A Travel Guide to the UK

A Travel Guide to the UK

The UK offers all-in-one travel experiences that delve deep into thousands of years of history. It's a country of contrasting landscapes and fascinating culture, with a shared language and daft humour.

Sample British spirits like gin and Pimm's, or try classic English dishes such as fish and chips or shepherd's pie. Be sure to pack layers, as the weather can be changeable.

London

When it comes to cultural icons, few cities can rival London. From the iconic red phone box to the Tube map and from the AEC Routemaster bus to the black cab, these symbols are instantly recognizable and synonymous with the city.

The UK’s most cosmopolitan city is also a center of arts, culture and heritage. There are more than 200 museums, art galleries and theatres, plus festivals, markets and parks, to discover — and many of them are free.

Get up close to ancient Egyptian coffins and Roman ruins or ogle Renaissance masterpieces at London’s top museums. Take in the drama of a royal palace at Hampton Court or trace 1,000 years of history at Tower Bridge.

A visit to the capital isn’t complete without snapping a photo of one of the famous London landmarks. Stroll past two of the city’s most famous towers – Big Ben and the Tower of London – or see a new side to London at The Shard. The skyscraper looms over the city from the Thames, offering a spectacular bird’s-eye view.

If you’re a Sherlock Holmes fan, don’t miss the chance to tour 221b Baker Street, or walk in the footsteps of the famed detective at other locations linked to his stories. From a 300-year-old tea shop to the world’s smallest public sculpture, there are plenty of opportunities to indulge your inner Anglophile and experience a little bit of the British way of life.

Whether you’re seeking out vintage clothing at Camden Market or sampling fresh produce at Broadway Market in Hackney, the city’s thriving outdoor markets are must-visits. If you prefer the glamour of a shopping mall, head to Oxford Street for high-end stores and luxury brands. During ceremonial occasions, The Mall is draped in fluttering Union Jack flags for an irresistible photo opportunity. London is home to four UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including Westminster Abbey and 10 Downing Street. For the full experience, join a guided tour of these landmarks with a local guide. They can give you insights into how they have shaped the culture of this city that’s so steeped in history.

Scotland

Scotland is an enchanting country that is as beautiful as it is diverse. Where else can you drink over 130 types of whisky, play a round of golf in the birthplace of the game, or witness the spectacular Northern Lights? From majestic lochs and mountains to ancient stone circles and UNESCO World Heritage Sites, discover a rich culture with thousands of stories to tell. Strike your best yoga pose atop an extinct volcano, or get lost in Scottish towns brimming with culture and history.

Scotland’s magnificent landscapes aren’t just breathtaking – they also inspire. Explore awe-inspiring peaks like Arthur’s Seat, or travel along the North Coast 500 road trip to see towering mountains and secluded beaches.

Lonely castles perched on rocky shores dot the Highlands. Often, they were once the strongholds of clans, or groups of kinship families that organized the social hierarchy of the region. The iconic Eilean Donan Castle is one of the most beautiful examples, and it’s even more magical at night when it is beautifully lit.

There’s more to Scotland than its storied past, though. The capital city of Edinburgh has a charming old town, complete with quaint shops and tearooms housed in historic buildings. A stroll down the Royal Mile will reveal a series of narrow alleys that are perfect for exploring, known as “closes.”

The enigmatic Loch Ness may be the most famous body of water in the country, but you’ll find many other captivating lochs across the country. Lakes like Loch Lomond offer a tranquil escape, and the nearby islands make for a scenic cruise. The ethereal Skara Brae is one of the most evocative prehistoric sites in Europe, and Glasgow Cathedral has a rare sense of timelessness that can send shivers down your spine.

For a truly unique experience, visit Scotland in the spring or autumn. You’ll enjoy the mild weather and avoid the crowds of high season (June through August).
Wales

For such a small country, Wales packs in an impressive variety of experiences. From walking along a medieval castle wall to admiring a Thomas Telford-designed aqueduct, there is something for everyone to enjoy in Wales.

Experience the best of Wales in its coastal regions, where seaside towns and sweeping beaches beckon. Walk or cycle the Gower Peninsula, where you’ll see one of the most breathtaking coastal vistas in all of Europe, or visit the Portmeirion village, which was built to replicate the beauty of Italy in the tranquil landscape of Wales. You can also spend the day exploring the cliff-top ruins of Aberystwyth Castle or the quaint cobbled streets of Tenby.

The National Museum of Wales in Cardiff is another must-see attraction. Lose yourself in its galleries and discover the natural and cultural history of Wales, all under one roof. St Fagans National Museum of History is another popular heritage destination, where you can explore 50 original buildings from across the nation that were moved stone-by-stone and re-located on its grounds. Here, you can wander through farmhouses and cottages as well as a schoolroom and post office.

Another great way to get a feel for the local culture of Wales is by attending an event in its capital, Cardiff. The city hosts a renowned literary festival called Hay-on-Wye, once described by former US President Bill Clinton as “the Woodstock of the mind.” It’s another great way to get a sense for the Welsh people and their passion for literature.

Other highlights of a visit to Wales include touring the historic village of Carmarthenshire, where you can see the enchanting medieval walls that surround its old town. Or, head to the mountainous Eryri National Park and hike to the summit of Yr Wyddfa (pronounced "Wyd-fa"), which is the highest peak in the country.

You can also tour the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, where you’ll travel through the mountains on a train that traverses the 165-meter (1,085-foot)-high bridge. Alternatively, you can take the path that follows the river to the bottom of the canyon and admire its natural beauty from the water.

Northern Ireland

After years of being eschewed by tourists, Northern Ireland has made a comeback thanks to its spectacular scenery and the buzzing culture that’s alive in Belfast and elsewhere. Legendary natural attractions, such as the mystical Giant’s Causeway, now join an enduring musical scene and an array of world-class experiences to make Ulster (as it’s known locally) one of Europe’s top travel destinations.

The Irish are renowned for their friendliness and hospitality. You’ll find this in abundance when you explore the many restaurants, pubs, and music venues that are dotted throughout the country. While some of these are trendy, others are family-run and have been serving locals for generations. Then there are the hotels, which can range from luxury castles to quaint bed-and-breakfasts.

Northern Ireland is also a very young country and has a strong Christian undertone to its culture. This can be seen in the values that the people place on family, and in how much of a focus there is on community in towns and villages across the country.

As with other parts of the UK, integration between Catholic and Protestant communities varies widely depending on where you are. In some areas, such as in affluent South Belfast or Bangor, it’s possible to see people from different religious backgrounds coexisting side by side. However, this can be less the case in areas such as mainly Catholic West Belfast. Then there are the parts of the country that still carry a great deal of baggage from the Troubles, with the result that you may find yourself dealing with tensions or even being ostracised by some for expressing views connected to those events.

The northern part of the country is very mountainous and offers plenty for outdoor enthusiasts to enjoy, with a wide variety of walking trails, golf courses, and climbing opportunities. There’s also some outstanding coastline, with highlights including the Causeway Coastal Route, Carrick-a-Reede rope bridge, Dunluce Castle, and Inch Abbey (a 7th-century monastic site featured in Game of Thrones). It’s worth visiting the village of Portrush too to see the beach that overlooks the famous rock formation.

How to Prevent Hair Loss

A normal person loses about 50 to 100 hairs a day, and new hair usually grows in its place. Some conditions cause hair loss that is temporary or permanent, such as hormonal changes related to pregnancy and childbirth or certain medical problems like alopecia areata or ringworm of the scalp (tinea capitis).

Receding hairlines and bald spots also can be caused by hereditary factors. See a doctor for help diagnosing the problem and getting treatment that works.

Medications

Many types of hair loss can be treated with medications, some of which are available without prescription. These include topical minoxidil, which promotes new growth in some men and women with male or female pattern baldness (androgenic alopecia); follicle-stimulating drugs that help with hair growth by triggering dormant follicles; and corticosteroids that reduce inflammation and prevent your body's immune system from attacking the hair follicles.

Your doctor will diagnose the cause of your hair loss by taking a medical history, asking about medications you take and whether you have a family history of the condition; examining the scalp for signs of inflammation or thinning; and obtaining a sample of the hair for laboratory testing. The test results may indicate an underlying medical illness, such as thyroid disease or iron deficiency; or an imbalance of sex hormones.

A fungal scalp infection, known as tinea capitis, may be causing your hair to fall out. Your dermatologist will prescribe terbinafine (Lamisil), griseofulvin V (Grifulvin) or itraconazole (Sporanox) with or without shampoos that contain selenium sulfide (Selsun Blue, Head & Shoulders) or ciclopirox (Nizoral). These medications are taken by mouth daily and must be continued for months to eradicate the fungus and encourage new hair growth.

Corticosteroid injections are given directly into the scalp and can stimulate follicles to grow new hair. Your doctor may give you a course of treatment that requires multiple injections over 4 to 6 weeks.

