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　　Most of us let our eyes decide what our bodies need．Our ideas about what we eat are more important than the food itself, what our stomachs can hold, or what we need in this moment for food, strong energy．Our families, social situations, society, and marketing campaigns dictate the choices most people make about how they feed themselves．Sometimes we're provided with very useful guidelines and models．But you need to stop and ask：Are you feeding yourself in ways that personally make sense to your body's unique and ever-changing needs and rhythms．

　　In this country, food is available all the time．Unlike our ancestors who ate in harmony with seasonal cycles of abundance and scarcity(缺乏), harvest and hunting, we eat as though we're constantly feasting．Really, we eat non-stop．We fill our stomachs until we're uncomfortable, and we put more food in the shopping cart than we need．This abundance of food and our own fast-paced convenience culture keep us from recognizing our own personal rhythms．We eat for many reasons, not necessarily because we're physically hungry or need certain nutrients to keep healthy．

　　With more and more processed foods(精加工的食品)in the marketplace, obesity in adults and children dramatically on the rise, and digestive problems increasingly more common, it's clear that we're facing a serious health crisis．The answer, however, isn't to just put Americans on a diet．Reducing the intake of processed foods and increasing fresh produce and whole grains certainly can improve one's health．But we need more．We need to feed ourselves with a sense of purpose, focus, self-love, and passion for our lives．

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　　“It hurts me more than you”, and“This is for your own good”－these are the statements my mother used to make to raise my sense of discipline(纪律)when I had to learn Latin, clean my room, stay home and do homework．

　　That was before we entered the permissive period in education in which we decided it was all right not to push our children to achieve their best in school．The schools and the educators made it easy for us．They taught that it was all right to be parents who take a let-alone policy．We stopped making our children do homework．We gave them calculators, turned on the television, left the teaching to the teachers and went on vacation．

　　Now teachers, faced with children who have been developing at their own pace for the past 15 years, are realizing we've made a terrible mistake．One such teacher is Sharon Clomps who says of her students－“so passive”－and wonders what has happened．Nothing is demanded of them, she believes．Television, says Clomps, contributes to children's passivity(被动)．“We're talking about a generation of kids who' ve never been hurt or hungry．They have learned somebody will always do it for them, instead of saying ‘go and look it up', you tell them the answer．It takes greater energy to say no to a kid．”

　　Yes, it does．It takes energy and it takes work．It's time for parents to end their vacation and come back to work．It' s time to turn the TV off, to tell them it hurts you more than them but it' s for their own good．It's s time to start telling them no again．

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　　There are robots all around us．Some do very complicated jobs like flying airplanes and driving subway trains．And some do one simple job．When an automatic washing machine is switched on, water pours in．The machine waits until the water is warm enough for washing clothes．It does this by“feedback”(反馈)．Information about what is happening is feedback into the robot to tell what to do next．Our eyes, ears and other senses are our feedback．They tell us what is going on around us．So robots are like human beings in two ways．They work and they have feedback．

　　In some ways robots are better than human beings．They work quickly and do not make mistakes．They do not get bored doing the same job over and over again．And they never get tired．So robots are very useful in factories．They can be taught to do many different jobs．First their electronic brain must be shown how the job is done．A person moves the robot's“arms”and“hands”through each part of the job．

　　The most intelligent robots can move and see．Their eyes are cameras．Their fingers can feel shapes and sizes of the objects．These robots have computer brains linked to their eyes and fingers, which control their actions．The most intelligent robots--cave robots are used in scientific research．They do such job as handling radioactive materials．

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　　Some people make you feel comfortable when they are around．You spend an hour with them and feel as if you have known them half your life．These people have something in common．And once we know what it is, we can try to do it ourselves．

　　How is it done?Here are several skills that good talkers have．If you follow the skills, they'll help you put people at their ease, and make friends with them quickly．

　　First of all, good talkers ask questions．Almost anyone, no matter how shy he is, will answer a question．One well-known businesswoman says,“At business lunches, I always ask people what they did that morning．It's a common question, but it will get things going．”From there you can move on to other matters－sometimes to really personal questions．And how he answers will let you know how far you can go．

