How can I fight laziness?

    Lazy people will never amount to anything in life. However, laziness can be defeated once a few changes have been made in your mind.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#}Many people lack sleep constantly, since they stay up too late and get up too early to prepare for work. These people have little motivation once they arrive home. Laziness works hand in hand with a lack of motivation and a tendency to put off things. By adjusting your sleep schedule to provide a few more hours of meaningful rest, you can fight laziness throughout the day.

    Another way to fight laziness is to change your mind from passive to active. Some people treat their lives as if they were pushed from task to task. Others take a more proactive approach, viewing each task as a challenge they must overcome alone.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Some people fight laziness by removing the temptations that surround them. A television in the living room may provide entertainment, but watching too much TV often contributes to laziness. Create a reward system for yourself, just as parents do for a child to promote responsibility.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}Spouses and children may all have different energy levels, but laziness can be spread if not dealt with immediately. To fight household laziness, lead by example. Be the first to collect and wash dishes after a meal. Others in the home may eventually follow your example and perform their own task. It is difficult to practice laziness when your are surrounded by motivated people.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}Enough exercise and a balanced diet can help you to develop a healthy lifestyle, thus enabling you to have more energy and help lift your spirits.

A. Knowing how to fight laziness is important.

B. One way to fight laziness is to get enough sleep.

C. Laziness can also be a lasting problem at home.

D. Complete a few tasks and reward yourself with what you enjoy, such as a good dinner or a film.

E. Finally, taking exercise regularly can help you fight laziness.

F. With strong determination, you will be able to achieve your goal.

G. Laziness sets in when you no longer feel in charge of your own life.

    Health care is regarded as an important way to improve the health and well-being of people around the world. In many countries of the world, free health care is provided by the government{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Clearly, we all have to pay for this service through our taxes.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} They say that people who take unnecessary risks should not receive this free health care. For example, people who join in risky activities such as skiing are more likely to have an accident. It has been suggested that these people should pay for any medical treatment they require.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Firstly, it's difficult to say exactly what is risky and what is not. For example, not doing enough exercise is probably more risky than skiing in the long run. As a result, it isn't fair to give free health care to an inactive person and make the skier pay{#blank#}4{#/blank#}Clearly, these people should receive free medical treatment if they are hurt on the job.

    Finally, I would like to say that I think free health care is a good thing. I understand that the system is not perfectly fair because some people use it more than others. Besides, not all the medical treatment is really necessary for the health of the patient. The taxpayer should not have to pay the costs of such treatment{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. It helps you make money.

B. Personally, I disagree with this point of view.

C. However, some people think this is basically unjust.

D. This means that everybody has a chance to see a doctor.

E. Free health care will decrease the economy of the country.

F. Besides, fire fighters take risks, but they are necessary risks.

G. However, in my opinion, this is a small price to pay for a healthier society.

How Arts Promote Our Economy

    When most people think of the arts, they imagine the end product, the beautiful painting, a wonderful piece of music, or an award-winning performance in the theater. But arts groups bring broader value to our communities. The economic impact of the arts is often overlooked and badly judged.

    The arts create jobs that help develop the economy. Any given performance takes a tour bus full of artists, technical experts, managers, musicians, or writers to create an appealing piece of art. These people earn a living wage for their professional knowledge and skills.

    Another group of folks is needed to help market the event. "If you build it they will come" is a misleading belief. Painters, digital media experts, photographers, booking agents and promoters are hired to sell tickets and promote the event. According to the Dallas Area Cultural Advocacy Coalition, arts agencies employ more than 10,000 people as full-or part-time employees or independent contractors.

    A successful arts neighborhoods creates a ripple effect（连锁反应）throughout a community. In 2005, when the Bishop Arts Theatre was donated to our town, the location was considered a poor area of town. After investing more than $1 million in reconstructing the building, we began producing a full season of theater performances, jazz concerts, and year-round arts education programs in 2008. Nearly 40 percent of jazz lovers live outside of the Dallas city limits and drive or fly in to enjoy an evening in the Bishop Arts District.

    No doubt the theater has contributed to the area's development and economic growth. Today, there are galleries, studios, restaurants and newly built work spaces where neighbors share experiences, where there is renewed life and energy. In this way, arts and culture also serve as a public good.

    Teco Theatrical Productions Inc. made use of Bloomberg's investment of $35,000 to get nearly $400,000 in public and private sector support during the two-year period. Further, Dallas arts and arts-based businesses produce $298 for every dollar the city spends on arts programming and facilities. In Philadelphia, a metro area smaller than Dallas, the arts have an economic impact of almost $3 million and support 44,000 jobs, 80 percent of which actually lie outside the arts industry, including accountants, marketers, construction workers, hotel managers, printers, and other kinds of art workers.