Two medications that are used to treat male pattern baldness are finasteride (Propecia) and dutasteride (Avodart). These medications affect the hormone testosterone and may reduce shedding and encourage new hair growth in some men with androgenic alopecia. They are not recommended for use by women of childbearing age because they can cause birth defects in male children, and women of this age should use birth control while on the medication.

A trichologist is a specialist in scalp and hair disorders who can provide expert advice on preventing further hair loss and encouraging the growth of new hair. They can also recommend a range of treatments including hair replacement options.

Diet

Hair health is affected by nutrition, so a healthy diet is vital for beautiful locks. Adding a variety of nutrient-rich foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean proteins to your diet can help you get the nutrients you need for healthy hair.

Some important nutrients for your hair include vitamin A, B vitamins, iron and folic acid. A diet deficient in these nutrients can lead to thinning hair or hair loss. Fortunately, most nutrient deficiencies can be corrected through diet and supplements. However, you should always approach nutritional supplements with caution; over-supplementation can lead to unintended side effects like toxicity.

Start your day with a nutrient-rich breakfast of eggs and berries, oatmeal topped with bananas, pumpkin seeds and chia seeds, or a green smoothie for a healthy, nourishing meal. For lunch, enjoy a salad packed with leafy greens and tomatoes. Add grilled chicken or tofu to boost the protein content. Dress your salad with a lemon and olive oil vinaigrette to enhance flavor and add extra nourishment.

A healthy dinner includes a mix of protein and iron-rich ingredients, such as lentil curry with fresh spinach and tomatoes. For those who eat meat, try a lean cut of fish or chicken with sauteed spinach.

Sweet potatoes are an excellent source of vitamin A, which promotes healthy hair growth by lowering inflammation in the scalp and reducing sebum production. Vitamin A also prevents brittle hair by protecting the follicles.

Zinc is a mineral that helps your body repair cells, including those that make hair. Zinc-rich foods include beef and liver, shellfish, nuts and fortified cereals.

Leafy vegetables are rich in vitamin C and iron, which are essential for healthy hair. Incorporate a wide variety of leafy greens into your meals to ensure you are getting the nutrients you need for healthy hair.

Exercise

A balanced diet and regular exercise are essential for healthy hair growth. Exercise can improve blood circulation to the scalp, boost follicle activity, and reduce stress levels. However, certain exercises are better for your hair than others. For instance, high-intensity strength training can increase cortisol levels and trigger telogen effluvium, a temporary form of hair loss that causes your hair to fall out. To avoid this, opt for moderate-intensity aerobic activities, such as brisk walking or cycling. Incorporating breathing exercises into your exercise routine also helps to reduce stress levels and promote healthy hair growth. Try the Corpse Pose (Bhujangasana) or Deep Breathing (Pranayama). These exercises can help to reduce anxiety and stress, which are common contributors to hair loss.

If you’re experiencing serious or persistent hair loss, consult with a dermatologist or trichologist. They can diagnose the underlying cause and recommend a treatment plan.

Autumn and Winter Skincare Secrets: Radiant with Moisturized Glow

1、 The Importance of Skincare in Autumn and Winter

In autumn and winter, the temperature gradually drops and the air becomes increasingly dry, exerting a significant impact on our skin. Firstly, the drop in temperature can slow down the metabolic rate. It is understood that in autumn, 

as the temperature decreases, the metabolic rate slows down, resulting in a darker appearance of the skin.

Simultaneously, the capillaries of the human body are susceptible, and the secretion of oil from the skin diminishes. The normal stratum corneum of the skin typically retains 15% to 20% water content, but as the temperature drops, skin blood vessels constrict, sweat and sebaceous gland secretion decrease, potentially reducing the water content of the stratum corneum to below 10%. This leads to darker and rougher skin, prone to dryness, peeling, and other issues. 

Secondly, dry air lowers the ambient temperature and humidity, making it challenging for the skin to retain moisture. During autumn and winter, the dry air accelerates the loss of moisture from the skin, particularly on the face, which can easily trigger skin allergies. For elderly individuals, due to the atrophy of sebaceous glands and reduced oil secretion, they are more susceptible to skin itching. Children, especially those with eczema or atopic dermatitis, should also prioritize skin care and maintain skin moisture during this season. Additionally, although ultraviolet rays are not as intense in autumn and winter as they are in summer,they still persist. 

Many people mistakenly believe that sun protection is unnecessary in autumn and winter, but this is a fallacy. Ultraviolet rays can cause dull, dry skin and wrinkles. In summary, the climatic characteristics of autumn and winter significantly affect the skin, highlighting the importance of scientific skincare. Only by properly caring for our skin can we maintain its health and prevent various skin issues.

2、 Cleaning points

(1) Principle of Moderate Cleansing During autumn and winter, the skin's oil secretion decreases, making excessive cleansing potentially harmful to the skin's barrier function. Therefore, choosing gentle cleansing products is essential. Amino acid facial cleanser is an excellent option as it caters to all skin types, including sensitive skin. Due to its gentle nature, amino acid facial cleanser does not excessively strip the skin of natural oils, helping to maintain the skin's water-oil balance. For instance, during winter when the climate is often dry, the skin is prone to issues such as tightness and dryness. Using an amino acid facial cleanser can effectively prevent these conditions. Its cleansing power is moderate, effectively removing dirt and makeup residue from the face without causing excessive cleansing, thereby avoiding damage to the skin barrier. It typically contains various amino acids and moisturizing ingredients, which can provide essential moisture and nutrients to the skin while cleansing it, helping to alleviate dry skin issues.

(2) Pay attention to water temperature and frequency The water temperature for washing the face should not be too hot or too cold. Generally, it should be around 32℃. Although excessively high water temperature can effectively remove oil, it can also damage the facial sebum membrane, weaken the skin's barrier function, and potentially cause skin allergies, redness, burning sensation, and even dryness and peeling. If the water temperature is too low, it can cause wrinkles on the skin surface, making it difficult to remove oil, and the cleansing effect is not optimal. The ideal water temperature is one that is not too hot to the touch, approximately 37℃ to 39℃. The recommended frequency for facial cleansing is 1-2 times a day. Cleaning the skin too frequently can lead to a loss of oil, imbalance of water and oil, and make the skin sensitive. For body cleansing during winter, it is recommended to shower every 2 to 3 days. In winter, due to the dry climate, excessive bathing can damage the skin's cortical membrane, reducing its water-locking ability and causing the skin to become even drier. The scrubbing intensity should not be too strong, as it may lead to excessive skin sensitivity. When using shower gel in winter, it is important to choose a gentle and moisturizing type, and avoid using products such as soap that contain a lot of alkaline substances and have strong cleaning ability, in order to prevent skin damage due to a lack of oil protection.

3，The key to moisturizing

Classification of Moisturizing Ingredients Three types of ingredients in moisturizing products play a crucial role in autumn and winter skincare.

 Moisture Absorbents: Moisture Absorbents can attract moisture from deep layers of the skin to the stratum corneum of the epidermis, as well as absorb moisture from the environment and lock it inside the stratum corneum of the epidermis. Common moisture absorbents include glycerol, propylene glycol, urea, various amino acids, collagen, hyaluronic acid, methyl cellulose, etc. For example, glycerol is a common moisture absorbent that can absorb moisture from the air, replenish moisture to the skin, and maintain skin hydration. Hyaluronic acid is known as the best moisturizing ingredient, capable of absorbing 1000 times its own weight of water, and is currently the most moisturizing substance found in nature for cosmetics.

Occlusive agents: Occlusive agents are typically oily substances that form an inert protective film on the skin surface, preventing moisture evaporation from the epidermis. These agents can be broadly categorized into two types: non-biological lipids (such as Vaseline, paraffin, olive oil, shea butter, jojoba oil) and biological lipids (such as ceramides, fatty acids, cholesterol). Vaseline is a widely used occlusive agent that creates a protective layer on the skin, effectively trapping moisture and preventing its loss. Ceramide is another crucial occlusive agent widely present in human skin, particularly in the stratum corneum, where it accounts for approximately 50% of the total. It serves as a conditioning agent, antioxidant, and moisturizer, enhancing the sebum film while suppressing excessive sebaceous gland secretion, thereby regulating the skin's water-oil balance.

Emollients: Emollients are primarily compounds of esters or long-chain alcohols. Upon application, they bridge the gaps between keratinocytes in dry skin, resulting in smoother and more hydrated skin. Common emollient ingredients include hexadecyl stearate, dioctyl maleate, isopropyl palmitate, etc. Hexadecyl stearate, in particular, helps to smoothen the skin and diminish roughness.

(2) Choose based on skin type Consumers with different skin types should prioritize certain aspects when choosing moisturizing products.

Dry skin, due to its low oil secretion, is prone to dryness, peeling, and other issues. Therefore, it is recommended to choose creams containing oil ingredients such as Vaseline, plant/animal/mineral oils, which have good encapsulation effects, as well as skincare products rich in sealants such as ceramides to enhance the skin's moisturizing ability. For oily skin with strong oil secretion, oil-free formulas, refreshing waters, lotions, gels, or jellies should be selected. In terms of composition, hydrophilic humectants such as glycerin, urea, and other moisture absorbents can be chosen. Vaseline or mineral oil should be minimized to reduce the greasy feeling after use.

