Facebook Opens Training Center in Brazil

  The social media service Facebook plans to open a training center in Brazil for computer coders and people interested in starting a business. It will be the company’s first such training center in a Latin American country. Facebook hopes it will encourage young Brazilians to consider a career in technology. Brazil has a high unemployment rate after a deep economic crisis. Many of the jobless are young people. The training center will occupy space in the middle of Sao Paulo. Diego Dzodan, Facebook’s regional vice president, said the center will connect unemployed, untrained young people with technology companies that need workers. “Imagine the opportunity,” he said. “You’ve got people without a job, so they can’t afford training. And yet there’s so much demand for positions that the market can’t fill.” The Reuters news service reported his comments. One in four Brazilians aged 18 to 24 -- most of them with more education than their parents -- were unemployed at the start of 2017. The country’s worst economic crisis has harmed the careers of a generation of young workers. Facebook plans to open the training center by December. It will offer free coding classes, career guidance, entrepreneur training and digital marketing programs for 7,400 Brazilians in its first year. The Facebook effort is one of several in Sao Paulo. Other companies are making the most of rising interest in technology and a drop in the cost of office space in Latin America’s largest business center. In June 2016, Alphabet Inc. opened the Google Campus Sao Paulo business center just a short walk from the new Facebook space. The Google campus also offers advice to Brazilians interested in creating start-up companies, as well as free community events. Dzodan would not tell Reuters how much his company was spending on its new space. He said the effort would be measured by the number of people receiving training and education, not actual cost of the physical training center. I’m Dorothy Gundy.   The Reuters news agency reported this story from Sao Paolo, Brazil. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted the report for Learning English. George Grow 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   encourage – v. to urge; to provide support coder – n. someone who creates orders or directions for a computer regional – adj. of or related to an area entrepreneur – n. someone who starts a business  

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Reported Speech and the 'Historic Present' Tense

  The 2008 film, The Dark Knight, tells the story of Batman, a fictional superhero. At one point in the movie, Batman's enemy, the Joker, says the following lines: My father was a drinker and a fiend. And one night, he goes off crazier than usual… He turns to me, and he says: 'Why so serious?' Today's report is not about violent stories. Nor is it about superheroes. Instead, it is about reported speech. You will learn how Americans report speech in everyday situations. You will learn about different verb tenses speakers use to report speech.  So, what is the link between the Joker's lines and reported speech? We will tell you, but first we must give you some definitions. Reported Speech In everyday speech, speakers often report what others say. They quote what other people told them, or they repeat what they said themselves. This is known as direct speech. The verb say is often used to report direct speech in conversation, note Susan Conrad and Douglas Biber, two English grammar experts. Here is an example: "I called the mechanic and said I was ready to come pick up my car – a white convertible, and he said, "Oh, sorry, somebody already picked it up," and I said, "Excuse me, who did you give my car to?" In the example, the speaker used the verb say in the past tense just before the speech that he was reporting. This is a conversational, informal way of reporting what a person said. You can imagine that the speaker is a little angry about this story – his car seems to have disappeared! "Historic present tense" Direct speech makes a story more exciting. To make the story even more interesting, some speakers use the quoting verb in the "historic present" tense. This means that a present tense verb is used to refer to past time. Here is an example: "He was sitting there drinking his coffee, and he says what is this? It was a tooth! " In the example, the speaker uses the present tense – she said says instead of said. This is the "historic present tense." Speakers use this form because it makes the story sound more immediate, more exciting, and less formal. You heard an example of the "historic present" at the beginning of this report. The Joker had already shown that he was talking about the past when he said, "My father was a drinker and a fiend." Then, he changes to the "historic present" tense: "He turns to me, and he says: 'Why so serious?" The good news about the so-called "historic present" is this: you do not need to use it. You should not use it in writing, and you should probably not use it in speaking, either. However, it can be useful to understand it. Native speakers might use it in conversation – and when they do, you will understand what they mean. Other common verbs or expressions used to report something In everyday, informal speech, Americans often use other verbs and expressions to report direct speech. Some of these verbs and expressions have the same meaning as say. The most common of these is probably the verb go. Often used in the simple present tense, the verb go is used commonly by young people, although older people use it too. Here's an example: I asked him why he didn't call me back, and he goes, "Well, I didn't get your message." Here, the verb go is taking the place of the verb say. The speaker could have said "and he said, "Well, I didn't get your message." Americans also use the expression be like to replace the verb say. Be like is commonly used among young adults, but many older people also use it.  This structure is primarily used among friends. Consider this example: I'm like are you from Washington, D.C.? and she's like yeah, how did you know? Be like can also be used to report thoughts, rather than speech. When speakers use be like in this manner, it takes on the meaning of "to be thinking (something)." What can you do? The next time you are watching television or talking to an American, try to listen for examples of reported speech. Does the speaker report speech using the verb say, or does he or she choose a different word or expression? Ask yourself if the speaker is using the "historic present" tense to add excitement to the story. With time, and with practice, you will learn how Americans report speech. You might even be able to report speech in a similar manner. However, one warning: do not try to use the historic present tense – if you use it incorrectly, you might confuse others! We did not talk about formal reported speech today. If you would like to learn more about formal reported speech, please read our previous Everyday Grammar story, "They Say That Reported Speech Is Easy." You can find it on our website, learningenglish.voanews.com I'm John Russell. And I'm Alice Bryant.   John Russell wrote this story for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   superhero – n. a fictional character who has amazing powers (such as the ability to fly) fiend – n. a very evil or cruel person tense – n. grammar : a form of a verb that is used to show when an action happened informal – adj. having a friendly and relaxed quality quote –v.  to write or say the exact words of (someone) practice –n. the activity of doing something again and again in order to become better at it confuse – v.  to make (someone) uncertain or unable to understand something  

