Featured Tours in Netherlands
De Gooyer Windmill
De Gooyer is a windmill in Amsterdam located between Funenkade and Zeeburgerstraat. It is the tallest wooden mill in the Netherlands at 26. 6 meters high. It is registered as a National Monument. The name dates from around 1609， when the mill was owned by Claes and Jan Willemsz, two brothers from Gooiland.
Skinny Bridge
According to legend, the wooden bridge originally built here in 1691 was constructed so that two wealthy sisters ，who lived on opposite sides of the Amstel, could visit each other with ease. It seems they weren't quite wealthy enough to build a bridge wide enough for general use, so is narrow profile一the drawbridge was a tight squeeze even for two walkers to pass one another.
Science Centre NEMO
"Discover the world for yourself" is the motto of Science Centre NEMO，highlighting the interactive nature of the museum. Five floors of exhibits fill a waterfront building shaped like an enormous green boat，designed by Renzo Piano. Most of the content is aimed at younger children, but everyone will find the displays ( which are in both Dutch and English) interesting and informative. I' s a hands-on playground for the mind.
Rembrandt House Museum
The Rembrandt House or Museum Het Rembrandthuis is the house where the famous painter Rembrandt lived for many years, near Waterlooplein in Amsterdam. The museum shows the life of the Dutch painter with his wife and children. The collection holds Rembrandt' s sketches and works from his tutor, Pieter Lastman,
For a lot of people, the art world seems to be a tightly sealed society. They associate art with high-cultural decadence( 颓废), a world that is not fit for"everyone", The less you know, the bigger the doorstep seems to be. The fact ,that many people tend to think they are not welcome makes them stay at home，even though a trip to the nearby gallery or museum could bring a lot of
new knowledge or just a pleasant experience to bring with you back home.
Really, art is not always about knowing anything or understanding the gist(要旨) of it. That is the beauty of art. You can make your own interpretation and find your own meaningful way to enjoy and use art.
For me, it did not start that long ago. I have always been wondering about the art world. In an odd way, I have always enjoyed going to museums for unknown reasons. ' I am by no means an art expert. I do not know how to interpret a painting"the right way"，at least not when I started going to museums and galleries. I just went because I was curious, and I still go because of my curiosity.
Suddenly, out of what seems to be nowhere it all started to make sense for me, in my own special way. Now I know what I prefer and I know how to enjoy art in my own : meaningful way of interpretation.
If you want to discover art, galleries ，museums or other art exhibitions, you don' 1 have to rely on a pile of books, an art professor, a long education，or anything else，as long as you just bring an open mind and your curiosity. That is the best way to go down unknown paths and the most ideal way to make your own interpretation of this complex，mysterious world of art. Sometimes it might be an advantage showing up knowing nothing, because that will maybe make you see and discover new ways of interpretation that no art scholar would ever bring to the table.
Corvids(鸦类) are known to be remarkably intelligent animals. These birds are good at using tools, can plan ahead, solve puzzles and even hold grudges (怨恨)，Some corvids' brains have really high neuronal densities and a brain region called the nidopallium caudolaterale, or NCL, which is believed to act like our prefrontal cortex- the problem -solving part of the human brain.
Rooks are members of the crow family. Six rooks一Boubou, Bamboo, Bill, Black, Bricole and Baco一were trained to pick up litter after people. They are employees of Puy du Fou park, a history-themed park located in Les Epesses，four hours' drive from Paris ，France.
The idea to train rooks originally came from the park 's falconry(鹰猎) show, during which trained corvids would pick up roses and bring them to a"princess" in a castle. This got Christophe Gaborit, project manager at the park, thinking whether he' d be able lo teach rooks to perform a similar task一like picking up cigarette bulls and other small pieces of trash and putting them in a box.
When the birds placed a piece of trash in a box, their trainer would pull a board to show a delicious snack for them. At last, the rooks started to associate tidying up with food, and were happy to pick up small pieces of trash in order to get rewards. The birds would sometimes try to trick Gaborit and instead of disposing of garbage , would drop pieces of wood into the box.
"We don't want to make them machines ,"the president of the Puy du Fou park , Nicolas de Villiers, said. "They don't play the game if they work too much. "
The birds"work" under supervision of a falconer , who makes sure that people don' t throw garbage around just to watch the rooks pick it up. Instead , Boubou, Bamboo, Bill, Black, Bricole and Baco are there to educate the park visitors about littering. " Nature itself can teach us to take care of the environment," Villiers said.
The classic cartoon image of someone telling a lie is to have their nose grow, a la Pinocchio lying about a lost coin and watching his nose sticking out remarkably. However, a new study found that the opposite is true一the noses of liars actually shrink(萎缩).
Scientists at UGR' s Center of Research Mind, Brain and Behavior ( CIMCYC)，in response to a growing demand for better security checks at airports, used an infrared( 红外线的) W camera to detect heat patterns and blood flow in body tissues, rather than recording changes in pulse and breathing as the polygraph( 测谎仪) does.
According to main researcher Emilio C6mez Milan, the team found that when a person lies, "the temperature of the tip of the nose drops between0. 6 C and 1. 2 C，while that of the forehead rises between 0. 6 C and 1.5 C. "The greater the difference in temperature change, the more likely a person is lying. The study involved 60 psychology students at the school. While attached to a thermographer(热成像仪)，half of them were instructed to call a loved one and tell an actual lie. The control group had to make a similar call and tell the truth about what they were seeing on a monitor. The study found that thernography was measurably more accurate than the polygraph.
