The Origins of Famous Brands
Our lives are full of brand names and trademarked products that we use every day. Although many brand names are simple acronyms(首字母缩略词) or versions of their founders' names, some of the companies we trust every day actually have fascinating and surprising back stories.
Starbucks
It seems fitting that the most famous coffee brand in the world would take its name from one of the world's greatest works of literature. The inspiration for the name of the coffeehouse came from Herman Melville's Moby Dick. The founders' original idea was to name the company after the Captain Ahab's ship — Pequot, but they eventually decided that Pequot wasn't a great name for coffee, so they chose Ahab's first mate, Starbucks, as the name instead.
Nike
Originally founded as a distributor for Japanese running shoes, the company was originally named BRS, or Blue Ribbon Sports. In 1971, BRS introduced its own soccer shoe, a model called Nike, which is also the name for the Greek goddess of victory. In 1978, the company officially renamed itself as Nike, Inc.
The right name is essential to a company's success, and a great origin story is just as crucial as a great product. An attractive origin story is one more thing that keeps customers guessing, wondering, and buying its products.
Google was originally called BackRub, for it searched for links in every corner of the Web. In 1997, when the founders of the company were searching for a new name showing a huge amount of data for their rapidly improving search technology, a friend suggested the word "googol". When a friend tried to register the new domain name, he misspelled "googol" as "google".
Jimmy is an automotive mechanic (汽车修理技工), but he lost his job a few months ago. He has a good heart, but always feared applying for a new job.
One day, he gathered up all his strength and decided to attend a job interview. His appointment was at 10 a.m. and it was already 8:30. While waiting for a bus to the office where he was supposed to be interviewed, he saw an elderly man wildly kicking the tyre of his car. Obviously there was something wrong with the car. Jimmy immediately went up to lend him a hand. When Jimmy finished working on the car, the old man asked him how much he should pay for the service. Jimmy said there was no need to pay him; he just helped someone in need, and he had to rush for an interview. Then the old man said, "Well, I could take you to the office for your interview. It's the least I could do. Please, I insist." Jimmy agreed.
Upon arrival, Jimmy found a long line of applicants waiting to be interviewed. Jimmy still had some grease (油渍) on him after the car repair, but he did not have much time to wash it off or have a change of shirt. One by one, the applicants left the interviewer's office with disappointed looks on their faces. Finally his name was called. The interviewer was sitting on a large chair facing the office window. Rocking the chair back and forth, he asked, "Do you really need to be interviewed?" Jimmy's heart sank. "With the way I look now, how could I possibly pass this interview?" He thought to himself.
Then the interviewer turned the chair and to Jimmy's surprise, it was the old man he helped earlier in the morning. It turned out that he was the General Manager of the company.
"Sorry I had to keep you waiting, but I was pretty sure I made the right decision to have you as part of our workforce (职工) before you even stepped into this office. I just know you'd be a trustworthy worker. Congratulations!" Jimmy sat down and they shared a cup of well-deserved coffee as he landed himself a new job.
Scientists in Britain have managed to teach bees to pull strings (线) to get to food and then pass on what they have learned to others in their colony (群体) — showing a high level of intelligence despite their tiny brains.
Researchers at Queen Mary University of London said the experiments, often used to test the intelligence of apes (猿) and birds, showed for the first time that some insects are up to the task, and can also pass skills on through several generations.
The findings add to the evidence suggesting the ability for "culture spread"— the ability to learn and pass on knowledge and skills — may not be exclusive to humans.
In the research, published in the journal PLOS Biology on Tuesday, the scientists were able to train 23 out of a group of 40 bees to pull strings with their legs and feet.
The strings were attached to discs — or artificial "flowers"— containing food at their center but placed under a transparent (透明的) screen. The bees, spotting the food beneath the screen, learned to pull the "flowers" out by pulling the string with their legs and feet to be able to get to it.
From another group of bees given the chance to solve the task without any training, only two of 110 were successful.
Another group of bees was then allowed to observe the trained bees pulling the strings, and 60 percent of them successfully learned the skill. Finally, trained bees were put in colonies, and the scientists found the technique spread successfully to a majority of the colony's worker bees.
Lars Chittka, a Queen Mary University professor who guided the project, said the team is interested in figuring out the brain processes behind the bees' learning and teaching skills.
Many people think of guys as being carefree when it comes to their appearance. But in fact, a lot of guys spend plenty of time in front of the mirror.
Body image is a person's opinions and feelings about his or her own body and physical appearance. You appreciate your body for its abilities and accept its imperfections.
