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Unit 2 Psychology in Our Daily Life
After-Class Reading
PASSAGE I The Psychology of Money
New Words
account *
n. 账户，户头
e.g. I opened an account at my bank in your name.
charge accounts
赊欠户，赊欠帐
actually *
adv. in fact, really 实际上
e.g. I didn't actually see her--I just heard her voice.
addicted *
adj. unable to stop doing or using something, especially something harmful 上瘾的，沉湎于......的
e.g. She's become addicted to love stories.
addiction
n. 瘾，沉溺
advertise *
v. 为......做广告，宣传
advertiser *
n. 广告商
alcohol *
n. drinks that can make people drunk, such as beer, wine, and whisky 酒
amount *
n. a collection or mass (especially of something which cannot be counted) 数量，数额
e.g. I still do a certain amount of work for them.
assignment *
n. task, homework 任务，作业
e.g. The student's assignment was to write a book report.
behavior *
n. way of acting or functioning 行为
e.g. Her behavior was in every way perfect.
belief *
n. the feeling of certainty that something exists or is true 信念，信赖
e.g. He found it difficult to explain his beliefs.
budget *
n. 预算，收支预算
e.g. My budget for this week included new shoes.
cash *
n. 现金
claim *
v. say, state or declare something as a fact (without being able to prove it) 声称
e.g. The company claims that it is not responsible for the pollution in the river.
compulsion
n. urge that one cannot resist 欲望，冲动
compulsive
adj. 上瘾的，嗜......成癖的
compulsive spenders
购物成癖的人
compulsive bargain hunters
购便宜货成癖的人
credit*
n. 赊欠，赊帐
discipline *
n. 克制，遵守纪律
self-discipline
n. 自我约束，律已
discount *
n. a reduction in the cost of goods that you are buying 折扣
enormous *
adj. extremely large 巨大的
e.g. These thoughts gave him enormous pleasure.
hunt *
v. search, try to find 搜寻，寻找
hunter
n. 搜寻者
hunting
n. 搜寻
influence *
n. power to affect somebody's actions, character or beliefs 势力，影响
e.g. Mr Jones is a man of influence in the town.
instance *
n. an example of something that happens generally 例子，事例
e.g. There was something strange about each of the men; for instance, James could not speak.
irrational *
adj. not using reason or clear thinking 失去理性的
e.g. Both your fears and your behavior are irrational.
personality *
n. characteristics and qualities of a person seen as a whole 个性
e.g. She has a kind, friendly personality.
psychology
n. the study of the mind and how it works 心理学
psychological *
adj. 心理学的，心理的
psychologist
n. 心理学家
reflect *
v. show, express, or be a sign of 反映
e.g. The book reflected the author's own thoughts on the matter.
salesclerk *
n. shop assistant 售货员
solve *
v. find an answer to or a way of dealing with (a problem etc.) 解决
e.g. Perhaps time would solve the problem.
stem *
v. originate, develop or grow (from) 起源于，由......造成
e.g. All his problems stem from drink.
symbol *
n. a sign, shape or object which is used to represent something else 象征
e.g. The heart shape is a symbol of love.
therapist
n. 治疗专家
The Psychology of Money
Are you a compulsive spender, or do you hold on to your money as long as possible? Are you a bargain hunter? Would you rather use charge accounts than pay cash? Your answers to these questions will reflect your personality. According to psychologists, our individual[1] money habits not only show our beliefs and values, but can also stem from past problems.
Experts in psychology believe that for many people, money is an important symbol of strength and influence. Husbands who complain about their wives' spending habits may be afraid that they are losing power in their marriage. Wives, on the other hand, may waste huge amounts of money because they are angry at their husbands. In addition, many people consider money a symbol of love. They spend it on their family and friends to express love, or they buy themselves expensive presents because they need love.
