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[TOPIC 01] Gamer earns enough to give up day job   A university graduate has given up work after videos of him playing an online game in his bedroom became an internet sensation.   Joseph Garrett, 23, now earns a fortune filming himself sitting on his bed playing Minecraft and uploading the clips to YouTube for fans to watch.   His channel - under the name 'Stampylonghead' - gets five million hits a day, making it one of the top 10 most viewed worldwide,   Mr Garrett, who began playing Minecraft and uploading his videos 18 months ago, pulls in more traffic on the video sharing website than One Direction and Justin Bieber.   When his channel reached 10,000 subscribers he quit his job at a local pub to manage the channel full time.   He is now sent, on average, 3,000 messages a day from gamers asking for tips. He makes money by pocketing a share of the advertising revenue from his videos.   Mr Garrett, who has a degree in TV and video production, currently uploads at least one 20-minute video a day.   He says: "When I was at university I switched over to doing what I do now, called a 'let's play'. You are essentially just playing and commentating while you play, just as a fun hobby.   "When those videos started to become popular, I started monetising them. That started to grow and ended up snowballing and that's how I got to where I am now."   1. Do you like online games or smart phone games?　What's your reaction to the article?2. What can you say about this avid gamer who made enough on YouTube to quit his day time job?3. Do you think Joseph Garrett is happy with his job? Why or why not? What do you think are the advantages and disadvantages of Mr. Garrett's job?4. What can you say about working at home, in bed or at your convenience without having to dress up to go to work but still earn a lot of money? Would you like something like that? Why or why not?5. If you could do something you love and earn from it, what would it be and why?   [TOPIC 02] Taking photographs ruins the memory, research finds   Taking a picture for posterity at a birthday, wedding or concert may harm our ability to remember the event fully, researchers believe in a phenomenon known as 'photo-taking impairment effect'   A study has shown that taking pictures rather than concentrating fully on the events in front of us prevents memories taking holdTaking photographs at a birthday or a wedding has become as natural as blowing out candles or cutting the cake.But our obsession with recording every detail of our happiest moments could be damaging our ability to remember them, according to new research. A study has shown that taking pictures rather than concentrating fully on the events in front of us prevents memories taking hold.Dr Linda Henkel, from Fairfield University, Connecticut, described it as the "photo-taking impairment effect".She said: "People so often whip out their cameras almost mindlessly to capture a moment, to the point that they are missing what is happening right in front of them."When people rely on technology to remember for them - counting on the camera to record the event and thus not needing to attend to it fully themselves - it can have a negative impact on how well they remember their experiences."Dr Henkel and her team carried out an experiment in a museum, to learn if taking pictures of the exhibits was hindering the ability of visitors to remember what they had seen. A group of university students were led on a tour at the Bellarmine Museum of Art at Fairfield University and asked to either photograph or try and remember objects on display.   The next day their memory was tested.The results showed that people were less accurate in recognising the objects they had photographed compared to those they had only looked at.It was found that their memory of detail for the objects they had photographed was poorer. Musicians including Beyonce, Prince and Bjork, have all insisted on photo bans at their performances claiming cameras detract from the performance.Dr Henkel is currently investigating whether the content of a photo, such as whether you are in it, affects memory.She also wants to explore whether actively choosing what to photograph might influence what we remember.   A second study by the team replicated these findings, but it also presented an interesting twist: Taking a photograph of a specific detail on the object by zooming in on it with the camera seemed to preserve memory for the object, not just for the part that was zoomed in on but also for the part that was out of frame.   "These results show how the 'mind's eye' and the camera's eye are not the same," says Henkel.Henkel's lab is currently investigating whether the content of a photo, such as whether you are in it, affects later memory. She is also researching whether actively choosing what to photograph might influence what we remember."This study was carefully controlled, so participants were directed to take pictures of particular objects and not others, but in everyday life people take photos of things that are important to them, that are meaningful, that they want to remember." Previous research suggests that reviewing photos we have taken does help us remember the objects, but only if we take the time."Research has suggested that the sheer volume and lack of organisation of digital photos for personal memories discourages many people from accessing and reminiscing about them."In order to remember, we have to access and interact with the photos, rather than just amass them," said Dr Henkel.   1. In what events do you usually take photos and why?2. Which do you prefer, a digital camera or a phone cam? Why is that so?3. What is reaction to this study? Do you agree with it?4. How do you think can people avoid impairing their memory?5. Do you think it is important to take pictures of special moments? Please share your thoughts.