Obama, Netanyahu Meet in Washington

  U.S. President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in Washington Monday. The two leaders discussed security issues in the Middle East and U.S. military aid to Israel. The visit marked the first time Obama and Netanyahu met since the Iran nuclear deal, negotiated in July by the U.S. and five other world powers. The Israeli leader has strongly opposed the Iran deal. He said it would not slow Tehran’s work toward a nuclear weapon. He also said the deal would put Israel in danger. Netanyahu discussed his concerns in March in his address to the Republican-controlled U.S. Congress. Netanyahu and Obama did not meet during that visit. However, Obama called the Iran deal a “narrow issue” of disagreement between the two leaders. He also called “the security of Israel one of my top foreign policy objectives.” Obama administration officials said last week that the U.S. president no longer believes that agreement on creation of a Palestinian state can be reached before he leaves office in early 2017. Netanyahu told Obama on Monday that he remained committed to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He also said that any Palestinian state must be demilitarized and recognize Israel as the homeland of the Jewish people. The two leaders also discussed a new 10-year U.S. military aid package to Israel. The country is seeking $5 billion a year, U.S. congressional sources say. Israel receives more than $3 billion a year in U.S. military aid. I’m Anna Matteo.   Ken Bredemeier reported this story for VOA News. Ashley Thompson adapted it for Learning English, with additional reporting from Reuters. Kathleen Struck was the editor.  Do you have an opinion about relations between Israel and the U.S.? Please leave us a comment and post on our Facebook page. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   aid - n. something (such as money, food, or equipment) that is given by a government or an organization to help the people in a country or area where many people are suffering because of poverty, disease, etc. narrow - adj. : including or involving a small number of things or people : limited in range or amount demilitarized - v. to remove weapons and military forces from (an area) — usually used as (be) demilitarized homeland - n. a usually large area where a particular group of people can live                                                                          

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Way Forward for China, Taiwan Remains Unclear

Leaders from Taiwan and China met Saturday for the first time since the end of the civil war in China, more than 65 years ago. The meeting was an effort to create goodwill between the two sides. In the past seven years, ties between the sides have increased. However, some Taiwanese say those ties have not resulted in economic gains or greater security. China claimed sovereignty over self-ruled Taiwan when it formed the People’s Republic of China in 1949. Relations were icy until 2008. The two sides agreed to link the two economies. Today in Taiwan, people are unclear about the benefits of the relationship. The island’s economy shrank in the third quarter of this year.  Many Taiwanese wanted progress from the meeting. Liu Yi-jiun is a public affairs professor at Fo Guang University in Taiwan. He said there were high expectations because these two leaders had never met. He said, after two years of planning, political and economic concessions were promised but none were seen.   Taiwan's President Ma Ying-jeou told his Chinese president Xi Jinping that he was worried about China’s missiles deployed across the Taiwan Strait. He also said people in Taiwan were frustrated that China was blocking Taiwan’s foreign relations. China has 170 allies compared with 22 for Taiwan. This difference lets China keep Taiwan from developing its diplomacy further. In response to Taiwan’s concerns about missiles, Xi Jinping said Saturday China’s missiles were not aimed at Taiwan. However, economic concerns remain. Taiwan has signed free-trade agreements with Singapore and New Zealand. Both countries have relations with the two sides. But China has blocked Taiwan from joining the United Nations or other international organizations. Taiwanese officials say deals with China have created 9,600 jobs among a population of 23 million. Agreements that opened tourism brought a total 2.8 million mainland Chinese to the island last year. That is up from almost no tourism in 2007. Trade deals also have helped increase total imports and exports to $130 billion last year. China remains Taiwan’s largest trading partner. And it is the top receiver of Taiwanese foreign investment.  Some people complain the benefits of 23 deals with mainland China covering trade and other areas are reaching mainly the owners of big companies. In Taiwan’s capital markets, investment from China amounts to only a fraction of the island government’s quota, or the amount permitted. Tseng Ming-chung is Chairman of the Financial Supervisory Commission in Taiwan. He said Friday that the Taiwanese government has approved almost every application for investment from China. He says the amount of money is extremely small. He adds that the Taiwanese government is not refusing applications. Tseng says mainland Chinese institutions cannot freely set up qualified domestic institutional investors. China insists on eventual unification with Taiwan. However, public opinion polls show most Taiwanese oppose that goal. Nathan Liu says the future of relations between the sides is unclear. “…They think that at least by the end of Ma’s term the two sides should at least reach some kind of agreement,” he said. He noted that, an understanding that the sides are going toward common goals is needed, although it may not be a signed agreement. “This is not complete yet,” he said.    President Ma Ying-jeou has supported closer ties with mainland China. But he and his KMT party have lost support. He must step down next year because of term limits. A backlash against economic deals with China started mass street protests in March 2014. That anger has given the island’s top opposition party candidate a lead in opinion polls ahead of the January presidential election. Tsai Ing-wen of the Democratic Progressive Party has been highly critical of President Ma’s dealings with China. Experts say the Saturday leadership summit appears not to have done enough to change voter opinion. I’m Mario Ritter.   Ralph Jennings reported this story from Taipei. Mario Ritter adapted it for Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor. Do you have an opinion about China-Taiwan relations? Please leave a comment below the story or post to our Facebook page.  _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story    goodwill – n. good feelings, added value sovereignty – n. unlimited power over a country frustrated – adj. trying to do or gain something but not being successful; upset because of being unable to complete something fraction – n. a divided number, only a small amount quota – n. a limit on how much of something can be bought, invested, used, etc. backlash – n. a reaction against something such as a proposal, policy or new idea

