Why Aren’t Women Happier?

Why aren’t women happier these days?

That’s the question raised by a thought-provoking study, The Paradox of Declining Female Happiness,     1     last month. The research showed that over the past 35 years women’s happiness has declined, both     2     to the past and relative to men even though the lives of women in the US have improved in recent decades by most     3     measures.

The research, by University of Pennsylvania economists Stevenson and Wolfers, and made     4     by the National Bureau of Economic Research, found the decline in happiness to be widespread among women across a variety of demographic(人口统计)groups. The researchers, for instance, measured similar declines in happiness among women who were single parents and married parents, “    5     doubt on the hypothesis(假设)that trends in marriage and divorce, single parenthood or work/family     6     are at the root of the happiness declines among women,” they wrote.

One theory for the decline in happiness is that expectations for workplace and general advancement were raised too high by the women’s movement and women might feel     7     for not “having it all,” as a Los Angeles Times columnist recently put it.

The researchers acknowledge that’s a     8     :

“If the women’s movement raised women’s expectations faster than society was able to meet them,” the paper says, “they would be more likely to experience     9     in their lives.” But they add things could change for the better: “As women’s expectations move into adjustment with their experiences, this decline in happiness may reverse.”

Readers, why do you think women are unhappier than in the past? Do you think that if expectations for “having it all” were     10     to “move into adjustment with experiences,” women might be happier?

Health and diet

In recent cars, many Asian countries have noticed a worrying new problem: obesity, which is also very serious in China. More than a third of Chinese adults are overweight. Even more worrying is the level of obesity among Chinese children. It is estimated that the number of children in China     1     from obesity is increasing by 10 % every year.

There are many reasons for this situation. The simplest explanation is that food is now     2     in greater quantities than ever before. Also, Chinese society is changing and people are     3     new kinds of lifestyle. There has been an influx of Western style fast food like hamburgers and fried chicken. These foods contain a lot of calorie and are a major cause of obesity. In addition, many children in China spend too much time in front of TVs or computers. To make things worse, millions of families drive around instead of cycling or walking. This     4       lifestyle is another reason for heavier people.

Increasing obesity is worrying for many reasons. The condition can lead to serious health problems, including increased risk of heart disease and even diabetes. Dealing with their health problems seems really costly and     5     , thus affecting people’ life negatively.

The government in China is taking action to deal with obesity, however. In many primary and middle schools, young students are receiving low calorie lunches with more vegetables and less meat and fat. Also, parents are     6     children from watching TV and playing computer games. In some big cities, there are also “fat camps” where seriously obese children receive     7     training, aiming at losing extra fat.

It is not     8     if these measures will be enough to slow down or stop the obesity trend in China. It is clear, though, what we are doing now is to guide people in     9     to healthier and more active lifestyle. It is the     10     of the rise in the index of people’s happiness.

“MEN ARE adorable,” begins Yang Li in a sketch first aired last year. “But mysterious...After all, they can look so average and yet be so full of confidence.” It seemed a gentle dig by the newly crowned “punchline queen” of “Rock and Roast”, a television show starring     1     comics. But as Ms Yang’s fans spread the joke, male netizens threw a tantrum. Last month a group of them reported the 28-year-old to the     2     regulator for “sexism”.

Long the stars of Chinese joke-making, men are unhappy about being the butt (笑柄) of it. Chizi, a popular male contestant on “Rock and Roast” with a special liking for boorish jokes, sniffed that Ms Yang was “not     3     comedy”. Guo Degang, a master of xiangsheng, recently said he would not     4     women for his troupe (剧团) (“out of respect”, he said).

Western-style stand-up comedy has taken off since it appeared in China a decade ago. It is     5     to be a more accessible art form for female comics. With stand-up, says Evangeline Z, a 27-year-old comedian in Shanghai, “there are no     6     to joining as long as you can talk.” Moreover, women bring new     7     to the stage.

