There are too few times in life that stand alone and above all others, days that will never be forgotten. This was one of those days, a day when on a hike, I became my children’s Hero. This event happened the first summer after moving to the mountains of Colorado.

Wanting to enjoy the beauty of the mountains, my wife and I planned a day hike to the Brown’s Creek waterfall. The kids were excited, a day hike, especially a day spent with Dad (not enough of those as I l look back).

Our hike would take us up the Brown’s Creek trail and after about three miles the waterfall would be on our left. Then the trail took us through a beautiful grass land and across the creek (小溪) a couple of times. We decided to turn back before reaching the waterfalls. While crossing the creek by walking on a downed tree trunk, our little Izzie fell into the creek and immediately started moving up and down in the water.

Immediately, I jumped into the river. I managed to grab her and push her to the river bank. But now, I was the one in need of being rescued. I thought this might be the end and I wasn’t sure if I could hold on. Then, I heard the familiar voice of the love of my life, my wife’s voice. She shouted something like- Stand Up! With the last bit of strength I could gather, I stood, and walked out of the raging river. The kids showed little concern for my well being, for they were attending Izzie, now safe in their arms. But I did hear one of the kids say: Thanks Dad, for saving Izzie. You are our Hero!

 We live in a digital world now, and a student’s  technology needs have changed. For the early years, say when you are in primary school, you can get by with no technology at all. Even if you have a computer, it’s a good idea to get familiar with libraries.

As you get closer to middle school, a computer with Internet access becomes more of a necessity. Teachers will often give assignments that require a student to use the Internet for research. After a computer, technology choices for students become more difficult to make － especially when it comes to cellphones. Kids will beg their parents for cellphones, especially in middle school. For many parents, it’s a safety issue: they want to know that their kids can reach them quickly if necessary. For teachers, cellphones can be used to record lessons when students are absent. But many teachers dislike cellphones. Some kids send messages or have talks in the class. Sending messages also raises the problem of cheating on exams. More and more schools are now forbidding the use of cellphones.

Many kids see iPods as necessary things to have. IPods are great for music, but do they do anything good for your children’s education? Maybe they do.That is the opinion of Doug Johnson, an educator for 30 years. Johnson says that educators should accept all new forms of technology in the classroom, including iPods. “Some do more with  their cellphones  than we can do with our laptops，” he jokes. “I don’t think we should be afraid. The truth is that it’s easier to change the way we teach than to change the technology habits of an entire generation.”

Except for the Indians, the earliest backpackers in America were frontiersmen（边民）, who traveled the wilderness looking either for necessities such as food and water or for sources of wealth such as fur and gold. For them backpacking was a way of survival or a means of achieving what one day would be called the “American Dream”.

Today, however, many people enjoy backpacking as an entertaining activity. Shouldering a pack and leaving behind the world of telephone, television and traffic promise an exciting experience. Testing one’s stamina（耐力）and skills is challenging, and regaining a sense of one’s place in the natural world can be rewarding. Moreover, backpacking is an activity that can last any length of time and can be enjoyed alone or with friends. Then too, a backpacking trip may be organized within a day or two.

The backpacker and his friends have only to decide on their destination and then organize the all-important equipment, whose contents they must depend on the trip. A map, a compass, a flashlight, along with food, and extra clothing can be found without much difficulty. Once the backpackers have left word about where they go in a note on the refrigerator door or in a message on an answering machine, they can look forward to an adventure that will lift the spirit and promote the soul. Their outing will enable them to return in a short time to the age of technology with the courage and independence of Natty Bumppo, who did indeed belong to the age of the frontier.

You can find wineries(酿酒厂)all across the state of Missouri,America，but the small town of Hermann in Gasconade County is truly the heart of Missouri wine culture．Hermann is home to many of the state’s award-winning wineries and it’s a great place for a trip．One of the best ways to experience the variety of wineries in the area is by attending an event hosted by the Hermann Wine Trail．

What is the Wine Trail?

    The Hermann Wine Trailis collaboration(合作)between seven wineries in the Hermarm area．They work together to host special events forvisitors throughout the year．

What are the Events?

    The events are all wine tastings accompanied by food．Each winery selects one of its wines and makes a special dish to go along with it．Visitors travel from one winery to the next tasting the wine and eating the food．Each wine trail event also has a theme，for example，chocolate in February,  berries in July，and cheese in December．

How much will you pay?

    Tickets are $30 a person and can be purchased online．

How Does it Work?

