لغات مهم و کاربردی و مورد استفاده در اخبار

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سلام

دوستان عزیز در این تاپیک سعی میشود لغات و وازگانی که بیشترین کاربرد را در اخبار دارند گذاشته شودhttp://pnu-club.com/imported/2010/01/95.gif

موفق باشید

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Report (1.3 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/02/bill_gates_report_with_intro_120227_witn_billgates _report_au_bb.mp3)

Words (1 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/02/bill_gates_words_with_intro_120227_witn_billgates_ words_au_bb.mp3)

Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/02/120227111718_120227_witn_bill_gates_pdf.pdf)



Report

Mr Gates said more needs to be done to support poor farmers in South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa and elsewhere. He said there was a lack of coordinationbetween governments, aid donors and the UN's agencies, like the World Food Programme. Mr Gates called for the setting up of what he called a "public score card" system.

This would make it easier to tell how well, or how badly, different countries and agencies were performing in the fight to reduce poverty.

He said the effort to help small farmers also needs to harness the power of advances made in digital technology. In an age when satellites can tell instantly exactly how much wheat is in a field, he said, it was a shame that people were still being sent out with pen, and paper and tape measures to try to do the same job.

Mr Gates said that the stakes couldn't be higher for the families of poor farmers. If they don't benefit from the fruits of the digital revolution they will fall far behind. But Mr Gates believes that if they can be connected to some of the latest breakthroughs in science they will have a chance to leapfrog forward.

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Report (1MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/witn_unicef_report_120301_witn_unicef_audio_au_bb. mp3)

Words (949 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/witn_unicef_vocabulary_120301_witn_unicef_words_au _bb.mp3)

Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/03/120302135336_120301_witn_unicef.pdf)



Report

Campaigns against poverty tend to focus on the rural poor, but UNICEF has found it's children living in slums and shantytowns who are becoming increasingly the most disadvantaged and vulnerable.
One reason is that so many -- about 300 million round the world -- go unregistered at birth. The lack of any official identity means they then miss out on basic services like secure housing, clean water, or education. And they can more easily be exploited or prey to traffickers.
The plight of these children is often overlooked because statistics show average urban families enjoy better amenities than rural ones but this data masks the growing pockets of extreme poverty in towns and cities.
Take Delhi, the capital of India's booming economy. Figures show 90 per cent of children city-wide attend primary school but in fact only half the slum children go to school.
UNICEF says policy-makers should consciously target help at these hard-to-reach children. It recommends a grass roots approach with more recognition of the efforts local communities make to tackle poverty

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Report (840 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/ikea_report_with_intro_120302_witn_ikea_report_au_ bb.mp3)

Words (1.1 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/ikea_words_with_intro_120302_witn_ikea_words_au_bb .mp3)

Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/03/120302134344_120302_witn_ikea.pdf)



Report

Ikea is a company with a stringent code of conduct for its suppliers but less stringent it seems for the security firms it has employed here in France. Their head of security paid over 100 dollars a time for secret police files held on a criminal database.
Over 200 people were investigated, with requests for criminal record and vehicle registration checks, though one email calls for information on someone thought to have made "anti-globalisation remarks" - someone who had raised concerns internally of a possible eco-terrorist attack. It's reported the information was used in deciding whether to fire staff members and also in resolving disputes with certain customers.
In response the company told the BBC that Ikea has now opened a full investigation to bring to light all relevant information. "We strongly disapprove," said a spokesman, "of any illegal activity which impinges on important values like the respect of privacy." Illegal access to these files carries a penalty of up 400,000 dollars and five years in prison.

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Report (1 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/match_fixing_report_with_intro_120305_witn_match_f ixing_report_au_bb.mp3)

Words (724 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/match_fixing_vocabulary_with_intro_120305_witn_mat ch_fixing_words_au_bb.mp3)

Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/03/120305130025_120305_witn_match_fixing_pdf.pdf)



Report

The unusual scoreline immediately raised eyebrows and sparked a FIFA investigation. Bahrain needed to beat Indonesia by a nine-goal margin in Manama to stand a chance of reaching the next round of the qualification process for the 2014 World Cup.

