The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) is a worldwide study of 15-year-old school pupils’ scholastic (学业的) performance in mathematics, science, and reading undertaken by the OECD (经济合作与发展组织). A closer look at the reading tests, shows the interesting fact that girls are outperforming boys in reading and that this is associated with girls’ greater enjoyment of reading.

One key area which has a major impact on reading performance, is reading for enjoyment rather than simply for study or school work purposes. Interestingly, the PISA study found that in all countries assessed (apart from South Korea), girls read for enjoyment more than boys. The study found that in all the countries assessed, just over half of boys (52%), but almost three-quarters of girls (73%) said that they read for enjoyment which may come as a surprise to many.

In countries such as Estonia and the Netherlands, the difference between boys and girls was most significant, where they found a 30% gap or more between the genders. Additionally in places such as Austria and Liechtenstein, very low levels of boys expressed interest in reading (40%or less), which are worrying statistics.

However, not all countries had such an obvious trend. In places like Japan, boys and girls read for enjoyment at an almost identical level, with 54% of boys and 58% of girls reporting that they enjoy reading. And there were a few countries and regions that scored very highly in boys reading enjoyment, for example in Albania, Indonesia and Shanghai in China where at least 80% of boys enjoy reading. Although these positive numbers are matched and passed by girls who reported an even higher level of reading enjoyment (90%or higher).

An interesting area which the PISA study looked at was the types of literature that both girls and boys generally enjoy. There were clear differences in the choices boys and girls make when deciding on what to read. Boys were found to enjoy reading magazines, newspapers and comic books more than girls. Girls were found to be twice as likely to enjoy works of fiction than boys.

Countries need to think about ways to inspire interest for boys in reading and ensure that they are exposed to a wide variety of different types of literature from a young age. Given that in OECD countries two in three boys only read newspapers for pleasure proves that there is work to be done.

Scientists at Rice University in Houston, Texas have developed a fabric-based (基于织物的) wearable tool that “hits” users’ wrists (腕关节) with pressurized air, silently guiding them to their finishing point. The study, put out on August 29 in the magazine Device, showed that users could correctly read which direction the tool was telling them to go since the wearable uses air instead of electronics, it can be built lighter than present designs.

The wearables may benefit people with hearing loss, and experts such as doctors, pilots, and soldiers who are crowded with signs and sounds.

But while tools that produce signs or sounds are prevalent in everyday life, tools that use touch-based signs are still uncommon.

To get over this difficulty, the Rice University researchers developed a light, comfortable wearable tool from fabric materials that can be worn on a user’s arm. The team tested the tool by measuring forces applied to the user as a function of pressure and the shape of the wearable.

“Every person has a differently shaped arm, a different feeling of what ‘feels good’ in terms of the forces applied and the timing of the forces, and different abilities in responding to the type of touch-based signs we sent,” said Barclay Jumet the lead author of the study. “Fortunately, our fabric-based wearable tool is easily tailorable (可定制的) and adjustable (可调节的) to a series of body types and sizes.”

After testing the performance of the touch-based wearable tool in a lab-based study, the researchers set out to see how well these tools could guide users in a real-world situation. “We were amazed that the user was able to find his way around the streets of Houston and later follow 50 meters long on an open field with 100% exactness in receiving and reading touch-based signs,” said Daniel Preston, the co-author of the study,

“Further development will seek to improve the ability to pass on even more difficult signs that are easily and naturally noticed by the user,” said Preston.

The phrase "The early bird catches the worm" may be true. It means people who wake up early get more done than people who don’t. Another saying is, "Early to bed, early to rise" makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise." Scientists have found that people who go to bed before 11: 00 p. m. may do better in life than people who sleep around 2:30 a.m.

The researchers are from Birmingham's Centre for Human Brain Health in the UK. Their research showed that people who slept and rose early (early birds) had an advantage over people who slept and woke up late(night owls). There were differences in the brain function of early birds and night owls.

The scientists tested 38 people in their research. The people answered questionnaires about their sleeping pattern and when they felt tired during the day. They were then put into an early bird or night owl group based on their answers.

All of the people had MRI scans on their brain and did different tests throughout the day. The researchers said there were big differences between the two groups. The early birds said they felt less sleepy and were able to do the tests quicker than the night owls. The researchers said, "Night owls during school have to get up earlier, then they go into work and they have to get up earlier, so they re constantly having to fight against their bad life habits.”