Chinese netizens are passionately discussing the “Kong Yiji mindset,”     1     term inspired by an influential figure in modern Chinese literature and used to refer to college     2     (graduate) who consider themselves above manual labor.

    3    (set) a few years after the fall of the Qing Dynasty, the story starts with Kong Yiji being ridiculed by the working-class customers in the tavern he frequents for continuing to wear his long scholar’s gown, even though he never passed the imperial exam     4     could have landed him a decent job back in the past.

As The Paper, a Chinese media company based in Shanghai, writes, “Kong Yiji would rather steal than do     5     he considers a menial job(粗活)just to make money. This is relatable in the eyes of some, who think their academic qualifications didn’t lead to the job they wanted or deserved.”

The related term, “Kong Yiji mindset,” refers to those who see Kong in     6     (they) as they face the pressures of a job market that can’t keep up with the record-breaking number of college graduates. Kong is a     7     (sympathy) figure to some recent college graduates whose reality is not living up to expectations.

Some netizens are concerned that education itself may one day be seen as superfluous (多余的). “When we were young, we     8     (tell) to study hard, and when we grew up, we would become astronauts and scientists,” a Weibo user commented. “Now it has become study hard to screw screws, to be a cleaner, to collect junk. It’s not that I look down on those professions—every profession is respectable—     9     it is strange that the wind is blowing in this direction.”

In recent years, China has been pushing to expand vocational education as a means to solve the surplus of college graduates. However, the transition remains challenging as the prejudices     10    blue-collar jobs lingers.

4 . The most important determining factor of success or failure—at work and in life—is self-awareness, the ability to understand who we are, how others see us, and how we fit into the world.

For millions of years, the ancestors of humans evolved painfully slowly. However, about 150,000 years ago there was an explosive development in the human brain where, among other things, we gained the ability to examine our own thoughts, feelings and behaviors, as well as to see things from another’s point of view. Not only did this transformation create the foundation for art, spiritual practices and language, but it came with a survival advantage for our ancestors, who had to work together in order to survive.

Though we may not face the same day-to-day threats to our existence, self-awareness is no less critical. There is strong scientific evidence that people who know themselves and how others see them are happier. They are smarter, superior students. They raise more mature children. They also tend to be more creative, confident and less aggressive.

But for most people it is easier to choose self-delusion (自我欺骗) rather than the cold hard truth. Our increasingly “me” focused society makes it easier to fall into this trap. Recent generations have grown up in a World obsessed with self-esteem (自负), constantly being reminded of their special qualities. Not only are our assessments often flawed (有缺陷), but we are usually terrible judges of our own performance and abilities—from leadership skills to achievements at school and work. What’s scary is that the least competent people are usually the most confident in their abilities.

How can we avoid this fate? We must work on two specific types of insight. Internal self-awareness is an inward understanding of our passions and aspirations, strengths and weaknesses and so on. And external self-awareness, knowing how others see you, means understanding yourself from the outside in.

For those looking to gain true insight, remember that other people often see us more objectively than we see ourselves and that self-examination can have hidden trap that make insight actually impossible.

Zibo, a city which     1     (lie) in the middle of ShanDong province, has become a hot destination. “College students going to Zibo for barbecue” and “taking a high-speed train to taste Zibo barbecue” have become hot topics on Chinese social platforms. Customers can process skewers (肉串) themselves     2     then wrap them in a thin pancake, usually with a spring onion inside.

A report of data from Meituan and Dazhong Dianping shows that booking volume for accommodations in Zibo during the five-day May Day holiday is 800 percent higher than     3     in 2019. Local media in Zibo said     4     number of passengers arriving and departing through Zibo railway station has reached 50000 a day, setting a record in the past three years, with most of tourists     5     (come) to taste Zibo barbecue.

The local government has grasped the chance     6     (bring) by the sudden trend to attract more tourists. In order to encourage people to visit the city, Zibo set up a specially customized “barbecue map” and add 21 new barbecue bus     7     (line) so that tourists can “get on the bus to rest, get off to eat”.

“     8     will be more people to get to know Zibo’s enthusiasm and business environment, which will attract more investment and create more jobs. But the example is not easy     9     (follow) in that not every government has the commitment and innovation.” Wang Dazhuang, a local Zibo citizen said.

At present the     10     (big) problem is that the passenger flow is too big for this city so that many owners of barbecue restaurants are trying to expand their barbecue scale, according to an owner of a barbecue restaurant.

6 . While driving home after work, Jane Hodgson noticed a car pulled over at the side of the road and a crowd beginning to gather around someone who was lying on the ground.

Jane, who had completed a first aid at work course, pulled over to see if she could offer any help — and it turned out to be lucky for the young injured girl that she did.

Describing the scene she came across, Jane says: “The onlookers were ashen-faced and looking lost. They were so shocked that they hadn’t even thought to call for an ambulance yet.”

After speaking to the emergency services, Jane started finding out what had happened and what injuries the young girl called Jenny had. The girl had been hit by a car and gone over the handlebars of her bike, landing on her head and shoulder. Her shoulder and arm were twisted (扭曲) underneath her.

“She hadn’t been wearing a helmet (头盔) when she got knocked down, and I thought that she should not be moved as I couldn’t be sure about a spinal injury (脊椎损伤), but after looking her over and checking the circulation in her injured arm I did feel fairly confident that she had escaped relatively unhurt.

