【推荐2】Top tips to study in the US

Studying abroad as an international student is an exciting and life-changing experience, but it also comes with some challenges. Here is a list of practical tips that can give you a hand.

    1    

One of the first and most crucial steps for international students is to create a budget. Understand your source of income, including scholarships, part-time jobs, or financial support from your family. Then, make a complete list of expected expenses, including tuition, accommodation, food, transportation, and entertainment. This budget will be your financial roadmap and help you avoid overspending.

Select a place to live

Choosing the right place to live is very important. University accommodations are often convenient but can be expensive.     2    . They can be more cost-effective and offer a richer cultural experience. Be sure to research local housing laws, and thoroughly examine any rental property (房地产) before signing a contract.

Understand your insurance (保险)

Healthcare systems are greatly various from one country to another. Ensure you have the necessary health insurance coverage (覆盖范围). Many universities offer affordable student health plans.     3    .

Manage your time

Balancing study, part-time work and personal time can be challenging.     4    . Time management apps and tools can help you stay organized.

Be open-minded and adaptable

Living independently in a foreign country can be challenging, but it is also an opportunity for personal growth and self-discovery. Be open to new experiences, embrace cultural differences, and try to be adaptable in the face of challenges.     5    . But with time, you’ll adapt yourself to your new environment.

【推荐3】Commonly, to better remember what is taught in class, students often take notes in class just by writing something important down in their books or marking some significant parts. However, visual methods of processing materials are more effective to remember the important information of a text.

Note-taking practices like mind-mapping lead students to organize their thoughts visually, helping them understand and remember the contents.     1    

Rethink your paper. Encourage students to play with spacing, vary text sizes, and add symbols(符号) anywhere on the page.

Start with a little practice.     2     So try to encourage them to start off just scribbling(草草地写).

Develop a symbolic language. Educator Wendi Pillars has students recognize 10 key words or concepts from the current learning materials. He begins developing a visual collection of shorthand(速记).     3    Eventually, Students will develop their own vocabularies and visual note-taking styles.

Keep it low-vividness(逼真度). Communicate to your students that there’s no need to use visual note-taking techniques.     4     But students can find a way to comb the relationships between topics and concepts.

    5     Diagrams, freehand drawing, mind-mapping, and similar techniques are ways to get students’ thoughts down on paper. Attaching a grade to visual note-taking might prevent the student as they struggle to understand the difficult material, so provide reflection rather than a grade.

If you want to make your note-making effective, you can try these visual methods of processing materials.

【推荐1】In recent years, scientists have discovered that mushrooms are much more than just a tasty addition to your favorite dish. In fact, they are the “Internet of trees” — a vast network of underground mycorrhizal (菌根的) fungi (真菌) that connects trees and other plants in a similar way to how the Internet connects people.

The mycorrhizal network is made up of hyphae (菌丝),which connect the roots of different plants and trees. These hyphae act like an underground internet, allowing plants to exchange nutrients, water, and even hormones (激素). For example, if one tree is under stress due to drought or disease, it can send out hormones to warn other nearby trees of the danger. The other trees can then prepare themselves for the coming threat.

Human beings can help trees and mushrooms by practicing “mycorestoration” in regenerative projects. With the Global Tree Initiative working towards reforestation and preserving natural habitats, it is important to share how mycorestoration can supply innovative ways to mitigate the impact of human activities.

Fungi are natural decomposers (分解器) that break down complex organic matter, like dead trees, into simpler compounds that can be absorbed by plants. This decomposition process is crucial for the health of our forests, as it contributes to nutrient cycling, soil formation, and carbon sequestration. By introducing native fungi species into areas where deforestation has occurred, we can help regenerate soil and support the growth of new trees. Fungi form symbiotic (共生的) relationships with tree roots, improving their ability to absorb water and nutrients. This increased access to resources accelerates tree growth and improves their resilience to stress, such as drought or disease.

Fostering sustainable communities through mycorestoration can be conducted through global partnerships that promote ecology within Ecovillage Design Education. The Global Ecovillage Network’s presence in five continents and in over 8,000 communities around the planet, helps the regenerative approach to community building and preservation of existing forests. By promoting sustainable land management practices and reducing our reliance on extractive industries, ecovillages can help prevent deforestation and protect the habitats of countless plant and animal species.

【推荐3】According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over 80 million American adults are constantly sleep deprived (睡眠不足), meaning they sleep less than the recommended minimum of seven hours a night. If you’re one of those people who are proud of being able to fall asleep quickly just about anywhere, it’s too early to gloat — it’s a distinct sign, especially if you’re less than 40 years old, that you’re severely sleep deprived.

During our lifetimes, about a third of us will suffer from at least one diagnosable sleep disorder, ranging from constant insomnia (失眠) to restless leg syndrome to much rarer and stranger conditions.

Insomnia is by far the most common problem, the main reason 4 percent of U.S. adults take sleeping pills in any given month. Insomniacs generally take longer to fall asleep, wake up for long periods during the night, or both. They have a high risk of depression, psychosis, and stroke. Lack of sleep is also directly tied to obesity: Without enough sleep, the stomach and other organs overproduce the hunger hormone (荷尔蒙), causing us to eat more. If sleep is such a natural phenomenon, why do so many of us have such trouble with it?

The problem is that in the modern world our ancient, inborn wake-up call is constantly set off by non-life-threatening situations like anxiety before an exam, worries about finances, or every car alarm in the neighborhood. Before the industrial revolution, which brought us alarm clocks and fixed work schedules, we could often handle insomnia simply by sleeping in. No longer, now.

Power naps don’t solve the problem; nor does sleeping medicine. “Sleep is not a single issue.” says Jeffrey Ellenbogen, a sleep scientist at Johns Hopkins University who directs the Sound Sleep Project, “It’s a thousand different things. It’s fascinating to regulate sleep with drugs or devices, but we don’t yet understand sleep enough to artificially intervene in it.”