Coffee May Help You Live Longer

  From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report. Today we have more good news for all our coffee drinkers around the world. Another new study finds that drinking coffee can help you live longer. Researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health recently discovered that drinking between three and five cups of coffee a day may prevent certain illnesses. They found that coffee can protect against heart disease, brain diseases, type 2 diabetes and suicide. Walter Willett is a nutrition researcher at Harvard and co-author of the study. Willet says the findings extend to both caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee – or decaf, as Americans often call it. So, the health benefits come not just from the caffeine in coffee, but from the compounds in the beans. Study methods The large study of about 200,000 subjects included data from three ongoing studies. Subjects in the study had to answer questions about their coffee drinking habits every four years over a 30-year period. Researchers found that moderate coffee drinking was linked with a reduced risk of death from many diseases. These diseases include cardiovascular disease, diabetes, neurological diseases such as Parkinson's, and suicide. However, the researchers found no link between coffee drinking and cancer. Researchers also considered other habits such as smoking, obesity, and how active the subjects were. They also looked at what kinds of food the subjects ate, as well as how much alcohol -- and what type of alcohol -- they drank. They published their findings in the journal Circulation. All things in moderation This Harvard research adds to a growing body of evidence. This body of evidence finds drinking a moderate of coffee may have many health benefits, including a longer life. This is according to one of the researchers involved in the study. Frank Hu is senior author of the study. He is also a professor of nutrition and epidemiology. He studies how food affects illness. Hu adds that data from the study support the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Report. This report found that drinking a moderate amount of coffee can be part of a healthy diet. But how much and when you drink coffee is important. You may remember another study we reported on recently. That study said drinking coffee too late in the evening can disrupt your sleep. Questions Not everyone feels the recent Harvard study confirms anything. The news organization NPR spoke with one expert who warns that not everyone reacts to coffee the same way. Andrew Maynard of Arizona State University told NPR that the health benefits documented in this new study are “small.” Maynard says the study does not prove cause and effect between drinking coffee and living longer. He says the study points to an association, or link, between drinking coffee and living longer. Even those involved in the research still have questions. When NPR spoke with study co-author Walter Willett, he said he is not sure how coffee is linked to certain health benefits. Willett says the take-home message – in other words, the important thing to learn – is that if you like coffee, do not feel guilty about drinking it in moderation. If you don’t like coffee, don’t feel you have to start drinking it to be healthy. I’m Anna Matteo. Matthew Hilburn wrote this story for VOA News. Anna Matteo adapted it for Learning English, adding additional information from other reports and coffee research. Kelly Jean Kelly was the editor. ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   decaffeinated – adj. not containing caffeine : having the caffeine removed association – n. a connection or relationship between things or people subjects – n. a person (or animal) used in an experiment, study, etc. body – n. a group of things that are related or connected in some way​ moderate – adj. average in size or amount : neither too much nor too little moderation – n. the avoidance of excess or extremes, especially in one's behavior or political opinions

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Nairobi Residents Turn to Community Currency