（3） Auxiliary moisturizing methods

In addition to using moisturizing products, some auxiliary moisturizing methods can also be used.

Moisturizing facial mask: Moisturizing facial mask is an effective moisturizing method, which can quickly replenish moisture for the skin. For example, Bakersfin Moisturizing facial mask contains organic selenium, amino acids and other ingredients, which has the effect of calming the skin. At the same time, it can effectively alleviate skin problems by adding imported Swiss alpha herbs and a variety of plant extracts. The use frequency of facial mask should not be too high, generally 2-3 times a week is appropriate.

Moisturizing spray: Moisturizing spray can replenish moisture for the skin at any time, anywhere, and alleviate dry skin. However, after the spray is finished, gently press it with a tissue in time to absorb the excess water, so as not to evaporate the water away from the skin itself.

Air humidifier: Using an air humidifier indoors can increase air humidity and reduce skin moisture loss. It is generally recommended to maintain indoor humidity between 40% and 60%.

4、 Sunscreen is essential

Although the temperature drops in autumn and winter, and the sunlight looks less intense than in summer, ultraviolet rays still exist. According to experts, the weather turns cooler in autumn, reducing the amount of water and clouds in the atmosphere, and increasing the penetration of ultraviolet radiation. The amount of ultraviolet radiation reaching the ground may be even greater than in summer. Therefore, it is crucial to do a good job of sun protection in autumn and winter seasons.

When choosing sunscreen products, you can choose sunscreen with a moderate sun protection index. For example, in autumn and winter, you can choose sunscreen products with relatively low sun protection factor (SPF) values, such as sunscreen with SPF values between 30-50. This can provide sufficient protection without causing too much burden on the skin. At the same time, considering that the skin is prone to dryness in autumn and winter, priority should be given to choosing sunscreen products that contain moisturizing ingredients and have a moisturizing texture. Like L'Oreal Gold Tube, with a sun protection factor of SPF50+and PA++++, it contains anti-aging skincare ingredients and is suitable for dry skin in autumn and winter. It contains 9 kinds of essence liquid, which has a moist texture, and will form a thin oil film on the face. Dry skin sisters will like it very much.

In addition to using sunscreen, physical sun protection measures can also be taken. Wearing hats, masks, etc. can provide more comprehensive protection for the skin. In autumn and winter, you can choose a wide brimmed hat that covers a larger area and provides better sun protection. Using scarves and masks can further enhance protection. For example, during the time period from 10am to 2pm when the UV index is relatively high, it is advisable to choose a shaded or shady place to exercise when going out, and wear a wide brimmed hat, mask, etc. for physical sun protection.

Suitable sunscreen products should also be selected for different scenarios. If it's a daily commute, you can choose a sunscreen like Blankme Little Black Umbrella, with a sun protection factor of SPF50+, PA++++, excellent moisturizing sensation, and no pressure to follow up with makeup. It's a good choice for commuters to choose sunscreen every day. If you are engaged in outdoor activities, you can choose the Lifuquan Big Brother 400 sunscreen, with a sun protection index of SPF78, PA+++, full band sun protection. A bottle of sunscreen is neither too dark nor too old, and the sun protection power is really amazing. It adds Maise Filter 400 to resist UVA and is compounded with 7 layers of sunscreen. Even in autumn and winter seasons, there is no need to reapply, and you can go out for a day without any problems.

In short, UV rays cannot be ignored during autumn and winter seasons. Proper sun protection measures should be taken, including choosing appropriate sun protection products and physical sun protection measures, in order to protect the skin from UV damage.

5、 Internal conditioning

（1） Dietary regulation

In autumn and winter, we can regulate our skin through diet. Eating foods rich in vitamins and water has many benefits for the skin.

In terms of fruits, apples are rich in various vitamins and antioxidants, which can make the skin smoother and more elastic. Pears have the function of moistening the lungs and generating fluids, which can replenish moisture to the skin and reduce dryness. Grapes are rich in flavonoids, which have anti-aging and skin protective effects, maintaining skin moisture balance, reducing the probability of dry skin and fine lines. Kiwi fruit is rich in vitamin C and folate, which can strengthen the skin's resistance, prevent excessive oil secretion, and reduce the occurrence of acne.

Vegetables are also essential. Carrots are rich in vitamin A, which helps maintain skin health. Broccoli is rich in vitamin C and antioxidants, which can protect the skin from free radical damage. Spinach is rich in iron and vitamin K, which helps promote blood circulation and make the skin more rosy.

Nut based foods are also beneficial for the skin. Almonds are nutty foods rich in vitamin E, which can help maintain skin moisture and softness, prevent dryness and roughness. Walnuts are rich in various antioxidants and minerals, which can help reduce internal inflammatory reactions in the body and make the skin healthier.

In addition, drinking plenty of water is also very important for the skin. Drinking plenty of water in winter can keep the skin moist and reduce the risk of dryness and cracking. According to research, adults generally drink around 1500ml of water per day, and can increase it to 2000ml in winter. Drinking water can promote skin metabolism, help skin cells renew and repair, improve skin quality, enhance skin resistance, and alleviate some skin problems such as acne and itching.

（2） Lifestyle habits

Good lifestyle habits play a crucial role in maintaining skin health.

Firstly, maintaining sufficient sleep is crucial. Only by ensuring sufficient sleep in autumn can we accelerate the metabolism of the skin. It is recommended to fall asleep around 10 pm and ensure 6-8 hours of sleep every day. Lack of sleep can lead to dull, rough skin, dark circles, and other issues.

Secondly, one should avoid excessive mental stress. Autumn and winter seasons can easily make people feel irritable, and this negative emotion can lead to more subtle facial expressions, such as frowning, drooping corners of the mouth, etc., resulting in expression lines. We should be good at discovering our emotional instability, adjusting it in a timely manner, managing our emotions well, and avoiding being influenced by emotions.

Proper exercise is also indispensable. Entering winter, while keeping warm, exercising appropriately can accelerate the body's metabolism, and the skin will become moisturized, smooth, and energetic. Sweating during exercise can improve skin pores and eliminate waste from the body. At the same time, it can accelerate the body's metabolism, promote the secretion of sebaceous and sweat glands, and promote smooth skin.

In short, by regulating our diet and developing good lifestyle habits, we can better care for our skin in autumn and winter, keeping it in a healthy state.

6、 Precautions

（1） Avoid excessive cleaning

In autumn and winter, the skin's own oil secretion decreases, and excessive use of cleansing products such as facial cleansers can disrupt the oil balance on the skin surface, leading to problems such as dryness and sensitivity. Excessive cleaning may remove natural oils from the surface of the skin, causing the skin to lose its protective barrier and making it easier for moisture to be lost. For example, using highly stimulating facial cleansers or frequently washing the face may make the skin tight, rough, and even peel off.

Therefore, we should choose mild cleansing products such as amino acid facial cleansers. This type of product has mild properties and does not excessively deprive the skin of natural oils, helping to maintain the skin's water oil balance. At the same time, it is important to control the frequency of washing your face to avoid excessive cleansing that can harm the skin.

（2） Do not exfoliate frequently

Excessive exfoliation can damage the skin's self-protection mechanism. Although the stratum corneum of the skin appears to be a layer of dead skin, it actually plays an important protective role for the skin. Frequent exfoliation may cause the skin to become thinner, more sensitive and fragile, and more susceptible to external stimuli.

In winter, the frequency of exfoliating should be appropriately reduced. Generally speaking, dry skin can be exfoliated every 2-3 weeks, oily skin can be exfoliated every 1-2 weeks, mixed skin can be treated separately according to different skin types, T-zone can shorten the exfoliation cycle appropriately, while drier areas such as cheeks should extend the exfoliation time. Sensitive skin should avoid exfoliating as much as possible to avoid exacerbating the sensitivity of the skin.

（3） Choose suitable cosmetics

Different skin types require the selection of different cosmetics, otherwise it may lead to skin problems. For example, if oily skin uses overly greasy skincare products, it may lead to clogged pores, acne, and other problems; If refreshing skincare products are used for dry skin, they may not meet the moisturizing needs of the skin, resulting in even drier skin.

For dry skin, you can choose skincare products with high oil content, such as Vaseline, plant/animal/mineral oils, etc., to enhance the skin's moisturizing ability. Meanwhile, skincare products rich in ceramides and other sealants can be chosen to help the skin retain moisture. For oily skin, choose oil-free formula and refreshing skin care products, such as lotion, gel or gel. Hydrophilic moisturizers such as glycerin and urea can be chosen as ingredients, and oily ingredients such as Vaseline or mineral oil should be avoided as much as possible. For sensitive skin, it is necessary to choose gentle and non irritating skincare products, and avoid using products containing irritating ingredients such as alcohol and spices.

（4） Pay attention to sun protection

Sunscreen is an important step in protecting the skin and cannot be ignored during autumn and winter seasons. Although the sunshine in autumn and winter may not be as strong as in summer, ultraviolet rays still exist. Neglecting sun protection can lead to skin problems such as sunburn, tanning, and wrinkles.

