Are you happy? If you aren’t you need to move near friends who are happy. A new study shows that happiness is infectious (易传染的) and can flow through social groups. And the closer you are to someone happy, the happier you’ll be.

The study was carried out by the Harvard Medical School. The researchers discovered that a person’s happiness depends on the happiness of those around them. They collected data on 5,000 adults between 1971 and 2003. Participants were asked to identify their relatives, close friends, place of residence and place of work. They were also asked questions about whether they enjoyed life, and whether they felt hopeful about the future.

The results were very interesting. The researchers found that those who had happy partners had an 8% higher chance of being happy too. And for those with happy children, this increases to 14%. And finally, those with a happy friend who lives less than half a kilometre away are 42% more likely to be happy. “Most important from our perspective is the recognition that people are m social networks, and that the health and well-being of one person affects the health and well-being of others,” one of the researchers explained. “It makes sense that if people around you are happy, that might have an impact on your own happiness.” So, in conclusion, the best thing is to have a happy friend who lives less than a kilometer away from you. Do you have one?

Too many people want others to be their friends, but they don’t give friendship back. That is why some friendships don’t last very long. To have a friend, you must learn to treat your friend the way you want your friend to treat you. Learning to be a good friend means learning three rules: be honest; be generous(宽宏大量的); be understanding.

Honesty is where a good friendship starts. Friends must be able to trust one another. If you do not tell the truth, people usually find out. If a friend finds out that you haven’t been honest, you may lose your friend’s trust. Good friends always rely on one another to speak and act honestly.

Generosity means sharing and sharing makes a friendship grow. You do not have to give your lunch money or your clothes. Naturally you will want to share your ideas and feelings. These can be very valuable to a friend. They tell your friend what is important to you. By sharing them, you help your friend know better.

Sooner or later everyone needs understanding and help with a problem. Something may go wrong at school. Talking about the problem can make it easier to solve. Turning to a friend can be a first step in solving the problem. So to be a friend you must listen and understand. You must try to put yourself in your friend’s place so that you can understand the problem better.

No two friendships are exactly alike(相同的)．But all true friendships have three things in common. If you plan to keep your friends, you must practice honesty, generosity and understanding.

Friendship makes life more enjoyable and colorful. Here are some tips for you to make friends.

Make yourself available. Put yourself out there somehow in order to meet people. If you’re still in school, sit somewhere with two other people. If you see opportunities to meet new people, take them. 【小题1】

【小题2】 Be open to trying new activities to meet people around you who have common interests. For example, if you love books and want to meet like-minded friends, join a book club. People who have a passion (激情) for books will end up meeting people with the same interest.

Talk to others actively. 【小题3】 You can start talking to people by simply greeting them with a “Good morning, how are you?” as you pass them by. 【小题4】You can talk to anybody: the person sitting next to you in public, or the person in front of you in the lunch line.

Use social media wisely. 【小题5】 Social media has given us the amazing ability to connect with people on the Internet and turn them into friends. Using social media like Facebook may be a perfect way to meet people who share the same interest as you.