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Tennis Players Show Off Fashion at US Open

  This is What’s Trending Today. Tennis players must wear almost all white at Wimbledon. That includes shorts, shirts, hats, dresses, shoes and socks. But when they get to New York in the late summer for the U.S Open, they let their personalities come out through their clothing.Serena Williams is one player who always wears something special. In 2004, Williams wore calf-high, shiny black Nike tennis shoes. But this year, Williams is not playing due to her pregnancy. It turns out other players are taking over the fashion show. On Monday night, Maria Sharapova played in her first major tournament in over a year. She was suspended for taking a banned drug in early 2016. She impressed the crowd with a shiny black dress. The dress shined because it was embedded with crystals. After she won her opening match, she said: “Behind these Swarovski crystals and little black dresses, this girl has a lot of grit and she's not going anywhere." Among the male players at the tournament, people are talking about the clothing worn this week by Alexander Zverev from Germany. Zverev was the fourth-ranked player in the tournament. Tennis experts thought he could win the title. Against Darian King of Barbados, Zverev was wearing a tennis outfit similar to the one worn by Swedish star Bjorn Borg in the 1970s. He had a white headband with thin stripes holding back his long hair. He wore a similarly styled shirt and even completed the throwback look with high white socks. Tennis players have not worn those socks since the early 1980s. Zverev said his look was designed by singer Pharrell Williams. On Twitter, many people talked about the high socks. Some liked them; others did not. In his next match, however, Zverev lost to Croatia’s Borna Coric. This time, he was wearing shorter socks. Maybe that was the difference. One Twitter user, Jen, definitely thought so. She wrote: “Zverev clearly should have kept the long socks.”  And that’s What’s Trending Today. I’m Dan Friedell.   Dan Friedell adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on a story by the Associated Press. Hai Do was the editor. Will you be watching the U.S. Open fashion? We want to know. Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   personality – n. the set of emotional qualities, ways of behaving, etc., that makes a person different from other people embed – v. to place or set (something) firmly in something else grit – n. mental toughness and courage throwback – n. a person or thing that is similar to someone or something from the past or that is suited to an earlier time — usually singular outfit – n. a set of clothes that are worn together look – n. a style or fashion

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Talks on Brexit Slowed Over Trade, Border Issues

