1 . In the past decade, the use of social media has grown in a way that no one could have guessed. It has turned some teenagers into celebrities (名人) and turned the famous into the infamous, overnight.

A key feature of social media, however, is its volatility. Trends come and go, disappearing almost as quickly as they appeared. So, what are the key social media trends of 2018?

Short video apps took the world by storm.

Why are these short videos — which are rarely longer than a few minutes — so popular? Jiang Yige, Singapore-based analyst at FengHe Fund Management, has a theory. Short videos are “just right to fill in the little gaps in our busy schedules,” he told CNBC.

These videos — apart from being very convenient — are important to teenagers because they allow them to express themselves, according to TeenVogue.

The sense of community that users of short video apps get is another appealing feature. Liza Koshy, a user of the US app Musically who has over 2 million followers, said that she was thrilled when anyone said that her video had “inspired” them. “It’s really cool ... because I think as social creators that’s what we all are,” she added.

Live streaming is another feature of our social media life that now seems as natural as sunrise. It’s a pretty neat idea: You can watch anyone, anywhere, live.

However, China has taken live streaming to a whole new level. In China, more than 100 million viewers monthly watch a live streaming video. Forbes thought that a number of factors had led to the popularity of live streams.Among them is viewers’ ability to interact while remaining anonymous.

However, the boom in social media may be having side effects too. Fake news is one serious problem it arguably causes. Material shared on these platforms is often not checked for accuracy. The most basic content can be false and can sway users one way or another. We use social media all the time; that doesn’t mean that we understand the influence it is having on us. We should be mindful of both the time we spend on it and its impact on our minds.

2 . Find your new favorite West End musicals, from heart­warming adaptations and award­winning scores to extremely funny musicals and must­see London shows.

A video of a girl wearing a big smile and a red coat recently went viral on Chinese social media.

Tie Jiaxin, 7,     1     first grade student at Daping Primary School, had just finished class and     2     (wait)for the bus to go home when her teacher, Ma Rui, shot the video on March 4.

Ma, who became a volunteer teacher at Daping Primary School more than one year ago, said it has been a habit of hers to record     3     she sees by camera on her phone as well as sharing the recordings     4     a wider audience.

Daping Primary School serves as a vivid example of the outcomes of poverty alleviation(扶贫). Students there used to have classes in adobe schoolhouses and suffered from a     5     (short)of exercise books. Today, they     6     (provide)with free meals and better facilities, such as new school buildings and playgrounds. In addition, more     7     (advance)teaching methods, including the use of multimedia teaching and Internet-assisted teaching facilities, have also broadened students’ horizons and have made them     8     (confident)in their studies.

After the story of the school went viral online, the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation, one of China’s largest non-governmental     9     (organization)working in poverty reduction, donated kitchen equipment worth 50,000 yuan     10     (support)the school.

9 . Burlington School, London

Burlington School is located in Parsons Green, 15 minutes by underground from the centre of London. Our standard of teaching is high, with courses in General and Specialist English. The coffee bar is open all day serving freshly-cooked meals, and the school organizes a range of social activities to complement(补充) the classes. Students live either in homestays or in one of our hotels.

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University of Liverpool, English Language Centre

You can have confidence in the University of Liverpool. While studying here, you will benefit from modern English teaching methods in small classes of fewer than 16 students.

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Interactive English School, Brighton

We are a small friendly school. Being a small school means we can cater for your individual needs more easily than larger schools can. All of our teachers are native speakers, qualified and experienced. Our prices are very affordable and start from 60 per week for full-time courses of 12 lessons.

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New School of English, Cambridge

The New School of English is located in the beautiful city of Cambridge. The school is open all year and provides a range of English language courses for adults aged at least 16 from all over the world. These courses cover General English as well as courses for professionals looking to focus on specific topic areas. They have a range of accommodation choices for students.

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