of Harlan, I followed a road winding around the mountain．In the eight-mile journey, I crossed the same railroad track five times, giving the possibility of getting caught by the same train five times．Rather than feeling excited by this drive through the mountains, I found it depressing．The poverty level was shocking and the small shabby houses gave me the greatest feeling of hopelessness．

　　From the moment of my arrival at the little school, all gloom(忧郁)disappeared．Upon arriving at Dorothy's classroom．I was greeted with smiling faces and treated like a queen．The children had been prepared to show me their latest projects．Dorothy told me with a big smile that they were serving poke greens salad and cornbread for “dinner”(lunch)．In case you don't know, poke greens are a weed-type plant that grows wild, especially on poor ground．

　　Dorothy never ran out of reports of exciting activities of her students．Her enthusiasm never cooled down．When it came time to sit for the testing and interviewing required to receive her Child Development Associate Certification, Dorothy was ready．She came to the assessment and passed in all areas．Afterward, she invited me to the one-and-only steak house in the area to celebrate her victory, as if she had received her Ph．D．degree．After the meal, she placed a little box containing an old pen in my hand．She said it was a family heirloom(传家宝), but to me it is a treasured symbol of appreciation and pride that cannot be matched with things．(360 words)

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　　Planning a visit to the UK? Here we help with ways to cut your costs．

　　AVOID BIG EVENTS　Big sporting events, concerts and exhibitions can increase the cost of accommodation and make it harder to find a room．A standard double room at the Thistle Brighton on the final Friday of the Brighton Comedy Festival(19 Oct．)cost ￡169．15 at Booking．com．A week later, the same room cost ￡118.15．

　　If you can be flexible and want to know dates to avoid－or you're looking for a big event to pass your time－check out sites such as Whatsonwhen．com, which allow you to search for events in the UK by city, date and category．

　　STAYAWAY FROM THE STATION If traveling to your destination by train, you may want to find a good base close to the station, but you could end up paying more for the sake of convenience at the start of your holiday．

　　Don't be too choosy about the part of town you stay in．Booking two months in advance, the cheapest room at Travelodge's Central Euston hotel in London for Saturday 22 September was ￡95.95．A room just a tube journey away at its Covent Garden hotel was ￡75.75．And at Farringdon, a double room cost just ￡62.95．

　　LOOK AFTER YOURSELF Really central hotels in cities such as London, Edinburgh and Cardiff can cost a fortune, especially at weekends and during big events．As an alternative consider checking into a self-catering flat with its own kitchen．Often these flats are hidden away on the top floors of city centre buildings．A great example is the historic O'Neill Flat on Edinburgh's Royal Mile, available for ￡420 for five days in late September, with room for four adults．

　　GET ON A BIKE London's ‘Boris bikes' have attracted the most attention, but other cities also have similar programmes that let you rent a bicycle and explore at your own pace, saving you on public transport or car parking costs．

　　Among the smaller cities with their own programmes are Newcastle(casual members pay around ￡1.50 for two hours)and Cardiff(free for up to 30 minutes, or ￡5 per day)．(358 words)

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　　A German study suggests that people who were too optimistic about their future actually faced greater risk of disability or death within 10 years than those pessimists who expected their future to be worse．

　　The paper, published this March in Psychology and Aging, examined health and welfare surveys from roughly 40,000 Germans between ages 18 and 96．The surveys were conducted every year from 1993 to 2003．

　　Survey respondents(受访者)were asked to estimate their present and future life satisfaction on a scale of 0 to 10, among other questions．

　　The researchers found that young adults(age 18 to 39)routinely overestimated their future life satisfaction, while middle-aged adults(age 40 to 64)more accurately predicted how they would feel in the future．Adults of 65 and older, however, were far more likely to underestimate their future life satisfaction．Not only did they feel more satisfied than they thought they would, the older pessimists seemed to suffer a lower ratio(比率)of disability and death for the study period．

