Will you be playing some music at work?

    Music is particularly popular in the medical profession, especially among surgeons（外科医生）. A recent survey shows that 90% of surgeons in the UK put music on the sound system in the theatre during operations. Plastic surgeons（整形外科医生）play the most music; it appears that ear, nose, and throat specialists the least.

    But it isn't only in surgeries(外科手术) where music is popular. In another recent survey, one-third of the 1,613 people said they listen to music while working. And 79% of them said that humming（哼歌）along improves their job satisfaction or productivity.

    Is listening to music at work a good idea? Yes, say the experts. Many surgeons say that music helps to create a “calm atmosphere”, and a third of them added that it avoids getting bored! Also, listening to music raises the levels of a brain chemical that can help people focus. Office workers say it improves job satisfaction. Several studies suggest that it's also good for hospital patients. Those listening to music through headphones during surgery require less anesthetic（麻醉剂）, up to 50% less in some cases, and recover more quickly afterwards. “Sure, music reduces anxiety before surgery,” says Zeev Kain, an anesthetist at Yale University.

    So, what type of music should we be listening to? Surgeons from the previous survey preferred rock, pop music and classical. And hip-hop is popular too. However, whatever the kind, it appears that self-selected music is the best choice. Pennsylvania State University research showed that when people chose their own music there was more stress reduction(下降). And other researchers found that when listening to self-selected music, surgeons did the maths faster and more accurately than when they were listening to music chosen for them.

    Taking good notes is a time-saving skill that will help you to become a better student in several ways {#blank#}1{#/blank#}.Second, your notes are excellent materials to refer to when you are studying for a test. Third, note-taking offers variety to your study time and helps you to hold your interest.

    You will want to take notes during classroom discussions and while reading a textbook or doing research for a report. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Whenever or however you take notes, keep in mind that note-taking is a selective process. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    The following methods may work best for you.

●Read the text quickly to find the main facts and ideas in it.

●Carefully read the text and watch for words that can show main points and

supporting facts.

● Write your notes in your own words.

●{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

● Note any questions or ideas you may have about what was said or written.

    As you take notes, you may want to use your own shorthand(速记). When you do, be sure that you understand your symbols(符号) and that you use them all the time. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A．Use words, not complete sentences.

B．There are three practical note-taking methods.

C．You must write your notes on separate paper.

D．Otherwise, you may not be able to read your notes late

E. you will also want to develop your own method for taking notes.

F. That means you must first decide what is important enough to include in your notes.

G. First, the simple act of writing something down makes it easier for you to understand and remember it.

    I have been unusually silent these past ten months. I had thought that silence would soon be coming to an end,, but I'm afraid I must tell you now that fate（命运）has decided on a different course for me.

    In August of last year, I underwent surgery to remove a cancerous tumor in my abdomen. That operation was thought to have been a success, but it caused a series of secondary complications – which I have been fighting in hospital ever since. It was along and hard fight with many setbacks, but I was steadily, if slowly, overcoming each obstacle along the way and gradually making my way back to health.

    However, recent tests have revealed that the cancer has returned. There was no sign or it as recently as a month ago, which means it is aggressive and spreading rapidly. My doctors tell me their best estimate is that I have only a few weeks left to live. This is the final conclusion. My fight is over.

    I wish to thank my doctors and caregivers, who efforts have been magnificent. My dear friends, who have given me a lifetime of memories and whose support has sustained me through these difficult months. And all of my partners at The Washington Post, Fox News, and Crown Publishing.

    Lastly, I thank my colleagues, my readers, and my viewers, who have made my career possible and given consequence to my life's work. I believe that the pursuit of truth and right ideas through honest debate and thorough argument is a noble undertaking. I am grateful to have played a small role in the conversations that have helped guide this extraordinary nation's destiny.

    I leave this life with no regret. It was a wonderful life – full and complete with the great loves and great endeavors that make it worth living. I am sad to leave, but I leave with the knowledge that I lived the life that I intended.

