California is famous not only for its beautiful scenery but also for its great universities. Its state university system is the largest in the country. California has many world­class public and private universities. The following universities are the best in California based on the Wall Street Journal US College Rankings 2018.

Stanford University

Stanford University, or Leland Stanford Junior University (its full name), is a private research university founded in 1891 by the railroad tycoon (铁路大亨) Leland Stanford and his wife Jane Stanford.

The university sits at the heart of Silicon Valley. The university’s role in creating the US technology industry has led to its name as one of the greatest higher education institutions in the world. Stanford is placed among the top universities in the world.

California Institute of Technology(Caltech)

Caltech is one of the world’s leading science and engineering higher education institutions. The private research and teaching university was founded in 1891 in Pasadena just northeast of Los Angeles.

Caltech has had a strong focus on science since the early 1900s and has turned out many great scientific minds. 72 of its teachers and graduates have won the Nobel Prize (by October 2018). Caltech is also famous for the quality of its teaching. It is ranked first in the USA for the number of graduates who goes on to study a PhD.

University of Southern California

The University of Southern California is a private research university in Los Angeles. It was founded in 1880 and is one of the oldest private universities in California.

The university’s official mascot is Traveler, a white Andalusian horse. It first appeared at a football game in 1961 and was known as Traveler Ⅰ. The current horse is now known as Traveler Ⅶ.

The city of Helsinki in Finland is doing something cool! They’re turning Playground Ruoholahti, built in the 1990s, into a special computer-themed playground to help kids learn about computers while having fun. 【小题1】

The special play equipment is designed based on the ideas of author and illustrator Linda Liukas. 【小题2】. The main play equipment will be a two-part tower that illustrates a computer processor and offers climbing and sliding activities. There will also be computer-themed swings and a sandbox that looks like a gaming controller. 【小题3】. And to make it even better, the city will renew the plants, fences (围栏) and lights in the playground.

One of the goals of the playground is to serve as an educational tool for teachers and pupils. It will be primarily targeted at children from daycare age to sixth graders. 【小题4】. The playground is the first of the themed playgrounds the city of Helsinki has envisioned (设想). This is a pilot project: The city also aims to realise various themed playgrounds in the future.

【小题5】, because the surrounding neighbourhood is home to many international IT companies, and there are also several multilingual (使用多种语言的) daycare centres and schools nearby.

Playground Ruoholahti will be closed to the public while they’re fixing it up. They’ re aiming to finish all the construction by September 2024, so the playground will be ready for everyone to enjoy!

Popular Countries to Visit in 2024

Zimbabwe is a country that travelers all over the world always talk about, not only because it is a friendly country, but also because it is one of Africa’s safest places. In Zimbabwe, you can visit many tourist attractions. For example, Big Five-filled national parks, forested mountains and the Victoria Falls. Here you can see African lions, African elephants, African buffaloes, African leopards, and rhinoceroses, which are called the big five animals.

If you have a taste for adventure (冒险), you will certainly love Jordan, because there is a 650-km-long path in Jordan and you can have a 36-day hike here. There are several other places for people to visit, for example, the Rift Valley is the best place that attracts travelers fond of adventure to challenge. Besides, the Dead Sea is the lowest point on Earth, which can leave a deep impression on people.

From Sumatra to Papua, more than 17,000 islands make Indonesia a multicultural (多元文化的) country. On these islands, there are many kinds of tasty food, which could offer tourists good feelings and experiences. Thanks to heavy investment (投资) in new air, land and sea connections by the government, people from 169 countries can enter Indonesia with free visas (签证) . It has never been easier to explore this warm country.

Belarus becomes more and more popular because of the relaxed visa requirements. There are lots of art exhibitions, cafes and local parties in Belarus. In its beautiful old towns, people can go to the fashionable bars and join the happy summer street parties. Minsk, the capital of Belarus, has been chosen as the host city for many global events and meetings. 2024 European Games is on the list.