Social media is our new travel agent, and it's changing the places we go. In some cases, the places we go. In some cases, the newfound fame brought about by social media platforms has helped to boost local economies and bring tourists to places they might never have discovered otherwise. In other cases, it's creating problems for countries and cities that are simply not equipped to deal with the influx(涌入) of tourists. Check out two of the incredible locations around the world that have gone viral on social media.

    Iceland

    This northern island nation has seen a dramatic surge(激增) in visitors over the past few years. One reason for that is the so-called "Game of Thrones effect,". This, combined with the availability of cheap flights and some very effective marketing campaigns, has made Iceland a popular travel destination. The number of tourists almost doubled from 566,000 to over 1 million between 2011 and 2015, according to Iceland's tourism board.

    While this influx of visitors has brought a much-needed boost to the economy post-recession(经济衰退), it's also pushed up prices for residents and put pressure on the infrastructure. Locals complain of tourists destroying the fragile ecosystem and leaving a mess behind them as they trample over the formerly untouched natural sites.

    Cuba

    According to Cuba's ministry of tourism, four million visitors went to Cuba in 2016, an increase of 13 percent from the year before. The tourism boom has had some consequences for the country's residents, The New York Times reported in December 2016.

    The surge in visitors has led to a food shortage, and basic food items have become completely unaffordable for locals. Local hotels and restaurants are buying up supplies in bulk for guests, pushing up prices and leaving limited amounts for locals.

    The situation has been acknowledged by the Cuban government, who put caps on prices to make them more affordable for residents. This has only encouraged sellers to put products on the black market, according to The New York Times.

    As a teenage rock fan, all Dennis Vorreyer really expected of the Lollapalooza music festival in Chicago two weekends ago was the chance to see his favorite bands perform live.

    But he and his father, Jeffrey, who accompanied him to the festival, signed up for Lollapalooza's text-message network, and thus learned about a guitar-playing contest taking place there. Dennis, 14, entered and won a new Gibson guitar. Tad Kubler, the lead guitarist for the Hold Steady, who was involved in the contest, then invited Dennis to perform with the band as it closed its set.

“Having your cell phone everywhere is important for everybody now,” Dennis said. “I never dreamed of playing Lollapalooza.” The modern mobile phone — equipped with camera, Internet access and more— has proved to be a liability for some performers, like Akon and Beyonce, whose regrettable moments were captured by fans and then immortalized on YouTube and similar sites. But for the fans themselves, mobile phones are becoming as important an accessory as an all-access wristband. Beyond using them to record a short souvenir, they are becoming a ticket to everything from free ringtones to VIP treatment.

    On Gwen Stefani's recent tour, as many as 20 percent of the audience at some shows agreed to pay 99 cents for text messages and the chance to win better seats, according to the mobile marketing company Impact Mobile. At festivals like Lollapalooza, thousands of fans sign up to receive continuous updates from concert organizers about promotions and special events.

Even when there is no fee, the service comes at a price: fans must give their phone numbers to marketers. And purists — and some artists — disapprove of fans pecking out text messages or snapping pictures during performances. Still, the arrival of a new generation of phone-based activities could add a new twist to live events at a time when rising ticket prices have discouraged many concertgoers.

    Many people think that English writing is difficult. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Here are some great writing tips that will help you improve your writing in a short time.

    Don't ramble(长篇大论). This is a very common mistake made by people who have poor writing skills. When they ramble, they are not paying attention to grammar. As a result, their sentences become very long. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} If you know you have poor grammar, use short sentences.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Think about each sentence carefully to make sure that it is correct before moving on. It's better to write a short passage that is easy to read and mistake-free than to write a long article that is filled with grammar mistakes.

    Increase your vocabulary. If you don't have a large vocabulary, you will find it difficult to write as you can't find right words to express yourself clearly. The solution (解决办法) to this problem is to increase your vocabulary. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} You can do this by reading the local newspapers daily, borrowing books from the library or watching English programs.

    Don't write when you are tired. Tiredness can lead to nothing to write. If you find yourself looking at a blank piece of paper with nothing to write, don't just sit there! Take a walk or a warm shower, or simply lie down to get some rest. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} You'll find that you'll enjoy your writing a lot more and make fewer mistakes!

A. Find out the mistakes you've made.

B. Make sure your sentences are correct.

C. You can pick up new words almost anywhere.

D. Write what interests you most in the beginning.

E. As a result, they may give up after trying hard for a while.

F. The longer the sentences are, the more mistakes they'll make.

G. When your mind is relaxed, you should go back to your writing.

    Shyness is the cause of much unhappiness for a great many people. Shy people are anxious and self-conscious; that is, they are excessively concerned with their own appearance and actions.

