Possibility of Improved US-Russia Relations Worries China

  President-elect Donald Trump has said that he hopes relations with Russia will improve after he takes office. This has caused a debate in the United States after U.S. intelligence services accused Russia of interfering in the presidential election. However, the idea of improved ties between Russia and the U.S. worries some Chinese officials. They believe that increased cooperation between the two powers will harm their country’s interests and weaken its relationship with Russia. Comments by influential Chinese research groups and stories in state media show the level of concern. Chinese media have been noting that China has strong ties with Russia. At the same time, reports in state-controlled media say there is little chance the U.S. and Russia will develop close relations. The Chinese reports say that the U.S. and Russia may be able to reach agreement on some issues. They might cooperate on ending the civil war in Syria or working together to fight the Islamic State terrorist group for example. But the reports say deciding how to divide power after the conflict ends will not be easy. Chinese officials reportedly worry that a stronger relationship between the U.S. and Russia would harm China’s influence in the Asia-Pacific area and the world. Because of its action in Ukraine, Russia has faced international sanctions, limiting its trade with other countries. Stephen Blank is an expert on Russia at the American Foreign Policy Council. He says many experts in China believe that closer relations between the U.S. and Russia will weaken relations between China and Russia. He says “there is a lot of anxiety in Beijing that Russians who have all along taken an anti-U.S. stance may start to think differently.” He notes that, until now, “the China-Russia relationship has been based in a large measure on their rejection of U.S. interests in the global order. This would be affected if there is improvement in (the) U.S.-Russia relationship.” Chinese opinion writers have, in the past, written about the importance of China and Russia to the international community. At the same time, they have openly voiced concerns about some of Russia’s actions. I’m Marsha James.  Correspondent Bill Ide reported this story from Beijing. Saibal Dasgupta also contributed to this report. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted his report for 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   sanctions – n. measures taken, usually trade restrictions, meant to punish a country and cause it to observe international law anxiety – n. fear, concern or nervousness about what might happen stance – n. a publicly stated opinion in (a) large measure – phrase mostly global order – n. the order of international institutions and agreements

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2jlt6t7
via IFTTT

Search Ends for Malaysia Flight 370, But Mystery Remains

  The search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 has officially ended, nearly three years after the plane mysteriously disappeared. Transport ministers from Malaysia, Australia and China announced Tuesday the search had officially been suspended. The Boeing 777 plane disappeared March 8, 2014 while carrying 239 people from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to Beijing, China. The plane lost voice contact with officials on the ground less than an hour after takeoff and did not send any emergency messages.  More than half the plane’s passengers were Chinese.   In a statement, the ministers said that even with the best technology and search techniques available, the aircraft had not been found. The underwater search had been focused on a 120,000 square kilometer area in the southern Indian Ocean. Investigators became hopeful in July 2015, when a piece of the plane’s wing was found in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar. The Associated Press reported that since then, more than 20 objects - either confirmed or believed to be from the plane - have washed up on beaches throughout the Indian Ocean.   “The decision to suspend the underwater search has not been taken lightly nor without sadness,” the statement said. The ministers thanked all nations that provided equipment, expertise and assistance. More than $150 million was spent on the search efforts by Malaysia, Australia and China. The ministers said they “remain hopeful” that new information may be found in the future to help locate the missing wreckage.     As the search for MH370 ended, new technology has been launched to help prevent planes from ever going missing. New technology to track airplanes On Saturday, a group of satellites were successfully deployed with technology that experts say will be able to track airplanes over the entire earth.   A Falcon 9 rocket from American aerospace company SpaceX carried 10 satellites into orbit for telecommunications company Iridium. The launch from California marked a successful return to rocket launches for SpaceX after an explosion on its launch pad last September. Iridium’s partner Aireon will use the satellites to track aircraft, instead of current methods using ground radar and other monitoring tools.  “This successful first launch brings us one step closer to changing the way the world flies by enabling the ability to track aircraft anywhere on the planet,” Aireon CEO Don Thoma said.   Currently, about 70 percent of the world's airspace lacks real-time surveillance because of rough terrain, deserts or oceans. The new satellite technology is expected to also make airplanes trackable in those so-called black zones. Aireon has said its global satellite-based system will be deployed by 2018 to track and monitor aircraft around the world in real-time. I’m Bryan Lynn. Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English, with additional material from reports from VOA’s Carolyn Presutti and the Associated Press. Hai Do was the editor. We want to hear from you. Do you think it was the right decision to end the search for the missing Malaysian airliner? Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   wing – n. one of usually two long, flat parts of an airplane that extend from the sides, making it possible to fly enable – v. to make something able to do or accomplish terrain – n. a particular kind of land  

