3 . In the first half of 2022, scientists studying animal communication discovered that some dogs connect objects with words at a similar level to babies. Then what about cats, which are commonly believed to be unconcerned about human affairs?

Saho Takagi, a researcher at Azabu University, doubted cats’ seeming unconcern. “Cats don’t appear to listen to people’s conversations, but in fact, they do.” According to a past research, cats understand human communication better than expected. Like dogs, they can use human pointing and stares to find food. They even can tell the difference between human facial expressions and attentional states, according to a 2021 study. However, cats can do more than that.

Another study showed that cats can discriminate their human-given name from the names of their cat friends (those that live in the same house). The researchers believed that cats learned to connect names with other cats by observing communication between their owners and their cat friends.

In a recently published study, Takagi and her colleagues compared two groups of cats: one group was made up of house cats and lived with at least two other cats; the other was made up of cats that lived in “cat cafés”, which had up to 30 cats. They used a simple, two-phase(阶段) test. During the name phase, the study participant(参与者) was softly placed in front of a laptop computer. Then the researcher played a recording of its owner saying the name of its cat companions(同伴).

Immediately after the name phase came the face phase. A cat’s face appeared on the monitor. Sometimes, the cat that appeared on the screen matched the name spoken; other times the name and the picture did not match. If cats knew the names of their cat friends, they would investigate by staring doubtfully at the monitor when the name and the picture did not match. House cats had a significantly longer stare than café cats, indicating that house cats generally expected an exact cat’s face upon hearing the cat’s name.

“This is the first to show that house cats link human words and their social companions through daily experiences,” the researchers wrote, “However, we could not recognize the mechanism(机制) for learning. But with more and more scientists becoming interested in cats who are much smarter than we praise them, this question is sure to be solved.”

7 . What’s On?

Electric Underground

7.30pm－1.00am   Free at the Cyclops Theatre

Do you know who’s playing in your area? We’re bringing you an evening of live rock and pop music from the best local bands. Are you interested in becoming a musician and getting a recording contract? If so, come early to the talk at 7.30 pm by Jules Skye, a successful record producer. He’s going to talk about how you can find the right person to produce your music.

Gee Whizz

8.30pm-10.30pm   Comedy (喜剧)at Kaleidoscope

Come and see Gee Whizz perform. He’s the funniest stand-up comedian on the comedy scene. This joyful show will please everyone, from the youngest to the oldest. Gee Whizz really knows how to make you laugh! Our bar is open from 7.00pm for drinks and snacks(快餐).

Simon’s Workshop

5.00pm-7.30pm   Wednesdays at Victoria Stage

This is a good chance for anyone who wants to learn how to do comedy. The workshop looks at every kind of comedy, and practices many different ways of making people laugh. Simon is a comedian and actor who has 10 years’ experience of teaching comedy. His workshops are exciting and fun. An evening with Simon will give you the confidence to be funny.

Charlotte Stone

8.00pm-11.00pm     Pizza World

Fine food with beautiful jazz music; this is a great evening out. Charlotte Stone will perform songs from her new best-selling CD, with James Pickering on the piano. The menu is Italian, with excellent meat and fresh fish, pizzas and pasta(面食). Book early to get a table. Our bar is open all day, and serves cocktails, coffee, beer, and white wine.

I used to have a really good group of friends. Now they’re all getting into smoking and drinking. I want to find a new group of friends, but I’m shy. How can I know who are the types of people I should make friends with, who will accept me?

Yours,

Mike

You’ve already made a very important step because you’ve realized that it’s time to find new friends. Making and keeping good friends is a challenge for all of us, whether you are shy or not. Since you’ve done this successfully before, one thing is to think back on how you developed friendship in the past.

Probably the best way to make and keep friends is to find others who share your interests. Lasting friendships often develop between people who enjoy the same activities. You also want to be with friends who share your values and goals for life. It just depends on what your own interests are.

That old saying is also true—the best way to have a friend is to be a friend. Reach out to the others who share your interests, sit with them at lunch, invite them to join you in activities you all like, listen to their thoughts and tell them about yours. Being a real friend takes time and effort. With time and effort, I’m sure you will find some very good friends during your school years and you’ll always be in touch after leaving school.

Yours,

Tom Black

9 . You should see the photo. I’m sitting in red dirt, ________ an ugly purple T-shirt. My face is pink and my hair is wet with sweat. Flies buzz around my head. I’m in the northwest of Australia, on a school trip with 20 parents and 20 kids.

It was a strange choice for a holiday. I like sitting by the pool with a cola, not flies and frogs. I like being ________ and quiet, not a busload of kids. I like ________ washed sheets, not dirty-looking blankets.

But here’s the thing about that photo: I am smiling!

The trip sounded good when I ________. We were told that guides would take us into the heart of the place and I would see a new part of Australia and learn about local ________. Besides I knew it would be a valuable chance for me to stay with my youngest daughter. I would also stay with 40 strangers. I just hope there would be good coffee.

In Darwin we got onto a bus. It quickly became tiresome. The kids were ________ and kept on talking but I hate making small talk.

But later when I looked out at the large empty land, I was surprised at and moved by its ________. Our local guide told us about the land and his culture. I felt far from home.

Finally we reached our ________. There the small room I shared with my daughter was a brick cell, full of crickets (蟋蟀), but too dark to see them.

It didn’t matter. The next nine days were ________. Waterfalls, lakes, community visits, and a trip around Katherine Gorge where we even saw giant crocodiles!

On our last night, a water pipe (管子) ________. We awoke to a mess, everything in water. Usually I would have ________, but it just seemed ________ to be dirty.

Indeed, it was ________ to stay clean. We were hiking in red dirt with temperatures of 35 degrees. Still, I felt a kind of energy I hadn’t ________ in years.

Yes, the coffee was bad, but I was too focused on keeping crickets off my face.

I love that photo of me in the dirt. I look messy but happy. Sometimes it’s another way of traveling. There is beautiful ________ and there is dirt. There was always someone to talk to, someone to laugh with.

10 . There’s a song by the great Jamaican singer Bob Marley called So Much Trouble In The World. Marley understood that part of the reason why there are so many problems in the world is the lack of tolerance between people. The UN understands this too that’s why it made Nov 16 “International Day for Tolerance”.

But first of all, what is tolerance? French philosopher Voltaire (1694 — 1778) can give us some help. According to him, tolerance “is the consequence of humanity. We are all formed of frailty (脆弱) and error; let us pardon each other’s folly — that is the first law of nature.”

Nobody’s perfect. When we’re tempted to criticize another person, we should perhaps remember our own imperfections first.

Very often, people don’t realize that they’re intolerant. This is because intolerance has a lot to do with ignorance. For example, the UN’s campaign is in part about the treatment of females by males. But often, the behavior of men toward women is intolerant because men don’t put themselves in the shoes of women.

It’s worth thinking a little about the words “tolerance” and “intolerance”. Are they the best words to describe the evils of which we’re speaking here? To agree to be “tolerant” of someone isn’t necessarily a very respectful thing. When someone is tolerated, it implies that there’s something wrong with them.

But it seems wrong that people should agree to “tolerate” people with black skin, for example. And should women think they have received the respect they are due when men agree to “tolerate” them?

Still, what Voltaire said stands: We humans are not perfect and this weakness is something that we all share. That’s the reason we should be tolerant.

It’s a little like generosity. We can give things to another person, and we can also give our forgiveness. Bob Marley understood this. In the song mentioned above, he advised: “Write your love on a rock so it stays for eternity (永恒); write your hate in the sand so the waves will wash it away.”