In your daily life, are you often a little tired and sleepy in the early afternoon? Many people feel this way after lunch.They may think that eating lunch is the cause of the sleepiness.Or，in summer，they may think it is the heat.However，the real reason lies inside their bodies.At that time—about eight hours after you wake up—your body temperature goes down.This is what makes you slow down and feel sleepy.Scientists have tested sleep habits in experiments where there was no night or day.The people in these experiments almost always followed a similar sleeping pattern.They slept for one long period and then for one short period about eight hours later.

In many parts of the world，people take naps in the middle of the day.This is especially true in warmer climates，where the heat makes work difficult in the early afternoon.Researchers are now saying that naps are good for everyone in any climate.A daily nap gives one a more rested body and mind and therefore is good for health in general.In countries where naps are traditional，people often suffer less from problems such as heart disease. Many working people，unfortunately，have no time to take naps.Though doctors may advise taking naps，employers do not allow it! If you do have the chance，however，here are a few tips about making the most of your nap.Remember that the best time to take a nap isabout eight hours after you get up.A short sleep too late in the day may only make you feel more tired and sleepy afterward. This can also happen if you sleep for too long.If you do not have enough time，try a short nap—even ten minutes of sleep can be helpful.

In my memory, winters always used to be really unpleasant. You had to wear more clothes just to keep warm when you went outside. You were often cold and wet. If you didn’t have a terrible slide, you’d arrive home to an ice-cold house. And that would mean turning on the heating and waiting. It’s a miracle (奇迹) you didn’t get cold to the bone.

Fortunately, things don’t have to be so challenging any more. Technology, engineering and design have advanced giving us new solutions to old problems. It means dealing with winter needn’t be like skating on thin ice.

With a smart thermostat (恒温器), our homes can be comfortable when we need them. Many models feature smartphone apps that allow you to regulate temperature remotely, so we can warm up the house before we arrive home. According to techradar. com, the largest UK- based consumer technology news and reviews website, Tado’s model features voice control, while the Nest ‘learns’ your habits and automatically heats the home for you.

Clothes have been given an upgrade, too. Electronic thermal jackets heat up when you turn them on. What better way to keep comfortable in the dead of winter? At the touch of a button, or through an app on our phones, the clothing generates heat from elements placed inside. Many models offer three levels of heating which stay warm for over 12 hours.

Finally, there is the headgear—Beanies (女帽) and earmuffs (耳罩) that feature speakers included in the fabric using Bluetooth technology so we can listen to our favourite music or, in some cases, have a phone call using the in-built microphone. At the same time we can keep the head warm and avoid cold.

For many, the thought of winter used to be enough to make their blood run cold. But using technology, life needn’t freeze up. With the right solutions, there’s no reason why winter can’t be really, really cool.

Indoor food growing operations are seeing both successes and failures in the United States. Some companies in the food industry are investing (投资) even as competitors fail.

California-based Plenty Unlimited this summer began working on $300 million indoor plants, while Kroger announced that it would be increasing its availability of vertically (垂直地) farmed produce. Meanwhile, two indoor farming companies that got strong backing—New Jersey’s AeroFarms and Kentucky’s AppHarvest—filed for financial failure and reorganization. And a five-year-old company in Detroit, Planted Detroit, shut its doors this summer.

The industry changes do not worry Jacob Portillo, a grower with Eden Green Technology, an indoor farming company. “The fact that other people are failing and other people are succeeding is going to happen in any industry you go to,” he said.

Indoor farming refers to growing crops indoors, which experts sometimes call “controlled environment agriculture”. There are different methods. One method called vertical farming involves putting produce from floor to ceiling, often under artificial lights and with the plants growing in nutrient-enriched water. Other growers are trying very large greenhouses, indoor beds of soil in big buildings and using special robots for parts of the farming process.

Supporters say growing indoors uses less water and land and permits food to be grown closer to consumers, saving on transport. Indoor growing is also a way to protect crops from increasingly extreme weather caused by climate change.

But critics question the sustainability (可持续性) of operations that can require a lot of energy for artificial lights. And they say paying for that light can make profitability impossible. Curt Covington of AgAmerica Lending, a private investment company centered on agriculture, is not convinced that indoor farming operations can work—except in special cases. Given the high cost of indoor operations, Covington said, “It’s just hard to be very profitable.”