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2iM487t
via IFTTT

Yoga Exercises Added to US School Programs

Along with subjects like reading and mathematics, school children at the Robert W. Coleman Elementary School are learning how to spend time in quiet thought. The students are learning yoga exercises and meditation skills. The aim is to provide them with better tools to deal with the daily struggles they face. The school, called Coleman for short, is in the American city of Baltimore, Maryland. Principal Carlillian Thompson brought the program to Coleman in 2010. She sends some of her most troublesome students to the Mindful Moment Room instead of requiring them to stay after school in detention. Nearly one fourth of Baltimore’s population lives below the poverty line. That information comes from the United States Census Bureau. Many children at Coleman face conditions common to poverty. Principal Thompson told broadcaster CNN that a few of her students are homeless, while others live in homes with no electricity. Some have little or no food to eat. Others are related to victims of gun violence.  The Mindful Moment Room is a place where Coleman students do deep breathing exercises and clear their minds. They come to learn how they can better react to situations, and how to calm themselves. They can also speak with Mindful Moment specialists about what caused their teachers to send them there. Atman Smith is one of the founders of the Holistic Life Foundation (HLF), the organization that leads the program. He told VOA News a few years ago that meditation and yoga can help young people deal with life's difficulties.  "It's…like…a serious cycle in most inner cities where people don't know how to resolve conflicts peacefully. That's why there is so much violence and abuse and, in us teaching these kids meditation – giving them these tools to self-regulate – it’s going to change, I guess, the social construct and the way the inner city works and is thought of.” HLF serves 4,500 students each week, and works with a total of 14 Baltimore schools.  A calming influence Coleman is not the only American school adding meditation and yoga to its academic curriculum. Schools in other cities are also using these tools. Last year, Visitacion Valley Middle School began offered meditation, NBC News reported. The school is in one of the poorest areas in the city of San Francisco. Some children there witnessed stressful events in their neighborhoods. A large number of the students see people carrying guns on a daily basis, athletic director Barry Driscoll told NBC News. A few years ago, there were three to five fights at the school every week.  But then, the San Francisco School District partnered with a local organization called the Center for Wellness and Achievement in Education. The center brought a meditation program called Quiet Time to Visitacion Valley and three other schools. Each day, during Quiet Time, the whole school has two 15-minute periods of Transcendental Meditation (TM). TM is a process for slowing down unwanted thoughts and reaching a state of calm awareness. At first, O’Driscoll thought meditation was foolish. But, as he told NBC, over four years of having Quiet Time, suspensions at Visitacion Valley have fallen by 79 percent. Over that period, attendance has risen to 98 percent. A nearby school that uses the program has also seen a big drop in suspensions -- 75 percent, NBC noted. In addition, students are performing better academically. Does yoga really work? Principal Thompson also believes that meditation is responsible for the drop in suspensions at her school. Over the past year, there were no suspensions at Coleman, compared to four suspensions during the 2013-14 school year, CNN reported. And, students are almost never sent to her office for bad behavior anymore, Thompson noted. For the past half century, meditation and other stress-reduction activities have been studied as possible treatments for anxiety and depression. A 2014 study links mindfulness meditation to reduced pain, depression, and anxiety. That study was published in one of the American Medical Association’s many publications, called JAMA Internal Medicine. As for students, there is some scientific evidence that yoga and meditation can help people, but more is needed. But a 2012 study on yoga found that it improved middle-school students’ ability to deal with anger and stress. The Journal of Behavioral Science reported the findings. However, education expert Patricia Jennings told the New York Times that these practices don’t “address poverty, and it may not work for everybody.” Jennings is a professor in the school of education at the University of Virginia. Some parents are not happy about schools offering yoga programs. They think yoga has a religious meaning because of its roots in Hinduism and Buddhism. For example, US News and World Report magazine reported on a Georgia school that received protests from parents. The school has made changes: it still offers breathing and stretching exercises, but has removed the Hindi term “Namaste,” for example. The school principal also wrote an apology to parents.  In a special report for CNN, yoga trainer Dana Santas explained that some parents don’t realize American-style yoga is non-religious. She said it is an exercise focused on a person’s mental and physical health, not spirituality. As Principal Thompson told VOA, for a group of fifth-grade boys at Coleman, meditation has made a huge difference. "But I could see, over time, that they learned how to, instead of using their fists, to resolve different situations, that they started with the breathing techniques. They began to talk about their problems, instead of reacting like they used to." Former students from programs offered by the Holistic Life Foundation are now 50 percent of the organization’s workers, Newsweek reported. I'm Phil Dierking. And I’m Alice Bryant.   Alice Bryant adapted this story from a VOA news report by Selah Hennessy and reports by other news sources. Do you know about schools that use meditation and yoga? What kind of effects have you seen from it? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   meditation – n. the act or process of spending time in quiet thought; the act or process of meditating yoga – n. a system of exercises for mental and physical health poverty line – n. an income level below which one is considered to be living in poverty regulate – n. to set or adjust the amount, degree, or rate of something curriculum – n. the courses that are taught by a school or college stressful – adj. making you feel worried or anxious; full of or causing stress cynical – adj. distrustful; believing that people are generally selfish and dishonest address – v. to give attention to something; to deal with a matter, issue or problem academic – adj. of or related to a school, especially a school of higher education awareness – n. in meditation, awareness is a process of actively paying attention to one’s mental, physical and emotional experiences

