Nipah, Hendra, Ebola, SARS... These are some of the world's scariest viruses, which are all carried by bats. This, to be clear, rally isn't bats' fault: The recent 1 . in outbreaks is likely due to humans and our animals 2 ever farther bats' habitat.
In Malaysia, for example, the spread of commercial pig farms into bat-inhabited forests 3 the first human outbreak of Nipah via pigs. In Australia, human Hendra cases 4 as the destruction of native forests forced fruit bats to feed in suburban 5.
One big reason is that most bats love 6 , which contributes to viruses spreading not just among individuals, but also among 7 species. What's more, most infected 8 don't die—they live normal bat lives, flying around and giving viruses the 9 to spread. Research suggests flight 10be the reason bats are so resilient (迅速恢复的) to infection.
As a rule, when flying animals produce the 11amount of energy needed for flight, they also make a lot of reactive waste products that 12 their DNA. But when bats take to the air, they 13 their in-flight DNA damage repair ability and other defenses, including 14 cells that keep viral invaders in check.
So bats can 15 deadly viruses. But what may matter even more to humans is 16 viruses survive bats. When bats are flying, their body temperature can reach around 40℃. It's far too hot for the 17 viruses, but a few hardy viruses have 18 to tolerate the heat. This means they can definitely pull through a human 19when they are transmitted to humans, which is horrible to us.
So what should we do? We'd better just leave bats 20.
Castel dell' Ovo Tours
Castle dell' Ovo is one of Naples most famous monuments. 1 offers sweeping views over the city and Mount Vesuvius in the distance.
The Baskcs
The site on which Castel dell' Ovo now stands has a long history, beginning as a settlement for Creek colonist. The current castle was built in the 15th century, and today, the 19th-century fishing village of Borgo Marinarl, known for its excellent seafood restaurants and marina (游艇停靠区), sits at the base of the castle.
The Egg Castle
The origin of the castle's name comes from a story about the Roman poet Virgil, who is said to have placed a magical egg in the foundations beneath where the castle now stands. As long as
The egg stays well, Castle dell' Ovo will remain standing.
C wel, Cse del Ovo w tomain snting
Things to Know Before You Go
Castel dell' Ovo is a must-see for history and architecture enthusiasts.
Admission to the castle and the museum is free.
The inner halls of the castle are open to the public only during special events exhibitions; the ramparts (城墙) and towers are always open.
There is a lift from the ground floor to the ramparts, making the castle accessible to wheelchairs.
Castel dell' Ovo is located in the Bay of Naples just off the coastal road. Bus 151 from the train station and 140 from the port stop at Castel dell' Ovo.
The castle is open Monday through Saturday from 8:30 am to 7:00 pm, and Sundays and holidays from 8:30 am to 1:30 pm. The Prehistoric Museum is open only on weekends from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm. As Naples is one of Italy's most visited cities, its sights can be very crowded in the high-season summer months. Visit in the early morning or late afternoon to avoid the crowds and to take advantage of the best light for taking photos from the castle's towers.
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Extreme global temperatures are pushing the human body "close to thermal limits", according to a climate scientist. Record-breaking heat has swept through Europe this week with temperatures topping 40oC in a number of countries. However, in places such 8a5 South Asia and the Persian Gulf, people are already enduring temperatures reaching up to 54oC.
Despite all the body's thermal efficiencies, these areas could soon be uninhabitable, according to Loughborough University climate scientist Dr Tom Matthews in The Conversation.
When air temperature exceeds 35oC, the body relies on sweating to keep core temperatures at a safe level. However, when the "wet bulb" temperature – which reflects the ability of moisture to evaporate – reaches 35C, this system no longer works.
"The wet bulb temperature includes the cooling effect of water evaporating from the thermometer, and so is normally much lower than the normal ("dry bulb") temperature reported in weather forecasts," Dr Matthews wrote.
"Once this wet bulb temperature threshold is crossed, the air is so full of water vapour that sweat no longer evaporates," he said.
This means the human body cannot cool itself enough to survive more than a few hours.
"Without the means to dissipate heat, our core temperature rises, irrespective of how much water we drink, how much shade we seek, or how much rest we take," he explained.
Some areas which are among the most densely populated on Earth could pass this threshold by the end of the century, according to Dr Matthews.
With climate change starting to profoundly alter weather systems, rising temperatures could soon make parts of the world uninhabitable.