At the Sifa Primary School outside Nairobi, Kenya, students pay their tuition with a new, local currency called the pesa. The school is one of several institutions that accepts the community currency. Teacher Josephine Ouma says the currency has made life easier. The currency is widely used by people in the Gatina Village where she lives. The pesas are equal in value to the Kenyan shilling and can be spent in the community just like cash.  The new currency gives poor people more buying power than they would otherwise have. If members of the community have a shortage of the national currency, they can use the community currency to "get access to the goods and services they may need," said Ruth Mwangi, with Grassroots Economics. It is like having a credit card without the interest. The non-profit group Grassroots Economics introduced the currency here last year. Community currency programs are being set up by non-profit organizations across the world. Although they are called currencies, they are really a regional form of exchange, or barter. They help poor communities increase trade and create jobs, according to Grassroots Economics, based in Mombasa, Kenya. It “does not replace but rather supplements the national currency system,” reported the non-profit group. How does community currency work? Here’s how community currency works: A non-profit group like Grassroots Economics organizes local businesses into a commercial barter club. Each business is given an initial amount of credit by the other businesses. These credits are backed by the goods and services of each participating business. The credits can be exchanged for various goods and services at any business in the network. A portion of the credits is collected as a tax by the non-profit organization. This is used to fund public service projects in the community, like road maintenance or trash collection.   These alternative currencies are growing in popularity and are used in a variety of local communities around the world, including Europe, Africa and the U.S. For example, Bay Bucks is a community currency used in San Francisco. “You earn Bay Bucks every time a business purchases your goods or services on the Exchange, and you can spend the Bay Bucks you earn when you want to purchase anything in the Bay Bucks marketplace,” according to their website. Let’s say Albert is a baker who needs help filing his taxes. He contacts Betty, a bookkeeper in the network, and pays her 500 Bay Bucks for her tax preparation services. Betty pays Albert 50 Bay Bucks for some bagels to serve at her next meeting. She also pays Charlie, a web designer in the network, 300 Bay Bucks to design a new logo. And on it goes, stimulating business in the local economy. Participating businesses “can use future sales” to pay for what they need now, according to Chong Kee Tan, the co-founder of Bay Bucks. Merchants in the network do not pay any interest on their purchases. Credit in community currencies is interest free.    Grassroots Economics has given pesas to about 500 locals in Gatina Village. Each member receives a maximum of 400 pesas. Of these, 200 are saved and pooled for community improvement projects. The rest can be spent like cash. Those 500 people are a just a small percentage of the roughly 10,000 people living in Gatina Village. Grassroots Economics said it started with a small number of members so they can monitor the currency. Francis Njuguna, a shopowner in the village, said: “There are some challenges with the currency, since there are a lot of people who have not accepted its use, but I believe that once we educate them on it, they will accept it, since many more are joining as we continue to enlighten them.” What are the benefits of community currency? Traditional national currencies are issued by the government and backed by banks in those countries. For example, the British pound is backed by the Bank of England. But community currencies are based on a system of trust among local residents, explained Simon Woolf. He is managing director of the Brixton Pound, a community currency used in the south London district of Great Britain. The Brixton pound was launched in 2009. Woolf said in a TEDx talk that community currencies “stimulate local trade and the local economy.”          Supporters of community currency say it is a cost-effective way to promote small local businesses and achieve social and environmental goals. Participants in Kenya also say the currency provides a cushion against hard times. Grassroots Economics plans to expand the community currency program to communities in Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania in 2016. But experts say community currencies have limitations. Radha Upadhyaya is with the Institute for Development Studies at the University of Nairobi. “It prevents you from getting goods and services from outside the economy, the local economy, and that means that the exchange networks are quite small,” she said. Woolf noted that it is hard to measure the economic impact of the Brixton pound. “There are 50,000 Brixton pounds in circulation,” he said. But no one knows how many are actually being used and what the effect is on the local economy.      I’m Mary Gotschall.        Mary Gotschall wrote this story for Learning English, with additional reporting from Lenny Ruvaga at VOANews.com. Kathleen Struck was the editor. Do you have an opinion about this topic? Let us know what you think in the Comments section below, or on our Facebook page.  ___________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   tuition – n. money that is paid to a school for the right to study there currency – n. the money that a country uses : a specific kind of money barter – n. a system in which goods or services are exchanged for other goods or services instead of for money enlighten – v. to give knowledge or understanding to (someone) : to explain something to (someone) cushion – n. something (such as an extra amount of money) that you can use to reduce the bad effect of something (such as an unexpected problem or expense) shortage – n.  a state in which there is not enough of something that is needed

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'The Ransom of Red Chief,' by O. Henry

