US Communities Clean Up After Major Snow Storm

Clean-up efforts continue in the eastern United States after a major winter storm left recording-setting snowfall and coastal flooding. But more than 2 ½ days since the snow stopped falling, life for many people is still far from normal. New York City reopened schools and government buildings on Monday. The city’s public transportation system is nearly back to normal service. But farther south, the situation is different. In Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, D.C., schools remained closed on Tuesday and mass transit was running at reduced levels. In Washington, most federal government offices stayed closed. All three cities were hit by heavy snowfall -- two-thirds of a meter or more in many areas. The storm is officially called Winter Storm Jonas. But Washington Post readers chose another name -- “Snowzilla.” “Considering this was a tenth of an inch (0.254 centimeters) away from being the all-time largest snowfall in the history of New York City going back to 1869, this was outstanding effort,” said New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio. He made the comment Monday on a trip to the New York City borough of Queens. He went there to visit reopened stores. But he admitted not every side street had been cleared of snow. In Baltimore, Philadelphia and Washington D.C., officials reported most major roads had been cleared. But the officials could not say when smaller streets would be cleared of snow. In Washington, people who did not get the day off because of government and school closings rode – or tried – to ride the city’s public transportation system. Compared to Monday, more Metro bus and rail lines were operating Tuesday. But people who showed up at some stations in nearby Virginia Tuesday morning learned the stations were still closed. The transit system provided buses to take passengers from the closed stations to the nearest open Metrorail stations. Officials warned that the recovery efforts would cost a lot. “When you have a storm of historic proportions, the budget will be historic as well,” said Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. In New York City, Broadway shows, the Metropolitan Opera and other fine arts centers cancelled shows on Saturday. The closure announcements came after New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced a ban on driving last Saturday. But by Sunday, when the roads reopened, most shows went on as planned. New York singer-songwriter Libbie Schrader went on Facebook to personally thank the New York City subway system for staying open. She said it enabled people to watch her show Sunday night at Rockwood Music Hall. I'm Anne Ball.   Bruce Alpert wrote this story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section or tell us about your bad weather experiences on our Facebook Page. _________________________________________________________________ Words in this Story   transit – n. buses or trains used to take passengers from one location to another outstanding - adj. extremely good or well done proportion – adj.  the relationship that exists between the size, number, or amount of two things

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VOA English Newscast: 2000 UTC January 26, 2016

From Washington, this is VOA news… I'm Dave DeForest reporting Official says no to asylum for Syrian leader: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday Russia has not asked Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down and has not offered him political asylum. His comments at a news conference came as the United Nations prepared for a new round of Syrian peace talks set to begin Friday in Geneva.  Russian President Vladimir Putin has called for the country to improve its anti-corruption measures, that coming just hours after a BBC documentary reported his estimated personal fortune at close to $40 billion. The Kremlin dismissed as a "total fabrication" comments from a U-S Treasury official who told the BBC that Mr. Putin was (in his words) "a picture of corruption." The highest court in the Central African Republic has annulled last month's legislative elections. The court also confirmed that two former prime ministers will face a run-off vote for the presidency. The nation's Constitutional Court ruled late Monday the first-round legislative vote on December 30 was marred by numerous irregularities, and said some candidates appeared to be involved in them. The European Commission said Tuesday it was not ruling out allowing member states to reintroduce border controls for up to two years. To cope with the migration crisis, the European Union interior ministers Monday asked the commission to consider the extension of border checks. The member states of the 26-country Schengen zone would be required to inform the commission about their security concerns. It would review the request before approving the reintroduction of controls. This is VOA news. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Newscast Fabrication –n. to create or make up something, such as a story, to trick people; to make or build something Annul –v. to officially declare something is not valid or is cancelled Mar –v. to ruin the perfection of something; to damage Cope –v. to deal with problems and difficult situations and try to come up with solutions

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Ten Afghan Policemen Killed in 'Insider Attack'

