Now, almost everybody knows the hottest English word "selfie". Selfie is a photo that one takes of oneself, according to the Oxford (牛津) online dictionary. People usually take selfies with a smart phone and send them to Wechat (微信) or Qzone (QQ 空间).
"Almost every day, I take a photo of myself at school, and save it in my Qzone," said Huang Xu, 13, from Hunan. These photos record her happy and sad moments.
Pop stars also take a lot of selfies. Li Chunping 14, from Harbin, is a big fan of Yang Mi. "She has used many selfies to tell us about her life and work," said Li.
What makes people love selfies? Some people say it's narcissism (自恋). "The rise of the selfie is a perfect symbol for our narcissistic culture. We're crying out: Look at me!" said US psychiatrist(精神科医生) Carole Lieberman.
Young people are using selfies to make friends online, Jonathan Freedland wrote in the Guardian. (《卫报》) "The usual purpose of taking a selfie is to share online. They express a human need to connect with others," wrote Freedland.
Huang Xu agrees with that. “During the summer vacation, my classmates and I shared many selfies online. Hair or clothes were not our interests. Through these photos, we got to know each other's holidays and feelings,” said Huang Xu.