Why is setting goals important? {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Instead of just letting life happen to you, goals allow you to make your life happen. Successful people imagine how their life should be and set lots of goals.

    By setting goals you are taking control of your life. It's like having a map to show you where you want to go. Think of it this way. There are two drivers. One has a destination in mind which can be found on a map. She can drive straight there surely without any wasted time of wrong turns. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} She starts off at the same time from the same place as the first driver, but she drives aimlessly around, never getting anywhere, just using up gas. Which driver do you want to be?

    Winners in life set goals and follow them through. They decide what they want in life and then get there by making plans and setting goals. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Goals aren't difficult to set and they aren't difficult to reach.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} You are the one who must decide what to achieve and in what direction to aim your life.

    Research tells us that when we write a goal down we are more likely to achieve it. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Like a contract(合同) with yourself, they are harder to neglect or forget. Also when you write your goals in a particular way, you are able to make yourself continuously aware of situations that will bring you nearer to your goal.

    Lots of people stress out about talking in front of the class or getting laughed at if they make a mistake in front of an audience. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} The “stress hormones" that your body produces at times like these can actually help you focus.

    But when worry and stress about performing get to be too much, these hormones give people that “red alert(紧急状态)” feeling—the one that causes you to feel cold or sweaty, or get butterflies in your stomach. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Be prepared. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Rehearse(排练) as much as you can and practice in front of others at every opportunity. Most of all, think positively. Tell yourself “I'll be OK" or “I can do this" even if you are not 100% sure of it

    Look after yourself. Before big performances it's easy to let taking care of yourself slip as you spend too much time on rehearsals and practice. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Exercise can also help you feel good, and along with sleep and nutrition, is an excellent way of keeping those stress hormones from getting out of control.

    Find out what the experts do. You can find books, DVDs, and online information about how to give your best when you perform, depending on what type of performance you're preparing for {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Or ask the cast of your school play or your drama or music teacher how they beat stage fright. And if your parents or grandparents ever performed, they may have their own secrets to share.

    Americans use the term “college students” to mean students either in colleges or universities. Not only that, Americans almost never say “going off to university” or “when I was in university.” That sounds British.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Both offer undergraduate degrees in the arts and sciences, for example. And both can help prepare young people to earn a living.

    But many colleges do not offer graduate studies. Another difference is that universities are generally bigger.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    Another place of higher education, especially in technical areas, is an institute, like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Yet even an institute of technology can offer a wide choice of programs and activities.

    Modern universities developed from those of Europe in the Middle Ages. The word “university” came from the Latin universities, describing a group of people organized for a common purpose.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} In England, colleges were formed to provide students with places to live. Usually each group was studying the same thing. So college came to mean an area of study.

    The first American universities divided their studies into a number of areas and called each one a college. This is still true.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} For example, Harvard College is the undergraduate part of Harvard University.

A. A college can also be a part of a university.

B. They offer more programs and do more research.

C. There are more universities than colleges in the USA.

D. Colleges and universities have many things in common.

E. Universities and colleges offer students different opportunities.

F. Instead, they say “going off to college” or “when I was in college.”

G. “College” came from collegium, a Latin word with a similar meaning.

    A kiln (窑) is a type of oven or furnace used to cure (加工处理), harden, or burn certain materials. Depending on which materials are heated in it, a kiln may be square, tunnel shaped, or beehive shaped, and usually made of brick or stone.{#blank#}1{#/blank#} It may be set as low as sixty-five degrees to cure grain or as high as 3,200 degrees to transform limestone to quicklime (熟石灰).

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} They have a variety of purposes. The cement (水泥) industry uses revolving kilns to heat and separate raw materials. Bricks, pottery, and china made from clay must be fired, or hardened, in kilns. Certain kinds of coal and wood must be kiln-dried （在窑里烘干的）before they can be used. Hobbyists use small kilns to fire a variety of ceramic (陶瓷) objects.