　　Second, once good talkers have asked questions, they listen to the answers．This point seems clear, but it isn't．Your questions should have a point and help to tell what sort of person you are talking to．And to find out, you really have to listen carefully and attentively．

　　Real listening at least means some things．First it means not to change the subject of conversation．If someone sticks to one topic, you can take it as a fact that he's really interested in it．Real listening also means not just listening to words, but to tones(音调)of voice．If the voice sounds dull, then, it's time for you to change the subject．

　　Finally, good talkers know well how to deal with the occasion of parting．If you're saying good-bye, you may give him a firm handshake and say,“I've really enjoyed meeting you．”If you want to see that person again, don't keep it a secret．Let people know what you feel, and they may walk away feeling as if they've known you half their life．

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　　A team of scientists proved that seals had a very good sense of hearing．These men trained blind seals to expect food when they heard sounds．The seals always began snapping(猛咬)when a strong signal was sounded．

　　It was proved that even a soft signal, a considerable distance away, could make these sea animals respond．That should make the fisherman who makes much noise while working, or talks loudly, start thinking．

　　The same team of scientists also trained seals to recognize different sounds．One bell-tone meant food, two bell-tones meant no food．In the beginning, the seals made mistakes when the two bell-tones were sounded．They were given a light tap after each mistake．The seals were good learners．They easily learned to tell the difference between the sounds．

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　　The outstretched(伸出的)hand caught my eyes immediately．I'd fallen on the sidewalk, having tripped on the curb(路边)．A hand was there, ready to help me．Then, warm smile and,“Are you OK?”

　　I'd fallen on my hands and knees, and I was fine．But I loved seeing that hand reaching toward me．The woman helped me up, made sure I was all right, and we both went our way．

　　As I remembered this incident during the next few days, it became a symbol of the significance of helping another one．In the grand scheme of things, such help may often seem small, but at the moment it's needed, it can feel very significant．

　　One of my most meaningful lessons on how to help others came at the end of a week-long music workshop．At that final gathering, we each had the opportunity to perform for the other participants．A woman who was much more experienced and accomplished(技艺高超的)than I——a piano teacher who attended the workshop in order to learn new teaching techniques- invited me to play the piano with her．I'd actually been quite happy as part of the audience, watching the other students perform．My piano skills were elementary, and my confidence was low．

　　When she asked, though, it was almost as if she'd taken me by the hand and led me to the piano．As I plunked out a melody(旋律), she played a lovely accompaniment．Hearing that accompaniment to my melody moved me to tears．She was helping my music be beautiful－helping me play my song．But the lasting impact of that experience related to much more．I took away with me the lesson that we are each here to help one another“play our songs”－live our lives to the fullest, be the individuals whom we are．

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　　There was a Roman general in the 3^rd century BC named Regulus who always kept his word．This fact was well known even to Rome's enemy－Cathage．Once, he lost a battle and was taken prisoner and sent to a Carthage prison for a period of time．Finally, his captors came to him with an offer, which they hoped would cause the Romans to give in, thus ending the war．

　　They asked General Regulus to go back to Rome．They wanted him to tell the Romans that Carthage was winning the war and it was useless for Rome to continue fighting．They also said that if he refused to do as they asked, he would have to sail back to Cathage and serve as a prisoner of war in their prison．Since General Regulus was a man of honor, they knew he would keep his word and return to Carthage．

　　Regulus set sail for Rome and on his arrival, he was immediately taken to the authorities(当局)．He knew how the war was progressing from the enemy's point of view．He told the Romans that they should not give up but continue fighting, as it would only be a matter of time until Rome would win the battle over Carthage．So the Romans decided to continue the war effort．Large groups of soldiers were sent to battle due to General Regulus' suggestion．

　　Regulus went home to see his wife and his children but only for a short time．With deep sorrow, he informed them that he had given his word that he would return to Carthage and to his prison．Though they wished he would stay, his family knew that he must keep his word and return．He returned to Carthage as promised but Rome soon won the war．

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　　Do you sometimes argue about what seems to you to be simple fact?Do you argue whether it' s cold outdoors or whether the car in front of you is going faster than the speed limit?

