The 21st century discoveries about the human brain and its functioning have showed the surprising fact that human abilities are not fixed at birth. In other words, what you are able to do with your life is not fixed when you are born. It is not all in the genes (基 因 ). It is not just nature: nurture (教育, 培育) plays an important part in the moulding (塑造) of what a person is, and what he/she can be.

    Brain plasticity (可塑性) or neuroplasticity (神经可塑性) refers to the amazing ability of the human brain to modify (修改) its structure and functions according to the changes within the body and/or in the outer environment.

    In his book „The Brain that Changes Itself‟ psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Norman Doidge, M.D., offers an introduction to the great scientists strongly supporting neuroplasticity and the people whose lives they've changed. The book describes real life stories of stroke( 中 风 ) patients learning to speak again, and the amazing story of a woman born with half a brain that restructured itself to work as a whole. It is a book that changes the way we think about our brain, its nature, and its potential (潜能).

    The genes we receive from our parents are finite (有限的), no doubt about that. However, our brain's ability to develop is infinite. New brain cells are being born all the time, and to keep them alive and growing, we have to stimulate (刺激) them.

    Here lies the promise of neuroplasticity in the moulding of children into adults who are capable of realizing their potential. For, genius is nothing but a human being who has realized his /her inborn potential! What Mozart, Einstein and da Vinci had was inborn potential plus (和，外加) the right environment.

    All geniuses started life in exactly the same way. They had parents who supported the development of their individual gifts and talents. They had the right environment and stimuli (刺激， 刺激物) that led to the best development of themselves.

    You can think about your child's gifts as the merging (融合的) colours of a rainbow. The possibilities are endless. All children are born with three natural abilities that provide them with the potential to think like a genius: the abilities to think, to learn and to develop their own individual way of thinking and learning.

    Can your child be a genius? Yes, he/she can be, if you give him/her the right environment, the right stimuli and the right guidance.

Many people love reading. Some successful people will {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(建议) you reading because they think you can learn {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(某些事) new and have a {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(强大的) {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(精神) by reading books. Recent {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(研究) have {#blank#}6{#/blank#}(表明) there are {#blank#}7{#/blank#}(几个) hidden benefits to reading regularly.

The physical benefits of reading include strengthened(加强) brain connections and reduced {#blank#}8{#/blank#}(紧张) levels. {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(科学家) have discovered that many different areas of the brain are at work when {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(有的人) gets involved in a story (故事). This brain activity {#blank#}11{#/blank#}(有时) can continue for many days. In fact, {#blank#}12{#/blank#}(花费) 30 minutes reading every day can lower one's blood pressure and heart rate.

On top of that, reading books is one of the {#blank#}13{#/blank#}(最简单的) ways to improve our vocabularies and understanding of others. When we read a book, we are improving our language {#blank#}14{#/blank#}(技巧). Reading can also {#blank#}15{#/blank#}(塑造) our thinking about the world. This helps us to develop the ability to understand and {#blank#}16{#/blank#}(满足) the needs of someone else. Even though reading is a {#blank#}17{#/blank#}(单独的) individual(个人的) activity, it can actually improve our {#blank#}18{#/blank#}(社会的) skills, such as talking with strangers or dealing with different {#blank#}19{#/blank#}(情况).

{#blank#}20{#/blank#}(有些) people believe that reading books can also make us more{#blank#}21{#/blank#}(特别的) and {#blank#}22{#/blank#}(更聪明的). When we meet a new person, we often talk about {#blank#}23{#/blank#}(相似的) interests, like books, movies, and {#blank#}24{#/blank#}(运动). It is{#blank#}25{#/blank#}(认为) that people feel more interested in those who read because it is a {#blank#}26{#/blank#}(信号) of intelligence(智力). Nowadays, readers can make exciting connections through a{#blank#}27{#/blank#}(分享的) interest in books on the platforms. So you will not alone.

I used to be the shortest in my class. I had no friends and always felt 1 . On my 12th birthday, I made a 2 that I could grow up quickly.

Last summer vacation, I was so worried about my 3 that I didn't want to go to summer camp. But my mom said,"You will learn something 4 you get there."And I had to say yes.

5 Monday, my teacher Maggie asked all of us to climb a wall. When I saw the wall, I was so 6 . It might be ten meters high! I thought I could 7 climb that huge wall successfully.

After the other campers finished, I told Maggie I wanted to 8 climbing.

"Amy, when you meet 9 , just believe in yourself and never give up."said Maggie. Hearing this, I felt a little upset. Suddenly, I had a good 10 . I pretended (假装) to 11 my knee and couldn't move.

"How's the knee? Are you OK?"Maggie asked. She was so 12 that I didn't want to cheat(欺骗) her again.

I said sorry to her. Maggie smiled, and showed me 13 she climbed the wall.The other campers were also cheering for me.

I tried my best and kept trying. And finally something 14 happened—I made it!

From this experience, I've learned a lot. Anything is possible if you 15 in yourself.

We recycle (回收利用) rubbish, so why not language? Recycling language means using vocabulary（词汇）that you have learnt before again and again. However, unlike rubbish that piles up (堆积) in our environment, if we do not recycle language, we simply forget it. So how do you recycle language?

There are basically（主要的）three ways to do it. The first is through reading. Go back to your favourite articles and read them once more. Just reread them and do not worry about each vocabulary item. If there are some that you are not sure about, make a guess and you will probably guess right. The second way to recycle is through writing. Look at some of your favourite articles and write either a short paragraph or a few sentences in your own words. After you have done this a few times, go back and read through what you have written, checking vocabulary functions. Don't worry if you have made mistakes. That's how you learn. The third way to recycle language is by having an imaginary chat with yourself about your favourite articles at home. You can pretend there is someone with you who speaks English and tell him what you are thinking about or how you feel.