What about Pinocchio' s nose? Although it' s hard to see with the naked eye. the lying nose--at least the very tip of it- shrinks as is temperature drops. While it would make for a much less funny cartoon, the wooden puppet's large nose would definitely have shrunk as he told his lies. It turns out the Disney version is inaccurate in another way. A different study at the Leicester University Centre for Interdisciplinary Science found that if Pinocchio's head weighed 4. 18 kg and his nose six grams with an initial length of one inch, which doubled every time he lied, just 13 lies would have caused it to reach 208 meters and break his weak wooden neck.
Now THAT would teach liars a lesson!
( N=nose tip drop; F = forehead rise)
The benefits of taking a break from technology
Doing a digital detox( 戒除) is a great way to find out if technology is holding you back from living your best life. The definition of a digital detox is to take a break from using electronic devices or certain media for a period of time, from a few days to several months. The results of a digital detox can be far-reaching， from being more productive at work to deepening your relationships with family and friends. Benefits of taking a technology timeout include:
More control of your time
Ever feel strong urge to check your smartphone or pop onto social media? On average，Americans check their smartphones 96 times a day and spend more than two hours on social media. For many people，checking their phone or social media whenever there's a few free minutes is an action that isn't based on any real need. Taking a break from digital devices or media helps you combat compulsive use.
Reduced stress and anxiety
Constant exposure to notifications , emails and social media can create a sense of being constantly"on"，The result of that is increased stress and anxiety. A digital detox can provide a break from these constant stimuli and allow for relaxation and stress relief.
Sharper focus
With frequent beeps and pop-up notifications on electronics, it's easy to be distracted from what's going on around you. During a digital detox, you may find that you notice more in your immediate surroundings.
Increased productivity
We can increase our focus and productivity on other tasks. We will achieve that by removing distractions and reducing time spent on technology. By building your mental focus, you will find that you are able to accomplish more and concentrate on the things in life that truly bring you success , joy and satisfaction.
A. You're not alone there.
B. That' s just a typical day for many people.
C. But the specifics differ from person to person.
D. Y our brain can concentrate much better on your tasks.
E. For some people, too much information can be stressful.
F. This can deepen relationships with their friends and family.
G. This can result in being mentally focused and more achievement.
As a child, I wasn't athletic. My whole life, my family was more1 with my weight than I was, and their ideas about how I should look and their criticism. 2 my self-image.
Last year, I was400 pounds and looking for ways to3 ，but it was hard 1o be4 and I wasn't seeing the results, so I didn't5 it. Then I met Runner' s World coach Jess
Movold, who is a strength coach. Her passion6 spoke to me, Seeing her strength and the ease with which she7 made me want lo run. And so I joined a 16-week running program, which proved to be the best8 I could have made for myself.
Knowing I'm not a9 ，she had all my workouts written down for me，coupled with effective training methods of other excellent10 . For the first time, I started to run regularly-and actually11 it.
Coach Jess became an12 to me. Her positive energy and selflessness helped me persevere. My weight was ranging from 350 to 370 pounds before I started training. However, by the end of the13 ，my weight was 269 pounds.
I've also made some14 in other areas of my life，as I gained greater self-awareness. And I am ready to15 that I achieved all this thanks to the help from Jess.
As Shaoxing is a water town, the unique transport named Wupeng boat ( emerge ) in this particular location in the Tang Dynasy. Wupeng boat, a Chinese gondola， also(know) as black awning( 雨篷) boat, got its name from dark colour of its awning. There are straw mats for people to sit and lie on board. As the space is rather small, the boat may lose balance or even tum over if passengers stand on it. Each boat can hold about four persons. It is run by human power, is another typical fact about this boat.
Wupeng boat has now become the symbol of Shaoxing. The famous Chinese writer Lu Xun mentioned this boat in many of his ( publication) because floating in a Wupeng boat is not only part of his childhood but also people's life in Shaoxing. The breeze and ( cool) of water in summer would bring you a pleasant outdoor experience. Thus, the best time to ride Wupeng boats in Shaoxing is from March to September. But other months would be a good option
for experiencing it fewer travelers around.
Wupeng boats in different spots around the city have various routes. You can ( careful) choose and appreciate the historical cultural old town on the small boat. Once you get to Shaoxing, find one of the few Wupeng boat ports, and ask what route they follow ( make) sure you see the attractions from your wishlist.
Last year, during the summer break, my friends and I decided to go for a walk in the forest. It was in this walk that I wanted to try game bunting. The forest was overgrown with thick and tall trees. Being an adventurous person made me long for the occasion not knowing what was going to happen to me. The forest had paths，and we decided that we would trek along the paths and gather at a central point to have a drink later. We arrived at the forest path and divided ourselves into groups of three. We had planned on meeting with the rest of the group after three hours. I had a partially charged phone, and a bottle of water. We continued on our way towards the deeper part of the forest until we were far from any recognizable trail.
All of a sudden, a warthog( 疣猪) came rushing along our path, and we all ran in different directions. After running for about five minutes, I stood alone in a bush. I had no clue about my surroundings as I had never been there before. I shouted out my friends' names loudly, but all was in vain: there was no reply, and the whole place was silent. I was confused and felt like crying as I realized I was alone with nothing to protect myself. With a lot of fear, I tried to trace the part where I had come from, but all was useless: I was lost.
As I walked along the path trying to locate my friends , I realized that I was tired, and nothing was familiar. I was out of food，water and barely had any battery in my phone. I squeezed myself between the little trees while stumbling over rock piles. After some thirty minutes , it started raining heavily.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150个左右;2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Being lost in the forest seemed like a tragedy to me.
While sitting down and warming myself around the fire, I heard some distant noise.