If electricity can be maintained, living in chronically heat-stressed conditions may be possible but a power outage could be catastrophic.
In a recent paper published in Nature Climate Change, Dr Matthews and his team looked at the probability of a "grey swan" event in the case of extreme heat coinciding with massive blackouts. (断电).
Mega blackouts sometimes follow powerful tropical cyclones. Researchers found that dangerously hot temperatures during a period with no electricity could have catastrophic consequences.
"During the emergency response to a tropical cyclone, keeping people cool would have to be as much a priority as providing clean drinking water."
Heat-stressed countries are likely to see the largest absolute increases in humid-heat and they are often the least well-prepared to deal with the hazard. This could drive mass migration, which would make heat a worldwide issue – even for countries that are not experiencing scorching (灼热的) temperatures.
Dr Matthews wrote: "The challenges ahead are stark. Adaptation has its limits. We must therefore maintain our global perspective on heat and pursue a global response, slashing greenhouse gas emissions to keep to the Paris warming limits.
"In this way, we have the greatest chance of averting deadly heat-home and abroad."
Alice Roosevelt Longworth was the daughter of one of America's most beloved presidents Theodore Roosevelt (西奥多罗斯福) She was also a writer who was famous for giving high-society (上流社会的) parties and being one of Washington, D.C.'s biggest gossips. On the sofa in her living room, there was an embroidered cushion which read, "If you can't say anything nice about someone, come sit next to me."
If Alice were still alive today (she died in 1980 at the age of 96)，she would feel right at home with modern social media .. at least the worst parts of it. Platforms such as WeChat and Weibo have become places where internet trolls (网络“喷子”) and bullies roam, spreading gossip and insults, and causing real harm to people, especially young people. This phenomenon of social media bullying (cyberbullying) is a worldwide problem. In February, UNICEF declared a special day, Safer Internet Day, to raise awareness of the problem and to discuss ways to solve it. According t0 the organization, as many as 20 percent of young people say that they have been bullied online. And the effects of this bullying can be destructive, leading to lower grades, lower self-esteem, depression and even suicide. UNICEF's Henrietta Fore says that the internet has become "a kindness desert".
Closer to home, a study of Chinese high school students found that 58 percent had been bullied and 38 percent had bullied someone either at school or on the internet. "'They spread rumors about you or defame (诽谤) you in order to isolate or marginalize (排斥) you," says psychologist Zhou Zhonghui."It is hard for people that age to bear, and it makes them depressed."
There are laws in China against cyberbullying, and offenders can be fined and have their accounts shut down. In fact, everyone can take steps to stop the bullying First, don't be silent If you are being bullied don't hesitate to tell your parents and teachers. Second, think before you post. Is your comment kind or hurtful? Would you like someone to say the same thing about you? Would you like your mother to read your comment? Alice Roosevelt Longworth's cushion was a humorous re-working of an old piece of wisdom: If you can't say anything nice about someone, don't say anything at all. By following that wisdom, you can make flowers bloom in the "kindness desert."
An Australian rock band, AC/DC, has postponed the US tour after the singer Brian Johnson was warned by doctors that he was at risk of "total hearing loss. This is unsurprising, perhaps, given the decades when this Australian band has been pumping out the hard rock decibel (分贝) But deafness is a concern not only for rock musicians, but for classical violinists and pop singers. In recent years has become clear that anyone around loud music a lot has reason to be equally worried.
The largest study into noise induced hearing loss in musicians was published in 2014.
Three million Germans were examined, including 2,227 professional musicians. Scientists found that the musicians were about four times as likely to suffer the noise induced hearing loss compared to the general population. Many studies into classical musicians have also found evidence of such problems. One study from the 1990s found that violinists and violists have more hearing loss in their left ear compared to their right ear. This loss of hearing is caused by the musician's own instrument, as the violin is placed under the chin with the left ear almost touching the instrument. Five studies have found that between 37% and 58% of classical musicians experience hearing loss. For rock and pop the numbers are similar, with studies finding that under half of musicians suffering from hearing loss.
In the UK, the Control of Noise at Work Regulations sets limits for exposure to noise. The lowest action level is 80 decibels on average over a working day; it is about as loud as a heavily trafficked street. When this action level is exceeded, employers must provide information and training and should make hearing protection available. When the upper action level of 85 decibels on average is exceeded, then employers must take action to reduce the noise and hearing protection becomes compulsory. What counts most in assessing the risk to hearing is the average exposure.
