阅读理解

　　History is full of cases where dreams have been a pathway to creativity and discovery．A striking example is provided by Dr．Otto Loewi, a pharmacologist and winner of a Nobel Prize．Loewi had spent years studying the chemical transmission of nerve impulses(脉搏)．A major breakthrough in his research came when he dreamed of an experiment three nights in a row．The first two nights he woke up and wrote down the experiment quickly and untidily on paper．But the next morning, he couldn't tell what the notes meant．On the third night, he got up after having the dream．This time, instead of making notes he went straight to his laboratory and performed the important experiment．Loewi later said that if the experiment had occurred to him while awake he would not have given it another thought．

　　Loewi's experiment gives some insight into using dreams to produce creative solutions．Nervous feelings are reduced during dreaming, which may be especially useful in solving problems that require a fresh point of view．

　　Being able to take advantage of dreams for solving is improved if you “set” yourself before retiring．Before you go to bed, try to think intently about a problem you wish to solve．Bury yourself in the problem by stating it clearly and reviewing all relevant information．Then use the suggestions listed in the previous section to catch your dreams．Although this method is not guaranteed to produce an original solution or a new insight, it is certain to be an adventure．About half of a group of college students using the method for a week recalled a dream that helped them solve a personal problem．

阅读理解

　　Public schools in Washington, D．C．provide students with musical instruments for free．When something goes wrong with an instrument, Charles West and Larry Jernigan do the repairs．Both men approach their work with a passion．For them, it's important that students have a joyful experience with music．

　　The two have worked together for almost 20 years．This year alone, they've fixed about 450 instruments．Both men are musicians and music lovers, so learning to do repairs came naturally．

　　“I have been a musician all my life．” says West．“I played in an orchestra here in the city．I majored in music in college．I played in an army band．”

　　Jernigan's musical interests are varied．“I was formerly trained in the piano and guitar．The alto sax, and the flute, I picked up while working here．”

　　In addition to fixing instruments, the two also go to schools to instruct teachers and students on how to make minor repairs on their own．

　　West believes if children start early and stay involved with music, it enriches other areas of their lives．“I see that in other kids．I see it in myself．I have seen it hundreds of times and it works,” he says．“They learn teamwork．They learn patience and respect．”

　　But West has concerns about the future of music in the electronic age．

　　“This instant age has taken away from the sit-down, the patience．And to learn to play an instrument, it takes patience, it takes diligence, it takes time．”

　　Being able to enjoy music on the job is one of the benefits of the job．Both men agree their best rewards are the students' performances．

阅读理解

　　Being able to multitask－doing several things at the same time－is considered a welcome skill by most people．But if we consider the situation of the young people aged from eight to eighteen, we should think again．

　　What we often see nowadays is that young people juggle an ever larger number of electronic devices as they study．While working, they also surf on the Internet, send out emails, answer the telephone and listen to music on their iPods．In a sense, they are spending a significant amount of time in fruitless efforts as they multitask．

　　Multitasking is even changing the relationship between family members．As young people give so much attention to their own worlds, they seem to have no time to spend with the other people around them．They can no longer greet family members when they enter the house, nor can they eat at the family table．

　　Multitasking also affects young people's performance at university and in the workplace．When asked about their opinion of the effect of modern gadgets on their performance of tasks, many young people gave a positive response．However, the response from the worlds of education and business was not quite as positive．

　　Educators feel that multitasking by children has a serious effect on later development of study skills．They believe that many college students now need help to improve their study skills．Similarly, employers feel that young people entering the job market need to be taught all over again, as modern gadgets have made it unnecessary for them to learn special skills to do their work．