  British and EU officials say they are “deadlocked” after four days of negotiations on Britain’s exit from Europe, known as “Brexit.” The two sides appear to disagree on which parts of Brexit should be negotiated first. EU officials unclear on the British negotiating position EU officials say British negotiators are not clear about what they want. But, the British side says negotiating a trade deal should come before talks on terms for leaving the EU. Another point of disagreement is the amount of money Britain will have to pay the EU when it leaves. Some estimates place the amount at $89 billion. The EU is seeking the money for budget payments and to pay for projects and loans that were agreed to in 2013. That is before the referendum on June 23 of 2016 when Britons voted to leave the EU. Michel Barnier is the chief EU negotiator for Brexit. He told reporters, “To be flexible you need two points, our point and their point. We need to know their position and then I can be flexible.” The European parliament’s coordinator, Guy Verhofstadt said, “the other party is not responding.” Because of this, he said, it “is difficult to start a negotiation.” Verhofstadt also released a video of himself talking about the difficulties of the negotiations on the social media network Twitter. He tweeted, “I fear that some of the #Brexit hardliners don’t want to negotiate.” Brexit and trade talks, which comes first? The EU wants the two sides to make progress on an agreement for Britain to leave the group by October. The EU does not want trade talks to begin until this step is reached. Experts say that the British side does not want to settle on a Brexit payment until they have secured a good free trade deal. The EU, however, has described the Brexit payment and future trade agreement as two separate issues. British Prime Minister Theresa May said, “I think a good trade deal is not just about the UK, it is about what is good for businesses in what will be the 27 remaining states of the EU as well.” May admitted that Britain would have to pay money to the EU on leaving the group. But trade remained the main issue, “I think it is in all our interest to move on to those trade talks and to get a good idea.” Questions about border Border policies are another issue that has slowed talks. The two sides have made little progress on how Europeans will be treated under British law and other border issues. The sides must agree on the rights of more than two million European citizens and their families who are living and working in Britain. And an estimated 1.3 million Britons live in EU countries. In addition, Britain must work out border issues with the Republic of Ireland, an EU member. Ireland and Northern Ireland oppose harsh border policies fearing a renewal of the Irish conflict. Ireland also has threatened to veto trade negotiations until officials are satisfied with the border agreement. Disagreement within Britain Some former British officials have criticized the British governments negotiating strategy. They say it shows sharp disagreements between members of May’s cabinet and Conservative Party parliament ministers. They disagree on whether Britain should remain a member of the EU single market and customs union. Such a move would make trade easier, but Britain would have no control over trade rules set by the EU after it leaves the group. Finance minister Phil Hammond has the support of many top business leaders. He is trying to influence the Conservative Party away from a sharp break with Europe and its rules—what is being called a “hard Brexit.” The public is growing more concerned about Brexit according to opinion studies because of increasingly bad economic news. There also are concerns that Britain will lose many of the EU citizens who live and work in the country. The professional services company KPMG said in a study that about one million EU citizens, many who are highly educated, are planning to leave the country because of Brexit. I’m Mario Ritter.                                                             Jamie Dettmer reported this story for VOA News. Mario Ritter adapted it for VOA Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   deadlocked –adj. unable to move forward, flexible –adj. willing to change or do things differently customs –n. the system of taxes and costs that a government seeks when goods come into the country from another country   We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.

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US, Allies in Show of Force against N. Korea

The United States and its allies have again responded to a North Korean missile test. This time, the response included a military exercise using real ammunition. American military aircraft included two B-1B bombers from a base in Guam and four F-35B stealth fighter jets from a base in Japan. Four South Korean fighter jets joined the Americans to fly over the Korean peninsula. And Japanese military aircraft flew over Japanese waters in the 10-hour operation. The combined forces released live weapons at the Pilsung Range training area. The show of force came two days after North Korea fired an intermediate-range missile over Japan. General Terrence J. O'Shaughnessy is the commander of U.S. Pacific Air Forces. He said, "North Korea's actions are a threat to our allies, partners and homeland, and their destabilizing actions will be met accordingly. Our forward deployed force will be the first to the fight, ready to deliver a lethal response at a moment's notice if our nation calls." North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency issued a statement calling the exercise a “rash act of those taken aback” by North Korea’s recent missile launch. The U.S. military frequently responds to North Korean actions with a show-of-force display of its attack aircraft. In July, the U.S. and South Korean militaries also fired missiles into South Korean waters. The action was in response to a North Korean intercontinental ballistic missile launch. Joseph Dunford is the top general of the U.S. military. On a recent trip to the region, he said the military's main goal is supporting U.S. efforts to denuclearize the Korean peninsula. But he added that the U.S. is preparing what he called "viable military options" in the event that those efforts fail. I’m Jonathan Evans.   Carla Babb reported this story for VOA News. Jonathan Evans adapted it for Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. _____________________________________________________________ Words in this Story   destabilize – v. to cause something to be unable to continue existing or working in the usual or desired way; to make something unstable lethal – adj. causing or able to cause death stealth – adj. used to describe military aircraft that are designed so that they cannot be easily seen by radar viable – adj. capable of being done or used; workable