When choosing sunscreen products, you can choose suitable products according to different scenarios and skin types. For example, daily commuting can choose sunscreen with moderate sun protection index and lightweight texture; For outdoor activities, it is necessary to choose sunscreen with high sun protection index and good water resistance. At the same time, physical sun protection measures can also be taken, such as wearing hats, masks, sunglasses, etc., to provide more comprehensive protection for the skin.

The 24-25 NBA regular season,Lakers 123:116 Suns. How do yourate this game?

 24-25 season, Beijing time on October26,NBA regular, Lakers home againstthe sun, Zhan Mei war three giants.

The Lakers turned a 22-point lead over the Suns.

Coach Redick's thinking is pretty simple. lt goes something like this:

“Let the first five be present as much as possible, In addition, Hayes to provide rebounds and vitality, while giving AD a break; Vincent goes up to press, rookie kneckert goes up to throw a few pitches, all right.

But a little more than Coach Ham:

"Let everyone do what they're good at " For example, Coach Hamm often puts LeBron at center,lets Reeves run without the ball,and lets AD fight in the paint.

Redick is simple and clear:

AD has more face baskets and block cuts, Reeves dribbles to find AD, LeBron doesn't play center, hand to hand to Hayes.

After giving Reeves more tasks to hold the ball, LeBron played more easily: in the third quarter, he organized quick passes to counterattack and chasing long shots, and in the fourth quarter, he played like a mini Jokic: Take the ball inside the three-point line and use his vision to find Yachura and Vincent.

LeBron and Reeves each 8 assists, t..Lakers today the team five assists on AD played patiently, knowing the ball would find him.

But Redick has obviously adjusted, in the first half Jones broke Russell, and in the second half Redick reduced Russell.

Give Vincent more chances(pressure to start),get Hayes in the lineup and give him more high passes (let AD breathe).and AD still has the strength to play Durant in the second half. Hayes will be a relief.

When he was 7 points behind in the third quarter, Redick posed for the Twin Towers of Eyebrows+ Hayes to match LeBron with Knecter+ Vincent's energetic younger brother, so the team started and overtook.

From the results point of view, Redick did simple and clear, not to engage  experiments, not the whole flower live.are out of the basic rules of basketball simple.Maintain altitude,maintain defense. group pass.

KD had a good offense, Beal had a good pass, Booker even brought back his solo defense in America, but the game turned out to be a 22-point comeback,and the Lakers stepped up their counterattack,showing that the Sun shave had issues since the 2021 Finals:

On the transmission technology,the sun is impeccable; But if you encounter 2021 Giannis, 2022 Luka and their wolf teammates,2023 Jokic,last season Edwards and today's AD, relying on personal ability or pure talent, and you fight the strength and speed of the team, how can the sun resist?

Or a different angle:the next on When the sun sets,Best body What's the lineup?

"20 points" in the world more and more go farther and farther, and in the modern basketball attack and defense rhythm, this has gradually become a fact.

The Suns scored 38, 23, 24 and 31 in four quarters, while the Lakers scored 23,29, 35 and 36.A high open low go, a low open high go, this trend shows the difference between the two team's genes, the Suns are a more comfortable offensive team, the Lakers are a more resilient defensive team.

From the start can be seen a point guard for the team's bonus: the ball organization formation, Big centers are 22 more involved in the offense; The team can touch the ball, not a dozen four to see; The Big Three can handle the catch more easily...

Bill and Durant continued to be effective in the opening game, and Booker continued to be a top iron in the opening game, but was over shadowed by the good times of the team.In fact,Booker has always been a bit of a head iron, going well, and always rushing to get his shot back against the wind.

You could change it up a little bit, but that doesn't happen with Booker.

The Lakers came back from a 22-point deficit in less than two sessions, and Redick's response was uncomplicated:switching guards, keeping everyone in front of the Suns with defenders,increasing physical contact and》defensive intensity, making the Sur. turnovers counterattack, and using their size to get inside.

The real difficulty is to work out the strategy and then execute it. Hamm thought the same last season, and the Lakers won the Mid-Season Cup. But then what?

Like putting Rivers on the ball more to take the pressure off LeBron's offense .Doesn't Hamm know that? But can he do it? Reddick can, coach this bowl of rice in the final analysis is to make a person,which the old man has the most say.

It should be noted, however, that on the basis of Hamm, the Lakers lineup run-in last season and the lessons of failure,Redick can only do what he does now.

At the end of the third quarter, the  had a lineup of Morris + Bill + Booker +O'Neill + Nurkié, with the third guard +O'Neill standing on the fourth. To be honest, it was difficult for any normal

From these two games, Harden single core led the team, although it was far from the peak.

But Harden tank still has fuel, you can see the shadow of the rocket. but the score is not so cracked.

Today the Nuggets defense against Harden was brutal, delayed after half court,forced Harden to pass, often saw Harden in front of either two or three people

So today, Harden didn't take many shots, relying on free throws, but also got 23 points, 6 boards and 16 assists, of course, in the face of the Nuggets crazy?)double team, Harden also had 7 the turnovers.

But ultimately relied on Harden's foul free throw to bring the team victory

Of course, today the Clippers can win the biggest hero of course is Powell, the last moment, whether it is a three point or layup, have matched the score of Jokic and Murray

Powell was so insoluble when he was accurate,which also benefited from Harden's containment.

Today's Westbrook, must be the culprit of the Nuggets loss,0 for 8,2 points, 1 board,2 assists and 2 steals, plus and minus is the team'slowest -13

The Nuggets lost last game, and it also had a lot to do with West brook

Now, Westbrook is really incapable.Some people like to say that during the Clippers era, Westbrook was taking the blame for Harden.Westbrook's passion on the floor is what the team needs, but must cut down on his shots and switch roles. lf this continues, the follow-up Malone will greatly reduce Westbrook's playing time

Harden just needs a championship, no luck, but Harden joined the team,in order to win the sacrifice, this is no doubt.

With Leonard out indefinitely this season,there's not much expectation of what the Clippers can do

But Harden, the single-core leader,hopes that Harden can be himself, no matter how efficient, to shoot, to lead the team in his own way.

I think this is what a lot of fans who like to see Harden play want to see,these two Harden, see the shadow of that year.

passion! Westbrook is full of passion,about the teacher also can not bear the excitement of the inner tear jerseys!

Did you know that LeBron took Westbrook 11-9 in 20 games during the 23 AD injury? What is the concept that 46 points can't win a game?

If l say teacher Yue still has to practice,Westbrook is only 330 w, and the other players on the team are average, but they still have size.

23-season Lakers

Westbrook, Rivers, Christy, Pippen,Schroder, Beverly,Troy, Brown, Lonnie.Walker, and an unknown guard, JaymeDrab, Gabe.

15 men, 10 guards, and no basket, who can believe it?

No center LeBron forced to play center with a backup was called "wrong peak travel" by those James Black

There is no hope for MVP this year, but there is a possibility of winning the MVP Come on,there are still 80 games to try the turtle.

The last time l wrote the Dengo hero late, the heart is endless.

And then someone trolled me.Harden 'snot a hero.

In fact, most of the time, we don't look at what they say, but at what they do.

After all, besides the downgraded Harden, who else can you count on to

save the day? Zubac, Bowkobe,

Coffey?

You know, they can only rely on Harden, desperate.

We vaguely miss the ball core of the Rockets,the omnipotent Harden. At that time, the double can guard under great pressure, face injustice,turn the tide, show the trial of the vote,in the desperate place will be the peak of the splash+ Durant warriors beat,so that countless fans excited.

But with Harden leaving the Rockets，and Durant, lrving together in the Nets, After a series of chicken flying,dogs jumping, the Nets became a familiar rocket model, the eldest brother injured, lrving whole life,Harden dragged the team forward.

That leg injury in the series, so that he can no longer recover the east and west Zhan division and rule of the arena status,the decline of strength.so that the league also slowly fade away his legend.

As for the subsequent move to the 76 team, with the emperor this extremely sticky ball star cooperation,and then be coaxed by the team to cut wages, Philadelphia these bad experiences,so that Harden's reputation fell to the freezing point.Some even ridiculed Harden, he has no foothold in this league, the former glory has become a mirage.But Harden still did not give up, he still wanted to taste the taste of wearing that championship ring,he still had a dream.He doesn't want to return.

Today,Harden's performance is even better than the first game, 16 assists,and other partners are enough to force,such as Bowkobe, such as Zubac, no longer let Harden alone.

The game, we worked together to the Nuggets on a mixed stew, but not respectfully served, but the armed forces with life, twisted teeth grinning, a plate of food paste face.

Asking the teacher to cut 4 points won't help, even if this score is not common for him to be undisciplined.But not enough, after all, the spread of the C turtle value in rivers and lakes, the stall line is 50, about the teacher also needs to refuel, the future of the  sea, the sky is high Haitian, we look forward to about the teacher this season the outbreak of scoring champion strength, won the crown.

