【推荐1】How to Level up Your Self-Control

By definition, self-control is the ability to do something that benefits your long-term goals, instead of something that might satisfy your immediate desires.    1    --we end up sacrificing the well-being of our future selves all too easily.

    2    ?

Angela Duckworth, professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, says allocating resources between your present self and future self is an ongoing struggle. For example, exhibiting self-control over spending time on video games and social media, two of the most common temptations（诱惑）of the current era, means battling against age-old mechanisms in your brain.

If you're willing to look deeply into your tendencies and weak points, you can recognize the handful of problems that you need to work on.

    3    To improve self-control at work, Duckworth first recommends taking a future-oriented approach to your day, such as planning breaks and the time for checking emails in advance.

The problem of looking at your cell phone too often, say, can be solved by putting it on mute or, better yet, sticking it in your bag until lunch.    4    .

Finally, Duckworth advises laying a foundation of self-control that you can build of in the future.    5    because of too little sleep the night before, or an insufficient meal in the morning. By practicing healthier living away from the workplace, you can gather the strength and stamina（毅力）to help you control your worst urges when it matters most.

A．One place to start would be the office

B．What problems do you need to work on

C．We've all experienced unproductive workdays

D．But for many of us, short-term satisfactions are irresistible

E．Why is exercising proper self-control so tricky for some, and how to do better

F．If you can resist resigning you may achieve more on your overall self-control

G．Removing the temptation from sight is key to ensuring you're faithful to your mission

【推荐2】Five Ways to Work Smarter, Not Harder

No matter how hard we work, it seems that there is never enough time to get all the important tasks done. Rather than working longer, consider working smarter, not harder. Here are some ways to work smarter:

Make a careful plan. Just like every organization needs a business plan, an efficient worker needs a work plan.     1     Schedule your tasks throughout the days, weeks, and months, but do it ahead of time.

Set your goals. As a part of your work plan, you should set clear and measurable goals. Goals should state which tasks are to be completed and when they get completed. Rather than setting firm deadlines, which can lead to pressure and stress, allow a period of time to reach goals.    2    .

    3    Develop a consistent daily work schedule and stick to it! If a typical workday consists of some writing tasks（emails, reports）, one-on-one meetings, and processing data, set aside specific time each day to accomplish each kind of tasks.

Delegate（分派工作）effectively.    4    The person who tries to do everything himself or herself not only is overloaded and overstressed, but is bad for their colleagues, by not allowing them to be challenged and grow by taking on important duties.

Don’t make work harder than it actually is. Much of the pressure is produced by ourselves.       5     We feel like we should do more. Remember that tasks should be completed step by step. Focus on each step rather than on the entire project, which can help us cut down on feelings that we are overwhelmed.

A．Stick to your plan.

B．We set unrealistic goals or standards for ourselves.

C．Also, take time to reward yourself for achieving a goal.

D．Organize your workday.

E．We cannot expect to complete the tasks quickly.

F．Learn which tasks can be delegated and which need personal attention.

G．It is a well-thought-out plan to help guide and direct work activities.

【推荐3】Adults are often embarrassed about asking for aid. It’s an act that can make people feel emotionally unsafe.    1    Seeking assistance can feel like you are broadcasting your incompetence.

New research suggests young children don’t seek help in school, even when they need it, for the same reason. Until recently, psychologists assumed that children did not start to care about their reputation and their friends’ thoughts about them until around age nine.

But our research suggests that as early as age seven, children begin to connect asking for help with looking incompetent in front of others. At some point, every child struggles in the classroom.    2    

To learn more about how children think about reputation, we created simple stories and then asked children questions about these situations to allow kids to showcase their thinking.

Across several studies, we asked 576 children, ages four to nine, to predict the behavior of two kids in a story. One of the characters genuinely wanted to be smart, and the other merely wanted to seem smart to others. In one study, we told children that both kids did poorly on a test.    3    The four-year-olds were equally likely to choose either of the two kids as the one who would seek help. But by age seven or eight, children thought that the kid who wanted to seem smart would be less likely to ask for assistance. And children’s expectations were truly “reputational” in nature-they were specifically thinking about how the characters would act in front of others. When assistance could be sought privately (on a computer rather than in person), children thought both characters were equally likely to ask for it.

