Today we can use the Internet for many things: shopping, business, writing letters, talking to people, getting information and so on. In recent years, a new kind of English has grown on the Internet. There's no real word for it yet, so we call it e-talk.
    People don't like typing too much. To save time, they turn phrases into a few letters， acronyms(首字母缩略词). Acronyms are often used in chat rooms. Some are as follows:
    BRB (be right back), BTW (by the way), LOL (laughing out loud), IMO (in my opinion)
    People also use many abbreviations. They are shortened forms of words. Some common abbreviations include info (information), pic (picture), puter (computer), sec (second), etc.
    We usually don't see people when we communicate on the Net, so people have new ways to show feelings. Most people use their keyboards to draw "feelings", such as:
:-)  (happy)     ;-)  (joking)       :-(  (sad)        :-O  (surprised)
These days, many public discussions have picture feelings, for example:
    
(happy)           (sad)            (angry)           ( (cool)
    There are even whole new words, like "newbies"(someone who is new on a chat board or forum). When you write something bad about someone else, it's called "burning" the person.
    It takes time for people to get used to e-talk. Also, different groups on the Net have their own special ways of communicating. Newbies sometimes have to ask other people what they mean. As the Internet grows, e-talk will continue to grow and change.

    Australia is the greatest island in the world. It is to the south of the equator. So when it is summer in our country, it is cold winter in Australia.

Australia is big, but the population（人口）there is thin. The population is the same as that of Shanghai, a city of China. Australia is young and diverse nation and Australian people come from many different countries.

    Australia has many, many sheep. After a short drive from town, you will see sheep around you. You can also find kangaroo has a “bag” below its chest. The mother kangaroo keeps its baby in the “bag”.

Australia is considered to be a relaxed, informal society（社会）. When greeting others, students and young people say “Hello” or “Hi”. Sometimes they will say “How's it going?” or “G day”. In more formal（正式的）situations they usually shake hands the first time they meet. “Good morning”, “Good afternoon” or “Pleased to meet you” are formal greetings. English is Australia's national language.

Do as the Romans Do

    The customs in different countries are rather different. If I have dinner with a Chinese host, he always puts more food onto my plates as soon as I have emptied it. That often discomforts me greatly. I have to eat the food even if I don't want to, because it is considered bad manners in the West to leave one's food on the plate. I have already noticed that when a Chinese sits at an American's dinner party, he very often refuses the offer of food or drink though he is in fact still hungry or thirsty. This might be good manners in China, but it is not in the West at all. In the United States, it is impolite to keep asking someone again and again or insist on his accepting something. Americans have a direct way of speaking. If they want something, they will ask for it. If not, they will say, “No, thanks.” When an American is fed with beer by the host, for example, he might say, “No, thanks. I'll take some diet, Pepsi-Cola（百事可乐）if you have it. ”That is what an American will do. So when you go to the United States, you had better remember the famous saying: When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

    Almost every child likes sweet things, such as candies, chocolate, ice cream and desserts. But do you know there is a holiday called Sweetest Day in the USA? Does it mean people can eat lots of sweet on that day?

    Sweetest Day is a popular holiday for Americans. People celebrate it on the third Saturday in October. On that day, people show their love to the elderly, children, their good friends or anyone else they want to help. Orphans(孤儿) and patients can also enjoy people's greetings. In fact, anyone may get a gift on that day. It's just a day that offers people a chance to show their love and care to others.

    How did the holiday originate? Here is a story. In 1922, a very kind man in Cleverland, a city in Ohio of America, thought that many poor people in the city needed care from others. He wanted them to be happy and he hoped they would find people always remembered them and cared about them. So he gave them boxes of sweets or small gifts to show his love. He also asked his friends and neighbors to help him do these things. Many people thought it was a great idea. After that, more and more people in Cleverland began to do things like him every year. Gradually(逐渐地) it became a popular holiday for lots of Americans.