It is necessary but difficult for English beginners to memorize new words, and long lists of words seem to make the mission impossible. They are puzzled why they try to memorize words with great efforts but forget them easily. That's why there are often inquiries about how to memorize new words.

{#blank#}1{#/blank#} Here are some tips to help.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} We too often separate the process of new words memorization from pronunciation. In fact these two can be combined and each will enhance the other. Saying the word to ourselves helps activate aural(hearing) memory, which helps the memory. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} The more familiar we are with the word,

the greater chance we will have to keep it for the rest of our life.

    Never memorize single English words. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Relate the word to terms we already know, either as synonym or antonym. For example, the word "gargantuan" is similar in meaning to words "gigantic", ”huge" and "large". Make a sequence of words: "small, medium, large, gigantic, and gargantuan".

    Create a mental image of the word that involves strong emotions. Think, "The gargantuan whale is going to swallow me whole".

    Learning English words requires action. Complaining how difficult it is to memorize new words will be of little help. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Have a try with ten words a day and you will see what a difference you will make in our English learning.

A. So take action right now.

B. Speak the word while memorizing it.

C. Memorizing new words is very important.

D. Actually, some have given up learning new words.

E. In fact, learning new words needn't be that difficult.

F. Make as many associations and connections as possible.

G. The sound of word helps us recall the spelling and familiarizes us with the word.

    Poet William Stafford once said that we are defined more by the detours (绕行路) in life than by the narrow road toward goals. I like this image. But it was quite by accident that I discovered the deep meaning of his words.

For years we made the long drive from our home in Seattle to my parents' home in Boise in nine hours. We traveled the way most people do: the fastest, shortest, easiest road, especially when I was alone with four noisy, restless kids who hate confinement (限制) and have strong opinions about everything.

    Road trips felt risky, so I would drive fast, stopping only when I had to. We would stick to the freeways and arrive tired.

    But then Banner, our lamb was born. He was rejected by his mama days before our planned trip to Boise. I had two choices: leave Banner with my husband, or take him with me. My husband made the decision for me.

    That is how I found myself on the road with four kids, a baby lamb and nothing but my everlasting optimism to see me through. We took the country roads out of necessity. We had to stop every hour, let Banner shake out his legs and feed him. The kids chased him and one another. They'd get back in the car breathless and energized, smelling fresh from the cold air.

    We explored side roads, catching grasshoppers in waist-high grass. Even if we simply looked out of the car windows at baby pigs following their mother, or fish leaping out of the water, it was better than the best ride down the freeway. Here was life. And new horizons (见识).

    We eventually arrived at my parents' doorstep astonishingly fresh and full of stories.

    I grew brave with the trip back home and creative with my disciplining technique. On an empty section of road, everyone started quarreling. I stopped the car, ordered all kids out and told them to meet me up ahead. I parked my car half a mile away and read my book in sweet silence.

    Some road trips are by necessity fast and straight. But that trip with Banner opened our eyes to a world available to anyone adventurous enough to wander around and made me realize that a detour may uncover the best part of a journey—and the best part of yourself.

    Sharon, Aged 22

    The most important thing to keep in mind when going into high school is to be yourself. Besides, I don't know what your middle school was like, but high school teachers will not care about things such as how much homework you already have in one night. It's best to just learn to deal with things and manage your time wisely so you can achieve everything you need to.

    Frank, Aged 21

    I think almost every kid feels both nervous and excited before their first day. You will probably love it. I know I did. You should join some sports or activities that will make your high school experience more enjoyable.

    Good luck!

    Eddie, Aged 20

    When I started high school I was really nervous too, especially since I had been homeschooled all through middle school and didn't really know anyone. I suppose the best advice would be to just relax. The first couple of days can be a little bit hard, but things will become easier before you know it.

    David, Aged 19

    I am not going to lie. The first day is kind of frightening. But you'll get used to it. Don't be afraid of anyone; upperclassmen will pick on you more if you let them know you're afraid. Just take it easy. Making some friends and staying with them will greatly help you get used to high school quickly. After the first week it's really not bad at all. Don't worry.

