学进去

On the fourth Thursday of every November, most Americans get together around the dinner table to celebrate Thanksgiving Special traditions in the US have been around for many years.1． These are four popular Thanksgiving traditions and how they started.2．The first Thanksgiving meal was in the autumn of 1621 when the first travelers from England celebrated their first harvest(收获). But it wasn't made into an official (官方的) holiday until 1863. The first large meal had turkey, fruits and vegetables, which are still common today.

3． Historians say the first travelers invited Native Americans(美洲印第安人)to the meal to thank them for teaching them how to grow food. Today at the large meal, friends and family will also say what they are most thankful for.

4． The parade(游行)includes very large balloons that look like cartoon characters and beautiful floats(花车)that carry famous people. There are also many musical performances to watch. This parade started in l924，and today over 44 million people watch it on TV or in New York City.

5．People started to watch football on Thanksgiving a few years after the day became an official holiday. Today, the National Football League takes advantage of this popularity and hosts three NEL games every Thanksgiving.

Dear Ken,

How are you? I hope you are enjoying your new school year.

My new school is big and beautiful. There is a big playground, a new library and thirty-two classrooms. My new school is really different from my old one because it’s an international school. In my class, I am the only English student. My classmates come from China, the United States, Canada and Australia. I am worried on the first day here, because I don’t know anyone. Later, I make a lot of friends.

There are different kinds of clubs in my new school. I join the science club. Every Thursday afternoon, we talk about the weather, like where wind comes from and how it helps people. We often use computers in all our lessons. There are ten computer rooms for us. To get information, we can use computers and read books in the library.

Please let me know how your school life is going.

Yours,

Mary

Hello, everyone. Today I’d like to say something about my past life. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Xi’an celebrated the first-ever China Huafu Day 1． April 18. There were catwalk shows (走秀) and traditional music concerts which were held by people wearing traditional 2． clothing. Hanfu fans from all over China gathered there to take 3． and put them online for a Hanfu photo competition.

China Huafu Day is on the third day of the third 4． of the Chinese lunar calendar (农历), which is said to be the birthday of the Yellow Emperor. In ancient China, this day was also known 5． Shangsi (上巳节). Its purpose is to encourage young Chinese to 6． pride in traditional clothing, as well as Chinese culture.

Hanfu is the traditional clothing of the Han people who lived in China before the Qing Dynasty. It has a history of about 3, 000 years and it has 7． greatly so far. However, some of 8． main characteristics (特点) remain. For example, there are two parts that overlap (交叠) on the front, which is called “jiao ling”. Another main characteristic of Hanfu is that it usually uses ribbons (系带) instead of buttons.

China is becoming a leading country in the world and the Chinese public feels more confident (自信的) about its traditional culture 9． ever before. Wearing traditional clothing might be an interesting way of showing 10． they feel about this.

Do you believe a rose plant says “I want some water” or a tree shouts “My arms hurt”? Maybe you will say this could only happen in some 1． stories.

In fact, plants are not always 2．. A recent study has found plants shout when they are in need of water or having their stems cut. “Even in a quiet field, there are3． some sounds that carry information. However, the pitch (音高) is too high for people 4．,” said Lilach Hadany, a professor from Tel Aviv University.

The researchers used microphones to record some tomato plants and found that stressed plants send out 5． sounds than unstressed plants. “When tomatoes are not stressed at all, they are very quiet,” Professor Hadany said. They also trained a machine in 6． the differences between thirsty plants and cut plants. The result shows that when the causes of stress change, they shout 7．. After the team recorded many kinds of other plants, they found that many plants like corn, wheat and grape plants send out sounds when they are under stress, too.

“There is a 8． that a lot of communication is happening,” Professor Hadany said. “Because other plants can probably hear the call of the stressed plants.”

Sound recordings of plants could bring humans lots of 9．, especially in farming. For example, people will make sure whether corn is getting enough water or where water is needed most without much 10．.

Meet Yourself, a popular TV series 1． (shoot) in Dali, Southwest China’s Yunnan province, has attracted audiences with its 2． (theme) of traditional culture preservation, rural revitalization(振兴) and idyllic(田园般的) lifestyle.

