Values for Americans

    One of the most basic moral values for Americans is honesty. The well-known legend about George Washington and the cherry tree teaches this value clearly. Little George cut down his father's favorite cherry tree while trying out his new hatchet. When his father asked him about it, George said, “I cannot tell a lie. I did it with my hatchet.” Instead of punishment, George received praise for telling the truth.  {#blank#}1{#/blank#} But Americans still believe that “honesty is the best policy.”

     {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Remember Aesop's fable about the turtle and the rabbit that had a race? The rabbit thought he could win easily, so he took a nap. But the turtle finally won because he did not give up. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} The hill was so steep that the little train had a hard time trying to get over it. But the train just kept pulling, all the while saying, “I think I can, I think I can.” At last, the train was over the top of the hill.

    Compassion(怜悯) may be the queen of American virtues. The story of “The Good Samaritan” from the Bible describes a man who showed compassion. On his way to a certain city, a Samaritan man found a poor traveler lying on the road. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} The kind Samaritan, instead of just passing by, stopped to help this person in need,

     {#blank#}5{#/blank#}In fall 1992, people in Iowa sent truckloads of water to help Floridians hit by a hurricane. The next summer, during the Midwest flooding, Florida returned the favor. In less dramatic ways, millions of Americans are quietly passing along the kindnesses shown to them.

A. The traveler had been beaten and robbed.

B. Another virtue Americans respect is perseverance (坚持不懈).

C. As a matter of fact, it is these virtues that help the country develop.

D. Compassion can even turn into a positive cycle.

E. There used to be a high and steep hill.

F. Sometimes American honesty—being open and direct—can hurt people.

G. Another story tells of a little train that had to climb a steep hill,

    As is often the case, you are trying hard to keep your eyes open in class after a late night doing piles and piles of homework, "{#blank#}1{#/blank#}" You are probably thinking, " This weekend I'll make up for all the sleep I have lost."

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Most people think the same way-if you stay in bed longer on Saturdays or Sundays, you will recover your missed sleep during the week.

    However, this is not correct.{#blank#}3{#/blank#} Actually, researchers have just discovered that sleeping during the weekend will not do you any good, but rather make you feel more tired on Monday morning.

    Our body keeps a clock inside. It tells us when to wake up in the morning and when to feel sleepy at night. But the time on our body clock can be changed once we start taking on different sleeping habits.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} This may mean on Monday morning we sometimes struggle to get out of bed.

    If we decide to get up only 20 minutes or half an hour later, it won't matter. This is because our body clock can accommodate(顺应) a delay of up to an hour, which means that a short lie-in at weekends is unlikely to have any big effect, we needn't worry about it at all.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    So, what should we do to balance and make up for all the sleep we've missed? Scientists say that simply eight hours of sleep would do the trick, not any longer.

A. You are not alone.

B. I need more sleep!

C. Sleep is important for everyone.

D. Sleeping is nothing like paying back money.

E. However, if we sleep longer our sleep becomes less efficient.

F. But delays of up to two hours or more can throw our body out of order.

G. This is why staying in bed for longer than usual might confuse our body clock.

How to Make the World a Better Place

    When you think about people who have made the world a better place, you probably think of famous scientists or great leaders. That is not all the truth. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} An act of kindness can bring a smile to a person's face even if only for a moment.

    Give away your money. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}For example, if you want to help hungry children, you can try to find an international organization that provides food for those in poor areas. Every cent you give away will mean a lot.

    Help a stranger. Your small actions can brighten the day of others. Hold the door for someone whose hands are full. Help the blind cross the street. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}The key is expecting nothing in return for your acts of kindness.

    Care about those you know. Show the people close to you how much you care about them. Tell them they mean a lot to you. Make a beautiful gift for a friend. Take your husband to his favorite fun place if he has had a hard week. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Be grateful to others. Have you had good service in a restaurant? Thank the waiter Do you have very good neighbor who is always there when you need her? Tell her how much you appreciate her being in your life.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}If a friend needs skills in a certain area, offer your advice. Perhaps she is struggling to set up computer, and you know how to do that. Offer whatever ability you have, but always remember to be polite.

A. Share your knowledge.

B. Keep walking forward.

C. Small steps, not big ones.

D. Give your seat on the bus to an old man.

E. Choose charity that has meaning for you.

F. Tell your children how much they mean to you.

G. Ordinary people like you and me can also help a lot.

The Advantages of Hobbies

    Hobbies provide entertainment and a chance to continuously learn something new and develop a skill set.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Hobbies are praised as a key to stress reduction. Becoming lost in the mental concentration or physical action which you are deeply interested in helps you shift focus from the parts of life that are stressful.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}And in turn you are more peaceful when working on other work.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}Many people set goals with their hobbies that provide them satisfaction when these goals have been achieved. These goals can be simple, like improving a golf score, writing a certain number of pages for a novel each day or seeing an entire collection of classic films.

