The world-famous British Museum has a secret: a hidden study where anyone can request private viewings of prints and drawings by Rembrandt, Michelangelo and more.

On the fourth floor of the British Museum, in a quiet corner, is an ordinary door. I first opened the door a few years ago, and was shown into a room with a glass ceiling and cabinets(陈列橱) filled with cardboard boxes. Those boxes hold Britain’s national collection of prints and drawings.

Studying a work of art in your own time at a desk is a very different experience from looking at it in a museum or gallery. It is much closer to how the artists themselves would have viewed the work. I was drawn into the images, which still felt fresh and immediate decades after their creation.

I asked the archivist(档案保管员) if I could see Michelangelo’s ink drawing of a philosopher(哲学家). The drawing shows a bearded man holding a round object: perhaps a rock or a glass ball. That the drawing was unfinished made it more interesting. Was the drawing an old man thinking about death, an alchemist(炼金术士) weighing a fresh piece of gold, or a philosopher turning over the stone of knowledge?

I looked at it until the archivist told me they were about to close for the day.

Since that first visit, I have gone back to the study room several times, usually to look at works from the period I was researching. Very occasionally, I asked for the Michelangelo drawing. Although I know that it prefers to be in the dark, I also like to think that, every now and then, it enjoys being looked at.

 Swimming is very popular. People like swimming in summer because water makes people feel cool. If you like swimming and swim in a wrong place, it may not be safe. These years, a lot of people died when they were enjoying themselves in the water, and most of them were students. But some people are not careful in swimming. They often think they swim so well that nothing will happen to them in water. Summer is here again. If you go swimming in summer, don't forget that better swimmers have died in water. They died because they were not careful not because they could not swim. So don't get into water when you are alone. If there is a "No Swimming" sign, don't get into water. If you remember these, swimming will be safer.

Luther Gulick was chairman of the physical education department at the School for Christian Workers (nowSpringfield College) in Springfield,Massachusetts. In early December 1891, he instructed physical education teacher James Naismith to invent a new game to entertain the school’s athletes during the winter season.

With an ordinary soccer ball, Naismith asked his class of 18 young men to get together, appointed captains of two nine-player teams, and introduced them to the game of Basket Ball (then two words). Naismith sent someone to find two boxes to be fastened to the balcony at opposite sides of the gymnasium. The man, however, only found two peach baskets, and the game was played with these.

The soccer ball and the peach basket soon gave way to better equipment. For example, in the early days the peach baskets were closed at the bottom. The peach basket was later replaced by a metal rim with a net hanging below, and in 1906 people began opening the netting to let the ball fall through.

The first basketballs were made from panels of leather stitched together with a rubber bladder (球胆) inside. A cloth lining was added to the leather for support. The molded basketball, introduced in about 1942, was a great advancement for the sport. The molded ball, a factory-made ball that had a fixed size and shape, offered better reaction, making play more consistent and the development of individual skills easier.

In Naismith’s original 13 rules, the ball could be hit in any direction with one or both hands, but it could not be dribbled (运球) because players could not move with the ball. At the beginning of1910 aplayer could dribble the ball, but could not shoot after dribbling. It was not until 1916, following heated debate, that players were allowed to shoot after dribbling.

  The way you stand can identify whether you will suffer from aches and pains in the back or neck in later life, the British Chiropractic Association has said. Whether you area“spoon”, “bridge”, “leaning tower” or “flat-back” will determine your risk of having problems later.

    A quarter of women suffer pain lasting between one and three days starting at the relatively young age of 34, the survey found. While previous indicators have focused on body shapes, with larger-breasted women and “apple” shapes being seen as a warning sign, this new research shows posture(姿势) could be key in preventing back pain.

    “Leaning tower”—women whose heads lean forward—are most likely to report pain, with almost six in ten with this posture already suffering. Being a “bridge” with an arched back was the second worse posture, followed by a “spoon” position with rounded shoulders but a flat back. And a change in posture can be far less demanding than a crash diet or an exercise programme.