People can be addicted to different things—for example, alcohol, drugs, certain foods, or even television. People who have such an addiction are compulsive; that is, they have a very powerful psychological need that they feel they must satisfy. According to psychologists, many people are compulsive spenders; they feel that they must spend money. This compulsion, like most others, is irrational—impossible to explain reasonably. For compulsive spenders who buy on credit, charge accounts are even more exciting than money. In other words, compulsive spenders feel that with credit, they can do anything. Their pleasure in spending enormous amounts is actually greater than the pleasure that they get from the things they buy.
There is even a special psychology of bargain hunting. To save money, of course, most people look for sales, low prices, and discounts. Compulsive bargain hunters, however, often buy things that they don't need just because they are cheap. They want to believe that they are helping their budgets, but they are really playing an exciting game: when they can buy something for less than other people, they feel that they are winning. Most people, experts claim, have two reasons for their behavior: a good reason for the things that they do and the real reason.
It is not only scientists, of course, who understand the psychology of spending habits, but also business people. Stores, companies, and advertisers use psychology to increase business: they consider people's needs for love, power, or influence, their basic values, their beliefs and opinions, and so on in their advertising and sales methods.
Psychologists often use a method called "behavior therapy"[2] to help individuals solve their personality problems. In the same way, they can help people who feel that they have problems with money: they give them "assignments". If a person buys something in every store that he enters, for instance, a therapist might teach him self-discipline in this way: on the first day of his therapy, he must go into a store, stay five minutes, and then leave. On the second day, he should stay for ten minutes and try something on. On the third day, he stays for fifteen minutes, asks the salesclerk a question, but does not buy anything. Soon he will learn that nothing bad will happen to him if he doesn't buy anything, and he can solve the problem of his compulsive buying. (542 words)
Phrases and Expressions
be addicted to something
be strongly interested in something as a habit or hobby
e.g. The children are addicted to computer games.
for instance
for example
e.g. There are jobs more dangerous than truck driving; for instance, training lions.
hold on to something
keep something by not losing it or having it taken away from you 抓住......不放
e.g. I think I'll hold on to the records, but you can have the tapes.
in addition
as an extra person, thing or circumstance 此外
e.g. Hong Kong has some of the largest buses in the world. In addition, the city has underground trains and a rapid surface railway.
on credit 以赊账的方式
e.g. They decided to buy the car on credit.
stem from
develop as a result of something else; arise from
e.g. Her interest in flowers stems from her childhood in the country.
PASSAGE II How to Jump Queue Fury
Proper Names
Houston
(美国城市)休斯敦
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
(美国)麻省理工学院
Richard Larson
(男子名)理查德.拉森
US National Science Foundation
美国国家科学基金会
New Words
analyse *
v. study or examine something in detail in order to discover more about it 分析
e.g. This book teaches you how to analyse what is causing the stress in your life.
annoy *
v. make somebody slightly angry and unhappy about something 使烦恼
annoyance
n. 恼怒
aspect *
n. a particular feature of, or way of thinking about, a complicated problem, situation, idea, plan, or activity 方面
e.g. Have you thought about the problem from every aspect?
authority *
n. the group of people with official responsibilities for a particular area 官方，当局
e.g. I'm going to report all these holes in the road to the authorities.
automate *
v. 使自动化
automated
adj. 自动化的
cite *
v. mention something as proof for a theory or as a reason why something has happened 引用
e.g. She cited three reasons why people get into debt.
computerised
adj. equipped with computers to do the work for somebody 电脑化的
directly *
adv. 直接地
e.g. The plane is due to fly directly back to London.
dynamic*
adj. energetic and forceful 有活力的
e.g. Asia continues to be the most dynamic economic region in the world. 亚洲仍然是世界上经济发展最具活力的地区。
electrical *
adj. 电的，电气科学的
extend *
v. add to something in order to make it bigger or longer 延长，扩大
e.g. The pub (小酒馆) has recently extended its opening hours.
finally *
adv. 最后，最终
e.g. The food finally arrived at the end of last week.
finding *
n. the information you get or the conclusion you come to as the result of an investigation or some research 发现，调查结果
e.g. We hope that manufacturers will take note of the findings and improve their products accordingly. 我们希望生产者会注意到这些调查结果并相应地改进他们的产品。
foundation*
n. 基金会
fury *
n. violent or very strong anger 狂怒
highly *
adv. very; much
justice *
n. fairness 公正
e.g. He wants freedom, justice and equality (平等).