The ten-nil rout almost sent them through as runners up in the group, but they also required Qatar to lose in Iran, a match which was drawn. Indonesia had already been eliminated, and they fielded a relatively inexperienced team, but the heavy defeat was still unexpected.

Their goalkeeper was sent off early in the game and the referee awarded the home side four penalties. FIFA, which has a special match fixing department, has pledged to crack down on corruption in the game.

Early stages of international tournaments have been identified as possible targets for illegal gambling syndicates. The Asian Football Confederation said initial reports from the match officials have indicated that nothing was suspicious.

In Indonesia anger has been directed at the team and the country's football authorities. It follows a divisive period in which a rebel elite league was created. It almost led to a FIFA ban last year.

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Report (824 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/alien_report_with_intro_120306_witn_citizen_scinti sts_report_au_bb.mp3)

Words (1.1 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/words_with_intro_120306_witn_citizen_scientists_wo rds_au_bb.mp3)

Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/03/120306170851_120306_witn_citizen_scientists.pdf)



Report

Scientists have been looking for evidence of life beyond earth for decades. They haven't found it yet, but researchers at the SETI Institute, which stands for Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, say the skies are so crowded with radio signals, that the clues may be missed.

The telescopes are focusing on more than 150,000 stars but the scientists say they need help to analyse the information that's coming back to earth. They've created a new public web site to allow volunteers to receive the data on their computers.

There could be signs of life and the vital clues that may eventually help scientists answer that age-old question: Are we alone? Professional astronomers will be working with the volunteers to help them understand what they're seeing. And it could be a citizen scientist who spots the first tantalizing signal, proof that life exists beyond the earth.

[negar92]

Great Barrier Reef under threat



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Report (512 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/bbc_witn_barrier_reef_report_with_intro_120308_wit n_barrier_reef_report_au_bb.mp3)

Words (618 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/bbc_witn_barrier_reef_vocab_with_intro_120308_witn _barrier_reef_words_au_bb.mp3)

Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/03/120306162129_120308_witn_barrier_reef2.pdf)



Report

The UNESCO delegation will investigate concerns that the mining industry is damaging the Great Barrier Reef. The exploitation of oil and gas is driving industrialexpansion along much of the northern Queensland coast, including plans for the world's biggest coal port near the town of Bowen.

The Australian government has imposed strict guidelines to protect marine life and ensure water quality.

But environmentalists want the authorities to suspend all new developments while an official review of the health of the Great Barrier Reef is carried out.

[negar92]

Colourful but dangerous



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Report (711 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/witn_hindu_festival_report_120309_holi_colours_rep ort_audio_au_bb.mp3)

Words (1.1 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/witn_120309_hindu_festival_vocab_120309_witn_holi_ colours_words_audio_au_bb.mp3)

Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/03/120309173729_120309_witn_hindu_festival.pdf)



Report

Doctors at Mumbai's Sion hospital say dozens of patients arrived at the casualty ward complaining of giddiness, vomiting and headaches. The vast majority were children from one of Mumbai's largest slums, Dharavi. Most are in a stable condition. It's believed they developed a reaction to coloured powders they were throwing.
Across the country, millions of people from all walks of life smear and cover themselves from head to toe in bright paints and powders as is custom for Holi. But there has been concern for some time that some of the artificially-produced dyes, which are cheap to buy, contain harmful toxic chemicals which can lead to serious skin and breathing problems.
There has been a push in recent years to encourage more revellers to use organic and environmentally-friendly dyes to avoid health risks.

[negar92]

Chinese human traffic



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Report (692 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/chinese_human_traffic_report_with_intro_120313_wit n_chinese_human_traffic_audio_au_bb.mp3)

Words (762 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/chinese_human_traffic_vocab_with_intro_120313_witn _chinese_human_traffic_words_au_bb.mp3)

Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/03/120313113527_witn_chinese_human_traffic.pdf)




Report

Among those rescued by the police were more than eight thousand children kidnapped from their homes. Critics blame the country's one child policy for creating a thriving black market, where babies are abducted and then sold on for adoption.

