Disruption may be the buzzword in boardrooms, but the most striking feature of business today is not the overturning of the established order. It is the entrenchment of a group of superstar companies at the heart of the global economy. Some of these are old firms, like GE, that have reinvented themselves. Some are emerging-market champions, like Samsung, which have seized the opportunities provided by globalisation. The elite of the elite are high-tech wizards—Google, Apple, Facebook and the rest—that have conjured up corporate empires from bits and bytes.

The superstars are admirable in many ways.【G1】___________But they have two big faults. They are squashing competition, and they are using the darker arts of management to stay ahead. Neither is easy to solve. But failing to do so risks a backlash which will be bad for everyone.

The heft of the superstars also reflects their excellence at less productive activities.【G2】_________________The giants also deploy huge armies of lobbyists, bringing the same techniques to Brussels, where 30,000 lobbyists now walk the corridors, that they perfected in Washington, DC. Laws such as Sarbanes-Oxley and Dodd-Frank, to say nothing of America’s tax code, penalise small firms more than large ones.

None of this helps the image of big business. Paying tax seems to be unavoidable for individuals but optional for firms. Rules are unbending for citizens, and up for negotiation when it comes to companies. Nor do profits translate into jobs as once they did.【G3】_______________

Concentration is an even harder problem. America in particular has got into the habit of giving the benefit of the doubt to big business.【G4】__________________

It is less defensible now that superstar firms are gaining control of entire markets and finding new ways to entrench themselves.

Prudent policymakers must reinvent antitrust for the digital age. That means being more alert to the long-term consequences of large firms acquiring promising startups.【G5】_______________And it means making sure that people have a choice of ways of authenticating their identity online.

So, by all means celebrate the astonishing achievements of today’s superstar companies. But also watch them. The world needs a healthy dose of competition to keep today’s giants on their toes and to give those in their shadow a chance to grow.

[A] About 30% of global foreign direct investment (FDI) flows through tax havens; big companies routinely use “transfer pricing” to pretend that profits generated in one part of the world are in fact made in another.

[B] That means a tough-but-considered approach to issues such as tax avoidance. The OECD countries have already made progress in drawing up common rules to prevent companies from parking money in tax havens, for example.

[C] It means making it easier for consumers to move their data from one company to another, and pre-venting tech firms from unfairly privileging their own services on platforms they control.

[D] They churn out products that improve consumers’ lives, from smarter smartphones to sharper televisions. They provide Americans and Europeans with an estimated $280 billion-worth of “free” ser-vices—such as search or directions—a year.

[E] They have more to do, not least to address the convenient fiction that different units of multinationals are really separate companies.

[F] In 1990 the top three carmakers in Detroit had a market capitalisation of $36 billion and 1.2m employees. In 2014 the top three firms in Silicon Valley, with a market capitalisation of over $1 trillion, had only 137,000 employees.

[G] This made some sense in the 1980s and 1990s when giant companies such as General Motors and IBM were being threatened by foreign rivals or domestic upstarts.

Recent research revealed that “deep reading”—defined as reading that is slow, immersive, rich in sensory detail and emotional and moral complexity—is distinctive from light reading—little more than the decoding of words. Deep reading occurs when the language is rich in detail, allusion, and metaphor, and taps into the same brain regions that would activate if the reader were experiencing the event.【G1】____________

It also offers writers a way to appreciate all the qualities that make novels fascinating and meaningful— and to tap into his ability to write on a deeper level.

Light reading is equated to what one might read in online blogs, or “headline news” or “entertainment news” websites, particularly those that breezily rely on lists or punchy headlines, and even occasionally use emojis to communicate.【G2】_____________

Deep reading activates our brain’s centers for speech, vision, and hearing, all of which work together to help us speak, read, and write.【G3】______________They are wired together by a band of fibres, and this interconnectivity likely helps writers mimic and synchronize with language and rhythms they encounter while reading. Your reading brain senses a cadence that accompanies more complex writing, which your brain then seeks to emulate when writing.

