Dear Justin White, It was with great pleasure that I attended your lecture at the National Museum about the ancient remains that you discovered during your trip to Southeast Asia. I am currently teaching World History at Dreamers Academy and feel that my class would greatly appreciate a visit from someone like you who has had the experience of visiting such historical sites. It is my hope that you would be willing to give a special lecture to my class and share stories about your travels. I have included my class schedule and would be able to make arrangements for you at any time that you would be available. You can give me a call at 714-456-7932 to let me know if your schedule permits. Thank you very much. Sincerely, Caroline Duncan

On his march through Asia Minor, Alexander the Great fell dangerously ill. His physicians were afraid to treat him because if they didn't succeed, the army would blame them. Only one, Philip, was willing to take the risk, as he had confidence in the king's friendship and his own drugs. While the medicine was being prepared, Alexander received a letter accusing the physician of having been bribed to poison his master. Alexander read the letter without showing it to anyone. When Philip entered the tent with the medicine, Alexander took the cup from him, handing Philip the letter. While the physician was reading it, Alexander calmly drank the contents of the cup. Horrified, Philip threw himself down at the king's bedside, but Alexander assured him that he had complete confidence in his honor. After three days, the king was well enough to appear again before his army.

The sun caught the ends of the hairs along the bear's back. Shining black and silky, it stood on its hind legs, half up, and studied Brian, just studied him. Then it lowered itself and moved slowly to the left, eating berries as it rolled along, delicately using its mouth to lift each berry from the stem. In seconds it was gone. Gone, and Brian still had not moved. His tongue was stuck to the top of his mouth, the tip half out, and his eyes were wide. Then Brian made a low sound, Nnnnnnnggg. It made no sense. It was just a sound of fear, of his disbelief that something that large could have come so close to him without his knowing. Brian couldn't stop shivering, thinking that the bear could return and attack him anytime.

The effects of climate change will not be equally distributed across the globe, and there are likely to be winners and losers as the planet warms. Regarding climate effects in general, developing countries are likely to experience more negative effects of global warming. Not only do many developing countries have naturally warmer climates than those in the developed world, they also rely more heavily on climate sensitive sectors such as agriculture, forestry, and tourism. As temperatures rise further, regions such as Africa will face declining crop yields and will struggle to produce sufficient food for domestic consumption, while their major exports will likely fall in volume. This effect will be made worse for these regions if developed countries are able to make up for the fall in agricultural output with new sources, potentially from their own domestic economies as their land becomes more suitable for growing crops.

Nervousness about public speaking is one of the most common fears among people. It can serve as a real and significant barrier to effective communication and ultimately to academic and professional success. Debate is an ideal setting to develop coping strategies that allow people to manage their speech anxiety. Because debate both requires and allows for a lot of preparation, individuals develop confidence in their materials and passion for the ideas they support. Debate provides a focus on the content over style, so the attention is on the arguments, not on the person. Participants may forget to be nervous as they have so much else to think about. And repetition of experience helps them build confidence and learn to cope with their inevitable nervousness in such a way as to prevent it from interfering with their objectives.

Many parents who have experienced personal hardship desire a better life for their children. To want to spare children from having to go through unpleasant experiences is a noble aim, and it naturally stems from love and concern for the child. What these parents don't realize, however, is that while in the short term they may be making the lives of their children more pleasant, in the long term they may be preventing their children from acquiring self-confidence, mental strength, and important interpersonal skills. Samuel Smiles, a nineteenth-century English author, wrote, It is doubtful whether any heavier curse could be forced on man than the complete gratification of all his wishes without effort on his part, leaving nothing for his hopes, desires, or struggles. For healthy development, the child needs to deal with some failure, struggle through some difficult periods, and experience some painful emotions.

In 1947, when the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered, archaeologists set a finder's fee for each new document. Instead of lots of extra scrolls being found, they were simply torn apart to increase the reward. Similarly, in China in the nineteenth century, an incentive was offered for finding dinosaur bones. Farmers located a few on their land, broke them into pieces, and made a lot of money. Modern incentives are no better: Company boards promise bonuses for achieved targets. And what happens? Managers invest more energy in trying to lower the targets than in growing the business. People respond to incentives by doing what is in their best interests. What is noteworthy is, first, how quickly and radically people's behavior changes when incentives come into play, and second, the fact that people respond to the incentives themselves, and not the higher intentions behind them.