Exposure to high noise levels often causes temporary deafness—something that many people have experienced after going to a nightclub. While hearing usually recovers after a few hours or days, repeated loud exposure leads to permanent hearing damage. Initially, this damage is slight and unlikely to be noticed by the listener. Problems only become significant in middle age when the noise-induced hearing loss combines with the natural loss of hearing due to ageing. Often, one of the first signs is when someone finds it hard to pick out a conversation in a noisy pub or restaurant. Unfortunately, once that's noticed, it's too late.
One immediate threat is the loud instruments close by. Moving further away quietens the sound, but if that isn't possible, then other approaches are available. Often orchestras (管弦乐队) use screens to block sound from the loudest instruments. Alternatively, there are "musicians' earplugs". These decrease sound without completely blocking everything out and are very useful in a rehearsal (排练), but get in the way of balancing the sound in a concert. Professional orchestras also focus on how they schedule music, ensuring that musicians are exposed to a mixture of quiet and loud pieces. Given how loud their instruments are, drummers are particularly at risk, but using quieter practice pads and earplugs when they are not performing can lessen potential hearing loss to some extent. For rock and pop musicians, using in-ear monitors rather than loudspeakers also has the potential to reduce noise exposure, because the sound within the ear can be better controlled.
Improved technology means that the number of musicians such as Johnson having to give up performing could decrease. But student musicians need to be educated about the dangers of noise-induced hearing loss. The increasing use of headphones will also work against this — for musicians and everyone else. Unless people are careful with the volume level of their portable music players, hearing loss caused by music will increase.
Rather than just fix what's disturbing you, positive psychology looks to actively improve individual and organizational well-being. Here's how Havas Worldwide is working to build a happier, more energetic- and ultimately more creative workforce.
"There is a strong relationship between employee happiness and a workforce that is productive, creative, and flourishing." he says, pointing 10 lab studies designed to test creativity after participants have been made more and less happy, which shows creative levels improve when people are happier.
It is an approach based on a relatively new branch of psychology called "positive psychology" which, in recent years, has been adopted as a management tool by a number of Fortune 500 companies.
“Positive psychology' is about playing to strengths- enhancing positive emotions, rather than the old approach of using psychology to fix problems." Frude explains. “How we are using it is to demonstrate skills that help boost an individual's sense of well-being- for example, ways of building resilience (复原力)，or becoming more positive, or better managing your emotions in a positive direction by understanding what boosts or rewards you can give yourself to cause a positive emotional uplift.
Build happiness and well-being among staff and in an organization will benefit from a more emotionally intelligent workforce: people who not only understand their own and other people's emotions but can manage their own and other people's emotions in a more effective way, too, which is what inspired Russ Lidstone, CEO of creative agency Havas Worldwide London whose clients include Credit Suisse, Santander, and Durex—to ask Frude and his company, the Happiness Consultancy, to help boost levels of happiness, well-being, and resilience in his agency's 240-strong workforce.
"The notion that 40% of your brain can be trained to adapt is an interesting one. Another selling point for me is that a freed mind in a more confident and secure individual is more likely to feel free to express itself in different, innovative, and ultimately more creative ways."
What all this means in practice is that, between now and the end of the year, every member of the 240-member staff based at Havas Worldwide's offices in London and Manchester will undertake a four-week course in positive psychology run by Frude.
Each two-hour session is designed to share techniques, approaches, and interventions participants can then put into practice in the workplace. Then participants report back the following week.
"This isn't about "fixing' a specific problem but making the organization work even better."
Professor Frude insists "It's about helping individuals to get more out of their lives and enabling mangers 10 recognize the potential positive (and negative) impact that can come from putting people with a particular outlook into a team."
Though these are early days, Lidstone says the experience has already affected his approach as CEO. Frude adds:" Lerning to manage your emotional wellbeing is like teaching a man to fish skill that will keep you going for a lifetime."
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Happiness Means . |
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of positive psychology |
Many companies have adopted positive psychology as a management tool. the old approach, it is aimed at playing to strengths and ” an individual's sense of well-being. Those who can understand and more manage their own and other people's emotions can improve their well-being. Therefore, they have more confidence and , thus making them become more creative. |
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The training on and managers |
Russ Lidstone has to Frude and his company to help boost his workers' levels of happiness. The course four-week is intended to help the organization work even better. Though these are early days, Lidstone says that the experience has made a to his approach as CEO. |