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Banana Protein May Be Virus Killer

From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report. Bananas are often called the perfect food. They are nutritious, a good source of all kinds of vitamins and minerals. They can help fight depression and ward off muscle cramps. They can lower blood pressure and protect against heart attacks. To most people, bananas taste great. They add natural sweetness to some baked goods and health drinks. And bananas come in their own protective, biodegradable packaging. So, there are many reasons to eat bananas. And now there is another. Bananas, it turns out, have a secret weapon. And this secret weapon could protect against viruses. Scientists are now taking a protein found in bananas and turning it into a drug that may someday fight viral infections. The secret weapon is called banana lectin, or BanLec. BanLec is a protein that attaches to sugar molecules and keeps viruses out of cells. A virus cannot infect what it cannot enter. The team of researchers published their study in the journal Cell. In their article, the researchers say it could be one of the first antiviral agents to treat a wide-range of viruses. These viruses include HIV, hepatitis and even the common flu virus. Senior co-author of the study is David Markovitz at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. He warns that you can't get the benefits of BanLec simply by eating a bunch of bananas. Stomach acids, he explains, will chew up the protein before it has a chance to fight infections in the body. BanLec is a modified, or changed, protein. Markovitz explains.                                    "Remember, when you are eating the banana, then the protein which, by the way, is not our modified protein, it is an actual protein; it is probably going to be chewed up by the stomach acid. So, we very much doubt that eating bananas will help you." Discovery by accident Markovitz says researchers investigated the banana protein for a very special use. Women could use a type of the protein before sex to protect them against HIV infection. But the researchers found that the protein fought off a number of viruses. Viruses simply die if they can't infect cells. At this point, Markovitz says, there are no plans to test the BanLec protein on humans. He says he and the other researchers are ambitious, meaning they want to be successful with this drug. But, Markovitz adds, they also need to be careful, or be cautious, to avoid doing any harm. It’s early days, he says. "We're trying to help people with their health, not harm them. And so it's good to be cautious about where we are going. You know, we're also very ambitious to make things work well, but we're not there. You know, we're early on still." It may be early on, but these researchers may want to hurry. The world’s banana supply in currently in serious trouble. A deadly fungus, now called Tropical Race 4, has been killing banana crops around the world. TR4 started in Malaysia in the 1990s and in 2013 moved across Southeast Asia and into Australia. Now the fungus has moved into Africa and is killing banana crops in Mozambique.    Today, bananas are grown in more than 100 countries. As of 2013, many websites rank India as the world’s top producer of bananas. Bananas are ranked fourth among the world's food crops in monetary value. Mozambique officials say bananas bring in more than $70 million per year. We Americans eat more bananas than apples and oranges combined. I’m Anna Matteo.   Are bananas part of your diet? Do you have a special recipe or do you just peel and eat? Let us know in the Comments Section.   Jessica Berman wrote this story for VOA News from Washington, D.C. Anna Matteo adapted it for Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor. ___________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   biodegradable – adj. capable of being slowly destroyed and broken down into very small parts by natural processes, bacteria, etc. stomach acids – n. digestive secretions of the stomach glands chew – v. to injure, destroy, or consume as if by chewing cautious – adj. careful about avoiding danger or risk ambitious – adj. having a desire to be successful

