How to Create a Mind Map

    Most of us think visually but we write textually. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} It also makes the information we list more difficult to process, remember, and share.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} It combines the brain's visual nature with our tendency to write down words. We end up with a diagram that combines logic and order in a less structured manner. This promotes clearer thinking and better comprehension.{#blank#}3{#/blank#} 

    So, how do you create a mind map? The most basic method is to just use a pen and paper, or a marker and whiteboard. It begins with a central topic or idea, then flows outward.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} The next level of topics is represented by branches extending from it.

    There aren't really any rules for creating mind maps. While most flow outwardly from the central topic, some users prefer to build mind maps in one direction.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} This can make groups of ideas easier to identify and remember. It also makes a mind map more enjoyable to create and use.

    Mind maps are extremely effective for taking notes, planning a project, brainstorming an idea, presenting information to others, and many other uses. Take out your pen and have a try.

A. They help to clarify thinking.

B. This goes against how our minds actually work.

C. They help us save time by focusing on key issues.

D. A mind map is the perfect answer to this dilemma.

E. Think of it as a tree, where the central point is the trunk.

F. It's also a lot more enjoyable than simply writing down lists.

G. Others like to add colors, pictures, or symbols in their mind maps.

    “Keep out or I'll chase you out! This is my property!” You hear this every spring. It is a long musical sound —a bird song! Birds use their songs to communicate different messages to one another. People who study bird sounds are learning their meanings.

    Usually it is the male that sings. Early in spring he sings to say that he has picked out a piece of property. He sings to attract a female of his same kind. Together they will raise a family in his territory (领地). He sings to tell all other birds of his kind to keep out.

    Each kind of bird has its own type of song. Cardinals sing something that sounds a little like “What cheer, cheer, cheer.” Towhees sing, “Drink your tea.”

    Most of the time, birds pay attention only to the songs of birds of their own kind. Cardinals answer cardinals, and song sparrows answer song sparrows. A cardinal knows that a song sparrow will not try to steal its mate. So you can see one reason why a cardinal may chase away another cardinal but will not bother a song sparrow.

    Most different kinds of birds eat different things. To find enough to eat, a bird needs a big piece of land to search in. Many kinds of birds have some ways of dividing up the land into territories. Song sparrows, cardinals ovenbirds, and white-throated sparrows are some of the birds that have territorial systems.

    Especially in early spring, birds work out the boundaries between their territories by singing “keep out” threats and by chasing and fighting each other. The birds continue singing to tell females that they have set up territories. Neighboring birds seem to agree that there are make believe fences between their pieces of property. Then they do not have to waste energy chasing each other instead of taking care of their young.

    Scientists guessed that some birds could recognize their neighbors by small differences in their songs. Two scientists who studied white-throated sparrows found that these birds can even tell the difference between songs of individual birds of their own kind. White-throated sparrows have songs that seem to say “I'm your neighbor” or “I'm a stranger” or “I'm your neighbor to the west.” Other kinds of birds could tell neighbors from strangers by their songs, too.

    For many parents, raising a teenager is like fighting a long war, but years go by without any clear winner. Like a border conflict between neighboring countries, the parent-teen war is about boundaries: Where is the line between what I control and what you do?

    Both sides want peace, but neither feels it has any power to stop the conflict. In part, this is because neither is willing to admit any responsibility for starting it. From the parents “point of view, the only cause of their fight is their adolescents” complete unreasonableness. And of course, the teens see it in exactly the same way, except oppositely. Both feel trapped.

    In this article, I'll describe three no-win situations that commonly arise between teens and parents and then suggest some ways out of the trap. The first no-win situation is quarrels over unimportant things. Examples include the color of the teen's hair, the cleanliness of the bedroom, the preferred style of clothing, the child's failure to eat a good breakfast before school, or his tendency to sleep until noon on the weekends. Second, blaming. The goal of a blaming battle is to make the other admit that his bad attitude is the reason why everything goes wrong. Third, needing to be right. It doesn't matter what the topic is - politics, the laws of physics, or the proper way to break an egg - the point of these arguments is to prove that you are right and other person is wrong, for both wish to be considered an authority - someone who actually knows something - and therefore to command respect. Unfortunately, as long as parents and teens continue to assume that they know more than the other, they'll continue to fight these battles forever and never make any real progress.

