Before I studied psychology, I used to think that people would laugh when funny things occurred. While I was right about that, I discovered there are lots of other psychological factors that make people laugh other than the funny part of a joke. When someone laughs at a joke, there will usually be more than one reason that makes him laugh—and the more reasons there are, the more powerful the joke will be.

    I was attending a stand-up comedy show in Egypt, and when the man started to make fun of pedestrians crossing streets, everyone laughed their hearts out. The main reason those people strongly laughed was that almost all of them felt angry towards pedestrians who crossed streets carelessly. The joke wasn't only funny, it also made the audience feel that they were right about being angry at those pedestrians. That is, people were laughing both because of the funny joke and becauseof the happiness experienced as a result of the psychological support they got.

    The better a joke makes a person feel, and the more it includes other psychological factors, the more the person will like it. For example, if you envy one of your friends, and someone tells a joke that is funny and, at the same time, makes your friend seem stupid, then you will probably laugh at it louder than if you weren't jealous of him.

    In short, we don't laugh only when we hear something funny; we also laugh when we experience some kind of happiness that results from the other psychological factors involved in the joke. I strongly discourage making fun of anyone or be littling someone to make someone elselaug. All I want to explain is that if your joke supports a person's emotions, he will certainly like it a lot.

    The Canadian red and white maple leaf (枫叶) flag is officially called the National Flag of Canada. The Canadian flag shows a stylized red maple leaf with 11 points on a white background, with red borders down each side. The Canadian flag is twice as long as it is wide. The white square containing the red maple leaf is the same width as the flag.

    The red and the white used in the National Flag of Canada were proclaimed the official colors of Canada in 1921 by King George Ⅴ. Although the maple leaf did not have its official status as a symbol of Canada until the announcement (宣告) of the national flag in 1965, it had historically been used as a Canadian symbol, and was used in 1860 in decorations for the visit of the Prince of Wales to Canada. The 11 points on the maple leaf have no special significance.

    In the early days，the Royal Union Flag，or the Union Jack, was still flown in British North America. In 1925 and again in 1946, the Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King tried to get a national flag of Canada adopted, but failed. In 1964，Prime Minister Lester Pearson appointed a 15-member, all-party committee to come up with a design for a new flag. The committee was given six weeks to complete its task.

    The committee studied 2,000 submitted(提交的) designs as well as 3,900 that had been gathered as a result of the 1946 committee's study. Those designs with a chance of being accepted were given to the full committee for further study.

    The suggestion of a red and white single maple leaf design for the Canadian flag came from George Stanley, a professor at the Royal Military College. After a heated discussion, they finally decided on his suggestion.

    Sagrada Familia

    Opening hours: 09:00—18:00(October—March); 09:00—20:00(April—September)

    Admission: $11, or $10 with the Barcelona Card.

    The temple has been under construction since 1882 and they've still got another 30 to 80 years to go before it is finished. The project's vast scale and its special design have made it one of Barcelona's top tourist attractions for many years.

    La Pedrera

    Opening hours: November—February: 09:00—18:30; March—October: 09:00—20:00

    Admission: $9.Save 20% with the Barcelona Card.

    This building used to be called Casa Mila but nowadays it's more commonly known as La Pedrera.It is a unique modernist building in Barcelona and was made of bricks.It was built between 1906 and 1912 and in 1984 it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site with other Gaudi buildings in Barcelona.

    Barcelona FC Museum

    Opening hours: April 6th—October 4th:(Monday to Saturday) 10:00—20:00; the rest of the year: 10:00—18:30

    Admission: $8.50 for entry to the museum and $17 for a guided tour.

    When you buy your ticket you have two options.You can buy a ticket for the museum to see the football stadium or you can buy a dual (双的) ticket for $15 where you get to see the museum and the scenes at the club.

    Miro Museum

    Opening hours: Check the website for details as they vary depending on the time of the year.

    Admission: $8.Save 20% with the Barcelona Card.

