Setting Effective Goals
Avital Schweitzer, 17, is clearly goal-directed. She works hard to achieve the various tasks in her life. This summer she attended a program at the University of California, Santa Barbara, for high school students who are interested in research. Avital says that she rarely clearly states and discusses her goals. But goal-setting has always played a role in her life. During her junior year, for instance, she set personal goals to win a tennis championship and to become debate-team captain. Avital says, "In an academic environment when i set goals for myself, I often make lists that i need to complete in order to achieve them. The lists can include doing problem sets, meeting with a teacher or asking specific questions. When I run into difficulties, I reach out to resources for help or advice, like the Internet, my teachers or my parents. I think that learning about the best types of goals to set and standard methods to achieve these goals these goals could be very useful in my day-to-day life."
Who else is better to turn to for this kind of insight into the art and science of goal-setting than your own father? Avital's dad, Maurice Schweitzer, a Wharton professor of oparetions and information management, has researched the topic extensively. He said, "Goalds are powerfully motivating and will help us get where we want to be. Across every field, people who set specific, challenging goals do better than people who go out and just aim to do their best."
The Biology of Music
Humans use music as a powerful way to communicate. It may also play an important role in love. But what is music, and how does it work its magic? Science does not yet have all the answers?
What are two things that make humas different from animals? One is language, and the other is music. It is true that some animals can sing (and many birds and whales, are very limited. It is also true that humans, not animals, have developed musical instruments.
Music is strange stuff. It is clearly different from language. However, people can use music to communicate things- especially their emotions. When music is combined with speech in a song, it is very powerful form of communication. But biologically speaking, what is music?
If music is truly different from speech, then we should process music and language in different parts of the brain. The scientific evidence suggests that this is true. Sometimes people who suffer brain damage lose their ability to process language. However, the don't automatically lose their musical abilities.
For exmaple, Vissarion Shebalin, a Russian composer, had a stroke in 1953. It injured the left side of his brain. He could no longer speak or understand speech. He could, however, still compose music until his death ten years later. On he other hand, sometimes strokes cause people to lose their musical ability, but they can still speak and understand speech. This shows that the brain processes music and language separately.
By studying the physical effects of music on the body, scientists have also learned a lot about how music influences the emotions. But why does music have such a strong effect on us? That is harder question to answer. Geoffrey Miller, a researcher at University College, London, thinks that music and love have a strong connection. Music requires sepcial talent, practice, and physical ability. That's why it may be a way of showing your fitness to be someone's mate.
For example, singing in tune or playing a musical instrument requires fine muscular control. You also need a good memory to remember the notes. And playing or singing those notes correctly suggests that your hearing is in excellent condition. Finally, when a man sings to the woman he loves (or vice versa), it may be a way of showing off.
However, Miller's theory still doesen't explain why certain conbinations of sounds influence our emotions so deeply. For scientists, this is clearly an area that needs further research.
Why Lack of Sleep Could Be Making You fatter
Sleepless nights don't just ruin your mood the next day-they could also damage your waistline. According to new research in the August issue of the American Journal of Clinaical Nutrition, sleep deprivation can cause people to pack on extra pounds.
Researchers at the New York Obesity Nutrition Research Centre at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital found that sleep-deprived people seem to burn the same number of calories as the well-rested, but they consume about 300 more calories a day. Given that it takes just 3500 calories to add a pound to your body, those calories can quickly turn into extra weight.
But there are several other reasons that sleep loss could lead to weight gain, says sleep disorder specialist Michael Breus. When we get too little shut-eye, our metabolism slows down to conserve energy. That slowdown triggers the release of the hormone cortisol, which increase appetite. Your body thinks it needs more energy, so it asks for more food.
For optimal health, experts say you should try to get 7.5 hours of sleep a night. If you have trouble sleeping, stick to a nightly routine, exercise during the day, banish worries to a journal, and keep pre-bedtime activities relaxing.