“As we were waiting for an ambulance, the amount of pain the girl was in was increasing. To distract (分散注意力) her and minimize the risk of her going into shock I kept her talking. She held my hand tightly when the pain got too much and this helped. I told her I could handle it — we laughed about that,” describes Jane.

Later, a doctor from the local hospital’s ICU stopped at the scene too. The ICU doctor decided that Jenny should lie on her back, making her much more comfortable until the emergency services arrived.

Thinking back, Jane says: “For me, knowing that in a small way I helped that girl through what was a frightening experience is all the reward I need. I felt great to know I’d made a difference and I’d do it again.”

7 . First aid is a crucial aspect of healthcare that can significantly save someone’s life or prevent further injury or illness. Knowing when to use first aid is essential so that proper measures are taken promptly.    1    

Injuries and Accidents

One of the most common instances where first aid is required is in injuries and accidents.    2     In such situations, it is essential to provide immediate care to prevent further damage and ensure that the affected individual receives timely medical attention. Some of the initial steps in first aid for injuries include applying pressure to stop bleeding, immobilizing the affected area, and administering pain relief medication.

Cardiac Arrest (心脏停跳)

Another critical situation where first aid can make a difference is during a cardiac arrest. A cardiac arrest occurs when the heart stops functioning; immediate intervention is necessary.     3     The first step in such a situation is to call emergency services and start cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) until professional help arrives. Knowing how to perform CPR can be life-saving in such situations.

Choking and Suffocation (窒息)

Choking and suffocation are emergencies that can occur at any time, and immediate intervention is necessary to prevent further complications. If someone is choking, it is essential to act quickly.     4     Similarly, if someone is suffocating due to a blocked airway, it is vital to clear the obstruction and ensure that the person’s airway is open.

When to use first aid can significantly save someone’s life or prevent further injury or illness.    5     Call for emergency services, and provide immediate care until professional help arrives. Being prepared and trained in first aid can ensure the safety and well-being of those around us.

8 . Academic dishonesty is nothing new. As long as there have been homework assignments and tests, there have been cheaters. The way that cheating looks has changed over time, though, particularly now that technology has made it easier than ever. A study by the Josephson Institute of Ethics interviewed 23,000 high school students and asked them a variety of questions about academic ethics. Of the teens surveyed, 51 percent said that they had knowingly cheated at some point on an exam but that they did not feel uneasy about the behaviour. A Common Sense Media survey found that 35 percent of students had cheated via smartphone, though the parents surveyed in that particular study did not believe their kids had ever cheated. In many cases, students did not realize that strategies like looking up answers on a smartphone were actually cheating at all.

In today’s classrooms, students who cheat are rarely caught. There are no formulas written on the insides of hands or students looking across the aisle, or whispering answers to their classmates. Today’s students use smartphones, tablets or even in-class computers to aid their cheating attempts and leave no trace of their crimes. Since cheating through technology is not listed specifically as being against the rules in many school policies, students do not view the actions unethical (不合道德的).

The technology is being adopted so quickly that school districts cannot adequately keep up with cheating policies, or even awareness campaigns that alert students to the problem with using technology to find answers in a certain way. From a young age, students learn that answers exist conveniently at their fingertips through search engines and expert websites.

Schools must develop anti-cheating policies that include technology and these policies must be updated consistently. Teachers must stay on guard when it comes to what their students are doing in classrooms and how technology could be playing a negative role in the learning process. Parents must also talk to their kids about the appropriate ways to find academic answers and alert them to unethical behaviours that may seem innocent in their own eyes.

9 . Yes, having a big name in science will help get your paper published, a new study confirms. Just 10% of reviewers of a test paper recommended acceptance when the only listed author was not well-known — but 59% endorsed the same paper when it carried the name of a Nobel winner.

The study, which involved inviting hundreds of researchers to review an economics paper, is incredible”, says Mario Malicki, a postdoctoral researcher at Stanford University and editor-in-chief of Research Integrity and Peer Review, who was not involved in the research. “It is the largest randomized controlled trial we have seen on publication bias (发表偏见).”

For years, scientists complained about the Matthew effect, a term invented in 1968 by sociologists Robert Merton and Harriet Zuckerman to describe how high-status researchers tend to get disproportionately (不成比例地) more of the same.

But efforts to document such bias often had weaknesses, such as a small sample size or lack of randomization. To avoid those problems, a team led by Jürgen Huber of the University of Innsbruck emailed some 3300 researchers, asking whether they could review an economics study prepared for a real journal. The study had two authors, both at Chapman University: Vernon Smith, a 2002 Nobel winner in economics and Sabiou Inoua, one of Smith’s former Ph.D. students. The potential peer reviewers were sent one of three descriptions of the paper. One named only Smith, listing him as the corresponding author, another, only Inoua; and a third, no author.

Ultimately, 821 researchers agreed to review, the team reported last week at the International Congress on Peer Review and Scientific Publication in Chicago. Smith’s fame appeared to influence the responses: Of the researchers given just his name, 38.5% accepted the invitation to review; the figures were 30.7% for those given no name and 28.5% for those given just Inoua’s.