    Hobbies provide a sense of community when you meet other people who enjoy similar activities.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}More populated cities typically have numerous clubs or groups for people to share their knowledge and enthusiasm about a particular hobby. Becoming a member of one of these organizations allows greater growth within your hobby, as well as a chance to make new friends.

    Having a hobby can develop a talent that makes a person feel proud and satisfied. For example, a tennis hobby developed at a young age can lead to a career as a professional athlete one day.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}For example, writer Vladimir Nabokov also collected butterflies, which allowed him to do better in his chosen fields because he used learned skills from one to improve the other.

A.Focusing on something enjoyable can calm the mind.

B.Hobbies also provide a sense of achievement.

C.Some hobbies affect other aspects of your life.

D.There are a variety of hobbies.

E.They also provide many other social and health benefits.

F.Having a hobby increases the chances to interact with like-minded people.

G.Some hobbies containing physical activities offer an enjoyable way to stay healthy.

Sleep Patterns and Health Troubles

    When Carol Gee turned 55, she made a new friend: 4 a.m. In the past, she usually slept through it. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} She's not the only older adult to have the same experience. In 2017, a national vote conducted by the University of Michigan found that 46 percent of adults 65 and older have trouble falling asleep on a regular basis.

     {#blank#}2{#/blank#}Brains can slow. Wounds take longer to heal. And sleep patterns shift, too. The most noticeable ­ and often most annoying ­ changes are how sleep and wake-up times change and sleep gets lighter, often beginning in middle age. This can come as news to many, says Michael V. Vitiello, a psychologist at the University of Washington who specializes in sleep in aging.

    Studies have found that poor sleep can have a particular threat to older adults. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} 

    Falls, depression and anxiety, problems with memory, and increased suicide risk are among the impacts of sleepless issues in this population group that researchers have found.

    As with changes in sleep architecture and timing, scientists are still unsure why those risk associations exist. Kristine Yaffe, a neuropsychiatrist (神经精神病学家) at the University of California's San Francisco School of Medicine who specializes in dementia, warns that there are more questions than answers when it comes to dementia and sleep. He found that if people have dementia, they tend not to sleep well. Do sleep problems actually lead to dementia?

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    What is clear is the association between good sleep and psychological well-being in older adults. But sleep quantity didn't show the same effects. And therein, experts say, may lie the key to understanding sleep as you age. If you're sleeping less, but don't feel negative effects out of bed, the changes you notice may just be normal age-related.

    Your bedtime pattern changes as you age, is that a sign of trouble? {#blank#}5{#/blank#} "A lot of older adults recognize that they don't sleep the same as they did when they were 18, but they can still function and they're OK. And all is well with the universe."

A. Researchers think it's hard to say.

B. But recently it has become her new wake-up time.

C. Over time, Vitiello says, sleep patterns simply change.

D. Statistics indicate that restless night is bad to our health.

E. As people age, the body changes in all sorts of predictable ways.

F. Too much work and pressure in life often cause you to wake up earlier.

G. Changes in the brain can be associated with a number of types of dementia.

    If you seriously and honestly take a look at how you think, act and respond to life, you will quickly realize that in most cases your actions and responses are from fear rather than from love and joy.

    Why is it so? {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Humans, unlike animals or plants, are able to image hundreds of different possibilities about our future. But we cannot decide which will really take place and therefore we often feel confused and worried about our future. However, if we were certain about one outcome, we could get rid of any anxiety or anger. This is possible, only when we move from fear based living to love and joy based living. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    The only way out is to be aware of our fears. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Then we can try taking baby steps and move up the uncertainty. When faced with any situation next time, try to change the habit of being you and try to act out of love. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} One step at a time, and try to change your habitual responses.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} They can be in a parent, a teacher or in yourself. Once you are able to develop unshakable faith in the process of life, you won't bother about the outcome of most things. Instead, you will let go of your fears and learn to enjoy the process of life.

A. And see how things change for better.

B. The best way to lose your fear is to develop love and faith.

C. Only after we have the awareness can we accept our current position and uncertainty.

D. But how can we go from fear to love?

E. The main reason for this is that the future is unpredictable.

F. So it is from the fearful unknowing background that we act.

G. The amount of uncertainty we can think up about the future is unimaginable.