A late hero is a hero.

Even if he broke his leg, even if he was tired, even if the most powerful dependence around him once again left him, Even if he has not been able to gather the team, but he just quietly put on the broken war helmet in the after glow of the sunset, stepped on the horse without hesitation, blew the horn, and headed for victory again.

Without him, the hero's heart never ends.

On October 27, Beijing time, the NBA regular game continued. Today, the Nuggets ushered in the challenge of the Clippers at home. The two teams before this game lost in the opening game. So they also want to win to stop the decline, after all, the two teams in the new season are thinking about rushing into the playoffs, the game is also very tight, then we talk about the game process,and then talk about the players play.

In the first quarter of the game, Gordon and Murray led the team to a 5-0 start,Powell hit the middle distance, Gordon and Little Porter cut 3 points to  respond, Zubac and Little Jones cut 4 points to catch up with the Clippers,After the game into the rhythm of Clippers, Powell and Zubac have scored,Jokic a person struggling to support,after the bench to play, the Nuggets completely into a passive, Harden and

even 7 points to help the Clippers in the first quarter of the war lead 8 points.

Section Westbrook and small Porter cut 3 points to help the Nuggets narrow the difference, Dunn joined forces with Zubarts hit a wave of 14-0 offensive climax, directly established an 18-point lead,see teammates can not count on Jokic, too, could only resume his personal mode.He scored two consecutive thirds and then relied on a midrange injury penalty to score nine points in a row, helping the team

narrow their deficit to five points at one point. Harden finished with two free throws and Jokic had two free runs, and the Warriors finished the first half six points behind.

Easy side battle Murray two points in to the Nuggets to help narrow the gap,Zubac and Powell combined to cut 5 points in response, Murray and Joki ccombined to cut 4 points, Zubac and Jones combined to cut 5 points in response, Braun and Jokic successively scored to help the team catch up with the difference, Dunn and Harden combined to cut 5 points to stop bleeding, Strother and Watson combined to cut 5 points to respond,the two sides played very tight in this section,the end of the section Braune two free throws in all,the Clippers overtook 1 point.

Dunn and Strother scored three points in the final battle, Gordon and Jokic scored eight points, helping the Nuggets lead by seven points, Powell scored five points in response, Porter killed inside.Harden and Powell scored four points,Jones broke through the damage, the Clippers overtook the score, then the two sides into a stalemate, the last minute Murray two free throws, the Nuggets lead by 3 points, Powell and Harden cut 5 points, then Jokic flat three points missed,and ultimately they lost to the Clippers 104-109.

Jokic did his best in this game. He shot 14 of 25 from the field, 7 of 11 from 3 with 40 points,9 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 steals. Jokic now belongs to the and his teammates just can't hit it. Pope's departure completely collapsed their system.Defense wasn't working,offensively was n 't. Facing a team with a strong defense,the team could only rely on his personal ability to score.I don't think Temple management expected to sign so many premium contracts themselves.

Jamal Murray finished 7-for-13 with 22 points,2 rebounds and 5 assists,probably his most productive game since the Olympics and preseason, but now he's more of a neurotic type, out on a $209 million contract extension this offseason.Potter got 9 points, 9 rebounds and 2 assists in 4 of the 13 shots.As long as the opponent was with him, he could not play the value of the third scorer. The 170 million contract renewal of the Nuggets was also garbage.

Aaron Gordon recently got a four-year contract extension of 140 million,looks very reasonable,in fact, he is not the role of the team,the offensive end no space ability,injury by jokic feed cake,this game 10 shots in 3, 3 points in 4 1 got 10 points, 5 rebounds and 1 assists.Willis still plays very badly. He scored 2 points and l steal in 7 shots and 0 points in the game.In fact, there placement problem for the D.C. is not just Willis, he does not have stable scoring ability. lt is difficult for Jokic to lead the team to good results this season.

In the last game against the Suns,Harden seemed to have returned to his peak in the last quarter and the third quarter, but he was indeed old and his physical fitness couldn't bear it at the last moment. This game Harden still continued the same way in the previous game.When he was in good condition,he would output with all his strength,and when he was not in good condition.he would patiently sharpen his position.It was already very good to be able to lead the team ahead of the Nuggets fora long time. Although the Nuggets are not as good as in the past two years.there are also the first player in the league.Harden is still very outstanding.

Harden finished with 21 points, 6 the rebounds, 16 assists, 1 steals and 2 blocks on 5 of 11 shooting, Zubac finished with 22 points, 15 rebounds and 4 assists on 10 of 16 shooting,Powell finished with 35 points and 1 rebound on 14 of 22 shooting, and Jones scored 7 points. Now the Clippers have not played their full strength. Little Porter is still not finding the game. He is the player who has the best hope of becoming the team's second-most-holding core. He got four points, two rebounds and one assist in 10 runs. Now it seems that Powell is more like the second-best player.

The Clippers  goal this past season was clear: to win more games with great defense and lineup thickness. But the pressure on Harden is also great

enough. After all, he supports the offensive side alone. As it stands right now, if Leonard returns soon, the Clippers still have a chance to compete for a playoff spot.Otherwise, on Harden's side, they would have succeeded in reaching the Playoffs in the fiercely competitive West.

Spanish universities and the obstacles to development

 

Spanish universities and the

obstacles to development

A viable science base requires a commitment to excellence and imagination that is incompatible with rigidity and cronyism. Spain needs to absorb this lesson if it is to flourish scientifically and economically.

Few countries areas well placed to turn modern science to their economic and social advantage as Spain.On the one hand 

Spain's membership ofthe European Union should, in princi-ple, allow it to tap into the best that Europe’s research laboratories can offer. On the other, it enjoys the long-term prospect of expanding markets in LatinAmerica. Yet a traditionally heavy-handed bureau- cracy, the legacy of scientific stagnation during the Franco years, and the side-effects of a strong libertarian backlash when the Franco yoke was lifted, still threaten to hold the country back from exploitinthis opportunity to the full. The consequent obstacles to progress are damagingly frustrating to Spain’s best scientists who, despite this, continue to support their country’s scientific and economic development.

Take the issue of university appointments. Current lawson uni- versities, introduced in 1983, rightly give such institutions consider- able freedom in appointing tenured faculty members (previously, these had been appointed centrally). But there is much evidence that the procedure under which such appointments are made, in particu- lar the make-up of five-member appointments boards, twomembers of which come from the university involved, can remain excessively influenced by non-academic considerations. The concern is that the autonomy of universities has allowed the appointments process to become dominated by mutual self-interest operating through self- sustaining social networks — in other words,‘cronyism’

The issue has been highlighted by charges brought by one astro- physicist against the University of Salamanca, who had returned to Spain — ironically in response to a government appeal — after work- ing for eight years in Germany (see page 712). The astrophysicist claims that he was inappropriately, and illegally, rejected for a faculty

appointment, despite the superiority of his scientific qualifications. In drawing attention to this case, Nature is not seeking to make any judgement on the validity of the university’s decision to award two different posts, for which the astrophysicist had applied, to inter- nal candidates. Nor, indeed, is the case necessarily different from

thousands of similar but less formal complaints that cronyism over- shadows scientific performance in the appointments process.

The situation in Spain is by no means unique, but that should not make it anymore acceptable. To its credit, the current administration in Madrid has shown itself aware of the problem. Proposed changes to university laws currently under consideration would alter the make-up of appointments committees, requiring at least four of the five members to come from other universities (selected at random). Such a move would be a welcome challenge to the‘cronyist’ temptations.But the problem goes deeper than voting procedures. Social net- works will always find ways to flourish, whatever is done to limit their effectiveness. And changing the appointments process on its own will not address the second major problem facing universities in Spain (and elsewhere): the intellectual sclerosis created by abroad system of tenure that requires little accountability from researchers, after they have crossed initial hurdles, for the rest of their working lives. The trick is to find away of improving the situation that does not under- mine the commitment to long-term goals on which the health of a growing science base depends.

The two problems need to be addressed together. Again, this appears to be recognized by many of those government officials who are responsible for the health of the nation’s research base, for exam- plein the proposal that universities provide four-year teaching con- tracts. It seems to be less accepted in wider political circles, where those who enjoy the privileges and security of the current arrange- ments — and who would be directly threatened by any significant changes — can often find substantial support. But change is essential if Spain is to achieve its full scientific and technological potential. Already some institutions, such as the nascent National Centre for Cancer Research in Madrid, are demonstrating that alternative arrangements are possible; hopefully, a high scientific output from such ‘experiments’ will show that they are also desirable. Spain’s politicians should give them close attention.   

Kemp’s cultures

A series that ends this week should inspire not only appreciation of images but also a desire to communicate.

lrresistibly and in occasionally peremptory fashion, science has, in recent years, embedded itself ever deeper into everyday culture.

One can reasonably assume that this infiltration will grow as science significantly extends and deepens our understanding of just what we are.