We present the short story “The Ransom of Red Chief” by O. Henry. Here is Shep O’Neal with the story. It looked like a good thing. But wait till I tell you. We were down south, in Alabama – Bill Driscoll and myself – when this kidnapping idea struck us. There was a town down there, as flat as a pancake, and called Summit. Bill and I had about $600. We needed just $2,000 more for an illegal land deal in Illinois. We chose for our victim -- the only child of an influential citizen named Ebenezer Dorset. He was a boy of 10, with red hair. Bill and I thought that Ebenezer would pay a ransom of $2,000 to get his boy back. But wait till I tell you. About 2 miles from Summit was a little mountain, covered with cedar trees. There was an opening on the back of the mountain. We stored our supplies in that cave. One night, we drove a horse and carriage past old Dorset’s house. The boy was in the street, throwing rocks at a cat on the opposite fence. “Hey little boy!” says Bill. “Would you like to have a bag of candy and a nice ride?” The boy hits Bill directly in the eye with a piece of rock. That boy put up a fight like a wild animal. But, at last, we got him down in the bottom of the carriage and drove away. We took him up to the cave. The boy had two large bird feathers stuck in his hair. He points a stick at me and says: “Ha! Paleface, do you dare to enter the camp of Red Chief, the terror of the plains?” “He’s all right now,” says Bill, rolling up his pants and examining wounds on his legs. “We’re playing Indian. I’m Old Hank, the trapper, Red Chief’s captive. I’m going to be scalped at daybreak. By Geronimo! That kid can kick hard.” “Red Chief,” says I to the boy, “would you like to go home?” “Aw, what for?” says he. “I don’t have any fun at home. I hate to go to school. I like to camp out. You won’t take me back home again, will you?” “Not right away,” says I. “We’ll stay here in the cave a while.” “All right!” says he. “That’ll be fine. I never had such fun in all my life.” We went to bed about 11 o’clock. Just at daybreak, I was awakened by a series of terrible screams from Bill. Red Chief was sitting on Bill’s chest, with one hand holding his hair. In the other, he had a sharp knife. He was attempting to cut off the top of Bill’s head, based on what he had declared the night before. I got the knife away from the boy. But, after that event, Bill’s spirit was broken. He lay down, but he never closed an eye again in sleep as long as that boy was with us. “Do you think anybody will pay out money to get a little imp like that back home?” Bill asked. “Sure,” I said. “A boy like that is just the kind that parents love. Now, you and the Chief get up and make something to eat, while I go up on the top of this mountain and look around.” I climbed to the top of the mountain. Over toward Summit, I expected to see the men of the village searching the countryside. But all was peaceful. “Perhaps,” says I to myself, “it has not yet been discovered that the wolves have taken the lamb from the fold.” I went back down the mountain. When I got to the cave, I found Bill backed up against the side of it. He was breathing hard, with the boy threatening to strike him with a rock. “He put a red-hot potato down my back,” explained Bill, “and then crushed it with his foot. I hit his ears. Have you got a gun with you, Sam?” I took the rock away from the boy and ended the argument. “I’ll fix you,” says the boy to Bill. “No man ever yet struck the Red Chief but what he got paid for it. You better be careful!” After eating, the boy takes a leather object with strings tied around it from his clothes and goes outside the cave unwinding it. Then we heard a kind of shout. It was Red Chief holding a sling in one hand. He moved it faster and faster around his head. Just then I heard a heavy sound and a deep breath from Bill. A rock the size of an egg had hit him just behind his left ear. Bill fell in the fire across the frying pan of hot water for washing the dishes. I pulled him out and poured cold water on his head for half an hour. Then I went out and caught that boy and shook him. “If your behavior doesn’t improve,” says I, “I’ll take you straight home. Now, are you going to be good, or not?” “I was only funning,” says he. “I didn’t mean to hurt Old Hank. But what did he hit me for? I’ll