    4    Teachers could give children more opportunities to seek assistance privately. They should also help students realize asking questions in front of others as normal, positive behavior.     5    Parents could point out how a child’s question kicked off a valuable conversation in which the entire family got to talk and learn together. Adults could praise kids for seeking assistance. These responses send a strong signal that other people value a willingness to ask for aid and that seeking help is part of a path to success.

A．Kids could be afraid to ask their parents for help.

B．Seeking help could even be taught as socially desirable.

C．In another study we told them that only one kid did poorly.

D．Such reputational barriers likely require reputation-based solutions.

E．The moment you ask for directions, after all, you reveal that you are lost.

F．But if they are afraid to ask for help because their classmates are watching, learning will suffer.

G．We then asked which of these characters would be more likely to raise their hand in front of their class to ask the teacher for help.

【推荐1】We like to think that the human mind is special. One sign of our superiority is self-awareness, which is generally seen as the peak of consciousness. Only a select group of species has passed the test of being able to recognise themselves in a mirror. Most, including elephants, apes and dolphins, are smart. But now a little fish, the cleaner wrasse has become the first fish ever to pass the mirror test——a classic experiment used to judge self-awareness in animals. What are we to make of this?

Admittedly^ the mirror test is a questionable way of probing （探究）the minds of other animals. But the finding does fit with a new idea that the ability to recognise oneself is more related to an animal’s   lifestyle than to its brain size. Self-awareness is likely to occur in creatures whose survival is dependent on reading the minds of others. In fact, by this way of thinking, it is nothing more than an accidental by-product of evolution^ a simulation （模拟）created by the brain, or even just a hall of mirrors giving the illusion of complexity.

The cleaner wrasse lives on coral reefs and provides a service by biting parasites （寄 生虫）off the scales of bigger fish gently, a delicate relationship that may require insight into the minds of its clients. Such “theory of mind” has long been seen as another cornerstone of human mental superiority. The possibility that fish possess it is not, however, the only threat to our human exceptionalism （例外）.It may not be long before computers give us a run for our money , too.

Researchers have created a set of tests to look for theory of mind in artificial intelligence— and some systems are on the point of passing. No AIs have passed the tests yet, but one got extremely close. We probably don't need to worry about robots that can recognise themselves in mirrors. But we might want to be more open to the idea that human intelligence isn't quite as special as we like to think.

1. What can we learn from the mirror test?

A．Mammals have a more adaptive body system.

B．A species of fish is capable of self-recognition.

C．The human mind is just as special as expected.

D．Humans have reached the peak of consciousness.

2. According to the passage, self-awareness .

A．is formed during evolution by chance	B．corresponds with the size of the brain
C．isn't a hall of mirrors but a simulation	D．reflects the typical mental complexity

3. The underlined part in Paragraph 3 probably means "

A．bring us huge profits

B．cost us a lot of money

C．have great control over us

D．challenge our exceptionalism

4. What' s the main idea of the passage?

A．Fish possess no level of intelligence.

B．Humans are not unique in intelligence.

C．AIs will be able to understand our thoughts.

D．Self-awareness is a big mystery of the mind.

【推荐2】Scientists can figure out a movie's emotional tone from the gasps（喘气）of its audience.

These gases could point the way to a subtle form of human communication，a new study suggests. “When you see a movie，you can hear the music and see the pictures. However，you don't realize there are chemical signals in the air. And they，too，could be affecting you，"says Williams，who led the study. As an atmospheric chemist，he studies the chemical makeup of the air around us.

Williams started out measuring the air in a soccer stadium. He noticed that levels of carbon dioxide and other gases changed wildly whenever the crowd cheered. That got him wondering--Could the gases people breathe out be influenced by emotions？

To find out，he went to the movies.

Williams and his coworkers measured air samples collected over six weeks in two movie theaters. Overall，9，500 movie goers watched 16 films. They included a mix of comedy，romance，action and horror films. Among them were The Hunter Games，Catching Fire，Carrie，and Walking with Dinosaurs. The researchers gave scenes from the movies such labels as“suspense”，“ laughter"，and“crying”. Then they looked for hundreds of chemicals in the air that showed up as people were watching particular movie scenes.