Visually, that cultural permeation can be witnessed at several lev- els. Citizens are surrounded by images, often taken out of scientific context, with values ranging from the ephemeral to the icon with an impact that resonates for decades. At a deeper level, scientific ideas and perspectives are absorbed by artists and significantly enrich their portrayals or creative extensions of the world.
For over a year, Martin Kemp has treated readers of Nature, week by week,to a seemingly endless celebration of diverse and often beautiful artistic and scientific images and the (respectively) scientif- ic and artistic impulses that can be traced within them. But the end has finally come (page 727). To judge by the author’selectronic mail- box, readers have been much stimulated. They will be pleased to know that he will continue to contribute regularly, albeit less fre- quently, in future. Meanwhile, researchers might consider the ever more important need to communicate their science not only to their peers but also in ways that others can appreciate and that artists in particular, occasionally but valuably, can creatively absorb.


World Bank backs Third World centres of excellence plan

A global chain of so-called Millennium Institutes, acting as scientific centres of excellence in developing countries to galvanize a rapid increase in their scientif- ic and technical strength, is being planned by the World Bank, private foundations and several governments.

The World Bank could grant the first loan, of around US$5 million, to establish proto- types for such institutes in Chile as early as next month, according to bank officials. The initiative has the strong personal support of Eduardo Frei, the president of Chile, and James Wolfensohn, the bank’spresident.

The institutes will be characterized by the fact that leading scientists from outside the host country will select their directors and review their performance, that the focus of research will be of direct relevance to that country’s economic and social needs, and that there will be frequent exchange of stu- dents and researchers with institutes abroad.

Frei has been discussing ideas for new sci- entific collaboration with other LatinAmeri- can leaders for more than a year (see Nature 391, 524–525; 1998). Wolfensohn, who is on the board of directors at the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) at Princeton, New Jer- sey, and has been instrumental in focusing the bank on the ‘knowledge gap’ between industrialized and developing countries (see Nature 395, 529; 1998), badly wants to bolster science in the bank’s client countries.

Wolfensohn asked IAS director Philip Griffiths to investigate the possibility ofnew types of institutes to do this. Earlier this year Griffiths met Claudio Teitelboim, Frei’s science adviser. Their discussion led to the convergence of the two initiatives at a special meeting in June in Santiago, attended by scientific leaders from Latin America, the United States and Europe.

The meeting resulted in a concept for the Millennium Institutes which, supporters believe, will enable a small number of excel- lent researchers in developing countries to break free from the constraints on first-class international research there.

They believe this can be achieved by in- vesting a relatively small amount of money, directed at exceptional talent with guaran- teed long-term support and subject to review by leading scientists from other countries.

“We want to have a research group work- ing happily and feeling that they are not hindered by being in Chile rather than in Paris, New York or London,”says Teitelboim.

Teitelboim says Chile’s proposal is “a Chilean initiative that has the support ofthe World Bank” But bank officials and other advocates of the Millennium Institutes expect it to be rapidly followed by similar institutes elsewhere in Latin America, and that if successful, the concept will quickly spread to other regions of the world, includ- ing East Asia and Africa.

Bruce Alberts, the president of the US National Academy of Sciences, who attended the Santiago meeting, says that international peer review of the Millennium Institutes will


“keep out the politics that dominates science in developing countries”

He adds that the institutes will seek to transform the public image of science in these countries, where it is sometimes viewed as isolated from and subservient to economic and societal needs. “They’ll need to demon- strate value beyond just their academic value,” he says. “We want them to help bring science into the public consciousness ” The institutes will “be embedded in the university system” of their host countries, where their staff will be expected to teach.



Lauritz Holm-Nielsen, a senior science and technology specialist at the World Bank who runs the initiative there, says its rate of expansion will depend on the interest expressed by the bank’s client countries.


“We’re trying at first to work with Chile, Argentina, Brazil and Colombia,” he says.

Holm-Nielsen adds that the institutes will not adhere to any particular model or struc- ture, but will instead focus on supporting the best people, using “a variety of models” applicable to individual countries. The bank will expect host governments to adopt a poli- cy of long-term support for the institutes.


It will rapidly consider small “learning and innovation” loans, such as that requested by Chile,to start prototypes, and then larger loans for the long-term operation of the insti- tutes. One researcher familiar with the pro- gramme expects Chile to request $40–$60 million to operate its first batch of institutes.

Griffiths says several private foundations, including the Carnegie Corporation and the Fulbright programme, are involved in the discussions on the initiative or have already pledged grants to it. He hopes that around six prototype institutes will be established with- in a year.

For Chile, according to Teitelboim, “the key thing is to get the prototype to fly” He envisages “no more than three” prototype


Germany’s nuclear secrets can now be told  [MUNICH] Formerly secret documents relating to Germany’s nuclear programme between 1938 and 1945 were transferred to Munich’s Deutsches Museum last week. The documents include research reports and

experimental protocols written by Germany’s Nobelprizewinners Werner

Heisenberg and Otto Hahn, as well as their correspondence with the government.

In 1938 Hahn, Lise Meitner and Fritz

Strassmann discovered the first evidence of the products of uranium nuclear fission.

After the beginning of the Second World War, the Nazis increased support for the nuclear research programme. The

documents show that until the early 1940s Germany and the United States were almost equally advanced in nuclear research.

Immediately after the war the Americans confiscated the documents, but theywere

returned to Germany in the 1970sand kept at the Karlsruhe National Research Centre.

The museum will make the documents freely available to historians. Quirin Schiermeier



institutes in Chile, together with “a larger number of nuclei”, where a single investigator will be supported, and which may later evolve into full institutes. A third element of funding will support visiting students and researchers. “There will be a very small number of perma- nent people, and a large flow of people visit- ing,” says Teitelboim.

The Chilean government will not decide the disciplines in which the institutes will specialize, nor their balance between pure and applied research. “To decide whether Chile should excel in this or that would defeat the purpose” of the initiative, Teitel- boim says. “We should scout for talent, and then follow that talent.”

The University of Salamanca in Spain is being taken to court by an astro- physicist who claims that a bias towards internal candidates denied him an associate professorship in its department of general and atmospheric physics.

A university panel has already rejected an appeal by the astrophysicist, Antonio Férriz Mas. It argues that, despite having better scientific qualifications than the individual appointed, his speciality of fluid dynamics was “significantly different” from the department’s requirements, namely atmos- pheric dynamics and thermodynamics

But Férriz Mas says the university has violated the principles of equality and meri- tocracy in assessing applicants for the post. University officials are not commenting publicly on the charges, which will probably take one to two years to reach court.

The administration of public universities in Spain has improved following reforms in 1983. But the selection process for profes- sors,known as the‘concurso-oposición’, is still widely seen as a considerable barrier to the development of high quality research.

A contract researcher already employed in a department is frequently given a tenured position,for example, even if they are not the most scientifically qualified applicant.

Under the 1983 law, appointment boards must have five members, at least three of whom must vote for the approved candidate. Two members come from the department concerned, and three from other universi- ties. But often the crucial third vote for a local

candidate is saidto be easily obtained.

Many concerned parties — including vice-chancellors and officials at the Ministry of Education and Culture — are now back- inga change in the law to give each university department only one vote, that of chair of the

appointment board (see below).

Férriz Mas worked at the University of Freiburg in Germany for three years as a PhD fellow and five as a postdoctoral researcher He returned to Spain in October 1994 under a programme spon- sored by the govern-

ment for ‘reincorpo- rating’ researchers. A month later he applied for a post in earth physics, astronomy and astrophysics at the University of Salaman- ca, and spent six months preparing the teaching project on atmospheric dynamics and thermodynamics. There were three candidates for the post.

In the first part of the examination, based on research experience and proposed teaching project, the examiners gave FérrizMas three points. The local candidate, who was put forward by the department and was eventu- ally awarded the post, received the top mark of five. The second exam, which involved giving a lecture, resulted in an equal score.

FérrizMas appealed against the decision. A year later, an appeal panel, chaired by vice- chancellor Ignacio Berdugo Gómez de la Torre, reported after taking advice from two foreign scientists. Both agreed that Férriz Mas’swork was “substantially more impor- tant” than that of the appointed candidate.

Despite this, Férriz Mas’s claim was rejected because the first part of the appoint- ment process depended on the match between the position’s ‘teaching profile’ and the research and teaching programme pro-

posed by the candidates. The appeal panel acknowledged that the appointment board “should have operated with a higher dili- gence, as the ‘fit’to the teaching profile must be clearly stated in preliminary information, as well as in the reports of the first exam”

The panel said it lacked the knowledge to judge how much the need to meet this‘teach- ing profile’ should take precedence over the quality of prior research and teaching.


The appointment process had already been questioned by the third candidate for the post, Fernando Atrio Barandela, associ- ate professor of theoretical physics at the


Atrio Barandela asked one member of the appointment board the reason for his score, and says he was told it was not intended to reflect the relative merits of the candidates, but rather the committee’spreferences.


A year later, FérrizMas applied for anoth- er post, an assistant professorship in the theo- retical physics group, with an astrophysics teaching profile, at the university’sFaculty of Sciences. The post involved instruction in using telescopes, but was given to a chemist.