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2jW7Zwg
via IFTTT

Trump Clash with John Lewis Leads to Inauguration Boycott

Here's what's trending today. John Lewis is a Congressman from the American state of Georgia. He represents the city of Atlanta and its suburbs. Over the weekend, Lewis has this to say about incoming President-elect Donald Trump, "I don't see the President-elect as a legitimate president." When Chuck Todd, host of the Meet the Press news program asked why, Lewis continued, "I think the Russians participated in helping this man get elected. And they helped destroy the candidacy of Hillary Clinton. I don't plan to attend the inauguration." The President-elect answered back in his tweets. He wrote that "Congressman John Lewis should spend more time on fixing and helping his district, which is in horrible shape and falling apart (not to mention crime infested) rather than falsely complaining about the election results. All talk, talk, talk - no action or results. Sad!"   Many Twitter users sent their own messages in support of Rep. Lewis. Rather than him being "all talk and no action," they reminded Trump of the many actions that Rep. Lewis took as a civil rights protester and still takes as a Representative. Rep. Lewis took part in sit-ins to protest segregation in the southern United States in the early 1960s. He was beaten by mobs and arrested for being in the protests. Lewis has been arrested at least 45 times, the latest arrest in 2013 during an immigration protest outside the U.S. Capitol. In June, 2016, Lewis led a sit-in on the floor of the House of Representatives to protest lack of action on gun control. Other representatives in Congress are following the steps that Rep. Lewis says he will take. Representative Mark Takano said he will also boycott the inauguration. According to Fusion.net, there are more than 40 representatives who have said they will not attend the inauguration. The list of representatives contains their reasons for not attending. Some commentators are criticizing the timing of Trump's attack on Rep. Lewis. The attack came on the weekend when Americans celebrated the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. as a national holiday. Trump had planned to visit the new Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture on Monday, which was Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Instead, he met privately in New York with the son of the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King III told the press he had talked with Trump about voting rights. King added that Trump “said that he is going to represent Americans — he’s said that over and over again. We will continue to evaluate that.” And that's what's trending today. I’m Jill Robbins.   Dr. Jill Robbins wrote this story for Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   segregation - n. the practice or policy of keeping people of different races, religions, etc., separate from each other sit-in - n. a strike or protest in which people sit or stay in a place and refuse to leave until they are given what they demand commentator - n. a person who discusses important people and events on television, in newspapers, etc.   Now it’s your turn. What do you think of the boycott of the inauguration? Do politicians in your country use social media to criticize each other? Write to us in the comments section or on our Facebook page.

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2j6lSbz
via IFTTT

Suy Senglim, Bird Photographer of Cambodia

Suy Senglim is a bird photographer and founder of "Birds of Cambodia, Education and Conservation" (Nem Sopheakpanha/VOA Khmer)

