style=color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: "Microsoft YaHei"; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(250, 250, 250);/B) Yet this most fundamental standard of historical periodization conceals a host of paradoxes．Nearly every movie Theatre，however modest．had a piano or organ to provide musical accompaniment to silent pictures．In many instances，spectators in the era before recorded sound experienced elaborate aural presentations alongside movies’visual images，from the Japanese benshi(narrators)crafting multi-voiced dialogue narratives to original musical compositions performed by symphony．size orchestras in Europe and the United States．In Berlin，for the premiere performance outside the Soviet Union of The Battleship Potemkin。film director Sergei Eisenstein worked with Austrian composer Ed．mund Meisel(1874—1930)on a musical score matching sound to image；the Berlin screenings with live music helped to bring the film its wide international fame． 
style=color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: "Microsoft YaHei"; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(250, 250, 250);/C) Beyond that，the triumph of recorded sound has overshadowed the rich diversity of technological and aesthetic experiments with the visual image that were going forward simultaneously in the l920s．New color processes，larger or differently shaped screen sizes，multiple-screen projections．even televislon，were among the developments invented or tried out during the period，sometimes with starting success．The high costs of converting to sound and the early limitations of sound technology were among the factors that suppressed innovations or retarded advancement in these other areas．The intr0—duction of new screen formats was put off for a quarter century，and color，though utilized over the next two decades for special productions，also did not become a norm until the l950s． 
style=color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: "Microsoft YaHei"; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(250, 250, 250);/D) Though it may be difficult to imagine from a later perspective，a stream of critical opinions in the1920s predicted that sound film would be a technical novelty that would soon fade from sight，just as had many previous attempts，dating well back before the First World War，to link images with recorded sound．These critics were making a common assumption that the technological inadequacies of earlier efforts(poor synchronization，weak sound amplification。fragile sound recordings)would in—variably occur again．To be sure，their evaluation of the technical flaws in l920s，sound experiments was not so far off the mark, yet they neglected to take into account important new forces in the motion picture field that, in a sense, would not take no for an answer.~
style=color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: "Microsoft YaHei"; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(250, 250, 250);/E) These forces were the rapidly expanding electronics and telecommunications companies that were developing and linking telephone and wireless technologies in the 1920s. In the United States, they included such firms as American Telephone and Telegraph, General Electric, and Westinghouse. They were interested in all forms of sound technology and all potential avenues for commercial exploitation.
style=color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: "Microsoft YaHei"; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(250, 250, 250);/F) Their competition and collaboration were creating the broadcasting industry in the United States, be-ginning with the introduction of commercial radio programming in the early 1920s. With financial assets considerably greater than those in the motion picture industry, and perhaps a wider vision of the relationships among entertainment and communications media, they revitalized research into recording sound for motion pictures. In 1929 the United States motion picture industry released more than 300sound films--a rough figure, since a number were silent films with music tracks, or films prepared in dual versions, to take account of the many cinemas not yet wired for sound. At the production level,in the United States the conversion was virtually complete by 1930. In Europe it took a little longer,mainly because there were more small producers for whom the costs of sound were prohibitive, and in other parts of the world problems with s or access to equipment delayed the shift to sound production for a few more years (though cinemas in major cities may have been wired in order to play foreign sound films). The triumph of sound cinema was swift, complete, and enormously popular.
style=color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: "Microsoft YaHei"; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(250, 250, 250);/G) A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still images which, when shown on a screen, creates the illusion of moving images. A film is created by photographing actual scenes with a motion picture camera; by photographing drawings or miniature models using traditional animation techniques; by means of CGI computer animation; or by a combination of some or all of these techniques and other visual effects. The process of filmmaking is both an art and an industry. Films were originally recorded onto plastic film which was shown through a movie projector onto a large screen;more modem techniques may use wholly digital filming and storage, such as the Ruian camera which records onto hard-disk or flash cards.
style=color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: "Microsoft YaHei"; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(250, 250, 250);/H) Films usually include an optical soundtrack, which is a graphic recording of the spoken words, music and other sounds that are to accompany the images. It runs along a portion of the film exclusively re-served for it and is not projected.
style=color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: "Microsoft YaHei"; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(250, 250, 250);/I) Films are cultural artifacts created by specific cultures. They reflect those cultures, and, in turn, affect them. Film is considered to be an important art form, a source of popular entertainment, and a powerful medium for educating-or indoctrinating-citizens. The visual basis of film gives it a universal power of communication. Some films have become popular worldwide attractions by using dubbing or subtitles to translate the dialogue into the language of the viewer. 