latter *
n. 后者
e.g. He finally found his cousin and uncle. The latter was sick.
lengthen *
v. cause something to become longer 拉长
e.g. There is a plan to lengthen the three-year course to four years.
minimize *
v. reduce something to the smallest possible amount or degree 使......减少到最低限度
e.g. The important thing in an interview (面试) is to make the most of your strengths and minimize your weaknesses.
observation *
n. 观察，注意
e.g. In hospital she'll be under observation all the time.
preferable *
adj. more desirable or suitable 更好的，更合意的
e.g. Was an evening with Peter in their company preferable to being left at home alone?
queue *
1) v. wait in a line of people 排队
e.g. I had to queue for quite a while.
2) n. a line of people waiting for something 排队
e.g. There was still a queue for tickets on the night.
reclaim
n. 认领
baggage reclaim
行李提取处
relate *
v. find or show connection between two things 使相互关联
e.g. I can't relate what he does to what he says.
social *
adj. 社会的
e.g. social science/relationships/gathering/activity/security/services 社会科学/关系/集会/活动/保险/事业
technology *
n. 技术
teller
n. a person employed in a bank to receive and pay out money 银行出纳
terminus
n. 终点站
transfer *
v. move from one place, position, job, vehicle, person or group to another 转移，转换
e.g. He wants to transfer some money to the account of his daughter.
ultimately *
adv. finally 最终地
e.g. Ultimately, of course, he'd like to have his own business but that won't be for some time.
unbearable
adj. so unpleasant or painful that you cannot or do not want to experience or deal with it 无法忍受的
How to Jump Queue Fury
If you find yourself waiting in a long queue at an airport or bus terminus this holiday, will you try to analyse what it is about queuing that makes you angry? Or will you just get angry with the nearest official?
Professor Richard Larson, an electrical engineer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, hates queuing but rather than tear his hair out, he decided to study the subject. His first finding, which backs up earlier work at the US National Science Foundation, was that the degree of annoyance was not directly related to the time. He cites an experiment at Houston airport where passengers had to walk for one minute from the plane to the baggage reclaim and then wait a further seven minutes to collect their luggage. Complaints were frequent, especially from those who had spent seven minutes watching passengers with just hand baggage get out immediately[1].
The airport authorities decided to lengthen the walk from the aircraft, so that instead of a one-minute fast walk, the passengers spent six minutes walking. When they finally arrived at the baggage reclaim, the delay was then only two minutes. The extra walk extended the delay by five minutes for those carrying only hand baggage, but passenger complaints dropped almost to zero.
The reason? Larson suggests that it all has to do with what he calls "social justice"[2]. If people see others taking a short cut, they will find the wait unbearable. So in the case of the airport, it was preferable to delay everyone.
Another aspect Larson studied was the observation that people get more fed up if they are not told what is going on. Passengers told that there will be a half-hour delay are less unhappy than those left waiting even twenty minutes without an explanation.
But even knowing how long we have to wait isn't the whole answer. We must also believe that everything is being done to minimize our delay. Larson cites the ?example of two neighbouring American banks. One was highly computerised and served a customer, on average, every 30 seconds. The other bank was less automated and took twice as long. But because the tellers at the second bank looked extremely busy, customers believed the service was faster and many transferred their accounts to the slower bank. Ultimately, the latter[3] had to introduce time-wasting ways of appearing more dynamic. (407 words)
Phrases and Expressions
back up
support
e.g. Her views are backed up by the new scientific discovery.
be related to
be connected with 与......有关
e.g. His heart attack could be related to the car crash (撞车事故) last year.
fed up
annoyed, unhappy, tired of something
e.g. I am fed up with reading how women should dress to please men.
have to do with
have something to do with 和......有关系
e.g. The book has to do with airplanes.
on average 平均地
e.g. On average we would be spending ￡ 200 per day.
take a short cut
take a quicker, more direct way of going somewhere than the usual one 走捷径，抄近路
e.g. Carol decided to take a short cut home.
tear one's hair out
be very anxious or angry about something
e.g. I've been tearing my hair out sorting out these wedding arrangements (婚礼安排).
