In 1993, Swedish psychologist (心理学家) K. Anders Ericsson set out to find the secret to turning a typical teen into a violin master. His answer? Practice: 10,000 hours of it. The reporter and writer Malcolm Gladwell even described it as “the magic number of greatness” in his 2008 book Outliers.

The idea of “practice makes perfect” has been drilled (灌输) into the heads of youths since the Roman period. Anyone can be the next Albert Einstein, Kobe Bryant, or Taylor Swift as long as they can spend enough time doing the same thing. But can it be that simple? Not every expert agrees. While training is necessary to learning, spending much of your life trying something over and over doesn’t mean you’ll go professional, says Zach Hambrick, a psychologist at Michigan State University.

Being great isn’t just about the quantity of work, he says, but also about the workers themselves. In reviewing different studies about the role of practice in music, games, sports, education, and professional success, Hambrick found that practicing time makes only about one-quarter of any noticeable (显而易见的) difference. Other reasons—like age, intelligence, and natural gifts—all played big roles in setting apart the better from the best.

Genes (基因) mainly shape physical abilities and our mind. Height might be necessary for a basketball star, and a good voice could help you take the lead in singing. And no practice will make you taller or able to hit notes across every octave (八度). Plenty of piano playing will not make your fingers grow longer.

Of course, this doesn’t mean we should all give up practicing, Hamorick says. Nobody is a born dancer or singer. But perfection in 10,000 hours? That is not sure.

What might two dogs making radio programs look like? How about a bicycle race with different sea animals as competitors?

With Sora, you may soon be able to find out. The latest AI model can create videos up to a minute long from text prompts (提示词) in seconds. It was built by Open AI, the company behind the popular chatbot Chat GPT. Its CEO Sam Altman announced Sora's creation on February 16.

Sora hasn’t been made available to the public yet. Open AI is asking experts to test it for possible risks. The model is also open to a small group of artists. The company hopes their advice will help make Sora better.

Before Sora, the leading text-to-video AI model was one made by Runway. Its system, Gen-2, came out in March 2023. The videos it produced were short and often scary. So most people were surprised by the high quality of Sora’s videos.

At present, Sora model isn’t perfect, however, as it may not understand cause and effect (因果). “For example, a person might take a bite out of a cookie, but after that, the cookie may not have a bite mark,” Open AI says on its website. Sora may also mistake spatial (空间的) details, like mixing up left and right. In a video on the Open AI website, a man is seen running on a treadmill (跑步机) in the opposite direction. At the same time, some people have other worries. They fear that AI-generated content could be misused. The Global Risks Report 2024 listed AI-generated misinformation as the biggest risk facing the world this year. In response, Open AI said that it's also building tools to let users know if a video was produced by Sora. Whatever the worries, with the development of technology, Sora could go much farther than we think.

Hug a Tree

We know that spending time in nature reduces (降低) stress and improves our mood (情绪). We also know that the act of hugging ourselves or another living thing can improve our well-being. So, why not try to mix the two together? That’s exactly what hugging a tree does! Read on to learn more about the benefits of hugging a tree!

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It is well known that trees produce oxygen (氧气). So, when you are close to a tree and hug it in a forest, you are naturally in a more oxygen-rich environment. You are also more likely to be breathing in fewer pollutants (污染物), especially if the forest or woods are away from a main road or air line.

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One study found that when we experience nature—whether by hiking in nearby mountains or simply looking at trees and birds on the way to work—we can increase our heart rate variability (可变性). This can lower the risks of many heart-related diseases.

Fight against depression (抑郁).

Trees’ positive effects on our mental health have been well recorded. Researchers are even calling trees nature’s Prozac which is used to treat the illness of depression. When you hug a tree, you become grounded to its powerful roots, receiving energy that can help to fight depression year-round.

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Trees are one of nature’s greatest stress-reducers. A study reported that hugging a tree for only 21 seconds can lead to an increase in oxytocin (催产素). The higher the level of oxytocin, the calmer and happier you may be. This is effective for people who suffer from nervousness and worry.