In an article published in the Journal of Consciousness Studies, researchers reported finding activity in a “reading network” of brain areas that were activated in response to any written material. In addition, more emotionally charged writing aroused several regions in the brain (primarily on the right side) that respond to music.【G4】_______________When volunteers read their favorite poems, areas of the brain associated with memory were stimulated more strongly than “reading areas,” indicating that reading poems you love is the kind of recollection that evokes strong emotions—and strong emotions are always good for creative writing.

Recent researches also revealed that literary fiction provokes thought, contemplation, expansion, and integration. Reading literary fiction stimulates cognition beyond the brain functions related to reading, say, magazine articles, interviews, or most online nonfiction reporting.

【G5】_________________________________________________

If you’re serious about becoming a better writer, spend lots of time deep reading literary fiction and poetry and articles on science or art that feature complex language and that require your lovely brain to think.

[A] These types of reading lack a genuine voice, a viewpoint, or the sort of analyses that might stimulate thought. It’s breezy reading that you can skim through and will likely forget within minutes.

[B] Recent experiments revealed that reading literary fiction led to better performance on tests of affective Theory of Mind (understanding others’ emotions) and cognitive Theory of Mind (understanding others’ thinking and state of being), compared with reading nonfiction, popular fiction, or nothing at all.

[C] Deep reading is great exercise for the brain and has been shown to increase empathy, as the reader dives deeper and adds reflection, analysis, and personal subtext to what is being read.

[D] In fact, researchers found that reading content and frequency may exert more significant impacts on students’ writing ability than writing instruction and writing frequency.

[E] In contrast, time spent watching television is almost always pointless (your brain powers down almost immediately), no matter how hard you try to justify it, and reading fluff magazines or lightweight fiction may be entertaining, but it doesn’t fire up your writing brain.

[F] In a specific comparison between reading poetry and prose, researchers found evidence that poetry activates some parts of the brain linked to introspection.

[G] Reading and writing engages Broca’s area, which enables us to perceive rhythm and syntax; Wernicke’s area, which impacts our perception of words and meaning; and the angular gyrus, which is central to perception and use of language.

The variety of successful careers available in today’s video games industry is one of the best-kept secrets around. Studios in the UK and abroad continue to grow at a rapid pace in their quest to produce the games that fill our waking hours—and, quite often, our dreams!

There are over 100 game development studios in the UK, each creating something unique. More studios continue to pop up across the world too, with hot spots in Canada, the United States, China, Korea, Eastern Europe and Japan.【G1】_________________

From Guitar Hero to Grand Theft Auto and FIFA to Final Fantasy, the one thing that all of the studios that produce these games have in common is that they want to hire the best graduates each year and, importantly, they all look to hire specialists. So, when choosing a course, you should bear this in mind: excel at one thing rather than being competent at five.【G2】________________

The key to selecting the right course for you is to start at the top and work down: research the job market to discover what is currently on offer before even looking at courses.【G3】_____________

Study the course curriculum to work out how it is divided between practical modules and theory.

【G4】____________________

Upon graduating from a degree you should also have what is an essential tool for getting your first job: a portfolio. This will show your artistic talent and range as well as your capability in using the relevant technology and software packages.

Some qualifications are more highly regarded than others, while some universities and colleges are known for the festivals they run to attract employers from across the world, such as the Swansea Animation Days (Sand) at Swansea Metropolitan University.【G5】_________________

Don’t be afraid to ask development studios for advice: call or e-mail them directly and ask what they look for in a graduate and which courses or qualifications they recognize. It is also worth finding out how long the university or college has been running its course, whether game development studios recognize their qualification, what software packages they teach and whether they are involved with the industry: through guest lecturers and work placements, for example. Lastly, read the media and the gaming press to keep abreast of the studios that create games that you might like to work on.

[A] What you may be unaware of is how many creative jobs there are within the industry. It’s not just game and level design roles that require someone with more of an artistic eye: a design team within a games company would include storyboard artists and map builders alongside illustrators and designers.

[B] Your employer will expect you to walk the walk and not just talk the talk: you’ll have to demonstrate your skills in certain packages, not just be knowledgeable about them.

[C] You could also consider other careers in sound design or audio engineering, because games have

sound tracks that can help to create an iconic brand. Larger companies will have people that look after music production, sound effects and dialogue for the game.

