Lighting is a key design feature in your home and deserves consideration, whether it's to brighten up a dull corner or you're planning a full renovation （翻新）. Here, we put the spotlight on four key lighting design layers and how you can use them to capture every room of your home in its best light.
General lighting
Think of general lighting as the background layer that casts an even illumination （照明） throughout a room, most commonly from your ceiling lights. As these are often the main source of light for a room, it's wise to have flexible options depending on the time of day, or desired brightness to suit the mood and the room's purpose at the time.
Ambient（氛围的） lighting
Ambient lighting is the layer that adds warmth and softness to your space. Think lamp belt under the kitchen bench, or floor lamps in the corner. Use ambient lighting where you want to encourage rest and comfort， such as living spaces and bedrooms.
Task lighting
The next layer to consider is task lighting for more practical uses. These are brighter and are designed to illuminate workplaces, and are also used for study areas, home offices,, bedside tables and reading corners.
Accentlighting
Accent lighting is placed to create a specific light effect， such as downlights or spotlights to highlight artwork， and wash lights against walls. The layering of accent lighting can be used to highlight architectural details and is an artful way to create focus and play with light in your space.
In Takoma Park, Maryland, in suburban Washington, people, adults or students, lined up at a pay phone outside a restaurant several times a week.
"Once I put the phone out there, it just took off, " said David Schulman, a Takoma Park violinist who created the Bird Calls Phone. Listeners push 1 to hear a yellow-crowned night heron （夜鹭）， 7 to hear a pileated （红冠） woodpecker's call and 9 for the distinct scream of a red-tailed hawk. Instructions about how to use the phone are in three languages: English, Spanish and Amharic-a reflection of Takoma Park's Ethiopian community. In all, 10 birds native to the Takoma Park area are featured.
In addition to being fun, listening to Bird songs can reduce stress and anxiety, studies show. Even hearing recordings of birds can relieve negative emotions.
After noticing an abandoned, nonworking pay phone in town, Schulman wondered if he could turn it into something appealing. He said, "I really like the old technology of just picking up a receiver, pressing one button and having something happen. "Schulman thought bringing birds sounds to the abandoned phone was a way to add a bit of nature to the neighborhood.
Takoma Park city officials agreed, and they budgeted $5, 000 to complete the project. Schulman reached out to The McCaulay Library in Ithaca, New York, which agreed to send him a few dozen recordings of native birds. He then managed to gain the help of software engineer and artist Branden Hall to rewire the phone to play different bird calls. Schulman said he persuaded several of his friends to record short descriptions of each bird to go with the calls.
"One thing I like about the Bird Calls Phone is that it's the opposite of a loud broadcast, " Schulman said. "Only one person can listen at a time, and each person will take away their own unique experience. "
Rushing down the path, the traceur （跑酷者） is on the lookout for his next obstacles such as fire escapes, walls, or fences. As soon as he realizes a massive brick wall stands between him and where he wants to be, he unintentionally grabs on the wall with his hands and lifts himself to stand on top of it. His next move is a jump that lands him back on solid ground; however, noticing that he is unstable, he rolls to avoid injury.
Traceurs are athletes who perform remarkable gymnastics actions in urban environments. Serious traceurs are fascinated not just by the physical challenges of Parkour, but by its philosophy. Those who learn to excel at Parkour claim to develop not just physical fitness, but increased self-confidence and critical thinking skills, as they train themselves to find ways around every obstacle in their paths.
Because of these philosophical foundations, Parkour is often described by traceurs as more of a lifestyle or an art form than a sport. Passionate traceurs are determined to keep Parkour from becoming a competitive attempt. Competition, they argue, devalues the philosophical theory behind Parkour. People who practice Parkour should be more concerned with their relationship to the environment than with a ticking clock, a score, or a cheering crowd. Furthermore, traceurs should work with each other to improve confidence, awareness, and unity. Competition, they argue, only brings about feelings of conflict and disharmony.
While Parkour purists suggest that the philosophy behind Parkour helps to limit injuries, they must remember that not everyone who tries to leap over a mailbox is an experienced traceur trying to get in touch with his or her environment. Adolescents attempting to carry out these acrobatic （杂技的） skills could severely injure themselves. So while newcomers to Parkour might be eager to investigate this art of movement, it would be wise for them to remember the physicality behind the philosophy. After all, philosophy is not much good to a broken leg.
Why do we universally appreciate cartoons? Because they are visual -the humor unfolds right before our eyes. As writers, we have a unique challenge to craft worlds, including humorous ones, using only words.
At first glance, writers and cartoonists have vastly different toolboxes and skill sets. But if you look closely, you wil notice similar devices, such as simplification, exaggeration （夸张）， and contrast.
In many literary forms, decoration enriches a piece. That's not true for humor writing- humor can get lost with too many details. Adding a bit of shading will give depth to an illustration, yet there's usually no need to detail every feature. There's a thin line between plain and funny, and the difference often lies in whether a writer adheres to the universal comedic principle, "less is funnier. "By simplifying complex situations, characters, plots, and reactions, your work becomes more digestible and humorous.
Exaggeration is one of the most straightforward and effective comedic tools. As a humor writer, don't shy away from every chance to stretch the truth, whether by understatement or overstatement. However, effective humor is truth based. The relationship between exaggeration and realism in humor is like stretching a rubber band （橡皮筋）. A little stretching, even repeated stretching, is no problem. However, overstretching the band will cause it to break, as well as the humor and the reader's trust.
Contrasting is the juxtaposition （并列） of elements not usually coupled, a technique that cartoonists use to create humorous mismatches by placing significantly different elements side by side. As writers, we can use juxtaposition to brainstorm new humor angles and create funny mismatches.