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Asian-American Voters Abandon Republicans

Anh “Joseph” Cao felt uneasy when his Republican colleagues made comments about immigrants. Cao was a Republican congressman from 2009 to 2011 in a Democratic district of Louisiana. He emigrated to the U.S. in 1975 from Vietnam when he was a child. He says he sometimes heard comments from his Republican colleagues that he considered anti-immigrant and insensitive.  “It’s been six years so I don’t really remember the specifics,” Cao said. “But I just remember thinking that some members were being insensitive, not recognizing that there was an immigrant – me -- in the room with them.” Cao, the first Vietnamese-American elected to Congress, said he continues to hear comments about “too many immigrants” from some Republican candidates. Meanwhile, Democrats are picking up a larger share of Asian-American voters. It is because of the anti-immigrant talk from Republican politicians and Republican opposition to immigration law changes, says Cao and other Asian-American leaders. In 2012, Asian-Americans gave 73 percent of their votes to Democratic President Barack Obama, according to the National Election Poll. That’s more than twice the percentage Democratic President Bill Clinton received in 1992. Cao, a lawyer, came to the United States in 1975. He and his brother fled Vietnam after the Communists won the Vietnam War. Older Vietnamese tend to favor the Republican Party because it is seen as more anti-Communist than Democrats, he says. Cao said he also favored Republican views on limited government. But Cao, 48, said younger Vietnamese are trending more Democratic. Comments by Republicans that sound anti-immigrant turn younger voters toward Democrats, he said. Joseph Choe, 20, a Harvard University student, recently questioned Republican Donald Trump during a New Hampshire meeting. “Are you from South Korea?" Trump asked. Choe replied that he was born in Texas and raised in Colorado. And Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee tweeted this about Democrat Bernie Sanders: “I trust @BernieSanders with my tax dollars like I trust a North Korean chef with my Labrador!," he tweeted. Those comments tell Asian-American voters that Republicans don’t care about them, said S.B. Woo, the former lieutenant governor of Delaware. Woo is a physicist who founded the 80-20 National Asian American Political Action Committee. His group works to turn out 80 percent of the Asian-Americans' vote for the group’s endorsed candidate. Woo said the trend toward Asian-American Democratic support is continuing in the 2016 presidential race. But he said Democrats should not take Asian-American support for granted. Frustrations over college admission practices could lead to more Asian-Americans voting Republican, Woo said. Many Asian-Americans believe some elite universities limit the percentage of Asian-American students, Woo said. On this issue, the politics favor Republicans, Woo said. Democrats are seen as more supportive than Republicans of affirmative action policies, he said. Such policies are designed to ensure all races and ethnic groups are represented in student bodies. Asian-American students are high achievers, Woo said. Efforts to equalize ethnic and racial representation at colleges mean worthy Asian-American students are denied admission. Harvard University and other Ivy League schools deny their admission policies discriminate against Asian-American applicants. “In fact, within its holistic admissions process, and as part of its effort to build a diverse class, Harvard College has demonstrated a strong record of recruiting and admitting Asian-American students,” said Robert Juliano, Harvard University’s general counsel. He said Asian-Americans make up 21 percent of Harvard undergraduates. Another factor that could reverse the trend of Asian-American support for Democrats is income. Higher income voters tend to support Republican candidates who tend to favor lower taxes. And the median income for Asian-American households in 2009 was $65,469, compared to $51,863 for white households, and $38,039 for Hispanic households, according to Census Bureau statistics. The importance of the Asian vote is increasing. The Asian-American population is expected to more than double, from 15.9 million in 2012 to 34.4 million in 2060, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The Asian-American share of the U.S. population is expected to increase from 5.1 percent to 8.1 percent during that period. The Pew Research Center broke down the Asian-American population from the 2010 census this way: 4 million from China; 3.4 million from the Philippines; 3.2 million from India; 1.74 million from Vietnam; 1.7 million from Korea; 1.3 million from Japan; 409,000 from Pakistan; and 277,000 from Cambodia. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   insensitive – adj. showing that you do not know or care about the feelings of other people incumbent – n. a person who holds a particular office or position advantage – n. something (such as a good position or condition) that helps to make someone or something better or more likely to succeed than others holistic – adj. relating to or concerned with complete systems rather than with individual parts diverse – adj. different from each other We want to hear from you. Share your views in the Comments section or comment on our Facebook page.

