One of the common complaints we hear from the people around us are problems they are facing. Every day and everywhere there are problems. Many times we find it hard to stay happy. When one problem is solved, another one comes up. How to solve them? The answer is that we must equip ourselves to deal with different kinds of worries by learning the three basic steps of problem analysis. The three steps are:

Get the facts

    Why is it so important to get the facts? Unless you have the facts, you can't possibly attempt to solve your problem intelligently. Without the facts, all you can do is wondering around in confusion. It is not an easy job to get facts. When you are worried, your emotions are riding high. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    When trying to get the facts, you can pretend that you are collecting this information not for yourself but for some other person. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} You can also pretend that you are a lawyer preparing to agree. Try to get all the facts both on your side and the other side of the case. You will generally find the truth lies somewhere in between.

{#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    Whenever you are worried, write down the questions that make you worry. And write out all the various steps you could take and then the probable consequences of each step. For example, what am I worrying about? What can I do about it? Here is what I'm going to do about it. After carefully weighing all the facts, you can calmly come to a decision.

Act on that decision.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} How can you break the worry habit before it breaks you? Crowd worry out of your mind by keeping busy . Plenty of action is one of the best ways to cure worry.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} If you know a situation is beyond your power, say to yourself: “It is so; it can't be otherwise.” Don't permit little things to ruin your happiness. Try to cultivate a mental attitude that will bring you peace and happiness.

A. Analyze the facts.

B. Accept what can't be avoided.

C. Decide how much anxiety a thing may be worth.

D. This will help you to take a cold and fair view of the evidence.

E. There comes a time when you must decide and never look back.

F. But here are two ideas that can help you see the facts in a clear and objective way.

G. Unless you take your action, all your fact-finding and analysis is a sheer waste of energy.

    Everyone knows that fish is good for health. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}But it seems that many people don't cook fish at home. Americans eat only about fifteen pounds of fish per person per year, but we eat twice as much fish in restaurants as at home. Buying, storing, and cooking fish isn't difficult. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}This text is about how to buy and cook fish in an easy way.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}Fresh fish should smell sweet: you should feel that you're standing at the ocean's edge. Any fishy or strong smell means the fish isn't fresh. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}When you have bought a fish and arrive home, you'd better store the fish in the refrigerator if you don't cook it immediately, but fresh fish should be stored in your fridge for only a day or two. Frozen fish isn't as tasty as the fresh one.

    There are many common methods used to cook fish. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}First, clean it and season it with your choice of spices (调料). Put the whole fish on a plate and steam it in a steam pot for 8 to 10 minutes if it weighs about one pound. (A larger one will take more time.) Then, it's ready to serve.

A. Do not buy it.

B. The easiest is to steam it.

C. This is how you can do it.

D. It just requires a little knowledge.

E. The fish will go bad within hours.

F. When buying fish, you should first smell it.

G. The fats in fish are thought to help prevent heart disease.

    We all have to make decisions all the time, and we have an abundance of choices, ranging from tiny issues to vital ones. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} That means the skill of good decision-making counts a lot. If you would like to improve your skill of decision making, here are four suggestions for you.

    Don't expect to have it all.

    Decisions force us to close the door on other possibilities. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} And there will be paths not taken, careers not chosen, to name a few. You can imagine some "what if" situations if you must, but do not let them take up too much space in your brain.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    It's often good to think through your decisions. But don't overdo it. Research can reach a point where returns begin to reduce, which makes it confusing more than clarifying. Many good decisions can be made based as much on intuition (直觉) as on careful assessment of endless data.

    Don't delay making decisions.

    Yes, there is a time to put off making a decision. Perhaps you need more information. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Or it's likely that you wait for a less stressful time. Just don't wait so long that the decision is made by your own indecisiveness.

    Don't be hard on yourself.

    You decide to go on a voyage. You choose an expensive liner. Everything should work out just right. Only you didn't expect a bug that ran around on the ship, making you and your family sick for five days. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} But please remember it is unavoidable sometimes.