PASSAGE III Comforting Thoughts
Proper Names
Connecticut
(地名)康涅狄格州(美国)
Meriden
(地名)梅里登(美国康涅狄格州中部一城市)
Yale
耶鲁(大学)
New Words
alpha
n. 阿尔法(一个希腊字母)
aroma
n. a strong, usually pleasant smell 芳香
associate *
v. join or connect (people, things or ideas) together, or be connected 使联系起来
e.g. In the children's minds summer is associated with picnics.
baker *
n. 面包师
bolster
v. make stronger 加强
buck
n. a dollar 美元
buddy
n. a close friend 好朋友
chip *
n. a small piece that has been broken off a larger object 碎片
comforting
adj. 安慰的，令人欣慰的
confirm *
v. give certainty to (a belief or an opinion which was previously not completely certain) 证实，肯定
e.g. X-rays have confirmed that he has not broken any bones.
cookie *
n. a sweet biscuit 曲奇饼
crazy *
adj. 荒唐的，发疯的
e.g. You're crazy to buy it without seeing it.
demonstrate *
v. express or show 表明
e.g. The experiment demonstrated that energy is required to produce a change of state.
desperately *
adv. extremely or very much 极度地，极强烈地
e.g. Her case was desperately serious.
dessert *
n. 甜食
effective *
adj. producing the result that was wanted or intended 有效的
e.g. His efforts to improve the school have been very effective.
expose *
v. show something that is usually covered 暴露
e.g. His house is exposed to the weather.
impractical *
adj. 不切实际的
e.g. It's impractical to have so many people all trying to use the equipment at the same time.
indicate *
v. show something is true or make something clear 表明
e.g. A survey (调查) of retired people has indicated that most are independent and enjoying life.
item *
n. a report or article in a newspaper or magazine, or on television or radio 一条(新闻)
e.g. The earthquake (地震) was the most important news item this week.
naturally *
adv. 自然地
e.g. We are naturally concerned about the future.
neighborhood *
n. 邻近地区
odor *
n. a particular smell 气味
panic *
n. 恐慌，慌乱
e.g. An earthquake had hit the capital, causing damage to buildings and panic among the population.
particularly *
adv. especially 特别地，尤其
e.g. I often do absent-minded things, particularly when I'm worried.
payment *
n. an amount of money paid 偿付的钱
pray *
v. 祈祷
e.g. All the people are praying for peace.
prayer *
n. 祷告，祈祷
private *
adj. 秘密的，私下的
e.g. I wish to have a private talk with you two.
recall *
v. bring back (the memory of a past event) into your mind, and often give a description of what you remember 回忆，回想
e.g. I recalled the way they had been dancing together.
ridiculous *
adj. foolish 可笑的，荒谬的
e.g. It was an absolutely ridiculous decision.
scientific *
adj. about or connected with science 科学的
e.g. It's not a scientific way to test their opinions.
sniff *
v. smell 闻，嗅
e.g. Suddenly, he stopped and sniffed the air.
soothe *
v. calm (a person who is angry or anxious) 安慰，抚慰
e.g. He would take her in his arms and soothe her.
soothing
adj. 安慰的，安慰性的
spice *
v. 调味
spiced
adj. 经过调味的
stuff *
n. 材料，东西
e.g. Don't tell me that you still believe in all that stuff.
upset *
adj. unhappy or disappointed 心烦的，苦恼的
e.g. She was very upset to hear that the holiday had been cancelled (取消).
Comforting Thoughts
First I read about a study in Meriden, Connecticut, which indicated that talking to yourself is a perfectly good way of getting comfort during a difficult time. Then I saw an item about research at Yale demonstrating that stress seems to be reduced in some people by exposing them to the aromas[1] of certain desserts. Then I started talking to myself about desserts with aromas I find soothing. Then I felt a lot better. Isn't science grand?