So, what can you do to develop a positive body image? Here are some ideas:
Recognize your strengths. Different body types are good for different things. What does your body do well? Maybe your speed, strength, or coordination (协调) makes you better than others at a certain sport. That may be basketball, table tennis, mountain biking, dancing, or even running. Or perhaps you have skills, like drawing, singing, playing a musical instrument, writing, or acting.
Exercise regularly. Exercise can help you look good and feel good about yourself. Good physiques (体形) don't just happen. You can keep healthy by simply exercising 20 minutes to one hour three times a week. Taking exercise can also lift your spirits.
Respect your body! Practising good habits- regular showering; taking care of your teeth, hair, and skin; wearing clean clothes, and so on-can help you build a positive body image.
Your body is just one part of who you are. Your talent for humor, a quick wit (智慧), and all the things make you special. So try not to let small imperfections affect you.
A. Use this as an opportunity to discover what you're good at.
B. Be yourself.
C. They care just as much as girls do about their body image.
D. Just explore talents that you feel good about.
E. They take hard work, regular workouts, and a healthy habit.
F. The good news is that self-image and body image can be changed.
G. Having a positive body image means feeling satisfied with the way you look.
Sometimes the best gifts are the smallest ones that add up into something big over time.
Lily saw her grandfather, who has Parkinson's disease, was struggling to1his cup without spilling (溢出) and started2a picture for a cup that has three legs. Her father also3to spill drinks on his keyboard,4Lily realized that this invention was for everybody and for all kinds of uses. She drew a sketch and finally created a5for her grandfather at her grandfather's house with6materials: a plastic cup and plastic.
Soon her aunt took her to a pottery (陶瓷) studio, where she was able to7a cup for her father, who found the cup very8. He suggested that she start9her cups. At that time, being only nine years old, Lily didn't know10what her father had meant11taking the cups into production. But she was12and willing to give the idea a try.
Later, Lily's father took her to visit the13of pottery, Jingdezhen, China, to start creating more cups, and they started a movement to help14the project. And as Imagiroo was set up and started attracting more15, Lily needed to find a company in America to help her produce her cups,16 was one of her company's biggest17. But six years after Imagiroo was18, her company is successful. Certainly Lily's father is a big part of their business.
It can start with something19, like Lily's first drawing of her cup, and become something bigger along the way with hard work and determination. It may be one small thing to you, but to someone else it can make a big20 .
Environment-friendly ideas have been created to supply people with helpful (tip) on how they can help the environment well as save money. I honestly believe that everyone wants to help the environment, even if they do or do not believe in global warming.
With power bills, water bills and all other expenses(continue)to rise, it's very hard for the average worker. No matter what your (finance) position is , there is always something everyone can do (help) save our environment.
We are not the only ones that live on this (amaze) planet. We also share it a wide range of strange and wonderful animals. It would be a great tragedy if they (be) not around for our future generations to enjoy. Every little bit helps, so please do all you can to protect our environment and the environment of these surprising animals.
I hope these environment-friendly ideas can help everyone to do (they) bit for the environment and to make this world a better place.
How to Deal with Pressures at School
As a high school student, if you are feeling stressed out or frustrated (沮丧的) by teachers, classmates, or schoolwork, it is important to know that you aren't the only one. Believe it or not, everyone has these feelings at some point and everyone should learn how to deal with them properly.
First of all, you need to keep a positive attitude and not take things to heart. That someone got a better grade than you doesn't mean that they are smarter-perhaps they studied longer or knew the material more. It's easy to become frustrated if you are not doing as well as your friends, but being optimistic will help you deal with future similar situations.
Secondly, if students at school are bullying (欺侮) you, don't let them make you feel that you are not good enough. They are simply insecure and do not know how to deal with the pressures of school. They are just trying to make others feel bad, so they can feel better about themselves. So it's of importance to know when to stand up for yourself.
Lastly, it is necessary to keep things in perspective. For any situation that is stressful, take a second look from a different point of view. When I look back to the frustrations of my high school days, I notice that many of them seem very unimportant to me now.
It's not easy to be confident when there are so many students who seem like they "have it all", but try to realize that you, too, are good enough. It's not a competition about who is smarter, more popular. or more beautiful- everyone is different- so embrace your individuality (个性).
美国笔友Peter想了解10月18日在武汉举行的第七届世界军人运动会（the 7th Military World Games），请给他写信简要介绍相关情况，内容包括： 1）时间地点；
2）概况（109个国家，九千多名军人，329项运动）；
3）影响或意义。
注意：1）词数100左右；
2）可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3）结尾已为你写好。
Dear Peter,
Looking forward to hearing from you soon.
Yours,
Li Hua
