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　　At one time, people used to travel to foreign countries because they thought the building, the food, the national dress there would be different from home．Nowadays, however, one large city is very like another．They all have their Hilton or Sheraton Hotels which look like Hilton or Sheraton Hotels everywhere．They all have their McDonald’s, their KFCs, their Pizza Huts．Office buildings look the same everywhere, and most city centers are full of office buildings．And, of course, people are driving the same brands of Japanese or European cars, usually wearing the same kinds of clothing and watching the same American movies and TV shows．Airports are the same everywhere and the world’s airlines are all flying the same aircraft, Boeings or Airbuses．

　　What, therefore, is the purpose of foreign travel for people who are not on business? What do tourists hope to experience in a foreign country that they cannot experience at home? Why do they travel to foreign countries at all?　The answer could be that people are very interested in the past．It is a nation’s history that is its main attraction．Most of today’s tourists travel overseas to find out what foreign countries and cultures used to be like, not what they are like today．The words “cultural tourism” are now part of the language of tourism, and it is the museums and works of art in many countries that are their main attractions．

　　If they are lucky many countries also usually have at least a few beautiful places for tourists to visit．

　　Finally there is perhaps a nation’s greatest attraction：its people．A nation is not just its historical buildings, its works of art or beautiful places, and it is also the people who live in it．This is why a country such as Thailand attracts millions of people every year．They come mainly because of the friendliness of the Thai people, and it is why the Pacific Islands are also so popular．There may not be much to see or do in Fiji, but there are lots of friendly, smiling people to make visitors feel welcome．

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　　“Dinning out” and “eating out” are phrases people use in Britain when they eat in a restaurant or pub(小酒馆)．Eating out is more popular in Britain today than it has ever been．In 2006, for the first time ever, British people spent more eating out than cooking for themselves and eating at home．It seems that many British people are becoming increasingly interested in how good their food tastes, and also how healthy it is．

　　However, eating out can also be expensive．As British people do not eat out every night of the week, eating in a restaurant is often seen as a special occasion．When going on a first date and wanting to impress him/her, or if celebrating an anniversary or a birthday, many people like to go to a restaurant to eat, and people often also eat in a restaurant before going to the cinema or the theater．

　　As in all cultures, there are many rules of etiquette(礼仪)surrounding food and eating．The knife and fork should be used in the correct way! It is also impolite to have your elbows(肘部)on the dinning table when you are eating．

　　Almost all British cities have a vast range of food as well as traditional British food, and all from the very cheap to the very expensive---French, Italian, Indian, Chinese, Greek, Thai, Japan and many, many more．In fact, when asked which was their favorite food, more British people said an Indian curry(咖喱菜肴)than any other dish!

　　As well as dining in a restaurant, when people are too tired to cook after work they often get a “take-away”．This means that they order from a take-out restaurant by telephone, and then go to collect it and take it home to eat．Many take-out restaurants also deliver it your house．While you can normally find a take-out restaurant for almost any food, the most popular are Italian, Indian and Chinese and then all of you have to do is to open the door, pay and eat!

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　　I had about 10 minutes to exercise before I had to pick up my two older daughters from school yesterday．It was a busier day than usual for me with a couple of meetings besides my regular work．

　　Years ago, I would have put off my workout and would have left things for the next day．But since it was a busy day as well, I knew that I may not have all that much time either．So, I picked up my kettle-bell(哑铃)and went to town for 4 minutes．

　　See, 4 minutes, if that’s all you’ve got, is enough to give your body a great fat-burning exercise．How did I get a killer workout in 4 minutes? I used a training workout discovered 10 years ago by a Japanese Sports Scientist called a TABATA．

　　It includes 20-second periods of warm-up, followed by 10-second periods of rest and 4-minute straight exercise．How is a 4-minute exercise able to burn fat? It all depends on the quality of work you do．Not on the quantity．Here’s how I did it yesterday．

　　You should never forget your warm-up．A TABATA workout is 20 seconds of 2-arm Kettle-bell swings, 10 seconds rest, 20 seconds push-ups, and 10 seconds rest．You should do those 4 rounds．That’s it．I was done in a total time of 8 minutes by the time and when I got to school my heart was still pumping pretty hard．

　　A healthy body is needed for studying and working, and efficiency(效率)is the key to building a great body in the least amount(数量)of time possible and you can’t get more efficient than a 4-minute workout．

