Once there were two brothers. The elder was called Simon and the younger Victor. They loved each other very much, and always took care of each other. Every day they worked from morning until night, getting as much grain (谷物) as possible from their fields.

One late autumn evening, after their work in the fields was done, Simon said to his wife, “Victor got married last month. He has to support his family. I think I should put a bag of rice in his barn (谷仓).”

“Oh, that’s a good idea,” said his wife. So, late that night Simon took a bag of rice to Victor’s barn. But the next day, he found something strange! He still had the same number of bags in his barn!

Simon decided to take another bag of rice to his brother’s barn that night. But the next morning, he found the same number of bags in his barn again! “This is very strange,” he thought. That night he tried again. He carried a large bag of rice and walked down the road to his younger brother’s house. In the bright moonlight, he could see another person coming down the road. He was carrying something on his shoulder, too. “Younger Brother!” Simon cried, “What are you doing?” “Your family is larger than mine. I thought you needed more rice.” said Victor. The two brothers quickly knew what the strange thing was. They laughed about what had happened. “It is good to have a brother like you,” they both said. And they lived happily ever after.

Tests can be stressful. But don’t worry! You’re not alone! Tests have been stressing people out for thousands of years. Here’s one man’s story about test stress.

During the Tang Dynasty (朝代) there was a poor man named Meng Jiao. He loved studying and writing poems. Though his hard work helped him become a talented poet, he needed to make more money. He decided to take the Ke Ju exams. The exams were open for anyone to take. Whoever passed could get an official (官方的) job.

Meng Jiao studied hard for the tests. He took them several times. Each time, he failed. But Meng Jiao never gave up. He studied harder and harder. He took the tests over and over again.

Finally, when he was 46 years old, Meng Jiao passed the test! He was so happy! He put on new clothes. He tied on red flowers to celebrate. Then he rode on a horse through Chang’an City.

During his ride, Meng Jiao wrote a poem. In English, it reads, “Horseback riding swiftly (迅速地) through the spring breeze (微风), while seeing all the flowers of Chang’an in one day.”

Meng Jiao’s poem tells about his feelings on that exciting day. His words describe the feeling of enjoying the flowers and Chang’an City in a day.

The poem became famous. But people said it would be impossible to really enjoy everything in one day. This led to the phrase (成语) “seeing flowers while riding a horse swiftly.” It describes giving something a quick look without noticing the details (细节).

Many people dream of traveling into outer space. However, spending too much time in space may cause health problems. That’s why astronauts shouldn’t spend more than six months on the International Space Station (ISS) at a time.

Muscle (肌肉) and bone loss(骨质损失). In a weightless environment, astronauts don’t need to use their muscles to support themselves. So their muscles start shrinking (萎缩). To keep their muscles strong, astronauts need to exercise for about two hours each day on the ISS.

Sleep disorder (紊乱). In space, the sun rises every 90 minutes. It is hard for astronauts to get used to this light-dark cycle (循环) when they sleep. Also, they need to sleep in a sleeping bag that is fixed to a wall. It is uncomfortable. Now astronauts have individual (单独的) sleeping pods (睡眠舱) that help shut out some of the light. Still, studies have found that most astronauts only sleep about six hours each night, even though they should have eight and a half hours.

Brain changes. Scientists have found that the position of the brain changes during spaceflight. This can influence how the brain deals with how we see, stay balanced (平衡) and move around. That’s why some astronauts can’t control their movement and balance after returning to Earth. Scientists have also found that astronauts may get used to this change after going on more spaceflights. But they still need to do more research.

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