Researchers are placing robotic dogs in the homes of lonely old people to determine whether they can improve the quality of life for humans. Alan Beck, an expert in the human-animal relationship, and Nancy Edwards, a professor of nursing, are leading the animal-assisted study concerning the influence of robotic dogs on old people’s depression, physical activity, and life satisfaction. “No one will argue that an older person is better off being more active, challenged, or stimulated (刺激), ”Edwards points out. “The problem is how we promote that, especially for those without friends or help. A robotic dog could be a solution.”

In the study, the robotic dogs, called AIBO, are placed for six weeks in the houses of some old people who live alone. Before placing AIBO in the home, researchers will collect data for six weeks. These old people will keep a diary to note their feelings and activities before and after AIBO being placed. Then, the researchers will study the data to determine if it has inspired any changes in the life of its owner.

“I talk to it all the time, and it responds (回应) to my voice,” says a seventy-year-old lady. “When I’m watching TV, it’ll stay in my arms until it wants to go down. It has a mind of its own.”

The AIBOs respond to certain orders. The researchers say they have some advantages over live dogs, especially for old people. Often the elderly are disabled and cannot care for an animal by walking it or playing with it. A robotic dog removes exercise and feeding concerns.

“At the beginning, it was believed that no one would relate to the robotic dog because it is metal and not furry,” Beck says. “But it’s amazing how quickly we have given up that belief.”

“Hopefully, down the road, these robotic pets could become a more valuable health helper. They will record their masters’ blood pressure, oxygen levels, or heart rhythms. AIBOs may even one day have games that can help stimulate older people’s minds.”

   Now a new study has showed a key trick in getting the best deal - asking for a range of pay, rather than a single figure.

The research contradicts（与……抵触）traditional wisdom that argues giving a range will automatically cause employers to focus on the lower end of the offer. For instance, if you want  $90,000 and you suggest a range between $90,000 and $110,000, the study finds employers are more likely to make a higher offer.

But simply asking for $110,000 in the first place increases the chances of the deal falling apart, as it is a sign that the employee is not open to negotiation（协商）.

The team made the discovery after running a series of experiments involving Amazon Mechanical Turk workers and business school students.

Respondents were asked not only what they thought their negotiation partner's lowest acceptable offer could be, but also questions designed to show how they viewed their partner.

One type of offer, called a “bracketing” range,places the figures on either side of the desired salary. For instance, if you want $90,000, you'd ask for a range of between  $80,000 and $100,000. This causes employers to offer the lower end of the scale,but, unlike single figure offers, the deals rarely fall apart as the negotiator is often viewed favourably. “If your goal is to get along with someone without losing money, the‘bracketing' range offers may be a good move,”Dr Ames told the Wall Street Journal.

The“backdown”range offer, meanwhile, uses the target salary as the high figure in the range. For $90 ,000, an employer would ask for a range between $70,000 to $90,000. These range offers , predicta-bly, give the worst results in terms of pay.

However, Dr Ames warns against setting the range too high and says the most successful range is usually within 20 per cent of the target offer.

Nowadays，people often get 【小题1】 (stick) in traffic jams. In the last ten years, the number of cars on the roads in Britain 【小题2】 (rise) by 30% . Some types of cancer are related to traffic pollution and traffic is one of the major 【小题3】 (cause) of global warming and climate change. The average global temperature is about 0. 5 degrees centigrade 【小题4】 (high) than it was 100 years ago. We know that cars are bad for us, but we carry on 【小题5】 (use) our cars so much because we are addicted 【小题6】 them. Jenny Trowe of Greenpeace gives us some advice. First, use our legs. Regular exercise cuts the risk of heart disease by 50%! Second, use public transport. On average, about forty people travel in one bus,【小题7】 the same number occupy thirty-three cars. Third, sharing cars 【小题8】 (be) much cheaper and kinder to the environment. In 【小题9】 word, we can do whichever of these things 【小题10】 suit us. Don’t just sit around and complain!

I’m sorry to trouble you, but _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Thank you!

Yours,

Li Ming

   Every day you have so much to read-official documents, friends' emails, textbooks, newspapers, and your favorite articles and an endless list. 【小题1】 Certainly yes.

【小题2】If you are attempting an exam where you have to comprehend the given paragraphs and answer questions in a limited time then you should know techniques of reading faster. 【小题3】 Yet, another technique for faster reading is skimming-you can use this for reading long emails or articles to get the main idea but obviously, you cannot use this while comprehending the given paragraphs in an exam. However, if you are reading for personal growth then it is not the number of books you have read but how much you have extracted（摘录）out of your readings【小题4】.

【小题5】If you are reading a textbook then keep a notepad and a pen ready to keep jotting（匆匆记下）all the main points. If you think that you will make notes on second reading then remember: there is no time for a second reading.