behave if you don’t send me home.” I thought it best to send a letter to old man Dorset that day, demanding the ransom and telling how it should be paid. The letter said: “We have your boy hidden in a place far from Summit. We demand $1,500 for his return; the money to be left at midnight tonight at the same place and in the same box as your answer. "If you agree to these terms, send the answer in writing by a messenger tonight at half past 8 o’clock. After crossing Owl Creek, on the road to Poplar Cove, there are three large trees. At the bottom of the fence, opposite the third tree, will be a small box. The messenger will place the answer in this box and return immediately to Summit. If you fail to agree to our demand, you will never see your boy again. If you pay the money as demanded, he will be returned to you safe and well within three hours.” I took the letter and walked over to Poplar Cove. I then sat around the post office and store. An old man there says he hears Summit is all worried because of Ebenezer Dorset’s boy having been lost or stolen. That was all I wanted to know. I mailed my letter and left. The postmaster said the mail carrier would come by in an hour to take the mail on to Summit. At half past eight, I was up in the third tree, waiting for the messenger to arrive. Exactly on time, a half-grown boy rides up the road on a bicycle. He finds the box at the foot of the fence. He puts a folded piece of paper into it and leaves, turning back toward Summit. I slid down the tree, got the note and was back at the cave in a half hour. I opened the note and read it to Bill. This is what it said: “Gentlemen: I received your letter about the ransom you ask for the return of my son. I think you are a little high in your demands. I hereby make you a counter-proposal, which I believe you will accept. You bring Johnny home and pay me $250, and I agree to take him off your hands. You had better come at night because the neighbors believe he is lost. And, I could not be responsible for what they would do to anybody they saw bringing him back. Very respectfully, Ebenezer Dorset.” “Great pirates of Penzance!” says I, “of all the nerve…” But I looked at Bill and stopped. He had the most appealing look in his eyes I ever saw on the face of a dumb or talking animal. “Sam,” says he, “what’s $250, after all? We’ve got the money. One more night of this boy will drive me crazy. I think Mister Dorset is making us a good offer. You aren’t going to let the chance go, are you?” “Tell you the truth, Bill,” says I, “this little lamb has got on my nerves, too. We’ll take him home, pay the ransom and make our get-away.” We took him home that night. We got him to go by telling him that his father had bought him a gun and we were going to hunt bears the next day. It was 12 o’clock when we knocked on Ebenezer’s front door. Bill counted out $250 into Dorset’s hand. When the boy learned we were planning to leave him at home, he started to cry loudly and held himself as tight as he could to Bill’s leg. His father pulled him away slowly. “How long can you hold him?” asks Bill. “I’m not as strong as I used to be,” says old Dorset, “but I think I can promise you 10 minutes.” “Enough,” says Bill. “In 10 minutes, I shall cross the Central, Southern and Middle Western states, and be running for the Canadian border.” And, as dark as it was, and as fat as Bill was, and as good a runner as I am, he was a good mile and a half out of Summit before I could catch up with him. You have heard the American story “The Ransom of Red Chief” by O. Henry. Your storyteller was Shep O’Neal. This story was adapted into Special English by Shelley Gollust. It was produced by Lawan Davis. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   ransom – n. money that is paid in order to free someone who has been captured or kidnapped carriage – n. a large vehicle with four wheels that is pulled by a horse and that carries people paleface – n. a name supposedly used by North American Indians for a white person. sling – n.  a strap usually with a pocket in the middle that is used to throw something (such as a stone) funning – v. joking or teasing someone Now it’s your turn. Have you ever known a “wild” child like the boy in this story?  How did you deal with the child? Write to us in the Comments section.

