When travelers are planning their trips to Thailand, the first stops that come to mind are often the most popular ones: Stops in Chiang Mai, for instance, and Bangkok are must-dos. But the beautiful Southeast Asian country has so much more to offer, in terms of urban wonders, than its most populous cities. Here, four lesser-known Thai cities that you should absolutely put on your travel list.
Mae Hong Son
Where it is: On the border of Thailand and Myanmar, in the mountainous Thai province of the same name.
Why you should go: Because of its nearness to Thailand, visiting Mae Hong Son might feel like experiencing a little bit of Myanmar — there are some cultural shared areas, and it's unlike anything or anywhere else on the planet.
Sukhothai
Where it is: About 230 kilometers north of Bangkok, Sukhothai is characterized by its relative remoteness.
Why you should go: Sukhothai is a UNESCO World Heritage City, due to its proliferation(增殖) of ancient temple ruins. In fact, the city was the birthplace of Thai architecture and culture, so if you want to get a good taste of Thailand's history, there's nowhere better to be.
Khao Lak
Where it is: On Thailand's south-central coast. "Khaolak"translates in English to "Lak mountain", which is the highest peak in the area's hilly region.
Why you should go: If you're seeking a bit of peace, quiet, and calm beachfront, Khao Lak is the place to go. It's a change of pace from many of Thailand's other cities, which are exciting, colourful, and busy — and who doesn't need a moment to recharge every now and again?
Chiang Rai
Where it is: Northern Thailand, in the mountainous province of the same name.
Why you should go: Chiang Rai is Chiang Mai's sister town, and for all of the latter's popularity, Chiang Rai is absolutely relaxed. Like Khao Lak, this is a great place to sit back and enjoy the scenery.
There are days when I find it necessary to step outside my classroom and check to be sure that my name is still in the TEACHER space over my door. Sometimes I feel that I am a student in my classroom rather than the teacher.
Seated in the classroom, my sixth grade students each held a different tool in the hand. The students discussed how words are like tools — they have the ability to build or to destroy, and they discovered how the right tool used at the right time for the right job can produce great results. I watched and listened with a sense of satisfaction. They got it!
A few days later, one of my students, Laura, had an unexpected outburst in class. She refused to work with her group. I asked her to excuse herself and to go to our next door team center. She marched from the back of the room to our classroom door — shooting me an angry look, and then slammed the door as she left for the team meeting room.
Minutes later, I stood over her. Being extremely angry about her disrespectful behavior, I was sharp in my tone and harsh with my words. When I paused for her response, she stated, "You're using your tool against me." I was speechless.
There are times when you are at a critical crossroads with a student and the road you choose will make all the difference. I knew at that moment the right thing to do was to kneel down next to her chair, and softly say, "You're right, Laura. I have used my words unwisely and unkindly. Will you forgive me?" She looked me in the eye and simply said, "Yes, I forgive you, Mrs. Ekre. I'm sorry, too."
At the end of the year, she wrote me a beautiful letter, attached to which was a small key — a tool, she said, for a language arts teacher who taught her how important words can be. It serves as my reminder of a lesson I taught as a teacher but one I really learned from my student.
The world's first cloned(克隆)cat, Copy Cat, or CC for short, is breaking more boundaries as she turns 18 years old."There are no big plans to mark the day, but CC will be the focus of a Dutch cartoon set for release on her birthday, researcher and owner Duane Kraemer said.
CC became the first cloned cat when she was born on December 22,2001, after Kraemer and fellow Texas A&M researcher Mark Westhusin had attempted 188 nuclear transfers and produced 82 cloned embryos(胚胎). The motivation for attempting to create CC was not just to have a cloned cat, but to research genetic engineering. Kraemer noted the university is doing much more genetic engineering work than specifically clone research now.
When the first cloned cat had been successfully created, Kraemer and Westhusin were on TV almost for two weeks. "It was really a big deal, and the university has indicated it was the biggest story ever out of the university," he said, noting CC is even included in a book about the history of College Station.
