I thought business cards had gone out of fashion in the digital age, but I was wrong. I attended a conference recently, and everywhere I looked I saw people exchanging contact details with small cards.       

It makes you relieved to know that your new acquaintance (认识的人) has a lasting record of you - rather than having to rely on their memory. 【小题1】. And, if someone doesn’t take your card, there’s little hope of them knowing your name beyond this conversation - right?

Well, partly. If you leave it to chance, they probably won’t keep your name in their head long. 【小题2】.

• Be interested in them. It’s a great way to make people willing to be receptive. If they’ve got an unusual name, ask them about it. Without even realizing, they’ll be automatically more interested in who you are.

•【小题3】. When they realize that you know them, they’ll feel it’s even more important to remember you.

• Keep them focused. Distractions are the enemy of recall, so try not to do anything else while you introduce yourself. 【小题4】, otherwise that thought process will replace your name in their short -term memory.

• Remind them to practise. Retrieving (检索) information is a powerful way to implant it in the brain. 【小题5】. And if you leave enough of a gap for them to try a little to recall who you are, you’ll have the greatest impact on their memory long term.

The widespread use of Internet technology has made our lives easier but causes a big challenge to senior citizens(长者), who are not always comfortable with smartphones and so many new apps.

Only a few senior citizens are able to enjoy the benefits that new technologies offer. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the number of people aged 60 and above was 253.88 million in 2019, about 18.1% of China's population. But only 23%of the senior citizens were able to use the Internet. That means more than three-fourths of the elderly are deprived (剥夺) of the digital benefits.

Many senior citizens who can't use smartphones are facing difficulties during this pandemic (流行病). Even with a smartphone in hand and Internet available, many of them still feel helpless. They don't know how to call a taxi through the apps. There have been reports of many shops turning away elders who don't know how to pay using smartphones, instead of letting them pay with cash. Worse still, as they don't know how to get the Internet-based health code (健康码), they are refused to enter many public places. Presenting individual health code is part of the epidemic prevention (防疫) and control measures.

New technologies become popular because they are often of great use in our daily lives. But many senior citizens, especially those living in the country-side or those whose grown-up children don't live with them, are not able to use the Internet or smart-phones, either because of financial (经济的) problems or because they cannot learn new things beyond a certain point. The digital gap between the elderly and the young is becoming more obvious.

However, the senior citizens should not become a silent group deprived of digital benefits. It is our responsibility to help them bridge the digital gap, and be patient with them when they face difficulties catching up.

It’s possible to admire Oprah Winfrey and still wish Harvard hadn’t awarded her an honorary doctor of law degree and the commencement speaker spot at yesterday’s graduation. There’s no question Oprah’s achievements place her in the temple of American success stories. Talent, charm, and an exceptional work ethic have rarely hurled anyone as far as they have this former abused teenage mother from rural Mississippi who became one of the world’s most successful entertainment icons and the first African-American female billionaire.

Honorary degrees are often conferred on non-academic leaders in the arts, business, and politics. Harvard’s list in recent years has included Kofi fi Annan, Bill Gates, Meryl Streep, and David Souter. But Oprah’s particular brand of celebrity is not a good fit for the values of a university whose motto, Veritas, means truth. Oprah’s passionate advocacy extends, unfortunately, to a hearty embrace of fake science. Most notoriously, Oprah’s validation of Jenny McCarthy’s claim that vaccines cause autism has no doubt contributed to much harm through the foolish avoidance of vaccines.

Famous people are entitled to a few failings, like the rest of us. And the choice of commencement speakers often reflects a balance of institutional priorities and aspirations. Judging from our conversations with many students, Oprah was a widely popular choice.

But this vote of confidence in Oprah sends a troubling message at precisely the time when American universities need to do more to advance the cause of reason. As former Dean of Harvard College, Harry Lewis, noted in a blog post about his objections. “It seems very odd for Harvard to honor such a high profile popularizer of the irrational… at a time when political and religious nonsense so jeopardize the rule of reason in this allegedly enlightened democracy and around the world.”

As America’s oldest and most visible university, Harvard has a special opportunity to convey its respect for science not only through its research and teaching programs but also in its public affirmation of evidence-based inquiry.

Unfortunately, many American universities seem awfully busy protecting their brand name and not nearly busy enough protecting the pursuit of knowledge. A recent article in The Harvard Crimson noted the shocking growth of Harvard’s public relations arm in the last five years and it questioned whether a focus on risk management and avoiding controversy was really the best outward-looking face of this great institution.

As American research universities begin to resemble profit centers and entertainment complexes, it’s easy to lose sight of their primary mission: to produce and spread knowledge. This mission depends on traditions of rational discourse and vigorous defense of the scientific method. Oprah Winfrey’s honorary doctorate was a step in the wrong direction.