Officials in Afghanistan say an Afghan policeman believed to have links to the Taliban killed 10 police officers in the central province of Uruzgan on Tuesday. The attack took place early in the morning at a security area in the Chinarto district. A spokesman for the provincial governor said the killer drugged the officers before shooting them. The spokesman also said the suspected killer is missing from the security area along with a vehicle and weapons and other equipment that belonged to the officers. But a Taliban spokesman said the officers were killed by militants who attacked and captured the security area and killed all of the policemen there. VOA was not able to confirm if the report from the Taliban spokesman is true. The reported attack on Afghan police by a police officer was the second so-called “insider attack” in the past two weeks in Uruzgan. Provincial officials say four police officers believed to be working with the Taliban killed nine other officers on January 17th. The officials say the four officers then joined the Taliban, bringing their weapons and ammunition with them. Insider attacks were a major problem for US-led NATO forces between 2007 and 2013.  These attacks took place when Afghan soldiers joined allied forces on combat missions. The Taliban has increased its attacks in Afghanistan over the past year. The attacks began soon after NATO combat troops left the country at the end of 2014. The Taliban attacks have killed or injured many Afghan security force members.   I’m Mario Ritter.   Correspondent Ayaz Gul reported this story from Islamabad. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted the story for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, or visit our Facebook page. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   drug – v. to give a drug to (a person or animal) in order to make that person or animal very sleepy or unconscious; to add a drug to a food or drink in order to make someone sleepy or unconscious district –n. an area or section of a country or territory

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African Nations Seek Greater Power, Influence at UN

The leaders of Zimbabwe and Equatorial Guinea are calling for African nations to have more power and influence at the United Nations. President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and President Teodoro Obiang Nguema of Equatorial Guinea say the continent should have at least one permanent seat on the powerful U.N. Security Council. The two leaders spoke during a visit to Zimbabwe by Nguema as they prepare for the meeting of the African Union General Assembly later this month in Ethiopia. They also spoke about peace, security and terrorism in Africa. And Nguema said African nations must work to become economically independent, just as they have become politically independent. He said Africa should have two seats on the U.N. Security Council. But the continent should at least have one, he said, with the power to veto, or cancel, resolutions. “I think that is the revolution which Africa looks for,” he said. Mugabe has served as president of Zimbabwe since 1987; Nguema of Equatorial Guinea since 1979. The United States, Russia, Britain, China and France have permanent seats on the council, with veto powers. There are also 10 non-permanent members. These nations serve on the Council for two years. They cannot veto resolutions. I’m Christopher Jones-Cruise.     Sebastian Mhofu reported on this story from Harare. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted the report for Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, or visit our Facebook page. ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   assembly - n. a group that makes and changes laws for a government or organization council - n. a group of people (or nations) chosen to make rule or decisions about something

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'Snowzilla' and Tian Tian the Giant Panda

This is What's Trending Today.... Many cities in the East Coast of the United States continue to dig out after record-breaking amounts of snow fell over the weekend. The community of Glengary in the state of West Virginia had the most snowfall, with 100 centimeters recorded. The storm’s “official” name was Winter Storm Jonas. The Weather Channel began naming large winter storms three years ago, just as the National Weather Service has done with tropical storms and hurricanes for many years. But some cities decided on different names for the weekend’s snowstorm. In Washington, D.C., residents voted to name the storm “Snowzilla,” a play on the famous monster, Godzilla.   The Washington Post created a poll for residents to vote on their favorite storm name. Snowzilla beat out “Make Winter Great Again.” That name is a play on the presidential candidate Donald Trump’s campaign expression, “Make America Great Again.” After the re-naming of the storm, the hashtags #snowzilla and #snowzilla2016 trended on Twitter and Facebook. One Twitter user posted a photo of a street sign that read “Lizzard Warning” instead of "Blizzard Warning." The missing “B” at the beginning of the word made it similar to the word “lizard,” with one "z." And, Godzilla himself is similar to a giant lizard. Some people had fun with the mistake, and added images of Godzilla into the photo:   Twitter user NumbersMuncher posted a photo of a car that appears to be in the giant mouth of a Godzilla-like monster. Of course, the mouth was created from snow: Godzilla was not even the storm’s most famous creature. That honor goes to Tian Tian, a giant panda at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. A video of Tian Tian playing in the snow on Saturday has received over 55 million views on Facebook. And that’s What’s Trending Today. I’m Ashley Thompson. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   dig - v. to move away soil, sand, snow, etc., often in order to create a hole tropical storm - n. a powerful storm that begins in the tropics and that has winds which are not as strong as those of a hurricane hurricane - n. an extremely large, powerful, and destructive storm with very strong winds that occurs especially in the western part of the Atlantic Ocean monster - n. a strange or horrible imaginary creature​ blizzard - n. a severe snowstorm that goes on for a long time lizard - n. a type of reptile that has four legs and a long body and tail​ creature - n. an animal of any type​

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Roman Toilets Offered No Clear Health Benefits

