1 . Around seven out of every ten Americans who work in offices do their work in an open environment, defined as at desks without meaningful partitions (隔板), according to an International Facility Management Association survey. That is, if they even have a desk- workers may be assigned only a few feet of a communal (共用的) table. The open-plan office space trend, popularized by creative agencies and technology start-ups, went mainstream because of the belief that open-space environments support innovation. More nearness between employees, the thinking went, would create more interaction and teamwork, promote social interaction and urge productivity.

But in fact, purely open-plan offices have been shown to have the opposite effects, creating so much distraction (分心) that employees stayed away from each other. A study funded by Harvard Business Sehaol, the results of which were published last year, tracked what happened when a British company moved its employees from traditional office space, with offices with walls, to an open office. Face-to-face interaction became less — employees spent 72 percent less time interacting with their colleagues. Instead of talking more with each other, the employees put on headphones and began communicating by text and email. As digital communication channels surged, productivity declined.

Neuroscience also holds some clues as to why the tight quarters in communal work spaces- where workers are only given about half the space they were given a decade ago- are so hard to work in. “The human voice sets off the most powerful emotional response in our auditory (听觉的) experience. Voice above 55 decibels (分贝) — roughly the sound of a loud phone call- causes measurable stress, ” according to a Wall Street Journal article,   “The Neuroscience-Optimized Office”. “Even more troublesome are overheard ‘halfversations’, in which the listener only knows about one side of a dialogue; our brains automatically imagine the other, ” wrote authors John Medina and Ryan Mullenix.

But the solution, say experts including Newport, isn’t to go back to putting everyone into offices with walls.

2 . Money doesn’t grow on trees, as the saying goes, and learning how to spend money wisely is a valuable lesson we should all learn when we are young. In China, a growing number of young individuals are embracing this _________ and finding that being frugal (节俭的) can be both rewarding and _________ .

Young individuals in China are actively engaging with _________ responsibility by sharing their budget-friendly strategies and smart shopping advice across various digital platforms. Known as “koukouzu” or the “Frugal Tribe,” they _________ against impulsive (冲动的) spending on luxury brands or frequent _________ of trendy bubble tea. They would rather save up for good quality clothes that will last a long time, instead of some cheaply made fast-fashion _________ . To resist the temptation of impulse buying, some have chosen to _________ applications like Taobao and Mei-tuan from their devices. These frugal _________ have also banded together to form online communities, with one Douban group boasting a membership of 600,000, where members _________ ideas and support each other in their journey towards financial freedom.

Saving cash through the purchase of used goods is a strategy adopted by many who __________ that second hand does not always mean second rate. __________, I once bought a pair of __________ worn Crockett Jones shoes, a British brand with a regular price tag of $1,200, for a mere $100. What a __________ ! Moreover, choosing secondhand items supports environmental conservation by giving new life to objects that would otherwise __________ in landfills, reducing waste and promoting reuse.

Frugality, __________ in Chinese culture since Confucius, is a virtue. Yet, the joy of bargain hunting adds a modern twist to this ancient wisdom.

5 . An immersive and slow-paced Citywalk is becoming trendy across China. In contrast to rushing past overcrowded tourist landmarks, the new trend has emerged as a popular alternative to explore bustling markets, ancient streets, and charming alleys at a leisurely pace.

The appeal of Citywalk caters particularly to the younger generation often caught up in demanding work schedules. As evidenced by the increasing popularity of hash tags like “City walk for vacation” on lifestyle sharing platform Xiaohong shu, with a staggering 465 million views and nearly 464, 600 engagements, the trend is truly capturing unbelievable attention.

Citywalk, or meandering through the urban landscapes, means the act of walking freely along city streets unburdened by exhaustive plans. It offers people an avenue to intimately experience urban culture and local traditions. Citywalk is not merely about sightseeing. It creates an opportunity for social interactions and deep connections with the cities. Citywalk routes are tailored to the specific interests of both out-of-town tourists and locals. For tourists, the focus is on sharing local customs and traditions, while for locals, discussions revolve around the city’s past, present, and future. The growing trend of Citywalk reflects a changing attitude towards life, embracing a warmer, more relaxed, and slower-paced lifestyle.

As Citywalk expands beyond first-tier cities like Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou, to second-and third-tier cities across the county, it brings fresh opportunities for the tourism industry, in such areas as dining, shopping, and accommodation.

Governments in Beijing and Shandong have recognized the potential of Citywalk, incorporating it into their action plans to promote cultural tourism and leisure activities. In Shanghai, public bus lines specially designed have been introduced to elevate the overall Citywalk for participants.