    “Flat back” ladies, who keep their backs flat are the most likely to avoid pain with a fifth reporting they have never suffered back or neck aches in their lives. Tim Hutchful, a member of the British Chiropractic Association said, “Rather than worrying about being an ‘apple’ or an ‘hourglass’, we want people to think about what they look like from the side. The perfect posture should give you a side-on appearance with your ears, shoulders, hips, knees and ankles in line.” People who want to improve their back and neck pain symptoms through a better posture should try imagining they have a plumb line(铅垂线) hanging straight from their ears to ankles—with everything in the middle sitting on the same line. One way to do this is to try standing in a relaxed way and then gently pressing together the abdominal muscles(腹肌).

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Parents whose children think the latest Nike or Adidas shoes may be better than buying old-fashioned plimsolls (橡胶底帆布鞋) because they encourage a healthier style of running, researchers said.

Big companies, like Nike and Adidas, make millions of dollars from selling highly-cushioned shoes（厚增高的运动鞋) both as fashion and sports shoes. The researchers warn that wearing such shoes from an early age can make it difficult to run in a healthy way. Once we have grown used to running in this kind of shoes, it is very difficult to change our technique, even if we remove our shoes, it can raise the risk of injury.

Children should be encouraged to wear shoes with thin soles such as plimsolls from a young age to help them develop a natural “barefoot” running style, experts said.

Dr Mick Wilknson, who did the research, told the British Science Festival in Newcastle, “If I would advise someone on what to give their child, I would say don’t go and buy them expensive Adidas or Nike, just get them a pair of flexible, flat shoes. Give them basic foot-ware, nothing fancy, nothing particularly cushioned.”

Running in flat shoes, barefoot, encourages the runner to use the front of their foot which is a better technique for running, especially long distances as the human was designed to do.

Around the world, and in particular in the US, running barefoot is becoming more and more popular with many long distance runners training without shoes.

Dr Mick Wilknson believes that training and running barefoot or in flat running shoes can help reduce injuries to runners, he said: “Injury rates in running have not changed since the 1970s, despite claims of improvements in running shoes. That has led some to conclude that barefoot running is better.”

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Many people have paid special attention to newer drivers who may send messages while behind the wheel. But a new study shows that texting and driving can be even more dangerous for older and experienced drivers. “It surprised us because they are generally better at managing distractions than less seasoned drivers,” said Randall Commissaris.

   For the study, a group of 50 people between 18 and 59 years old took driving tests. Researchers then sent them text messages, asking them simple questions like what was their favorite color. Half of the highly-skilled texters －people who said they texted a lot, could text one-handed and owned smart phones—began driving into other lanes while reading or sending texts. But the older texters did especially bad: all of the 45- to 59-year-olds and 80 percent of 35- to 44-year-olds drove into other lanes. Meanwhile, about 40 percent of 25- to 34-year-olds and about 25 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds began crossing lanes while texting.

Researchers are not sure why this age difference exists, and it’s a question they are exploring now. Perhaps older drivers take more and longer glances at their phones when composing and reading messages. Or maybe older drivers can not manage technological multitasking in the same way as young people who have grown up with phones as children. It could be a combination of those factors and others, Commissaris said.

   Distraction behind the wheel is a major public health concern. In 2012, 3328 people died and 421000 people were injured in car crashes involving a distracted driver, according to the Center of Disease Control and Prevention.

   There are reasons why so much attention has been paid to young people texting behind the wheel. As a group, younger adults text more than older ones. And younger drivers are much more likely to report that they were texting during a crash or near crash. Anyway, all age groups should not text when they are driving.

For the first time, researchers have discovered that some plants can kill insects in order to get additional nutrients. New research shows that they catch and kill small insects with their own sticky hairs near the roots and then absorb nutrients through their roots when the insects are killed and fall to the ground.

Professor Mark Chase, of Kew and Queen Mary, University of London, said: “The cultivated (改良的) tomatoes and potatoes still have the hairs. Tomatoes in particular are covered with these sticky hairs. They do trap small insects on a regular basis. They do kill insects.”

The number of these carnivorous plants is thought to have came up to 50 percent and many of them have until now been wrongly regarded as among the most harmless plants. Among them are species of petunia(矮牵牛), some special tobacco plants and cabbages, some varieties of potatoes and tomatoes, etc. Researchers at Royal Botanical Gardens Kew, which carried out the study, now believe there are hundreds more killer plants than previously realized.