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2iJRPZ6
via IFTTT

Future Shines Bright for Solar Energy Use in India

The falling cost of solar energy technology is helping India increase its production of electricity. Solar energy is electrical power captured from the sun. Last April, India’s energy minister Piyush Goyal reportedly said it is now less costly to produce electricity from the sun than from coal in his country. The drop in the cost of solar power is also helping India reach its goal of producing more renewable energy. The U.S. Energy Information Commission says India is the world’s fourth largest user of electricity. However, many of its people still do not have electricity. India urgently needs to increase its electricity production. But, reducing the country’s high levels of pollution is also very important.     In an effort to meet both goals, the government plans to produce 100 gigawatts of solar power by 2022. A gigawatt is a measure of electrical power equal to one billion watts. It’s “the size of 60 Taj Majals” A few months ago, India launched the largest solar power plant in the world in the town of Kamuthi in the southern state of Tamil Nadu. Global News agency describes the power plant as being the size of 60 Taj Mahals. The plant took less than one year to build. The power center covers more than 1000 hectares of land. It is made up of 2.5 million individual solar panels. Together, the panels can produce as much as 648 megawatts of electrical power. Adani Power, an Indian company, financed the building of the plant in Kamuthi. The solar plant is not India’s only big effort to develop solar energy. India’s solar mission All over the country, there is evidence that India’s use of solar power is increasing. In 2015, CNN reported that India became the first country to operate an airport completely on solar power. That year, the Cochin International Airport placed a solar plant on unused land near some of its buildings. Now, the airport no longer pays electric bills. Instead, it plans to sell its extra electricity back to the state. Other airports in India are also using solar power, including an international airport in Kolkata, which launched a two megawatt rooftop solar energy farm in 2015. At the beginning of 2010, India launched the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission to increase renewable energy, which includes solar. By 2022, the government wants to produce enough solar electricity to power more than 60 million homes. Last year, India joined the Paris Agreement. The U.N. agreement is a promise by almost 200 countries to help slow climate change by 2030. Part of India’s promise is to increase renewable energy to 40 percent of its total. Claire Brunel is an assistant professor of economics at American University in Washington, DC. Brunel recently spoke to VOA Learning English about India’s solar growth.   “They’re building an incredible amount of solar and they’re fast becoming one of the biggest – the countries with the biggest solar capacity and definitely the biggest added solar capacity. I mean, they’ve overcome the U.K. already and they’re on their way to overcoming Italy. I mean it's - it is pretty amazing.” Prime Minister Narendra Modi has supported solar and other renewable energy sources. His government plans to increase solar power production from four gigawatts to 100 gigawatts by 2022, according to the World Resources Institute. However, Modi’s main goal is to expand electricity production using all possible sources, including coal and other fossil fuels. Modi plans to double coal production by 2020, according to CNN. When land is limited The Indian government also wants to increase the use of rooftop solar panels. Cities are developing plans to use these panels to help make electricity service more dependable. Cities like Delhi have already announced plans to place solar panels on the roofs of buildings throughout the city. For government and public buildings in Delhi, it will be a requirement. The Times of India reported that Delhi Metro, the city’s underground train service, will put solar panels on the roofs of some of its metro stations. But, cities are not the only places collecting the sun’s energy on roofs.  Rural communities are getting electricity from companies like Simpa Energy. The website ThinkProgress says Simpa and similar companies rent solar panels to individual customers. These panels provide electricity without being connected to central power lines.  Customers can add credit to their mobile phones to use the panels. Other companies rent rechargeable solar lanterns to customers very cheaply. Companies like Simpa are opening for business in states like Uttar Pradesh, one of India’s largest and poorest states. Claire Brunel says that many developing nations are using rooftop solar panels to get electricity to rural communities, where electrical systems are not dependable. The less-than-sunny-side Yet, India still faces serious energy shortages.  The country’s energy needs are growing too fast to be met by renewable sources alone. India’s energy use has doubled since 2000, according to the International Energy Agency. Brunel says that by 2040, an estimated 300 million people in India will need new electricity service. New coal plants are being built to provide for this growing need. The country gets more than 60 percent of its electricity from coal. Reuters news agency says India has almost as much coal-related pollution as China.   Brunel says the country’s growing need for energy will affect whether it can reduce its levels of greenhouse gases. “If - if solar is capturing the growth in electricity basically, then you’re not technically changing emissions. You’re just making sure that emissions are not increasing, but you’re not decreasing them either. She says India will probably not be able to end the use of coal and other fossil fuels completely. I’m Phil Dierking. And I'm Alice Bryant. Alice Bryant wrote this story based on VOA news reports by Anjana Pasricha and Kevin Enochs and other news sources. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   renewable energy - n. energy that is comes from a source that does not run out watt - n. a unit for measuring electrical power. Taj Mahal - n. a large white, marble mausoleum located in Agra, India panel - n. a large, flat piece of equipment that uses the sun's light or heat to create electricity proximity - n. the state of being near logistics - n. things that must be done to plan and organize a complicated activity or event climate change - n. a change in global climate patterns caused by an increase in heat-trapping gases resulting from the burning of fossil fuels (such as coal and natural gas) capacity - n. the ability to hold or contain people or things — usually singular fossil fuel - n. a fuel (such as coal, oil, or natural gas) that is formed in the earth from dead plants or animals customer - n. someone who buys goods or services from a business lantern - n. a light that has usually a glass covering and that can be carried by a handle shortage - n. a state in which there is not enough of something that is needed greenhouse gas - n. a gas in the atmosphere that absorbs and emits radiation emissions - n. the act of producing or releasing something, such as a gas or chemical element, from a source  