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News Words: Empathy

Empathy is a human trait. Find out what it means in the week's News Words.

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Lesson 51: A Good Habit

Summary Anna has a new goal - to run in a marathon. Her friend Ashley knows that training a little every day is a good idea. Will Anna be able to meet her goal? Speaking In this video, learn how to say the new words. Then learn about gerunds and infinitives. ​Pronunciation Use this video to learn about how Americans pronounce the reduced form of "to" in sentences with infinitives. Conversation   Anna: D.C. is a popular city for marathons! A marathon is a long race. Many marathons raise money for charity, you know - good works. A marathon is a good fitness goal too. I want to challenge myself in a marathon and maybe win a medal! Hey, there’s Ashley. Ashley! Wait for me! It’s Anna! Anna: Ash … ley. Ash … ley. Ashley: Are you okay, Anna? Anna: I just ran … from over there. Ashley: Do you want to sit down, Anna?  Do you want some water? (Anna takes the bottle and tries to return it.) No thanks. You keep it. Anna: Thanks. I didn’t know you like to run. Ashley: I love running. In fact, this weekend, I will run in my first marathon. Anna: Me … too. Ashley: Really? You are running in a marathon? Anna: Yeah. In a couple of days. Why do you ask … like that? Ashley: What do you know about running in a marathon? Anna: I know that there’s a lot of running and sometimes you can win a medal.  Ashley: How long have you been training? Anna: I started today. I’ve been training for an hour … no, an hour and seven minutes! Ashley: Anna, training a little every day is a good habit to get into. Not all at once! Anna: Thanks for the advice, Ashley. But I’m running in a special race. Ashley: What marathon is it? Anna: I don’t remember the name. But the website said everyone gets a medal. Ashley: Okay, well, good luck, Anna! Anna: Thanks, Ashley. Good luck to you, too. Ashley: Thank you. Anna: Bye! Ashley: Bye, Anna! Anna: See you! (At the race: an announcer calls out race information) Anna: Hello. I am here to enter the race! Woman: But ma’am you can’t enter the race. Anna: What? How am I going to meet my goal? Woman: Ma’am, this race is for children. You can’t run with the children. Anna: Children? Children. That’s perfect. I just might win! Woman: No, ma’am. You really can’t run with the children. Anna: I’m sorry. Of course. I was only thinking of my goal. Woman: Well, you can help us with our goal, which is to raise money for sick children. Would you like to help us? Anna: I’ve just found my new goal. And I get to wear a medal. (to child who finished race) Good job! Writing In this lesson, Anna helps at a charity event. Have you ever helped with a charity? Tell us about what you did to help. Write to us by email or in the Comments section. Click on the image below to download the Activity Sheet to practice using gerunds and infinitives to talk about sports.  Please note, our activity sheets now can be completed on the computer. Learning Strategy Learning Strategies are the thoughts and actions that help make learning easier or more effective. The learning strategy for this lesson is Set a Goal. This strategy is what we do when we plan to do something. In learning a language, setting a goal means we have a reason to learn. That helps us focus on our study and practice more often.  In this lesson, Anna has a goal of running in a marathon. Her friend Ashley has the same goal. But Ashley has been training so she can run the long race. She set a goal and is working hard to meet it. Anna's goal is not easy to meet because she has not been training, or preparing to run well. She learns that she can have a new goal in this week's lesson. That goal is something she will be able to meet. What is your goal for learning English? Write to us about the goals you have and how you are working to meet them in the Comments section or send us an email. Teachers, see the Lesson Plan for more details on teaching this strategy.   Quiz Listen to short videos and test your listening skills with this quiz.  ______________________________________________________________ New Words challenge - v.  to test the ability, skill, or strength of (someone or something) charity - n.  a organization that helps people in need fitness - n.  the condition of being physically fit and healthy goal - n.  something that you are trying to do or achieve habit - n.  something that a person does often in a regular and repeated way marathon - n. a running race that is about 26 miles (42 kilometers) long medal - n.  a piece of metal often in the form of a coin with designs and words in honor of a special event, a person, or an achievement race - n.  a competition between people, animals or vehicles to see which one is fastest special - adj. different from what is normal or usual train - v.  to try to make yourself stronger, faster, or better at doing something before competing in an event or competition ______________________________________________________________ Free Materials   Download the VOA Learning English Word Book for a dictionary of the words we use on this website. Each Let's Learn English lesson has an Activity Sheet for extra practice on your own or in the classroom. In this lesson, you can use it to practice using gerunds and infinitives to talk about sports. For Teachers ​ See the Lesson Plan for this lesson for ideas and more teaching resources. Send us an email if you have comments on this course or questions. Grammar: Review of Present Perfect and Present Perfect Continuous; Gerunds; Infinitives (to + verb) Topics: Habits; Discussing things you dislike doing; Expressing appreciation Learning Strategy: Set a Goal Speaking and Pronunciation: Reduced "to" in infinitives Poll _______________________________________________________________ Now it's your turn. Send us an email or write to us in the Comments section below or on our Facebook page to let us know what you think of this lesson.

