Jumping off random cliffs(悬崖) into the sea is not clever. However, as a sport, coasteering uses local experts to help groups travel around the coast so they can then jump safely and have a lot of fun in the process. But coasteering is also so much more than cliff jumping.

    A usual day's coasteering will involve swimming, climbing, scrambling(攀岩) and cliff jumping. All trips begin with a safety brief and equipment check. You will be equipped with a helmet, wetsuit and life vest. You will need to wear some old sneakers you don't mind getting wet.

    From here it could be a short swim to the first jump site. Following an instructor, you swim through rock pools, around rough rocks and right up to the next jump spot. A brief climb and you'll be standing on the edge wondering, “Why the hell did I agree to this?” Then, and to the yell of your friends, you're leaping in, with a smile that's guaranteed to last the rest of the day.

    Coasteering is certainly more than cliff jumping. If ever a sport could claim to be confidence building, this is it. And it's also a perfect activity for groups of friends or for adventurous families who want to explore the coast. Many companies offer daily trips, so even if you are on your own or a couple you can join in with a large group. Companies use trained guides with much knowledge of local tides and weather conditions. These people lead the show and are qualified lifesavers as well.

    Coasteering is already popular around the UK. At least now you won't have to ask “What is coasteering?” if someone you know gives it a go.

    I have heard having a good sense of humour often helps in breaking the ice. Also people remember you because of your humour. But I think I don't have a very good sense of humour. Could you suggest how to build on this? ——Radha Karnik

    This is a great question that is unfortunately difficult to answer. I can only give you my views on this topic, which may or may not be correct. I know that my sense of humour developed over time.

    When I was younger I was not funny at all, now I can easily make people laugh. At the same time, sometimes I say things that I think are very funny but others do not. Improving wit and humour, I believe, is an ongoing process.

    Now, there are various forms of humour and everyone has their individual style. Overall, I believe being fluent in a language is very important for being witty or funny. The way we play around with words adds the “funny” tag to an otherwise normal sentence.

    Also, seeing irony is very important. I think humour is often the link between two unrelated things.

    In my experience, laughing frequently and appreciating other people's jokes and wit are very important. Within these, finding humour in everyday normal situations is the key.

    I often notice what is going on around me and say funny things in my head and laugh to myself. That serves almost as practice for when I am in a group. I watch comedy shows and movies and I am sure that has some effect on helping me improve my sense of humour.

    And last, having confidence that you are witty is important. There will always be someone wittier or funnier than you, which is fine. Just work on building your own style.

    Remember, if you are trying to be funny and witty in order to break the ice at a business function, be careful.

    In those situations, humour has to be mild and politically correct.

Yours,

Brad

    I remember the first time I got on a horse. When I was a little boy aged two, my mom agreed to let me take a short ride and that was it! From then on, I drove my parents crazy begging for a horse.

    When I was four, I had mutism, in which children stop speaking in certain social situations. I went days, weeks, months without a sound at school. At most, I might quietly whisper to a friend. I suffered silently through school until I was ten when a psychologist had an idea. He asked me what I wanted more than anything else in the world. He explained I was going to be given an opportunity to work for that. And I was permitted to whisper the answer in my mother's ear, “A horse.”

    I was to get a horse, but I had to finish many weekly tasks. I had to answer the phone five times per week, something I had never done before. I had to say one word to my teacher at school and the list went on. For a child with mutism, saying one word to someone can be like climbing Mount Qomolangma. I did everything that was asked of me and the day came. His name was Sequoia, whom I fell in love with immediately. When I was with Sequoia, I forgot all about my problems and felt strong and secure.

    I am participating in society these days. My horse and I made it through a master's degree. I feel I owe my life to the horse and I try to give it back to him every day. He has given me the best gift I could ever imagine, my life.

    It happened to me recently. I was telling someone how much I had enjoyed reading Barack Obama's Dreams From My Father and how it had changed my views (观点）of our President. A friend I was talking to agreed with me that it was, in his words, "a brilliantly (精彩地) written book". However, he then went on to talk about Mr. Obama in a way which suggested he had no idea of his background at all. I sensed that I was talking to a book liar.

