The first weeks were a bit hard. Loneliness wasn’t the problem

The first weeks were a bit hard. Loneliness wasn't the problem—I was in constant contact with clients by e-mail and phone. But I did feel claustrophobic(患幽闭恐怖症的). With wheels on my desk chair and the refrigerator just two feet away, I could work for twelve straight hours without ever standing up. There are no physical separation between my living room and work table, so the only way I found to feel like I was going "home" at the end of the day was to forbid my use of the working chair. At nine-thirty at night, when I turned my computer off, I felt a bit like the family dog reaching the high point of its day: "Whoohoo! I get to go for a walk!" Then, around eleven-thirty, I'd found myself turning on the computer again to solve some work issue that was pre-occupying me…

At the same time, I discovered that working this way had definite advantages. Not only did I save an hour from going to work and back home, I also gained a great deal of control over my time. There were fewer interruptions than in an office, I could schedule meetings and phone calls in blocks to increase the productive time around them, and the easy access to my workspace late at night and on weekends could obviously be of mixed effects. This was especially important to me since, in addition to consulting work, I was writing fiction and planning a new business. Working at home allowed me to manage all of these activities at once without losing significant sleep. This turned out to be well worth the claustrophobia, which also faded as I became more used to the new routine. A short walk in the late afternoon could reduce the shut-in feeling and make mre get energetic again to work through the evening.

Age plays a major part in people who are infected with cold, ie, in people who suffer from cold infection. A study done by University of Michigan, has shown information that seems to be true for the general population. Babies are the most cold infected gro

Age plays a major part in people who are infected with cold, ie, in people who suffer from cold infection. A study done by University of Michigan, has shown information that seems to be true for the general population. Babies are the most cold infected group, generally more than six colds in their first years. Boys have more colds than girls up to the age of three. After three, girls are easier to get infected with cold thatn boys, and teenage girls get three colds a year to boys' two. The general cold infections continue to get less into adults. Elderly people who are in good health have as few as one or two cold every year. One interesting thing is found among people in their twenties, especially women, who show a rise in cold infection, because people in this age are most likely to have young children.

  The study has also found that economy plays an important role as well. With more and more income, the freqency at which colds are reported in the family is getting lower and lower. Families with the lowest income usually suffer about a third more colds than families at the uppper end. Lower income usually forces people to live in rooms more crowded than rooms owned by richer people, and the crowding usually leads to more chances for the cold virus to travel from person to person. Low income may also have an effect on our diet. Many scientists believe that a poorer diet usually leads into more possibilities of cold infection

Almost Humans?

Almost Humans?

  Scientists are building the world's first thinking robot. It's true: some say machines that walk, speak and feel will have been made by 2020. Kismet is the name of a robot which scientists have built this year at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

  Kismet is different from traditional robots because it can show human emotions. Its eyes, ears and lips move to show when it feels happy, sad or bored. Kismet is one of the first robots of a new generation that look like human beings and can imitate human feellings.☆考♂资♀源��SPAN lang=EN-US>    ☆

  Some people say that by 2020 we will have created robots with brains similar to those adult human beings. These robots will be designed to look like people to make them more attractive and easier to sell. What kind of jobs will they do? In the future, robots like Robonaut, a robot invented by NASA, will be doing dangerous jobs, like reparing space stations. They will also be doing more and more of the household work for us. In Japan, scientists are designing robots that will entertain people by dancing and playing the piano.☆考♂资♀源��SPAN lang=EN-US>    ☆

  Meanwhile, people who worry about the future are wondering whether robots will become monsters? Will people themsleves become increasingly like robots? Experts predict that more and more people will be wearing micro-chips in various parts of their body, which will connect them  to a wide variety of small machines. Perhaps we should not exaggerate(夸大) the importance of technology, but one may wonder whether, in years to come, we will still be falling in love, and whether we will still feel pain.

Do you think people are willing to pay more for famous brand coffee, such as Starbucks, instead of making it at home?

 Do you think people are willing to pay more for famous brand coffee, such as Starbucks, instead of making it at home?

 ﹡I think that many people pay more for famous brand coffee because they're busy and don't have time to make it at home in the morning. —Hilary Gorenst

 ﹡I think it's because it is more convenient to have it made for you. Unless you work at a coffee shop, you wouldn't know how to make some of the drinks at home. —Ray Brett

 ﹡The atmosphere of the coffee shops makes it fun to buy drinks because of the convenience and variety! Plus, you on most drinks they put a little bit more of happiness on top—whipped creme, for example. Yum! —Keith Karla

 ﹡You don't experience these things when you are tired and alone sitting in your kitchen making the coffee yourself. —Casie Jolley

 ﹡I don't have time to make coffee in the morning, so stopping by a drive-in is easy for me! I love Starbucks in particular, because they are really consistent(一致的) with their drinks. I know I'll never get a poorly make mocha!  —Kelly Schakel ☆考♂资♀源��SPAN lang=EN-US>    ☆