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Let's Learn English Level 2 Lesson 1: Budget Cuts

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America's Presidents - Woodrow Wilson

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Google Offers Questionnaire to Help Detect Depression

  Everyone feels sad from time to time. But what happens when that sadness lasts a long time? Is it just a passing feeling or the medical condition known as depression? Many people do not know whether what they are feeling is a passing phase or a serious condition requiring treatment. They may not know where to turn to find out if they should get help. Google is trying to change that by helping people recognize whether what they are feeling is actually depression. The company has teamed up with the National Alliance for Mental Illness, or NAMI, to offer a questionnaire to people who search for the word "depression" on Google’s website. The alliance says, "Clinical depression is a very common condition. In fact, approximately one in five Americans experience an episode in their lifetime.” However, the alliance says, only about 50 percent of people who suffer from depression actually receive treatment." Google has set up a short examination that can help people recognize whether they are suffering from clinical depression. The test will be offered to people who search for "depression" or "clinical depression" using Google on a mobile device. The search results will show information on depression with a link to a series of questions, to help identify if someone has signs of depression. The questionnaire is called Patient Health Questionnaire-9, or PHQ-9. Mental health experts use many of the same questions to help identify depression in their patients. While only a trained expert can identify depression, PHQ-9 can be a starting point to help you know whether to seek treatment. NAMI explains, "We hope that by making this information available on Google, more people will become aware of depression and seek treatment to recover and improve their quality of life." Using the depression questionnaire on Google To take the test, search for "depression" in Google’s search engine. The results should show an explanation about clinical depression. Below the explanation is a message that reads, "-> Check if you're clinically depressed." Click that message to begin taking the questionnaire. Google says the test takes about five minutes to complete. Touch the "Get Started" button to begin. At the end you will see a list of numbers from 0 to 27. It will show how likely you are to have signs of clinical depression. The website also shows what to do next, based on the results of the questionnaire. What else you need to know PHQ-9 was developed for adults, not children. The questionnaire is available on Google search results only on phones and tablets, not other computers. If you search using a computer, you will see information about depression, but not the link to PHQ-9. If you want to search for "depression" with a computer, or do not see the link to the questionnaire on your phone or tablet, you can search for "PHQ-9" on Google instead. By taking this questionnaire on Google, you will be sharing information about yourself with the company, if you are in your Google account. Google says that your answers will be kept private. They will not be shared with others. Google's privacy statement appears before the questionnaire: Other ways to assess depression There are other ways to help identify whether you are suffering from depression.  The PHQ-9 quiz is also available at the patientinfo.com website. You can take the test and see the results to help judge whether you suffer from depression. Mental Health America, or MHA also offers an online depression test. After you take the test, MHA asks for personal information, but you can ignore that part by clicking on the word "Submit" without answering any of the questions. You will see the results after you take the test, with suggestions about what to do next. The free Depression Test app for Android by Japps Medical also uses the PHQ-9 questionnaire. The app also gives users test results based on their symptoms of clinical depression. As with all computer software, be sure to read the permissions section before getting this app. Also, the magazine Psychology Today has a depression test you can take online. Its test lasts about 20 minutes and gives you a short report. If you want a full report, you will have to pay about $5. I’m Caty Weaver.    Carolyn Nicander Mohr wrote this report for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. Do you like the idea of Google offering a depression questionnaire in its search results? Do you think this questionnaire will help people become more aware of depression? Share your thoughts in the Comments Section below or on our Facebook page. ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   phase - n. a short period of time during which a person behaves in a particular way or likes a particular thing clinical - adj. requiring treatment as a medical problem approximately - adj. close in value or amount but not precise check - v. to get information by looking at something, asking about something, etc.

