Are you interested in higher education in the United States? The following advice might help you.

●College, University or Institute

    College and universities offer undergraduate degrees in arts and sciences. And both can help prepare young people to earn a living. But many colleges don't offer graduate studies. Universities are generally bigger, offer more programs and do more research. An institute of technology can offer a wide choice of programs and activities. Seventy-five percent of freshmen go there with a strong interest and involvement in the arts.

●The Application Process

    International admissions officers advise students to apply to at least three schools. You may be able to apply online and pay the application charge with a credit card, or by mail. You should study the websites of schools to find information about how and when to apply, how much it will cost and whether any financial aid is available.

●Get a Student Card

    If you requesting a visa for the first time, you will have to go to an American embassy or consulate（领事馆）. You will need to bring a government form sent to you by your American school that shows you have been accepted. A consular official will also take your picture and your fingerprints. You will also need banking and tax records that show you have enough money to pay for your education.

●Financial Aid

    American schools provide aid, like scholarships, fellowships, to almost half of foreign graduate students, but only ten percent of undergraduates. But grants, which, unlike a loan, does not have to be paid.

根据短文内容，选择最佳答案，并将选定答案的字母标号填在题前括号内。

    More companies and recyclers are taking steps to ensure that old electronic devices such as TVs and computers aren't sent to poor countries.

    The Basel Action Network, a Seattle-based non-profit that largely exposed the overseas discarding (丢弃) of US electronic waste, on Thursday launched a programme to use third-party employees to certify (证实) recyclers who don't export dangerous electronic waste.

    The so-called e-Steward recyclers will also agree not to discard the waste in US landfills and agree to meet other criteria. The certification is intended to provide companies and consumers with some assurance that the waste, which can include toxins (毒素) such as lead and mercury, is disposed of safely.

    The Government Accountability Office, in a 2008 report, declared that US electronic waste was often disposed of unsafely in such countries as India. There, workers recycle gold, silver and copper from the waste, often in open-air acid baths.

    The Basel Network also says it won assurances from 13 organizations, including Samsung, Bank of America, Wells Far-go, that they'll use e-Steward recyclers whenever possible. Wells Fargo had already been using recyclers who declared not to export. So far, Basel has certified three recyclers and seven sites.

    Before e-stewards, even, companies that wanted to avoid export of electronic waste had to “hope for the best”, when, they handed their waste to recyclers, says Robert Houghton, president of Ohio-based recycler Redemtech. It is an e-Steward that counts major companies among its customers. “Now, they can get some proof,” Houghton says.

    Basel's standards compete with another set launched in January. It was made by industry and backed by the Environmental Protection Agency.

    That standard, called R-2, doesn't ban the export of dangerous electronic waste but requires that it be handled safely. Instead of a ban, the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries says, efforts should be made to help poor countries develop safe recycling.

    "City Cycling USA: Los Angeles," a pocket-sized tour guide to seeing Los Angeles on two wheels, is seemingly for visitors; Actually, for locals, its series of bike-friendly paths and itineraries (行程) are a road-map to becoming tourists in their own city again.

    "City Cycling" explores five neighborhoods in the Westside and Eastside and generally north of the 10 and south of the 101. Itineraries fit the period of a day, beginning with spots for coffee, walking along museums and shops, and finishing off with recommendations of where to buy a well-deserved drink. Published by Thames and Hudson in association with London cycling brand Rapha Racing, the guidebook is among the first U.S. sections — alongside New York, Chicago and San Francisco — in a series launched in 2013 with biking tours of eight European cities.

    Greatest hits such as the Bradbury Building and Echo Park Lake are included in the neighborhood tours, with plenty of fashionable places for where to eat — Eggslut, Pine & Crane and Gjusta. The guide is a reminder of how crowdedly packed each enclave (飞地) of L.A. is with unusual destinations, the large number of places to explore within a few square mile radius (半径), easily done once we step out of the car.

    Los Angeles' famously pleasant weather makes it an ideal city for exploring by bike; neighborhoods have different styles. While the car still plays an important role, cycling culture, like CicLAvia, already has full support, and is prepared to grow with the implementation (实施) of Mobility Plan 2035, which aims to make the city more bike friendly. "City Cycling USA: Los Angeles" is a start.

