In Stressful Times, Make Stress Work for You
These are stressful times. Fortunately, we can actually use that stress to improve our health and well-being. Over a decade of research suggests that it’s not the type or amount of stress that determines its impact. 1.. But how can we change our stress mind-set?
Step 1: Acknowledge Your Stress
Labeling your stress consciously and deliberately moves neural activity from the amygdala — the center of emotion and fear — to the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for executive control and planning.
In other words, when we take a moment to acknowledge our stress, it moves us from operating from a fearful, reactive place to a position where we can be thoughtful and deliberate. 2..
Step 2: Own Your Stress
3. We only stress about things that we care about. By owning our stress, we connect to the positive motivation or personal value behind our stress.
Try completing this sentence about whatever was specifically stressing you out in step one: ''I'm stressed about… because I deeply care about…''.
Step 3: 4.
Connecting to the core values behind your stress sets you up for the third and most essential step: using stress to achieve your goals and connect more deeply with the things that matter most.
Ask yourself: Are your typical responses in alignment with the values behind your stress? Think about how you might change your response to this stress to better facilitate your goals and your purpose.
There's so much happening right now that we can't control. 5.. Some psychologists argue that true transformative change can occur only during stress or crises. The trick is to channel your stress as energy to make the most of this time.
A.Use Your Stress.
B.Control Your Stress.
C.The next step is to welcome, or ''own'', your stress.
D.Instead, it's our mind-set about stress that matters most.
E.However, there are also unprecedented opportunities amid the fear.
F.It's also a chance to understand what's at the heart of your personal stress.
G.But later, we will be able to ask ourselves how we each responded to this crisis.
Inaccessible Island is well named. It is an uninhabited rock in the South Atlantic ocean. Go there, though, and you will find its coast is covered with litter.
That has been the experience of Peter Ryan of the University of Cape Town, in South Africa. Since 1984 Dr. Ryan has been visiting Inaccessible, recording the litter stranded on the island's beaches. This week, he has published the results.
Though Inaccessible is indeed remote, the nature of oceanic circulation means that this is exactly the sort of place where floating rubbish tends to accumulate.
Dr. Ryan and his colleagues focused on one particular class of litter: bottles. Their definition of a bottle included jars and containers, and things made of metal, glass or polymer. Most, though, were of polyethylene terephthalate , a light plastic.
A particular advantage of picking bottles to investigate is that they are often stamped with their country of manufacture. That enabled Dr. Ryan to analyze the history of oceanic littering. He analyzed the proportions of bottles from various geographical sources. In 1989 the preponderance (优势) of them (67%) was South American. Twenty years later, in 2009, bottles made in Asia contributed more or less equally (44%) with South American ones (41%). By 2018 the overwhelming (压倒性的) majority (74%) were Asian.
This geographical shift speaks volumes. The first sample suggests most litter arriving on Inaccessible had been washed off the land or dropped from coastal shipping — South America being a relatively nearby continent. The other two, with their rising proportions of rubbish from Asia, which is too far from the island for it to have floated there, strongly suggest it was crews’ empties being flung from ships. Such littering is banned — which, ironically, came into force in 1989. But evidently a lot of ships’ captains do not care. They permit the dumping of rubbish over the side, regardless.
1.What leads to litter gathering on Inaccessible Island?
A.The natural phenomenon of ocean currents. B.Too many people’s activities on the island.
C.The litter’s floating around the island. D.The island’s remote location.
2.Why does Dr. Ryan choose bottles as subjects?
A.It is easy to analyze them. B.It is possible to figure out their sources.
C.There are stamps attached to them. D.They contribute most to oceanic littering.
3.What does the underlined word “flung” in the last paragraph mean?
A.Cast away. B.Given away.
C.Carried out. D.Put out.
4.What is the best title for the text?
A.Plastic Bottles Washed up on Inaccessible Island
B.Geographical Factors Accounting for More Rubbish
C.Plastic Pollution Worsening on Remote Atlantic
D.A Bottled up Rubbish Problem on Inaccessible Island
UW’s Jason Shogren and Linda Thunstrom, along with Jonas Nordstrom of the Lund University School of Economics and Management, have documented that two-adult households with children emit over 25 percent more carbon dioxide than two-adult households without children.
The study involved an analysis of expenditures on goods and services by households in Sweden. The researchers found that parents with children at home consume goods and services that emit CO2 in the areas of food, such as meat, and transportation, such as gasoline, at higher rates than childless households.
The economists note that time constraints (约束) become more demanding, and convenience may become more important, when people have children.
“Parents may need to be in more places in one day,” resulting in people driving themselves instead of using public transportation or bicycling, the researchers wrote. “They also need to feed more people. Eating more pre-prepared, red meat carbon-intensive meals may add convenience and save time.”
The distinction in the carbon footprints of Swedish households with and without children is particularly striking, as concerns about climate change are more pronounced in Sweden than most other developed counties. Most Swedes believe climate change is real and have accepted sizable CO2 taxes, and households with children are given financial aid, which helps to alleviate some of the time shortage for parents to a certain extent.
“If we’re finding these results in Sweden, it’s pretty safe to assume that the distinction in carbon footprints between parents and nonparents is even bigger in most other Western countries,” Thunstrom says.