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Three Charged for Assaults on Cambodian Lawmakers

Three Cambodian men are in custody after attacks on rival lawmakers last month in Phnom Penh. The suspects are Chay Sarith, Mao Hoeurn and Suth Vanny. They gave up to police last week. The three claim to have attacked lawmakers Nhay Chamroeun and Kong Saphea. The lawmakers are members of the National Rescue Party. The attacks happened after protests supported by the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP). The attacks took place outside parliament in view of police. Police did not get involved in the violence. VOA was told by a Phnom Penh lawyer the three men were charged with, “intentionally causing violence and destruction of property.” The two victims were taken to a hospital in Bangkok for treatment. They said they would like to see those who ordered the attacks arrested. Nhay Chamroeun suffered a broken nose, teeth and ribs. Kong Saphea received bruises and cuts to the face. The suspects could each serve seven years in prison. The Rescue Party’s Yem Ponrith praised the charges. He said the number of attackers numbered more than three. Defense lawyer Choung Choungy said the men should be charged with serious crimes. He said the charges should include attempted murder. I’m Jonathan Evans. Neou Vannarin and Sok Khemara reported on this story for VOANews.com. Hean Socheata contributed to this report. Jim Dresbach adapted this story for Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor. ____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   custody – n. the state of being kept in a prison or jail ribs – n. any one of the curved bones of the chest that connect to the spine  bruises – n. dark and painful areas on or under the skin which are caused by an injury We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section or visit our Facebook page.  ​

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Water on Mars: What Does It Mean?

