6.5 Meeting Someone New

Maybe you’ve heard it before: When meeting someone new, the first few seconds are crucial. This is because people often make character judgments at first sight.  Here are some tips to help you make a good first impression. 

First, hold eye contact a second or two longer than you normally would. By doing this, your eyes show that you are interested in the other person. Second, your arms shouldn’t be crossed and your shoulders should be relaxed. This shows the other person that you are not defensive. Rather, you are open and friendly. Third, remember that people who appear calm and confident are more likely to make a good impression on others. Therefore, avoid looking nervous or uncomfortable. Check any bad habits that you might have, such as playing with your hair, biting your nails, etc. and try not to do them. Finally, while it’s true that others cannot read your mind, they can read your feelings; so fake smiles are never a good idea. People can quickly tell the difference between true and false smiles. So before you walk up to someone new, put a real smile on your face!

6.4 Miss Advice

Dear Miss Advice,

I have a friend who sticks to me like glue! She never leaves me alone.  She texts me several times a day and keeps asking me what I’m doing. If I tell her my plans, she turns up wherever I go. I don’t want to be mean to her, but I hate this situation. It’s very annoying! What should I do?

From Lynne

Dear Lynne,

Take a deep breath, Lynne. You need to give yourself some breathing room. But it doesn’t mean that you have to end your friendship.

Just tell your friend how you feel. Honesty is the best policy. Start by telling her how important her friendship is. Then, explain that you sometimes need time alone.

Another idea is to encourage your friend to find new hobbies of her own. Suggest that she join a club or do activities that she is interested in but you are not. Then you can do your own things while she is enjoying something else.

Oh, and one more thing: Do not feel too sorry for her. Your friend might get upset at first if you limit time with her. But after a while, she’ll probably understand. In the end, it might even make your friendship stronger!

From Miss Advice

6.3 Proustian memory

Have you ever been reminded of an event from the past after smelling a certain scent? This phenomenon is called “Proustian memory.”  It’s named after Marcel Proust, whose novel In Search of Lost Time describes a character who recalls childhood memories when he smells the scent of madeleine in tea. 

The power of Proustian memory has been proven by a scientific experiment. A researcher, Dr. Hertz, showed subjects some pictures with different scents. Later, he only allowed them to smell the scents. After smelling them, the subjects were better able to remember the pictures than when they were given nothing to smell.

Dr. Hertz conducted his experiment using hearing and touch, in addition to smell. These senses, however, did not produce the same results. This suggests that sense of smell must be linked to the part of the brain that controls memories.

6.2 Harp to heal animals

Maybe you’ve heard that music helps people recover from illness. Now a young harpist is using music to heal animals!  Alianna Boone, from Oregon, USA, plays her harp for sick pets. 

A few years ago, she went to a clinic for sick dogs and played her harp for the animals there. Before long, the dogs were resting peacefully and showed fewer signs of pain and illness. Dogs aren’t the only animals that like music. Cassie, a black and white cow, lives on a farm near Alianna’s house. One day Cassie seemed very nervous and wouldn’t let anyone come close to her. Alianna wasn’t sure what was wrong with Cassie, but she decided to play a CD of her harp songs. The cow quickly fell asleep! “The harp is one of the most healing instruments after the human voice,” says Alianna.

6.1 Stendhal’s Syndrome

How do you feel when you see a beautiful painting? Happy?  Impressed? Surprisingly, some people might answer that it makes them feel sick. They have an illness called “Stendhal’s Syndrome.” 

The syndrome is named after a French writer called Stendhal who was overwhelmed when he visited Florence in 1817. The city was so rich in art and history that he couldn’t control his emotions. Later, he wrote about his feelings in a book: “Everything spoke so vividly to my soul. I walked with the fear of falling.”

An Italian doctor later noticed strange behavior in some of the tourists who visited Florence. They felt dizzy and confused when they looked at great artwork. Also, they experienced panic attacks that would last for a few days. The doctor named the syndrome after Stendhal.

5.5 Fisherman

One afternoon, a businessman was sitting on a beach. He saw a fisherman and asked, “How long did it take you to catch these fish?”

 “Not very long,” the fisherman replied. 

The businessman was surprised. “Then why don’t you stay longer and catch even more fish?”

“This is all I need for my family,” the fisherman said.

Then the businessman asked, “How do you spend the rest of your day?”

“I go home to rest and spend time with my family. Then in the evening, I hang out with my friends.” the fisherman explained.

So, the businessman gave him some advice: “If you want to become a successful businessman like me, you should start staying out longer at sea. That way, you can catch more fish to sell, save money, and then buy a bigger boat. After a few successful years, you can move to the city and manage your business from there.”

“And then what would I do?” asked the fisherman.

“You make enough money to buy a big house and live like a king.” the businessman replied.

“And then what?” asked the fisherman.

“After that, you can retire and spend time with your family at home. In the evenings, you can hang out with your friends.”

The fisherman was confused, “Isn’t that what I do now?”

5.4 Strange Farts

An old woman went to see her doctor, and told him her embarrassing medical problem. “I have strange farts.  I fart all the time, but my farts don’t make any sound or smell. I’m sure you haven’t noticed, but I’ve actually farted ten times while we’ve been talking. What should I do?” 

The doctor looked serious, and frowned at her. “Here are some pills. Take these pills twice a day for one week, and then come see me again,” said the doctor.

The next week the old woman came back, but this time she was really upset. “Doctor!”she said. “What was in those pills? They made my problem worse! I’m still farting all the time, but now my farts smell terrible!”

The doctor said “Calm down. You’re actually much better.” The old woman shouted, “What? That’s impossible!” The doctor replied, “I fixed your nose. Now I need to fix your ears.”