The graph above shows the percentage of music listeners from different age groups who consumed only traditional format music, only downloaded music, or both formats of music in 2010. In each age group, except for in ages 15 to 24, those who only listened to downloaded music took up the lowest percentage. The older the age group was, the lower the percentage of those who listened to both was. In ages 25 to 34, the percentage point gap between listeners of traditional formats only and downloaded music only was narrower than in any other age group. In ages 45 to 54, those who only listened to traditional formats outnumbered music listeners of the other types, taking up more than 50 percent. More than 70 percent of the 55 to 64 age group listened to traditional formats only.

Ole Bull was born in Bergen, Norway, in 1810. He was a violinist and composer known for his unique performance method. His father wished for him to become a minister of the church, but he desired a musical career. At the age of five, he could play all of the songs he had heard his mother play on the violin. At age nine, he played first violin in the orchestra of Bergen's theater. His debut as a soloist came in 1819, and by 1828 he was made conductor of the Musical Lyceum. He is believed to have composed more than 70 works, but only about 10 remain today. In 1850, caught up in a rising tide of Norwegian romantic nationalism, Bull co-founded the first theater in which actors performed in Norwegian rather than Danish. Bull died from cancer in his home in 1880. He had held his last concert in Chicago the same year, despite his illness.

《Angeltown Bikes to Bookstores》 Ride with us on Angeltown Bookstore Day and visit six of the town's best bookstores. This event will invite you to have fun and think about what these local bookstores mean to the community. Discounts will be offered by the bookstores to participants for any book purchased. Participating Bookstores: Treasure Books, Wonder Books, The Purple Arcade, Book Lovers' Society, Alley Books, Orange Books (Total Biking Distance: 10 miles) Day & Time: Saturday, October 7, 2017 1:00 p.m.-5:30 p.m. Registration: If you're interested, sign up at www.angelbike.com. You need to pay a $5 fee by October 1 to participate. Registration is limited to 20 riders.

《Water Awareness Poster & Slogan Contest》 Do you agree that water is our most valuable natural resource? Then you're invited to create posters or slogans to reflect the importance of water. Contest Rules - Deadline: November 10, 2017 - You can submit both a poster and a slogan. - Posters must be drawn on 11×17 inch paper. - Slogans must be 15 words or less. - Please write the participant's name and email address on the back of the poster or slogan. Prizes: - 30 participants will be selected as winners, including three Grand Prize winners. - Results will be posted on November 21 on the website only. For more information, please visit www.psc.com.

English speakers have one of the simplest systems for describing familial relationships. Many African language speakers would consider it absurd to use a single word like cousin to describe both male and female relatives, or not to distinguish whether the person described is related by blood to the speaker's father or to his mother. To be unable to distinguish a brother-in-law as the brother of one's wife or the husband of one's sister would seem confusing within the structure of personal relationships existing in many cultures. Similarly, how is it possible to make sense of a situation in which a single word uncle applies to the brother of one's father and to the brother of one's mother? The Hawaiian language uses the same term to refer to one's father and to the father's brother. People of Northern Burma, who think in the Jinghpaw language, have eighteen basic terms for describing their kin. Not one of them can be directly translated into English.

Dworkin suggests a classic argument for a certain kind of equality of opportunity. From Dworkin's view, justice requires that a person's fate be determined by things that are within that person's control, not by luck. If differences in well-being are determined by circumstances lying outside of an individual's control, they are unjust. According to this argument, inequality of well-being that is driven by differences in individual choices or tastes is acceptable. But we should seek to eliminate inequality of well-being that is driven by factors that are not an individual's responsibility and which prevent an individual from achieving what he or she values. We do so by ensuring equality of opportunity or equality of access to fundamental resources.

