A. Come in with something to say.

B. Prepare general comments.

C. Bring materials with you.

D. Don't make them wait.

E. Have no fear.

F. Go it alone.

One of the best things you can do any time in the semester is go see the professor. So hoof on over to an office hour and have some one-on-one face time with someone who'll help you master the material and improve your grade, to boot. But how should you have this conversation with the professor? Here are five insider tips about how to make that office hour really count:

{#blank#}1{#/blank#} No need to get all bent out of shape about going to see the professor. The professor would actually like to see you and answer your questions. Believe it or not, he or she is on your side and is eager to see you do well. And besides, he or she has seen many students stupider than you, so nothing you're gong to ask will set the record for stupidity.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#} Even though you might feel more comfortable going with a friend or partner, the office hour will go better if it's just you and the professor. You'll get in more questions, the discussion will be tailored to what you need most help on, and two-party communication is almost always more productive than committee work. You friend can wait outside for the discussion.

{#blank#}3{#/blank#} If you can't make the official office hours, most professors are willing to make individual, appoin tments to help you out. If you're lucky enough to land such an accommodation, though, be sure you're 100 percent on time. There's nothing that ticks off a professor more than making him-or herself available for a custom office hour only to find that you don't care enough to come on time. And besides, the professor might leave after ten minutes, which would make your trip a total loss.

{#blank#}4{#/blank#} If you're meeting with the professor to go over a paper or test, or to ask questions about a particular lecture or reading, make sure you bring that paper or test, or your lecture notes or a copy of the article. The professor doesn't remember the comments he or she wrote on your individual piece of work—though he or she will be able to recall them after just a brief glance at your work. And if you have your lecture notes or the article in hand, you and the professor will be able to examine specific points that are confusing to you, rather than just talking in a general way about the contents.

{#blank#}5{#/blank#} Office hours almost always go better if you bring a few specific questions to the meeting. It's almost never good to start a meeting with general comments such as: “I didn't understand what you said about [main topic of the course]”or “I couldn't understand any of your lectures last week.” Much better is to come in with two or three conversation-starters, about a specific concept, point, or problem you didn't understand. Keep in mind that in a fifteen-minute office hour (which is how long these things usually last), two or three questions are usually the most you'll have time to discuss.

Make Your Brain Smarter

    You know that eating a proper diet and getting plenty of exercise help make your body healthy and strong. But did you know that there are ways to make your brain healthier and smarter? Studies show that when the brain is forced to do something new, it creates new neural (神经的) pathways. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} 

    ● Limit your TV viewing.

    Watching an average TV show requires very little brain power and brings the same result as neglecting (忽视) physical exercise.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} If you watch TV, choose something educational and informative.

    ● Use your non-dominant (非支配的) hand.

    If you are right-handed, use your left hand for everyday activities, or use your right hand if you are left-handed. Doing familiar things in a new way will cause your brain to create new neural networks. Brushing our teeth is something we do daily. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} But maybe we should. Experts suggest that we can force the brain to work by changing things up and working with our non-dominant hand. So the next time you brush your teeth, open the tube, apply your toothpaste and brush with the opposite hand.

    ●{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Jump in the shower and shut your eyes. Even if you drop the soap—that's okay. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Searching for the soap while feeling the textures (质地) with your eyes closed works. Using your fingers to make fine distinctions between objects or textures can reconnect the brain areas involved in touch, suggests Larry Katz, a professor of neurobiology at Duke University Medical Center and author.

A. Shower with your eyes closed.

B. Smart people rarely follow a set pattern.

C. The more pathways you have, the smarter you will be.

D. Use your different senses.

E. We really don't put that much thought into it.

F. Put your brain to best use.

G. Your brain will become weak just as your muscles do.

    Every living thing has genes. Genes carry information. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} They make sure that humans give birth to humans and cows give birth to cows. They also make sure that a dog doesn't give birth to a frog, or an elephant to a horse. However, genetic engineers take genes from one species-for example, a snake, and transfer them to another-for example, corn. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Such new life forms have been described, by some scientists as a real-life Frankenstein(科幻怪人).

    Genetic engineers put duck genes into chicken to make the chickens bigger. They put hormones(激素) into cows to make them produce more milk. They put genes from flowers into beans and from fish into tomatoes. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} It just makes them easier and faster for the farmer to grow.

