"What? You too? I thought I was the only one." Have you ever said to someone? If so, you may have ended up becoming friends.

    It seems that similarity often helps form a friendship. Aristotle once said, "Some define (给……下定义) it (friendship) as a matter of similarity; they say that we love those who are like ourselves."

    Now, there are some scientific explanations for this idea. The scientists from the University of California said friends have similar brains, Scientific American reported.

    The scientists invited 42 university students to take part in a scientific test. Each student watched the same set of videos. At the same time, the scientists scanned (扫描) their brains and recorded their brain activities.

    According to their study, friends who watched the same videos reacted (反应) in similar ways. Similar parts of their brains lit up while watching the videos, especially the parts that were connected with motivation, learning and memory. However, people who weren't friends had different reactions to the same videos.

    "Having close friends whose brains react like ours may be rewarding because it reinforces (加强) one's own values, opinions and interests," lead scientist Carolyn Parkinson told Business Insider.

    But brain similarity is not the only thing that can result in a friendship. Scientists from the University of Leipzig, Germany, found that a friendship is also based on how physically close you are to someone. They did a scientific test on first-year college students who met in class for the first time. In this test, students who sat next to each other were more likely to become friends.

It's common to see the coffee art, but have you seen the art in a cup of tea? This kind of tea art is called Dian Cha, a main tea drinking method in the Song Dynasty. The process of making it is not easy but people really enjoy Dian Cha especially because of the nice patterns on the surface of the tea.

The tea art begins with adding hot water over the fine powdered (粉末的) tea. This action creates a paste (糊状物) on the tea. Then add more water while whisking (搅动) it by hand with a bamboo whisk. It usually requires whisking about 200 times before the thick foam (泡沫) appears. Then, one can begin drawing. But drawing on the tea foam is not the same thing as drawing on the paper. One may use the hard teaspoon against the soft foam, which requires great attention. Unlike normal spoons, the teaspoon used in Dian Cha is quite thin and has a pointed end to help to draw, just like a pen.

In the Song Dynasty, many famous people regarded Dian Cha as an important free-time activity. Emperor Song Huizong even wrote a book called Treatise on Tea which included some details of tea-whisking. According to the book, good tea should be white and fine. The better the tea was, the whiter it should be, and the longer the foam should last.

In 2019, Dian Cha was listed as a cultural heritage (遗产) in Zhenjiang, China. A growing number of people now want to learn and spread this traditional skill. Han Zheming, a designer from Shanghai, has created nearly 200 images on the tea and put the process of Dian Cha online. "I want more people to understand and appreciate the beauty of Dian Cha." Han says.

①Why do we do the things we do? What drives our behavior? Researchers have suggested different ways of thinking about motivation (动机), including looking at whether motivation comes from outside or inside a person.

②Extrinsic(外来的) motivation is when you decide to do something because you want to get a reward or avoid punishment. Intrinsic (内在的) motivation is when you do something because you find it enjoyable. The behavior itself is its own reward.

③There are many advantages of intrinsi c motivation. Firstly, it's lasting. It makes people willing to face challenges and work hard to achieve their goals. Besides, people with intrinsic motivation have a greater sense of satisfaction.

④Most people think intrinsic motivation is best, but it is not always possible in every situation. Sometimes a person has an unpleasant task and he may not have internal(内部的) wish to complete it. That's when we need extrinsic motivation. But studies have shown that offering too many external (外部的) reward can reduce intrinsic motivation. For example, in a study, they became less interested in the toys.

⑤Both extrinsic and intrinsic motivation play a key role in learning. Experts have argued that traditional education pays too much attention to external rewards, such as grades. This undermines the intrinsic motivation that students might already have. However, others have suggested that extrinsic motivation can help students feel more knowledgeable in class. It helps to build up their intrinsic motivation. 

⑥Understanding how each type of motivation works and when it is likely to be useful can help people complete tasks and improve their learning.

Dear Jane, 

I'm really happy to hear from you. I think you need to do these three things if you want to  1 your English. You have to read, listen and speak English every day for at least (至少) an hour. 

Let's start with 2 . Don't read to study English! Read to get some new information or to enjoy an interesting story. Choose material (材料) that you can 3 , with just a few new words. If you can't guess them, 4 the new words in the dictionary. 5 don't stop reading. You can do it before or after reading. Read for at least twenty minutes. 

Also,6 English for twenty minutes every day. First, listen to 7 books or news. And then you can watch a little more difficult 8 online. It's easy for you to find something fun!

Finally, there is speaking. You need to speak for twenty 9 every day too. Speak to 10 people, if possible. They can be your teachers or your friends. But if you have  11 to speak to, there are two things you can do.12 , shadowing (影子跟读法). You listen to native speakers in films or on the news, and repeat exactly what they say and 13 they say it. Second, spend some time thinking 14 English. 

Well, I hope my 15 can help you with your English. Best wishes!

Yours, 

Alice