    Valerie Jarrett, 58, is serving as a top adviser to President Obama and has been close to the first family since the early 1990s. Joe Heim from WashingtonPost had an interview with her.

    Joe Heim: What do you think of a reporter who interviews you for 25 minutes, then later finds out his recorder stopped working and asks you to do the interview again?

    Valerie Jarrett: That he's human. Everybody could make mistakes.

    Joe Heim: You're considered the president's closest adviser. What do you think the role of an adviser is?

    Valerie Jarrett: I think so as that the president's management style is very effective (有效的), all of his advisers should speak openly about their advice.

    Joe Heim: What misunderstandings are there of you?

    Valerie Jarrett: A little-known fact is that I started my life very shy and remained very shy well into adulthood. Painfully shy, I would call it. And I often share this, particularly with young people, because it's something I really had to work hard to overcome. And for all the shy people out there I say, you, too, can overcome it. But it took a lot of hard work on my part, and I discovered along the way that just because you're nervous and you have butterflies in your stomach doesn't mean that it has to show. My point in sharing it with you is that part of life is pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone (舒适区). And if you're going to grow, you have to learn how to take on new challenges that you might not be good at.

    Joe Heim: Will you stay until the end of his term?

    Valerie Jarrett: I serve at the pleasure of the president. If he wants me to stay, I will.

    How fit are your teeth? Are you lazy about brushing them? Never fear: An inventor is on the case. An electric toothbrush senses how long and how well you brush and it lets you track your performance on your phone.

    The Kolibree toothbrush was exhibited at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week. It senses how it is moved and can send the information to an Android phone or iPhone via a Bluetooth wireless connection.

    The toothbrush will be able to teach you to brush right (don't forget the insides of the teeth!) and make sure you're brushing long enough. “It's kind of like having a dentist actually watch your brushing on a day-to-day basis,” says Thomas Serval, the French inventor.

    The toothbrush will also be able to talk to other applications on your phone, so developers could, for example, create a game controlled by your toothbrush. You could score points for beating monsters among your teeth. “We try to make it smart and fun,” Serval says.

    Serval says he was inspired by his experience as a father. He would come home from work and ask his kids if they had brushed their teeth. They said “yes,” but Serval would find their toothbrush heads dry. He decided he needed a brush that really told him how well his children brushed.

    The company says the Kolibree will go on sale this summer, from $99 to $199, and the U.S. is the first target market.

Brilliant Ways to Deliver Secret Messages

Many effective ways are used now to deliver secret messages. But in the past when the science and technology was not developing, especially during the war, how did people send secret and important messages?

Shoelaces

In the 1950s, the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency created a book of tips to teach spies ways to communicate in public. One tip: Lace up your shoes. Tied one way, the laces might mean "I have information": tied another, "Follow me". The spies could communicate while everyone else probably thought, "That guy can't tie his shoes correctly!"

Tattooed (刺文身) Head

Around 513 B.C., Histiaeus was forced out as the ruler of an ancient city. So he wanted to send a message to his supporters: Rebel against the king who took away his power.

Histiaeus called in a slave, shaved his head and tattooed the message onto the man's skin on the top of head. After the slave's hair grew back, he travelled to Greece with orders to shave his head again. Message received!

Orange Juice

In 1597, John Gerard was imprisoned in the Tower of London in England. He asked the prison guard to let him send letters written in charcoal (木炭). But then he wrote another message on top using the juice from an orange-which was only visible when the juice was dry and the page heated. With his invisible ink, he escaped successfully.

Songs

In the 1800s, African American slaves couldn't talk openly about their plans to escape to freedom—so they secretly sang about it.

Swing Low, Sweet Chariot might sound like a religious song. But for slaves, the "sweet chariot" was the code for the Underground Railroad, the network of people who helped slaves head to northern states and Canada. The song Wade in the Water warned escaped slaves to get in the water so dogs wouldn't smell them. With these songs, hundreds of people escaped slavery.