    The effects of genetic engineering on the natural world may be disastrous. The engineers may create strange life beings, or monsters. that we cannot control. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} They'll have to find one, fight for one-or kill for one. It may be your land they fight for-or you that they kill. Moreover, the effects of these experiments can often be cruel. In America, pigs were given human genes to make them bigger and less fatty. The experiment failed. The pigs became very ill and began to lose their eyesight. We would all like a better, healthier and longer life, and genetic engineering might give us this. On the other hand, it may be a dangerous experiment with nature. In the story of Frankenstein, the doctor created such a terrible and dangerous monster that he had to destroy it. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. The information tells us what to do or what not to do

B. We must make sure that this tale remains a story-and no more than that

C. This doesn't make them cheaper, tastier, or healthier

D. The new life forms have no natural habitat or home

E. Then they feed the tomatoes to the fish

F. In this way a new life form is created

G. They are passed on from generation to generation

    Before there was the written word, there was the language of dance. Dance expresses love and hate, joy and sorrow, life and death, and everything else in between.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} We dance from Florida to Alaska, from north to south and sea to sea. We dance at weddings, birthdays, office parties and just to fill the time.

    "I adore dancing," says Lester Bridges, the owner of a dance studio in Iowa. "I can't imagine doing anything else with my life." Bridges runs dance classes for all ages. "Teaching dance is wonderful. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} It's great to watch them. For many of them, it's a way of meeting people and having a social life."

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} "I can tell you about one young couple," says Bridges. "They're learning to do traditional dances. They arrive at the class in low spirits and they leave with a smile. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}"

    So, do we dance in order to make ourselves feel better, calmer, healthier? Andrea Hillier says, "Dance, like the pattern of a beating heart, is life. Even after all these years, I want to get better and better. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} I find it hard to stop! Dancing reminds me I'm alive."

A. So why do we dance?

B. Dance in the U.S. is everywhere.

C .My older students say it makes them feel young.

D. If you like dancing outdoors, come to America.

E. Dancing seems to change their feeling completely.

F. I keep practicing even when I'm extremely tired.

G. They stayed up all night long singing and dancing.

    The running of the bulls is a nine-day traditional Spanish festival in honor of Saint Fermin in Pamplona. Every year, at midday on July 6th, the Mayor of Pamplona shoots a rocket. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} The participants are usually dressed in white and wear red neckchiefs and belts. They open champagne mostly used for sprinkling（撒）other people.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#} It starts every day at eight in the morning and the runners run, sometimes wildly, sometimes less. As a sign that the run has begun they shoot the first rocket. Then they shoot the second one when the bulls are out in the streets. Six bulls which are trying to attack the participants from behind run down the 900-meter-long street to the bullring(斗牛场) with a lot of spectators. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} All of the six bulls are going to be killed at the bullfight in the stadium. The bullfight in the stadium begins at half past six in the afternoon. First, there comes the first bull. There is also a person called "picador". {#blank#}4{#/blank#} That makes the bull very wild and it starts to run all over the stadium. Later when the bull is tired, there comes another person—-a "matador" who kills it with an arrow. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} At the end of the celebration, another rocket is shot as a sign that the bullfight is finished.

A. It makes the bull very nervous.

B. It is one of the greatest events in the city.

C. This is a sign that the celebration has started.

D. The same thing happens with the other five bulls.

E. The main event is the running of the bulls.

F. The participants can get hurt or even killed.

G. He waves a red cloth in front of the bull.

    We don't meet people by accident. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}Some will help you grow, some will hurt you, some will inspire you to do better. At the same time, you are playing some role in their lives as well. Know that paths cross for a reason and treat people with significance.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#}There is no better joy than helping people see a vision for themselves, seeing them go to levels higher than they ever would have imagined on their own. But that doesn't mean you have to fix them or enable them; {#blank#}3{#/blank#}Offer them support and motivation as they find their own way and show you what they're capable of. All you have to do is believe in them.

    Never look down on someone unless you are helping them up. We like to think of life as a meritocracy(精英统治),so it's easy to look down on someone who isn't as successful or accomplished or well educated as you are. But you have no idea how far that person has already climbed or where they will end up. Time could easily reverse(颠倒) your positions,{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Appreciate those who have supported you, forgive those who have hurt you, help those who need you. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Treat all people -including yourself-with love and compassion, and you can't go wrong.

    Treat people the way you want to be treated and life will instantly get better.

A. so be sure you treat everyone with dignity.

B. therefore, cherish every person you meet.

C. Never fix them when they make mistakes.

D. Don't tell them how to get there but show the way.

E. instead, guide them to the source of their own.

F. Business is complicated, life is complex and leadership is difficult.

G. Every person you meet will have a role in your life, be it big or small.