Walter Benjamin, the German philosopher, once noted that boredom was the “dream bird that hatches the egg of experience”. However, the creative flights of fancy which often arise from having little to do are being killed off by social media, researchers argued. Viewing mindlessly through attention-grabbing posts and videos prevents “profound (深层的) boredom” that can drive people on to new passions or skills. Instead, people find themselves in a state of “superficial boredom”, which does not motivate creative thought.
Dr Timothy Hill, leader of the research team at the University of Bath, said, “The problem we observed was that social media can ease superficial boredom. But that also consumes time and energy, and may prevent people progressing to a state of profound boredom, where they might discover new passions. Profound boredom may sound like a negative concept but, in fact, it can be intensely positive if people are given the chance for undisturbed thinking and development.
Researchers interviewed 15 people during the pandemic (流行病), when boredom was more likely because of restrictions. Many described being trapped in regularly daily walks and watching television, with many turning to social media to pass the time. But although the participants said that social media provided a temporary escape from superficial boredom, it also appeared to exacerbate it, leaving them feeling they had wasted their time.
The pandemic was a painful and consuming experience for thousands of less fortunate people. But there are stories of those in lockdown who found new hobbies, careers or directions in life. Switching off devices could help people reach the state of boredom which pushes them on to new hobbies or achievements.
This research has given us a window to understand how the “always-on”, 24/7 culture and devices that promise an abundance of information and entertainment may be fixing our superficial boredom but are actually preventing us from finding more meaningful things.
1. Why are Walter Benjamin’s words mentioned?A.To call for attention to the research on boredom. |
B.To comment on the strategies to face loneliness. |
C.To offer advice on developing creative thinking. |
D.To clarify the problem caused by social media. |
A.Profound boredom is of value. |
B.Social media can fuel passions. |
C.The research has some limitations. |
D.Creative thought is easily disturbed. |
A.Avoid. | B.Break. |
C.Inspire. | D.Worsen. |
A.Why people enjoy boredom |
B.How boredom helps kill time |
C.Why being bored may be good for you |
D.How social media blocks creative ideas |
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【推荐1】The easiest way to love yourself is to treat yourself like your own BFF. It might seem like it’s easier to love others than to love yourself, but it’s tough to build healthy relationships if you don’t love yourself first.
Let go of negative thoughts about yourself. Drill down to the core of those thoughts and tell yourself a different story. Think about what you would say to a friend who said those things about themselves. For example, if you forgot to buy trash bags, instead of blaming yourself, you might as well think, “I’ll just pick some up next time I go out — no big deal.” Don’t try to fight negative thoughts, though — they’re a part of who you are.
Accept your flaws as part of who you are. Everything you’ve done and everywhere you’ve been is a part of who you are — you! Self-love isn’t about fixing all the “bad” things about yourself. Instead, accept that they’re all parts of the same whole.
Practice gratitude for good things rather than focusing on the negative. It’s human nature to see negative things as bigger and more important than positive things, but this also does tremendous damage to your self-esteem.
A.Focus on your effort rather than the result to control perfectionism. |
B.Challenge those thoughts with logical observations to reframe your conclusion. |
C.Instead, you can simply drown them out with more positive, affirmative thoughts. |
D.When you love yourself, you love all of you because you wouldn’t have the good without the bad. |
E.Here are some strategies that can help you embark on a journey of treating yourself with kindness. |
F.Negative thoughts often come from outside people whose opinions we value. |
G.When you focus on the negative, try to name some things that you can be grateful for. |
【推荐2】Soothe the Sunday scaries
Most of us look forward to the weekend as a time to relax, connect with friends and family, and deal with tasks from a to-do list that gets neglected during the workweek. But as the weekend comes to an end, many are missing out on Sunday Funday and instead experiencing an overwhelming sense of anxiety and even dread about the upcoming week.
Even though the Sunday scaries are common, they are manageable. Here’s how experts say you can ease your end-of-weekend anxiety.
Structure your Sunday.