We are the CEOs of our own lives. We work hard to urge ourselves to get up and go to work and do what we must do day after day. We also try to encourage the people working for and with us, those who are doing business with us, and even those who regulate us. We do this in our personal lives, too: From a very young age, kids try to persuade their parents to do things for them (Dad, I'm too scared to do this!) with varying degrees of success. As adults, we try to encourage our significant others to do things for us (Sweetie, I had such a stressful day today, can you please put the kids to bed and do the dishes?). We attempt to get our kids to clean up their rooms. We try to induce our neighbors to help out with a neighborhood party. Whatever our official job descriptions, we are all part-time motivators.

In many regions of Central America, native people can but do not grow green vegetables packed with vital nutrients such as vitamin A. Generally speaking, the people do not have a tradition of raising these crops. They often have limited education in general and almost no exposure to health and nutrition advice, and they grow what feeds the most people. They often have plenty of tortillas and beans, so they have sufficient protein, and they eat until full. Yet the lack of micronutrients leads to their children developing blindness, iron deficiency, and other growth disorders. In these situations, families have to be educated about nutrition, encouraged to diversify their diets, plant more green vegetables, and sometimes receive nutritional assistance to correct imbalances.

One of the most curious paintings of the Renaissance is a careful depiction of a weedy patch of ground by Albrecht Dürer. Dürer extracts design and harmony from an apparently random collection of weeds and grasses that we would normally not think twice to look at. By taking such an ordinary thing, he is able to convey his artistry in a pure form. In a similar way, scientists often choose to study humble subjects when trying to understand the essence of a problem. Studying relatively simple systems avoids unnecessary complications, and can allow deeper insights to be obtained. This is particularly true when we are trying to understand something as problematic as our ability to learn. Human reactions are so complex that they can be difficult to interpret objectively. It sometimes helps to step back and consider how more modest creatures, like bacteria or weeds, deal with the challenges they face.

This true story is about a government-owned shoe factory in Poland in the days when the country had a much more socialist economy. Every month, the Polish government gave the factory materials, and the manager was told to produce a fixed number of shoes. Because there was no profit motive involved, the manager's basic goal was to meet the quota in the easiest possible way ― by producing only small shoes. This production strategy created a problem for people who had big feet, and so the government revised the system. Now the factory received the same amount of materials, but instead of producing a fixed number of shoes, the factory was expected to produce a fixed number of tons of shoes. In other words, the factory's output would now be weighed rather than counted. And again, the factory's manager responded in the most efficient way, by producing nothing but huge shoes. In either situation, the government's strategy did not provide any motivation to produce shoes in various sizes that met people's needs.

The use of drones in science has been increasing. Drones may be useful to collect all kinds of research data. For instance, in meteorology drones can collect data on humidity, pressure, temperature, wind force, radiation, etc. In case of nearing tornados or hurricanes, people can seek safety with the help of the data gathered by drones. Drones can gather relevant data in places that were previously difficult or costly to reach―data that may provide new scientific knowledge about the atmosphere and the climate. Such knowledge may improve existing climate models and provide more accurate predictions.

Crossing the street in Los Angeles is a tricky business, but luckily, at the press of a button, we can stop traffic. Or can we? The button's real purpose is to make us believe we have an influence on the traffic lights, and thus we're better able to endure the wait for the signal to change with more patience. The same goes for door-open and door-close buttons in elevators: Many are not even connected to the electrical panel. Such tricks are also designed in offices: For some people it will always be too hot, for others, too cold. Clever technicians create the illusion of control by installing fake temperature dials. This reduces energy bills ― and complaints. Such tricks are called placebo buttons and they are being pushed in all sorts of contexts.

Both taxi and bus drivers use a part of their brain called the hippocampus to navigate routes that can sometimes be very complicated. Who would you guess has the larger hippocampus: the taxi driver or bus driver? The answer is the taxi driver. This is because taxi drivers need to take new routes quite often. To do this, they use their hippocampus intensively to memorize all kinds of routes and figure out the quickest way to reach their destinations. In contrast, most bus drivers follow the same route every day and therefore do not stimulate their hippocampus as much. Over time, the taxi driver's role triggers a growth of neurons and synapses in the hippocampus, resulting in its increased size. Brain changes like this are the basis for seeing improvement in mental performance. So if you put away your satellite navigation system and regularly use your memory instead, you may end up with a larger hippocampus and perhaps a better memory, too.