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Belgium Detains Suspects in New Year’s Terror Plot

Police in Belgium detained at least six people last week in connection with an alleged terror plot on New Year’s Eve in Brussels. Two men were arrested Tuesday. The pair of Belgian nationals, identified by the BBC only as 30-year old Said S. and 27-year-old Mohammed K., were planning holiday terror attacks in Brussels, prosecutors said. Belgian police detained six more people during raids Thursday morning. Those six were connected to an alleged New Year’s Eve plot in Brussels. The prosecutor’s office did not mention any other potential targets or threats in Europe. But earlier this week, Austrian police received intelligence that major European capitals were at risk of being attacked over the holiday. ​Brussels’ main New Year’s fireworks display was cancelled after the plot was uncovered. In Russia, Red Square also closed for New Year’s celebrations. In Paris, site of a deadly terrorist attack in November, the main fireworks display were cancelled. A traditional New Year’s gathering on the Champs-Elysees will be held. I’m Jonathan Evans. Staff members from VOA news wrote this story for VOAnews.com. Jim Dresbach adapted it for Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor. Do you worry about terrorism happening in crowded places? We want to know what you think. Write to us in the Comments Section or visit our Facebook page. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   nationals – n. people who are citizens of a country prosecutors – n. lawyers who represents the side in a court case that accuses a person of a crime and who try to prove that the person is guilty

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Secret to Life? Dance, and Don't Procrastinate!

Hello! Here is a VOA Learning English Feel Good for you. There is a woman named Tao Porchon-Lynch. She was born in India in 1918. So, if you do the math … she’s 97. And at 97 years young, she has been recognized as the world's oldest yoga teacher. She has been teaching yoga, full-time, since 1967. But that’s not all she’s done. She’s also been a model, actress and dancer. And she is a firm believer in positive thinking. Dream the impossible dream, kind of thinker. "I'm not interested in what I can't do. Nothing is impossible." Tao not only talks the talk, she walks the walk. Or rather dances the dance. At age 85 she not only learned how to dance, she won dance competitions. And she offers this advice to the young. “Don’t put off tomorrow what you can do today.” "Don't procrastinate. Tomorrow never comes."   So, what about retirement? At 97, she is well past the age when many people make retirement plans. Retiring, it turns out, is not Tao’s style.   "A little girl 6 years old said to me, 'Tao, what are you going to do when you retire?'”   Tao told the little girl that she has no plans to retire but instead will dance her way to the next planet. And that’s your Feel Good for the week! I’m Anna Matteo.   Martin Secrest wrote this story for VOA News. Anna Matteo adapted and produced it for Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor. ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   procrastinate – v. to be slow or late about doing something that should be done : to delay doing something until a later time because you do not want to do it, because you are lazy, etc.  

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English @ the Movies: 'A Few Tricks Up Her Sleeve'

In the movie Spectre, British secret agent James Bond is at it again. His fancy sports car might have a few tricks up her sleeve. Listen to find out what it means.

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Trending Today: Mother of 'Affluenza Teen' Charged

  This is What's Trending Today.... U.S. officials have charged the mother of a young man known in the media as the “Affluenza teen.” Tonya Couch and her son, Ethan, allegedly fled to Mexico in November. Ethan Couch was wanted by U.S. officials for violating his probation, in connection with a drunk-driving crash that killed four people in 2013. Mexico deported the mother of the Affluenza teen on Wednesday.  She is charged with “hindering the apprehension” of her son. In other words, she is charged with helping her son flee to Mexico. If convicted, she could face between two and 10 years in jail. The word “affluenza” is a play on the words “affluent,” which means wealthy or rich, and “influenza” -- or the flu. Ethan Couch got the nickname during his trial. A defense expert said that his wealthy parents treated him too softly. He said Couch was not able to tell right from wrong, and lacks a sense of responsibility. ​The 2013 crash happened when Couch was 16 years old and drunk. He crashed into a car that was on the side of the road. He pled guilty and was sentenced to 10 years of probation. Ethan Couch missed a required meeting with his probation officer in Texas on December 10. Officials say they believe he fled in November, after a video surfaced showing him drinking at a party. That is a violation of his probation rules.   The mother and son were taken into custody Monday in Puerto Vallarta on Mexico’s west coast. U.S. officials located the two when Ethan Couch used one of their phones to order pizza. It could be weeks before Ethan Couch is sent back to the United States. On Wednesday, his lawyers filed a petition to temporarily block his deportation from Mexico. The phrase “Carrot Top” trended on Twitter after Tonya Couch’s return to the U.S. Many on Twitter commented on her resemblance to Carrot Top, the American comedian.   And that’s What’s Trending Today. I’m Ashley Thompson. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   apprehension - n. the act of arresting someone for a crime​ affluent - adj. having a large amount of money and owning many expensive things​ influenza - n. a common illness that is caused by a virus and that causes fever, weakness, severe aches and pains, and breathing problems​ probation - n.  a situation or period of time in which a person who has committed a crime is allowed to stay out of prison if that person behaves well and does not commit another crime resemblance - n. the state of looking or being like someone or something else  