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2ivsljP
via IFTTT

Report: Eight Men Own as Much Wealth as Half the World’s Population

  A new report from a British anti-poverty organization says eight men own as much wealth as the poorest 3.6 billion people in the world. The eight men include Microsoft’s Bill Gates and former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg. Oxfam International released the report on Monday. Oxfam is a group of international organizations that seek to fight poverty around the world. The group warned that public anger over inequality might cause more political changes. Examples of such changes, Oxfam said, include the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president and Britain’s vote to withdraw from the E.U. The report appears as international political and business leaders meet at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. This yearly event gathers leaders, experts and activists to discuss important international issues. Oxfam released a similar report last year. That report suggested 62 people owned as much wealth as half the world’s population. The activist group says new information from Swiss bank Credit Suisse and Forbes magazine shows that fewer people hold more of the wealth. Forbes lists Bill Gates as the wealthiest individual. The magazine says he is worth about $75 billion.   Following Gates on the list are Amancio Ortega of the Spanish ​clothing company Inditex and American businessman Warren Buffett. Also among the eight are Mexican businessman Carlos Slim Helu and Amazon head Jeff Bezos. They are followed by Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and former New York City mayor and media businessman Michael Bloomberg. Winnie Byanyima is the executive director of Oxfam International. She will be attending the World Economic Forum meetings in Switzerland. She hopes to discuss the problems inequality causes with world leaders. “It is obscene for so much wealth to be in the hands of so few people when 1 in 10 people live on less than $2 a day,” Byanyima told the Associated Press. “Inequality is trapping hundreds of millions in poverty; it is fracturing our societies and undermining democracy.” Oxfam offered possible solutions to economic inequality in its report. These include higher taxes on wealth and income to pay for more public services. The group also calls on business leaders to pay their share of taxes. In addition, Oxfam calls for stronger agreements between governments on fair pay for workers. Max Lawson is the head of policy for Oxfam. He urged extremely rich people to, in his words, “do the right thing.” “We have a situation where billionaires are paying less tax often than their cleaner, or their secretary” Lawson told the Associated Press. “That’s crazy.” Last year, the release of financial documents known as the “Panama Papers” showed how some wealthy people avoid paying taxes. The leaked documents were a collection of information about secret bank accounts some wealthy people used to hide their wealth. On Monday, another report warned that income inequality has led to a decrease in trust in governments and other institutions. Edelman is one of the world’s biggest marketing companies. The company studied the opinions of 33,000 people from 28 different international markets before the start of this years’ World Economic Forum. Edelman said its study found the largest drop of trust in government, business, media and non-governmental organizations yet. The company has reported on its trust and credibility survey for 16 years. Trust of chief executive officers of companies is at an all-time low, according to Edelman. The report added that government leaders are the least trusted group. I’m Dorothy Gundy.   Pan Pylas reported this story for the Associated Press. Pete Musto adapted it for VOA Learning English using additional Reuters news service material. Mario Ritter was the editor. We want to hear from you. How different are the lives of a wealthy person and a poor person in your country? What percentage of people own most of the wealth in your country? Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page. ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story inequality – n. an unfair situation in which some people have more rights or better chances than other people obscene – adj. morally disturbing or upsetting fracturing – v. damaging or destroying something undermining – v. making someone or something weaker or less effective usually in a secret or gradual way billionaire(s) – n. a rich person who has at least a billion dollars or pounds institution(s) – n. an established organization