　　“We observed that being too optimistic in predicting a better future than actually observed was associated with a greater risk of disability and a greater risk of death within the following decade,” wrote Frieder R．Lang, a professor at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg．

　　Lang and his colleagues believed that people who were pessimistic about their future may be more careful about their actions than people who expected a rosy future．

　　“Seeing a dark future may encourage positive evaluations of the actual self and may contribute to taking improved precautions(预防措施),” the authors wrote．

　　Surprisingly, compared with those in poor health or who had low incomes, respondents who enjoyed good health or income were associated with expecting a greater decline．Also, the researchers said that higher income was related to a greater risk of disability．

　　The authors of the study noted that there were limitations to their conclusions．Illness, medical treatment and personal loss could also have driven health outcomes．

　　However, the researchers said a pattern was clear．“We found that from early to late adulthood, individuals adapt their expectations of future life satisfaction from optimistic, to accurate, to pessimistic,” the authors concluded．

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　　The technology is great．Without it we wouldn't have been able to put a man on the moon, explore the ocean's depths or eat microwave sausages．Computers have revolutionized our lives and they have the power to educate and pass on knowledge．But sometimes this power can create more problems than it solves．

　　Every doctor has had to try their best to calm down patients who've come into their surgery waving an Internet print-out, convinced that they have some rare incurable disease, say, throat cancer．The truth is usually far more ordinary, though：they don't have throat cancer, and it's just that their throats are swollen．Being a graduate of the Internet “school” of medicine does not guarantee accurate self-health-checks．

　　One day Mrs．Almond came to my hospital after feeling faint at work．While I took her blood sample and tried to find out what was wrong, she said calmly, “I know what's wrong; I've got throat cancer．I know there's nothing you doctors can do about it and I've just got to wait until the day comes．”

　　As a matter of routine I ordered a chest X-ray．I looked at it and the blood results an hour later．Something wasn't right．“Did your local doctor do an X-ray?” I asked．“Oh, I haven't been to the doctor for years,” she replied．“I read about it on a website and the symptoms fitted, so I knew that's what I had．”

　　However, some of her symptoms, like the severe cough and weight loss, didn't fit with it－but she'd just ignored this．

　　I looked at the X-ray again, and more tests confirmed it wasn't the cancer but tuberculosis(肺结核)－something that most certainly did need treating, and could be deadly．She was lucky we caught it when we did．

　　Mrs．Almond went pale when I explained she would have to be on treatment for the next six months to ensure that she was fully recovered．It was certainly a lesson for her．“I'm so embarrassed,” she said, shaking her head, as I explained that all the people she had come into close contact with would have to be found out and tested．She listed up to about 20, and then I went to my office to type up my notes．Unexpectedly, the computer was not working, so I had to wait until someone from the IT department came to fix it．Typical．Maybe I should have a microwave sausage while I waited?

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　　We've reached a strange－some would say unusual－point．While fighting world hunger continues to be the matter of vital importance according to a recent report from the World Health Organization(WHO), more people now die from being overweight, or say, from being extremely fat, than from being underweight．It's the good life that's more likely to kill us these days．

　　Worse, nearly l8 million children under the age of five around the world are estimated to be overweight．What's going on?

　　We really don't have many excuses for our weight problems．The dangers of the problem have been drilled into us by public-health campaigns since 2001 and the message is getting through－up to a point．

　　In the 1970s, Finland, for example, had the highest rate of heart disease in the world and being overweight was its main cause．Not any more．A public-health campaign has greatly reduced the number of heart disease deaths by 80 per cent over the past three decades．

　　Maybe that explains why the percentage of people in Finland taking diet pills doubled between 2001 and 2005, and doctors even offer surgery of removing fat inside and change the shape of the body．That has become a sort of fashion．No wonder it ranks as the world's most body-conscious country．

　　We know what we should be doing to lose weight－but actually doing it is another matter．By far the most popular excuse is not taking enough exercise．More than half of us admit we lack willpower．