Noise Reduction
The economic costs of noise to society are several. Airports are currently operating at less capacity because of noise regulations which restrict their hours of operation. For instance, at Washington's National Airport no jet traffic is allowed from 11 pm to 7am. Other airports restrict the use of certain runways.
In the case of airports, jet engines may be modified to reduce their noise level, or insulation from air traffic noise may be provided by the purchase of land around airports or the insulation of buildings. One estimate is that $5.7 billion would be required to equip existing jet engines with noise control devices. However, considering the current state of the art, even taing this step will not reduce noise levels at all points to acceptable values. Some combination of methods is probably probably necessary.
If all aircraft were made quieter by existing methods, there would be a number of economic benefits. An increase in airport capacity would occur. Property values near airports might rise. Transportation costs to and from airports could be reduced since the airports now could be located closer to population centers.
Much research still needs to be done on the economic aspects of noise reduction and noise effects. Although some of the effects of noise pollution are known, more must be discovered about its effects on health, productivity, property values and the quality of life. Furthermore, the cost of noise pollution to the economy as a whole needs to be investigated.
The public must be alerted to the dangers and economic costs of noise pollution so that people may make intelligent choices and exert appropriate pressures.
Reduce Differences in Dealing with People
What makes some people so easy to get along with and others so difficult? We think that conflict in a relationship happens when the focus is on the differences, rather than on the similarities. Think of it as "United we stand, divided we can't stand each other."
So bringing down differences is important to dealing with people you cannot stand. Success in communication depends on finding common ground, and then trying to lead the communication toward a new outcome.
An important communication skill will help you get along with others: blending. "Blending" refers to behavior by which you reduce the differences between yourself and another person. This skill is not new, of course; it is part of normal human contact. In fact, you already use it, to some extent.
You can blend with people in many ways. You may blend by changing your facial expression or degree of body movement to match that of the other person. You may also blend by trying to match the style and speed of the other person's speech. And you may even blend with people by matching their ideas.
When people feel you've listend to them and you understand them, that's the result of blending. It's also natural not to blend with difficult people, but the result is serious. Without blending, Without blending, the differences between you become the basis for conflict.
Anti-Aging Secrets: Four Ways to Stay Young
The aging process is not easy for anyone. While some people accept getting older and do everything within older and do everything within their power to keep the mind and body active, others adopt a negative attitude and give in to the effects of aging. However, the key to feeling young is maintaining a young mental state. Moreover, simple lifestyle changes can make you feel years younger.
Keeping the mind active is the best medicine against aging. Studies have shown that persons who remain active following retirement live longer. Brainpower and physical fitness go hand-in-hand. When minds are sharpened or active, we are more likely to be physical active. Even if aging results in slight memory loss or a little confusion, brian exercises such as crossword puzzles can improve memory.
Some persons are naturally introverted or shy, which can result in isolation. If you want to live a long life, avoid isolation. Maintaining healthy relationships has lasting benefits. Establishing strong relationships could lower blood pressure, promote relaxtion, ease pain, and may even strengthen the immune system.
Too much stress can quickly age people. Completely ridding our lives of stress is impossible. On the other hand, we can adopt simple techniques for better coping with life's problems, including reducing chaos, setting realistic goals, and relaxing.
If you think that you are old, you feel old. Try to be cheerful and avoid developing a negative attitude towards life. Soemtimes, this involves changing our association. Surrounding yourself with complainers will start to influence your attitiude to life. We all experience hardships. Rather than focusing on the unpleasant, reflect on the positive things about life.
Time in the Animal World
Rhythm controls everything in Nature. It controls, for example, the flapping of birds' wings, the beating of the heart and the rising and setting of the sun.
The sun provides a basic time rhythm for all living creatures including humans. Nearly all animals are influenced by sun cycles and have developed a biological clock in their bodies following these cycles. The moon also exerts its force and influence on the sea. Its gravitational attraction causes the rising of the tide. The tide goes out when the moon moves away and its attraction is weaker. When the moon is behind the Earth, centrifugal force causes the second tide of the day.