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2ivt0lc
via IFTTT

China: ‘One-China’ Policy and Taiwan Not Negotiable

  China has criticized United States President-elect Donald Trump for suggesting that the “one-China” policy is negotiable. Trump’s comments came in an interview with the Wall Street Journal published on Friday. In future talks with China, he told the newspaper, he believes that “everything is under negotiation, including 'one-China.’” Under the “one-China” policy, China considers self-ruled Taiwan a part of Chinese territory. Most nations, including the U.S., have diplomatic relations only with the mainland. Chinese Nationalists fled to Taiwan and set up a government on the island after losing to communist forces in 1949 ending China’s civil war. The United States accepted the “one-China” policy when it established diplomatic ties with China in 1979. The Chinese government does not have diplomatic relations with countries that have official ties with Taiwan. The United States still has strong unofficial relations with Taiwan, which has a democratic government. China’s Foreign Ministry reacted sharply to Trump’s comments on Monday. A ministry spokeswoman told reporters any attempt by the U.S. to reconsider the “one-China” policy would be self-defeating. “Not everything in the world can be bargained or traded off,” the spokeswoman said. She warned against any nation trying to use the policy to gain a better position in negotiations with China. The spokeswoman said this could harm the “one-China” policy. Such a move would also face “strong opposition” from the Chinese government, people and international community, she added. Reaction to Trump’s comments also came in official media. The China Daily newspaper said any attempt to bargain over the issue of Taiwan would result in “a period of fierce, damaging interactions.” If Trump used the “one-China” policy as part of a negotiating plan, “Beijing will have no choice but to take off the gloves,” the China Daily wrote.   Trump’s comments on the policy took place weeks after his acceptance of a telephone call from Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen on December 2. It was the first time a U.S. president or president-elect has publicly spoken to a leader of Taiwan since America’s acceptance of the “one-China” policy in 1979. China watchers considered the call a sign of possible closer ties between Taiwan and Trump’s administration. On Sunday, Reince Priebus, Trump's incoming chief of staff, said there were “no plans” to change the “one-China” policy. But he also said: “Certainly that policy is on the table if China doesn't also come to the table and work with us on trade, work with us on the South China Sea and what's happening there." Preibus made the comments on the ABC news program This Week. I’m Bryan Lynn. Bryan Lynn adapted this story for VOA Learning English, based on reports from VOA News, the Associated Press and Reuters. Mario Ritter was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story bargain – v. discuss an agreement or price in an attempt to make it more appealing fierce – adj. very strong or intense take off the gloves – idiom to no longer hold back or restrain in a fight or dispute, but to pursue any means possible to win  

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2jsXxjb
via IFTTT

Regrowth of Heart Muscle May Be Possible

From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report. It may seem like a moment in a science fiction movie. In a fierce battle, a creature loses an arm but, then, grows another one to take its place. However, this is not science fiction. It is scientific fact. Some fish and amphibians, such as salamanders, can regrow lost limbs and organs. As mammals evolved they lost the ability to regrow, or regenerate, parts of their body. However, experiments show that it may be possible to regain that ability. Tropical freshwater zebrafish are popular pets. They are also popular as lab animals. Their embryos are clear, or translucent. They can regrow damaged fins, skin and hearts. Zebrafish are also genetically similar to humans. In 2013, the website Sci-News reported that researchers had found that 70 per cent of “protein-coding human genes” are related to genes found in the zebrafish. The report also said that researchers at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in Britain also found that 84 per cent of genes known to be connected to human disease have a zebrafish counterpart. These researchers published their findings in the scientific journal Nature. Sanger is a non-profit British genomics and genetics research institute. So, it is no surprise that scientists at the University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania are using tiny zebrafish to regenerate severely damaged mouse hearts. Scientist Wang Yadong is one of the Pittsburg researchers. He and his team are studying the ability of zebrafish to regenerate limbs and organs. Wang says you can cut away about 20 per cent of the zebrafish heart and it will regenerate. He add that same process may be able to help humans. "So that amazing ability make(s) us think it's possible to borrow some of that repair regeneration mechanism and use that to help us to regenerate our heart." Scientists injected an “extracellular matrix,” or ECM, from the heart of a zebrafish into a severely damaged mouse heart. In biology, an extracellular matrix is a substance produced and released by cells that gives structural and biochemical support to surrounding cells. Think of ECM as cellular stuff that gives room and board to surrounding cells.  So, what did the researchers find? They found that the heart muscle regenerated in days. They found something else. The healing was even faster when the ECM was taken from zebrafish that was itself in the process of re-growing damaged tissue. Wang adds that if you had to choose between the two matrices, the “healing matrix” is more powerful of the two. "Between the two, the healing matrix from the zebrafish heart is even more potent than the normal one." A molecule called neuregulin 1 seems to play a major role in causing the regeneration to happen. "We did see the zebrafish heart has more neuregulin 1 than the mouse heart. The healing zebrafish heart has even more than the normal. So, it does indicate that neuregulin probably plays a role but we have to do more study on that." The next step will be to test the regenerative abilities of zebrafish ECM on larger mammals. I’m Anna Matteo. George Putic reported this story for VOA News. Anna Matteo adapted it for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story limbs –n. referring to arms and or legs regenerate –v. to regrow after being lost or damaged translucent –adj. permitting light to pass through counterpart –n. something that does the same job as something else mechanism a process or system that is used to produce a particular result extracellular matrix substance produced by cells and released into the environment in which the cells are embedded; In biology, the extracellular matrix (ECM) is a collection of extracellular molecules released by cells that provides structural and biochemical support to the surrounding cells. room and board –idiom a place to stay and food to eat potent –adj. active, strong matrix –n. something from which something else develops indicate –v. to show role –n. the part something plays in a system