　　Others blame good food．They say：it's just too inviting and it makes them overeat．Still others lay the blame on the Americans, complaining that pounds have piled on thanks to eating too much American-style fast food．

　　Some also blame their parents－their genes．But unfortunately, the parents are wronged because they're normal in shape, or rather slim．

　　It's a similar story around the world, although people are relatively unlikely to have tried to lose weight．Parents are eager to see their kids shape up．Do as I say－not as I do．

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　　Mothers and daughters go through so much－yet when was the last time a mother and daughter sat down to write a book together about it all? Perri Klass and her mother, Sheila Solomon Klass, both gifted professional writers, prove to be ideal co-writers as they examine their decades of motherhood, daughterhood, and the wonderful ways their lives have overlapped(重叠)．

　　Perri notes with amazement how closely her own life has mirrored her mother's：both have full-time careers; both have published books, articles, and stories; each has three children; they both love to read．They also love to travel－in fact, they often take trips together．But in truth, the harder they look at their lives, the more they acknowledge their big differences in circumstance and basic nature．

　　A child of the Depression(大萧条), Sheila was raised in Brooklyn by parents who considered education a luxury for girls．Starting with her college education, she has fought for everything she's ever accomplished．Perri, on the other hand, grew up privileged in the New Jersey suburbs of the 1960s and 1970s．For Sheila, wasting time or money is a crime, and luxury is unthinkable while Perri enjoys the occasional small luxury, but has not been successful at trying to persuade her mother into enjoying even the tiniest thing she likes．

　　Each writing in her own unmistakable voice, Perri and Sheila take turns exploring the joys and pains, the love and bitterness, the minor troubles and lasting respect that have always bonded them together．Sheila describes the adventure of giving birth to Perri in a tiny town in Trinidad where her husband was doing research fieldwork．Perri admits that she can't sort out all the mess in the households, even though she knows it drives her mother crazy．Together they compare thoughts on bringing up children and working, admit long-hidden sorrows, and enjoy precious memories．

　　Looking deep into the lives they have lived separately and together, Perri and Sheila tell their mother-daughter story with honesty, humor, enthusiasm, and admiration for each other．A written account in two voices, Every Mother Is a Daughter is a duet(二重奏)that produces a deep, strong sound with the experiences that all mothers and daughters will recognize．

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　　Some years ago, writing in my diary used to be a usual activity．I would return from school and spend the expected half hour recording the day's events, feelings, and impressions in my little blue diary．I did not really need to express my emotions by way of words, but I gained a certain satisfaction from seeing my experiences forever recorded on paper．After all, isn't accumulating memories a way of preserving the past?

　　When I was thirteen years old, I went on a long journey on foot in a great valley, well-equipped with pens, a diary, and a camera．During the trip, I was busy recording every incident, name and place I came across．I felt proud to be spending my time productively, dutifully preserving for future generations a detailed description of my travels．On my last night there, I wandered out of my tent, diary in hand．The sky was clear and lit by the glare of the moon, and the walls of the valley looked threatening behind their screen of shadows．I automatically took out my pen…

　　At that point, I understood that nothing I wrote could ever match or replace the few seconds I allowed myself to experience the dramatic beauty of the valley．All I remembered of the previous few days were the dull characterizations I had set down in my diary．

　　Now, I only write in my diary when I need to write down a special thought or feeling．I still love to record ideas and quotations that strike me in books, or observations that are particularly meaningful．I take pictures, but not very often－only of objects I find really beautiful．I'm no longer blindly satisfied with having something to remember when I grow old．I realize that life will simply pass me by if I stay behind the camera, busy preserving the present so as to live it in the future．

　　I don't want to wake up one day and have nothing but a pile of pictures and notes．Maybe I won't have as many exact representations of people and places; maybe I'll forget certain facts, but at least the experiences will always remain inside me．I don't live to make memories－I just live, and the memories form themselves．