Every animal used in the research was adopted, Kraemer said, but his wife chose CC. CC is not only enjoying life as the Kraemers' pet, but she has her own condo called the"kitty house" behind the Kraemers' house where she lives with her three babies. Tim, Zip and Tess were born on September 1, 2006. There had not been much research done in the reproductive(繁殖的)success of clones — and none had been done with a cat.
Besides that, CC also proved not all clones die young. "Dolly, the sheep, that was the first of the mammals to be cloned by nuclear transfer, had died at, I think, at 6 years of age," Kraemer said."So the fact that CC didn't die young was news."
Smoking is so alluring(诱惑的), pleasurable for some and perhaps the worst thing that you can possibly do to your body. So, producers made electronic cigarettes as a safer smoking choice - safer than tobacco(烟草制品). Although e-cigarettes contain the drug nicotine like cigarettes, they do not use tobacco and you do not light them. They are powered by battery(电池).
However, if e-cigarettes are so safe, why has the United States Center for Disease Control（CDC）seen an increase in telephone calls about e-cigarette poisonings?
The answer is children. Most of the calls are from people worried about children who have played with the devices(装置). In the period of one month this year, the Center said 215 people called the Center with e-cigarette concerns. More than half of these calls were for children aged five and younger. The devices had made them sick.
Tim McAfee is director of the Center's Office on Smoking and Health. He says the problem is regulation —— the U.S. federal government does not control e-cigarettes even though they contain liquid nicotine. Mr. McAfee adds that liquid nicotine is a well-known danger. Mr. McAfee explains that nicotine poisoning happens when it gets into the skin, gets into the eyes or is swallowed. It can cause stomach pain or a sense of unbalance. And too much nicotine can kill.
Tim McAfee says e-cigarettes do not create the level of risk to people that tobacco products do. He notes that almost 500,000 Americans die each year from cigarettes. "So, cigarettes are the winner in that contest." E-cigarettes do not contain hundreds of harmful chemicals that are found in real cigarettes. So, the U.S. Surgeon General Boris D. Lushniak has suggested that e-cigarettes may be a useful tool for adults trying to end their tobacco use.
But Tim McAfee worries that teenagers may think electronic cigarettes are harmless. They could become addicted to the nicotine and then start smoking real cigarettes. In other words, he fears that fake(假的) e-cigarettes could be a "gateway" to the real thing for young people.
Easy Ways to Sleep Better
You can finally rest easy — we asked sleep experts to tell us everything they know about the healthy habits that help you sleep better.
Make your bed before you get in it. Sleep healthily is all about creating an ideal environment for sleep.That's why it's so important to make your bed each morning. If you don't get a chance to do it before you leave the house, make your bed in the evening before you turn in.
Use blackout curtains(不透光窗帘).One way to ensure blackness in your sleep environment is to invest in room-darkening curtains designed to against light—including street lights that come on at night.
Use a sound machine. A machine designed to create white noise or soft sounds like running water is a great way to defeat the kinds of sounds that disrupt(扰乱) sleep like street noise.
Put away your electronics at bedtime. By now, you've probably heard that it's a really bad idea to bring your smartphone or laptop to bed.The blue light can stimulate your brain, and even affect your mood.
Commit yourself to one wake-up time. Many doctors only talk about going to bed at a fixed time. But when the morning light comes in through your window, it hits your optic nerve and affects your circadian rhythm(昼夜节律).
A. You are supposed to wake up at 7:00 every morning.
B. Waking up at the same time each morning can affect your sleep quality.
C. Experts even warn against keeping the TV on around bedtime.
D. Placing a machine full of water beside you while sleeping helps a lot.
E. One of the best habits for a good night's sleep is a comfortable bed.
F. These sounds can calm some people to sleep even better than silence.
G. Keep your room as dark as possible — the darker, the better.
I had a brother, who was named Charles. He was born one month before his due date and had developmental 1 . He never lost his2 teeth, never grew taller than about 30 inches and never 3 more than 28 pounds. They did predict,4 , that he would not live to see his 12th birthday.