For centuries, humans have wondered whether there is life on Mars. Scientists have asked why Mars is losing its atmosphere. Last week, the question was answered with a song. “The answer, is blowing in the wind,” said Michael Meyer, taking a line from a Bob Dylan song. Meyer is the lead scientist for NASA’s Mars Exploration Program. It turns out solar winds from the sun are slowly stripping away Mars’ atmosphere. That is what NASA scientists explained at a press conference Thursday. Bruce Jakosky is principal investigator on the MAVEN team. MAVEN stands for Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution. It is a spacecraft that collects information from Mars as it circles the planet. Today, Mars has a thin atmosphere. It is cold and dry, with a desert-like environment. Jakosky says it used to be much different. “When we look at ancient Mars, we see a different type of surface. One that had valleys that looked like they were carved by water, lakes that were standing for a long periods of time. We see an environment that was much more able to support liquid water.” NASA scientists have used the phrase “follow the water” in their work to understand Mars. Recently they found a kind of liquid water that flows with salt down a mountain area of the planet. But, it is not always there. Scientist Michael Meyer describes what they found: “We’re seeing water, with the salt that’s able to flow down the sides of the cliff.  Why is this important? That   means there is water on Mars, on the surface of Mars today.” Scientists already knew that ice exists at the polar caps of Mars. So why is it important to find liquid water? Meyer explains: “It means that we have a resource. And when we’re looking at sending humans to Mars, water is one of the key things that we need to have. Not only for the astronauts to drink, but also to make oxygen, to make fuel, and so having a ready resource there on the planet make a big difference in terms of how much stuff you have to bring with you.” Sending humans to Mars is still in the distant future. NASA is aiming for the 2030s. The space agency has even started a recruiting campaign to hire new astronauts. Those chosen might fly any number of space vehicles still in development. Both U.S. government and private industries are developing rockets and spacecraft to get people to Mars. Many questions need to be answered: How do you protect humans from radiation in space? How do you grow food in space ships on the way to Mars? How do they grow food once they arrive on Mars? Having access to water on the planet will be critical to that effort. Meanwhile, American astronaut Scott Kelly just passed a halfway mark. Kelly, and Russian Mikhail Kornienko, are spending a year on the International Space Station circling the Earth. Scientists want to know how the human body reacts to being in space for long periods of time. Whether there is life on Mars remains unanswered. But some scientists say they think there might be some kind of microbial life on the planet. Michael Meyer is more cautious, saying it has yet to be proven. He says there could be life there today, if it ever got started there in the first place. Finding life, however small, on another planet in our solar system would be so exciting: “Whether or not there’s life on Mars doesn’t matter, whether or not I think so, or don’t think so.  I’m a scientist, I want to go and find out. The real point is we don’t know, but it’s a good question. It’s a reasonable question. It’s something we should be pursuing. ‘Cause imagine how exciting that would be to find evidence of life somewhere else, not on our planet.” And that, finding life on another planet, would certainly change the way we view the whole universe. I’m Anne Ball. Anne Ball reported this story. Kathleen Struck was the editor. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   strip (ping) -  v. to remove matter from something distant - adj. far away microbial - adj. extremely small living thing cautious - adj. careful solar system - n. our sun and the planets that move around it What do you think?  Would you want to go to Mars? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.

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Most US Presidential Candidates Oppose TPP

