How to improve your studies—scientifically
Our brain can possibly memorize 2. 5 petabytes（千兆）of information. In order to use some of that surprising capacity（能力）a little more effectively when you learn, here are some tips that are based on widely-accepted research by learning experts.
1.
Some enjoy watching videos over reading books, others study with friends, and some like sitting in silence among a million books. Everybody is different.
Hard things first
2. , so do the things that are difficult first. Once you are done with the hard things, you will feel better for the rest of the day, and probably more motivated to get other things done.
Space（分隔开）your studies
3. . Facts or vocabularies, for example, are best learned if you review them the first time one to two days after the study, and then again after one week, and after one month.
Instant self-test
After your study, finish up with a quick quiz. Immediate recall in the form of a test or a short summary on what you’ve just learned can increase retention（记忆力）by as much as 30%. 4., that extra effort creates deeper traces（痕迹）in your memory.
Don’t force it
Motivation is like hunger. You cannot force yourself to be motivated, just like you can’t tell someone else to be hungry. So, if you are not hungry right now, don’t worry. 5..
A. Take fun seriously
B. Find your own style
C. Take a break, and do something else
D. Good memory can grow your brain’s potential
E. Because it’s much harder for your brain to remember than to read
F. Like most people you have the strongest willpower in the morning.
G. to remember things for a longer time, repeat the material after taking several breaks
So often I hear people justify（为……辩解）their lack of family trips because their children are not old enough to remember them. This reason is so confusing to me. Who would travel based on another person’s memory?
Of course the kids aren’t going to remember anything in infancy（婴儿期）, but you will. You will remember all the sweet memories you had with them.
My parents would take me to Guatemala as a child. I don’t remember a lot about the trip, but I do know that when I went back as a young adult, I felt comfortable in my surroundings. I didn’t spend my time there discovering a new way of life. I spent the time having fun with my family. I love looking at pictures that we took together when I was my son’s age. I don’t remember them, but that’s not the point. The point is, I was there with my family, and I know I was happy.
Now that I’m a parent, I can’t help but do the same. Last year, we took our 2-year-old son to Disney alongside his great-grandmother. His great-grandmother had recently begun to suffer from Alzheimer’s. That trip was timed in the most magical way — right before my son was old enough to remember it and right before his great-grandmother began to forget. This makes me want to cry for them both. How did we get so lucky to have this moment to share with each other before big changes influenced our family forever?
Realistically speaking, many families do not have the opportunity to travel internationally or visit pricey theme parks. I understand this more than you know, but I’m talking beyond that. They are young but these forgettable moments are still changing them. They will shape your children into who they will be tomorrow. The memories we absorb as their parents are also as influential as we have not finished learning our truths either.
1.Why do some parents go on few family trips?
A. They have no time. B. They cannot afford them.
C. They are not interested in them. D. They think their kids won’t remember them.
2.What’s the author’s impression of her childhood trip to Guatemala?
A. Clear. B. Boring.
C. Pleasing. D. Hard.
3.Which influenced the author to plan the Disney trip?
A. Her son. B. Her parents.
C. Some old photos. D. Other parents’ ideas.
4.Why did the author want to cry when recalling the Disney trip?
A. She was sorry for her grandmother’s disease.
B. She was worried about big family changes.
C. She was moved by the timing of the trip.
D. She was surprised by her son’s growth.
My first term at MIT（麻省理工学院）was awesome—I got all A’s, and I declared math as my major. My parents were expecting me to become a doctor like them so I was trying to satisfy them. But I was desperately running away from them. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. My third term, I ended up with a D in math. I didn’t do that well in my other classes, either. It seemed like all my friends were doing so well, getting opportunities over the summers.
My fifth term, I realized that I was awful at higher-level math. I had lost all confidence in myself. I went to a few classes at the beginning of the term, but after by midterm, I had totally stopped. My only relief was the dance team I was on. I would sleep all day, and then go to dance practice, and then go back to sleep. As expected, I failed in all of my classes and had to withdraw from MIT.
I had no choice but to tell my parents. Instead of yelling or hitting me, though, they just held me and cried. The next day, my dad took a day off from work and took me to a nearby, small arts college.
I had lost all confidence in myself. Before my first biology test, I didn’t think I could pass. I did pass. Since I had so much free time, I decided to join a biology lab. I realized that was what I wanted to do! I wanted to be a scientist!
This past May, I graduated with the highest honors, and now I have my PhD in biology. Though it ended up taking me 5 years to graduate from college, I can say now that dropping out of MIT was one of the best things that ever happened to me. I’ve realized that a person is not their grades. I’ve realized how much my parents loved me. I’ve finally discovered my passion（热情）in life!
1.How was the author’s first term at MIT?
A. He was busy with exams. B. He knew his goals clearly.
C. He did well in all subjects. D. He was fed up with math.
2.How did the author’s parents react to his failing at MIT?
A. They hit him. B. They yelled at him.
C. They quit their jobs to teach him. D. They forgave him for what he did.
3.In the arts college, the author _________.
A. rebuilt his confidence B. volunteered at many labs
C. found it hard to learn biology D. hated the learning environment
4.What do we know about the author from the last paragraph?
A. He felt sorry for his parents. B. He discovered his true interest.
C. He realized the importance of grades. D. He felt ashamed of his failing at MIT.
The man who walked into Dave Cutlip’s tattoo parlor（纹身店）in Brooklyn Park. Maryland, in January was tough to miss. His face bore a gang（帮派）tattoo. The man sought Cutlip’s help in covering up his violent past. He was determined to turn over a new leaf. “I could see the hurt in his eyes,” Cutlip, 49, told The Washington Post.
