First Aid，Learn It by Yourself

When we are injured or suddenly feeling unwell, what we need to do is to treat it in the right way. How can we do that? First aid (急救) is here to help.

First aid is the first steps you can take to care for someone who’s injured. It includes keeping safe, helping someone feel better and staying calm. It also includes getting help, either by telling an adult or calling 120.

Sept 14 is World First Aid Day. It’s time for us to learn about this useful life skill.

Nosebleed	Ask the person to lean (倾斜) forward and pinch (捏) his/her nose for five to six minutes. Do not move the head backward, as the blood can run into their mouth or even lungs.
Choking	Stand behind the choking (因噎住而窒息 ) person, put your arms around their waist and lean him or her forward. Make fists with your hands and thrust (猛烈施压) your fists into their stomach. Do this up to five times. You can also do back blows – firmly slap (拍打) their back with your hand. If the object still doesn’t come out, call 120.
Broken bone	If the bone is broken, keep it still. You can support it with your hands or clothes to stop movement. Then, find an adult or call 120 for further help.
Burn	Quickly cool the burned area with cold running water. You should do this for at least 10 minutes. Then, call an adult for help or go to the hospital. Do not use ice. It can make the injury even worse.

A Special Card

“Attention, everyone!” Miss Dalrymple looked at her class of ten-year-olds. “Today we are going to create a special card for Father’s Day, which falls on this weekend.” Then she busied herself handing out the paper and art materials to her noisy pupils.

They were a mixed punch. Some came from the rich side of the town, but the majorities（大部分）were from parents who struggled to get jobs. So she had not been eager to carry out this activity.

“Think about all the things that your dad does that makes him special,” she said loudly as she came up to the last table. “You can write a poem or short story that makes your dad special. The written part of this activity should be completed before you start to decorate your card.”

Andrew looked at the blank page. He had never met, spoken to, or been hugged by his dad, so how could he write about him? Once when he was looking in his grandma’s photo box, he had seen an old black and white photo but it was badly creased (弄皱) and difficult to recognize any clear features（特点）. Grandma had quickly taken it from him and buried it deeply among the rest, never to be found again. After thinking for a while, he wrote:

You are a person I do not know and would probably not recognize as I only saw an old photo of you a long time ago. I think and wonder about you often, especially when I have no one to talk to. One day when I grow up I will do an Internet search to find you, but I am not sure whether I will be successful as several efforts by the Child Support Agency have not been successful.

Happy Father’s Day, Dad.

Love,

Andrew

Human, Don’t Come too Close

Frequent touching from humans may change plants’ genes and slow their growth.

When we see babies or pets, we can’t help gently touching them to show our love. And they give us happy feelings back. But a recent study shows that it’s different for plants.   

A study, published in The Plant Journal, shows that plants don’t “like” to be touched. That’s because touching changes their genes (基因) and, even worse, can slow their growth.

Professor Jim Whelan of the La Trobe Institute in Australia gave an explanation. “The lightest touch from a human, animal, insect, or even plants touching each other in the wind, leads to a huge gene change in the plant,” Science Daily reported.

In order to test the theory, the scientists did an experiment on plants. They grew a number of plants to the age of four weeks. Then they touched them with a paintbrush every 12 hours over a 36-hour period.   

They found that as a response to the touch, the mitochondria (线粒体) in the plants had been partly destroyed. The mitochondria, as Science Alert noted, are the “powerhouse of the cell (细胞)”. The mitochondria produce energy for the rest of the cell in both animals and plants.

If this “powerhouse” is weakened, the plants will lose a large amount of energy that should have supported their growth. Whelan further explained to Science Daily, “If the touching is repeated, then plant growth is reduced by up to 30 percent.”

Although the process does have a strong effect on plants, usually the plants survive. Touching changes the plants, but it’s not necessarily a bad change.

According to Science Alert, frequent touching or moving plants will make them grow shorter than other ones. The researchers believe this change, in some way, could be helpful. It may help plants fight threats to their health such as insects and bad weather.

The new research findings have led to a deeper understanding of the plants’ response to touching. And the research might “open up new ways to reduce sensitivity (敏感性) and improve growth in the future”, Science Alert reported.

Books Bring Success

People growing with more books are more likely to be successful.

According to German novelist Heinrich Mann, a house without books is like a room without windows. Mann simply stated the value of books, but some researchers have found evidence that people with books in their homes really do gain a window on the world.

A new study in the journal Social Science Research, published in October, suggests that people who grow up with more books are more likely to have educational advantages, and to achieve more in life, than people who grow up without them.

