Emoji (表情符号) may be a fun form of communication but it is destroying the English language, a study has shown.

Smiling faces, love hearts, thumbs up and so on--rather than words--are the preferred way of communication by teenagers, who are considered the worst offenders in grammar and punctuation.

More than a third of British adults believe emoji is the reason for the fall in proper language usage. Of the two thousand adults, aged 16 to 65 who were asked their opinions, 94 percent thought English was in a state of decline, with 80 percent thinking youngsters as the worst offenders.

The most common mistakes made by British people are spelling mistakes (21 percent), followed closely by apostrophe (撇号) placement (16 percent) and the misuse of a comma (16 percent). More than half of British adults are not confident with their command of spelling and grammar. Furthermore, around three-quarters of adults rely on emoji to communicate.

The use of emoji has affected our culture so much that the Oxford Dictionary’s “Word of the Year’ in 2015 wasn’t actually a word at all--it was the “face with tears” emoji. That shows just what a great effect emoji has.

Meanwhile, research earlier showed that using emoji in emails when delivering bad news can soften the blow. It could help workplace communication, even though it could be seen as unprofessional.

The study found that emoji clearly increased the level of understanding in a message. Emoticons like the “smiling face” or “face with tears imitate (模仿)expressions and gestures and add a new layer of meaning. Interestingly, this only worked for positive emoji. The “sad face” had little or no effect on how people responded to the meaning.

We’ve all been there: in a lift, in line at the bank or on an airplane, surrounded by people who are, like us, deeply focused on their smartphones or, worse, struggling with the uncomfortable silence.

What’s the problem? It’s possible that we all don’t have enough conversational ability. It’s more likely that none of us start a conversation because it’s embarrassing and challenging, or we think it’s annoying and unnecessary. But the next time you find yourself among strangers, consider that small talk is worth the trouble. Experts say it’s a valuable social practice that leads to big benefits.

It is easy to consider small talk as unimportant, but we can’t forget that deep relationships wouldn’t even exist (存在) if there weren’t casual conversations. Small talk is the grease (润滑剂) for social communication, says Bernardo Carducci, director of the Shyness Research Institute at Indiana University Southeast. “Almost every great love story and each big business deal begins with small talk,” he explains. “The secret to successful small talk is learning how to connect with others, not just communicate with them.”

In a 2014 study, Elizabeth Dunn, professor of psychology at UBC, invited people to a coffee shop. One group was asked to interact with its waiter, the other, to speak only when necessary. The results showed that those who chatted with their server reported obviously higher positive feelings and a better coffee shop experience. “It’s not that talking to the waiter is better than talking to your husband,” says Dunn. “But interactions with peripheral (边缘的) members of our social network is important for our happiness and health.”

Dunn believes that people who reach out to strangers feel a greater sense of belonging, a link with others. Carducci believes developing such a sense of belonging starts with small talk. “Small talk is the basis of good manners,” he says.

Large amounts of waste, or garbage, are filling streets in Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, after protesters blocked a road leading to a landfill outside the city. People in Bancharedanda where the garbage is kept blame the government for not doing enough to protect them from the waste.

One British tourist, Richard McSorley, recently talked about the problem. He remembered how clean Kathmandu was when he first visited it many years ago. “If I were a new tourist, I would be despondent now,” McSorley said, while pointing to a load of garbage next to a city street. For weeks, treatment of waste has been a continuous problem in the city surrounded by hills. The problems started after people in the village of Bancharedanda refused to have the garbage thrown at a nearby landfill.

Biswas Dhungana was one of the protesters. He said the villagers were refusing to permit trucks loaded with garbage to enter. They say government officials have done little to provide basic equipment and effective ways to deal with the garbage. He added, “We have been forced to live like pigs in terrible conditions for several years as the government has not done anything to keep the village clean.”

Last week, hundreds of villagers built a wall of rocks on the road leading to Bancharedanda. It forced about 200 trucks filled with Kathmandu’s garbage to return without dumping their load. It was said that protesters also threw stones from surrounding hills.

Sunil Lamsal is an official to watch over how Kathmandu’s garbage is treated. He said, “I am working to deal with the concerns of the locals in Bancharedanda. But now, garbage continues to grow on the streets of Kathmandu. This has led to increased danger for people living in the capital. In the light of it, the government will soon take further positive measures to tackle the problem, as the environment affects every family.”