More than fifteen thousand women were also kidnapped. Some were used as workers, others forced into marriage or prostitution.

According to officials more than three thousand human trafficking gangs were broken up, but the authorities did not say how many people in total were abducted last year.

They vowed to step up their campaign against human trafficking. As these figures show, the abduction of women and children remains a serious problem in China

[negar92]

Towering fees for Big Ben



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Report (881 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/witn_big_ben_charges_report_with_intro_120316_witn _bigben_charges_audio_au_bb.mp3)
Words (778 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/witn_big_ben_charges_vocab_with_intro_120316_witn_ bigben_charges_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/03/120316140056_120316_witn_big_ben_charges.pdf)


Summary

16 March 2012
An argument has broken out in the UK over plans to make visitors pay to tour Big Ben. The House of Commons authorities say it's necessary to cover costs. But some members of the Parliament are describing the move as "disgraceful" and have called a debate on the issue.

Reporter
Alan Soady



Report

It's one of the must-see attractions for visitors to London. Most tourists only get to look at the outside of the famous clock tower. But for a few thousand people a year who organise a tour of it, this is how it sounds on the inside... The clanking of the old machinery which operates the clock and those bongs.

It can only be visited if it's arranged in advance by contacting a member of Parliament, usually only done by the small number of UK residents whoare aware of it.

But rather than those tours being free in future, there'll be a charge of fifteen pounds per person. House of Commons officials say it will simply cover the 111-thousand pounds a year it costs to provide the tours.

But a group of disgruntled MPs argue that UK residents already pay through their taxes. They say Big Ben is a world-renowned symbol of British democracy, and visiting it should be free

[negar92]

Are Indian train fares fair?



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Report (854 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/witn_indian_train_repairs_report_with_intro_120315 _witn_indian_train_fares_audio_au_bb.mp3)
Words: (836 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/witn_indian_train_repairs_vocab_with_intro_120315_ witn_indian_trains_fares_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/03/120315172950_120315_witn_indian_train_fares.pdf)


Summary

15 March 2012
For the first time in almost a decade, India will increase train ticket prices, as part of a bid to modernise its ageing rail network. The government will invest billions of dollars to improve safety and update trains and tracks, which are in some cases decades old.

Reporter
Rajini Vaidyanathan


Report

More than 22 million people use India's rail network every single day - it's been a central mode of transport for people here since trains first started running in India in the 1800s, but many passengers say the trains and tracks are in dire need of modernisation.

In its annual railways budget the Indian government has pledged to build new tracks and carriages, and to modernise signalling, to improve safety and reduce the thousands of deaths which happen on the tracks every year.

But all this costs money. As well as investing 147 billion dollars in the next five years, it's announced a modest increase in ticket prices. This could be an unpopular move - there hasn't been a fare hike in the country for almost a decade. Members of railways minister Dinesh Trivedi's own party have criticised the move, saying fare increases should not have been made as they will hit the poorest

[negar92]

Hands off Olympic athletes



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Report (902 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/witn_olympic_handshake_report_with_intro_120320_wi tn_olympic_handshake_report_au_bb.mp3)
Words (706 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/witn_olympic_handshake_vocab_with_intro_120320_wit n_olympic_handshake_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/03/120322110515_120322_witn_olympic_handshake.pdf)


Summary

19 March 2012
British athletes have been advised to avoid shaking hands at this year's Olympics. The team's chief medical officer has warned it could lead to illness spreading through the camp and harm the country's bid for medals.
Reporter
Alex Capstick


Report

Attention to detail has been a mantra of the British Olympic Association in its preparations for the London Games. Its determination to leave no stone unturned has now included advice on the friendly handshake.
The team's head doctor Ian McCurdie said within reason it should be off-limits. He said hand hygiene presented one of the biggest risks ofinfection to the athletes.
It's feared the spread of disease could scupper their chances of equalling their performance at the Beijing Olympics when they finished fourth in the medals table.
If handshaking is unavoidable the team members have been asked to wash as soon as possible as it could be the difference between success and failure.
Most of them will be living and mingling with thousands of other athletes in the Olympic village. The British authority on etiquette, Debrett's, said being asked not to shake hands with rivals and officials seemed a bit extreme, as it could look rude.
And a spokesman for the US Olympic team said they would be encouraging their athletes to meet, greet and interact with as many athletes from other countries as possible.