Don’t forget to relax. If you’re feeling more stress, it’s important to make space for relaxing activities to ground yourself. Maybe a midafternoon shower or bath, maybe an engaging movie or show, whatever feels like a helpful distraction to reground from the scaries.
Identify your anxiety sources. Try to figure out what’s really causing you to dread the week.
End your Sunday with the right energy. Sunday night is a proper wind-down time. Maybe you want to journal, do a face mask, read a few pages of a good book. Do your best to honor this time and make Sunday night all about you.
A.Is it a deadline, meeting or presentation? |
B.Create some excitement for the week ahead. |
C.Experts have referred to this worry as Sunday scaries. |
D.Sunday scaries come from tiredness after a really busy weekend. |
E.Then you feel empowered and confident that you’ll be ready for the next day. |
F.Instead of sitting on the couch and watching the clock, go to do something that you enjoy. |
G.Anxiety is a natural response that happens in preparation for anything that causes pain or discomfort. |
Doctors say anger can be an extremely damaging emotion, unless you learn how to deal with it. They warn that anger can lead to heart disease, stomach problems, headaches, emotional problems and possible cancer.
Anger is a normal emotion that we all feel from time to time. Some people express anger openly in a calm reasonable way. Others burst with anger, scream and yell. But other people keep their anger inside. They cannot or will not express it. This is called repressing anger.
For years many doctors thought that repressing anger was more dangerous to a person’s health than expressing it. They said that when a person is angry, the brain releases the same chemical. They speed the heart rate, raise blood pressure, or sugar into the blood, etc. In general, the person feels excited and ready to act.
Some doctors say that both repressing and expressing anger can be dangerous. They believe that those who express anger violently may be more likely to develop heart disease, and they believe that those who keep their anger inside may face a greater danger of high blood pressure.
Doctors say the solution is learning how to deal with anger. They say the first step is to admit that you are angry and to recognize the real cause of the anger, then decide if the cause is serious enough to get angry about. If it is, they say, “Do not express your anger while angry. Wait until your anger has cooled down and you are able to express yourself calmly and reasonably.”
Doctors say that a good way to deal with anger is to find humor in the situation that has made you angry. They said that laughter is much healthier than anger.
1. What’s the author’s purpose by writing this passage? (no more than 15 words)2. How will anger affect people if they don’t deal with it properly? (no more than 15 words)
3. What’s the meaning of the underlined word “repressing” in Paragraph 2? (no more than 5 words)
4. According to the passage, what are the common ways for people to express their anger? (no more than 20 words)
5. What do you think is the best way to deal with anger? Please give your reasons. (no more than 20 words)
【推荐1】Animals are natural resources that people have wasted all through our history.
Animals have been killed for their fur and feathers, for food, for sport, and simply because they were in the way. Thousands of kinds of animals have disappeared from the earth forever. Hundreds more are on the danger list today. About 170 kinds in the United States alone are considered in danger. Why should people care? Because we need animals. And because once they are gone, there will never be any more.
Animals are more than beautiful or interesting or a source of food. Every animal has its place in the balance of nature. Destroying one kind of animal can create many problems.
For example, when farmers killed large numbers of hawks, the farmers' stores of corn and grain were destroyed by mice. Why? Because hawks eat mice. With no hawks to keep down their numbers, the mice multiplied quickly.
Luckily, some people are working to help save the animals. Some groups raise money to let people know about the problem. And they try to get the governments to pass laws protecting animals in danger.
Quite a few countries have passed laws. These laws forbid the killing of any animal or plant on the danger list. However, only if everyone takes action, animals can be removed from the endangered list.
1. What is the theme for the text?A.Save the animals. | B.Useful animals. | C.Laws for animals. | D.Animals in danger. |
A.They give us a source of food. | B.They are beautiful and lovely. |
C.They keep the balance of nature. | D.They give us a lot of pleasure. |
A.Kinds. | B.Animals. | C.Resources. | D.Feathers. |
A.Being noticed by people all the time. | B.Helping decrease the hawk population. |
C.Many countries have passed laws. | D.More awareness should be raised. |
To be grateful means you are thankful for what you have right now. Gratitude (感激) fills your heart with the joyful feeling and allows you to fully appreciate everything that arises on your path. As you try hard to keep your focus on the present moment, you can experience the full wonder of “here”.