If you don’t have a tree in your yard, go visit the local park or hike in the closest woodlands. Find a tree and give it a hug. Get over your fear of embarrassment. So what if passers-by laugh at you? The hug you give is not just to the tree but to yourself and your spirit.

When I got the driving license last summer, Mom and I took our first trip around an empty parking lot. Then I found that my mother was not the best ________ for me. It wasn't that she shouted, or told me that I was doing poorly. As you can imagine, my mother’s “helpful instructions” only managed to make me more ________.

Since I could no longer ________ with her, the job was placed in the hands of my father. I loved him, ________ I just did not see Dad as someone I could be comfortable learning from. He almost never talked. We shared a(n) ________ father-daughter relationship. He’d ask how school was, and I’d say it was fine. ________, that was the most of our conversations.

As we got into the car that first time, I was not ________ about what happened. Dad and I drove around, saying almost ________, besides a few instructions on how to turn. As my lessons went on, however, things began to change. Dad would ________ the radio so I could enjoy his favorite Stones music. And he actually began talking. I was soon hearing about his first meeting with Mom, “basic body” gym class, and other ________ from his past.

Dad’s sudden talk was shocking until I thought about ________ he was telling me so much. In all the years, I always ________ why my father never spoke that much. I never considered it was because I had never spent time ________. Homework, friends, and even TV had all called me away from him, and I never thought my ________ father had anything to say.

Since I began driving with him, my driving ability has greatly improved. More importantly, the ________ between my father and I has also improved. Just living with him wasn’t enough—it took driving with him for me to get to know someone who was a mystery.

Have you ever tried to imitate the voice of another person? It can be hard but fun! I received this experience after taking part in the English movie dubbing (配音) competition at our school.

Our team had five members, so we     55     (选择) the movie Inside Out (《头脑特工队》) , which has five main characters. When we practiced, our teacher told us some helpful     56     (技巧). For example, you shouldn’t only read the characters’ lines, but also pay     57     (注意) to their actions. This can make your voice sound     58     (生动). So if a character says things     59     (生气) and throws the newspaper on the ground, you should do the same while reading the lines. This really worked!

Besides human voices, we also needed to imitate the sound effects (效果) in the movie, such as     60     (雨) and thunder. This was the hardest part in the whole process. We used about     61     (九) props (道具) to imitate the sounds.

After one week of practice, we showed it in front of our class to     62     (准备) for the school-level competition. Then we found that we didn’t have any background music. We decided that one of our members should play the     63     (吉他) for the background music.

At the competition, everything went smoothly and we won! All this hard work was     64     (值得) it. As the saying goes, “Nothing is hard for the one who is willing to climb.” It was an unforgettable memory for me.

Many teenagers want to look cool. But not everyone can afford to keep up with the changing fashion trends (潮流). Chloe Murray,     65     eighth-grader at Jefferson Middle School in the US, realized this problem and started a charitable clothes closet (慈善衣橱)     66     (help) her peers.

Her school supported the idea too. The school let her use     67     (room) for the project. So far, more than half of Murray’s classmates     68     (be) members of the project.

When the charitable clothes closet, Chloe’s Closet, opened, it is full     69     trendy clothes for girls and boys to help students look their best. Confidence is     70     (true) a big problem in middle school, especially when it comes to clothing.

You may wonder where the clothes are from. Many people from the school’s community and neighboring schools give away used and new clothes. The clothes closet is only open after school. Students can “buy” these clothes by making “money” when     71     hand in their schoolwork on time or take part in a school activity. In March this year, a large number of clothes     72     (sell) to students. For most children, these clothes are     73     (valuable) ones that they have ever had.

“    74     children meet their basic needs, such as clothing, they will be better able to focus on the learning material,” said Shannon Arko, a language teacher at the school, about the closet. “Feeling good about yourself translates into a better learning experience overall.”