Running in Cold Weather Improves Performance

Cold weather during winter months may keep many people from leaving home and running in the open air. However, a new study shows that the drop in temperature is a good reason to run. In fact, researchers say, running in cold weather helps improve one’s performance.

Many people say running in the winter can be difficult. Two reasons are the low temperatures and bitter winds. Yet many runners might find it easier than running in hot weather. That could be because lower temperatures reduce stress on the body. When you run in cold weather, your body loses less water than in warmer conditions. The body needs less water on a cold day than in warm weather. This information comes from sports scientists at St. Mary’s University in London.

John Brewer is a professor of applied sport science at St. Mary’s. For this study, he and other researchers put a group of people into a room they called an “environmental chamber”. The researchers then recreated summer and winter weather conditions in the room. The test subjects were asked to run 10,000 meters under both conditions. Brewer says he and his team recorded biological measurements of the runners. “We’ve got a group of subjects into the environmental chamber, we’ve changed the conditions to recreate the summer or winter and we’ve got them to run a 10km under both of those conditions and taken various measurements(测量)on each runner while they’ve been completing their 10km.”

They found that the runners lost water by around 30.38% more in those hotter conditions. Besides, Brewer says every movement runners make produces heat. He explains that one way in which we lose heat is by sweating(出汗). He says the body also loses heat by transporting the blood to the surface of the skin. “That heat builds up in the body and can be really damaging unless you can lose that heat. And it’s much harder to lose heat when the environment is warm as well.” And they found how they felt their perception of heat—was around a third lower when they were running in cold conditions. The body does not have to work as hard to pump blood to the skin’s surface.

Several websites note that the most important thing for people who run in cold conditions is to wear the right clothing. Keeping as dry as possible is the most important when exercising in low temperatures. So, if you are a runner, don’t let winter weather keep you indoors. Simply get ready for the low temperatures and start running.

Is there a way to quickly remember information just before taking an exam? Walking backwards might be a way to solve this problem. Scientists from the University of Roehampton in the UK said this activity can help people improve their short-term memory.

Researchers asked 114 volunteers to watch a video. After watching the video, volunteers were divided into three groups. One group was told to walk 10 metres forward. The second group walked 10 metres backward. The third group stood in one place. All three groups were then asked 20 questions about what they saw in the video.

The scientists found that the backward- walking group got two more.answers correct on average than the other groups.

This suggests that the relationship between the concepts(概念）of time and space is important considering how our minds form memories. "Time is really expressed via(通过）space,”Aleksandar Aksentijevic, who led the study, told The Daily Mail. When you walk backward, you see things from a different way compared to walking forward. This difference helps people recall things that happened in the past.

And walking backward is not just good for our brains. It is also good for the rest of our body. Compared to walking forward, walking backward is more challenging. This can ameliorate our health, according to New Scientist, Walking backward uses more energy in a short time and burns more calories.

Besides, walking backward is less stressful for our knees. It could.be helpful for people who often have pain in their knees, according to researchers from the Unegon in the US. Walking backward also keeps our spines（脊柱）strong, which can help to reduce pain in the lower back. This might be why many old people like walking backward.

Chopsticks are used by billions of people around the world, and they have an ancient past. The Chinese have been using them for at least 3,000 years. 【小题1】

Early chopsticks were mainly used for cooking and were able to reach deep into boiling pots of water or oil. 【小题2】 This happened when a rapid population growth across China made cooks develop cost-saving habits. They began cutting food into smaller pieces that required less cooking fuel (燃料). 【小题3】

As food was ready to be eaten in one bite, knives became less popular. Confucius (孔子) believed that knives at the dinner table would remind eaters of the slaughterhouse (屠宰场). He also thought that knives’ sharp point will kill the happiness during the meal. 【小题4】

Whenever and wherever Chinese people are, they find it difficult to have a meal without chopsticks. Besides, chopsticks can be presented as a gift for people to express their feelings.

According to a survey, over 1.8 billion people use chopsticks. 【小题5】 It has become a common cultural symbol of Chinese food culture. There are many activities to suggest using chopsticks, such as “Chopsticks Day” in Japan, “Golden Chopsticks Award” in France and the trend of “For your health, please pick up your chopsticks” in western countries.