As a boy I learned to feed and 5 Charles every day, though I was6 . As a teenager, I babysat for my "big brother" and learned the7 amount of medicine to prevent him from trembling.
Many people said he would never walk or talk, and should be 8 to some special hospital. He never did learn to walk, but he did learn to talk — not even in 9 sentences, but he had the basics down. If he was 10 or thirsty, we knew.
He knew11 , too. I was Kagun, not Kevin. But that changed with a beard I grew during the summer before college. Family members said it was ugly. Charles heard it. "Look who's at home. Who's that?" they'd say to Charles. "Ugly, "he would respond with 12 .
All of that to me was 13 , for he was the only brother I have. I never thought of him as different. Although we never played catch or talked about our dreams, he taught me respect for those less 14 than myself. And he taught me an15 of the beauty in the simplest things.
Physically and mentally, I was my brother's keeper. Spiritually, Mike was and is my keeper — a nearly silent guardian angel.
Cheating by using the work of others' is the same ruining your life with drugs. Not only is it (necessary) and foolish , but it can also start to (addict) in many ways. If a student constantly cheats, then it may become a habit in the future. Besides , no one needs to cheat. We all have brains. Anyway , it' s not likely that we'll succeed in life if we continuously cheat. So there is no need(ruin) both your education and your life by cheating.
Cheaters usually suffer many consequences. In the beginning when students are in grade school, cheating may only lead to (they) losing credits and going to the principal's office. In middle school, there will be Saturday punishments and even parent-teacher(conference). But in high school, college, and the rest of a person's life, it is (absolute) unlikely that cheating will be tolerated.
Of all things, (take) credit for others' work is not only useless but quite unreasonable. If we all just do our work, then there is no pointcheating. Most importantly, if we all work hard instead of cheating, then everyone (live) a successful life.
Planting Day
When I was little, I often helped my mother plant our family's garden. As soon as the chilly winds of Chicago winter gave way to spring, Mom would be outside with a spade(铁 锹), seed packets, gardening gloves, and a secret smile. I would kneel by her side for hours, carefully digging holes and pushing seeds into the earth. We would spend hour after hour repeating the process.
Unfortunately, as I grew up, I found better ways to spend the first days of spring. After all, I was too old to kneel in the dirt all day planting some silly seeds.
Surprisingly, my mother never said much about my decision until two years ago, the spring I turned 14. I was on my way to a friend's house when Mom stopped me.
"Would you please help me with the planting today?" she asked.
"Oh, Mom, I was just getting ready to leave," I said. "I'll probably be gone most of the day."
She looked up for a moment as I walked past, and from the corner of my eye I saw a certain pain and sadness in her gaze(注视). At first my heart told me I should stay to help, but as I got farther from home and closer to an exciting day of hanging out with friends, I forgot it. I didn't think much about that day until nearly a year later.
One of my father's good friends suddenly lost his wife to cancer. The doctors hadn't discovered Sara's illness until it was too late. She died shortly after the diagnosis(诊断), leaving behind her husband and two small, confused children.
Right away, Mom went south to visit the family and spent a few hours with little Rachel. When she came home, she told me this story.
When Sara had received her terminal diagnosis, she asked her husband, "What should I leave our children? How do I give them something to remember me by, a symbol of my love for as long as they live?"
Mom learned the answer from Rachel.
"Mommy made me my own garden," Rachel said, as she led Mom outdoors. The garden was a masterpiece, in which a piece of Sara's heart and soul was left in full bloom for her children.
As I listened to my mother tearfully tell Sara's story, I realized the true power of a garden.
……
A few weeks later, I came home to find several bags of seeds on the kitchen table.