Around 2000 years ago, the Romans moved into Europe. They built public latrines, or toilets, with many seats and washing areas.  And they built sewerage systems, brought in drinking water from aqueducts, and heated public baths for washing. They even had laws to keep the towns free of human waste and trash. But new archeological research shows that baths and public toilets with washing areas did not get rid of intestinal parasites. In fact, parasites like whipworm, roundworm,  and Entamoeba histolytica dysentery slowly increased, compared to the Iron Age before the Romans ruled Europe. Dr. Piers Mitchell conducted the research. He is from the Archaeology and Anthropology Department of Cambridge University in England. His research suggests that “Roman toilets, sewers and sanitation laws had no clear benefit to public health,” he said. “Roman baths surprisingly gave no clear health benefit, either." Intestinal parasites and ectoparasites -- such as lice – were widespread, he said. The study used samples from ancient Roman times to assess “the health consequences of conquering an empire.” Mitchell gathered evidence of parasites in ancient latrines, human burials and “coprolites” — or fossilized feces. He also examined combs and cloth from different Roman Period excavations, or historical sites, across the Roman Empire. Although the Romans were known for regular bathing, Mitchell found lice and fleas were just as widespread as in earlier times. The Vikings and medieval people did not have the same culture of bathing as the Romans. He found evidence of special combs for removing lice from hair. Getting rid of lice could have been something many people did every day in the Roman Empire. Mitchell said “modern research shows that toilets, clean drinking water and removing feces from the streets all decrease risk of infectious disease and parasites.” So, why did parasites such as whipworm and roundworm increase even when cleaner methods were introduced by Romans? He said it may have been the warm waters of the bathhouses that people shared. The waters were not changed often, and scum, or a layer of human dirt and cosmetics, would float on the top of the bathing water. “Clearly, not all Roman baths were as clean as they might have been,” Mitchell said. Another possibility from the study: Romans used human waste to fertilize crops. Now, in modern times, we know the waste must not be used for many months before adding it to fields. Otherwise, it can spread parasite eggs that survive in plants. "It is possible that sanitation laws requiring the removal of feces from the streets actually led to reinfection of the population as the waste was often used to fertilize crops planted in farms surrounding the towns," Mitchell said. The study also found that fish tapeworm eggs were widespread in the Roman Period, compared to earlier times in Europe.  Mitchell said this might be because the Romans loved a sauce called “garum.” It was used both for eating and as medicine. Garum was made from pieces of fish, herbs, salt and other flavors. It was not cooked, but left out in the sun to ferment. It was traded across the empire, so it may have transported the fish tapeworm along with the sauce, Mitchell said. "The manufacture of fish sauce and its trade across the empire in sealed jars would have allowed the spread of the fish tapeworm … to people all across the empire. “This appears to be a good example of the negative health consequences of conquering an empire," he said. There is an upside, Mitchell added: "It seems likely that while Roman sanitation may not have made people any healthier, they would probably have smelt (smelled) better." The findings are published in the journal Parasitology. I’m Anne Ball.   Anne Ball wrote this story. Kathleen Struck was the editor. Tell us what you think!  Write us a comment below and on our Facebook page. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   vanquish –v. to defeat someone completely in war sanitation –n. the process of keeping places free from dirt, infection, disease, etc., by removing waste, trash and garbage, by cleaning streets, etc. intestinal parasite –n. an animal or plant that lives in another animal’s intestine and gets food or protection from it dysentery –n. a serious disease that causes severe diarrhea and blood loss sewerage –n. a system or process used for carrying water and sewage aqueducts –n. a structure that looks like a bridge and carries water, or pipe or channel used to carry water trash –n. waste fossilized feces –n. human waste that is was from ancient times and that you can see in some rocks ferment –v. go through a chemical change that results in alcohol production

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US East Coast Slowly Recovers from the Storm

The weekend blizzard left many cities the East Coast of the U.S. under a blanket of snow. In Washington, the federal government and schools remained closed Monday. But in New York and other northern cities more accustomed to heavy snow, business is gradually resuming.