    And it seems that my friend is not the only one. Approximately two thirds of people have lied about reading a book which they haven't. In the World Book Day's “Report on Guilty Secrets”. Dreams From My Father is at number 9. The report lists ten books, and various author: which people have lied about reading, and as I'm not one to lie too often (I'd hate to be caught out), I'll admit (承认) here and now that I haven't read the entire (全部的) top ten. But I am pleased to say that, unlike 42 percent of people, I have read the book at number one, George Orwell's 1984.I think it's really brilliant.

    The World Book Day report also has some other interesting information in it. It says that many people lie about having read Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Fyodor Dostoevsky (I haven't read him, but haven't lied about it either) and Herman Melville.

    Asked why they lied, the most common reason was to "impress"（使留下深刻印象) someone they were speaking to. This could be tricky if the conversation became more in-depth!

    But when asked which authors they actually enjoy, people named J. K. Rowling, John Grisham, Sophie Kinsella (ah, the big sellers, in other words). Forty-two percent of people asked admitted they turned to the back of the book to read the end before finishing the story (I'll come clean: I do this and am astonished that 58 percent said they had never done so).

    Social media (社交媒体)is one of the fastest-growing industries in today's world. A study conducted by the US think tank (智囊团) Pew Research Center showed that 92 percent of teenagers go online daily.

    The wide spread of social media has changed nearly all parts of teenagers' lives.

    ●Changing relationships

    High school student Elly Cooper from Illinois said social media often reduces face-to-face communication.

    "It makes in-person relationships harder because people give attention to their phones instead of their boyfriends or girlfriends," Cooper said.

    There's also a greater possibility of things getting lost in translation over social media.

    "If half of your relationship is over social media, you don't really know how the other person is reacting," Sienna Schulte, a junior student from Illinois, said.

    Yet, some people believe social media has made it easier to start relationships with anyone from anywhere. Beth Kaplan from Illinois met her long-distance friend through social media. He currently lives in Scotland, but they're still able to frequently communicate with one another.

    "I can feel close to someone that I'm talking to via (通过) FaceTime," Kaplan said.

    ●Wanting to be "liked"

    The rise of social media has changed the way teenagers see themselves.

    The 19-year-old Essena O'Neill announced on the social networking service Instagram that she was quitting social media because it made her obsessed (痴迷) with appearing perfect online.

    Negative comments also can do great damage to a teenager's self-esteem (自尊).

    In particular, anonymous (匿名的) social media apps such as Yik Yak may provide opportunities for cyberbullying (网络欺凌).

    The app allows users within 5 miles (8 km) to create and add comments to everything. Teenagers who get negative comments on these sites can't help but feel hurt.

    ●Opening new doors

    However, Armin Korsos, a student from Illinois, takes advantage of the comments he receives over social media to improve his videos on the social networking site YouTube.

    "Social media can help people show themselves and their talents to the world in a way that was never possible before," Korsos said.

    But Korsos recognizes that social media has become a distraction.

    "Social media, though it helps people connect with their friends and stay updated, is not all necessary."

Thanks to the evolution of technology, the learning-centred mobile apps can help maintain learning even outside the classrooms and make the learning activities more efficient.

Study Blue

With Study Blue, teachers can create flashcards and interactive sessions. Meanwhile, you can view the study materials anywhere anytime and share flashcards with your teacher & classmates in real time.

App Features

• Unlimited access to over 500 million study materials.

• Quizzes to track your study process.

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Ratings: 4.4/5 Users: 1,000,000+ Download: Android, iOS

TED

TED helps educators to bring out a colorful classroom and prepare unique lecture presentations. Thousands of sessions by experts can help you to get knowledge & topics to discuss in classrooms.

App Features

• TED talk videos with subtitles (字幕).

• Discover interesting lectures.

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Ratings: 4.6/5 Users: 10,000,000+ Download: Android, iOS

Quizzes

Quizzes make your study more interesting. There are millions of teacher-created quizzes on Quizizz and you can compete with friends online. Teachers can make the whole class play together and assign individual homework.

App Features

• Customized games for individuals.

• Track & get timely progress reports.

• Teachers are the quiz masters.

Ratings: 4.8/5 Users: 1,000,000+ Download: Android, iOS

Pocket

Pocket is a solution to learning lectures on the go. You can instantly save articles or video content for improving your classroom studies. Teachers can communicate with students and parents virtually.

App Features

• Dark-colored themes for night use.

• Multi-language support.

• Access to saved articles without the Internet.

Ratings: 4.6/5 Users: 10,000,000+ Download: Android, iOS