Ways to sleep smarter

    Studies show that poor sleep influences people to make good decisions, concentrate on tasks or even manage a friendly mood(情绪) at work. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Today we've got our top favorite sleep tips and facts.

Set a regular bedtime

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#}Choose a time when you normally feel tired. Try not to break this routine(惯例) on weekends when you will probably stay up late. If you want to change your bedtime, make the change gradually, such as 15 minutes earlier or later each day.

Eat the right food

    Some foods are more helpful to a better night's sleep than others.{#blank#}3{#/blank#} Others like bananas, potatoes, and whole-wheat bread are also helpful.

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    Exercising provides lots of good health benefits(好处). A good night's sleep is one of them. But make sure you exercise in the morning or afternoon. The National Sleep Foundation reports that exercise in the morning or afternoon can help deepen sleep. However, those who worked out in the evening hours saw little or no improvement in their sleep.

Reduce(减少) screen time before bed

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} A recent study shows that people who use electronic media(媒体) just before bedtime report lower-quality sleep even when they get as much sleep as those who don't.

A. Avoid the alarm clock.

B. Exercise to improve sleep.

C. Try to solve problems in your sleep.

D. Go to bed at the same time every night.

E. There are many ways to increase the quality of your sleep.

F. Everybody knows that warm milk helps people sleep better.

G. Stop watching TV just before bedtime and you'll sleep better.

    I'd planned to spend my weekend in the sun, potting flowers outdoors. But that was before the pair of crows (乌鸦). Out of nowhere, they had set up their base camp in our backyard.

    We first discovered our feathered enemies on Friday morning. It was early, and the sound the birds made traveled through our neighborhood. I figured they'd go away soon. But, no. They were getting louder and probably annoying my neighbors nearly as much as us with the noise. I admit I got a little desperate.

    Then, on Sunday afternoon, I looked out the kitchen window to see our dog Quatchi staring at something on the ground. I went to explore and found a small coal-black bird in the grass. Its eyes were milky, and it stayed perfectly still as my dog inched towards it. Only when Quatchi touched his nose to its head did it walk away. I took hold of the dog and locked him inside and came back with my camera.

    It never occurred to me that the young would be hanging out on the ground, growing and gaining strength as its parents guarded it from above. The second I saw this little creature I forgave the crows.

    To be honest, I've never been much of a bird person. I also have a healthy respect for birds, and by healthy I mean slightly fear-based. They're basically living dinosaurs.

    I wish they'd chosen another backyard. There are only so many sunny days in Seattle, and I still can't do any gardening out there. But I'm also grateful that I got to see this little bit of nature unfold up close. It's pretty amazing.

    The experience has also strengthened my desire to create a beautiful backyard garden that attracts lots of bees, butterflies, and yes, birds. They are welcome here.

    Mary Krupa became friends with the grey squirrels during her first week at Penn State,after spotting them running around and idly（漫不经地）wondering what they would look like with tiny hats on their heads.Today, everyone at the university knows her as the "Squirrel Girl".

    Mary started bringing them food,and gradually they began to trust her.She managed to put a hat on a squirrel and take a picture.Thinking that her colleagues could do with something to lift up their spirits,she started posting similar Photos on Facebook.The response Was greatly positive,and before long Mary and her squirrels became an Internet sensation.

    Growing up in a neighborhood outside State College,Mary was always fond of birds and animals around her home,but she didn't interact with people very much.She was later diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome,but the squirrels changed that.The squirrels are actually a good way to break the ice,because I'll be sitting here patting a squirrel and other people will come over and well just start like feeding the squirrels together and chatting about them,"she said."I am a lot more outgoing.

    And in case you're wondering how Mary is able to get the squirrels to do what she wants for her photos,it has a lot to do with food.For example,whenever she wants them to hold or play with something,she puts peanut butter on the prop（道具）,and they'll grab it.But getting to that part took a while.In the beginning,she would throw peanuts up the trees on campus and invite the squirrels to come down and get them,but they hesitated to approach her.She had the patience to earn their trust,though.

    This year,Mary is graduating with a degree in English and wildlife sciences.She wants to be a science writer and educate people on how to preserve the environment.As for her furry friends,Mary plans to stay in the area and visit them as often as she can.

    One of India's top engineering schools has restricted Internet access in its boarding houses, saying addiction to surfing, gaming and blogging was affecting students' performance, making them lonely and even suicidal.