In the study, over 160,000 adults from 31 countries and regions were asked about the number of books there were in their homes when they were 16 years old. They were then given tests in literacy (读写能力), numeracy (计算能力) and information communication technology.   

The research shows that the number of books for each household varies greatly from country to country. For example, the number of books is 27 in Turkey, 143 in the UK and 218 in Estonia. But “the total effects of home library size on literacy are large everywhere”.   

The researchers found that people who had only lower levels of secondary education but had a large number of books at home got a similar score as university graduates who grew up with only a few books.   

The Guardian newspaper commented that “bookish adolescence makes for a good deal of educational advantage.”

“Adolescent exposure to books can compensate for shortcomings not only in adult literacy but also numeracy: its impacts are equal to additional years of education,” Sikora told Science Alert.

Apart from the educational benefits, growing up with more books also plays an important role in adult success.   

Through analyzing their personal information, researchers found that people surrounded by books in adolescence are on average more successful in adulthood than those who had only few books at a younger age.

“Early exposure to books in the parental home matters because books are an basic part of routines and practices that enrich lifelong cognitive competencies (认知能力)”, Sikora told Science Alert. These competencies are important to future development.

Without doubt, the fact that we are moving toward a digital era could weaken the importance of printed books. For now, however, “they still seem to maintain quite a large positive benefit, which shows no sign of abating (减弱)”, researchers wrote in the paper.

A Rose unlike Any Other

You may think of museums as dusty collections of old objects, but modern museums are different. They are landmarks and showcases of local culture, offering visitors insight (视角) into the past.

The National Museum of Qatar, which opened on March 28, 2019, is the latest example.  

The building’s interlocking structure of steel, glass and fiber concrete makes people think of the petals (花瓣) of a desert rose. These “roses” are actually crystallized (结晶的) sand, found just under the desert’s surface. “It’s surprisingly complex and poetic,” the designer Nouvel told UK-based design magazine Dezeen.

This pioneering design also makes the building energy-efficient. They form a sunscreen and cast (投射) protective shadows when the sun hits the building from east or west. “I want to build a structure that keeps in line with the condition of the place, to ensure that it offers maximum (最大化的) protection from the sun and save energy,” Nouvel said.

Apart from its unique shape, the museum also includes Qatar’s tradition of both nomads (牧民) and fishermen. It’s committed to preserving and showing the wooden dhows that were once Doha’s lifeblood. These boats enabled fishing, trading and the collection of precious pearls. And visitors can see over 1.5 million of them on the hand-embroidered Pearl Carpet of Baroda, the most extravagant (奢侈的) carpet ever, in the museum.

The museum also seeks to redefine（重新定义）the role of cultural institutions. It’s hoped that visitors will not only observe the exhibitions but also immerse (沉浸) themselves in Qatar’s history. For this purpose, it features a multilayered, 360-degree environment. For example, on the path to the gallery of Life in Qatar, viewers see open markets, camels carrying goods, and wealthy pearl traders drinking tea and doing business.

“It creates a dialogue between the past and future,” according to a museum press release. “The scheme will give a voice to Qatar’s heritage (文化遗产) while celebrating its future.”

How is it going?

We will share the plan for Father’s Day next week._______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

   Father in Need

I quietly placed my ear against the kitchen door. Mom had a male ____! I peeked (从缝隙偷看) around. Sitting there was a gentleman, the most handsome man I’d ever seen.

Mom was a young widow (寡妇) then with three children. My sister was ten, my brother four and I six. I ___ having a daddy. And I knew he was the one. Then I marched right into the kitchen.

“Hi! I’m Patty. What’s your name?”

“George.”

____ towards Mom, I asked, “Don’t you think my mom’s pretty?”

“Patty!” Mom scolded (责备) with embarrassment. “Go and check on Benny.”

George leaned forward and whispered, “Yes, I do. I’ll see you later, Patty. I think we’ll be good friends.”

George started _____ on Mom more often. He always seemed happy to see me and never grew tired of my endless questions.

Soon they entered into a marriage. But one evening was especially bad. Benny was crying on the kitchen floor. Annie was complained ____ it wasn’t her place to look after that spoiled child. And I spilled（使溢出） a whole pot of butter milk. With an empty look, George muttered, “I must have been _____ to marry a woman with three kids.”

Mom flew to their bedroom in tears，and George walked out. I hurried to the porch (门廊). “I’m sorry. I’ll be more careful next time. Please don’t _____!”

Gently wiping my tears, he said, “We’re friends, and friends never abandon (抛弃、遗弃) the people they love.”  Then he went to comfort Mom.

Over the years, George has always been there for me, through many ups and downs. I still turn to him with my ___ though he’s already 85.