    Once you get your ticket，you can start your wine trail adventure at any of the participating wineries．At the first wincry you visit．you’11 get a glass to take with you for tastings and food samples along the way．You can visit as few or as many of the participating wineries as you choose．Whatever your final destination．plan to spend a little extra time there taking in the scenery and enjoying the atmosphere．It really is a fun way to spend the day．

What is the time?

    The events are held on Saturdays from 10a.m．to 5p.m．and Sundays from 11a.m．to 5p.m．，so there is plenty of time to make it from one location to the next．

One day Kavya and I were playing with a ball and the ball went into Takku’s house. We went to his house and asked him if he could give us our ball. He said “No”.

   Suddenly, I had an idea. There was a water tank(箱) behind Takku’s house. I told Kavya, “We can climb the water tank and jump over the gate.” Kavya agreed, but we were both wearing skirts. We couldn’t climb with that. So we decided to do that the next day. The next day I went to Kavya’s house early. We were both wearing pants. “Best of luck,” said Kavya’s brother Vijay. He said, “Shout loudly if you need me. If Takku’s back, I will shout‘Mother is calling you’.” We went to the water tank. Kavya climbed first and then she climbed down into Takku’s house. I followed her and we were looking under a bed for the ball when we heard a voice. It was Vijay. “Mother is calling you,” he shouted.

We hurried and took out the lost ball. But along with the ball was a …gold bar（金条）！ We  were surprised and we quickly took the ball and climbed up the water tank again. When we reached Kavya’s house the TV was on. It was news time. I couldn’t believe my ears when it said that 20 gold bars were stolen from a gold shop. It showed a picture of the gold bars which were exactly like the one we had seen in Takku’s home.

We quickly told the story to Kavya’s mother and she called the police. The police came at once and caught Takku. They found all the gold bars in the Takku’s house. A policeman praised us and gave us a gift-some detective books.

This man won the French-language Scrabble(拼字)world championship recently，despite not being able to speak any French．Nigel Richards，who is from Christchurch in New Zealand，defeated the contestant(竞争对手)who actually speaks French at the final in Belgium on Monday this month．

    While he doesn’t speak the language,Nigel Richards took up a French dictionary eight weeksago and just started filling all the words into his head．He had stayed in his bedroom all the day since he got the dictionary．He didn’t go out of his house until he went to aRend the world championship．

    Liz Fagerlund，a good friend of Nigel Richards．said：“He doesn’t speak French at all；he just learnt the words and remembered them．He doesn’t know what they mean,and he couldn’t be able to carry out a conversation in French with anyone．It was amazing when I leamed that he won the world championship．”

    As any experienced Scrabble player knows，the game of Scrabble has as much to do with tactics(战术)as it does with having a large vocabulary，but to not know the language you are victorious in is pretty impressive．

    Something simple like dialect obviously can’t hold Nigel Richal．ds back．and he has won five US National Scrabble titles and也e world Scrabble Championship three times．Despite being known as the finest Scrabble player alive，Ms Fagerlund，who is also the former Dresident of the New Zealand Scrabble Association，said igel Richards’win in Belgium was“quite remarkable”．

    One of the contestants who Nigel Richards beat during the French-language Scrabble world championship reportedly joked  “What are you made from?Are you an extra-terrestrial(外星人)or something?You really made me mad!”when witnessing his amazing ability．

Tu Youyou，born on 30 December 1930，became the first Chinese citizen to win a Nobel Prize in science on Oct 5．She is best known for discovering artemisinin(also known as qinghaosu)used to treat malaria (疟疾)，which saved millions of lives．

    Tu started her malaria research in China when the Cultural Revolution was in progress．In early l969．Tu was appointed head of the project．named Project 523 research group at her institute She collected 2000 candidate recipes．ancient texts，and folk cure for possible clues to her research．By 1971．her team had made 380 extracts(提取物)from 200 herbs．and discovered the extracts from qinghao． In 1972，she and her colleagues obtained the substance and named it qinghaosu，or artemisinin as it is commonly called in the west．

    For her work，Tu received the 2011 Lasker Award in clinical medicine and the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine．Tu is the first Chinese Nobel winner in physiology or medicine and the first citizen of the People's Republic of China to receive the Nobel Prize in natural sciences．as well as the first Chinese person to receive the Lasker Award．

    Her discovery of artemisinin and its treatment of malaria is regarded as a significant surmounting of medicine in the 20th century and health improvement for people of developing countries in South Asia，Africa，and South America． The award she made Chinese scientists gain tremendous confidence．

Riding School：

You can start horse­riding at any age.Choose private or group lessons any weekday between  9 a．m.and 8：30 p．m.(3：30 p．m.on Saturdays)．There are 10 kilometers of tracks and paths for leisurely rides across farmland and open country.You will need a riding hat.