    There are a growing number of pet owners who feed their pets on raw foods, which means "uncooked" meat and bones. William Burk, a pet food specialist from the Food and Drug Administration(FDA), believes that feeding raw meat to pets is against its goal of protecting the public from health dangers, and that raw meat and bones do not have all the required nutrition that a pet needs every day.

    Recognizing how popular these foods are, the FDA has provided guidelines for producers of pet foods which contain uncooked meat for dogs, cats and other pets. The guidelines give rules to protect pet owners and pets from dangers about food safety and lack of nutrition.

    Pet owners who feed raw meat and bones to their pets should deal with these products very carefully to protect themselves against possible dangers, says Burk. Just as when you are preparing foods for human beings, use hot water and soap to wash your hands, containers, and surfaces that come into contact with the food. Don't put your hands near your mouth until you have washed them, and don't allow your pet to touch your face right after it has eaten raw meat.

    "If pet owners choose to feed bones to their pets, they should watch their pets carefully when they are eating bones," Burk says, "If a pet eats a big piece of bone that won't pass through its digestive system(消化系统), it is likely to kill the pet."

    A recent study finds that the dirt on the ground is likely to worsen climate change. Researchers have shown that warmer temperatures are heating the soil, which is causing microbes (微生物) to become more active and release more of the soil's carbon into the atmosphere. These soil changes can potentially contribute to even higher temperatures.

    Scientists studied device readings, soil measurements, plant growth details and satellite observations from around the world. Their work is the most complete study on the subject.

    They found a sharp increase in carbon released into the atmosphere by bacteria and fungi (真菌) in soil from 1990 to 2014. Researchers explain that the carbon comes from the dead plants and leaves the microbes eat. As temperatures rise, the microbes eat more. And the more they eat, the more carbon can be made into carbon dioxide and released into the atmosphere.

    This uncontrolled cycle speeds up and intensifies climate change. Overall, soil releases about nine times more carbon than human activities. But that is part of a natural cycle: the amount of carbon released into the air is about equal to the carbon oceans and plants take in.

    However, carbon released from fossil fuel causes an imbalance. Burning coal, oil and natural gas puts more carbon into the atmosphere than nature can take in. The additional carbon heats the air and soil. And as the air and soil get hotter, the earth will release more carbon than it has been holding.

    If something isn't done, we are really in trouble. Proper soil conservation can help keep more carbon in soil. Conservation methods include avoiding turning the soil, covering off-season crops and leaving crop deposits on the ground.

The outbreak of locusts, an insect that mainly lives in Africa and Asia, is the worst experienced by Kenya in 70 years. The crowds are some three times the size of New York City, eating their way through thousands of acres of crops and animal grassland and destroying livelihoods in the process.

"These hungry things are alarming," says Keith Cressman, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization's senior locust forecasting officer. "A crowd the size of Manhattan can, in a single day, eat the same amount of food as everyone in New York and California combined."

Desert locusts are infamous for their ability to breed(繁育)rapidly in large numbers every three months. And with some help from the wind, they can travel as much as 80 miles a day. Most years, the insects stay in African deserts. However, under the right environmental conditions, they can multiply quickly, spread as much as 400 times every six months and cause extensive destruction if left unchecked.

"The insect has the ability to take advantage of good conditions." Cressman says.

The "good conditions" the scientist is referring to began in mid-2018 when a rainstorm from the Indian Ocean struck a remote area of the Arabian Peninsula known as the "Empty Quarter". Normally, it would dry out within a short period, killing most of the locust population, which depends on green plants for food. However, in late 2018, a second rainstorm struck the same region. The huge sandy area got wet, which is exactly what desert locusts need to lay their eggs and breed. The extra food supply caused the population to explode for the second time in six months.

Luckily, the locusts, experts say, are easy to control with chemicals. Kenya badly needs equipment and a steady supply of chemicals to effectively wipe out the massive insects. Hopefully, leaders worldwide will recognize the tough situation and contribute generously to control the locust outbreak.