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The National Gallery

　　Description：

　　The National Gallery is the British national art museum built on the north side of Trafalgar Square in London．It houses a diverse collection of more than 2,300 examples of European art ranging from 13th-century religious paintings to more modern ones by Renoir and Van Gogh．The older collections of the gallery are reached through the main entrance while the more modern works in the East Wing are most easily reached from Trafalgar Square by a ground floor entrance

　　Layout：

　　The modern Sainsbury Wing on the western side of the building houses 13th- to 15th-century paintings, and artists include Duccio, Uccello, Van Eyck, Lippi, Mantegna, Botticelli and Memling．

　　The main West Wing houses 16th-century paintings, and artists include Leonardo da Vinci, Cranach, Michelangelo, Raphael, Bruegel, Bronzino, Titan and Veronese．

　　The North Wing houses 17th-century paintings, and artists include Caravaggio, Rubens, Poussin, Van Dyck, Velazquez, Claude and Vermeer．

　　The East Wing houses 18th- to early 20th-century paintings, and artists include Canaletto, Goya, Turner, Constable, Renoir and Van Gogh．

　　Opening Hours：

　　The Gallery is open every day from 10am to 6pm(Fridays 10am to 9pm)and is free, but charges apply to some special exhibitions．

　　Getting There：

　　Nearest underground stations：Charing Cross(2-minute walk), Leicester Square(3-minute walk), Embankment(7-minute walk), and Piccadilly Circus(8-minute walk)．

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　　It happened to me recently．I was telling someone how much I had enjoyed reading Barack Obama's Dreams From My Father and how it had changed my views of our President．A friend I was talking to agreed with me that it was, in his words, “a brilliantly(精彩地)written book”．However, he then went on to talk about Mr．Obama in a way which suggested he had no idea of his background at all．I sensed that I was talking to a book liar．

　　And it seems that my friend is not the only one．Approximately two thirds of people have lied about reading a book which they haven't．In the World Book Day's “Report on Guilty Secrets”, Dreams From My Father is at number 9．The report lists ten books, and various authors, which people have lied about reading, and as I'm not one to lie too often(I'd hate to be caught out), I'll admit here and now that I haven't read the entire top ten．But I am pleased to say that, unlike 42 percent of people, I have read the book at number one, George Orwell's 1984．I think it's really brilliant．

　　The World Book Day report also has some other interesting information in it．It says that many people lie about having read Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Fyodor Dostoevsky(I haven't read him, but haven't lied about it either)and Herman Melville．

　　Asked why they lied, the most common reason was to “impress” someone they were speaking to．This could be tricky if the conversation became more in–depth!

　　But when asked which authors they actually enjoy, people named J．K．Rowling, John Grisham, Sophie Kinsella(ah, the big sellers, in other words)．Forty-two percent of people asked admitted they turned to the back of the book to read the end before finishing the story(I'll come clean：I do this and am astonished that 58 percent said they had never done so)．

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　　They baby is just one day old and has not yet left hospital．She is quiet but alert(警觉)．Twenty centimeters from her face researchers have placed a white card with two black spots on it．She stares at it carefully．A researcher removes the card and replaces it by another, this time with the spots differently spaced．As the cards change from one to the other, her gaze(凝视)starts to lose its focus － until a third, with three black spots, is presented．Her gaze returns：she looks at it for twice as long as she did at the previous card．Can she tell that the number two is different from three, just 24 hours after coming into the world?

　　Or do newborns simply prefer more to fewer? The same experiment, but with three spots shown before two, shows the same return of interest when the number of spots changes．Perhaps it is just the newness? When slightly older babies were shown cards with pictures of objects(a comb, a key, an orange and so on), changing the number of objects had an effect separate from changing the objects themselves．Could it be the pattern that two things make, as opposed to three? No again．Babies paid more attention to squares moving randomly on a screen when their number changed from two to three, or three to two．The effect even crosses between senses．Babies who were repeatedly shown two spots became more excited when they then heard three drumbeats than when they heard just two; likewise(同样地)when the researchers started with drumbeats and moved to spots．

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