Animals living in tidal areas must have the instinct of predicting these changes, to avoid being stranded and dying of dehydration. Since the time of the dinosaurs, the king crab has been laying eggs at the seaside in a set way. To avoid predator fish, the eggs are always far from seawater and protected by sand. In the following two months, the eggs undergo dramatic changes related to the cycles of the moon. When the second spring tide comes, the young king crabs have matured. The second spring tide takes them back to the sea.
Most of the mammals, either the gian elephant or the small shrew have the same average total number of heartbeats in their lifetime. Shrew live only for two and a half years, and spend their life at a hihg speed and high tempo. Animals like shrews with a pulse rate of 600 per minute have an average total of eight hundred million heartbeats throughout their life. The African elephant has pulse rate of 25 beats per minute and a life span of 60 years. The size of the body determines the speed of life. The larger the animal is, the logner its life span is and the slower its life tempo is.
As we get older, our sense of time is being influenced by the physiological changes of our body. The elderly spend more time resting, and do few sports. For an dult, time goes fast year by year. For a child, a week is seem as a long time.
A Speed of Americans
Americans love speed. They like to cook in microwave ovens. They prefer making phone calss to writing letters. They like to travel by air rather than bus or train. When they send a package, they want it to arrive tomorrow, not nest week. Offering a quick service is a sure way to make money is the States. Fast-delivery compaines are getting more business all the time. One of the biggest of them, Federal Express, will deliver a computer disk in just a few hours to a forgetful businessman who left his bag behind. And if anyoen wants to say "I'm sorry", or "I love you", or "Happy birthday", Roseland Express will send a dozen fresh roses anywhere in the U.S.A. within twelve hours.
Not everyone is the States likes speed, though some people, in fact refuse to be hurried. The Amish people in Pennsylvana and the Midwest stopped the clock in the eighteenth century. They still live in the unhurried style of those days refusing to use cars, telephones, televisions, or any other modern invention. In their historical clothes and horse-drawn carriages, they are living reminders of the slower life of earlier times.
Few Americans live in such peace as the Amish people enjoy. In fact, Americans are always on the move. Nearly half population moves at least once every five years, and some more often than that. Most people move to a suburb or town nearby, but many pack all their furniture and belongs and move to the other side of Aerica. A girl who has grown up in Chicago might study in New York, and find her first job in Philadephia. She might move to California to look for better work, marry a man from Des Moines, and move back to be near his family in Lowa, At last, when here children have grown up, she might get tired of the cold winters and retire of Florida to spend her old age sitting in the sun.
So, if you want to write a letter to a firend who lives in Missouri, do it now. By this time next year, he/she might have moved to Maryland, or Michigan, or Minnesota.
The Important of Learning a Second Language
Learning a second leanguage has become increasingly important in today's globalized world. With the rise of internation trade, travel, and communication, being to speak more than one language can be helpful in many aspects.
Learning a second language allows individuals to communicate with people from different backgrounds and gain a deeper understanding of their cultures. This not only promotes mutual respect and tolerance but also enhances intercultural competence.
In addition, learning a second language can improve your own abilities. Studies have shown that bilingual individuals have better memories, problem-solving skills, and multitasking abilities. This is because the process of learning a new language involve a lot of mental exercise. Which can ctimulate brain function.
Actually, in today's global economy, many companies prefer employees who can speak multiple languages. Being bilingual can provide a competitive edge in the job market and open up new opportunities for international business. Learning a second language is not only a valuable skill but also a rewarding experience. It can broaden horizons, enhance cognitive abilites, and boost career prospects. Therefore, it is significant for individuals to invest time and effort in learning a second language. By doing so, they can reap the benefits of personal and professional growth in the globalized world.
Should We Buy a New Puppy?
Buying a new puppy can have significant effects on a household. For one thing, the puppy keeps the entire family awake for at least two solid weeks. Every night when the puppy is placed in its box, it begins to howl. Even after the lights go out and the house quiets down, the puppy continues to moan.