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　　As the global financial crisis hits the economy, it’s tough finding a job－especially if you’re competing with thousands of other hopeful students．Sometimes you get the interview, but don’t quite seem to land the job because you don’t have related experience．Don’t despair! Here are a few tips that might give you an edge．

　　1．Get connected to your network and try to expand it．Talk to friends, family and acquaintances．Let everyone know you are looking for a job．

　　2．Prepare your resume)个人简历)carefully and be sure it’s perfect．Have someone else read it over for typos)打字错误)and grammatical errors．Get professional help．It’s worth the money to present yourself well．If money is tight, read books on resume writing from your public library or search for free help on the Internet．

　　3．When you apply for a job, be sure you have the skills listed on the posting．If you get an interview, be sure to describe those skills thoroughly．Just having the skills is not enough．Expressing your abilities well can make all the difference in getting the job．

　　4．Research typical interview questions and practice interviewing．Be well prepared for every interview．

　　5．Don’t be afraid to accept a position for which you are overqualified － if there’s room for advancements．Many great job advancements come from first doing well at an entry-level position．If you have the right skills and attitude, it won’t be long before you’re in the job you want．

　　6．Volunteer for a few weeks in your field of study to gain experience if you feel your resume needs an improvement．

　　7．When deciding what to wear for an interview, think about the position level and the dress code of the organization．

　　8．Use every tool available to you．For example, this site has many job links for your use．

　　Good luck!

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　When women sit together to watch a movie on TV, they usually talk simultaneously(同时的)about a variety of subjects, including children, men, careers and what' s happening in their lives．When groups of men and women watch a movie together, the men usually end up telling the women to shut up．Men can either talk or watch the screen－they can' t do both－and they don' t understand that women can．Besides, women consider that the point of all getting together is to have a good time and develop relationships－not just to sit there like couch potatoes staring at the screen．

　　During the ad breaks, a man often asks a woman to explain the plot and tell him where the relationship between the characters is going．He is unable, unlike women, to read the subtle body language signals that reveal how the characters are feeling emotionally．Since women originally spent their days with the other women and children in the group, they developed the ability to communicate successfully in order to maintain relationships．For a woman, speech continues to have such a clear purpose：to build relationships and make friends．For men, to talk is to relate the facts．

　　Men see the telephone as a communication tool for sending facts and information to other people, but a woman sees it as a means of bonding．A woman can spend two weeks on vacation with her girlfriend and, when she returns home, telephone the same girlfriend and talk for another two hours．

　　There is no convincing evidence that social conditioning, the fact that girls' mothers talked them more, is the reason why girls talk more than boys．Psychiatrist Dr Michael Lewis, author of Social Behaviour and Language Acquisition, conducted experiments that found mothers talked　to and looked at, baby girls more often than baby boys．Scientific evidence shows parents respond to the brain bias of their children．Since a girl’s brain is better organized to send and receive speech，we therefore talk to them more．Consequently, mothers who try to talk to their sons are usually pointed to receive only short grunts in reply．

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　　My grandfather came from Hungary and was the only one in his family who settled down in the United States．The rest of his family remained in Europe．When World War I broke out, he seemed to have become another man, downhearted．Such obvious change was not born out of concern for his welfare, but out of fear：if his only son, my uncle, had to go to war, it would be cousin fighting against cousin．

　　One day in 1918, my Uncle Milton received his draft notice．My grandparents were very upset．But my mother, at the age of 10, felt on top of the world about her soldier brother going off to war．Realizing how he was regarded by his little sister and all of her friends, my uncle bought them all service pins, which meant that they had a loved one in the service．All the little girls were delighted．

　　The moment came when my uncle and the other soldiers, without any training but all in uniforms, boarded the train．The band played and the crowd cheered．Although no one noticed, I’m sure my grandmother had a tear in her eye for the only son．The train slowly pulled out, but not about a thousand yards when it suddenly paused．Everyone stared in wonder as the train slowly returned to the station．There was a dead silence before the doors opened and the men started to step out．Someone shouted, “The war is over!” For a moment, nobody moved, but then the people heard someone bark orders at the soldiers．The men lined up in two lines, walked down the steps, and with the band playing, marched down the street, as returning heroes, to be welcomed home．My mother said it was a great day, but she was just a little disappointed that it didn’t last a tiny bit longer．

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　　Remembering names is an important social skill．Here are some ways to master it．

　　Recite and repeat in conversation．

　　When you hear a person’s name, repeat it．Immediately say it to yourself several times without moving your lips．You could also repeat the name in a way that does not sound forced or artificial．

　　Ask the other person to recite and repeat．

　　You can let other people help you remember their names．After you’ve been introduced to someone, ask that person to spell the name and pronounce it correctly for you．Most people will be pleased by the effort you’re making to learn their names．

　　Admit you don’t know．

　　Admitting that you can’t remember someone’s name can actually make people relaxed．Most of them will feel sympathy if you say．“I’m working to remember names better．Yours is right on the tip of my tongue．What is it again?”