[D] Video games are made by teams of all sizes—ranging from nine to 150—and it’s easier for a studio to slot you into their organization if you have a much-needed and easily identifiable skill, such as 3D animation or 3D character modeling.

[E] It may seem obvious that artists are a crucial part of the creation of a game, but creative roles can be lost in career discussions about programming, technical and quality assurance games testing.

[F] All artistic positions usually favor candidates with formal training and qualifications in the form of a fine art, graphics or animation degree.

[G] Then, match the course to the skills required; for example, learning how to use the Maya, Max and Illustrator 3D software packages that studios list in their recruitment advertisements.

[A] Pay everyone fairly

[B] Raise part-timers’ pay

[C] Stop ignoring part-timers

[D] Start to look at your staffs real needs

[E] Embrace flexible working

[F] Stop mistreating contractors

[G] Properly contract with every employee

A new survey from the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development (CIPD) shows that employee satisfaction has hit a two year low and it doesn’t look like it’s going to go up any time soon. If you’re an employer who cast an eye over the CIPD report and then forgot about it, you probably want to stop reading now. But if you suspect that a happy workforce might be a more productive workforce, then we have some suggestions for simple things you can do to bring about business bliss.

【G1】__________________________________________

Yes, even the women. While undertaking a pay audit of your company might seem like a fast track to internal quarrelling and law-suits, it could in fact buy you a lot of goodwill with your employees, and some very nice PR. However, don’t just stop at the gender pay gap. Have a look at how big the gap between the most senior and junior staff is. This pay gap has been on the increase for a while now but when it continues to rise even in times of trouble, you’re just encouraging a discontented staff.

【G2】__________________________________________

If you believe the report, this is the future. But even if you don’t, research shows that employees who have some level of control over how and where they work are happier than those crammed into the same office from nine till five every day. As Peter Fleming puts it, “human beings thrive on mastery and self-development.” When we’re in charge of our own performance, we’re likely to want more from ourselves than when we’re working to someone else’s standards.

【G3】__________________________________________

We know that more and more companies are abandoning traditional permanent jobs in favour of short-term or zero-hour contracts. If you expect your staff to remain tough and productive despite a lack of security, then you need to think about what you can give them in return. A proper contract is one thing, but so are training, decent pay and opportunities for promotion. You can also realise that if we are moving into a gig-economy, then decent references, using your networks to help those who’ve worked hard for you, and transparency around length of contract are important, decent behaviour.

【G4】__________________________________________

As the bulk of childcare still sits with women, more of them opt to work part-time than men. Strangely, we then start to see people who work part-time hours as uncommitted and off the career ladder. We don’t give them stretch projects, we expect them to do as much work in three days as they did in five, and we overlook them for pay-rises and promotions. And then companies wonder why their female employees leave.

【G5】__________________________________________

Clue: it’s not a bigger office or a better title. More often than not what people really want are change things for the better, spend more time with their families, and feel like they’re appreciated and rewarded appropriately. We all know that if you pay peanuts you get monkeys, but if you start treating staff like robots you’re going to get an organisation that very quickly short-circuits.

Even if it were to pass, an airline passenger bill of rights isn’t going to save most travelers from enduring delays at the airport—especially during this busy summer travel season, when airplanes will be near or at full capacity and the usual onslaught of stormy summer weather is expected. “It’s going to be a challenge. These are all ingredients for delay,” says David Castelveter, spokesman for the Air Transport Association, which represents 90% of all U.S. commercial airlines. But travelers can improve their odds of avoiding major troubles by using these tips suggested by airline experts.

1. Book flights wisely

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) recommends that passengers schedule their flights for early in the day, which are the least likely to be delayed.

1. Be a savvy packer

Know what you can and can’t take with you in your carry-on baggage, as listed by the Transportation Security Administration.

1. Know the short cuts

Passengers can avoid long lines by printing out e-tickets at home and checking in at the airline’s electronic kiosks.

1. Know what you are entitled to

If requested, all airlines must present their passengers with a Contract of Carriage, which outlines what rights a passenger have in the event of a delay or cancellation.

1. If all else is failing, remember Rule 240

Rule 240 is an agreement between the airlines that they will honor another airline’s ticket if they have the means to do so.

