Some students get so nervous before a test, they do poorly even if they know the material. Sian Beilock has studied these highly anxious test-takers.

    Sian Beilock: “They start worrying about the consequences. They might even start worrying about whether this exam is going to prevent them from getting into the college they want. And when we worry, it actually uses up attention and memory resources. I talk about it as your cognitive horsepower that you could otherwise be using to focus on the exam.”

    Professor Beilock and another researcher, Gerardo Ramirez, have developed a possible solution. Just before an exam, highly anxious test-takers spend ten minutes writing about their worries about the test.

    Sain Beilock: “What we think happens is when students put it down on paper, they think about the worst that could happen and they reappraise the situation. They might realize it's not as bad as they might think it was before and, in truth, it prevents these thoughts from appearing suddenly when they're actually taking a test.”

    The researchers tested the idea on a group of twenty anxious college students. They gave them two short math tests. After the first one, they asked the students to either sit quietly or write about their feelings about the upcoming second test.

    The researchers added to the pressure. They told the students that those who did well on the second test would get money. They also told them that their performance would affect other students as part of a team effort.

    Professor Beilock says those who sat quietly scored an average of twelve percent worse on the second test. But the students who had written about their fears improved their performance by an average of five percent.

    Next, the researchers used younger students in a biology class. They told them before final exams either to write about their feelings or to think about things unrelated to the test.

    Professor Beilock says highly anxious students who did the writing got an average grade of B+, compared to a B- for those who did not.

    Sain Beilock: “What we showed is that for students who are highly test-anxious, who'd done our writing intervention, all of a sudden there was no relationship between test anxiety and performance. Those students most prone to worry were performing just as well as their classmates who don't normally get nervous in these testing situations.”

    But what if students do not have a chance to write about their fears immediately before an exam or presentation? Professor Beilock says students can try it themselves at home or in the library and still improve their performance.

Easy Ways to Keep Your Brain Sharp

    Everyone is forgetful, but as we age, we start to feel like our brains are slowing down a bit—and that can be a very annoying thing.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}Read on for some techniques worth trying.

    ⒈{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    People who regularly made plans and looked forward to upcoming events had a 50 percent reduced chance of Alzheimer's disease (早老性痴呆症), according to a recent study.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}Something as simple as setting a goal to have a weekly coffee date with a friend will do. There's evidence that people who have a purpose in life or who are working on long or short-term goals appear to do better. In other words, keep your brain looking forward.

    ⒉ Go for a walk

    Mildly raised glucose (葡萄糖) levels can harm the area of the brain that helps you form memories and physical activity can help get blood glucose down to normal levels. In fact, exercise produces chemicals that are good for your brain.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    ⒊ Learn something new

    Take a Spanish class online, join a drawing club, or learn to play cards. A study found that mental stimulation (刺激) limits the weakening effects of aging on memory and the mind. But the best thing for your brain is when you learn something new and are physically active at the same time.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}or go dancing with your friends.

A. Focus on the future.

B. This can be especially harmful to the aged.

C. It should be something like learning gardening.

D. So take a few minutes each day to do some reading.

E. But don't worry if your schedule isn't filled with life-changing events.

F. Luckily, research shows there is a lot you can do to avoid those moments.

G. In other words, when you take care of your body, you take care of your brain.

    Do you have a spare room in your house? What about your driveway for your car?

    Both of these can help you make money. Many people who have financial difficulties are taking advantage of what's been called the 'sharing economy'.

    Perhaps the best-known example of a company in this field is Airbnb.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}It says it operates in 34,000 cities and it has 800,000 listings of rooms and apartments. They seem to have cornered the market!

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#}Just Park's founder, Anthony Eskinazi, says: "When I had the original idea, I spotted a driveway close to a sports stadium. It would have been so convenient if I could have just parked in that driveway rather than in a commercial car park." And he has a big clientele(客户): Around 200,000 people have advertised their spaces on the site, and he says around half a million drivers use it.  {#blank#}3{#/blank#}They let drivers share their cars with other passengers.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}A church near Kings Cross in central London has apparently made over 200,000 pounds by renting out space in its yard to travelers! But the sharing economy has its competitors. People who run things like traditional hotels, commercial car parks and taxi services are afraid of ending up losing money.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}Because this is a new business world, those rules are not there yet. How will renting out your driveway affect your neighbor?