More candidates running for president oppose the Trans-Pacific Partnership Trade Deal (TPP) than support it. Democratic frontrunner Hillary Rodham Clinton is the latest to declare her opposition to the deal. The TPP was negotiated by the Obama administration. As Secretary of State, Clinton described Obama’s TPP as the “gold standard” of trade agreements. But this month she said the final deal does not appear acceptable. “I don’t believe it’s going to meet the high bar I have set,” she said. Senator Bernie Sanders, Clinton’s top challenger for the Democratic presidential nomination, opposed the agreement. He maintained that stance even before the deal was finalized. “We need trade policies that promote the interests of American workers not just the CEOs of corporations,” he said, after 12 nations announced agreement on the Pacific trade deal Oct. 4. Republican presidential candidates are divided. Businessman Donald Trump, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal and former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee oppose the deal. Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, Florida Senator Marco Rubio and Ohio Governor John Kasich are mostly in support of the agreement. Others, including former surgeon Ben Carson, said they are waiting for more information before expressing a view. The U.S. Congress will likely vote to accept or reject the deal long before the winning candidate takes office in January 2017. Potential trouble in Congress for TPP The trade agreement eliminates, or reduces tariffs, and other barriers to trade among 12 nations. Ministers from Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan and Malaysia approved the deal. It was also approved by ministers from Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam. The approval came on October 4. Congress has never voted against a major trade deal. The TPP might lack support from U.S. politicians who are running for president or who are trying to keep their congressional seats. Many U.S. businesses support the trade deal. They say it will export more of their products to Asian markets. But unions fear job losses, and cuts in wages and benefits, if the trade deal is approved. “Democrats are very much interested in the support of unions, and the labor movement is opposed to this deal,” said Brian Brox, a political science professor at Tulane University. He said that most voters may not understand the complicated agreement. But many are likely to see it as being helpful to big businesses rather than American workers. Also many Republicans are not inclined to support a proposal by President Barack Obama – a Democrat. That makes it harder for a Republican candidate for president to support an agreement his administration negotiated. “For Republicans, candidates not supporting something backed by President Obama is never a bad idea,” Brox said. In other words, voting against Obama’s projects is good for Republicans. Trump tweeted comments about the deal that played to Republican primary voters opposed to President Obama. He tweeted that the Obama administration was “incompetant. TPP is a terrible deal.” Rubio, the Florida senator, said he wants to see more details before taking a firm position. However, he told CNBC: “I’m generally very much in favor of free trade.” What is TPP? The Trans-Pacific Partnership sets rules for investments from one country to another. It includes protections for intellectual property such as patents and computer software. The deal covers more issues than is the case with some free trade agreements. It is “basically a free trade agreement on steroids,” Columbia University international economics lecturer Andrea Bubula said on #Hashtag VOA. U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman said the trade agreement will improve the U.S. economy. It will allow more U.S. products to be exported than foreign products will be imported to the U.S. U.S. products face tariffs as high as 70 percent on autos, 50 percent on machinery, and 700 percent on certain agricultural products, Froman said. Eliminating or reducing the high tariffs will make U.S. products more competitive, he said. I'm Mario Ritter. And I'm Anna Matteo.   Bruce Alpert reported on this story for VOANews.com. Hai Do was the editor. Share your views in the comments section or on our Facebook page. ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   partnership -- n. the state of being partners. opposition – n. actions or opinions that show that you disagree with or disapprove of someone or something gold standard – n.  something that is considered to be the best and that is used to judge the quality or level of other, similar things challenger – n. someone competing against a candidate on steroids – phrase. Bigger or greater than normal. negotiations – n. something that is considered to be the best and that is used to judge the quality or level of other, similar things eliminates -- v. --  to remove (something that is not wanted or needed) : to get rid of (something) complicated – adj.  hard to understand, explain, or deal with

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Will Brazil's President Be Impeached?

Observers say recent events have increased the chances of Brazil’s president being forced from office. The experts are saying that President Dilma Rousseff could face impeachment. Rousseff has long been accused of illegal financial activities involving the government-operated energy company Petrobras. Brazilian courts say she used government money in her presidential re-election campaign last year. In addition, many Brazilians are unhappy with government efforts to strengthen the country’s economy. In March, an estimated one million Brazilians joined protests to demand the president’s removal from office. The newspaper O Globo reported that the biggest protest was in Sao Paulo, where more than 100,000 demonstrators gathered. They protested against higher taxes, poor public services and rising fuel prices. Last month, Brazilian courts said they would launch an investigation of the president's election campaign accounts from last year. Political observer Lucas de Aragão described the court’s decision as the "most serious challenge to Rousseff.” He added that “it alleges she doctored government accounts to allow for more spending in the run-up to her re-election a year ago." Aragão noted that any citizen can present a request for Dilma Rousseff's impeachment to the Brazilian House of Representatives. But the request must be for a legal reason, such as the illegal use of money for a campaign or involvement in the Petrobras scandal. The president of the House, Eduardo Cunha, would need to approve the move. If Cunha agrees, the request would go to the 513-member National Congress. They would have to vote on its legitimacy. For the process to continue, two-thirds of the Congress, or 342 Congressmen, would have to vote in support of the request. The process then would move on to Brazil’s Senate. Two-thirds of the Senate, or 54 Senators, have to approve the process within 180 days. During that time, the president would be temporarily out of office. If the process is approved, Dilma Rousseff would be impeached. I’m Jonathan Evans. Jonathan Evans reported on this story from Washington using information from the Reuter news service, IBTimes and O Globo news services. George Grow was the editor. What do you think about impeachment proceedings against President  Rousseff? Let us know in the Comments or on our Facebook page.  ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   doctor – v. to change something, especially in order to trick or deceive people impeach – v. to charge (a public official) with criminal activity while in office scandal – n. something that is shocking or unacceptable legitimacy – n. legality; the quality of state of being legal Do you think President Rousseff will be impeached? Write to us in the comments section. ​  

