1 . Five Tips to Boost Your Self-Confidence
The following tips might help boost your self-confidence so you can feel more comfortable with whom you are.
Think about what makes you feel attractive. Make a list of things that make you attractive. You might begin with qualities that make you a good friend, parent, or co-worker.
Set goals for yourself.
Be grateful and helpful. Doing good things for others can make us feel good about ourselves. The smallest gestures, like smiling or holding the door for someone, can make a big difference to someone.
Do something brave once a week. It can be frightening to put ourselves out there, but sometimes the risk can be worth the reward.
A.Avoid criticizing others. |
B.Focus on strengths, not self-criticism. |
C.Take small steps to boost your confidence. |
D.You can also consider taking an active role in volunteering. |
E.Achieving goals is one way to feel accomplished and confident. |
F.Then, you might list some of the physical features that make you unique. |
G.Taking risks doesn’t necessarily mean going bungee(蹦极) jumping or mountain climbing. |
2 . What is moderation (适度)? Basically, it means eating only as much food as your body needs. You should feel satisfied at the end of a meal, but not too full.
Take your time. It's important to slow down and think about food as something nutritious rather than just something to eat in between meetings.
Eat with others whenever possible. Eating alone, “specially in front of the TV or computer, often leads to mindless overeating. And be careful about the foods you keep at hand. It's more challenging to eat in moderation if you have unhealthy snacks at the ready, like cookies.
Control emotional (情绪的) eating.
A.Eat properly throughout the day. |
B.We don't always eat just to satisfy hunger. |
C.Don't swallow a meal on the way to work. |
D.Most of us need to double the amount we eat. |
E.Instead, surround yourself with healthy choices. |
F.For many of us, moderation means eating less than we do now. |
G.That won't lead to cheating or giving up on your new eating plan. |
3 . Overtourism Is For Real: How Can You Help?
Travel promotes understanding, expands our minds, makes us better people, and boosts local economies and communities, but the rapid growth of travel has led to overtourism in certain regions and destinations.
●Choose mindfully. Overvisited destinations are that way for a reason: they’re special. With so many online posts featuring the same places, it’s easy to feel like you’re missing out. Go somewhere only when the landscape, culture or food deeply draws you.
●Get creative. The best way to ease pressure on over-touristed destinations is to go somewhere else. Though overtourism is described as a problem affecting the entire world, it’s actually concentrated to a small number of extremely popular spots. That means you have tons of less-visited options to choose from.
●
Visiting a place that others call home is a privilege (荣幸). Do your part to preserve what makes a destination special in the first place.
A.Visit during off-peak times. |
B.So, should we stop traveling? |
C.Travel for you and no one else. |
D.Can overtourism be avoided then? |
E.You can still find relatively undiscovered places. |
F.You’ll find yourself virtually alone, or close to it. |
G.Consider giving back to the communities you’re visiting. |
4 . Not all great writers are great spellers. If you want to be published, it's vital to submit a perfect, professionally presented manuscript (原稿).
I keep two reference books close-by on my desk: dictionary and thesaurus (同义词词典). I don't trust my laptop's spellchecker.
In addition, I have an old two-volume copy of the Shorter Oxford Dictionary, picked up a few years ago in a bookshop sale for just 99 pence. Of course, with its 2,672 pages, it's not exactly short. It contains around 163,000 words, plus word combinations and idiomatic phrases.
For well over a hundred years the most influential English dictionary was Samuel Johnson's Dictionary of the English Language published in 1755. "To make dictionaries is dull (乏味) work," wrote Johnson, illustrating one definition of "dull".
A.I don't often use this dictionary. |
B.It takes no account of the context. |
C.But I still don't want to replace them. |
D.But a dictionary can be a pleasure to read. |
E.Of course, a dictionary is not only for spelling. |
F.That means good grammar and no spelling mistakes. |
G.Dictionaries don't always give you enough information. |
5 . On June 9, 1870, Charles Dickens died at the age of 58. The next day, a headline in The New York Times read: “Death of the Great Novelist...Mourned by the People of Two Continents.”
Natalie McKnight is a professor of humanities who studies Dickens and his works. She explains why the novelist has remained so popular. One important reason, she says, is that Dickens wrote from his heart.
It’s meaningful to remember this great writer. Will you read(or reread)some of his famous works?
A.Dickens’ early life was very hard. |
B.Their works became the best sellers of that time. |
C.The headline was not overstating the fame of Dickens. |
D.A Tale of Two Cities has been sold more than 200 million copies. |
E.He tried hard to produce emotional effects among his readers. |
F.He used his pen to fight social inequality and give voice to the poor. |
G.However, few of them worked as hard as Dickens to attract readers’ minds. |
6 . The voice within can be your inside guidance system toward development and optimism. But sometimes, that inner dialogue also presents a critical voice that points out shortcomings, limits and concerns.
●Identify negative thoughts.
●
●Shift your mindset toward growth. A growth mindset is a belief that your talents will develop over time. A person with a growth mindset tends to be less likely to suffer mental health problems than someone with a fixed mindset. People with a fixed mindset tend to become stuck in their ways, with repetitive thoughts circling around their heads.