“Becoming a parent can transform a person, he or she thinks more about the future and worries about future risks imposed on their children and of spring,” Shogren says. “But, while having children might be transformational, our results suggest that parents’ concerns about climate change do not cause them to be ‘greener’ than non-parent adults.”
1.According to the study, compared with the households without children, the households with children __________.
A.emit more carbon dioxide
B.consume more goods and services
C.attach more importance to the quality of goods and services
D.are less concerned about carbon footprints
2.Why do two-adult households with children have higher carbon footprints?
A.They prefer to eat red meat prepared in advance.
B.They aren’t concerned about climate change.
C.They drive cars more as a consequence of time pressure.
D.They need to purchase more goods and services.
3.The underlined word “alleviate” in paragraph 5 refers to __________.
A.solve B.heighten C.worsen D.ease
4.What is the main idea of the passage?
A.Being a parent will cause a person to be more concerned about carbon emission.
B.Carbon footprints grow with parenthood because of increased time constraints and the need for convenience.
C.The increasing expenditures on goods and services by households help raise the awareness of carbon footprints.
D.The difference in carbon footprints between parents and nonparents is much severer in other western countries than in Sweden.
Anyone who knew Jack knew him well. He was the first to hide under the bed covers every time the sky grew grey and thunder was heard in the distance. He was in great fear of storms. However, that day changed it all.
With dark clouds in the morning, Jack was in the car with his sister, Emily, who was driving them home. Jack was holding the sides of his seat tightly. As a result, his knuckles (指关节) turned white. Suddenly, the treacherous road conditions sent the car into a slide. The vehicle went off the wet and slippery road, rolled several times and finally rest upside down. Fortunately, both of them were wearing seat belts. Head bleeding heavily, Emily was conscious but unable to move. Thankfully Jack was unhurt.
Water poured through the broken windows of the car. Suddenly, Jack recalled something. He quickly unfastened the seat belt and moved out of the passenger window. With rain beating against his face and arms, Jack made his way to the driver’s side with great difficulty. He managed to pull her through the window. Suddenly, he felt a strong pain on his arms. It was only later that Jack realized the broken pieces of the window had cut them while he was pulling his sister through the window. Finally Jack dragged Emily up to the road. They were soon rescued.
Emily later recalled her terrifying experience and was truly amazed by his courage. Jack’s act of courage was motivated by his favourite book: The Little Engine That Could. In it, when everyone had given up hope, the Little Engine carried the heavy toys and candies over the hill to the children waiting on the other side. The Little Engine had shown courage and taken action.
Obviously, we cannot attribute Jack’s bravery to that one story but without doubt, the book had left a deep impression on him and inspired him to respond positively in a difficult situation.
1.What made it difficult for Jack to go over to the driver’s side?
A.His fear. B.The heavy rain.
C.His injuries. D.The bad road condition.
2.What does the underlined word “treacherous” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?
A.Dangerous. B.Strange.
C.Special. D.Fantastic.
3.How did Emily feel about Jack’s change?
A.Annoyed. B.Embarrassed.
C.Surprised D.Puzzled.
4.What can we infer about the book mentioned in the text?
A.It was once a bestseller. B.It once inspired Emily.
C.It was intended for kid. D.It was a horror story.
Want to be more successful? If so, then you need to read a few self-help books. Here are four popular ones to get you going.
59 Seconds ( 2009) by Richard Wiseman
This is a self-help book with a difference. Wiseman, a scientist, uses science to prove many self-help myths(神话) are false. For example, self-help books say that if you want to achieve a goal, you should visualize it. But Wiseman says that's the worst thing to do. Studies show that you need to visualize the steps required to achieve the goal.
How to Win Friends& Influence People ( 1936) —by Dale Carnegie
This is the book that launched the self-help type. Carnegie says financial success is 15% professional knowledge and 85% the ability to express ideas, assume leadership, and motivate people. The book is full of practical advice on how to influence people by making them like you.
The Millionaire Next Door (1996) by Thomas Stanley & Wlliam Danko
The authors of this book spent years interviewing American millionaires to figure out the secrets of their success. And they discovered that a majority of millionaires don't live luxury lifestyles. They're rich because they live below their means and reinvest what they earn.
Who Moved My Cheese? (1998)-by Spencer Johnson
Who Moved My Cheese? An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life, published on September 8, 1998, is a motivational business fable. The text describes change in one's work and life, and four typical reactions to those changes by two mice and two “little people”，during their hunt for cheese.
1.What is the key to achieving success in 59 Seconds?
A.To employ science. B.To follow examples.
C.To picture procedures. D.To visualize the goal.
2.What is Dale Carnegie's book mainly about?
A.How to master occupational knowledge. B.How to apply practical techniques.
C.How to gain strong management. D.How to become popular persons.
3.Which book can help you adapt to change in your life?
A.59 Seconds B.Who Moved My Cheese?
C.The Millionaire Next Door D.How to Win Friends& Influence People
假定你是李华，你校即将举办“中国民歌节”。请你写封信邀请你的好友Jack参加，内容包括：
1. 写信目的；
2. 时间和地点；
3. 活动内容。
注意：1. 词数100左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