There are many ways to develop gratitude. Here are just a few suggestions you may wish to try:
◆ Imagine what your life would be like if you lost all that you had. This will most surely remind you of how much you do appreciate it.
◆ Make a list each day of all that you are grateful for, so that you can stay conscious (有意识的) daily of your blessings. Do this especially when you are feeling as though you have nothing to feel grateful for. Or spend a few minutes before you go to sleep giving thanks for all that you have.
◆ Spend time offering assistance (帮助) to those who are less fortunate than you, so that you may gain a new perspective (观点).
What really matters is that you create a space in your consciousness for appreciation for all that you have right now, so that you may live more happily in your present moment.
1. According to the first paragraph we know ___________.
A.many people feel satisfied with what they have right now |
B.aspirations can pull a person farther from his present life |
C.none can be sober-minded about his dreams and aspirations |
D.we should be busy with chasing one after another “there” |
A.fill your heart with happy feelings |
B.allow you to fully appreciate your “here” |
C.make people experience the wonder of “here” |
D.drive people to give up their future |
A.check out what we lose everyday |
B.give thanks for all that we have before sleeping |
C.help others who are less fortunate than us |
D.make a list each day of all that we should thank for |
【推荐3】Imagine a small lifestyle change that could both reduce your weight and risk of depression and boost your productivity. It’s as simple as getting up early on a regular basis. More interestingly, science is supporting it.
In a 2019 experiment by Monash University, night owls reported feeling less depression, stress and daytime sleepiness after their body clocks were brought forward by two hours across a three-week period.
Multiple studies show morning types tend to perform better academically and at work and get more done than night owls. According to those early birds, advantages of the morning include less distraction, more time and more space to think and get work done. There are fewer other people up, fewer phone calls, text messages, emails and more. Also, studies show our abilities, energy and mood are generally at their peak in the morning, including late morning.
How early is “early”? Scientists haven’t yet determined an ideal, exact time to start and end the day. It is suggested that people should adjust sleep timing with the sun’s daily cycle and light. But it doesn’t mean to rise as soon as natural light first appears. Also, many of us suffer from sleep problems during the night that make rising early undesirable. And if you’re a natural owl, trying to change your pattern might not favor you.
Pay attention when you feel most energetic. While being an early riser may have benefits for your health, what’s more important is getting enough, quality sleep and keeping a regular pattern. Don’t set the alarm for 5:30 am if it means reducing overall sleep time. You could end up suffering from negative effects of sleep deprivation(缺乏), including a poorer mood and energy, less ability to concentrate, weight gain and more.
1. What do the underlined words “night owls” in Paragraph 2 refer to?A.People who rise early. | B.People who sleep late. |
C.People who are depressed. | D.People who are overweight. |
A.When our abilities are best. | B.What advantages of mornings are. |
C.Why early birds perform better. | D.Who communicates in the morning. |
A.You will lose some weight. | B.You could have more work done. |
C.You may find it hard to focus. | D.You can see the first natural light. |
A.The Power of Rising Early. | B.The Habits of Morning Types. |
C.The Amount of Sleep Time. | D.The Benefits of Lifestyle Changes. |
【推荐1】Recently, the Norwegian island of Sommary announced that it was getting rid of time to become the world’s first time-free zone. It sounded extremely pleasant—to leave the clock behind and do what you wanted whenever you wanted to. Unfortunately, the idea turned out to be a clever strategy to attract public attention by Norway’s tourism agency rather than the real deal. But it raises a fundamental question—can we live totally without time?