It is thought that the technique was developed in the wild to get necessary nutrients in poor quality soil ­ and even various plants grown in your vegetable garden still have the ability.

The researchers, publishing their finding in the Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, said: “We may be surrounded by many more murderous plants than we think.” “We are accustomed to thinking of plants as being immobile and harmless, and there is something deeply frightening about the thought of meat­eating plants，” they added.

Many studies have shown that the company of pets can help lower blood pressure and raise chances of recovering from a heart attack, reduce loneliness and help control body weight.

Any pet owner will tell you how much joy a pet brings. For some, an animal provides more comfort than a husband/wife. A 2002 study by Karen Allen of the State University of New York measured stress levels and blood pressure in people (half of them were pet owners) while they performed 5 minutes of mental arithmetic (算术) or held a hand in ice water. People completed the tasks alone, with a husband/wife, a close friend or with a pet. People with pets did it best. Those tested with their animal friends had smaller change in blood pressure and returned most quickly to baseline heart rates. With pets in the room, people also made fewer math mistakes than when doing in front of other companions. It seems that people feel more relaxed around pets, says Allen, who thinks it may be because pets don’t judge.

   A study reported last fall suggests that having a pet dog may also have an effect on your body weight. Researchers at Northwestern Memorial Hospital spent a year studying two groups of fat people who were put on a diet-and-exercise program: one group with pet dogs, and the other without. On average, dog owners lost about 11 pounds, or 5% of their body weight; While those without dogs lost about 8 pounds. The pet owners, said researchers, got more exercise overall (mostly with their dogs) and found it worth doing.

While income worry is a rather common problem of the aged, loneliness is another problem that aged parents may face. Of all the reasons that explain their loneliness, a large geographical distance between parents and their children is the major one. This phenomenon is commonly known as “Empty Nest Syndrome”（空巢综合症）. 

In order to find better chances outside their countries, many young people have gone abroad, leaving their parents behind with no clear idea of when they will return home. Their parents spend countless lonely days and nights, taking care of themselves, in the hope that someday their children will come back to stay with them. The fact that most of these young people have gone to Europeanized or Americanized societies makes it unlikely that they will hold as tightly to the value of duty as they would have if they had not left their countries. Whatever the case, it has been noted that the values they hold do not necessarily match what they actually do. This geographical and cultural distance also prevents the grown-up children from providing response in time for their aged parents living by themselves. 
   The situation in which grown-up children live far away from their aged parents has been described as “distant parent phenomenon（现象）”, which is common both in developed countries and in developing countries. Our society has not yet been well prepared for “Empty Nest Syndrome”（空巢综合症）. 

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Third Wheel by Jeff Kinney

   A dance at Greg Heffley’s middle school is going to be held, but he can’t find someone to go with him. Finally he finds a girl from his class to go with him. That is when The Third Wheel story begins.

   The Third Wheel is full of jokes and interesting drawings.

Ivy and Bean Make the Rules by Annie Barrows

   Bean’s older sister Jessie gets to go to a summer camp called Girl Power 4-Ever. But Bean can’t join her because she is too young. So Bean and her best friend, Ivy, decide to create their own camp. At Camp Flaming Arrow, Ivy and Bean come up with all the activities and , of course, they make the rules. Their happiness and kindness will make you want to keep reading.

Stick Dog by Tom Watson

   Stick Dog is a dog that lives in an empty pipe. He has four dogs friends named Poo-Poo, Stripes, Karen and Mutt. When Stick Dog smells some delicious hamburgers, he and his friends decide to steal the food from a human family that is having a picnic in Picasso Park. Along the way, they face a lot of funny challenges.

White Fur Flying by Patricia MacLachlan

   Zoe and Alice’s mother might just have the coolest job ever. She rescues Great Pyrenees dogs! But dogs aren’t the only things that need to be saved. The family’s new neighbor, Phillip, doesn’t speak, and no one knows why.

   White Fur Flying is all about understanding that love can come from both inside and out. Although it is a little sad, the book is a good read. Kids who love animals and a good story will really like it too.