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Facebook Launches More Mobile App

Facebook is launching a news mobile app called Notify with subscription content from media partners like the Washington Post and Vogue. The Notify app lets users subscribe to content from media partners on their smartphones. Facebook will be able to add news alerts in its daily notifications to a global audience. Facebook’s “renewed push into mobile news reflects a big, global shift in media consumption patterns,” said the Financial Times. Facebook’s profit and revenue growth reflected this shift in media. The world’s largest social media platform said its third-quarter revenue grew to $4.5 billion on the strength of its mobile advertising. Facebook, with 500 million users, has doubled its daily page views to 8 billion since April. The company also owns Instagram, a mobile photo and video-sharing app with 400 million users. Analysts were optimistic about Instagram’s future growth. Research firm eMarketer predicted global mobile advertising revenues for Instagram will reach $2.8 billion by 2017, up from $595 million this year. This represents over 10 percent of Facebook’s global advertising revenues. This strong showing has positioned Facebook to compete with major social media companies as an advertising force, said analysts. “Facebook will drive growth and capture nearly 65% of social network ad revenues in 2015,” reported eMarketer. Sheryl Sandberg is Facebook’s Chief Operating Officer. “In the medium to long run, we believe that we’re not competing between Facebook and Instagram. We’re competing with other forms of media,” Sandberg told analysts on a conference call.  She said Facebook wants to grow in emerging markets and bring more people online who are not using the Internet. The advertising environment on social media is very competitive. Social media platforms are fighting for customers on laptops, tablets, phones and even watches. Twitter is one of Facebook’s competitors. Twitter’s advertising revenues have slowed as the company struggles to add new users, reported the Wall Street Journal. Another competitor, Google, is selling more advertisements for less money on its own sites, said Ad Age. I’m Mary Gotschall.   Mary Gotschall compiled this story for Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor. ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   notify – v. to tell (someone) officially about something network – n. a system of computers and other devices (such as printers) that are connected to each other app – n. a computer application mobile – adj.  able to be moved optimistic – adj. having or showing hope for the future : expecting good things to happen  analyst – n. a person who studies or analyzes something site – n. a website or place on the World Wide Web that contains information about a person, organization, etc., and that usually consists of many Web pages joined by hyperlinks subscribe – v. to pay money to get a publication or service regularly smartphone – n. a mobile phone with an advanced operating system which has features of a personal computer   Do you have an opinion about this topic? Let us know what you think in the Comments section below, or on our Facebook page. 

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Myanmar Holds Historic Election

Millions of voters begin streaming to the polls across Myanmar in the first relatively free election in a quarter of a century. As many as 30 million people are expected to cast ballots Sunday to select from more than 6,000 candidates for both houses of the national parliament and regional assemblies.