And certain scenes had distinct chemical“fingerprints”，Scenes that had people laughing or on the edge of their seats were especially distinctive. During screenings of The Hunger Games，levels of carbon dioxide and isoprene got to the highest at two suspenseful moments. Because isoprene is related to muscle movement，the researchers think tense movie moments likely led to its peak. Williams and his colleagues think the increase in carbon dioxide was due to the viewers' increased pulse and breathing rates.

Scientists need more data to make stronger links between human emotions and what's in their breath. But Williams can see potential practical uses. Companies，for instance，could quickly measure the air during tests to see how people feel about new products. He pictures future studies recording other body variables（变数）as well. These might include heart rate and body temperature，for instance. “It's something to find out. ”

1. What chemicals in the air are important to Williams's recent research？

A．Those in the natural air.

B．Those from the theaters.

C．Those from audience's breath.

D．Those from people's gasps.

2. What was Williams's purpose of the research?

A．To know more about the makeup of the air.

B．To see whether people's emotion affects the air they breathe out.

C．To study how greatly the movies influence people's emotion.

D．To find out how the air changes in a crowded stadium.

3. What do we know about the experiment?

A．Each participant watched about 16 films.

B．The movies were a mixture of comedy and romance.

C．The films were labeled with three main features.

D．The samples were taken in two theaters over six weeks.

4. In which situation are people most emotional？

A．Horrible moments

B．Romantic moments

C．Suspenseful situations.

D．Exciting situations

5. What can we infer from the last paragraph？

A．Williams thinks more measures should be taken for practical uses.

B．Human emotions are strongly related to the chemicals humans breathe out.

C．People's temperature will be measured when they're watching movies.

D．Companies will spend much money testing their new product.

【推荐3】One of the greatest contributions to the first Oxford English Dictionary was also one of its most unusual. In 1879, Oxford University in England asked Prof. James Murray to serve as editor for what was to be the most ambitious dictionary in the history of the English language. It would include every English word possible and would give not only the definition but also the history of the word and quotations (引文)showing how it was used.
This was a huge task. So Murrary had to find volunteers from Britain, the United States, and the British colonies to search every newspaper, magazine, and book ever written in English. Hundreds of volunteers responded, including William Chester Minor. Dr. Minor was an American Surgeon who had served in the Civil War and was now living in England. He gave his address as “Broadmoor, Crowthorne, Berkshire,” 50 miles from Oxford.
Minor joined the army of volunteers sending words and quotations to Murray. Over the next years, he became one of the staff’s most valued contributors.
But he was also a mystery. In spite of many invitations, he would always decline to visit Oxford. So in 1897， Murray finally decided to travel to Crowthorne himself. When he arrived, he found Minor locked in a book-lined cell at the Broadmoor Asylum for the Criminally insane.
Murray and Minor became friends, sharing their love of words. Minor continued contributing to the dictionary, sending in more than 10,000 submissions in 20 years. Murray continued to visit Minor regularly, sometimes taking walks with him around the asylum grounds.
In 1910, Minor left Broadmoor for an asylum in his native America. Murray was at the port to wave goodbye to his remarkable friend.
Minor died in 1920, seven years before the first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary was completed. The 12 volumes defined 414,825 words, and thousands of them were contributions from a very scholarly and devoted asylum patient.
1. According to the text, the first Oxford English Dictionary _________.

A．came out before minor died

B．was edited by an American volunteer

C．included the English words invented by Murray

D．was intended to be the most ambitious English dictionary

2. How did Dr. Minor contributed to the dictionary?

A．He helped Murray to find hundreds of volunteers.

B．He sent newspapers, magazines and books to Murray.

C．He provided a great number of words and quotations

D．he went to England to work with Murray.

3. Why did Dr. Minor refuse to visit Oxford?

A．He was shut in an asylum

B．He lived far from Oxford

C．He was busy writing a book

D．He disliked traveling

4. Prof. Murray and Dr. Minor became friends mainly because __________.

A．they both served in the Civil War.

B．They had a common interest in words

C．Minor recovered with the help of Murray

D．Murray went to America regularly to visit Minor

5. Which of the following best describe Dr. Minor?

A．Brave and determined	B．Cautious and friendly
C．Considerate and optimistic	D．Unusual and scholarly

6. What does the text mainly talk about?

A．The history of the English language.

B．The friendship between Murray and Minor

C．Minor and the first Oxford English Dictionary

D．Broadmoor Asylum and is patients