　　If you get into such arguments, try to think about the story about the six blind men and the elephant．The first blind man who felt the elephant' s trunk said it was like a snake．The second who felt the elephant's side said it was like a wall, while the third said it was like a spear as he touched the animal' s tusk．The fourth, who caught hold of the elephant's tail insisted that it was like a rope．The fifth man said it looked like a tree as he put his arms around one of the elephant' s legs．The sixth, who was tall and got hold of the elephant' s ears, said it was like a huge fan．

　　Each man' s idea of the animal came from his own experience．So if someone disagrees with you about a "simple fact", it' s often because his experience in the matter is different from yours．

　　To see how hard it is for even one person to make up his mind about a "simple fact", try this simple experiment．Get three large bowls．Put ice water in one．Put hot water in the second．Put lukewarm water in the third．Now put your left hand in the ice water．Put your right hand in the hot water．After thirty seconds, put both hands in the lukewarm water．Your right hand will tell you the water is cold．Your left hand will tell you it's hot!

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Does anyone know who really shot the president？

　　HE was killed 40 years ago．Since then his memory has been clouded by dark tales of affairs with the likes of Marilyn Monroe(玛莉莲·梦露), and links with the Mafia(黑手党)．

　　But the myth(神话)of John F．Kennedy, the 35th President of the US, will not disappear．As America marked the anniversary of his death in Dallas, Texas, on November 22, 1963, questions were still being asked．

　　The official conclusion was that Lee Harvey Oswald, who worked at a Dallas book storehouse, murdered Kennedy．But all kinds of other ideas have been put forward as to what happened and why．

　　Some people believe Oswald was a madman, who spent some time in Russia and was an admirer of Fidel Castro, president of Cuba．It is said he was inspired by the James Bond spy novels and killed Kennedy as a gift for Castro．

　　But Oswald's brother thought he was a sad and lonely man who murdered the president to get attention and show off his shooting skills．

　　Meanwhile, some experts say that Oswald was really aiming for Texas Governor John Connally．He is said to have been angry with Connally, who was also secretary of the navy, over how he had been forced to leave the service．

　　A large number of people think the truth has been covered up on purpose; even now, surveys show that more than half of Americans believe that Oswald was not working alone．An investigation(调查)found that four shots were fired, with one shot coming from the building that Oswald was in．

　　But two days after the murder, Oswald himself was killed by Jack Rubinstein, a nightclub owner．Rubinstein had Mafia connections and this has led to the theory that they were actually responsible for killing Kennedy．

　　Lyndon Johnson, who became president after Kennedy, has also been accused of being behind it all．According to reports, Johnson was sworn in(宣誓就职)even before Kennedy's death was announced．"We have a really tough decision that we don't want to face．There was a conspiracy(合谋)and people want an answer," said Barr McClellan, who has written a book about the murder．

　　"The myth is very powerful．" said Robert Dallek, a historian at Boston University, who has just published a book about Kennedy．"He was the first president to appear on television．He is frozen in our minds aged 46, forever young, energetic and charming．"

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　　What makes a good school?Many people would agree that a good school is one that gets the best out of its pupils．Yet not every pupil can get straight as in his or her exams．What is most important is the individual development of the child and not the general academic success of the school．Yet how can this be measured and improvements made?This question has been at the heart of my work for the last 20 years．All the facts shows that the quality of an individual school can make a significant difference to its pupils' prospects(前途)in life．My definition(定义)of a good school is one in which students progress further than might be expected considering their social background．Inner-city school, for example, despite receiving many socially-disadvantaged pupils, can still be successful in encouraging their students to progress．

　　We should recognize that the effectiveness of a school can only be considered in relation to its typical intake(吸入量)．Researchers have discovered a number of factors commonly connected with good schools．There are few surprises among a collection which includes professional leadership, high expectations, and a concentration on teaching and learning．Recognition of the importance of pupils' rights and responsibilities and parental involvement is also important．