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An Introduction to Verb Tenses

For VOA Learning English, this is Everyday Grammar. Today we are going to give you a basic overview of the verb tense system in English. Verb tenses tell us how an action relates to the flow of time. There are three main verb tenses in English: present, past and future. The present, past and future tenses are divided into four aspects: the simple, progressive, perfect and perfect progressive. There are 12 major verb tenses that English learners should know. English has only two ways of forming a tense from the verb alone: the past and the present. For example, we drove and we drive. To form other verb tenses, you have to add a form of have, be or will in front of the verb. These are called helping, or auxiliary verbs. Time, culture, and grammar Verb tenses can be difficult to learn in a foreign language. Different cultures think different ways about time. Chinese, for example, has no grammatical verb tenses. Other languages, like Indonesian, express time only through adverbs — there are no changes to the verb form.   English verb tenses give many details about time and action such as: Is the action finished? How long did the action happen? Was the action repeated? Did the action happen at a known or unknown time? Is the action a habit? Is the action planned or spontaneous? It is difficult to think about time distinctions that do not exist in your own language. So, it can take many years for English learners to master verb tenses. Let’s get started. We are going to give examples of all 12 verb tenses using the verb drive. Simple Tenses We’ll start with the simple tenses. These are probably the first tenses you learned in English. Simple tenses usually refer to a single action. In general, simple tenses express facts and situations that existed in the past, exist in the present, or will exist in the future. Simple present: I drive home every day. Simple past: I drove home yesterday. Simple future: I will drive home later. Progressive (Continuous) Tenses Let’s go on to the progressive tenses. We use progressive tenses to talk about unfinished events. Progressive tenses are also called continuous tenses. Past progressive: I was driving when you called. Present progressive: I am driving now. Future progressive: I will be driving when you call. Perfect Tenses Now let’s look at the perfect tenses. Perfect tenses cause the most confusion. To put it simply, they express the idea that one event happens before another event. There are many tricky exceptions with the perfect tenses, which we will discuss in a future episode. The adverbs never, yet and already are common in perfect tenses. Present perfect: I have driven that road. Past perfect: I had already driven that road in the past.   Future perfect: I will have driven 200 miles by tomorrow. Perfect Progressive Tenses Finally, let’s look at the perfect progressive tenses. Generally, perfect progressive tenses express duration, or how long? Perfect progressive tenses usually include the adverbs for or since. Present perfect progressive: I have been driving since this morning. Past perfect progressive: I had been driving for three hours before I stopped to get gas. Future perfect progressive: I will have been driving for five hours by the time I arrive. Don’t worry if you don’t understand everything yet. Here are some recommendations we have for learning verb tenses. Adverbs are your friends First, think of adverbs as your friends. Adverbs of time offer valuable clues about the correct verb tense. Let’s use the adverb ago. Ago is only used in the simple past as in, “I left home three years ago.” The adverb ago is never used in the present perfect. Certain adverbs occur with certain verb tenses. Keep it simple English learners sometimes try to impress people by using complex verb tenses. You often have a choice of several verb tenses. When you do, always choose the simplest one. It will be clearer for your listener, and there is less chance of making a mistake. Practice with questions Native speakers don’t think consciously about verb tenses. With enough practice, English learners can internalize the verb tense system, too. Instead of worrying about deep time relationships, try using adverbs and your ear to choose the right verb tense. Often when someone asks a question, you can respond in the same verb tense. We’ll ask a question in each verb tense. Give an answer in the same tense, then