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Last night, I was watching a TV program about colds and influenza (the flu). A doctor on the program said that it’s easy to get sick in winter because of the cold weather and because it’s dry. He said that there are little hairs inside our noses. These hairs move fast in warm weather and keep viruses from getting into our bodies, but they need to be wet. Winters in Japan are dry, and air conditioners make the air even drier. We should drink a little water every hour. When we sleep, we can use a mask with a little water and mint oil on it to stop dryness. I think I’ll try to do both. (by Prof. Douglas Jarrell)
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Japan Airlines thinks we will want to fly faster in the future, so it is putting its money on a supersonic airplane. That’s an airplane that flies faster than the speed of sound. There used to be supersonic airplanes. France and Britain produced the Concorde, a beautifully designed airplane with a nose that pointed down. It was fast but very expensive. It could fly over the ocean, but the noise over land was too loud. The Concorde stopped flying in 2003. Now JAL is investing in a company called Boom which will build new planes. People will again be able to fly long distances in half the time. (by Prof. Douglas Jarrell)
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