According to some critics(评论家) at a seminar(研讨会) held in Beijing, the show 3． (get) a total 4． 3. 3 billion clicks on the streaming platform Mango TV and has topped the ratings of all programs on its broadcaster, Hunan Satellite TV recently.

Cai Huaijun, the deputy head of Hunan Radio and Television Group Co Ltd, said the show had 5． (set) a successful example of integrating(整合) the film and television industry with cultural 6． (tour).

According to Dali authorities(政府), Yunnan received many visitors during 7． Spring Festival holiday, 8． helped its tourism revenue(收入) to reach 38.4 billion yuan($5.6 million), topping all other provinces and regions in the country. Niu Yan, the head of Dali’s publicity department, echoed that the drama had a positive impact to Dali, 9． (promote) the locals’ distinctive lifestyle and making the beautiful and 10． (culture) rich town more well-known to the world.

Walking in the city is very different from walking in the park. A small psychology study suggests urban environments can slow your step and possibly increase your mental load. 1． It can ease your mind and quicken your pace. The findings show that natural settings may potentially (潜在地) reduce cognitive (认知的) tiredness and improve reaction times straight away. 2．

The first of the two experiments in the new study focused on people’s way of walking and cognitive load. During this trial, participants were fitted with sensors and a dozen motion control cameras were set up to watch them repeatedly walk down a 15-metre room at their natural speed. The wall opposite them showed an image of either a nature scene or a city scene. 3． On the whole, when walking in city settings, people reported that they felt more uncomfortable and they walked at a slower pace, indicating a higher cognitive load.

4． In the trial, participants were asked to distinguish (区别) between basic visual shapes on the computer while also in the presence of a natural or urban image (the same ones from the first experiment). Measuring reaction times in both natural and urban settings, the team found results to support their idea. In urban environments, participants were slower in distinguishing between simple shapes. 5． Our brains take longer to process. However, more research is needed to prove that idea.

What do you think of a “talking kitchen”? A French Digital Kitchen has been developed (发展) at Newcastle University in the UK. It teaches students how to cook French food and speak French at the same time. For the first time students can learn a language by the following cooking steps.

All grammar and words have been carefully chosen (选择) to make sure the users can understand French well. After learning for some time the users can test themselves by doing a short test on the computer.

The kitchen project was started by Professor Paul Seedhouse. He became interested in the idea after he visited another kind of talking kitchen. He said, “The purpose (目的) of the French Digital Kitchen is to make learning a language more interesting and more educational (有教育意义的).”

How does the kitchen work? There is a computer in the kitchen. With this computer the users can first choose (选择) a French recipe (食谱) that they want to follow. Using information in the computer the kitchen starts to guide the users how to make a French dish. If you follow the instructions (说明) on the computer it moves on to the next. If you go wrong the program goes back and repeats (重复) the recipe or information. At any time the users can also ask the kitchen to repeat the recipe or any information.

The new kitchen can be used in schools, universities and even people’s homes. The researchers (研究员) will also be developing the European Digital Kitchen for the next three years.

Napping (午睡) is a great way to feel rested and alert (机警的) — and some research shows it can do good to our brain. Albert Einstein and Leonardo da Vinci were all famous nappers. However, you may want to consider how long you have to sleep before heading to bed for your middle napper.

If you need to be alert right after waking up, so-called “power naps” of 10-30 minutes are recommended. Longer naps may cause some sleepiness after you wake up and you need some time to feel better. But drinking coffee directly before a nap may help you wake up without feeling sleepy.

A recent study from China has even suggested that daily afternoon napping is connected with better cognitive function (认知功能) in older adults. The researchers asked 2,200 over-70s about their napping habits before testing their memory and language skills. They found that those who usually napped performed better than those who didn’t.

But nap length may make a difference here — a similar study showed that those who usually napped for 30-90 minutes had better overall cognition (认知) compared to those who napped for longer or shorter, or who didn’t nap at all. The reasons why short naps are so good for alertness are not well understood. It’s possible that napping helps the brain clean upsleep-inducing (助眠的) products that would otherwise inhibit brain activity.

Although napping has many advantages. It is not recommended for people who suffer from insomnia (失眠). That’s because naps may make those people harder to fall asleep when going to bed in the evening. Naps should also be avoided in situations where great performance is needed right after the nap, as it may take some time to fully wake up.