A. Any driver knows how valuable a place to park is.

B. A British company is doing something with parking spaces.

C. There are other sites doing very similar things, like Uber and Lyft.

D. It offers travelers a global network of accommodations offered by locals

E. Another problem is that regulations for these new businesses are unclear.

F. The American web business allows you to rent out your spare room to holidaymakers.

G. Now that the sharing economy is gaining the support of the financial community, corporations start paying attention.

    Kinds of friendships

    There are many different kinds of friendships to distinguish. If people are honest with one another and clearly define(界定) which kind of friendship they have, they can avoid a lot of misunderstanding. And if people can learn to move on from a relationship that is over, they will be better off.

    Then, what are the different kinds of friendship? Well, the first kind is the social friend. This is the kind of friend that people have most of. This kind of friend isn't someone who you hang out with all the time or live with, but you know them and associate with(与……交往) them at a bar, store or some other public places. They're nice to talk to when you see them and are usually good for a laugh. However, they are not good to talk about a problem with.

    The second kind is the counselor(顾问). This is a friend you go to when you need advice or just someone to listen. You value their wisdom or at least the fact that they are good at listening to you. You can tell this kind of friend almost anything without fearing gossip(闲言碎语). They are the kind of friend you can trust but you just don't hang out together, unless you want to talk about something important.

    The third kind is the fun boy/girl. This kind of friend can usually be counted on to go somewhere with you at a moment's notice. They like hanging out with you whether you're going to a store or a bar or wherever. They're good tension relievers because you know you're just going to have a good time. This kind of friend isn't someone you go to for advice; in fact you shouldn't affect your relationship by getting serious about something. They're trustworthy and you know they aren't going to gossip about what you do together. Don't expect anything else from this kind of friend; just have a good time.

    The fourth kind of is the work friend. This is the friend you have at work. You interact(交流) at work only. This may include having a break together, maybe even shopping with them or running an errand(差使) during lunch or after work. They're usually not good to get advice from but on some occasions things might be discussed and you might give each other advice. Mostly you talk about the job.

    The last kind is the lifetime friend. This friendship is very rare and usually is found in marriage relationships. This kind of friend is all the above rolled into one.

    There is an English saying: “{#blank#}1{#/blank#} Until recently, few people took the saying seriously. Now, however, doctors have begun to look into laughter and the effects it has on the human body{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Tests were carried out to study the effects of laughter on the body. People watched funny films while doctors checked their hearts, blood pressure, breathing and muscles. It was found that laughter has similar effects to physical exercise{#blank#}3{#/blank#}If laughter exercises the body, it must be beneficial.

    Other tests have shown that laughter appears to be able to reduce the effect of pain on the body. In one experiment doctors produced pain in groups of students who listened to different radio programs. The group that tolerated the pain for the longest time was the group which listened to a funny program.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}They have found that even if their patients do not really feel like laughing, making them smile is enough to produce beneficial effects similar to those caused by laughter.

A. Laughter can change one's life.

B. As a result of these discoveries, some doctors in the United States now hold laughter clinics in which they help to improve their patients' condition by encouraging them to laugh.

C. The reason why laughter can reduce pain seems to be that it helps to produce a kind of chemicals in the brain which diminish both stress and pain.

D. It increases blood pressure, the heart beating and breathing; it also works several groups of muscles in the face, the stomach and even the feet.

E. Although laughter helps cure the disease, doctors still can not put this theory into clinic practice.

F. Laughter is the best medicine.

G. They have found that laughter really can improve people's health.

    Worry problems are everywhere in our daily life. How to solve them? The answer is that we must equip ourselves to handle 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. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} When you are worried, your emotions are riding high. But here are two ideas that can help you see the facts in a clear and objective way.

    When trying to get the facts, you can pretend that you are collecting this information not for yourself but for some other person. This will help you to take a cold and fair view of the evidence. You can also pretend that you are a lawyer preparing to agree.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} You will generally find the truth lies somewhere in between.

    Analyze the facts

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} And write out all the various steps you could take and then the probable consequences (后果) 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.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Unless you take your action, all you face—finding and analysing—is a waste of energy. How can you break the worry habit before it breaks you? Move worry out of your mind by keeping busy.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} Accept what can't be avoided. 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 develop a mental attitude that will bring you peace and happiness.

A. Act on that decision.

B. It is not an easy job to get facts.

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

D. Plenty of action is one of the best ways to cure worry.

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

F. Try to get all the facts both on your side and the other side of the case.

G. Whenever you are worried, write down the questions that make you worry.