Again FérrizMas appealed. This time the appeal panel, again chaired by Gómez dela Torre, accepted that the person appointed had a worse fit to the teaching profile than Férriz Mas — but had substantially better research and teaching experience.

Férriz Mas says that this second decision confirms that the local candidate was the predetermined choice for each post, and that there is often an unspoken agreement among the members of appointment boards.

In such cases, he argues, the deciding third voice seals a pact where board members return the favour in the future. He says that committee members have total impunity.

Many Spanish researchers are critical of the process. Benjamin Montesinos, director of the laboratory of space astrophysics and


fundamental physics, an ‘associated unit’ of the Institute of Astrophysics of Andalusia (Higher Council of Scientific Research), says that a smokescreen of complex arguments is often used to justify appointing an internal candidate to a post.

He argues that examiners who assess applicants to jobs in universities should have nolink with the department concerned.


Luis F. Rull, professor of physics at the University of Seville, says the argument used against FérrizMas — that fluid dynamics is a different discipline to atmospheric dynamics and thermodynamics — is false. Rull calls for common standards and wants a public rank- ing of disciplines, perhaps based on publica- tion record, impact factor and citations.

Juan J. Manfredi, professor of mathemat- ics at the University of Pittsburgh, says that many qualifications are used by appoint- ment boards to disqualify candidates who maybe better than local candidates.



He says that some positions define a teaching profile (instead of area of knowl- edge) so closely that only one candidate can meet the criteria. This process, he argues, goes directly against the cross-fertilization that research requires

Europe bids for molecular biology ‘club’
The European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO), which promotes molecular biology through fellowships, conferences and workshops, is to launch a series of young investigator awards.

EMBO hopes that the five-year awards will be sufficiently prestigious to encourage the brightest young scientists to install themselves permanently in laboratories across Europe. Those eligible must be within eight years of completing their PhD.

The intention is that EMBO Research Sci- entists, as the recipients of the awards will be called, will form a ‘club’ of top-level molecu- lar biologists who will maintain links with each other and with research group leaders at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg, Germany, for at least the duration of the fellowships.

The governments of EMBO’s 23 member states, which operate collectively as the European Molecular Biology Conference, last week agreed in principle to finance the scheme. If all goes smoothly, they will decide on its permanent level of financing in 2000. EMBO is expected to launch the scheme by contributing ECU500,000 (US$590,000)


of its current budget annually into a pool of funds, which is expected to be expanded by donations from other sources such as chari- ties and foundations. Some member coun- tries will also be expected to contribute to this pool, the largest contributions coming from the richer countries.

EMBO Research Scientists will be given a salary, the costs of running a small laborato- ry conducting research independent of the host institute’s tenured scientists, and travel expenses associated with ‘networking’ — attending an annual meeting and visiting other laboratories in the‘club’

Some candidates would already be  receiving national young investigator awards. They would receive no support from EMBO for salaries and laboratory costs, but would receive full support for networking.

Any member state wishing to increase its number of EMBO Research Scientists in this


category could do so by making a further payment. This could be used to top up the resources of all the EMBO Research Scien- tists in that country if the national young investigator award is judged to be signifi- cantly lower than the European average.A second category would be selected in the first instance by EMBO. The relevant member state would agree the choice ofcan didate and pay a significant proportion of salary and running costs. The remainder would come from the EMBO awards pool.

“EMBO’s selection committee will ensure the high standard of selected Research Scientists, and ensure that their quality is uniform throughout Europe,” says Frank Gannon, director of EMBO. “I expect the initiative will become an important com- ponent of scientific life in Europe, one which identifies high-quality researchers at anearly stage in their careers, and helps us to keep such individuals in Europe ” Maria Carmo Fonseca, a professor of cell and molecular biology at the University of Lisbon, who previously worked at EMBL, says the strong networking component will be particularly helpful in attracting back to

“peripheral” countries, such as Portugal and Spain,young scientists who trained abroad.

The Portuguese Ministry of Research has already agreed to setup a young investigator award scheme that will allow it to exploit the EMBO scheme, she says.

South Korean researchers under fire for claims of human cloning

[TOKYO] A South Korean research team, which announced last week that it had cloned a human embryo, has been criticized by other researchers for refusing to disclose the evidence to backup its claim.

Indeed, many doubt whether the cloning experiment, claimed to be the first to have produced an embryo from a human somatic cell,has produced promising results.

Researchers from Kyunghee University Hospital in Seoul announced at a press conference that they had cultivated an earlystage embryo using an unfertilized egg and a somatic cell from a female patient who had been receiving infertility treatment there.

The team, led by Kim Seoung Bo and Lee Po Yon, professor and associate professor in obstetrics and gynaecology at Kyunghee

University, injected nuclei from granulosa cells (differentiated cells that surround the oocyte) into enucleatedoocytes.

Of six fertilized eggs, one divided to the four-cell stage. Researchers say they then

destroyed this ‘embryo’ without implanting it into a human body. They say they adapted the technique used by researchers from the University of Hawaii, who have cloned

several generations of mice using granulosa cells (see Nature 394, 369–373; 1998).

“The experiment was carried out purely for the purpose of medical research, and not for clinical purposes. The fertilized egg was not implanted in the uterus of the donor, as we have no intention of creating a cloned baby,” said Lee at the press conference.

Lee says the experiment was conducted according to ethical rules on artificial

fertilization laid down by the South Korean Medical Association in 1993,which prohibit the implantation of genetically engineered human embryos. The government is



compiling a draft bill on the regulation of human cloning research, which is expected to pass the congress early next year.


Although the research team has no plans for any further experiments until the new legislation is ready, it hopes to use the

technique to develop cells and tissues for replacement therapy and to treat infertility.But there is widespread concern among the public, even though the experiment stopped short of producing a full human clone. The Korean Federation for the Environment Movement, for example, says human cloning research, if misused, could result in a “great mishap to all mankind” There was a more muted response from the scientific community in South Korea, with some doubting its success, as no evidence has been released.

“The lack of a scientific presentation leads us to think that their results are not ‘hair raising’ in terms of a scientific breakthrough,” says Dae-Young Uhm,associate professor in physiology at

Sungkyunkwan University. “The only notable social response was from the civil rights groups ”

Kim refuses to release evidence of the experiment’s success to avoid further controversy. “We have strong evidence, including photos, but we will not release it now as we believe our reputation has been damaged enough,” he says.      

Making a case in the corridors of power

Britain’s corridors of power last week witnessed a rather unusual gathering of scientists and senior ministers who — in the company of some potted plants — assembled in 10 Downing Street to brief the primeminister, Tony Blair, on why science matters, the issues surrounding public investment in science and its policy implications.

The presentations were made in a series of tightly orchestrated, four-minute slots, delivered around the long, boat-shaped Cabinet table. The potted plants,reputedly the first to be placed squarely on the

Cabinet table in front of the primeminister, arrived with Caroline Dean from the John Innes Centre in Norwich, who talked about her work on the genes in the plant Arabidopsis. Dean was among those whose talk came under the heading, “A Taste of Science” . Any resonance with the billing found on the back of pre-prepared supermarket

meals — “A Taste of India” — was a reminder that for most government ministers, science might as well be a far-flung foreign land. But the scientists present left the meeting rather pleased. “I felt that science had moved to the top of the agenda,” says Paul Nurse,director-general of the Imperial Cancer Research Fund.“I’m prepared to be as cynical as the next person, but I came away feeling fairly impressed and upbeat about the whole thing,” says

Matthew Freeman of the Medical Research Council’s Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge.

According to  the reports of those present, ministers talked of the recent success of the Research Assessment Exercise conducted on British universities, and there was cautious discussion of a possible new white paper on science.It also appeared clear that senior ministers were not confident that the recent

announcement of significant additional funds for science (see Nature 394, 209; 1998) was likely to be sufficient to silence scientists, and they were expecting further calls for money.

The scientists in turn delivered some important messages about the difficulties of finding adequate funding for their work. One of those present was Polina Bayvel of University College London, representing the country’s electrical

engineering departments.

Already backed by a prestigious Royal Society University Research Fellowship, Bayvel has raised £1.5 million (US$2.5 million) for an optical communications laboratory — but the effort has involved writing more than 35 grant proposals over the past five years. The need for long-term funding for good scientists was driven home by Matthew Freeman, who used his own highly successful laboratory as an example.


Despite being billed as a mix of young and old, and life and physical scientists, the meeting inevitably ruffled a

few feathers. “The make-up of the meeting clearly reflected a life-sciences bias,” said one physicist. “This is

understandable, but what’s worrying is there might be an ideology to fund life sciences more because they create

more wealth.” For many, however, the surprise turn of the meeting was the widely distrusted trade and industry secretary Peter Mandelson, who, despite his reputation as the Labour party’s ‘spin-doctor’, seems to have made

something of a hit with the assembled academics. “I really liked Mandelson,” said one. “I hadn’t expected to, as his image is an alarming one. [But] he was intelligent and

had a really sharp, black sense of humour.” Towards the end came

discussion of how to improve science’s poor public image. National Science Week,

suggested one participant, needed some high-profile events — such as a minister bungee jumping off a tall

building to demonstrate Newtonian dynamics and Hooke’s law.