一般来说，选择作为替代物的期货品种最好是该现货商品或资产的替代品，相互替代性越强，交叉套期保值交易的效果就会越好。( )

    A.Millions of school-leavers in the rich world are about to bid a tearful goodbye to their parents and start a new life at university. Some are inspired by a pure love of learning. But most also believe that spending three or four years at university--and accumulating huge debts in the process--will boost their chances of landing a well-paid and secure job.　　B.Their elders have always told them that education is the best way to equip themselves to thrive in a globalised world. Blue-collar workers will see their jobs outsourced and automated, the familiar argument goes. School dropouts will have to cope with a life of cash-strapped (资金紧张的) insecurity. But the graduate elite will have the world at its feet. There is some evidence to support this view. A recent study from Georgetown University's Centre on Education and the Workforce argues that"obtaining a post-secondary credential ( 证书) is almost always worth it." Educational qualifications are tightly correlated with earnings: an American with a professional degree can expect to pocket $3.6m over a lifetime; one with merely a high- school diploma can expect only $1.3m. The gap between more- and less-educated earners may be widening. A study in 2002 found that someone with a bachelor's degree could expect to earn 75% more over a lifetime than someone with only a high-school diploma. Today the disparity is even greater.　　C.But is the past a reliable guide to the future? Or are we at the beginning of a new phase in the relationship between jobs and education? There are good reasons for thinking that old patterns are about to change--and that the current recession-driven downturn (衰退) in the demand for Western graduates will morph (改变) into something structural. The strong wind of creative destruction that has shaken so many blue-collar workers over the past few decades is beginning to shake the cognitive elite as well.　　D.The supply of university graduates is increasing rapidly. The Chronicle of Higher Education calculates that between 1990 and 2007 the number of students going to university increased by 22% in North America, 74% in Europe, 144% in Latin America and 203% in Asia. In 2007 150m people attended university around the world, including 70m in Asia. Emerging economies—specially China--are pouring resources into building universities that can compete with the elite of America and Europe. They are also producing professional- services firms snch as Tata Consulting Services and Infosys that take fresh graduates and turn them into world-class computer programmers and consultants. The best and the best of the rich world must increasingly compete with the best and the best from poorer countries who are willing to work harder for less money.　　E. At the same time, the demand for educated labor is being reconfigured (重新配置) by technology, in much the same way that the demand for agricultural labor was reconfigured in the 19th century and that for factory labor in the 20th. Computers can not only perform repetitive mental tasks much faster than human beings. They can also empower amateurs to do what professionals once did: why hire a flesh-and-blood accountant to complete your tax return when Turbotax (a software package ) will do the job at a fraction of the cost? And the variety of jobs that computers can do is multiplying as programmers teach them to deal with tone and linguistic ambiguity.　　F.Several economists, including Paul Krugman, have begun to argue that post-industrial societies will be characterized not by a relentless rise in demand for the educated but by a great "hollowing out", as mid-level jobs are destroyed by smart machines and high-level job growth slows. David Autor, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), points out that the main effect of automation in the computer era is not that it destroys blue-collar jobs but that it destroys any job that can be reduced to a routine. Alan Blinder of Prin　　G. A university education is still a prerequisite for entering some of the great industries, such as medicine, law and academia (学术界), that provide secure and well-paying jobs. Over the 20th century these industries did a wonderful job of raising barriers to entry--sometimes for good reasons (nobody wants to be operated on by a barber) and sometimes for self-interested ones. But these industries are beginning to bend the roles. Newspapers are fighting a losing battle with the blogosphere. Universities are replacing tenure-track professors with non-tenured staff. Law firms are contracting out routine work such as"discovery" (digging up documents relevant to a lawsuit) to computerized-search specialists such as Blackstone Discovery. Even doctors are threatened, as patients find advice online and treatment in Walmart's new health centers.　　H.Thomas Malone of MIT argues that these changes--automation, globalizafion and deregulation--may be part of a bigger change: the application of the division of labor to brain-work. Adam Smith's factory managers broke the production of pins into 18 components. In the same way, companies are increasingly breaking the production of brain-work into ever tinier slices. TopCoder chops up IT projects into bite-sized chunks and then serves them up to a worldwide workforce of freelance coders.　　I.These changes will undoubtedly improve the productivity of brain-workers. They will allow consumers to sidestep (规避 ) the professional industries that have extracted high rents for their services. And they will empower many brain-workers to focus on what they are best at and contract out more tedious tasks to others. But the reconfiguration of brain-work will also make life far less cozy and predictable for the next generation of graduates.