Opening Hours: Monday through Friday: 9： 00 a．m.—8：30 p．m.

Phone: (412)396—6754　Fax(传真): (412)396—6752

Sailing Club：

Our Young Sailor’s Course leads to the Stage 1 Sailing qualification (资格)．You’ll learn how to sail safely and the course also covers sailing theory and first aid. Have fun with other course members, afterwards in the clubroom. There are 10 weekly two­hour lessons (Tuesdays 6 p．m.～8 p．m.).   

Opening Hours：Tuesdays: 6：00 p．m.—8：00 p．m.

Phone: (412)396—6644　Fax: (412)396—6876

Diving Centre:

Our experienced instructors offer one­month courses in deep­sea diving (潜水) for beginners. There are two evening lessons a week, in which you learn to breathe underwater and use the equipment safely. You only need swimming costume and towel. Reduced rates for couples.

Opening Hours: Monday and Friday: 6：30 p．m.—8：30 p．m.

Phone: (412)396—6312　Fax: (412)396—6706

Medical Center：

The staff (员工) of the Medical Center aim to provide convenient and comprehensive medical care to students and staff of the university. The center is well equipped and the staff here are trained to deal with a broad range of medical problems. Both female and male doctors as well as nursing staff are available for consultation (咨询)．Also, all kinds of medicines are sold here and are cheaper for students than other drugstores.

Opening Hours: 24 hours from Monday to Sunday

Phone: (412)396—6649　Fax: (412)396—6648

Water sports Club：

We use a two­kilometer length of river for speedboat racing, and water­skiing. A beginners’ course consists of ten 20­minute lessons. You will learn to handle boats safely and confidently, but must be able to swim. The club is in a convenient central position and is open daily from 9 a．m to 4 p．m, with lessons all through the day.

Opening Hours: Monday through Friday: 9： 00 a．m. —4：00 p．m.

Phone: (412)396—6899　Fax: 396—6890

Danielle Steel, America’s sweetheart, is one of the hardest working women in the book business. Unlike other productive authors who write one book at a time, she can work on up to five. Her research some before writing takes at least three years. Once she has fully studied her subjects, ready to dive into a book, she can spend twenty hours nonstop at her desk.

Danielle Steel comes from New York and was sent to France for her education. After graduation, she worked in the public relations and advertising industries. Later she started a job as a writer which she was best fit for. Her achievements are unbelievable: 390 million copies of books in print, nearly fifty New York Times best-selling novels, and a series of “Max and Martha” picture books for children to help them deal with the real-life problem of death, new babies and new schools. Her l998 book about the death of her was shot to the top of the New York Times best-selling list as soon as it came out. Twenty-eight of her books have been made into film. She is listed in the Guinness Books of World Records for one of her hooks being the Times best-seller for 381 weeks straight.

Not content with a big house, a loving family, and a view of the Golden Gate Bridge, Danielle Steel considers her readers to be the most important resource and has kept in touch with them by e-mail. While she is often compared to the heroines (女主人公) of her own invention, her life is undoubtedly much quieter. But if she does have anything in common with them, it is her strength of will and her inimitable (独特的) style. There is only one Danielle Steel.

We were on our way home from Houston，Texas around the Weston Lakes area one Saturday morning．We decided to stop at a local gas station to get coffee and something to snack on since it was a good hour and a half before we got home．

    When we were done，we got back into our car and before I started it，we noticed a man standing outside in front of the building．He was a homeless man with worn clothes and it looked like he had gone in and got himself some coffee or something warm to drink since it was cold this time of the year．He must have not had enough money to get something to eat．

    Then a dog walked up to the front of the building．I could tell she was a female，because you could see that she had been feeding puppies（baby dogs）．She was terribly in need of something to eat and I felt so bad for her．I knew if she didn't eat soon，she and her puppies would not make it．

    My wife and I sat there and looked at her．We noticed that people walked by and didn't even pet her，like most people do when they walk by an animal in front of a store．We still did not do anything．But the homeless man，who I thought did not buy himself anything to eat，went back into the store．And what he did brought tears to me and my wife．He had gone into the store and with what money he may have had，bought a can of dog food and fed that dog．

    This story plays a great part in our lives．You see，that was Mother's Day weekend．And a lot of people forget that some animals are parents too．