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2iA6u5P
via IFTTT

Washington Businesses, Hotels Prepare for Trump Inauguration

  On January 20, Donald Trump will be sworn in as the 45th president of the United States. Hundreds of thousands of people will gather in Washington, D.C to attend the inauguration on the steps of the Capitol Building. Eight years ago, Barack Obama, then a senator from Illinois, took the oath of office. Obama inauguration: "Are you prepared to take the oath, senator?" Many Hollywood personalities attended both of President Obama’s inaugurations.They are not planning to attend the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump. Most of the guests for the Trump inauguration will come from the states that supported him.  There will also be some diplomats and other international visitors. And people will attend other events as well, including the inaugural parade and big costly parties called balls. As the visitors make final plans for the trip to Washington, many D.C.-area businesses are getting ready for the crowds. Although some hotels still have rooms available, most are full. Among them is one of the city’s costliest and highest-rated places to stay, the Four Seasons Hotel. It is charging much higher prices for inauguration weekend. A night in its presidential suite costs $16,000. And with the hotel requiring a four-night stay during inauguration week, the cost is easily $64,000. David Bernand is general manager at Four Seasons Hotel. "We have people from political parties, you know, people from the business side of things here.  And we also have people from banks, people all over really, every single trade." With the high price for rooms come extra services. "We've got hand warmers available for them, right, hats and things like that.  Just things to make it more convenient for them." The hotel will give a gift to visitors each day of their four-day stay. The final gift will be a leather box, marked in real gold with the symbol of the presidential seal. While Four Seasons visitors are receiving costly gifts, others in town for the inauguration will treat themselves to less costly souvenirs. One business, the Washington Welcome Center, is ready with souvenirs linked to the presidency. Store manager Dexter Morse expects Trump-related objects will be a big seller during inauguration week. Morse says the hottest items are Trump hats. "The 'Make America Great Again' hat.  Basically, the baseball caps are selling. We can't keep them on the shelves." Visitors at the store do not just shop. They also talk about politics. Henry Jones is a Trump supporter. He is a college student visiting from Georgia. "I think he's got some good qualities and I know he has his bad qualities, too, and has a lot of differences that people don't agree with.  But I think he'll bring a lot to this country in his economic status, and in his way as a businessman, I think he can do a lot for the economy." Store manager Dexter Morse says, since the election, both Republicans and Democrats who visit the store are expressing their views. "The Republicans, they will come in and they basically speak on money issues, whereas the Democrats will come in and they'll seek out the problems and will talk about what's on the news, like if they cut Obamacare." For some, the long lines, crowds and strong security in the city during the inauguration are not appealing. Business owner Divo Le says he hopes Donald Trump will make America great again. But, he will not be fighting the crowds in D.C. Le says he plans to watch the change of U.S. leadership on television. I’m Marsha James.   Deborah Block reported this story for VOANews.com. Marsha James adapted her report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   oath – n. a formal and serious promise to tell the truth or to do something inauguration - n. the official swearing-in ceremony suite – n. a group of rooms for a single person or family in a hotel afford – v. to be able to pay for souvenir – n. something that helps you remember an event item – n. a thing, object or piece of something convenient – adj. allowing you to do something easily or without trouble leather –  n. animal skin that is chemically treated to preserve it and is used in making clothes, shoes, furniture shelves - v. to put something on a shelf We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2iFj6vZ
via IFTTT

