【推荐3】When I was nine years old, I loved to go fishing with my dad. But the only thing that wasn’t very fun about it was that he could catch many fish while I couldn’t catch anything. I usually got pretty upset and kept asking him why. He always answered, "Son, if you want to catch a fish, you have to think like a fish." I remember being even more upset then because, "I’m not a fish!" I didn’t know how to think like a fish. Besides, I reasoned, how could what I think influence what a fish does?

As I got a little older I began to understand what my dad really meant. So, I read some books on fish. And I even joined the local fishing club and started attending the monthly meetings. I learned that a fish is a cold-blooded animal and therefore is very sensitive to water temperature. That is why fish prefer shallow water to deep water because the former is warmer. Besides, water is usually warmer in direct sunlight than in the shade. Yet, fish don’t have any eyelids and the sun hurts their eyes... The more I understood fish, the more I became effective at finding and catching them.

When I grew up and entered the business world, I remember hearing my first boss say, "We all need to think like salespeople." But it didn’t completely make sense. My dad never once said, "If you want to catch a fish you need to think like a fisherman." What he said was, "You need to think like a fish." Years later, with great efforts to promote long-term services to people much older and richer than me, I gradually learned what we all need is to think more like customers. It is not an easy job. I will show you how in the following chapters.

【推荐3】Alice Roosevelt Longworth was the daughter of one of America’s most beloved presidents, Theodore Roosevelt. She was also a writer who was famous for giving high-society parties and being one of Washington, DC’s biggest gossips. On the sofa in her living room, there was an embroidered cushion (绣花靠垫) which read, “If you can’t say anything nice about someone, come sit next to me.”

If Alice were still alive today (she died in 1980 at the age of 96), she would feel right at home with modern social media... at least the worst parts of it. Platforms such as WeChat and Weibo have become places where Internet troll and bullies hang around, spreading gossip and insults(侮辱), and causing real harm to people, especially young people. This phenomenon of social media bullying (cyberbullying) is a worldwide problem. In February, United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) declared a special day, Safer Internet Day, to raise awareness of the problem and to discuss ways to solve it. According to the organization, as many as 20 percent of young people say that they have been bullied online. And the effects of this bullying can be destructive, leading to lower grades, lower self-esteem, depression and even suicide. UNICEF’s Henrietta Fore says that the Internet has become “a kindness desert”.

Closer to home, a study of Chinese high school students found that 58 percent had been bullied, and 38 percent had bullied someone either at school or on the Internet. “They spread rumors about you or defame you in order to isolate or marginalize(排斥) you,” says psychologist Zhou Zhonghui. “It is hard for people that age to bear, and it makes them depressed.”

There are laws in China against cyberbullying, and offenders can be fined and have their accounts shut down. In fact, everyone can take steps to stop the bullying. First, don’t be silent. If you are being bullied, don’t hesitate to tell your parents and teachers. Second, think before you post. Is your comment kind or hurtful? Would you like someone to say the same thing about you? Would you like your mother to read your comment? Alice Roosevelt Longworth’s cushion was a humorous re-working of an old piece of wisdom: If you can’t say anything nice about someone, don’t say anything at all. By following that wisdom, you can make flowers bloom in the “kindness desert”.

【推荐1】Should humans explore space? If you ask me, I’ll definitely give a positive answer.

The space exploration has a direct impact on the lives of humans, as well as the state of our world. Satellites moving around the earth enable communication across the world, connecting people of different continents and broadcasting information worldwide. The Global Positioning System(GPS) can identify our location anywhere. Furthermore, weather satellites can forecast harmful weather conditions, which allows humans to prepare for deadly natural disasters and save lives.

Space programs can also indirectly lead to the solution to poverty and world hunger. For example, large plots of land could be used far better if humans applied technologies. The most effective tool is the artificial earth satellite. It can screen areas of land within a very short time, indicating useful measures, such as the condition of crops, soil, rainfall, and droughts. It can then transmit this information to ground stations on the earth for better use.

In recent years, space-based technologies have become an important factor to reach and expand global health objectives. Information provided by remote technologies can be applied to study the epidemiology(流行病学).This data provided by space technologies can monitor disease patterns, understand the environmental causes that spread it, make predictions about where it can spread in the future, and make plans to fight it efficiently.

Furthermore, space exploration is something we can do for future generations. Mankind is using the resources provided on the planet, but these will run out one day. Overpopulation can be an existential threat for all mankind. With the advancement of space technology, it will be wise to use and explore the vast potential of other planets, such as the availability of mining resources on asteroids or other planets.

For the exploration of the universe, perhaps the most advantageous of all is that it will unite us to work together for a common purpose, regardless of our differences.

【推荐2】Parents and kids today dress alike, listen to the same music, and are friends. Is this a good thing? Sometimes, when Mr. Ballmer and his 16-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, listen to rock music together and talk about interests both enjoy, such as pop culture, he remembers his more distant relationship with his parents when he was a teenager.

“I would never have said to my mom, ‘Hey, the new Weezer album is really great. How do you like it?’” says Ballmer. “There was just a complete gap in taste.”

Music was not the only gulf. From clothing and hairstyles to activities and expectations, earlier generations of parents and children often appeared to move in separate orbits.

Today, the generation gap has not disappeared, but it is getting narrow in many families. Conversations on subjects such as sex and drugs would not have taken place a generation ago. Now they are comfortable and common. And parent-child activities, from shopping to sports, involve a feeling of trust and friendship that can continue into adulthood.

No wonder greeting cards today carry the message, “To my mother, my best friend.”

But family experts warn that the new equality can also result in less respect for parents. “There’s still a lot of strictness and authority on the part of parents out there, but there is a change happening,” says Kerrie, a psychology professor at Lebanon Valley College. “In the middle of that change, there is a lot of confusion among parents.”

Family researchers offer a variety of reasons for these evolving roles and attitudes. They see the 1960s as a turning point. Great cultural changes led to more open communication and a more democratic process that encourages everyone to have a say.

“My parents were on the ‘before’ side of that change, but today’s parents, the 40-year-olds, were on the ‘after’ side,” explains Mr. Ballmer. “It’s not something easily accomplished by parents these days, because life is more difficult to understand or deal with, but sharing interests does make it more fun to be a parent now.”

【推荐3】Should we allow modern buildings to be built next to older buildings in a historic area of a city? In order to answer this question, we must first examine whether people really want to preserve the historic feel of an area. Not all historical buildings are attractive. However, there may be other reasons—for example, economic (经济的) reasons—why they should be preserved. So, let us assume that historical buildings are both attractive and important to the majority of people. What should we do then if a new building is needed?

In my view, new architectural styles can exist perfectly well alongside an older style. Indeed, there are many examples in my own home town of Tours where modern designs have been placed very successfully next to old buildings. As long as the building in question is pleasing and does not dominate (影响) its surroundings too much, it often improves the attractiveness of the area.

It is true that there are examples of new buildings which have spoilt (破坏) the area they are in, but the same can be said of some old buildings too. Yet people still speak against new buildings in historic areas. I think this is simply because people are naturally conservative(保守的)and do not like change.

Although we have to respect people’s feelings as fellow users of the buildings, I believe that it is the duty of the architect and planner to move things forward . If we always reproduced what was there before, we would all still be living in caves. Thus, I would argue against copying previous architectural styles and choose something fresh and different , even though that might be the more risky choice.