We would like to wish all our readers a wonderful winter break. Our January magazine is now in the shops and available digitally. We're looking forward to sharing more adventures and discoveries with you in 2018, including:
At a crossroads in the Atlantic
As the population of Ascension Island rises up to mark the 200th anniversary of British rule, Fred Pearce wonders what the future might have in store for this strange part of land.
Photo story: On the road again
A selection of images from an exhibition opening this month at the Royal Geographical Society go hand in hand with M. Aurel Stein's early 20th century photo graphs of the Silk Road.
Dossier: Going underground
Mark Rowe discusses the role that carbon storage can play in the global effort to reduce carbon dioxide emission (排放).
Net loss
Kit Gillet reports from the Gulf of Thailand, whose fisheries (渔场) have been almost destroyed by the commercialization of the Thai fishing industry.
And don't forget… a round-up of the latest geographical and climate science news; a hot spot focus on Turkey; advice on taking photographs in Antarctica; an interview with Lucien Castaing-Taylor, professor of visual arts at Harvard; plus lots, lots more.
Buy your copy now, click here and save up to 35% or call+44 (0)1635 588 496.Geographical is also available in WHSmith and many independent news agents.
With all the wars, fighting and sadness in the world today, it's not only necessary, but also essential to have a good sense of humor just to help us get through each and every day of our lives. Putting a smile on someone's face when you know they are feeling down in the dump, makes me feel good and warms my heart.
How would you feel if you could not joke around with your wife, husband, child, co-worker, neighbor, close friends, or even just someone that you are standing in line with at your corner store? I am always saying things that make others smile or laugh, even if I don't know the person I'm joking around with. My Grandma always found humor in everything she did, even if it was the hardest job anyone could imagine. This not only relieves stress in any situation, but also is common courtesy(礼貌)to speak to others that are around you.
I know of a few people that don't have a funny bone in their bodies, as they say. Everyone around them could be rolling on the floor after hearing a great joke and they would sit there without the s lightest smile on their face. They don't get the joke that makes others laugh. I am busting a gut while they just sit there, looking at me as if I were from outer space. How can people not get a really funny joke?
Laughing is essential to keep your stress levels under control. Without humor we would find ourselves with a lot of psychological problems, or on a lot of medications to keep us from going crazy. There is too much sadness in this present world. It drives people crazy. We all need to find a way to ignore the sadness and bring a little light into our lives. So, I believe our best medicine is to get together and tell some jokes and have some fun laughing together.
As any plane passenger will confirm, a crying baby is almost impossible to ignore, no matter how hard you try. Now scientists believe they may have worked out why. A baby's cry pulls at the heartstrings（扣人心弦）in a way while other cries don't, researchers found.
Researchers found that a baby's cry can trigger unique emotional responses in the brain, making it impossible for us to ignore them—whether we are parents or not. Other types of cries, including calls of animals in great pain, fail to get the same response, suggesting the brain is programmed to respond specifically to a baby's cry.
A team of Oxford University scientists scanned the brains of 28 men and women as they listened to a variety of calls and cries. After 100 milliseconds — roughly the time it takes to blink (眨眼) —two parts of the brain that respond to emotion lit up. Their response to a baby's cry was particularly strong. The response was seen in both men and women—even if they had no children.
Researcher Dr Christine Parsons said, “You might read that men should just notice a baby and step over it and not see it, but it's not true. There is a special processing in men and women, which makes sense from an evolutionary(演化的）view that both men and women would be responding to these cries.” The study was in people who were not parents, yet they are all responding at 100ms to these particular cries, so this might be a fundamental response present in all of us regardless of parental status.
Fellow researcher Katie Young said it may take a bit longer for someone to recognize their own child's cries because they need to do more “fine-grained analysis”. The team had previously found that our reactions speed up when we hear a baby crying. Adults performed better on computer games when they heard the sound of a baby crying than after they heard recordings of adults crying.
Why should mankind explore space? Why should money, time and effort be spent exploring and researching something with so few apparent benefits? Why should resources be spent on space rather than on conditions and people on Earth? These are questions that, understandably, are very often asked.
Perhaps the best answer lies in our genetic makeup as human beings. What drove our ancestors to move from the trees into the plains, and on into all possible areas and environments? The wider the spread of a species, the better its chance of survival. Perhaps the best reason for exploring space is this genetic tendency to expand wherever possible.
Nearly every successful civilization has explored, because by doing so, any dangers in surrounding areas can be identified and prepared for. Without knowledge, we may be completely destroyed by the danger. With knowledge, we can lessen its effects.
Exploration also allows minerals and other potential resources to be found. Even if we have no immediate need of them, they will perhaps be useful later. Resources may be more than physical possessions. Knowledge or techniques have been acquired through exploration. The techniques may have medical applications which can improve the length or quality of our lives. We have already benefited from other spin-offs including improvements in earthquake prediction, in satellites for weather forecasting and in communications systems. Even non-stick pans and mirrored sunglasses are by products(副产品) of technological developments in the space industry!