“Haven’t you heard?”

quipped Mandelson. “I’m

doing that from the

Millennium Dome” . Such an

event would certainly serve

to attract visitors to the

government’s £758-million

dome, which houses an

exhibition celebrating the

millennium.

Britain embrace ‘knowledgey economy’

The British government has pledged to put the commercialization of sci- entific knowledge at the heart of its industrial policy. The move comes in an ambitious and wide-r ing series of initiatives announced

last week, including a white paper on how sci- ence can enhance economic competitiveness.

But implementing the initiatives is likely to be controversial. Some ministers in the Labour government are concerned that some proposals clash with the priorities of other government departments.

The white paper (policy document) includes a new £150 million (US$252 mil- lion) national venture capital fund to help finance small businesses with the potential to grow, such as high-technology companies. It also includes a £20 million annual Higher Education Reach Out fund to reward univer- sities in England that work with businesses.

Universities in Scotland will receive £34 mil- lion over three years. Existing schemes encouraging academics to work with industry are also being expand- ed while £75 million for equipment is being

given under the Joint Research Equipment Initiative (see Nature 396, 607; 1998).

Some of the thinking behind the white paper is borrowed from the United States. For example, the science minister, Lord David Sainsbury, is to coordinate a series ofstudies into the extent to which high-technology companies in Britain can benefit by being located in clusters such as those to be found in Silicon Valley or around Boston.

The white paper includes a government- sponsored review of whether publicly funded research establishments are making the best use of intellectual property rights to maxi-

mize the commercial returns from research.

Launching the initiatives, Peter Mandel- son, Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, said that,as a high-wage economy with high land and transport costs and few raw materi- als, the United Kingdom’s best hope of raising economic growth rates is by exploiting the potential of‘knowledge industries’

Many see the white paper as a significant step in the Labour party’s shift away from its traditional socialist roots to its present posi- tion as a party of the centre-left, comfortable both with increased public investment and free markets. This is a shift that Mandelson personally helped to engineer, and he has strong backing from Sainsbury.

In a newspaper article published the day after the white paper’s launch, Mandelson wrote that he was a politician “confident that his white paper marks a turning point in ide- ology and policy for his party and his coun- try” The message was plain, he wrote: “Labour has dumped its interventionist past ”

This language, and the emphasis on rely- ingon science to create wealth,concerns min- isters with more traditional socialist leanings. These include Michael Meacher, the environ- ment minister, and his boss, John Prescott, the deputy primeminister.

Mandelson and Sainsbury will face one of their first tests over the development of high- technology clusters. These businesses are likely to be subjected to rigorous and lengthy planning applications, particularly if they are to be built in or near rural areas.

Mandelson says he wants planning appli- cations from high-technology industries to be dealt with such that “the national econom- ic interest is taken into consideration” But the environment department, which oversees the planning system, is anxious that environ- mental considerations should not be down- graded, according to officials.

A key test of this is likely to bean applica- tion by the Welcome Trust to build a science park next to its genetics research centre at Hinxton Hall near Cambridge. The planning inspector has rejected the proposal. But this decision has yet to be endorsed by Prescott.

Another battle looms over biotechnology regulation. The environment department plans to include more public representatives on its committee of scientists that advises the government on the safety of proposed geneti- cally modified crops.

It also wants applications to grow such crops to be seen by an additional ethics com- mittee. But the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is likely to oppose this on behalf of industry, which fears that further regulations will be time-consuming and a threat to economic competitiveness.

This battle will be fought out in a forth- coming review of the structure of Britain’s biotechnology regulatory system, also announced last week. The review, to be car- ried out by the Cabinet Office and the Office of Science and Technology, will include pub- lic consultation on the regulatory process.

It has been setup partly in response to the collapse in public confidence in government science advice during the crisis over bovine spongiform encephalopathy, and partly to address public concern that regulations on the planting of genetically modified crops do not adequately address safety issues.

One senior environment civil servant says the spectre of a possible recession is one rea- son that the DTI is keen to help setup knowl- edge-based companies. But she says her department will face severe public criticism if environmental and safety considerations are relaxed.

Longevity and the barren aristocrat

Experiments with fruitflies have shown that those with fewer offspring generally live longer. Twelve-hundred years of genealogical data from British aristocrats now suggests that this relationship extends to humans.

when Madame Jeanne Calment (Fig.1) died last year, at a record-breaking 122 years of age, gerontologists debated just what accounted for her extraor- dinary longevity. According to a report by Westendorp and Kirkwood1 on page 743 of this issue, at least part of Madame Calment’s Methuselean lifespan may have been due to her having had only one child. These authors used data from genealogies of the British aristocracy to show that lifespan is negatively correlated with family size — a result that supports predictions from evolutionary models of ageing.

Ageing is an inevitable result of the declining force of natural selection with age2. For example,a mutant gene that halves the survival rate among young children will be strongly selected against. But a gene of simi- lar magnitude whose effects are confined to people over the age of 90 will experience no selection because people with this deleteri- ous gene will have passed it to their offspring long before its effects become apparent. So, over evolutionary time, late-acting delet-

erious genes will accumulate, leading to an increase in mortality rates late in life. Indeed, late-acting deleterious genes may even be favoured by selection if they have beneficial effects early in life — agenetic mechanism dubbed ‘antagonistic pleiotropy’3 . This trade-off between benefits at anearly age and

costs later was explained by Kirkwood over 20 years ago in his ‘disposable soma’theory4, which predicts that any investment in re- production diverts resources away from the maintenance and repair of cells, with ageing as a result (Fig. 2).

The antagonistic-pleiotropy and dispos- able-soma theories both indicate that those who invest heavily in reproduction while young will pay for this reproductive success with ashortened lifespan. Researchers have

found support for this prediction in many model organisms. In the fruitfly Drosophila melanogaster, for example, flies selected for long lifespan have reduced early fecundity5.

Now, thanks to the extensive genealogical records that have been kept on the British

aristocracy for the past 1,200 years, Westen- dorp and Kirkwood1 have identified the predicted trade-off in humans. The authors obtained records for 19,830 male and 13,667 female aristocrats born between 740 and 1875, then looked at the dates of birth and death, number of children, and the age at which each child was born. For women who survived to at least 60 years of age, they found a negative correlation between the number of years survived beyond 60 and the number of children. (The pattern among men was virtually identical.) Similarly, women who started reproducing later (and, presumably, had smaller families) lived longer. Almost half the women who surpassed 81 years of age had no children, yet fewer than one-third of the women that died before that age were childless.


One might argue that the negative corre- lation between family size and longevity is due to changing demographic trends — starting around 1700, average family size decreased and longevity increased among the British aristocracy. To ensure that this demographic transition was not the under- lying cause of the negative correlation between longevity and the number of chil- dren, the authors analysed cohorts born before 1700 and after this time separately. In both cases, the correlation between lifespan and number of progeny was negative, although evidence for the trade-off was much greater among women born before 1700 than those born more recently.

This study, and previous tests of evolu- tionary theories for ageing using human data6,7, assumes that the observed variation in longevity is due, at least in part, to genet- ics. Westendorp and Kirkwood show that longevity is correlated between parents and

offspring, suggesting a heritable basis to ageing. However, for genealogical studies at least, we cannot distinguish the effects of genetic similarity from those of common environment. The authors find that longevi- ty is correlated not only between parents and offspring, but also between husband and wife. So, inbreeding aside, it is fair to assume that any correlation of longevity between spouses is due to a shared environment, not shared genes.

Westendorp and Kirkwood reduce potential environmental variation by limit- ing their study to the aristocracy. But even among this relatively homogenous class one might expect substantial variation in wealth and general environment — not only across the centuries, but even among families living in the same period. The new results are powerful evidence for a correlation between

reproduction and longevity in British aristo- crats. In the search for trade-offs, however, correlation does not prove causation8, and it remains to be seen whether the observed patterns are due to nature or nurture.

Nevertheless, Westendorp and Kirk- Can we conclude that having fewer chil- dren extends life expectancy? Although childless women benefit from a decreased incidence of heart disease and cervical cancer later in life, they have an increased risk of breast cancer and respiratory disease10.

an ocean comprised almost completely of such water, which would have a dramatic effect on the climate.

This doesn’t happen, because the deep ocean is stirred. But how? In “Abyssal recipes” Munk sought a balance between thewood’s results raise intriguing questions that Clearly, many factors influence lifespan, and upwelling of cold water with mixing down might be addressed with this extraordinary readers can rest assured that having more

human database. First, for half a century, evo- children will not necessarily send you to an

lutionary biologists studying life-history early grave. After all, Queen Victoria gave

strategies have been interested in the evolu- birth to nine offspring, all of whom survived,

tion of clutch size (number of progeny)9. The and lived to be 81 years old — in her day, a

database can now be used to determine ripe old age.