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Scientist: Warming Makes Storms like Harvey Wetter

  A storm named Harvey set a rainfall record in the continental United States this week. It dumped 1.32 meters of water over southeastern Texas. The former rainfall record was set in 1978 as Tropical Storm Amelia dropped 1.21 meters of rainfall in the same area, according to the National Weather Service. Scientists say this may show what the future will be because of global warming. They say climate change did not cause Harvey. But they note that warmer air and water mean wetter and possibly more intense hurricanes in the future. “This is the kind of thing we are going to get more of,” said Princeton University climate scientist Michael Oppenheimer. “This storm should serve as warning.” Scientific methods can be used to study if Harvey is tied to man-made climate change. It involves complex mathematical processes. And it will take weeks or months to complete the study and even longer to be reviewed by other scientists. But in general, climate scientists agree that the future storms will drop much more rain than the same sized storms that came before. Why is that? Warmer air holds more water. For every degree Celsius, the atmosphere can hold, and then drop an extra 7 percent of water, according to several scientists. Global warming also means warmer seas. And it is warm water that fuels hurricanes. Hurricanes need air temperatures of at least 26 degrees Celsius for fuel. The water in the Gulf was at least that warm, 100 meters deep, according to University of Miami hurricane researcher Brian McNoldy. Jeff Masters is meteorology director for Weather Underground. He says when Harvey moved toward Texas, water in the Gulf of Mexico was nearly 1 degree Celsius warmer than normal. Climate scientists are still debating what role, if any, global warming may have played in causing Harvey to stall, or stop and sit over Texas. The storm not moving on was the big reason for the disastrous flooding. All that rain would not have landed in any one area if the storm had moved on like other normal ones Harvey stalled because it was between two high-pressure weather fronts. They pushed it in opposite directions, and trapped it in place. Princeton’s Oppenheimer theorizes that there is a connection between melting sea ice in the Arctic and changes in the jet stream and the weather patterns that make these “blocking fronts” more common. He is not the only one thinking this. But others say it is too early to know . Cliff Mass says climate change is not powerful enough to create an event like Harvey’s rainfall. He is an atmospheric scientist at the University of Washington. “You really can't pin global warming on something this extreme. It has to be natural variability,” Mass said. “It may juice it up slightly but not create this phenomenal anomaly.” “We're breaking one record after another with this thing,” Mass said. I’m Anne Ball.  Anne Ball adapted this story for Learning English from several VOA News story. Hai Do was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section and visit us on our Facebook page. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   weather front – n. a boundary between two different air masses  that results in stormy weather jetstream – n. a strong current of fast winds high above the Earth's surface pin – v. to prevent or stop (someone or something) from moving by holding or pressing firmly against something variability – adj. able or likely to change or be changed : not always the same phenomenal – adj. very good or great : unusual in a way that is very impressive anomaly – n. something that is unusual or unexpected  

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