listen to our answer. Ready? Did you get enough sleep last night? (simple past) Yes, I slept well. Do you shower every day? (simple present) Yes, I shower every day. Are you going to study tonight? (simple future) Yes, I’m going to study tonight. What were you doing when I called you last night? (past progressive) I was eating dinner when you called me last night. What are you doing right now? (present progressive) I am practicing verb tenses right now. What will you be doing at midnight on New Year’s Eve? (future progressive) I will be celebrating the New Year with my friends. Had you ever tried skiing before today? (past perfect) Yes, I had already done it several times before. Have you ever broken the law? (present perfect) No, I have never broken the law. Will you have gotten married by the time you turn 30? (future perfect) No, I will not have gotten married by the time I turn 30. . How long had you been smoking before you quit? (past perfect progressive) I had been smoking for two years before I quit. How long have you been waiting for the bus? (present perfect progressive) a. I have been waiting for the bus for 20 minutes. How long will you have been working before you retire? (future perfect progressive) I will have been working for 30 years before I retire. This is just a basic introduction to verb tenses. In the following weeks, we will cover the more difficult verb tenses in more detail. I’m Jill Robbins. And I’m John Russell. Adam Brock wrote this story for Learning English. Jill Robbins and Kathleen Struck were the editors. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story aspect – n. the verb form that indicates completion, duration, or repetition of an action. distinction – n. a difference that you can see, hear, smell, feel, etc: a noticeable difference between things or people spontaneous – adj. done or said in a natural and often sudden way and without a lot of thought or planning consciously – adv. done after thinking about facts and reasons carefully   Reference VERB TENSES past present future Simple It snowed yesterday.     Simple past verb It snows every winter.     Simple present verb It is going to snow tonight. It will snow this winter. Will / be going to + simple present Progressive It was snowing when I drove to work. Was/were + -ing verb It is snowing.   Am/is/are+-ing verb It will be snowing by the time I get home. Will be + -ing verb Perfect It had already snowed before I left.   Had + past participle verb I have driven in snow many times.   Have/has + past participle verb It will have snowed 6 inches by the end of the day. Will have + past participle verb   Perfect progressive It had been snowing for two days before it stopped.     Had been + -ing verb + for/since It has been snowing all month long.       Has/have + -ing verb + for/since It will have been snowing for three days by the time it stops.   Will have been + -ing verb + for/since  

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Luxury Skyscraper Burns in Dubai

[Editor's Note: Audio will follow shortly.] Authorities say everyone has been evacuated from a luxury hotel in Dubai that was still burning early Friday.  The city’s police chief says all residents were out of the 63-story hotel, known as The Address. The hotel had been packed with people celebrating New Year’s Eve when fire broke out at about 9:30 p.m., (about 1730 UTC). At least 14 people were injured. The hotel stands across from the world's tallest skyscraper, the Burj Khalifa. The Burj Khalifa is more than 800 meters tall. It is the center of spectacular fireworks along the Dubai waterfront for New Year's. Fireworks went on as planned. Flames quickly moved through more than 20 stories of the hotel. It could be seen for kilometers in all directions.   Within 30 minutes, flames raced to the top of the hotel tower, and the sky was full of thick black smoke. Burning pieces of the hotel fell to the ground from the tower. Witnesses said tens of thousands of people were crowded into the downtown area near the blazing hotel and the Burj Khalifa. Authorities in the United Arab Emirates said earlier Thursday that thousands of security personnel were on duty because of the New Year's events.

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December 31, 2015

A look at the best news photos from around the world.

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The Ransom of Red Chief by O. Henry

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