    A.Millions of school-leavers in the rich world are about to bid a tearful goodbye to their parents and start a new life at university. Some are inspired by a pure love of learning. But most also believe that spending three or four years at university--and accumulating huge debts in the process--will boost their chances of landing a well-paid and secure job.　　B.Their elders have always told them that education is the best way to equip themselves to thrive in a globalised world. Blue-collar workers will see their jobs outsourced and automated, the familiar argument goes. School dropouts will have to cope with a life of cash-strapped (资金紧张的) insecurity. But the graduate elite will have the world at its feet. There is some evidence to support this view. A recent study from Georgetown University's Centre on Education and the Workforce argues that"obtaining a post-secondary credential ( 证书) is almost always worth it." Educational qualifications are tightly correlated with earnings: an American with a professional degree can expect to pocket $3.6m over a lifetime; one with merely a high- school diploma can expect only $1.3m. The gap between more- and less-educated earners may be widening. A study in 2002 found that someone with a bachelor's degree could expect to earn 75% more over a lifetime than someone with only a high-school diploma. Today the disparity is even greater.　　C.But is the past a reliable guide to the future? Or are we at the beginning of a new phase in the relationship between jobs and education? There are good reasons for thinking that old patterns are about to change--and that the current recession-driven downturn (衰退) in the demand for Western graduates will morph (改变) into something structural. The strong wind of creative destruction that has shaken so many blue-collar workers over the past few decades is beginning to shake the cognitive elite as well.　　D.The supply of university graduates is increasing rapidly. The Chronicle of Higher Education calculates that between 1990 and 2007 the number of students going to university increased by 22% in North America, 74% in Europe, 144% in Latin America and 203% in Asia. In 2007 150m people attended university around the world, including 70m in Asia. Emerging economies—specially China--are pouring resources into building universities that can compete with the elite of America and Europe. They are also producing professional- services firms snch as Tata Consulting Services and Infosys that take fresh graduates and turn them into world-class computer programmers and consultants. The best and the best of the rich world must increasingly compete with the best and the best from poorer countries who are willing to work harder for less money.　　E. At the same time, the demand for educated labor is being reconfigured (重新配置) by technology, in much the same way that the demand for agricultural labor was reconfigured in the 19th century and that for factory labor in the 20th. Computers can not only perform repetitive mental tasks much faster than human beings. They can also empower amateurs to do what professionals once did: why hire a flesh-and-blood accountant to complete your tax return when Turbotax (a software package ) will do the job at a fraction of the cost? And the variety of jobs that computers can do is multiplying as programmers teach them to deal with tone and linguistic ambiguity.　　F.Several economists, including Paul Krugman, have begun to argue that post-industrial societies will be characterized not by a relentless rise in demand for the educated but by a great "hollowing out", as mid-level jobs are destroyed by smart machines and high-level job growth slows. David Autor, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), points out that the main effect of automation in the computer era is not that it destroys blue-collar jobs but that it destroys any job that can be reduced to a routine. Alan Blinder of Prin　　G. A university education is still a prerequisite for entering some of the great industries, such as medicine, law and academia (学术界), that provide secure and well-paying jobs. Over the 20th century these industries did a wonderful job of raising barriers to entry--sometimes for good reasons (nobody wants to be operated on by a barber) and sometimes for self-interested ones. But these industries are beginning to bend the roles. Newspapers are fighting a losing battle with the blogosphere. Universities are replacing tenure-track professors with non-tenured staff. Law firms are contracting out routine work such as"discovery" (digging up documents relevant to a lawsuit) to computerized-search specialists such as Blackstone Discovery. Even doctors are threatened, as patients find advice online and treatment in Walmart's new health centers.　　H.Thomas Malone of MIT argues that these changes--automation, globalizafion and deregulation--may be part of a bigger change: the application of the division of labor to brain-work. Adam Smith's factory managers broke the production of pins into 18 components. In the same way, companies are increasingly breaking the production of brain-work into ever tinier slices. TopCoder chops up IT projects into bite-sized chunks and then serves them up to a worldwide workforce of freelance coders.　　I.These changes will undoubtedly improve the productivity of brain-workers. They will allow consumers to sidestep (规避 ) the professional industries that have extracted high rents for their services. And they will empower many brain-workers to focus on what they are best at and contract out more tedious tasks to others. But the reconfiguration of brain-work will also make life far less cozy and predictable for the next generation of graduates.