The show, which began in 2017, has been a(n)     8     for Chinese stand-up and female participation in it. Evangeline Z says the form of comedy is “huge” in Shanghai. And she     9     up to half of the city’s 50-odd weekly performances are by women. But male and female comics alike warn spectators that what they are about to say could be offensive and they should not take offence. Xiao Ju, a 22-year-old part-time comedian, also in Shanghai, says that showgoers expect to come in for “a bit of easy laughter”, so are angry when the joke reveals something about themselves.

Ms Yang has used the backlash against her gag to create a new one. It     10     an exchange with a male colleague who approvingly notes her testing of men’s limits. Her mock-incredulous riposte: “Do men have limits?”

To Binge or Not to Binge?(要不要熬夜追剧?)

What are your plans for this weekend? In addition to completing homework, you may take time to catch up with friends, visit your grandparents and maybe even catch up on your     1    TV series. If you've downloaded or streamed the show, you may settle into your favorite fictional world by binge-watching several episodes or even an entire season.

You probably feel that most of your days are spent “binge-studying”, so why not reward yourself by     2     into another reality for a little while? What's the harm, right? Well, according to researchers, binge-watching, defined as watching at least 2.3 episodes in one sitting, may be more than a     3     escape.

Do you frequently spend hours in the evenings and on weekends completely absorbed in the fictional lives of TV characters? All of those hours of     4     could be turning you into an unhealthy couch potato. Studies have shown that side effects such as fatigue and obesity could be in your future.

In addition to physical health concerns, there could also be mental and emotional impacts, such as     5     feelings of loneliness sadness and depression. Some people may use watching TV as a means of escape from such feelings, but that is likely to make the problem worse in the long run.

Of course, if you're sitting around for hours with your eyes     6     to a screen, there is another obvious concern --you're missing out on lots of other important stuff! You may be missing time with friends and family, missing out on other activities that you enjoy,     7     out on school responsibilities, and possibly even missing meals and losing sleep.

When this starts happening, you know you have a problem.

Don't get me wrong. TV is an entertaining and sometimes     8     activity. It can even help you improve your English (or other languages) and help you learn about other cultures.

The reality is, with more and more TV series now     9     for streaming, there is nothing but our own willpower to stop us from binging. So when you sit down to watch a show, decide in advance to     10     the number of episodes you'll watch. Besides, it's always better when good things last longer.

Do you take part in office gossip? I don’t like to think of myself as a gossip, but I have to admit I often do it. In my turbulent industry, I     1     my behavior perhaps wrongly— by reasoning that gossip helps me get information and figure out what is going on.

Amid a rise in office gossip, researchers are disagreeing over whether it is     2     good or bad. Some defend it as a way of building     3     among people and sharing essential information. But others hold that office gossip can be savage and     4    , as the New York Times reports. At one company, PrintingForLess.com, which has a strict no-gossip policy, gossiping about colleagues can become a/an,     5     offense.

In one case analyzed in a/ an     6     journal, middle school teachers’ gossip about their principal became so poisonous that the principal retaliated, many teachers fled the school and students’ test scores declined. In this case, gossip     7     to “a form of warfare that brought everyone down.”

On the other hand, less malignant gossip that stops short of repeating lies or breaching confidences can serve as a source of understanding. “Gossip helps us     8     the motivations of other people, and enables those low on the food chain, in particular, to understand how power is used in their organizations.” says this New York Times article. It is relaxing, it brings people together, and as a/an     9     it beats gambling, drinking or doing drugs, this reasoning holds.

I have seen gossip help co-workers in some places where I have worked, giving rise to compassion or offers of support when someone is going through hard times. On the other hand, I have .also seen gossip— over an office romance, for example— distract people from their work and even force unwanted     10    .

Whatever side you take, gossip is here to stay. It is a universal human practice and it is too complex to say it is either good or bad, a University of Colorado researcher says.