An Extension of the Human Brain

       Other people can help us compensate for our mental and emotional deficiencies (欠缺)，much as a wooden leg can compensate for a physical deficiency. To be exact, other people can extend our intelligence and help us understand and adjust our emotions. When another person helps us in such ways, he or she is participating in what I've called a “social prosthetic (义肢的）system.” Such systems do notneed to operate face-to-face, and it's clear to me that the Internet is expanding the range of my own social prosthetic systems. It's already a big bank of many minds. Even in its current state, the Internet has extended my memory and judgment.

        Regarding memory: Once I look up something on the Internet, I don't need to keep all the details for future use—I know where to find that informationagain and can quickly and easily do so. More generally, the Internet functions as if it were my memory. This function of the Internet is particularly striking when I'm writing; I'm no longer comfortable writing if I'm not connected to the Internet. It's become natural to check facts as I write, taking a minute or two to dip into PubMed, Wikipedia, or other websites.

        Regarding judgment: The Internet has made me smarter in matters small and large. For example, when I'm writing a textbook, it has become second nature to check a dozen definitions of a key term, which helps me dig into the core andunderstand its meaning. But more than that, I now regularly compare my views with those of many others. If I have a “new idea,” I now quickly look to see whether somebody else has already thought of it, or something similar—and I then compare what I think with what others have thought. This certainly makes my own views clearer. Moreover, I can find out whether my reactions to an event are reasonable enough by reading about those of others on the Internet.

        These effects of the Internet have become even more striking since I've begun using a smartphone. I now regularly pull out my phone to check a fact, watch a video, read weibo. Such activities fill the spaces that used to be dead time (such as waiting for somebody to arrive for a lunch meeting).

        But that's the upside (好处). The downside is that in those dead periods I often would let my thoughts flow and sometimes would have an unexpected insight or idea. Those opportunities are now fewer and farther between.

How to Make Friends

    Friendship is a very important human relationship and everyone needs good friends. Good friendship has many benefits. It offers companionship, improves self-worth and promotes (促进) good health. There are times in our lives such as when we have recently moved into a new town, or changed our jobs or schools. Such changes often leave us without a friend. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} But for many of us the process is difficult and requires courage. Below are some helpful suggestions on how to make and keep friends.

● Associate with (与……交往) others.

    The first step to making friends is associating with other people. You can go to public places to meet new people. Besides, you will need to make yourself known by becoming an active member of such places.

● Start a conversation.

    Starting a conversation is the second most important step in making new friends. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} You can always start the conversation. Being able to make small talk is a very useful skill in relating with other people.

●{#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    Choosing friends with common interests is important in building friendship as these interests would always bring you and your friend together. Hanging out (闲逛) will always be a pleasant experience.

● Let it grow.

    It is a good thing to stay in touch. However, try not to press your new friend with calls, messages or visits as this would likely wear him or her out and finally you may lose your friend.{#blank#}4{#/blank#} The best friendships are the ones that grow naturally.

● Enjoy your friendship.

    The best way to enjoy your friendship is to allow your friends to be themselves. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Try not to change them from who they are to what you want them to be. Become the kind of friend you will want your friend to be to you.

A. Do things together.

B. Be cheerful.

C. Making new friends comes easy for some people.

D. So you will need to give your friend time to respond to you.

E. Do not wait to be spoken to.

F. For a friendship to develop you need to stay in touch.

G. Try not to find fault with your friends.

    Meet Thomas Wilson. Thomas is famous all over the world. He holds the world record for sleeping in (睡过头). One weekend, Thomas slept in for two days, three hours and fourteen minutes. It was unbelievable. No one in history had ever slept in for so long before.

    Thomas was very proud of his world record. His friends were proud of him, too. Whenever Thomas walked down the street, people always came up to him and shook his hand. Thomas was a star.

    The on]y who wasn't proud of Thomas's world record was his father. Dad didn't like it when Thomas slept in. He complained that whenever Thomas slept in, the lawns didn't get mowed. He was worried about how high the grass was getting. Every weekend, it seemed to get higher and higher. “It's like a jungle there,” Dad moaned (抱怨) to Thomas one day. But Thomas wasn't worried about the grass getting higher. He had more important things on his mind—like sleeping in.

    One morning, Thomas was woken from a deep sleep by a loud roaring noise. It sounded like a wild animal pacing about under his bedroom window.

    Thomas rushed over to the window and pulled the curtains back. His eyes bulged like basketballs. “What on Earth…?” He gasped. There, in the middle of the backyard, was a lion! “Awesome!” cried Thomas. Suddenly, a giraffe poked its head through the window. It munched the leaves from a plant sitting by Thomas's bed. Next, an elephant walked past the swimming pool and squirted (喷出) water all over Dad's car! “Cool!” cheered Thomas. “Now I don't have to wash Dad's car today.”

    Being outspoken is a quality that,when used with skill and wisdom,can set you apart from the crowd.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}The quality of being outspoken is a positive and active skill.Here are some tips.