A) This goal places the emphasis on the learning needs of young people and adults in the context of lifelong learning.It calls for fair access to learning programs that are appropriate，and mentions life skills particularly.　　B)Education is about giving people the opportunity to develop their potential，their personality and their strengths.This does not merely mean learning new knowledge，but also developing abilities to make the most of life.These are called life skills——including the inner capacities and the practical skills we need.　　C)Many of the inner capacities——often known as psych0—social skills——cannot be taught as subjects.They are not the same as academic or technical learnin9.They must rather be modeled and promoted as part of learning，and in particular by teachers.These skills have to do with the way we behave—towards other people，towards ourselves，towards the challenges and problems of life.　　They include skills in communicating，in making decisions and solving problems，in negotiating and expressing ourselves，in thinking critically and understanding our feelings.　　D)More practical life skills are the kinds of manual skills we need for the physical tasks we face.Some would include vocational skills under the heading of life skills——the ability to lay bricks.sew clothes，catch fish or repair a motorbike.These are skills by which people may earn their livelihood and which are often available to young people leaving school.In fact，very often young people learn psycho-social skills as they learn more practical skills.Learning vocational skills can be a strategy for acquiring both practical and psycho-social skills.　　E)We need to increase our life skills at every stage of life，so learning them may be part of early child—hood education.of primary and secondary education and of adult learning groups.Life skills can be put into the categories that the Jacques Delors report suggested;it spoke of four pillars of education，which correspond to certain kinds of life skills—Learning to know：Thinking abilities：such as problem—solving，critical thinking，decision making，understanding consequences.Learning to be： Personal abilities：such as managing stress and feelings，self-awareness，self-confidence.Learning to live together：Social abilities：such as communication，negotiation，teamwork.Learning to do： Manual skills：practicing know-how required for work and tasks.　　F)In today’s world all these skills are necessary, in order to face rapid change in society.This means that it is important to know how to go on learning as we require new skills for life and work.In addition，we need to know how to cope with the flood of information and turn it in to useful knowledge.We also need to learn how to handle change in society and in our own lives.　　G)Life skills are both concrete and abstract—practical skills can be learned directly, as a subject.For example, a learner can take a course in laying bricks and learn that skill.Other life skills，such as self-confidence，self-esteem，and skills for relating to others or thinking critically cannot be taught in such direct ways.They should be part of any learning process，where teachers or instructors are concerned that learners should not just learn about subjects，but learn how to cope with life and make the most of their potential.　　H)So these life skills may be learnt when learning other things.For example：Learning literacy may have a big impact on self-esteem，on critical thinking or on communication skills;Learning practical skills s ach as drivin9，healthcare or tailoring may increase self-confidence，teach problem—solving processes or help in understanding consequences.　　I) Whether this is true depends on the way of teachin9—what kinds of thinkin9，relationship building and communication the teacher or facilitator models themselves and promotes among the learners.　　It would require measuring the individual and collective progress in making the most of learning and of life，or assessing how far human potential is being realized，or estimating how well people cope with change.It is easier to measure the development of practical skills，for instance by counting the number of students who register for vocational skills courses.However, this still may not tell us how effectively these skills are being used.　　J)The psych0.social skills cannot easily be measured by tests and scores，but become visible in Chang behavior.Progress in this area has often been noted by teachers on reports which they make to the parents of their pupils.The teacher’s experience of life，of teaching and of what can be expected from education in the broadest sense serve as a standard by which the growth and development of individuals can be assessed to some extent.This kind of assessment is individual and may never appear in international tables and charts.　　K)The current challenges relate to these difficulties：We need to recognize the importance of life skills　both practical and psycho-social　as part of education which leads to the full development of human potential and to the development of society.The links between psycho—social skills and practical skills must be more clearly spelled out，so that educators can promote both together and find effective ways to do this.Since life skills are taught as part of a wide range of subjects，teachers need to have training in how to put them across and how to monitor learners’growth in these areas.　　