“From a consciousness viewpoint we simply can’t lose our awareness of time, as it’s closely connected to our sense of self,” explains German psychologist Marc Wittmann. “Many cells in our body possess their own autonomous clock. If those clocks get out of sync (不同步), however, it could cause problems.” Canadian scientist Holly Andersen agrees, believing it’s not possible to have conscious experience without the passage of time. Think about how your personal identity is built over time and filed away as memories. “These memories make up who you are over time,” says Andersen.
While we can’t give up the concept of the passage of time at such fundamental levels, day in day out forcing our bodies to stick to an abstract concept of time that ignores natural rhythms may lead to physical problems. A typical example is Daylight Saving Time (DST)—where we move clock time one hour forward relative to the cycle of daylight. There are a number of studies suggesting that switching to DST disturbs our internal body clocks, leading to less sleep, worse performance in tests and learning issues.
The clock, it seems, isn’t always good for us. So, how can we live in a world ruled by clock time? “Giving yourself permission to do something without any time limit can help restore some of your body’s normal rhythms. If possible, wake up naturally or go for a walk until you feel you’re done. You don’t have to have a life where you meditate (冥想) for ten hours a day,” says Andersen. “But letting go of time restrictions on your actions for a twenty-minute period can be very healthy.”
1. What can we say about Sommargy’s announcement?A.It failed to draw public attention. | B.It was just a marketing trick. |
C.It was a rather practical policy. | D.It caused too many problems. |
A.Many people tend to save time in unhealthy ways. |
B.It is difficult to accurately sense the passage of time. |
C.Your sense of self has little to do with your memories. |
D.It is impossible for us to live without the sense of time. |
A.To show how our body clocks actually work. |
B.To explain why DST helps improve efficiency. |
C.To prove clock time’s potential harm to our health. |
D.To deny the link between body clocks and clock time. |
A.Exercise for twenty minutes every day. | B.Try to do things outside the clock’s control. |
C.Find effective ways to make use of our time. | D.Meditate more to restore our body’s rhythms. |
【推荐2】Time is a valuable resource, especially for those who need to deal with academic demands, personal growth, and social activities at the same time. Effective time management not only leads to increased productivity, but reduces stress.
Setting clear and achievable short-term and long-term goals is essential for youth.
Furthermore, learning to say no is a valuable skill for youth. With numerous opportunities and interests, it’s easy to become overwhelmed. By being selective about commitments, young adults can arrange their time and energy wisely. Saying no to non-essential activities frees up time for important tasks.
In the pursuit of personal success, young adults often find themselves caught up in a series of responsibilities and commitments. However, it’s essential for them to recognize that life shouldn’t be like this. Self-care plays a vital role in time management.
A.That actually prevents over-commitment. |
B.One should constantly review how time is spent. |
C.It creates opportunities for personal development as well. |
D.Developing a daily schedule helps young adults stay organized. |
E.Putting things off constantly is a common time management project. |
F.By knowing what they want to accomplish, they can prioritize their tasks. |
G.Youth should value adequate rest and activities that promote their well-being. |
【推荐3】Time is one of the most valuable commodities we have. It is a non-renewable resource that,once lost, cannot be regained.
We frequently run out of time in today’s fast-paced world. We have deadlines, appointments and responsibilities to meet within a certain time.
The proverb “time and tide wait for none” reminds us that time is a limited resource that we must make the most of.
“Time and tide wait for none” also reminds us that time is valuable and should not be squandered (挥霍). We should treasure every moment and make the most of it. We should spend time with our loved ones, pursue our passions and do things that make us happy.
The proverb serves as a powerful reminder of the value of time management. Time is a finite resource that must be used wisely. So, let us all strive to maximise our time and live our lives to the fullest.
A.We all have the same amount of time in a day. |
B.Life is too short to waste time on things that don’t matter. |
C.Distractions are one of the most difficult challenges we face. |
D.It encourages us to be mindful of our time and to use it wisely. |
E.It’s all too easy to let time slip away while browsing our news feeds. |
F.It illustrates the idea that time is fleeting and it doesn’t wait for anyone. |
G.With so much to do, it’s easy to lose track of time and allow it to pass by you. |