Many students want to learn a foreign language well, but what must they do? In my opinion, in order to know a foreign language thoroughly, four things are necessary{#blank#}1{#/blank#} Secondly, we must be able to speak it ourselves correctly with confidence and without hesitation. Thirdly, we must be able to read the language, and fourthly, we must be able to write it{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    There is no easy way to success in language learning. A good memory is a great help{#blank#}3{#/blank#}It is not much use learning by heart long lists of words and their meanings, studying the dictionary and so on.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}If we are satisfied with only a few rules we have memorized, we are not really learning the language. “Learn through use”is a good piece of advice for those who are studying a new language. Practice is important{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. We must learn by using the language.

B. To master a foreign language is very important.

C. Firstly, we must understand the language when we hear it spoken.

D. We must be able to make sentences that are grammatically correct.

E. We must study how we have to do to learn a foreign language.

F. But it is not enough only to memorize rules from a grammar book.

G. We must practise speaking and writing the language whenever we can.

Three Ways to Self-fund College

    The idea that parents should pay for their children's college education is a nice one, but it's far from a reality for many students. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Whatever the case may be, it's time to take a good look at your options for funding college on your own.

Turn over every stone.

    If you're not a straight-A genius who could easily win college scholarships, there's good news:{#blank#}2{#/blank#} Check out these popular College Confidential threads to see which awards average and above-average students are aiming at. Are your parents retirees? Are you a first-generation student? Is your family attached to any church or community groups? (Seriously, there are scholarships for all those things.) The secret to scoring major cash is following every possible source of funding.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    Instead of going straight to a four-year institution, many students are choosing to start out at an affordable community college and transfer later.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} If these are options that could work for you, just be sure you have a solid plan in place, and don't let yourself get sidetracked from your goal of earning a college degree.

    Take what you can get.

    Remember that not all valuable contributions are monetary（与钱有关的. It's time to sit down with your parents and have a serious talk about other expenses they might be able to help you with.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} You can save several thousand per year on housing. What about books, meals, and other expenses? Even relatively small savings can be a huge leg up in the long run.

A.Take an alternative route.

B.You don't need to be a genius to qualify for scholarships.

C.If they're fine about letting you live at home, that's great.

D.Think about if you can afford a price of around $10,000 per year.

E.Recent studies show a widespread lack of understanding of the real cost of college.

F.Similarly, some choose to take a year or two off after high school to save up as much as possible.

G.Some parents believe the responsibility of paying for college should fall on the person seeking a degree— that's you.

    Training for a marathon (马拉松) requires careful preparation and steady, gradual increases in the length of the runs. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}, buy the best-fitting running shoes you can find. No one can say which brand will work best for you or feel best on your feet, so you have to rely on your experience and on the feel of each pair as you shop. When you have found shoes that seem right, walk in them for a few days to double-check the fit. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}. As always, you should stretch (伸展) at least ten minutes before each run to prevent injuries.

    During the first week, do not think about distance, but run five minutes longer each day. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}, it is wise to take a day off to rest. But during the next week, set a goal of at least a mile and a half per run. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}. After two weeks, start timing yourself. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. Depending on the kind of race you plan to enter, you can set up a timetable for the remaining weeks before the race.

A. After six days

B. For a good marathon runner

C. Before you begin your training

D. With each day, increase the distance by a half mile

E. If they still feel good, you can begin running in them

F. Time spent for preparation raises the quality of training

G. Now you are ready to figure out a goal of improving distance and time

    Violent Games: Fun or Harmful?

    If you play lots of video games, you've probably blown a zombie(僵尸) into tiny bits. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Many adults worry that playing such games could make children act violently in real life. Is that true?

The American Academy of Pediatrics(儿科) says that violence in any kind of media — from TV to music to video games — presents a risk to kids' health. A number of studies have shown a link between video games and aggression, including one published in JAMA Pediatrics in 2014, which found that kids who played violent video games showed an increase in aggressive thoughts and behaviors. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    But not all studies agree that violent games cause kids to act out. Another study replaced violent deaths with evaporation(蒸发) in a game. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} People who played the non-violent game without any training were more aggressive afterward than people who played the violent version but learned to control themselves first.

    And here's an even stranger fact: When violent video games are released, people carry out fewer violent crimes! Why? {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Steve Levitt, coauthor of the book Freakonomics, said, “If you can make video games fun enough, then kids will stop watching TV, and they'll stop going out and creating violent disorder on the street.”

What do you think? {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. One possible explanation: potential criminals are at home playing the new game.

B. Then, before playing the game, some people received training and others didn't.

C. More than 3,000 kids answered survey questions during a two-year period.

D. For example, thinking it's OK to hit someone you don't like.

E. Have you ever played any violent video games?

F. Do violent video games cause bad behavior?

G. Some games even pile up dead bodies.

    Unless you think you're the smartest, who doesn't want to be smarter? Of course I want to be smarter too. So I try to find out who's the real smart guy that maybe I can learn from.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    ▲ They probably do social media. Not always, but probably.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} They also use this to ensure they can feed their brains with things they otherwise wouldn't have come across.

    ▲ {#blank#}3{#/blank#} They never bother their head about the problem of "work-life balance" and somehow manage to seem 100% engaged in what they're doing, on all fronts simultaneously(同时), even though you know they're taking appropriate steps behind the scenes to make sure their lives are well balanced.

    ▲ They know they are the smartest in the room, but they don't spend much time talking about that.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} That is, they challenge themselves to make everyone else in the room the smartest person too.

    ▲ They never, ever, under any circumstances, make you look stupid, even though it would be easy to do so. They've learned through bitter experience that the only thing that happens when you make someone look bad is that you look bad yourself.

    ▲ If they are managers, they will make every effort to get people more connected and more popular than them in their teams.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} They're not threatened because they know that smartness is synergistic.(相互促进的)

A. It is not only a chance to listen.

B. They know it is an advantage to them.

C. They take it as a personal challenge instead.

D. They will be smiling even when things go wrong.

E. Now I've got an answer about whether someone's smart.

F. They also ensure their smart people look smarter than them.

G. They deal with home, work and personal interests perfectly.

The power of work stress

    Many experts believe that stress can strengthen you or tear you down. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} The followings are suggested to perform better under pressure.

Give stress a good name.

    Why hate work stress—it's a sign that our career is advancing. Think of a heavy work load as an exciting opportunity to push yourself. Don't complain about it. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} 

Alternate(交替) tasks.

    Spending an entire day or week on a single project increases your anxiety without improving your productivity. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} You need to create your working patterns to recharge. Every 60 to 90 minutes, take a break from your primary activity and do something different for 15 minutes.

Refuel.

    Tend to skip meals and pull late nights when you feel the heat at work? {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Get six to eight hours of sleep, and go to bed at the same hour every night. Avoid big meals but have high-carbon, low-fat snacks every few hours.

Overcome your fears.

   {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Often, your stress comes from worrying rather than from the work assignment or problems you're dealing with. Write down the fears in detail and methodically address each one.

A. Both could lead to burnout.

B. In fact, you may lose focus.

C. Instead, greet it with optimism.

D. In most cases, you can choose.

E. Or rather, it is the basis of success.

F. Keep work and rest in a proper balance.

G. Pressure doesn't get you down, but fear does.