New Orleans Cooking Meets a Taste of Vietnam

  Every part of the United States is known for some special kind of food. Americans in Maine would say their state is best known for its seafood, especially lobster. Texas and North and South Carolina argue about which state has the best barbecue. And the same goes for New Yorkers and people from Chicago when it comes to which city has the best pizza. But the city with possibly the richest food culture is New Orleans, Louisiana. New Orleans, also known as the “Big Easy,” is almost 300 years old. It is home to almost 350,000 people and covers about 90,000 hectares. The city has a mix of French, Spanish and Caribbean influences. These influences can be seen in not just the food, but also the music and buildings. Many people travel to New Orleans every year for any one of the city’s many festivals. They come for wild parties, and rarely leave without a taste for southern cooking. Restaurant critic Tom Fitzmorris operates a website called The New Orleans Menu. It lists about 1,550 restaurants in the city. So how does one chef separate their food from the food of the others? Amarys Herndon and her husband Jordan try their best by cooking traditional New Orleans food in a special way: a Vietnamese way. In 2007, the Herndons moved to the city from Texas to study cooking at Delgado Community College. But for Amarys Herndon, the love for making tasty food started much earlier. "I always really liked cooking. My mom hated cooking. So as soon as I showed an interest in it, she just let me take over. I have 8 younger brothers and sisters ... Our financial situation was pretty tight. So…one of my tricks was making stuff look really pretty on the plate, so that they’d be excited to eat it even if it was the same thing that we’d had for four meals in a row." Herndon and her husband worked in famous New Orleans restaurants for several years. They learned how to make the traditional dishes, like gumbo and po’boys. And then they decided to launch their own eatery. They opened an independent company called The Old Portage, using the cooking areas of other businesses. They kept most of the traditional cooking they learned in restaurants the same. But Herndon says they saw so many people cooking crawfish in the usual New Orleans way that they knew they had to make a change. They remembered seeing Vietnamese people living in the Houston, Texas, area cook crawfish in their own traditional way. Herndon says she loved the different spices and ingredients. And so she and her husband started going to a bar called the Black Penny in the city’s historic French Quarter. Now, they prepare a Vietnamese-style “crawfish boil” there several times a month. New Orleans-style spicy crawfish often comes with corn and boiled potatoes. But the Herndons serve theirs with lemongrass butter and bread from Dong Phuong, a real Vietnamese bakery. And it has become a great success. A former employer once told Herndon that, in order to cook food in the style of another culture, one must show that culture respect. Herndon says several Vietnamese are often among the people enjoying her style of crawfish. And that makes her believe she is honoring both New Orleans and Vietnamese culture as best she can. "There’s a story and a history to almost every dish here. You can see the ties to all the different cultures that have come through, which is one of my favorite things about the city… Because you can see the way all these different cultures have affected New Orleans and our food here." Nicholas Christian is another person that moved to New Orleans for the food. He works with several local coffee shops and has helped some restaurants choose the different kinds of food they will serve. He says a crawfish boil is the perfect example of the culture of eating in the Big Easy. Friends and strangers come together at large tables eat to all the food as one group. A meal here is a time when people slow down and pay more attention to what they are doing and who they are with, Christian says. "Food is a way of life and down here it definitely shows. The amount of high quality food you can get down here for the price is incredible. If you do go to a fine dining restaurant [and] you spend $60 on a steak, it’s going to be one of the best steaks you’ve ever had in your life." New Orleans has its problems like any other city, Christian says. But he adds that love of food, music and life make it home to anyone that visits. I’m Pete Musto.   Pete Musto reported this story for VOA Learning English. Adam Brock shot the video and Pete Musto produced it. George Grow was the editor. We want to hear from you. Do chefs in your country often combines dishes from different cultures with their own? What city has the best food in your country? _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   lobster - n. an ocean animal that has a long body, a hard shell, and a pair of large, sharp, curved parts on the toes, and that is caught for food barbecue - n. food that has been cooked on a flat metal frame over hot coals or an open fire pizza - n. a food made from flat, usually round bread that is topped with usually a yellow or white solid food that is made from milk called cheese, as well as a thick liquid made from a round, soft, red fruit called a tomato chef - n. a professional cook who usually is in charge of a restaurant gumbo - n. a thick soup made in the southern U.S. with meat or seafood po’boys - n. two pieces of bread filled with seafood that is served in Louisiana crawfish - n. an animal that looks like a small lobster and lives in rivers and streams spice(s) - n. a substance that is used in cooking to add flavor to food and that comes from a dried plant and is usually a powder or seed​ ingredient(s) - n. one of the things that are used to make a food or product potato(es) - n. a round root of a plant that has brown, yellow, or red skin and white or yellow flesh and that is eaten as a vegetable lemongrass - n. a type of grass that produces an oil that smells like lemon and is widely used in Asian cooking butter - n. a solid yellow substance made from milk or cream that is spread on food or used in cooking​ bakery - n. a place where bread, cakes, cookies, and other baked foods are made or sold steak - n. a thick, flat piece of meat and especially beef

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2ivqd6E
via IFTTT