内容摘要：Firefighters works in residential building damaged after a Russian attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, May 24, 2025 (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

Firefighters works in residential building damaged after a Russian attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, May 24, 2025 (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

Members of the University of Maryland’s class of 2025 received their diplomas Thursday evening with sage advice from the amphibious Muppet ringing in their ears.“As you prepare to take this big leap into real life, here’s a little advice — if you’re willing to listen to a frog,” the beloved Muppet said. “Rather than jumping over someone to get what you want, consider reaching out your hand and taking the leap side by side, because life is better when we leap together.”

The university announced in March that Kermit, who was created in 1955 and became the centerpiece of the Muppets franchise, would be this year’s commencement speaker. He is also no stranger to the school.Muppets creator Jim Henson graduated from Maryland in 1960. A home economics major, he fashioned the original frog puppet from one of his mother’s coats and a Ping-Pong ball cut in half, according to a statement from the university. Henson died in 1990.A bronze statue of Henson and Kermit sitting on a bench is a well-known feature of the College Park campus.

In a video announcing the speaker pick, Kermit is described as an environmental advocate, a bestselling author, an international superstar and a champion of creativity, kindness and believing in the impossible.His speaker bio calls him “a star of stage, screen and swamp” whose simple mission is to “sing and dance and make people happy.”

“I am thrilled that our graduates and their families will experience the optimism and insight of the world-renowned Kermit the Frog at such a meaningful time in their lives,” university President Darryll J. Pines said in a statement.

NEW YORK (AP) — A helicopter ride giving a thrilling sweep of Manhattan’s iconic skyline has long been on the to-do list for New York City tourists of means.An Iranian woman jumps over a bonfire celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

An Iranian woman jumps over a bonfire celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)See more AP photography at

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Hundreds of thousands of people take to the streets of New Orleans towith parades and partying, leaving behind an avalanche of waste.