    Would you like to travel? Here is some advice for you.

    Kingsway Hall Hotel

    We offer quality service(优质服务)in Kingsway Hall Hotel. This location puts guests in easy reach of many places, such as the British Museum and Piccadilly Circus. Our hotel also has modern Western food, and offers a perfect dining environment. The lounge bar is a comfortable place to enjoy a drink while watching the tourists. There are hundreds of dining choices within walking distance. Non-smoking rooms are ready for guests.

    Hilton Docklands Riverside

    Located on the bank of the Thames, our hotel is about two miles east of Tower Bridge and 36 miles from London Heathrow Airport. Our hotel has a beauty salon, a flower shop and a swimming pool. The hotel also offers laundry(洗衣店)services, babysitting, shining shoes, and local area transportation.

    Windermere Hotel

    Located in the center of London, our hotel puts guests within easy reach of London's well-known buildings. Buckingham Palace and the Royal Parks are just a short walk away. Within 1. 5 miles you can visit Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament. The theatres, Harrods shopping centre, and the designer shops of Sloane Square and Knightsbridge are all only a short walk away or a taxi ride away.

    On a recent afternoon, some 60 years after they graduated from grammar school, Kathleen Rys, 72, and her sister Lorraine O'Kelly, 70, sat down and had a meal with a classmate, Bruce Smit, 71 for the first time.

    In the 1950s, Lorraine and Kathleen Rys' family moved from Chicago to Monee. As new kids at Monee Elementary School, they soon found themselves on the outs with other students.

    "I would be with the other guys and see Kathleen walking down the hallway, her head down, holding her books, walking slowly. And all of us guys would be flat against the wall until she passed. Then we'd burst into laughter. How rude is that? It's just crazy." said Smit, a doctor whose wife, Tammy, organized the meeting.

    The women said none of the teachers cared about it. "We just kept it to ourselves. " Lorraine said.

    Over the years, Tammy Smit said, "Bruce would just start to cry at times. He'd wonder what happened to the sisters, if they landed OK." One day a few weeks ago, Tammy took to the internet and found Mary O'Kelly, Lorraine's daughter, and offered to set up a meeting. The idea of revisiting the pain was not well- received by Kathleen, who had never married, let alone gone on a date. It took some convincing, but Lorraine finally got Kathleen to agree to meet with Bruce.

    Bruce broke into tears. "I'm so ashamed, so embarrassed," he said. "But I'm so happy you're still here and that I can finally apologize. " He said he hopes his apology will encourage others to seek forgiveness for the pain they make on others. Lorraine said, "This is a beautiful thing. It's just wonderful that a person from 60 years ago can ask for forgiveness. It's like a miracle to us. It's a healing to us."

    Last year I ruined my summer vacation by bringing along a modern convenience that was too convenient for my own good: the iPad. Instead of looking at nature, I checked my email. Instead of paddling a small boat, I followed my Twitter feed (推特简讯). Instead of reading great novels, I stuck to reading four newspapers each morning. I was behaving as if I were still in the office. My body was on vacation but my head wasn't.

    So this year I made up my mind to try something different: withdrawal (退出) from the Internet. I knew it wouldn't be easy, since I'm bad at self-control. But I was determined. I started by giving the iPad to my wife.

    The cellphone signal at our house was worse than in the past, making my attempts at cheating a frustrating experience. I was trapped, forced to go through with my plan. Largely cut off from e-mail, Twitter and my favorite newspaper websites, I had few ways to connect to the world except for radio and how much radio can one listen to, really? I had to do what I had planned to all along: read books.

    This experience has had a happy ending. With determination and the strong support of my wife, I won in my vacation struggle against the Internet, realizing finally that it was I, not the iPad, that was the problem. I knew I had won when we passed a Starbucks and my wife asked if I wanted to stop to use the Wi-Fi. “I don't need it,” I said.

    However, as we return to post -vacation life, a harder test begins: Can I continue when I'm back at work? There are times when the need to know what's being said right now is great. And I have no intention of giving up my convenience completely. But I hope to resist the temptation (诱惑) to check my e-mail every five minutes, which leads to checking my Twitter feed and a website or two.

    I think a vacation is supposed to help you reset your brain to become more productive. Here I hope this one worked.