Though they have been around since the late 1990's, emoji usage has increased sharply with the wide use of smartphones.

Recently, a team from the University of Michigan and Peking University analyzed 427 million messages sent by users in 212 countries to look into the differences in emoji use by location and culture. The findings indicated the French are emoji power users and included them in 19.7% of their texts. It's almost twice that of Russia, where only 10.9% of the messages contained emojis. Americans came in a close third at 9.2% and was followed by Mexico at 7.9%.

Also, though the easily wins the title as the most popular emoji, the French appear to prefer the . They are also more likely to use variations of the heart emoji.

Not surprisingly, the study found that women tend to use emojis more widely than men. However, they stick to a handful of favorites. Men, on the other hand, show better judgment and appear to go to extra length to find an emoji that matches the situation. But even so, they select from the top 119 of the 1281 emojis available.

The researchers say people living in Australia and France who believe one person's need is greater than that of a society or group, used happier emojis. Conversely, those from countries with closely-connected societies, like Colombia, prefer using sad or angry emojis.

Also, cultures like Turkey and Russia, known for their strictness, appeared to be more satisfied, at least according to the emojis. On the other hand, people in tolerant cultures, like Mexico, seemed unhappy or dissatisfied.

The researchers believe the findings of this "first large-scale analysis of emoji usage" will help develop input methods (输入法) and perhaps even increase our emoji vocabulary! Who knew the tiny image we add to brighten up our texts could show so much about our culture?

1.How are men different from women in using emojis?

A. Men often choose the seldom used emojis.

B. Men use more variations of the heart emoji.

C. Men can better match the emojis with the situation.

D. Men use emojis more casually than women do.

2.What does the underlined word "Conversely" mean?

A. In general. B. On the opposite.

C. In other words. D. As a result.

3.What did researchers find in the study?

A. Emojis can show people's true feelings.

B. The invention of smartphones brought emojis into being.

C. Emojis could strengthen relationships between people.

D. The choice of emoji is influenced by our culture.

One morning Fan Xing discovered that her classroom had changed.The 13-year-old saw that the desks were no longer in rows(排),but pushed together to make six bigger desks.

The new arrangement(排列) was part of a reform(改革) at Fan's school,Changsha Daotian Middle School in Hunan.About five weeks ago,more than 2,000 junior students at the school began studying in this way,with six to eight students sitting in groups.

"This reform is designed to provide students with easier ways to study and more chances for discussion,"said Liu Xu,a school head teacher."Our school hopes it can improve students' abilities(能力) for self-study as well as teamwork."

The new arrangement took some time for students to get used to."I was too curious(好奇) about it for the first two days,"said Fan.But soon she and her classmates got used to it."Now our class is quieter because we can stop loud students with some simple gestures(手势),"said Fan."What's more,we can express our own ideas and learn others' through discussion.It's a better way to study."

Feng Yu likes this new classroom arrangement very much and has made some progress studying.The 14-year-old said,"Group members first discuss,and then explain the solutions or answers to difficult questions in front of the whole class."

"The discussion gives us more confidence to make speeches,"said Feng."We can also improve our friendships."

The reform has asked for more from teachers.They have no more than 15 minutes to teach in class."It is a big challenge to teach in such short time the lessons which should be taught in 45 minutes,"English teacher Wang Jing said."We have to improve methods to teach better.We must prepare some interesting topics and exercises before class so that students can discuss them."

Wang said that some students always talk.The teachers have to move continuously in the classroom to keep them quiet and get them to concentrate on class."It demands more,but I believe it will pay off,"Wang added.

1.From the first paragraph of the passage,we know ______ .

A. Fan Xing was a 13-year-old student

B. Fan Xing's classroom was changed in rows

C. Fan Xing's desk was no longer in her classroom

D. six big desks were moved into Fan Xing's classroom

2.The purpose of the new classroom arrangement is to ______ .

A. make the students feel fresh and interested

B. divide big classes into small classes

C. make more room for new students

D. provide students with more chances for teamwork

3.How did the new classroom arrangement help the students' study according to the passage? ______

A. By stopping loud students using simple gestures.

B. By giving students more chances to work in groups.

C. By making students explain difficult questions after school.

D. By giving students more confidence to improve friendship.

4.What is the big challenge for the teachers in classroom teaching in the reform? ______

A. The teachers have to improve their studying methods.

B. The teachers must prepare more interesting topics for exercises.

C. The teachers are only given 15 minutes to teach in one period(节) of the class.

D. The teachers have to move about in the classroom to keep the students quiet.

5.Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage? ______

A. The students in Changsha Daotian Middle School are sitting in groups when having classes.

B. The reform in the school is aimed at improving the students' abilities for self-study.

C. Studying in groups gives the students more confidence to concentrate on class.

D. The new classroom arrangement also brings some new challenges to the teachers.

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