While many resources are spent on what seems a small return, the exploration of space allows creative, brave and intelligent members of our species to focus on what may serve to save us. While space may hold many wonders and explanations of how the universe was formed or how it works, it also holds dangers. The danger exists, but knowledge can help human beings to survive. Without the ability to reach out across space, the chance to save ourselves might not exist.
While Earth is the only planet known to support life, surely the adaptive ability of humans would allow us to live on other planets. It is true that the lifestyle would be different, but human life and cultures have adapted in the past and surely could in the future.
Whether you're a child, teenager, young adult or are middle-aged, respect for your parents is an important value. Your parents are the people who raised you, devoting time, energy and money to your development. No matter your age is, there are 5 ways to show respect.
Respect their belongings.
One important way to show respect is to show regard for the things important to your parents. For younger children, this may mean not touching jewelry or other valuable things. For grown children, respect may mean returning a borrowed tool in good condition and on time. Lack of respect for a parent's belongings is a violation of personal boundaries. — And never borrow things without asking first.
Punctuality.
Therefore, always be on time. For teenagers, showing up on time means coming home by curfew （宵禁）.Adult children should show up on time for family dinners or events, or to pick a parent up for a medical appointment. Call if you're going to be late because parents worry about children, no matter their age is.
Remembering birthdays, anniversaries and other special days is a sign that you honor your parents. Make plans to take them to lunch or dinner or bake a cake or cookies. Most parents don't expect expensive gifts, but a handmade gift is always appreciated .A phone call from a grown child who lives too far for a visit is a welcome sign of respect.
Be kind.
Kind words and affection are simple ways to show respect. Tell your parents you love them. Listen and allow your parents to speak without interruption. Show a sincere interest in what your parents have to say. Be patient with your parents and don't rush them. Never talk back or be rude or disrespectful. Acknowledge your parents' achievements.
A. Celebrate with them.
B. Be a good listener.
C. Don't take advantage of your parents' kindness and generosity.
D. Treat your parents the way you would like to be treated.
E. Being respectful helps build positive relationships with others.
F. And they love you unconditionally throughout your life.
G. Lateness indicates a lack of respect.
The job of raising children is a tough one. Children don't come with an instruction manual(说明书).And each child is 1 . So parents sometimes pull their hair out in frustration, not 2 what to do. But in raising children, what we do is3 by our culture. Naturally then, American parents teach their children basic American 4.
To Americans, the goal of parents is to help children 5 on their own feet. From 6, each child may get his or her own room. As children grow, they get more 7 to make their own choices. 8 choose their own forms of entertainment, as well as the friends to 9 them with. When they 10 young adulthood, they choose their own jobs and marriage 11.Of course, many young adults still 12 their parents' advice and approval for the choices they make. But once they "leave the 13" at around 18 to 21 years old, they want to be on their own, not 14 to their mothers' apron strings(围裙带).
The relationship between parents and children in America is very informal. American parents 15 their children as individuals—not as extensions of themselves. They 16 them to achieve their own dreams.
Americans praise, encourage and give their children the 17 to succeed. When children become adults, their parents becomes more like 18. But 19 to popular belief, most adult Americans don't make their parents pay for room and board when their parents come to 20 them. Even as adults, they respect and honor their parents.
"Mirror, mirror, which clothes suit me best?" Now, there is a magic mirror in the shopping center can answer the question.
A shopping center in England is selling a magic dressing mirror．You needn't enter a fitting room and put the clothes by yourself．All you need to do is to stand in front of the mirror．The magic mirror can tell you or not the clothing you have chosen suits you.
3D technology (use) for the magic mirror for you to choose and try on all kinds of clothes from different stores．When you stand in front of the mirror, with the (assist) of the technology, you can make its own judgement of your body type．Then you can see wearing the dress you have chosen in the mirror．
It's very convenient for you to find the most (suit) dress．You do not have to spend a lot of time (walk) around in different stores． do you need to shut yourself into a small dressing room．
"The mirror has worked much better with women's clothing than (expect), so we are now developing the software for men's and kid's clothing," said the marketing manager of the shopping center.
文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除 或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（八），并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线(＼）划掉。
修改：在错的词下画一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1．每处错误及其修改均仅限一词：
2．只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
I'm a senior student and I'm now in the need of your help although I can't stand the great pressure. Every day I have to have lesson at school for nine hours and spend at least three to four hours doing my homework at home. Our teenagers are eager to play and enjoy ourselves, but we hardly have any time to do that we want. Beside, we don't even have enough sleepy. There seem to have three cases about the overload: the pressure of examinations, too many homework and high expectations from the parents. We often warned that if we don't do our best we won't have the chance to go to university. The pressure often makes me awake at night.
演讲稿的主要内容应包括：
认为同学们不必为此苦恼；
希望能够体谅父母的苦衷；
建议与父母进行交流和沟通。注意：
1）词数100左右；
2）可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3）开头和结尾已为你写好，不计入总词数。
Good morning, ladies and gentleman,
Some of us are having problems with our parents, as they often look into our schoolbags or read our diaries.
Thank you!