“By slowing down and delving into the narrow alleys, observing the lives of city residents, and immersing oneself in the context of museums and art galleries, one is entitled to embrace the pleasure of life,” said Luo Jun, a cultural tourism enthusiast.

6 . A major emergency can create hundreds of thousands of refugees (难民) overnight. The most immediate way in which organizations like UNHCR and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) can help these refugees is by setting up refugee camps. Refugee camps are designed to be temporary, but they often remain in place for decades. In some parts of the world, children have grown up and had children of their own without ever leaving their camp.

Critics argue that they force refugees to be entirely dependent on donations. One journalist who visited the Nyadeou camp in the south of the Republic of Guinea A (Africa) in 2001, described how normally peaceful people were reduced to fighting with each other when the food truck arrived.

Refugees camps can easily become dirty, overcrowded and are overrun with disease or crime. In many camps, drug dealers hide themselves among the majority of innocent refugees.

One alternative for refugees is to settle in a town or village, making them become part of the local population. This is known as the “self-settlement”. Several aid agencies argue that the self-settlement is a better option in many cases than refugee camps. They say that self-settled refugees can start to rebuild their lives straight away, and are freer and safer than refugees in camps. Oxfam, the ICRC and many other international aid agencies support programs in which refugees are helped to self-settle.

Representatives of UNHCR argue that refugee camps are the best way of saving the greatest possible numbers of lives. They point out that it is much easier to help people if they are all gathered in one place. This is certainly true of emergency relief, for example the distribution of food, water, shelters and medical supplies. It is also true that long-term aid programs, such as family tracing, orphan support and, perhaps most importantly, education, can all be carried out much more easily when refugees are all living together in one place.

9 . New research finds a link between poverty and poor decision making. The findings may explain why poor people sometimes make bad choices that continue their hardship.

Earlier studies have found the poor less likely to escape poverty. But there has been little research on why the poor make decisions that make their lives harder. Until recently, Eldar Shafir, a psychologist and his team did two experiments. One took place at a shopping center in New Jersey. The other was carried out among sugar cane (甘蔗) farmers in rural India.

The New Jersey experiment involved individuals with low paying jobs and others belonged to the middle class. All the volunteers were asked what they would do if their cars needed repairing.

The volunteers were given two imaginary situations. In the first, the car repair cost $150. In the second, $1,500.

“In the first, the poor and the rich performed equally well.”

“And when the repair cost $1,500, the poor performed significantly worse.” The poor lost about 13 IQ points on average. This is about the loss experienced when a person has not slept for one night.

The scientists then wondered if the same person reacted differently when he was rich and when he was poor. Once a year when the harvest comes in, the India sugar cane farmers earn most of their money, which often does not last through the year.

“So they find themselves basically rich after the harvest when the income comes in and poor just before the harvest.”

The researchers gave them tests similar to the ones taken by the people in New Jersey. They tested the Indian farmers before the harvest and after.

And the results were much the same as with the mall shoppers.

“They performed much more slowly and made many more mistakes when they were poor than when they were rich.”

Mr. Shafir says the results support 50 years of research that shows all humans have limited mental power to deal with things in life.

“And so the insight here is that, having not enough of something in a way makes it harder to make good decisions for everything else.”

Two graduates, from Central China Normal University in Wuhan, Hubei Province, using the names Wanwan and Chaochao,     1     (upload) a 17-minute video online late last year about their lives over the past five years.

In the video, Wanwan,     2     has taken up a dozen jobs since graduating five years ago, said she now only has 5,000 yuan. Her roommate Chaochao got a master’s degree in scriptwriting (编剧) from Communication University of China. But     3     consequence of a tough job market, she had great difficulty     4     (obtain) a job in the film industry. Last year, she started to learn painting but she said she had to work part-time as a cleaner at a hotpot restaurant to support     5     (she).

“When you can accept your failure, you will feel that it is not that bad. When working at the hotpot restaurant, my biggest     6     (comfortable) is that I won’t starve to death no matter what is next,” Chaochao said. “There are many roads in our lives, and no matter which direction you go, you will     7     (eventual) find your own road.”

The video was one of the trending videos of last year, gaining more than 5.44 million views and more than 26,000 comments since it     8     (release), with many netizens sharing their own failures in the comments section.

Netizens said they were warmed by their courage to share failures with the public, strong determination     9     (achieve) their goals, optimism in the face of hardships     10     spirit of never giving up.