    Worrisome thoughts are constantly occurring in their minds: what kind of impression am I making? Do they like me? Do I sound stupid? Am I wearing unattractive clothes? It is obvious that such uncomfortable feelings must negatively affect people. A person's conception of himself or herself is reflected in the way he or she behaves, and the way a person behaves affects other people's reactions. In general, the way people think about themselves has a profound effect on all areas of their lives.

    Shy people, having low self-esteem, are likely to be passive and easily influenced by others. They need reassurance that they are doing "the right thing." Shy people are very sensitive to criticism; they feel it confirms their feelings of inferiority. They also find it difficult to be pleased by compliment with a statement like this one, "You're just saying that to make me feel good. I know it's not true." It is clear that while self-awareness is a healthy quality, overdoing it is harmful.

    Can shyness be completely eliminated, or at least reduced? Fortunately, people can overcome shyness with determined and patient efforts in building self-confidence. Since shyness goes hand in hand with a lack of self-esteem, it is important for people to accept their weaknesses as well as their strengths. Each one of us is a unique, worthwhile individual, interested in our own personal ways. The better we understand ourselves, the easier it becomes to live up to our full potential. Let's not allow shyness to block our chances for a rich and fulfilling life.

    Binge-watching is when a person watches more than one episode of a show in quick succession（一连串,连续）". With developments in the speed and connectivity of the internet, increases in technology and the rise of on-demand entertainment companies, people can now have their favorite shows streamed directly to their television at their convenience.

    This behavior is nothing new. In fact, " binge-watching" has been officially listed in dictionaries since 2015. The entertainment companies recognize this behavior and many take steps to encourage it. Often, instead of releasing each episode on a week-by-week basis, an entire series will become available concurrently. Once the episode finishes many platforms will display pop-ups with "you might like suggestions, or will automatically play the next episode".

    However, recent research suggests that out of the more than half of British adults who watch more than one episode of a show back-to-back, almost a third have admitted missing sleep or becoming tired as a result; and one quarter have neglected their household chores. Next we'll be missing work!

    Bingeing has other connections-binge eating, binge drinking and binge smoking. All of them are often associated with a lack of control and a possible route to addiction. Lindsey Fussell, consumer group director, said： "The days of waiting a week for the next episode are largely gone, with people finding it hard to resist watching multiple episodes around the house or on the move." If people find binge-watching hard to resist, coupled with the fact that it has shown to lead to negligence in many, are we witnessing the birth of a new type of addiction？

    The countless of information and entertainment that television and online media can bring us is, many would say, a good thing. However, when the activity begins to bleed into other areas, causing us to stop functioning then it becomes a problem. So, what's the answer？ Moderation! Neither a tiny amount, nor too much. After all, as the old proverb says, "A little of what you fancy does you good."

The ancient Egyptians thought so little of the brain that when a king died, they removed the brain from his body and threw it away. The Egyptians assumed, like many people before and after them, that consciousness — your mind and your thoughts existed in the heart.

Now we know that the mind is a product of the brain, but how exactly does this 1.5-kilo piece of matter create a mind that allows you to think about yourself, experience happiness and anger, or remember events that happened 20 minutes or 20 years ago? This isn't a new question. Today, however, powerful new techniques for visualizing the sources of thought, emotion, behavior, and memory are transforming the way we understand the brain and the mind it creates.

Have you ever stopped and thought, "What's wrong with me today? I just don't feel like myself"? Perhaps you were more tired or worried than usual — but somehow, you knew that something was different about you. This self-awareness - the ability to think about yourself and how you're feeling-is an important part of being human.

This part of of your mind has its origins in the prefrontal cortex — a region of your brain just behind your forehead that extends to about your ears. Before this area began to function (around age two), you didn't understand that you were a separate individual with your own identity. As this part of your brain developed, you became more aware of yourself and your thoughts and feelings.

Though humans may share certain emotions and recognize them in others, we don't all have the same emotional response to every situation. In fact, most emotional responses are learned and stored in our memories. The smell of freshly cut grass, for example, will generate happy feelings in someone who spent enjoyable childhood summers in the countryside, but not in someone who was forced to work long hours on a farm. Once an emotional association like this is made, it is very difficult to reverse it. "Emotion is the least flexible part of the brain," says psychologist Paul Ekman. But we can learn to control our emotions by becoming consciously aware of their underlying causes and by not reacting automatically to things in our environment.

For centuries, people have studied the brain, but it is only in recent years that we have really started to learn how it works. Nevertheless, there is still a long way to go before we understand our mind's many complexities.