In designing curricula and syllabuses for academic subjects，there must be a balance between content teaching and attention to the accompanying life skills.A more conscious and deliberate effort to promote life skills will enable learners to become more active citizens in the life of society.　　L) Governments should recognize and actively advocate for the transformational role of education in realizing human potential and in socio—economic development.Ensure that curricula and syllabuses address life skills and give learners the opportunity to make real-life applications of knowledge，skills and attitudes.Show how life skills of all kinds apply in the world of work，for example，negotiating and communication skills，as well practical skills.Through initial and in-service teacher training，increase the use of active and participatory learning/teaching approaches.Examine and adapt the processes and content of education so that there is a balance between academic input and life skills development.Make sure that education inspectors look not only for academic progress through teaching and learning，but also progress in the communication， modeling and application of life skills.Advocate for the links between primary and(early)secondary education because learning life skills needs eight or nine years and recognize that the prospect of effective secondary education is an incentive to children，and their parents，to complete primary education successfully.　　M)Funding agencies should support research，exchange and debate.nationally and regionally,　on ways of strengthening life skills education.Support innovative(创新的)teacher training in order to combine life skills promotion into subjects across the curriculum and as a fundamental part of what school and education are about.Recognize the links between primary and secondary education in ensuring that children develop strong life skills.Support，therefore，the early years of secondary education as part basic education.　　N) As support to governments and in cooperation with other international agencies，UNESC0：Works to define life skills better and clarify what it means to teach and learn them.Assists education. policy makers and teachers to develop and use a life skills approach to education.Advocates for the links between a life skills approach to education and broader society and human development.

A) This goal places the emphasis on the learning needs of young people and adults in the context of lifelong learning.It calls for fair access to learning programs that are appropriate，and mentions life skills particularly.　　B)Education is about giving people the opportunity to develop their potential，their personality and their strengths.This does not merely mean learning new knowledge，but also developing abilities to make the most of life.These are called life skills——including the inner capacities and the practical skills we need.　　C)Many of the inner capacities——often known as psych0—social skills——cannot be taught as subjects.They are not the same as academic or technical learnin9.They must rather be modeled and promoted as part of learning，and in particular by teachers.These skills have to do with the way we behave—towards other people，towards ourselves，towards the challenges and problems of life.　　They include skills in communicating，in making decisions and solving problems，in negotiating and expressing ourselves，in thinking critically and understanding our feelings.　　D)More practical life skills are the kinds of manual skills we need for the physical tasks we face.Some would include vocational skills under the heading of life skills——the ability to lay bricks.sew clothes，catch fish or repair a motorbike.These are skills by which people may earn their livelihood and which are often available to young people leaving school.In fact，very often young people learn psycho-social skills as they learn more practical skills.Learning vocational skills can be a strategy for acquiring both practical and psycho-social skills.　　E)We need to increase our life skills at every stage of life，so learning them may be part of early child—hood education.of primary and secondary education and of adult learning groups.Life skills can be put into the categories that the Jacques Delors report suggested;it spoke of four pillars of education，which correspond to certain kinds of life skills—Learning to know：Thinking abilities：such as problem—solving，critical thinking，decision making，understanding consequences.Learning to be： Personal abilities：such as managing stress and feelings，self-awareness，self-confidence.Learning to live together：Social abilities：such as communication，negotiation，teamwork.Learning to do： Manual skills：practicing know-how required for work and tasks.　　F)In today’s world all these skills are necessary, in order to face rapid change in society.This means that it is important to know how to go on learning as we require new skills for life and work.In addition，we need to know how to cope with the flood of information and turn it in to useful knowledge.We also need to learn how to handle change in society and in our own lives.　　