Humor is at its funniest when it's visual, and writers can craft more humorous material by employing the same techniques used by cartoonists. By thinking and writing visually, you can show the funny to readers.
It's common to communicate by way of text, and that works well for everything from setting plans with a friend to asking you to pick up a grocery item. . Fighting over text, can cause problems and can even break up friendships or partnerships. Ahead, we'll examine why.
• There's no vocal tone involved
When we speak, the person we're talking to can tell how serious or light we are by our tone. . Everything is flat in writing, so without vocal tone to clarify, it's easy to assume the worst in someone and their intentions.
•
We also communicate in person through nonverbal ways. How we act physically lets others know how we feel. And without that in text, an argument can be worsened to a terrible point without one person even becoming aware of how upset the other is.
• Different communication paces affect a lot
. And when arguing, it can get even faster. It happens not to read all of a person's reply before you respond again, and the more upset you get, the harder it may be to express yourself clearly or to understand the person you're fighting with.
• Emojis and gifs can be hurtful
In the same way that visual communication tools like emojis and gifs can add fun to conversations, they can also make things much worse in a text disagreement. It can be challenging to know when you've taken emojis or gifs to a hurtful place, especially if the other person holds in that information and doesn't tell you at the moment.
A. Body language is absent
B. Text, on the other hand, has no tone
C. Long-term healthy relationships collapse
D. Texting is generally a quick back-and-forth exchange
E. This happens if he is feeling unsafe in the discussion
F. However, we may have taken communication by text too far
G. Our tone tells us a conversation is heading in the wrong direction
"Who's that, Grandma?" Four-year-old Taylor pointed to a delicate gold photo frame I had placed on my desk. "That's great-grandma Gladys, "I replied.
I 1 the picture, my fingers carefully tracing the outline of the familiar face returning my gaze（凝视）： her clear blue eyes, the wrinkle lines that 2 her forehead and the tender smile that always comforted me.
My mind was filled with remembrances of my mother. Always the 3 , it seemed she never made anyone angry. Even though she was 4 able physically, she baby-sat my young daughter so I could work. She always made 5 for her grandchildren. Even when she wasn't with them, she was making something for them with her hands.
Then her illness 6 . The doctor wanted to experiment with a （an）7 that might give her another year of life. She agreed so she could be around to 8 her long-awaited first great-grandchild.
The surgery 9 . Several weeks later, Mom passed away, exactly a month before Taylor's birth. Still in great 10 , I traveled five hundred miles to be with my family and welcome my new grandson.
A few days later, as I 11 Taylor gently to help him sleep, suddenly I understood why she was so 12 taking care of for our family. Her love for us was so deep and so 13 -a love I was only beginning to learn to give.
"She looks like you, Grandma!" Taylor's voice brought me back to the 14 . He touched the gold-framed photo tenderly. My eyes turned to his, and a 15 smile came to my lips and heart, for then I knew my mother's love and peace. It's a legacy （遗产） of love.
A stuffed toy named "Happy Loong" from Gansu Provincial Museum has recently distinguished （it）from conventional souvenirs and captured the hearts of tourists.
Modeled a Ming Dynasty gold decoration in the shape of a loong, or Chinese dragon, over 1, 000 of these chubby （圆胖的） smiling loong toys were sold in the first week after it hit the market earlier this year.
Besides "Happy Loong", the museum sells stuffed toys （inspire）by the Dunhuang Flying Apsaras and the bronze galloping （飞驰的） horse from the Eastern Han Dynasty, combine rich history with the appetite of Generation-Z.
This innovative approach to museum souvenirs reflects broader trend of making cultural products appealing to young Chinese museum-goers. The Palace Museum's online store, for instance, （offer）playful and humorous souvenirs featuring emperors in Chinese history, receiving positive reviews from young visitors.
The success of these innovative souvenirs lies in the ability （meet）the demands of young people seeking relaxation and individuality. However, designing truly （create） cultural product requires a good knowledge of cultural relics.
Looking ahead, the museum souvenir market in China is expected to continue growing, presenting abundant （opportunity）for designers.
Drew and Tia sat at a picnic table in the park on a beautiful fall afternoon. The air around them was filled with the sounds of children playing, dogs barking, and people laughing or calling to one another. But Drew and Tia ignored the sounds around them and focused on the task they had set out to complete. They planned to start a school garden at Jefferson Middle School.
Initially, it had been Drew's idea. He had first seen a school garden when he went to visit his cousin P. J. in Washington. He was amazed at the variety of fruits and vegetables the students at P. J. 's school grew. "It's a lot of work, "P. J. had warned. "But it's also my favorite part of the week. I love putting on my boots, getting outside, and seeing all the new things that have happened. " When Drew returned from his trip to Washington, he told Tia all about what he had seen.
Now, at the table, they were determined to come up with a plan to bring a school garden to Jefferson. Drew opened his notebook and prepared to record any ideas they had for convincing Ms. Milano, the school principal, that the garden was a good idea.
"We're going to need an adult to guide the whole operation, " said Drew thoughtfully. "I know that Mr. Issac gardens at home. Just last week he brought in a whole basket of tomatoes and zucchini from his garden. He might be willing to help. "Drew wrote down Mr. Issac's name in his notebook.
"We might need donations to get this project up and running, " added Tia. "We could tell Ms. Milano that we would be willing to organize a yard sale to raise funds. "
"That's a great idea, " said Drew. "I think we need to be able to present her with a realistic plan. That way, Ms. Milano wouldn't feel as though she agreed to something unknown. "
注意： 1. 续写词数应为150左右； 2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Closing the notebook, they took action.
"Actually, I was doubtful when you first came to me. "said Ms. Milano.