    Authorities at the best Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Mumbai said students had stopped socializing and many were late for morning classes or slept through them. "Now, a student doesn't even know who lives two doors away from him because he is so busy on the Internet," said Prakash Gopalan, dean of Student Affairs. "The old dormitory culture of companionship and socializing among students is gone. This is not healthy in our opinion."

    IIT-Mumbai, with about 5,000 students, is one of the seven IITs across India which are considered to be among the finest engineering schools in the world. They are also a talent pool for global technology giants. But their hard courses, tough competition and lonely campus lifestyle have taken an effect on students. Depressive and dysfunctional lifestyles are known to be common among IIT students, and at least nine have committed suicide in the past five years. Students have unlimited free Internet access in their boarding houses to help them in their studies, but many also use it to surf, chat, download movies and music, blog and for gaming.

    "Starting Monday, Internet access will be banned between 11 p.m. and 12:30 p.m. at IIT-Mumbai's 13 boarding buildings to encourage students to sleep early and to try and force them out of their shells." Gopalan said. But the move has not gone down well with students who say they hate their lives being regulated. "Now they will say we need to listen to a lullaby (摇篮曲) to go to sleep." said Rajiv, an electronics student.

    When you eat fish, you probably eat it off a plate, using a fork. Well, the dolphins in Shark Bay, Australia, eat their fish from conch（海螺）shells!

    Scientists have found some of these bottlenose dolphins（宽吻海豚）using their large beaks to trap fish in shells underwater. Then, carrying the shells to the surface, they shake out the fish into their mouths and eat them. Clearly, using the conch shells allows the dolphins to catch more fish than they would be able to without such a tool. The technique has been called "conching".

    Researchers noticed dolphins engaging in the behavior a handful of times from 2007 to 2009. This dolphin trend seemed to become popular.

    Simon Allen, a scientist, was surprised to see the conching technique spreading. "In the lasts four months alone, the research team have seen and photographed the behavior no less than six times, possibly even seven," he said in a press release. He thinks the dolphins may be learning conching from one another.

    Dolphins are known to be highly intelligent. The size of their brain is large in proportion（比例）to their body size. Compared with other animals, they have highly developed communication and social skills. This species of dolphin also uses other tools. They will break off pieces of sponges that grow in the ocean, for example, and use them to cover their beaks. This allows them to search for food on the ocean floor without hurting their noses.

    Scientists are going to keep trying to catch the dolphins in the act of conching. They hope to see evidence of the dolphins teaching one another the technique. They also want to know how the dolphins get fish in the conch shell. Do they push the fish into the shell with their beaks? Or do they chase the fish into the shell before carrying them up to eat?

    However they do it, Allen believes these dolphins to be particularly clever. "I wouldn't be too surprised to find such cunning ploys being adopted by Shark Bay's bottlenose dolphins," he said in statement.

    Visual language is a form of communication that uses visual elements (元素) as opposed to formal written language to convey meaning or an idea, Graphicacy, the ability to communicate visually, is considered as important as literacy and numeracy, the abilities to read and count. Some people are visual thinkers, using that part of the brain that is emotional and creative to process and give meaning to information. Visual communication can find expression in paintings, drawings, symbols, or simply lines and shapes arranged for a specific effect.

    Art is an example of visual language. A painting or sculpture can convey ideas or arouse specific kinds of emotional responses. It may also express ideas about historical events, abstract concepts, or simply be about the way certain shapes or forms "work" together or create a certain effect on the mind. Some researchers believe that different parts of the brain respond in unique ways to colors and shapes.

Pictograms (象形文字) and ideograms (表意文字) are types of visual language. Pictograms are pictures that are similar to what they represent. They are still used today to communicate information. Many people around the world are familiar with the pictograms indicating such things as airports, public facilities, and non-smoking areas indicated by a cigarette in a circle with a line across it. Ideograms are pictures that represent ideas and can often be understood without the aid of written language. Some scholars track modern alphabets to pictures Letters are actually ancient pictures, and words are a series of pictures. Modern alphabet letters are not only phonetic (语音的) symbols but are based on ancient religious images and symbols.

    Musivisual communication is also a part of visual language. The term refers to music created specifically to improve the visual experience of film. It corresponds to the images being seen on the screen, and the music may arouse a sense of terror, fear, or other emotions. Most movie goers understand the language of musical clues showing that something dramatic or important is about to happen.