CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation 心肺复苏术) and first aid are related topics. It could be said that first aid is the more general of the two, and training in first aid might include instructions and practice on how to respond to a variety of medical emergencies that could be causing danger to life or to a part of a person’s body. One such medical emergency could be the stopping of breathing or heartbeat, and the right response, in this case, might be to perform CPR. Thus, CPR can be seen as a type of first-aid response.

There can be differences in the amount of first-aid training people learn, and courses can sometimes be broken down into emergency and standard training. Standard training is actually the more extensive of the two, and would include teaching and learning how to handle a variety of medical situations like bites from insects or animals, broken bones, poisoning, childbirth, and care of wounds. Emergency first aid tends to be limited to the teaching of CPR, how to handle choking emergencies, and instructions on wound care for heavy bleeding.

CPR and first aid may be taught together or are sometimes taken as separate courses. People may need a whole day of practice or longer before getting CPR certification, which should be obtained from recognized agencies like the Red Cross. The big difference between CPR and first aid, in terms of taking classes, is that CPR focuses only on learning to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation and recognize those situations as soon as possible in which it should be performed, while first-aid classes may teach this too, but they will teach in the broader context of how people need to respond to lots of different injuries or illness.

The issue of CPR and first aid may get confusing when people are asked to get training in one or both of these. Some people may be asked to take a first-aid course and have CPR training. Those who need more extensive training in standard first aid certainly won’t satisfy this need by only taking a CPR course. Those confused about what training they need should get this issue clear with the person (usually an employer) requesting the training.

Being able to respond first in a medical emergency usually means needing to know CPR, but other knowledge could be just as necessary. For instance, how to stop uncontrollable bleeding or how to handle an episode of anaphylactic shock (过敏性休克) could be vital too.

Our ability to pay attention to tasks is a key part of our everyday lives. In many activities, it is difficult to keep a high level of focus over time, which is heavily influenced by factors like motivation, inspiration and alertness. Keeping focus can be especially challenging when the task is boring, dull or repeated. Continuous attention can be easier said than done, as attention waves across short and long time.

Although humans generally perform fine in situations that require continuous attention, they are often distracted (分心), which can lead to lacking attention. Common distractions can be anything from thinking about a new romantic interest to reacting to a car honking (鸣响).

Most attention lacks have minor results like forgetting to forward an email or pick up an item at the grocery store. However, other lacks can lead to serious results, such as a train operator not reacting to an incident, a surgeon forgetting a step in an operation or an individual forgetting to turn off an oven.

A study’s results provide evidence that a simple and easily-made change in behavior, setting specific goals for oneself, can greatly improve our ability to keep task focus over time. This can have effects on settings such as studying or working, where a failure to stay focused can lead to worse performance.

One of the most common methods to study lacks in attention is to examine response time to a variety of tasks. For this study, researchers asked more than 100 participants to complete reaction time tasks for about 25 minutes. In a standard control condition, participants were simply told to respond as quickly as possible on each trial. In this condition, reaction times systematically increased across time, consistent with the idea that task focus was decreasing. However, when researchers gave them specific goals to pursue and made those goals harder over time, for example, keeping their reaction time below 450 milliseconds, then 400, then 350, they did not show that effect.

The Upside to Being Outside

Research shows that being in nature makes people feel good, whether they’re roughing it in the wilderness for days or just hanging out at a local park for a while. One study was conducted in the city of Birmingham, Alabama. Researchers found that most participants’ mood and well-being improved significantly when they spent time in urban parks, 【小题1】

What’s more, the lift people get from nature is long lasting. For example, scientists in the United Kingdom studied the impact of the “30 Days Wild” campaign. It challenged people to interact with nature for 30 days by enjoying earthy activities like feeding birds and planting flowers. 【小题2】 And such state will remain in the following months. So, kicking back in a park is a bit like treating your mind to a restful mini vacation.

【小题3】 Scientists say that spending time in natural settings reduces stress and anxiety, which benefits mental and physical health. Research shows our brains are more relaxed in natural settings.

To most people, it’s not news that nature can be calming. 【小题4】 One study revealed that people were better at figuring out puzzles after a four-day camping trip. Another found that exposure to nature helped people score better on tests. That’s more proof that going outside is a smart and creative move!

What accounts for the connection with cognition and creativity? It could be that a good dose of nature acts as a cure to information overload. 【小题5】 Some scientists theorize that spending time in nature enables our brains to rest and recover from mental tiredness. This means that whether you’re studying or playing video games, heading outside to give your brain a break might help you get to the next level.