    I'd like to share a little story with you about something that happened when I was four. I remember it clearly. Our loving family dog was nearing the end of his life. My father picked him up and put him in a little bed we had made for him. Our dog, my companion, whom we had cared for, bit my father when he attempted to help him. How could he? Why? I couldn't understand it. I didn't like him anymore.

    I hadn't thought about that story for a long time but something that happened last week brought it back to me. I went to speak with a friend. When I knocked on the door, I met in an instant an angry look and a few harsh(尖刻的)words. When the door was slammed(砰地关上)in my face, I stood there shocked, and in a rush, I was reminded of my dog bit my father 20 years ago or so. What brought that story back was that same feeling of betrayal.

    Both stories taught me something the next day. You see, when I got up in the morning and was told my dog had died, it became clear to me that he must have been in great pain. For him to have bitten a family member, he could not have been himself. Much the same for the other story when I learned that my friend's wife had just left him.

    We are all beings of our environments, our opinions and feelings. And all of those things can cause you to say and do things that can't be understood by those who are not in the same situation with you.

    If you meet someone either behaving out of character or acting in a way that doesn't seem to fit the situation, put out your hand and be patient when you think it is least possible for him to do so. You may turn around a story that has a sad ending simply by your actions.

    Want to explore new cultures, meet new people and do something worthwhile at the same time? You can do all the three with Global Development Association (GDA).Whatever stage of life you're at, wherever you go and whatever project you do in GDA, you'll create positive changes in a poor and remote community (社区).

    We work with volunteers of all ages and backgrounds. Most of our volunteers are aged 17-24. Now we need volunteer managers aged 25-75.They are extremely important in the safe and effective running of our programmes. We have such roles as project managers, mountain leaders, and communication officers.

    Depending on which role you choose, you could help to increase a community's access to safe drinking water, or help to protect valuable local cultures. You might also design an adventure challenge to train young volunteers.

    Not only will you help our young volunteers to develop personally, you'll also learn new skills and increase your cultural awareness. You may have chances to meet new people who'll become your lifelong friends.

    This summer we have both 4-week and 7-week programmes:

    GDA ensures that volunteers work with community members and local project partners where our help is needed. All our projects aim to promote the development of poor and remote communities.

    There is no other chance like a GDA programme. Join us as a volunteer manager to develop your own skills while bringing benefits to the communities.

    Find out more about joining a GDA programme:

    Website: www.glodeve.org

    Email: humanresources@glodeve.org

Every year on April 1,April Fools' Day is celebrated in many countries around the world.In France,it's called "Poisson d' Avril"or"Fish of April".In Scotland, the holiday is often called "Gowkie Day".In Iraq, the holiday is called "Kithbet Neesan" or "April Lie".

History experts say people have celebrated April Fools ' Day for a long time.Some believe April Fools' Day comes from the ancient Romans more than two thousand years ago, which was a day of playing games and pretending to be someone else.

Others say the day for fooling began in France in 1564.when King Charles changed the yearly calendar.He moved New Year's Day from April 1 to January I Many people did not know about the change because of communication problems then.Some people continued to celebrate New Year's Day on April 1.Other people called them April Fools and played jokes on them.

In the United State, April Fools' Day is just a day of joking and playing tricks on friends.These kinds of jokes are also called pranks(恶作剧).These jokes typically end in the prankster shouting "April Fools"!

Simple pranks, like telling a friend a funny lie or making prank phone calls, are still common.But major companies also get in on April Fools' Day in a much bigger way.A few years ago,on April 1,Starbucks announced it was introducing new coffee cup sizes-plenta and Micra.The very large cups,bigger than a human head,remained useful for customers even after finishing all that coffee.According to Starbucks,the cups could be used as a rain hat,a pot for plants,or a lampshade.

It did not take long for customers to catch on to the prank.More and more people use media or smartphone apps to play pranks on their friends on April Fools' Day.One very annoying smartphone app,Cat Facts,sends funny facts about cats to your friends 5 phones every day.