source: http://www.howlifeworks.com/lifestyle/How_to_Trace_Your_Family_Tree_Back_Through_the_Generations_718/?AG_ID=1045&cid=7077av

The Internet is an amazing modern tool, creating new ways to shop, entertain, and communicate.  But, one of the most profound things the Internet is doing is helping people to discover their family histories.

While it may be a cliché that “we can’t know who we are until we know where we came from,” don’t tell that to the millions of people that have taken to the new online craze for family research.  While some Americans are lucky enough to know their family tree going back hundreds of years, most people only know of a few generations before things get murky. But now, new online services are changing that for many people.

Why should we care about our family history?  Well, for starters, most people who set out to research their roots find the experience interesting, exciting, and hugely rewarding.  Chances are there are many interesting characters—both heroes and villains—in your family line. And you may even have relatives living close by that you did not even know about.   

But, best of all, building and maintaining a family tree and understanding our ancestors' experiences can provide meaning and continuity to our lives, while providing something priceless to pass on to the next generation.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/men/article7144478.ece

What it feels like... to have a househusband

He may be good at making rockets and mowing the lawn, but can a stay-at-home dad ever be relied on to do the cleaning properly?

[2011.2.23 Mei]

This week I want to share a book with you guys - Who moved my cheese?

It was published maybe ten years ago but I think it's a classic one which affect me very much and I

believed that maybe some of you already read it before! If not, that's all right, you don't need to read

it now, what I want to do is sharing the main ideas of the book and we may discuss them by a few

Quoted from : http://www.cosmopolitan.com/celebrity/fashion/women-love-shoes?click=fb3_rel

<h2>First there was Cinderella, then there was Carrie Bradshaw. We explain the fascinating reasons why footwear is seducing our imaginations — and emptying our wallets — more than ever.</h2>

source: http://www.openforum.com/idea-hub/topics/innovation/article/looking-for-innovation-inspiration-anita-campbell?cid=rs-gambd-2011Booming-Digg

Dec 27, 2010 -

When the topic is innovation, there’s always lots of talk about whether the U.S. is falling behind in comparison to other nations. But instead of taking this competitive viewpoint, a more useful perspective might be to look at other nations—not warily, as if they’re “gaining on us”—but thoughtfully and observantly, to see what we can learn from them.

While innovation has long been thought to be the province of wealthy, first-world countries, today some of the most innovative practices in science, technology and business are coming from emerging nations.

source: http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2041714,00.html#ixzz1AlKj88u2

By Meredith Melnick

Digital communication is so pervasive that most of us don't even bother to question its role in society. That's not the case with Sherry Turkle, who has tracked the way we interact with computers and artificial intelligence since the 1970s. Founder and director of the MIT Initiative on Technology and Self, Turkle has written a new book, Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other, that asks a simple question: Do digital methods of communication connect us the way interaction in the real world does? In late December, Turkle sat with TIME to discuss robot puppies, teen texting and what "full attention" means in an age of smart phones.

Alone Together concludes a trilogy of books that started with your exploration of the very first computer programs. Now, 26 years later, we have this giant soup of communication methods. How has that changed our relationship to technology?
It took a while for things to evolve to show [just] where we were vulnerable. This changed dramatically with mobile communication. Who would have known that a little red light on the BlackBerry — that doesn't even say who a message is from, but simply that you have a message — would drive people crazy? So [crazy] that if their baby is in the car next to them, and they know they can't text and drive, they will [still fiddle] with the steering wheel at 65 miles an hour in order to know who sent that message. (See TIME's special on gadgets: then and now.)

source:http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2010/12/big-idea/gaudi-text/1

When the pope said Mass there this fall, the Sagrada Família was already 128 years in the making—and still not finished. Yet the church’s nature-inspired design remains ahead of its time.

By Jeremy Berlin

Photograph by Pere Vivas, Triangle Postals

source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/nottingham/hi/people_and_places/newsid_9358000/9358273.stm

Researchers at the University of Nottingham say research shows eating vegetables makes you more attractive.

Dr Ian Stephen who led the research believes eating carrots and tomatoes made you look better than a tan would.

Dr Stephen explained: "Eating five more portions [of fruit and veg] ups your carotenoid levels giving your skin golden tones."

Carotenoids are antioxidants which soak up damaging compounds that the skin encounters in daily life.

[2011.1.19 Mei]

Motivation in Diet and Exercise

People are continually trying to exercise more and eat diets that are conducive to good health. The problem of childhood and adolescent obesity continues to be a major focus of concern for health care professionals in North America. This article describes the necessary tools to make lifestyle changes with the potential to reverse this troublesome trend.

The problems associated with obesity and chronic degenerative diseases, such as heart disease, arteriosclerosis, hypertension, osteoarthritis, and type 2 diabetes, are now reaching epidemic proportions. The prevalence of obesity, where an individual has a body mass index (BMI) of at least 30, is increasing worldwide. Currently, there are approximately 300 million obese individuals around the world.More alarmingly, in the United States, approximately 30% of all adults are categorized as obese. Despite this prevalence being somewhat lower in Canada, the rate has increased significantly there during recent years as well. In 2003, Bouchard reported that obesity costs the unregulated U.S. health care system approximately $100 billion annually. Therefore, it is time to take a serious look at how to reverse this troublesome trend.

In 2000, data collected by the U.S. Department of Health revealed that nearly 30% of the population is physically inactive. It is interesting to note how this percentage corresponds exactly with the percentage of individuals who are considered to be obese. Also, an additional 40 to 50% of the U.S. population does not engage in the necessary amount of physical activity to achieve health benefits. Through a process known as tracking, these statistics are reported to have remained relatively consistent for the past 10 years or so. This is unfortunate given that frequent physical activity has been shown to benefit every system of the human body. For example, exercise physiologists have documented several important changes in the body that accompany participation in an ongoing exercise program. These include a decreased chance of heart disease and stroke, an increase in good (HDL) cholesterol, a decrease in bad (LDL) cholesterol, a lowered risk of osteoporosis (i.e., brittle bones), a decreased percentage of body fat, an increased lean muscle mass, lower blood pressure, and an improved immune system. In addition, in 1998, Leith reported that regular participation in physical activity has been found to be associated with several psychological benefits such as lowered anxiety, lowered depression, improved self-concept, and beter overall mood.

source: http://www.talkenglish.com/

Thanks to Kate, you may find some topics and lessions in this website. For those who have problems finding good articles, you might use this wbsite to arrange a good session for us.