Finally, learn how to count to 10. Keeping cool is key. Airline representatives and flight attendants will be more responsive to a respectful passenger, and hostile passengers may only make the situation worse for themselves.

[A] Liquids and gels are of special concern. If carried on, they must be less than 3 ounces each, all kept together in only 1 quart-sized plastic bag, and scanned individually by security. Castelveter recommends that travelers keep their bag with the liquids and gels at the top of their carry-on luggage, so security personnel “don’t have to go digging through them at the security counter.”

[B] If United Airlines has canceled its flight to Chicago but American Airlines’ flight to Chicago is still scheduled to depart, a passenger could ask American to honor its United ticket. Of course, this tactic doesn’t always work, especially with cheaper tickets.

[C] In the event of a flight cancellation, lines at the ticket counter may be long, so getting on the phone with the airline’s reservation hotline doubles a passenger’s chances of getting on another flight.

[D] Try to schedule at least an hour between connecting flights, especially if they are with different airlines. And book with airlines that have a strong track record of on-time arrivals, as charted monthly by the DOT.

[E] Depending on the airline and the circumstances, a passenger may receive a travel voucher, cash reimbursement, hotel accommodations and alternative means of transportation to their destination. After its massive delays in February—including the stranding of nine airplanes on a JFK tarmac for up to ten hours—JetBlue presented a Customer’s Bill of Rights, which entitles passengers to $25 travel vouchers for delays as little as one hour (depending, of course, on the circumstances).

[F] Passengers can also speed up security lines by keeping their ID’s handy at all times.

【G1】→【G2】→【G3】→【G4】→【G5】

[A] Private schools also tend to emphasize a holistic approach to education in order to develop more well-rounded individuals. Their smaller student numbers make it possible for them to invest both resources and time in building in state-of-the-art facilities and developing robust extracurricular programs. Look at their arts and sports programs in particular when selecting a school; they are invariably much more comprehensive and their importance cannot be undervalued. They teach students valuable life skills such as teamwork, responsibility and confidence—things you cannot learn from books and blackboards.

[B] A lower student-teacher ratio also enables the teachers to devote more time towards engaging with parents and keeping them up-to-date on their child’s progress, as private schools also recognize that giving a child a good education is the responsibility of both the school and the parents. Sending parents regular emails and newsletters on school events and student performance is part of this process, but private schools will go the extra mile by holding social events such as parent breakfasts and fundraiser dinners.

[C] In many aspects, private schools are able to offer academic and environmental advantages that public schools cannot, which makes them an attractive option for parents who feel that their children need something more than what the public schooling system can offer. Despite the extra costs incurred, the impact that a good school can have in the long-term development of a child’s skills, mindset and character should make prioritizing the quality of your child’s education a worthy investment.

[D] The flexibility of private schools to adapt their curriculum to world trends and their willingness to explore specialized subjects means that they are better placed to develop children with a more global outlook, with the hope that they will carry this mindset with them into adulthood and the leadership roles they may take on in the future. Students are encouraged to examine and address current world issues in their class work, while extracurricular activities may also include field trips— local and international—and community outreach projects for students to understand their responsibility to give back to the community.

[E] Sending your child to a private school in the US is not a decision to be made lightly. According to online resource site Private School Review, the national average private school tuition fees comes up to $9,582 per year per child, which is a significant expenditure given that public schools are “free” by law. So what makes private school education a worthwhile investment for your children’s future? What do you need to look out for when choosing the “right” school?

[F] A key thing to look out for when deciding on a school is the student-teacher ratio in classrooms, as lower ratios mean fewer children in the class and thus a greater opportunity to receive attention from the teacher, promoting more active engagement and academic achievement. Data from the National Center for Education Statistics shows that private schools have consistently demonstrated a lower student-teacher ratio, hitting 11.2 students per teacher in 2013, while the public school ratio was 16.1 in that same year.

[G] Close to a quarter of all schools in the US are private, and their primary advantage lies in the academic variety they offer. While public schools are subject to statewide education policies, supervision and standardized tests, private schools have more free rein over their curriculum and staffing policies. This means that they are able to provide academic programs that may not be available in public schools such as the International Baccalaureate, as well as and a wider variety of Advanced Placement courses.

【G1】→【G2】→【G3】→F→【G4】→D→【G5】