年底的時候節日特別多，比如聖誕節、元旦、春節、情人節等等。這時候我們往往會送禮物給家人、朋友和戀人。其實要想把禮物送好，也是一門學問。
Tips for successful gift giving
by Jacopo Prisco
Good gift giving is an art. The perfect present can lift a mood or improve a relationship. It can repair a wrongdoing, or simply remind a loved one that you care.
relationship /rɪˈleɪʃ(ə)nʃɪp/ n. 關係、親密關係
wrongdoing /ˈrɒŋˌduːɪŋ/ n. 錯事、做錯事
simply /ˈsɪmpli/ adv. 僅僅
loved one 愛人、親人
"Humans are an incredibly social species and one of the things that set us apart is forming and maintaining relationships with others. Gift giving around holidays, birthdays, graduations or weddings is a great opportunity to reinforce those relationships," said Daniel Farrelly, a psychologist at the University of Worcester.
incredibly /ɪnˈkredəbli/ adv. 非常、極其
species /ˈspiːʃiːz/ n. 物種（單數和複數都是species）
set someone apart 使某人與衆不同
maintain /meɪnˈteɪn/ v. 維持、保持
graduation /ˌɡrædʒuˈeɪʃ(ə)n/ n. 畢業、畢業典禮（由graduate加後綴-ion變成名詞）
wedding /ˈwedɪŋ/ n. 婚禮
opportunity /ˌɒpəˈtjuːnəti/ n. 機會
reinforce /ˌriːɪnˈfɔːs/ v. 增強、加強
psychologist /saɪˈkɒlədʒɪst/ n. 心理學家（由psychology加上表示人的後綴-ist）
Whatever the occasion, gift giving is a social ritual that requires careful thought and consideration. So are there a set of rules to follow? We spoke to some experts to help us craft a simple guide to gifting.
ritual /ˈrɪtʃuəl/ n. 習慣做法、老規矩
consideration /kənˌsɪdəˈreɪʃ(ə)n/ n. 考慮周到
craft /krɑːft/ v. 精心製作
gift /ɡɪft/ v. 送禮物
First, don't add a small gift to a big gift. When we receive gifts in a bundle, we tend to unconsciously average out their value, so a small gift tacked（固定） onto a big one will hurt the latter's impact.
bundle /ˈbʌnd(ə)l/ n. 一捆、一批
tend /tend/ v. 傾向於
unconsciously /ʌnˈkɒnʃəsli/ adv. 不知不覺地、無意識地
average out 計算平均值
the latter /ˈlætə(r)/ 後者
impact /ˈɪmpækt/ n. 影響
This is called the "Presenter's Paradox," first exposed in a 2012 study of the same name, where participants were offered either an iPod by itself or an iPod with a free download for one song. When asked how much they would pay for it, those offered the iPod with the cheap download valued it 20% less than those without. Conversely（相反）, participants asked to choose which option they would gift, overwhelmingly went with the one that included the download, demonstrating that when it comes to gift giving we fail to grasp that sometimes less is more.
presenter /prɪˈzentə(r)/ n. 送禮物的人
paradox /ˈpærədɒks/ n. 悖論
expose /ɪkˈspəʊz/ v. 揭露、揭示
participant /pɑːˈtɪsɪp(ə)nt/ n. 參與者
value /ˈvæljuː/ v. 估價
overwhelmingly /ˌəʊvəˈwelmɪŋli/ adv. 壓倒性地、佔絕對優勢地
demonstrate /ˈdemənstreɪt/ v. 展示、展現
grasp /ɡrɑːsp/ v. 理解、領會
Second, gift experiences rather than things. A brand new iPhone becomes old fast. But a dream vacation or seeing your favorite artist in concert will give you memories that last forever. "Experiences often have more thought gone into them, and they create more vivid memories. We might remember the tablet that a friend or a loved one has bought us, but not as much as a two-week holiday to Florida – the memories and the emotional attachment to experiences are greater than to physical objects," explained Farrelly.
brand new 全新的
vivid /ˈvɪvɪd/ adj. 生動的、鮮明的
tablet /ˈtæblət/ n. 平板電腦
Florida /ˈflɒrɪdə/ n. 佛羅里達（美國東南部的州）
emotional /ɪˈməʊʃ(ə)n(ə)l/ adj. 情感的（由emotion加後綴-al變成形容詞）
attachment /əˈtætʃmənt/ n. 眷戀
physical /ˈfɪzɪk(ə)l/ adj. 看得見摸得着的
object /ˈɒbdʒɪkt/ n. 物品
That, in a nutshell, is why you should consider an experience over a physical object. It's an idea supported by psychologist Thomas Gilovich, whose research shows that money spent on doing provides more enduring happiness than money spent on having.
in a nutshell /ˈnʌtʃel/ 簡而言之
enduring /ɪnˈdʒʊərɪŋ/ adj. 持久的
Lastly, think like the receiver. Let's put it very simply: buy things that your receiver would buy for themselves. That might seem obvious, but it happens far less than we'd like. People tend to use gifts as jokes, encouragements to change one's ways, or to signal something about themselves rather than providing utility or happiness to the receiver.
lastly /ˈlɑːstli/ adv. 最後一點
receiver /rɪˈsiːvə(r)/ n. 接收者（由receive加上表示人的後綴-er）
put /pʊt/ v. 用詞語表達
simply /ˈsɪmpli/ adv. 簡單地
encouragement /ɪnˈkʌrɪdʒmənt/ n. 鼓勵（由encourage加後綴-ment變成名詞）
signal /ˈsɪɡn(ə)l/ v. 發信號
utility /juːˈtɪləti/ n. 有用、實用
But if all else fails, remember there's a reason why we say that it's the thought that counts. "Don't forget why you are giving gifts. Most people don't want lots of money spent on them – they just want you to think about them, and that can be done in lots of easy ways," said Farrelly.
if all else fails 如果所有計劃都失敗了
count /kaʊnt/ v. 重要、有意義
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