    Gain self-knowledge（自找认识）through journaling.Knowing who you are,what you believe,and how you feel is the beginning of knowing yourself,and journaling is a great way to gain that knowledge.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}Not only can you know yourself better,journaling is an excellent tool to improve self-confidence.Self-confidence is the foundation of being outspoken.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}In order to be outspoken,you have to believe that your voice has worth.You have to believe that your input will make any conversation better.And it probably will!It's different opinions that make conversations or debates interesting.

    Overcome shyness.The fact that you're confident doesn't mean you like hearing your own voice{#blank#}4{#/blank#} Overcoming a natural tendency towards shyness can seem horrible,but doing the opposite of your natural instinct can open up a whole new set of choices: brave choices.

    Back up your opinion with facts.Some people feel uncomfortable having or expressing an opinion because they don't know much about a topic{#blank#}5{#/blank#}.
A.Be confident.

B.Open your mind and speak it out.

C.The next step is overcoming your shyness.

D.Practice journaling for 15 minutes each night before bed.

E.Being outspoken is to speak your mind—to be honest and frank.

F.Allowing the other parties to make their points fully can help you seem more reasonable.

G.You can combat this feeling and have more confidence about your opinion if you learn facts that can support your opinion.

                                                                                             Make the right choices

    What is life's greatest gift?{#blank#}1{#/blank#}Choice is the ability to select one course of action from a set of alternatives to achieve a goal. What is so great about choice? It transforms us from dumb animals into artists. Each of us becomes another Michelangelo. Choice becomes nothing other than the tool we use to sculpt (雕刻)our life. The tool doesn't come free, however, for the price of choice is responsibility.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}The reward is happiness.

    Life is not still. It is a flow.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}We constantly need to monitor where we are on our journey. We need to ask questions: Am I moving closer to my goals? If not, what corrective measures can I take? What action will I take now to readjust myself to my goals? Choice is power. Choice is at the heart of life. It is the creative power of life.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}And your life becomes more convenient or comfortable because of them. For example, you decide which stores to shop at and which gas station to go to. But the decisions that we make to sculpt our lives are far more important than deciding where to shop. The more we appreciate the difference between minor and major decisions, the greater the probability that we will experience happiness and fulfillment.

    All chess lovers realize that it isn't necessary to win to enjoy the game. The pleasure is in the playing. Life is like a chess game.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. It is free will or choice

B. You have to make choices every day

C. Make the best moves you can under the circumstances

D. But when we accept and carry it out, we get a great return

E. Every choice we make leads us closer to or farther from our goals

F. Life is full of hard choices, and the bigger they are, the harder they get

G. Choose to carry out responsibilities not because you have to, but because you want to

    According to the recently published cultural mindset study from Culture Trip, 60% of people in the US and UK say that their outlook on life is shaped by influences from different cultures. At the same time, the economic landscape of the last decade has resulted in younger generations being more interested in collecting experiences than possessions.

    Welcome to the "new culture economy"

    The collision of the two trends—globalization and the experience economy—has caused a new travel concept with cultural curiosity at its heart. This is the "new culture economy". The phenomenon is having a profound impact on people's interactions and definitions of cultural exploration and presents an incredible commercial opportunity.

    Education, travel, exposure to other customs and the cultural mashup that energes are the more influential social effects of globalization. More than half of respondents from the cultural mindset study have friends living overseas, while 78% have friends or family of different nationalities. Besides, the confines of student debt and unaffordable housing have created a shift in spending patterns, and so a new set of values has emerged in which experiences matter more than ownership.

    Why we travel

    People's social networks expose them to digital influencers and keep them connected to friends or family living in other parts of the world. The combination of these cultural, social and personal drivers has helped us to identify four cultural mindsets.

    ⒈Culturally aware—The motivation to travel among this group is anchored in pleasure. They seek out familiarity and select destinations close to home or reflective of their own culture.

    ⒉Culturally curious—Those with this mindset travel to discover new things and disrupt their everyday routines. They seek some familiarity, but also want to explore boundaries. They want to be seen as someone who is interested in culture, but this is often expressed in terms of visual interest and well－known sites.

    ⒊Culturally immersive—For this group, travel is all about adventure and personal growth. They want to be seen as highly cultured and as "explorers"; they are happy to celebrate when things go wrong, which they see as the key ingredient to making memories.

    ⒋Culturally fluid—The group's identity is shaped by their familiarity with travel. They feel at home everywhere and have adopted a hybrid cultural identity. Memories are often tied to experiences with people that represent the culture they are travelling to rather than sites.

    The environmental trade－off

    The cultural mindset research also sheds light on how people perceive the effect of tourism on the environment and the measures they take to reduce their impact. Two in five millennials—more than any other generation—worry that tourism has a negative impact on the environment and over a third limit how much they travel to reduce their impact.

    While most people won't control their desire to travel entirely, good news is that those who see the world are also the ones taking measures in their everyday lives to reduce their impact on the environment.