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Yours,

Li Hua

A New Shaoxing Opera Show Has a Modern Twist

In a 1． (special) designed studio theater in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, a captivating world of jianghu is brought to life through a Shaoxing Opera performance.

Six actresses, playing roles from a spirited landlady to skilled swordsmen, spies, and soldiers, deliver a fascinating show 2． (last) 130 minutes. The audience sits very close to the performers, engaging with them and immersing themselves in 3． unique viewing experience.

4． (adapt) from the 1992 classic wuxia film of the same name, New Dragon Gate Inn, the Shaoxing Opera show successfully captures the interest of a younger audience. Environmental theater changes the relationship between the audience and the stage. 5． (like) the traditional framed stage, the theater is designed as an inn, with the audience becoming more like 6． (guest). According to Xu Yena, 7． acts in the show as Jin Xiangyu, having the audience closer to the cast allows them to appreciate the finer details.

The performers 8． (design) many improvised interactions with the audience since they began to perform, making each performance unique. “Today, we are putting in great efforts to make Shaoxing Opera more 9． (access) and relatable to the younger generation,” Xu added. “This is with the hope 10． operas can become a lifestyle.”

Animal rescue workers often come up with various ways to get their dogs noticed by potential adopters. Happily Forever After Rescue is no different. Their recent idea is so _________ that they’re getting much attention online.

It all started when a 7-year-old dog was discovered _________ in a drainpipe (排水管). The animal was a homeless dog who was taken off the street and _________ for illegal dog fighting. By the time he escaped, his left ear was so badly damaged that it needed to be _________. And this _________ him his new name: Van Gogh.

Van Gogh was brought to the _________, but sadly, no one _________ any applications to adopt him. Then the founder, Jacklyn Gartner, got an idea. She took out some paints and a small canvas (画布), placed them all inside a big plastic bag, and _________ peanut butter on the outside of the plastic bag. The dog started licking off the peanut butter, and his very own _________ artwork appeared!

After Van Gogh completed ten __________, the shelter arranged for a gallery for his artworks. But again, the world just wasn’t __________ for this sweetheart’s work just yet! “Van Gogh was so excited. He was dressed up and waited patiently for his guests to arrive, but only two people __________,” the rescue said. “Van Gogh put many hours and a lot of __________ into creating such beautiful art and we worked so hard to make this a special event”

__________ after Van Gogh’s sad story was shared online, thousands of people lined up to purchase his paintings, and he sold all 30 of his artworks for about $40 each. All the earnings will __________ the shelter and the other dogs that come after him. Most importantly, people are finally sending in adoption applications for this very special boy!

How to Stop Failing in Keeping Your New Year’s Resolution(决心)

We have an embarrassing confession: Our New Year’s resolutions for 2024 are nearly identical to those we made for 2023. 1． We would exercise more, use social media less, rise earlier, eat healthier, write more, learn to meditate(冥想)…

But a few weeks in, as January’s cold changed into the warmer days of February, we seemed to have largely failed. 2． Our warm beds held us tighter when the alarm went off for our morning jogs. And, well, meditation never had a hope.

Will we suffer the same failure this year? Absolutely not. But how this time?

3．

Look over your notes and determine what items on it are most important to you. Don’t take too long choosing; often it’s the things that come to you straight away that have the most meaning for you personally.

Create “systems”.

Systems are the ways that you carry out a larger goal. You need to break down large goals into smaller actions that can are easier to carry out. 4． you may get confused and thus change your mind frequently on the ways to accomplish them. This is the purpose of creating systems.

Ask for others’ support on these goals throughout the year.

If possible, team up and visit the gym or shop at the health food store together. Ask them to speak up if you slip and order a Diet Coke instead of a water, 5． People who tell others about their goals are more likely to accomplish them, maybe it’s because they have extra support they need, or because they’re afraid of being embarrassed if they don’t accomplish them.

Much like the popular TikTok challenge where kids resist eating snacks, cuttlefish can do the same! Cuttlefish can delay gratification(满足)—wait for a better meal rather than be tempted by the one at hand—and those that can wait longest also do better in a learning test, scientists have discovered.

This fascinating report marks the first time a link between self-control and intelligence has been found in an animal other than humans and chimpanzees. It is published this week in Proceedings of the Royal Society B. The research was conducted by lead author Alexandra Schnell of University of Cambridge, at the Marine Biological Laboratory(MBL), Woods Hole.

“We used a slightly-changed version of the Stanford marshmallow(棉花糖) test in the 1970s, where children were given a choice of taking an immediate reward(1 marshmallow) or waiting to earn a delayed but better reward(2 marshmallows),” Schnell says. “Cuttlefish in the present study were all able to wait for the better reward and tolerated delays for up to 50—130 seconds, which is even comparable to what we see in large-brained vertebrates(脊椎动物) such as chimpanzees(黑猩猩), crows, and parrots.” Cuttlefish that could wait longer for a meal also showed better cognitive(认知的) performance in a learning task. In that experiment, cuttlefish were trained to associate a visual cue with a food reward. Then, the situation was the other way round, so the reward became associated with a different cue. “The cuttlefish that were quickest at learning both of those associations were better at keeping self-control.” Schnell says.

Why cuttlefish have evolved this capacity for self-control is a bit mysterious. Delayed gratification in humans is thought to strengthen social bonds between individuals—such as waiting to eat so a partner can eat first—which benefits the species as a whole. But whether it may also be a function of most animals still remains to be further explored.