Cutlip couldn’t help the man—the tattoo were too close to the eyes. But it got him thinking. Many young people get tattoos that they come to regret. A few can mark them for the rest of their days. Then they’re “always going to be a victim. ” said Cutlip. “If I can help, that’s my ultimate（最终的）goal. ”
Inking over a tattoo costs hundreds of dollars, and getting one removed by laser（激光）is even pricier. So Cutlip decided he would help by hiding racist or gang-related tattoos for free. He put the word out via Facebook: “Sometimes people make bad choices and sometimes people change. We believe there is enough hate in this world, and we want to make a difference. ”
One man, Casey Schaffer, showed up with the word “white” on one forearm and “power” on the other. He’d served a year in prison on drug charges, he told The Washington Post, and had joined a white group there because "they took care of me. I thought of it as paying them back. " But employers would take one look at the tattoos and turn him down. So he had Cutlip obscure（使不分明）one of the words with a heat and roses and tattoo an eagle over the other.
Cutlip has done nine such jobs, each of which took several hours. He told People that a client（顾客）let him know that he quickly found a job once his tattoo was obscured. Such victories inspired Cutlip to found the Random Acts of Tattoo project with three like-minded（志同道合的）tattoo studios from around the country, and now hundreds of clients are on a wait list. As he told National Public Radio. “If we can just erase hate, then we’re doing something. ”
1.What do we know about the man who had a gang tattoo?
A. His eyes were badly hurt. B. He refused Cutlip’s help.
C. Tattoos covered all of his body. D. He decided to start all over again.
2.How did Cutlip help Casey?
A. By coloring the tattoos. B. By inking over the tattoos.
C. By changing the tattoos’ patterns. D. By removing the tattoos by laser.
3.Why did Casey ask Cutlip for help?
A. To get employed. B. To join another group.
C. To hide his anger at whites. D. To please his current employer.
4.What can be inferred about the Random Acts of Tattoo project?
A. It’s a worldwide project. B. It’s a co-founded project.
C. Its clients are like-minded. D. Its clients don’t have to wait long.
Festivals are a great way to experience a destination in a different way. This article will fuel your wanderlust（漫游癖）and guide you to the best festivals.
St Patrick’s Day
Where: Dublin, Ireland & New York, USA
When: 17 March
St Patrick’s Day has taken place in New York city on March 17th since 1762. On this day, the whole city turns green. Many Irish make traditional bread on this day. It is one of the most fun days the of the year in New York City every year, when the whole city turns into a big green party.
SXSW
Where: Austin, USA
When:10-19 March
Like free things? Yeah me too! Free food, drink and music sound good? Welcome to Austin, Texas. SXSW is a festival for those who work in the music and film industries. There are “free” shows. You di have to pay but not by handing over cash; you have to give some time to queue but it is worth it to see some popular stars.
King’s Day
Where: Amsterdam, Netherlands
When: 27 April
Every year on April 27 Amsterdam turns a very bright color of orange for King’s Day, which is the birthday of King Willem-Alexander. It is a crazy fun celebration when the center of the city is car, bus, and bike-free. It is a market day, when anyone can sell pretty much anything. Tips: Take a jacket with you, wear orange, and bring cash.
Just for Laughs
Where: Montreal, Canada
When: 14-30 July
For comedy lovers there is no other festival in the world better than Montreal’s Just for Laughs. The festival concentrates most of its shows in the Latin Quarter. During the day street performers delight the crowds and at night the city comes alive with comedy all over the city.
1.What do St Patrick’s Day and King’s Day have in common?
A. They are market days.
B. They feature a specific color.
C. They begin in the same month.
D. They are in honor of a King’s birthday.
2.Which festival is about music and film?
A. St Patrick’s Day. B. SXSW.
C. King’s Day. D. Just for Laughs.
3.What do we know about Just for Laughs?
A. It offers free food.
B. It lasts for one week.
C. It is the best comedy festival in the world.
D. It is celebrated in many places worldwide.
阅读下面短文，根据其内容写一篇60词左右的内容概要。
Workaholics live for their work, often spending many extra hours at work, and often taking work home to complete. It’s fine to live in a work-hard culture, but when work becomes the only reason for a person’s existence above more important things (such as family and friends), the issue becomes critical. That’s the problem more and more Americans are faced with.
Americans are working more hours per week than in years past, and with many companies reducing employees, more and more workers are worried about their own jobs. Some studies show that as many as 40 percent of American workers don’t even bother to take vacations, partly because of fears they may not have a job to come back to if they do. Besides, it is obvious that part of the matter is financial. More and more people begin to define success in terms of financial measures. The higher one’s income is, the more respect one gets. Finally, people nowadays live and work in a connected environment -- e-mails, instant messaging, fax machines, and cell phones -- making it hard for them to truly get time away from their work, even when they are on holiday.
When work becomes the only reason for being -- when it becomes the only thing people think about, the only thing that truly makes people happy, many Americans find that they are no longer close to their kids. Divorce rate jumps and serious stress-related health problems come up. Undoubtedly, it is time to do something.
To reduce workaholism, you must stay away from work once in a while. There are many ways to do that: Spend time with family and friends; Call home often to stay connected; Learn to say no to new assignments; Consider exercises to get your body back to a healthy shape; Fight the urge that everything you do must be perfect. It will take some effort, but for yourself and those you love, you really should make the effort. Have a try and you won’t regret it.
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