I didn't feel perfect. One thing that was bothering me was that the ten most popular methods of comforting yourself listed in the Meriden study didn't mention sniffing desserts, even though Yale, where all the sniffing research was going on, is only about twenty miles down the road. Does this mean that some of these scientists are so busy talking to themselves that they don't talk to each other? It got me so upset that I went to the back door of a baker in our neighborhood to sniff the aroma of chocolate chip cookies[2]. I was talking to myself the whole time, of course.
"What the Yale people think," I said to myself, "is that a person is soothed by the smell of, say[3], chocolate chip cookies because it brings back pleasant memories, like the memory of his mother baking chocolate chip cookies."
"What if his mother always burned the chocolate chip cookies?" I replied.
"Are you talking about my mother?"
"Whose mother do you think I'm talking about?" I said. "We're the only ones here."
"Were those cookies burnt?"
"What do you think all that black stuff was?"
"I thought that was the chocolate chips."
"No, she always forgot the chocolate chips."[4]
I wasn't finding the conversation very comforting at all. I don't like to hear anyone make light of my mother's chocolate chip cookies, even me. I must have raised my voice, because the next thing I knew, the baker had come out to see what was going on.
Even though the Meriden study had shown that being with someone else was the most comforting thing of all—it finished[5] ahead of listening to music and even watching TV—I saw right away that being with the baker wasn't going to be much more comforting than talking to myself. He said, "Are you crazy?"
I told him that I was engaging in two therapies that had been scientifically proven effective: sniffing chocolate chip cookies and talking to myself. He told me that I owed him two dollars and fifty cents. "For sniffing, we charge a buck and a quarter a dozen." he explained.
"How do you know I sniffed two dozen?" I asked.
"I just know it." he said.
I told him that according to the research done at Yale, certain odors caused the brain to produce alpha waves[6], which are associated with relaxation. I told him that in my case the odor of chocolate chip cookies—particularly slightly burnt chocolate chip cookies—was such an odor. I told him that he ought to be proud to confirm the scientific research done at one of the great universities of the English-speaking world. That alone, I told him, ought to be payment enough for whatever small part of the aroma of his chocolate chip cookies I had used up with my sniffing.
He thought about it for a moment. Then he said, "Take a walk, buddy."
I was happy to. As it happens, going for a walk finished tenth in the Meriden study, just behind recalling pleasant memories. Naturally, I talked to myself on the way.
"Maybe I can find some place to smell what the Yale people call ‘spiced apple'," I said to myself. "They found that the smell of spiced apple is so effective that with some people it can stop panic attacks.[7]"
"But I don't know what spiced apple smells like," I replied. "Spiced with what?"
That was bothering me enough that my walk wasn't actually very soothing. I thought about bolstering it with some of the other activities on the list, but reading or watching TV seemed impractical. Prayer was also on the list, but praying for the aroma of spiced apple seemed ridiculous.
I walked faster and faster. It occurred to me that[8] I might be getting a panic attack. Desperately I tried to recall some pleasant memories. I recalled the time before I knew about the Meriden list, when I talked to myself only in private. I recalled the time before I knew about the Yale research and didn't have to worry about finding any spiced apple. Then I felt a lot better. I didn't feel perfect, but you can't always feel perfect. (786 words)
Phrases and Expressions
as it happens /happened 恰好，碰巧
e.g. She called Amy to see if she had any idea of her son's whereabouts (下落). As it happened, Amy had.
associate...with
connect...with
e.g. Through science we've got the idea of associating progress with the future.
bring back
cause something to be thought of 使......被忆起
e.g. Your article brought back sad memories for me.
expose somebody /something to
put somebody/something in a situation in which it might affect them 使......暴露在
e.g. A wise mother never exposes her children to the slightest possibility of danger.
in private 私下，秘密地
e.g. I have something to tell you, but instead of talking about it with other people around, I'll speak to you in private.
make light of 不把......当回事
e.g. He always made light of his troubles.
right away
immediately 立刻
e.g. He wants to see you right away.
use up
use all of something 用完
e.g. They have used up their money.
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