    This museum has a wide range of Miro's works dating back as far as 1914.This artwork collection not only includes his paintings but also a good selection of sculptures.

    In the home country, a common language gives you the ability to communicate easily with the people around you; and you learn something about your country's history, people's habits, likes and dislikes, customs and traditions. This understanding influences your own behavior, and what you expect of others.

    Living abroad, it doesn't take long to realize that many things don't "work" the same, especially when moving from "the West" to "the East". Besides a different language, each country has its own social system and laws and ways of solving problems. You will find some of them strange and alien. Sometimes you may feel uncomfortable because you realize that things are not the same as you think they are supposed to be. This is what has become known as "Culture Shock".

    Living in an environment with an unfamiliar(不熟悉的)culture can cause stress, anxiety or worse- mental or physical illness in some cases. Culture shock is the shock of experiencing an unknown or new culture. Cross-culture Adjustment is the period of anxiety, great pain and confusion suffered when entering a new culture. It can have effects on a person's emotions and behavior. You should learn to accept and try to be used to different situations. One thing is certain: it is far easier to accept the new order of things than to try to change it.

    Most Asian people can bear foreigners and accept their strange habits and behavior, not only because it might be to their benefit but out of natural politeness and restraint(克制)in front of others. Westerners should not make use of this. They must try to accept and obey local rules and rules of behavior.

    It's time for those who are about to graduate to look for jobs since graduation season is drawing near. Competition is tough, so job seekers must carefully consider their personal choices. Whatever we are wearing, our family and friends may accept us, but the workplace may not.

    A high school newspaper editor said it is unfair for companies to discourage visible tattoos (文身), nose rings, or certain dress styles. It is true you can't judge a book by its cover, yet people do "cover" themselves in order to convey (传递) certain messages. What we wear, including tattoos and nose rings, is an expression of who we are. Just as people convey messages about themselves with their appearances, so do companies. Dress standards exist in the business world for a number of reasons, but the main concern is often about what customers accept.

    Others may say how to dress is a matter of personal freedom, but for businesses it is more about whether to make or lose money. Most employers do care about the personal appearances of their employees, because those people represent the companies to their customers.

    As a hiring manager I am paid to choose the people who would make the best impression on our customers. There are plenty of well-qualified candidates, so it is not wrong to reject someone who might disappoint my customers. Even though I am open-minded, I can't expect all our customers are.

    There is nobody to blame but yourself if your set of choices does not match that of your preferred employer. No company should have to change to satisfy a candidate simply because he or she is unwilling to respect its standards, as long as its standards are legal.

    I waited half an hour, set the board, and sat in the studio, reviewing my questions until the telephone lines flashed.

    "Hello?"

    "This is Connie Chung. I'm so sorry I'm late."

    Connie Chung was one of the only four women anchors（主播）to make it into the club of major evening network television news. For almost an hour we talked about the industry. When I asked if she ever had an instructor throughout her trials, she turned around and offered to instruct me. When I asked why she decided to do it, she simply replied, "Because you're good."

    That afternoon I rushed home and told my mother what had happened. Without looking up, she just said "Good for you." Hearing this, I felt a sense of loss.  Her consistent response always made me feel under-appreciated.

    Until then I had been searching for something that I would never get—that sense of love and acceptance in a house full of negativity（消极）.

    I knew I needed to get rid of all the negativity in my life first, so I packed my bags and walked out of the house, thinking a risk would allow me to open myself to the world again and receive all the positive energy that I needed.

    Then radio became my way of connecting with others. My ability to book high-level guests and celebrities（名人）was gradually recognized and eventually all the words of encouragement from past guests and colleagues helped me to re-build my confidence levels. "I can do this," I kept telling myself, and pushed even harder to find my next aim.

    People had faith in me, so I developed faith in myself. Their positive attitudes towards themselves and towards me helped me develop my own positive attitude, leading to productive interactions with celebrities and adding to my list of instructors.

    I may not have started life surrounded by positivity but I surely feel that I am surrounded by it now. It's amazing how positivity builds on itself.