●Choose to respond rather than react. Often, when people feel touched, they react without thinking.
A.Choose your friend circle wisely. |
B.Spend much time with all kinds of friends. |
C.Here are some ways to train your inner voice. |
D.It is easy to change your way of thinking and mindset. |
E.This usually ends with saying something they may regret. |
F.People who lack confidence can allow negative thoughts to guide them. |
G.However, those who develop a growth mindset often express determination. |
7 . How to Avoid an Internet Addiction
It may seem like everyone surfs the web these days. But if you can’t have interest in other aspects of your life because of the Internet, you may be on your way to an Internet addiction. You might fear you’re the only one who has experienced that feeling.
More and more people in the world are becoming addicted to the Internet, and you are not the only one with this problem. So do not be embarrassed. Just be brave to admit that you are on your way to an Internet addiction. And then find others with the same problem and help each other beat it.
Set aside limited time for computer use.
Make sure not to turn it on too many times a week. If you have a laptop, make sure to put it somewhere that you can remember but not somewhere that you see every day. Try keeping the lid closed when you are not using it.
Call people instead of sending instant messages or texts.
If you are free on weekends, call friends and ask them to go outside to do something you enjoy, like playing a sport. This will take your mind off the computer.
Use an alarm clock or timer (计时器).
Before using your computer, decide on a time limit such as 30 minutes. Set the clock or timer and make sure that you get away from the computer when the time is up. Alternatively create a shutdown timer on your desktop.
A.Being addicted to it is quite normal. |
B.Admit you are at risk of an addiction. |
C.The truth, though, is that it’s quite common to be an addict. |
D.When the computer is not looking at you, you are less likely to use it. |
E.This can be programmed to shut down your computer after the set time. |
F.If you have a problem on weekdays, phone your friends or ask for help in person. |
G.This will prevent you from using the Internet so often or going on to another page. |
8 . Behavioral scientists have found that good listening is one of the most important things we can do to improve our relationships.
In addition to actively attending to a speaker’s words, good listeners also use questions and body language that indicate their understanding and their desire to understand. This might feel awkward at first, and what’s most effective might depend on your relationship with the speaker.
These might seem like small changes, but together they make a big difference. And when people feel heard, they report more satisfaction, trust, and connection in their relationships.
A.Finally, don’t be afraid of silence. |
B.So, what can we do to become better listeners? |
C.It’s possible to know what truly excellent listening looks like. |
D.But with time and practice, you can internalize these basic behaviors |
E.There’s no universally agreed-upon definition of high-quality listening. |
F.Researchers have found that smiling and nodding at set intervals doesn’t quite work. |
G.So try to stay present and if you lose focus, don’t be shy about asking the speaker to repeat what you missed. |
9 . Toy Story, Cars, Finding Nemo, Wall-E—you have probably watched all these films.
Creating the storyboard
The first step is to write down the main ideas of the story.
Making characters using 3D modelling
A special computer program is used to create 3D shapes of the characters, sets and props—this is called modelling. The decorations of the sets and props are created using a software. Special equipment is used to record points on these shapes.
Creating the movements
The layout crew (摄影构图组) decide how these characters should move and then the cartoonists take over. They use 3D software to create the movements of each character, the skeleton’s (骨架) movements, facial expressions and more, between key frames (帧) in the story.
Dressing up for the show
Letting the show begin
Remember too, that the movements have to be smooth! The computers draw each frame one by one, with each frame slightly different from the previous one. Each frame takes 5-6 hours to create—imagine how much computing power and time it will take to create 24 frames per second of a 2-hour film!
A.From that, storyboards are drawn. |
B.All these films have cost a large amount of money. |
C.The sets and props are “decorated” according to the designs. |
D.Some of these creations are simple but some are complex. |
E.This information is then sent to a software programme. |
F.CGI is often applied in film-making to make special effects. |
G.Have you ever wondered how these amazing cartoon films were made? |
10 . Helena Blumen, a cognitive (认知的) scientist, says the complicated mental multi-tasking that dancing requires engages various parts of the brain at the same time, leading to the strengthening of neural (神经系统的) connections across different regions.
Anyone who’s ever felt the irresistible urge to dance to a favorite song knows that combining music and movement can lift your mood and melt away stress. But there’s a lot more happening in your brain when you’re trying to follow even the easiest choreography (编舞).
To learn how the mechanisms of dancing work in the brain, researchers conducted MRI scans on older adults who engaged in either dance or a traditional exercise program over six months.
The researchers assume that these brain changes contribute to more neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to form new connections and pathways.
A.Moreover, dancing can help prevent brain injuries |
B.In addition to the physical and neurological benefits |
C.The effect extends beyond dancing to the real world |
D.While both groups improved their level of physical fitness |
E.Dancing might even help people with brain injuries and diseases |
F.Imagine your brain is like a city with loads of roads and pathways |
G.Basically, dancing requires more brain power than commonly believed |