There are two types of people in the world. Although they have equal degree of health and wealth and other things, one becomes happy and the other becomes unhappy. This arises from the different ways in which they consider things, persons, events and the resulting effects upon their minds.

People who are to be happy fix their attention on the convenience of things: the pleasant parts of conversation, the well prepared dishes, the goodness of the wine and the fine weather. They enjoy all the cheerful things. Those who are to be unhappy think and speak only of the opposite things. Therefore, they are continually dissatisfied. By their remarks, they sour the pleasure of society, hurt many people, and make themselves disagreeable everywhere. If this turn of mind was founded in nature, such unhappy persons would be the more to be pitied. The intention of criticizing and being disliked is perhaps taken up by imitation (模仿）. It grows into a habit, unknown to its owners. The habit may be strong, but it may be cured when they realize its bad effects on their interests and tastes. I hope this little warning may be of service to them, and help them change this habit.

Although in fact it is mainly an act of the imagination, it has serious results in life since it brings on deep sorrow and bad luck. Those people offend many others; nobody loves them, and no one treats them with more than the most common politeness and respect. This frequently puts them in bad temper and draws them into arguments. If they want to get some advantages in social position or fortune, nobody wishes them success. Nor will anyone start a step or speak a word to favor their hopes. If they do something wrong, no one will excuse them, and many will join to criticize their wrongdoings. These should change this bad habit and be pleased with what is pleasing, without worrying needlessly about themselves and others. If they do not, it will be good for others to avoid any contact with them. Otherwise, it can be disagreeable and sometimes very inconvenient, especially when one becomes mixed up in their quarrels.

Many schools across the US hold graduation ceremonies this time of year. In some schools, even 5 and 6-year-olds observe their graduation from kindergarten. And so can older people, much older. Meet 70-year-old Jerry Reid, who just graduated from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. He earned a bachelor’s degree.

Mr. Reid might not look like the average college student; his hair is definitely grayer. But still Jerry Reid’s age is easy to forget, other UVA students know him as one of their own.

Mr. Reid sat into the “Hoo Crew,” a group that cheers loudly for the school at sports events. He also joined a men's group on campus. He sang drinking songs along with many other students. Mr. Reid’s school friends say they can talk to him just about anything.

About a half century ago, in his 20s, Mr. Reid was not in school. Instead, he was racing cars and chasing girls. But he says his friend Bill invited him to UVA parties.

“Bill told me what a terrible life I had unless I came up here and went to school with him,” said Reid.

That was in 1963. Jerry Reid says it took him 48 years to take that advice. In 2011, he entered college. UVA Professor Luke Wright says Mr. Reid influences students. He opened the minds of the young adults. The teacher says Mr. Reid showed them that life does not end at 40. Instead, the 70-year-old college graduate believes that getting older can be the beginning of a dream.

“Remember that path that you left waits for you. It’s there. It’s yours. All you must do is to get out of your own way and get back to it. And, that's exactly what I did,” said Reid.

Mr. Reid says that he and his wife Susan now would take some time off to enjoy his college degree. Then, he’ll return to UVA to begin studying for his graduate degree.

Cigarette butts (烟蒂) are everywhere - clogging up our streets, littering our beaches - and for decades they’ve been thought of as “unrecyclable”. But a New Jersey-based company, called TerraCycle, has taken on the challenge, and has come up with a way to recycle millions of cigarette butts and turn them into industrial plastic products. Its aim is to take items that people normally consider impossible to recycle, and then use science to figure out a way to do just that.

Despite the increase in anti-smoking ads and messaging over the past 20 years, global sales of cigarettes increased by 8 percent, and a whole lot of those cigarette butts are ending up as trash, which can surely pollute the surrounding environment.

So how do you go about turning all those poisonous ends into something useful? TerraCycle does this by first breaking them down into separate parts. They mix the remaining materials, such as the tobacco and the paper, with other kinds of rubbish, and use it on non-agricultural land, such as golf courses. The filters (过滤嘴) are a little harder. To recycle these, TerraCycle first makes them clean and cuts them into small pieces, and then combines them with other recycled materials, making them into liquid for industrial plastic products.

They now have more than 7,000 cigarette recycling bins in nine countries around the world. They’re also expanding their recycling offerings to the rest of the 80 percent of household waste that currently can’t be recycled, such as chocolate packaging, pens, and mobile phones. The goal is to use the latest research to find a way to stop so much waste ending up in. landfill (垃圾填埋), and then get companies to fund the process. And so far, it’s working.

“We haven’t found anything that we can’t recycle,” communications director of Terra Cycle, Albe Zakes, said. “But with the amount and variety of packaging and litter in the world, we are always looking for new waste streams to address.”