Emotion plays an essential role in all our pursuits―including our pursuit of happiness. It is nearly impossible for us to imagine a life without emotion. Think of an emotionless robot that, other than the capacity for emotions, has exactly the same physical and cognitive characteristics as humans. The robot thinks and behaves in the same way that humans do. It can discuss deep philosophical issues and follow complex logic; it can dig tunnels and build skyscrapers. Yet, although the robot is sophisticated, it lacks all motivation to act. This is because even the most basic desires are dependent on emotions ― the one thing this robot lacks.

Favorite websites sometimes greet users like old friends. Online bookstores welcome their customers by name and suggest new books they might like to read. Real estate sites tell their visitors about new properties that have come on the market. These tricks are made possible by cookies, small files that an Internet server stores inside individuals' web browsers so it can remember them. Therefore, cookies can greatly benefit individuals. For example, cookies save users the chore of having to enter names and addresses into e-commerce websites every time they make a purchase. However, concerns have been raised that cookies, which can track what people do online, may be violating privacy by helping companies or government agencies accumulate personal information. Security is another concern: Cookies make shared computers far less secure and offer hackers many ways to break into systems.

We often assume we see our physical surroundings as they actually are. But new research suggests that how we see the world depends on what we want from it. When a group of psychologists asked people to estimate how far away a bottle of water was, those who were thirsty guessed it was closer than nonthirsty people did. This difference in perception showed up in a physical challenge, too. When people were told to toss a beanbag at a $25 gift card, and that the closest would win it, people threw their beanbags nine inches short on average. But when the gift card's value was $0, people threw their beanbags past the card by an inch. As the brain evolved, people who saw distances to goals as shorter might have gone after what they wanted more often. This error in perception was actually an advantage, leading people to get what they needed.

A new study published in Science reveals that people generally approve of driverless, or autonomous, cars programmed to sacrifice their passengers in order to save pedestrians, but these same people are not enthusiastic about riding in such autonomous vehicles (AVs) themselves. In six online surveys of U.S. residents conducted in 2015, researchers asked participants how they would want their AVs to behave. The scenarios involved in the surveys varied in the number of pedestrian and passenger lives that could be saved, among other factors. For example, participants were asked whether it would be more moral for AVs to sacrifice one passenger rather than kill 10 pedestrians. Survey participants said that AVs should be programmed to be utilitarian and to minimize harm to pedestrians, a position that would put the safety of those outside the vehicle ahead of the driver and passengers' safety. The same respondents, however, said they prefer to buy cars that protect them and their passengers, especially if family members are involved. This suggests that if both self-protective and utilitarian AVs were allowed on the market, few people would be willing to ride in the latter — even though they would prefer others to do so. The inconsistency, which illustrates an ethical tension between the good of the individual and that of the public, persisted across a wide range of survey scenarios analyzed.

In the late 1990s, a family visited the public elementary school where I taught deaf students. They said they would be moving to the district and planned to enroll their deaf daughter as a first grader. They were upset that their child's kindergarten teacher cautioned them not to have high hopes for her academically. Based upon assessment results, the teacher painted a hopeless picture for their little girl's future. Standing behind them was Kathy, a beautiful five-year-old with long shiny brown hair and dark flashing eyes. The whole time her parents were there, she didn't make a sound or use sign language, even when her parents prompted her. After a few weeks with Kathy, I discovered I was dealing with a very bright, very strong-willed child. Although I was able to engage her in a variety of learning activities, writing was a constant struggle. I tried everything to interest her in writing class, but she would refuse to write anything. One day, Kathy got off her bus and stood in front of the school crying. The staff member there did not know enough sign language to ask her why she was crying. Finally, the staff member took Kathy into the office where she handed Kathy a pen and notepad. Kathy wrote: PAC BAK. Immediately she realized the girl left her backpack on the bus. She called the bus back to school, and soon Kathy was reunited with her backpack. That day Kathy discovered the power of the pen. From then on, she had a new appreciation for writing. She is a young woman now and has become an excellent writer, public speaker, and student leader. During her senior year in high school, Kathy became the Douglas County Rodeo Queen, and the following year, she enrolled at the University of Northern Colorado to become a teacher. Kathy keeps in touch, and I especially treasure her emails with term papers attached. This young lady wields a very powerful pen!