    There are two main types of kilns. A periodic kiln, used to fire certain kinds of delicate china, is raised to a high temperature and then completely cooled before its contents are removed. A continuous, or tunnel kiln contains several chambers, or zones, which heat, bake, and cool a product. Stacks of clay bricks move through a tunnel kiln on tracks{#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    Gas, oil, and coal are all used to heat modern kilns{#blank#}4{#/blank#} But for special jobs, where cleanliness and careful heat（绝热）are important, kilns must be heated by electricity oven though it is more expensive. Small kilns used in the home or in craft shops are also heated electrically because electricity is clean and convenient.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} When ancient people discovered that heat hardened some materials, they were able to make durable household objects such as jugs and bowls. Today our museums display many kinds of ancient statues and art objects that have lasted because they had been kiln-dried. They come from lands as far apart as China and Greece.

A. Its temperature may vary.

B. Then they come out, hardened, and cooled.

C. Kilns are used in industry and in craft-making.

D. Kilns have been in use for thousands of years.

E. An electric kiln is a heating chamber used to transform materials.

F. Most manufacturers use whichever material is cheapest in their area.

G. Clay, when heated properly, becomes hard enough to form bowls and plates.

    We eat in our cars, at our desks, on the go, and in front of the TV. We eat take-out, packaged and prepared meals. Why? Because it fits our not-enough-time-in-the-day lifestyles{#blank#}1{#/blank#} Well, I'm certainly not the first one to think it—or say it—but we all need to slow down.

    Consumer trends around the globe show that over the past three decades people are purchasing more prepared foods at the grocery and eating out more than ever before. It's predicted that we'll spend more at restaurants in the coming years{#blank#}2{#/blank#}However, we're getting less healthy.

    While debates can be seen indifferent media over the food industry's contribution to our growing waistlines and our health problems, the bottom line is this{#blank#}3{#/blank#}We can choose to eat a fast-food lunch on the go. We can throw a frozen meal in the microwave and call it dinner. We can eat without thinking, in front of the tube, at our computers, and while driving a car.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}Studies have shown meaningful links between family meals and kids' mental and physical well-being. Eating sensibly doesn't take much time or money, but it does require you to make a conscious decision to do so. Wrapped in endless work, appointments and social activities, we often fail to enjoy a relaxing meal with our families.

    While it can be a challenge to always put healthy eating first, just do your best. Remember that the food you eat has a more significant impact on your health, weight and well-being than almost any other activity you do.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} Every meal made at home—even just once or twice a week—is a step closer to a healthier body and as lower food lifestyle.

A. Our food matches our lives.

B. Treat it with the importance that it deserves, but start small.

C. We're consuming an increasing number of calories.

D. Lunch is the biggest calorie intake when it comes to eating out.

E. Purchase food locally and skip as many packaged items as you can.

F. What we eat, where we eat and how we eat are all under our control.

G. We can devote an hour of the day to enjoying a meal with our families.

How to Be Happy

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Being happy often means continually finding satisfaction, a feeling of joy, and a sense that your life is meaningful during all kinds of problems—that does not depend upon finding ease or comfort. A sense of happiness is good for your health, so what can we do to have that?

Change your thoughts.

    People have a natural tendency to remember negative experiences but forget positive ones. However, thanks to adaptability, you can actually change the way your brain functions. You can train yourself to be happier by seeking your kind of fun.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

Cultivate optimism.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} It's a way of interpreting everything that happens to you. For example, a pessimistic person might say, "I'm terrible at math. I'm going to fail that test tomorrow. I might as well just watch TV." However, an optimistic person would say something like "I'm concerned about doing well on that test tomorrow, but I'm going to study as well as I can and do my best." Optimism doesn't deny the reality of challenges, but it interprets how you approach them differently.

    Practice active gratitude.

    A lot of researches confirm that gratitude is good for you. It reduces anxiety and depression, helps you become more positive, strengthens your relationships with others, and encourages compassion.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

Determine your core values.

    Your core values determine how you think about yourself, your life, and the world around you. These beliefs guide your decision-making. They may be spiritual, or they may not, but they're the things that are fundamental to how you look at life. Whatever your values are, research suggests that when you aren't living your life and making choices that are not fit for your values, you're likely to feel unhappy and dissatisfied.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    Begin by imagining yourself in the future when you have gotten to where you want to be. Pick a few goals and imagine that you have achieved them.

A. For example, occupy your mind with positive thoughts by practicing mindfulness.

B. Happiness is not a simple goal, but is about making progress.

C. Contact a hotline.

D. It also has been shown to increase your feelings of happiness.

E. Visualize your “best possible self.”

F. Optimism is more than just positive expectations.

G. Look for the positive in all your experiences.