A second effect is that the puppy tortures the family by destroying material possessions. Every day something different is damaged. Family members find chewed belts and shoes, gnawed table legs, and ripped sofa cushions leaking stuffing. In addition, the puppy often misses the paper during the paper-training stage of life, thus making the house smell like the public restroom at a city bus station.
Maybe the most serious problem, though, is that the puppy causes family arguments. One hand, parents argue with children about who is supposed to feed and walk the dog. On the other hand, children argue about who gets to play with the puppy first. These continual arguments, along with the effects of sleeplessness and the loss of valued possessions, can really disrupt a household. Only when the puppy gets a bit older does the household settle back to normal.
Never Give up
Trouble comes to all, but while it makes some people stronger and better in every way, it submerges others so that they never rise again. The trouble is the same, yet it is how it is met that makes the difference.
Those who meet difficulty and adversity in the feeble strength of their finite minds and false personality are quickly overwhelmed and broken by the storms of life. But those who are dependent upon, and have faith in, the power within them, can never be overwhelmed, neither can they ever be defeated.
The power, being infinite, is always sufficient, no matter how great the need may be. One who realize his own real spiritual identify knows that he can never be defeated, and that he can never really fail.
He may lose his body through the change that is called death but he, the true man, can never die. Neither can he fail, though he may be defeated a thousand times; he must rise again.
A Greed to Live by
Don't undermine your worth by comparing yourself with others. It is because we are different and each of us is sepcial. Don't set your goals by what other people consider important. Only you know what is best for you. Don't let life slip through your fingers by living in the past or for the future. By living your life one day at time you live All the days of your life. Don't be afraid to admit that you are sometimes imperfect.
It is this fragile thread that binds us together. Don't run through life so quickly that you froget not only where you've been, but also where you are going. Don't forget that a person's greatest emotional need is to feel appreciated. Don't use time or words carelessly. Neither can be retrieved. Life is not a race, but a journey to be savored each step of the way.
Sports and Health
With the rapid development of our society, more and more people are becoming aware of the importance of sports. From my point of view, I think it's necessary for us to do more sports. And I like outdoor sports most.
In the first place, There is no doubt that we are closer to nature when we do outdoor sports. And we can take in fresh air there. What's more, it is believed that doing outdoor sports makes us healther. We should keep doing them so that we can have a strong body.
Taking all these factors into consideration, there's no doubt that doing sports is very important, because it can improve our health. In a word, it has become a very important part of our life.
Dear John,
How is everything going? I am glad to write to you to tell something about my favorite hobby.
In terms of my hobby, I like running the most. Moreover, I am interested in sports. The reason why i like running is that it can make me feel relaxed. For example, I usually forget all the unpleasant things. In addition, another advantage of running is that it is helpful in building up my strength. Running really benefits me a lot. For one thing, it makes me healtheir and happier. For another, it also helps me keep my brain active and keep my head clear.
In short, running brings me an unparalleled sense of joy and fulfillment. It has become an important part of my life.
There are many kinds of goals that i want to achieve, such as finding a good job, buying a fashinable bag, and traveling around. However, the goal that i want to achieve most is to pass all the exams and obtain my graduaton certificate.
In my point of view, there are a lot of different ways to achieve my goal. To begin with, it is necessary for me to give full play to my ability and achieve all-round development. In addition, another way is that i can expand my scope of knowledge, have a deeper and better understanding of method and be exposed to new experience. Last but not least, it would be beneficial that i can unwind and recharge myself and broaden the horizon so that i can stand out from the crowd and achieve my dream.
Based on all the actions, I believe that i can achieve my goal next year.
Dear Classmates,
I hope this email finds you well.
I am writing this email to tell you some details that our class will hold a charity sale on the school playgrond in the evening of May 4th.
There are many benefits to join in the charity sale. To begin with, it would be beneficial that we can promote the qulities of the kid's lives and lighten financial burden of them and their family. In addition, it is necessary for us to shoulder the responsibility and be concerned about the society. Last but not the least, another advantage is that you can cultivate a strong sense of responsibility and achieve all-round development.
I am looking forward to your arrival.
Your sincerely,