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Major Earthquake Hits Alaska

  A magnitude-7.1 earthquake shook south-central Alaska Sunday. At least four homes were destroyed but no injuries or deaths were reported, according to the Associated Press and the Alaska Dispatch News. The earthquake was centered 85 kilometers west of Anchor Point, Alaska, and about 250 kilometers southwest of Anchorage. One eyewitness said the earthquake lasted 30 seconds, according to a CNN news report. Roads and building were damaged and power was out in many areas. A resident of Kenai, Alaska, described the early morning quake.   “It started out as a shaking, and it seemed very much like a normal earthquake,” he said. “But then it started to feel like a normal swaying. It was unsettling. Some things got knocked over, but there was no damage.” Aftershocks followed the quake, including one of 4.7 magnitude felt in Anchorage and Juneau. Anchorage residents did not report any injuries or damage, according to NBC News. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, an earthquake with a 7.1 magnitude is considered a major earthquake. These earthquakes cause damage to buildings and can be felt across long distances. I’m George Grow.   VOANews.com reported on this story. Jim Dresbach adapted the story for Learning English. Additional information came from CNN and NBC News. Kathleen Struck was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section or our Facebook page. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   magnitude – n. the size or importance of something; a number that shows the power of an earthquake according – adv. as stated by or in swaying – v. moving or causing to move back and forth aftershocks – n. waves of motion after an earthquake that can strike days or weeks later

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Refugees Storm British Ferry at French Port

About 200 refugees attacked the French port of Calais on Saturday, and about 50 got on a passenger ferry. A spokeswoman for the ship’s operator confirmed the refugees gained entry to an outer area of the Spirit of Britain ferry. But they did not get inside the ship because ferry workers had secured the doors. The spokeswoman said some refugees agreed to leave the ship. The rest were removed or arrested, according to CNN television. Passenger service was delayed by a few hours. Another ferry company tweeted that the Calais port had been closed because of a "migrant invasion." Thousands of refugees and migrants have lived in tents near Calais for 12 months. The area, called “the Jungle”, is a place where poor people live and the buildings are in poor condition. Many of the refugees and migrants have fled war and poverty in Africa and the Middle East. They hope to cross the English Channel to Britain in search of a better life. The incident on Saturday happened after about 2,000 people in Calais gathered to show support for the migrants and refugees. A French member of the European Parliament said the conditions were “unacceptable.” "It's like an open-air prison. It's a question of dignity, we can't allow this," Green Party politician and MEP Karima Delli told reporters. CNN reported that French officials have moved some people into shelters made of metal shipping containers. Those shelters have heat and electricity. In related news, about 2,000 refugees and migrants enter Germany each day. But Germany’s interior minister said Sunday that his country is denying entry to 200 others daily. Germany accepted a record 1.1 million refugees and migrants last year. That has stretched resources and created angry political debate. "People who are fleeing war and persecution are offered security and protection in Germany," said the minister, Thomas de Maiziere. "But that also means … anyone who doesn't want to apply for political asylum in Germany and wants to illegally enter Germany has no right to be here." The German newspaper Bild am Sonntag published his comments. I’m Mario Ritter.   VOANews.com reported on this story. Kathleen Struck adapted the story for Learning English. Additional information came from CNN. George Grow was the editor. Do you have a suggestion that would help the migrants, refugees and governments dealing with them? Leave us a Comment below and post on our Facebook page. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   ferry – n. a ship that transports people or goods migrant – n. a person who goes from one place to another, usually for economic reasons English Channel – n. body of water that separates France and the British Islands of Great Britain dignity – n. a way of behaving that suggests seriousness and self-control persecution – n. the act or condition of threatening others, especially those from other religious or social groups

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IS Video Honors Paris Terrorists

The Islamic State group has released a video of nine militants it says took part in the terror attacks in Paris last November. The attackers, most from Belgium or France, killed 130 people with bombs and guns at several sites in Paris. Many others were injured. Police killed the nine during or soon after the Paris attacks. The Islamic State released the video last weekend. It uses the word “lions” to describe the men, and shows them beheading and killing prisoners in Iraq and Syria. The video includes images from the November attacks. It also shows pictures of London, British Prime Minister David Cameron and other British officials. Lines representing crosshairs are placed over their faces, according to The Guardian newspaper. Shooters use the lines to aim at their target. Britain is part of the U.S.-led coalition that is bombing Islamic State targets. Non-believers "will be a target for our swords," the video says. I’m Mario Ritter.   VOANews.com reported on this story. Kathleen Struck adapted it for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. ​We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section and on our Facebook page. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   lion – n. a large cat known for being fierce according – adv. as stated by or in crosshairs – n. a pair of fine wires or lines that cross at the focus of a lens or gun sight; used to position or aim sword – n. a weapon with a very sharp edge; often worn now at ceremonial events

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How America Elects: Polls & Debates

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