G)Life skills are both concrete and abstract—practical skills can be learned directly, as a subject.For example, a learner can take a course in laying bricks and learn that skill.Other life skills，such as self-confidence，self-esteem，and skills for relating to others or thinking critically cannot be taught in such direct ways.They should be part of any learning process，where teachers or instructors are concerned that learners should not just learn about subjects，but learn how to cope with life and make the most of their potential.　　H)So these life skills may be learnt when learning other things.For example：Learning literacy may have a big impact on self-esteem，on critical thinking or on communication skills;Learning practical skills s ach as drivin9，healthcare or tailoring may increase self-confidence，teach problem—solving processes or help in understanding consequences.　　I) Whether this is true depends on the way of teachin9—what kinds of thinkin9，relationship building and communication the teacher or facilitator models themselves and promotes among the learners.　　It would require measuring the individual and collective progress in making the most of learning and of life，or assessing how far human potential is being realized，or estimating how well people cope with change.It is easier to measure the development of practical skills，for instance by counting the number of students who register for vocational skills courses.However, this still may not tell us how effectively these skills are being used.　　J)The psych0.social skills cannot easily be measured by tests and scores，but become visible in Chang behavior.Progress in this area has often been noted by teachers on reports which they make to the parents of their pupils.The teacher’s experience of life，of teaching and of what can be expected from education in the broadest sense serve as a standard by which the growth and development of individuals can be assessed to some extent.This kind of assessment is individual and may never appear in international tables and charts.　　K)The current challenges relate to these difficulties：We need to recognize the importance of life skills　both practical and psycho-social　as part of education which leads to the full development of human potential and to the development of society.The links between psycho—social skills and practical skills must be more clearly spelled out，so that educators can promote both together and find effective ways to do this.Since life skills are taught as part of a wide range of subjects，teachers need to have training in how to put them across and how to monitor learners’growth in these areas.　　In designing curricula and syllabuses for academic subjects，there must be a balance between content teaching and attention to the accompanying life skills.A more conscious and deliberate effort to promote life skills will enable learners to become more active citizens in the life of society.　　L) Governments should recognize and actively advocate for the transformational role of education in realizing human potential and in socio—economic development.Ensure that curricula and syllabuses address life skills and give learners the opportunity to make real-life applications of knowledge，skills and attitudes.Show how life skills of all kinds apply in the world of work，for example，negotiating and communication skills，as well practical skills.Through initial and in-service teacher training，increase the use of active and participatory learning/teaching approaches.Examine and adapt the processes and content of education so that there is a balance between academic input and life skills development.Make sure that education inspectors look not only for academic progress through teaching and learning，but also progress in the communication， modeling and application of life skills.Advocate for the links between primary and(early)secondary education because learning life skills needs eight or nine years and recognize that the prospect of effective secondary education is an incentive to children，and their parents，to complete primary education successfully.　　M)Funding agencies should support research，exchange and debate.nationally and regionally,　on ways of strengthening life skills education.Support innovative(创新的)teacher training in order to combine life skills promotion into subjects across the curriculum and as a fundamental part of what school and education are about.Recognize the links between primary and secondary education in ensuring that children develop strong life skills.Support，therefore，the early years of secondary education as part basic education.　　N) As support to governments and in cooperation with other international agencies，UNESC0：Works to define life skills better and clarify what it means to teach and learn them.Assists education. policy makers and teachers to develop and use a life skills approach to education.Advocates for the links between a life skills approach to education and broader society and human development.