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Students Protest High Cost of Education

For VOA Learning English, this is the Higher Education Report. Thousands of protesters marched through London on Wednesday to express anger about the rising cost of higher education. The UK joins a growing list of countries that saw angry crowds of students taking to the streets over the past year. South Africa and Chile both had large protests of the cost of higher education in the last few months. A plan to cut government money that supports full-time university students is the reason for the London protests. This money, called maintenance grants, helps full-time higher education students with the cost of living. Students do not have to pay the money back to the government. British Member of Parliament George Osborne announced in June that maintenance grants would no longer be available. Osborne said that starting in 2016, the government will offer maintenance loans instead. These loans will need to be paid back. Cuts to supports for students will affect low and middle income students the most, critics say. The problem of higher education costs for poorer people was also at the center of the South African demonstrations. The University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg announced that it would increase fees by 10.5 percent in 2016. Student protests then caused the university to stop all activity on October 14. Demonstrations spread to several other universities across the country as well as outside parliament. The protests quickly became the largest in the country since the end of Apartheid in 1994. Apartheid was the social system in South Africa that began in 1948. During the period of Apartheid, black people and people of other races did not have the same rights as white people. South African President Jacob Zuma declared on October 23 there would be no increase to university fees. However, the protests still have not ended. Income inequality and racism are also issues protesters want the government to recognize. The University of Witwatersrand recently released a study of these issues. The results of that study show 60 percent of the country's black African workers live in poverty. Chile's protests throughout this year are part of a longer struggle as well. The Confederation of Chilean Student Federations, or CONFECH, is an organization that fights for change to the country's education system. CONFECH began organizing university students in 2011. Their goal was to get the government to improve the public education system. Chilean President Michelle Bachelet's promises to change the education system helped her win the 2013 election. Bachelet signed a bill on Monday giving control of the entire public education system to the central government. This bill would share resources in all schools equally. But, many of the protesters say the President has not done enough. Protesters include in their demands free university education for all people. Bachelet has promised free university education for 70 percent of the country's poorest people. Demonstrations continue, though, as it is not clear how the country will pay for free higher education. An important quality uniting these protests around the world is the use of social media. The National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts, or NCAFC, is a London-based organization that fights tuition fees and education cuts. NCAFC created the hashtag #GrantsNotDebt to spread information about Wednesday's protests over the Internet. Organizers in South Africa used the hashtag #FeesMustFall. Chilean protesters use Twitter and Facebook to share photos and stories of what is happening in the streets. Violence has also been present at some of the protests. South African police used water cannon and stun grenades on protestors in the city of Pretoria. A property owner shot and killed two young men in the Chilean city of Valparaiso in May. The young men were hanging a sign on the side of the property owner's building. Groups in all three countries continue working to make education cheaper and easier to access. The NCAFC has plans for another march on November 17.  British Labor Party member John McDonnell voiced his concerns at the march on Wednesday. "Education is a gift from one generation to another," he told marchers. "It is not a commodity to be bought or sold." Ralph Mathekga studies politics in South Africa. He told VOA that these protests could mean major changes in the African National Congress, or ANC. The ANC will have local elections next year. Mathekga believes that the protests show a change in the way people will vote. "What we have seen is actually the [growing] power of the middle class in South Africa," Mathekga said. "And the question is: how far is this going to go?" The cost of higher education is a major issue in the United States as well. The Institute for College Access and Success is an organization that studies the cost of education. The organization released a report on Tuesday about debt from student loans in the US. The report shows that 69 percent of higher education students used loans to pay for school in 2014. The average loan debt among those students is $28,950. Next week we will look at ways some students avoid debt and find cheaper ways to get an education. I'm Pete Musto. And I'm Jill Robbins. Now it's your turn. How does your government support people who want to attend college or university? Do you think higher education should be free? Let us know in the comments section below, or on our Facebook page.   Pete Musto reported and wrote this story for VOA Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor. ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   income – n. money that is earned from work, investments or business inequality – n. an unfair situation in which some people have more rights or better opportunities than other people racism – n. poor treatment of or violence against people because of their race tuition – n. money that is paid to a school for the right to study there hashtag – n. a word or phrase beginning with a hash or pound sign (#) and used to identify messages on a specific topic cannon – n. a large gun stun grenade(s) – an object that is used to cause a sudden, loud, and violent release of energy, making a person unable to move or think clearly, without injury cheaper - adj. costing less money commodity – n. something that is bought and sold

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