Blue Monday

Ask most people which day of the week they fear the most and the answer is likely to be Monday. The first day of the week can make us joyless and depressed, which is 【小题1】 the feeling is described as the Monday blues. But what is it exactly 【小题2】 makes us feel down and does it affect everyone?

Apparently, 【小题3】 (depressing) day of the year is the third Monday in January, when it’s cold and dark outside. This day 【小题4】 (nickname) ‘Blue Monday’ by psychologist Cliff Arnall in 2004. He came up with it after a holiday company asked him for a ‘scientific formula’ for the January blues.

【小题5】 there was little science behind the formula, it’s probably true that the sound of our alarm clock on any Monday morning signals the dawning of a new week and possibly the end of our weekend of fun. Research shows our Monday mood can be based on a direct comparison 【小题6】 the day before. It’s what psychologists call an emotional shift, and no 【小题7】 part of the week has a transition like it.

Monday means the end of weekend lie-ins – it is back to the routine and the realization that there are five days ahead of the nine-to-five, and according to the BBC Bitesize website “If you can’t stand your job then the Monday blues can be very real.” And your miserable Monday is followed by trying Tuesday — the most popular day for job applications 【小题8】 (send) out.

But is Monday as bad as we think? 【小题9】 (feel) a bit low shouldn’t be confused with more serious depression, caused by other factors. Writing for the BBC, author and presenter Claudia Hammond, argues that this low feeling 【小题10】 be a myth. She later found the day that scored the lowest was in fact Wednesdays. So, when Monday comes, maybe we should give it a second chance!

Advertisements, which often use words and pictures to persuade people 【小题1】(buy) a product or service, can be found wherever we go. A 【小题2】(success) advertisement will not only make people aware 【小题3】 a product or service, but also create a desire to buy, behind 【小题4】 advertisers have developed ways of persuading people into purchasing their products or services.

One of the common 【小题5】(technique) is to create memorable slogans, some of which appeal to our emotions. Another technique 【小题6】(employ) is to link their company or product to a brand ambassador. In addition, some advertisements are not so obvious, in which product 【小题7】(place) is typically used. For example, some films 【小题8】(sponsor) by leading brands, so that only their products appear in film.

Now, advertising is becoming more digital and more personalized, 【小题9】(make) it more possible for us to receive special discounts and promotions targeted 【小题10】(specific) at us. In the future, the development in advertising will help companies target their customers more efficiently to have a positive effect on sales.

Delicate strokes, carved onto wood, with ultimate precision. This is woodblock (木印版画) printing, 【小题1】 ancient printing technique that has promoted human civilization.

Certain people are believed to bring Buddhism (佛教) into China during the Tang Dynasty, when there was a strong need 【小题2】 (produce) a large number of Buddhist scriptures (经文), and 【小题3】 (copy) by hand could not meet the rising demand. Ancient Chinese craftsmen thus came up with a novel way to create printed works 【小题4】 (massive). Then came the original version of woodblock printing.

Traditional woodblock printing can be divided into four major steps: writing, engraving, printing, and binding. With each step then sub-divided into several procedures, 【小题5】 takes roughly 30 steps to produce a woodblock print. Characters and images 【小题6】 (carve) to produce raised areas or lines, which calls 【小题7】 skilled hands.

The Buddhist scripture Diamond Sutra, the “earliest dated printed book”, can only be seen in the British Library, 【小题8】 a lot of Chinese treasures are stored. It is just one example of ancient works of art that not only tells the wisdom of our ancestors, but also is a witness of Chinese craftsmen’s continuous【小题9】 (commit) to beauty through centuries.

The invention of writing gave life to great thoughts, 【小题10】 it was the invention of printing that made knowledge a shareable fruit for all humankind.