Passage 4

Everyone knows that laziness is a sin. We have probably all had lectures pointing out that laziness is immoral, wasteful, and that lazy people will never amount to anything in life. But laziness can be more harmful than that, and it is often caused by more complex reasons than simple wishes to avoid work. Some people who appear to be lazy are suffering from much more serious problems. They may be so distrustful of their fellow workers that they are unable to join in any group task for fear of ridicule or for fear of having their ideas stolen. These people who seem lazy may be paralyzed (丧失活动能力的) by a fear of failure that prevents fruitful work. Or other sorts of fantasies may prevent work; some people are so busy planning, sometimes planning great deals or fantastic achievements, that they are unable to deal with whatever “lesser” work is on hand. Still other people are not avoiding work; strictly speaking, they are merely procrastinating (拖延)—rescheduling their day. Laziness can actually be helpful. Like procrastinators, some people may look lazy when they are really thinking, planning, contemplating (深思) and researching. We all should remember that some great scientific discoveries occurred by chance or while some were “goofing off” (磨洋工). Newton wasn’t working in the orchard when the apple hit him and he discovered the law of universal gravitation. Sometimes, being “lazy”—that is, taking time off for a rest —is good for overworked students or executives. Taking a rest can be particularly helpful to the athlete who is trying too hard or the doctor who’s simply working himself overtime too many evenings at the clinic. So be careful when you are tempted to call someone lazy. That person may be thinking, resting, or planning his or her next book. 

The underlined word “that” in the first paragraph refers to “______”.