    The arts are efficient economic drivers and when they are supported, the entire small-business community benefits.

    It is wrong to assume arts groups cannot make a profit. But in order to stay in business, arts groups must produce returns. If you are a student studying the arts, chances are you have been ill-advised to have a plan B. But those who truly understand the economic impact and can work to change the patterns can create a wide range of career possibilities.

    Long, long ago people couldn't write and they had no books. But they had stories. People learned the stories by heart and taught new ones to one another. Sometimes it was hard to remember them all. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    The ancient Egyptians wrote their stories on something made from papyrus (纸沙草) plants. People in other places wanted to learn from the Egyptians to use papyrus.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} So, parchment (羊皮纸), made from goatskin, later took its place.

    In ancient China books looked a little different. People there used ink to write on bamboo or silk. And then they invented paper. Made of trees, paper was easier and cheaper to make than papyrus or parchment.{#blank#}3{#/blank#} Paper-making later spread to the West, but there was a big problem with these early books. Every single one had to be copied and written by hand.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} They carved (雕刻) a page of words into a piece of wood or stone. They could then print the page by spreading ink on the wood or stone and putting it against paper. But it wasn't until a German printer invented movable, metal letters that books became fast and easy to make. The letters could be used to print copy after copy, and the letters put together again and again to print different pages of words.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}Once a luxury (奢侈品) only the rich could buy, they soon became a treasure everyone could enjoy.

A. It took years to finish making just one book.

B. But papyrus grew mainly in Egypt.

C. Things grew a little easier when writing was invented.

D. Finally books could be printed by the thousands.

E. The Chinese were the first to think of a way to speed things up a little.

F. Books in the West didn't change for a long time after that.

G. Its surface was smoother and better for writing on too.

    Long ago, people believed that in the future we would work less, have more free time and get more relaxed. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Today we work harder, work longer hours and have more stresses than ten years ago. We walk faster, talk faster and sleep less than previous generations. And although we use machines that save us time, we have less free time than our parents and grandparents. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} An American journalist James Gleick in a new book, says that people are suffering from "hurry sickness" — we're trying to do more things in less time. As a result, our lives are stressful. He says that if we don't slow down, we won't live as long as our parents. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

Newspaper articles today are shorter and the headlines are bigger. Most people don't have enough time to read the articles, so they only read the headlines. On TV and the radio, newspapers speak more quickly than ten years ago. In the USA, there is a book called One-Minute Bedtime Stories for children. These are shorter versions of traditional stories, specially written for "busy parents" who want to save time! Some answer phones now have "quick playback" buttons so that we can replay people's messages faster— we can't waste time listening to people speaking at the normal speed! {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Ten years ago when people went to art galleries they spent seconds looking at each picture. Today they spend just three seconds! Nowadays, many people prefer faster and dynamic sports like basketball.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Our cars are faster but the traffic is worse, so we drive more slowly. We spend more time sitting in our cars, feeling stressed. Experts predict that in ten years the average speed on the road in cities will be only 17 km/h.

A.People didn't feel stressed ten years ago.

B.But unluckily, this has not happened yet.

C.Even when we relax we do everything more quickly.

D.But what is this doing to our health?

E.For most people, being faster doesn't mean being better.

F.The only thing that is slower than before is the way we drive.

G.Now everything is faster than before, which bring us more convenience.

    Really organized people are not born organized people.{#blank#}1{#/blank#} ,which then help them stay organized. Here are four habits they use to keep their lives in order.

    Write things down. A pen and a notebook are needed to record things. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} .You will only further make your life complex(复杂的) by trying to contain important dates and messages in your head.

    Make schedules and deadlines. By leading a cluttered(杂乱的) lifestyle, you will not have the time or space to make your deadlines or achieve your goals. Organized people don't waste time.

    They recognize that keeping things organized goes hand in hand with staying productive(富有成效的). They make and keep schedules for the day and week. They make deadlines and set goals.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}.

    Don't put off doing what you should be doing .{#blank#}4{#/blank#}.If you want your life to be less stressful, then take action as soon as you can. Put in effort to get things done as soon as possible.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}.People who live organized lives only keep what they need and what they really want .Have you ever felt like you don't have the space to keep all the things you own? Instead of buying a larger house, get rid of some.

A. Give everything a home

B. Keep only what you need

C  They have to develop some habits

D. And most importantly, they stick to them.

E. You can also use a computer or a smart phone

F. Organized people find time every week to organize their things

G. The longer you wait to do something, the more difficult it will be to get it done