    From time to time, we all get a bit down. Maybe we are feeling bad because we're not doing well with our goals. There are many reasons for feeling down, but I'm not able to discuss all of them.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}
    Make a list. Sometimes we are sad simply because we are troubled by all the things we have to do.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}Make a list of the most pressing things you have to do. Thus you're getting things under control. You can see, right in front of you, what you need to do, and that can pick up your mood.
    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}You've made a list, and you still feel puzzled? Well, get started on the first thing you need to do. Once you get into action, you'll feel better. And once you start doing something, you will feel much better than lying around feeling sorry for yourself.
     {#blank#}4{#/blank#}I like Brown Eyed Girl, the Kinks, the Ramones, or an upbeat Beatles tune. You might have your own brand of feel-good music. Whatever it is, let yourself move to the beat. It may just be what the doctor ordered.
    Talk about it. Get a best friend, family member or coworker you can talk to.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}It can also help you work out the reasons you're feeling down.

A. Take action.

B. Play some lively music.

C. Get out of the house and do something.

D. Getting things off your chest makes a big difference.

E. Start simply by picking up a piece of paper and a pen.

F. Do whatever you need to do to feel good about yourself.

G. What I can talk about are some things that have worked for me.

    What should you think about in trying to find your career? You are probably better at some school subjects than others. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} A boy who is good at mathematics can use that in an engineering career. A girl who spells well and likes English may be good at office work. So it is important to do well at school. On the other hand, you may not have any specially strong or weak subjects but your records show a general good result. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Knowledge of history is not required for most jobs but if history is one of your good subjects you will have learned to remember facts and details. This is an ability that can be useful in many jobs.

    Your school may have taught you skills, such as typing or technical drawing, which you can use in your work. You may be good at metal work or cooking and look for a job where you can improve these skills.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} You may have learned how to get to work on time and get on with older workers. You may have learned to give correct change in a shop, for example. Just as important, you may become interested in a certain industry or career you see from the inside in a part-time job.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} You may be all thumbs when you deal with tools; perhaps you are a poor speller or cannot add up a column of figures. It is better to face any weaknesses than to pretend they do not exist. Your school record, for instance, may not be too good, yet it is an important part of your background. You should not feel sorry for it. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. This does not have direct value for future job hunting.

B. These may show strengths that you can use in your work.

C. Facing your weak points is also part of knowing yourself.

D. Having a part-time job is a good way to find out your weak points.

E. Instead, you should recognize that you will have a chance of a fresh start at work.

F. Although not all subjects can be used directly in a job, they may have indirect value.

G. If you have had a part-time job on Saturdays or in the summer, think what you gained from it.

Art Builds Understanding

Despite the long history of scholarship on experiences of art, researchers have yet to capture and understand the most meaningful aspects of such experiences, including the thoughts and insights we gain when we visit a museum, the sense of encounter after seeing a meaningful work of art, or the changed thinking after experiences with art. These powerful encounters can be inspiring, uplifting, and contribute to well-being and flourishing.

{#blank#}1{#/blank#} It contributes to facilitating a better understanding of ourselves, the human condition, and moral and spiritual concepts. The question is how that happens — what are the attributes of meaningful experiences of art?

According to the mirror model of art developed by Pablo P. L. Tinio, aesthetic reception corresponds to artistic creation in a mirror-reversed fashion. Artists aim to express ideas and messages about the human condition or the world at large. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} This results in the build-up of layers of materials — from initial studies and sketches to the final, refined piece. A viewer's initial interaction with an artwork starts where the artist has left off. Their interaction first involves the processing surface features, such as color, texture, and the finishing touches applied by the artist during the final stages of the creative process. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}.

In addition, art making and art viewing are connected by creative thinking. Research in a lab at Yale University shows that an educational program that uses art appreciation activities builds creative thinking skills. It showed that the more time visitors spent engaging with art and the more they reflected on it, the greater the correspondence with the artists' intentions and ideas. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}.

Correspondence in feeling and thinking suggests a transfer — between creator and viewer — of ideas, concepts, and emotions contained in the works of art. Art has the potential to communicate across space and time. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} What it takes for this to happen is active engagement with art in contexts that facilitate this engagement, especially museums.

A.The viewers gain a new perspective on the story.

B.The theory of aesthetic cognitivism describes the value of art.

C.This helps to create connections and insights that otherwise would not happen.

D.To do so, they explore key ideas and continually expand them as they develop their work.

E.After spending more time with the work, the viewer begins to access the ideas of the artist.

F.For example, in one activity, people are asked to view a work of art from different perspectives.

G.Participants were more original in their thinking when compared to those who did not take part in the program.