A) One evening a few years ago I found myself in an anxiety. Nothing was really wrong my family and I were healthy, my career was busy and successful -- I was just feeling vaguely down and in need of a friend who could raise my spirits, someone who would meet me for coffee and let merant until the clouds lifted. I dialed my best friend, who now lives across the country in California, and got her voicemail. That's when it started to dawn on me -- lonesomeness was at the root of my dreariness. My social life had dwindled to almost nothing, but somehow until that moment I'd been too busy to notice. Now it hit me hard. My old friends, buddies since college or even childhood, know everything about me; when they left, they had taken my context with them.　　B) Research has shown the long-range negative consequences of social isolation on one's health. But my concerns were more short-term. I needed to feel understood then in the way that only a girlfriend can understand you. I knew it would be wrong to expect my husband to replace my friends: He couldn't, and even if he could, to whom would I then complain about my husband? So I resolved to acquire new friends -- women like me who had kids and enjoyed rolling their eyes at the worlda little bit just as I did. Since I'd be making friends with more intention than I'd ever given the process, I realized I could be selective, that I could in effect design my own social life. The down side, of course, was that I felt pretty fened.　　C) After all, it's a whole lot harder to make friends in midlife that it is when yon're younger -- a fact woman I've spoken with point out again and again. As Leslie Danzig, 41, a Chicago theater director and mother, sees it, when you're in your teens and 20s, you're more or less friends with everyone unless there's a reason not to be. Your college roommate becomes your best pal at least partly due to proximity. Now there needs to be a reason to be friends. "There are many people I'm comfort-able around, but I wouldn't go so far as to call them friends. Comfort isn't enough to sustain a real friendship," Danzig says.　　D) At first, finding new companions felt awkward. At 40 I couldn't run up to people the way my4-year-old daughters do in the playground and ask, "Will you be my friend? Every time you start anew relationship, you're vulnerable again," agrees Kathleen Hall, D Min, founder and CEO of the Stress Institute, in Atlanta. "You're asking, 'Would you like to come into my life?' It makes us self-conscious."　　E) Fortunately, my discomfort soon passed. I realized that as a mature friend seeker my vulnerability risk was actually pretty low. If someone didn't take me up on my offer, so what: I wasn't in junior high, when I might have been rejected for having the wrong clothes or hair. At my age I have amassed enough self-esteem to realize that I have plenty to offer.　　F) We're all so busy, in fact, that mutual interests -- say, in a project, class, or cause that we already make time for -- become the perfect catalysts for bringing us in contact with candidates for camaraderie. Michelle Mertes, 35, a teacher and mother of two in Wausau, Wisconsin, says anew friend she made at church came as a pleasant surprise. "In high school I chose friends based on their popular-ity and how being part of their circle might reflect on me. Now's it's our shared values and activities that count." Mertes says her pal, with whom she organized the church's youth programs, is nothing like her but their drive and organizational skills make them ideal friends.　　G) Happily, as awkward as making new friends can be, self-esteem issues do not factor in -- or if they do, you can easily put them into perspective. Danzig tells of the mother of a child in her son's pre-school, a tall, beautiful woman who is married to a big-deal rock musician. "I said to my husband, she's too cool for me,'" she jokes. "I get intimidated by people. But once I got to know her, she turned out to be pretty laid-back and friendly." In the end there was no chemistry between them, so they didn't become good pals. "I realized that we weren't each other's type, but it wasn't about hierarchy." What midlife friendship is about, it seems, is reflecting the person you've become (or are still becoming) back at yourself, thus reinforcing the progress you've made in your life.　　H) Harlene Katzman, 41, a lawyer in New York City, notes that her oldest friends knew her back when she was less sure of herself. As much as she loves them, she believes they sometimes respond to is-sues in light of who she once was. An old chum has the goods on you. With recently made friends, you can turn over a new leaf.　　I) A new friend, chosen , can also help you point your boat in the direction you want to go. Hanna Dershowitz, 39, an attorney and mother in Los Angeles, found that a new acquaintance from workwas exactly what she needed in a friend. In addition to liking and respecting Julia, Dershowitz had a feeling that the fit and athletic younger woman would help her to get in shape.　　J) While you're busy making new friends, remember that you still need to nurture your old ones. We asked Marla Paul, author of The Friendship Crisis: Finding, Making, and Keeping Friends When You "re Not a Kid Anymore, for the best ways to maintain these important relationships. Keep in touch. Your friends should be a priority; schedule regular lunch dates or coffee catch-up sessions, no matter how busy you are. Know her business. Keep track of important events in a friend's life and show your support. Call or e-mail to let her know you're thinking of her. Speak your mind. Tell a friend (politely) if something she did really upset you. If you can't be totally honest, then you need to reexamine the relationship. Accept her flaws. No one is perfect, so work around her quirks --she's chronically late, or she's a bit negative -- to cut down on frustration and fights. Boost her ego. Heartfelt compliments make everyone feel great, so tell her how much you love her new sweater or what a great job she did on a work project.