　　Use associations．

　　Link each person yon meet with one thing you find interesting or unusual．For example, you could make a mental note："Vicki Cheng -- tall, black hair．” To reinforce(加强)your associations, write them on a small card as soon as possible．

　　Limit the number of new names you learn at one time．

　　When meeting a group of people, concentrate on remembering just two or three names．Free yourself from remembering every one．Few of the people in mass introductions expect you to remember their names．Another way is to limit yourself to learning just first names．Last names can come later．

　　Go early．

　　Consider going early to conferences, parties and classes．Sometimes just a few people show up on time．That's fewer names for you to remember．And as more people arrive, you can hear them being introduced to others－an automatic review for you．

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Kids Fishing Photo Contest

　　Welcome to catch the excitement of your child on film while fishing and enter his or her picture in the yearly Kids Fishing Photo Contest! The contest is sponsored(主办，赞助)by Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries(VDGIF)in celebration of National Fishing Week!

　　The winning pictures are those that best catch the theme(主题) “kids enjoying fishing” ．Winners will receive different fishing－related prizes．Winning pictures will also be posted on the VDGIF website and may be used in all kinds of VDGIF publications．There is no need to be a professional photographer．Any photo will do．

　　Contest Rules

　　●Children in the photographs must fall into one of the following age groups when the picture is taken: 1－5, 6－10．

　　●Photos must not be more than 1 year old．

　　●Photos must be taken in Virginia．

　　●Children in a boat must be wearing a life jacket．

　　●Only one photo submission(提交)per child．

　　●Submit photo on photograph quality paper, no CD's accepted．

　　●Photos must not be bigger than “4*6” size．

　　●Please stick a piece of paper to the back of the photo including： name, age, address, phone number and location where the photograph was taken．

　　●Photos must be postmarked on or before June 19, 2011．

　　●Judging will take place in July and winners will be posted on the VDGIF website．

　　●Prizes will be sent directly to the winning children．

　　●This contest isn't open to immediate family of VDGIF employees and sponsors．Immediate family members refer to children, relatives or others living in the same household with a VDGIF employee or sponsor．

　　To Enter:

　　Send your photo, with the child's name, age, phone number and address to：

　　2011 Kids Fishing Photo Contest

　　Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries

　　P．O．Box 11104

　　Richmond, VA 23230–1104

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　　Sons who have fond childhood memories of their fathers are more likely to be emotionally stable(稳定的)in the face of day－to－day stresses, according to psychologists(心理学家)who studied hundreds of adults of all ages．

　　“As our study shows, fathers do play a unique(独特的)and important role in the mental health of their children much later in life,” Psychology professor Melanie Mallers of California State University said．

　　For this study, 912 adult men and women between the ages of 25 and 74 completed short daily telephone interviews about that day's experiences over an eight－day period．The interviews focused on the participants’ psychological and emotional distress(i．e．, whether they were nervous, sad, etc．)and if they had experienced any stressful events that day．

　　The participants were also required to answer questions such as,“How would you rate your relationship with your mother during the years when you were growing up?” and “How much time and attention did your mother give you when you needed it?” The same questions were asked about fathers．

　　People who reported they had a good mother－child relationship reported three percent less psychological distress(忧虑)compared to those who reported a poor relationship, according to Mallers．

　　Men who reported having a good relationship with their father during childhood were more likely to be less emotional when reacting to stressful events in their current daily lives than those who had a poor relationship, according to her findings．

　　Also, the quality of mother and father relationships was significantly associated(有关)with how many stressful events the participants faced on a daily basis．In other words, if they had a poor childhood relationship with both parents, they reported more stressful incidents over the eight－day study when compared to those who had a good relationship with their parents．

　　Mallers theorized why healthy or unhealthy relationships may have an effect on how people handle stress as adults． “Perhaps having caring parents equips children with the experiences and skills necessary to more successfully navigate(导航)their relationships with other people throughout childhood and into adulthood．” She said．