[negar92]

Russian football racism row



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Report (807 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/witn_russian_football_report_with_intro_120323_wit n_russian_football_report_au_bb.mp3)
Words (972 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/witn_russian_football_vocab_with_intro_120323_witn _russian_football_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/03/120323121441_120323_witn_russian_football_pdf.pdf)


Summary

23 March 2012
A race row has broken out in Russian football after a banana was thrown at Congolese player Christopher Samba. It happened at the end of a game between Locomotive Moscow and Anzhi Makhachkala. Both clubs are now arguing over which set of fans were to blame.
Reporter
Alex Capstick


Report

Christopher Samba signed for Anzhi Makhachkala last month from the English Premier side Blackburn Rovers. A banana landed at his feet after the match against Locomotive Moscow. The player tossed it back into the crowd, for which it's been suggested he could face disciplinary action.

Meanwhile senior officials from the Moscow club have concluded that it was the visiting fans who were responsible for the incident. Anzhi responded by threatening legal action unless the allegations could be substantiated.

Locomotive fans have been seen racially abusing a player before. In 2010, they unveiled a banner displaying a banana, saying: "Thanks West Brom", after the English side had signed the Nigerian striker Peter Odemwingie from the club.

Domestic football in Russia has a reputation for racism. Shortly before the country won the right to stage the 2018 World Cup the Football Union said it was committed to tackling the issue

[negar92]

US healthcare on a knife edge



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Report (801 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/120327_witn_report_audio_120327_witn_obama_healthc are_report_au_bb.mp3)
Words (1.2 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/120327_witn_words_audio_120327_witn_obama_healthca re_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/03/120327133348_120327_witn_obama_healthcare.pdf)





Summary

27 March 2012
President Barack Obama's healthcare reforms reaches the Supreme Court this week, as the nine most senior judges in the land hear three days of argument over whether or not the reforms are constitutional. This is one of the biggest cases to come before the Supreme Court in recent times.
Reporter
Paul Adams


Report

Barack Obama's healthcare reforms, passed almost exactly two years ago, remain one of the most contentious aspects of his presidency. The bill was passedin the teeth of vociferous opposition from the Republican Party. Polls suggest that public opinion remains sharply divided.
A key provision that individual citizens should either buy health insurance or pay a penalty - the so-called individual mandate - has already been the subject ofnumerous legal challenges across the country. It was almost inevitable that the issue would ultimately reach the highest court in the land.
The nine justices who make up the Supreme Court, five of them regarded as conservatives, will spend a highly unusual three days hearing oral arguments. They'll issue their findings in the summer, just as this year's presidential election campaign swings into full gear. The impact on the campaign of a ruling on such an important political issue could be enormous

[negar92]

Are electric cars gaining ground?



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Report (906 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/witn_electric_car_report_with_intro_120326_witn_el ectric_car_report_au_bb.mp3)
Words (1.1 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/witn_electric_car_vocab_with_intro_120326_witn_ele ctric_car_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/03/120326143709_120326_witn_electric_car.pdf)



Summary

26 March 2012
Australia's first electric car charging station has opened in the city of Melbourne. It takes about five hours to charge each vehicle, but costs a fraction of the price of petrol. Those behind the project say it has huge potential to provide carbon neutral transport in Australia.
Reporter
Phil Mercer


Report

Australia, the world's largest exporter of coal, is addicted to fossil fuels, which generate most of its electricity and drives much of its transport system.
In the Melbourne suburb of Brunswick, conservationists say a small but significant step has been taken towards a cleaner energy future.
Australia's first solar power charging station for electric cars has been switched on. It takes up to 5 hours to fully replenish a battery that allows an average vehicle to travel about 150kms.
As the technology improves, it's hoped that batteries could eventually be fully charged within half and hour.
Environmentalists say that Australia has been slow to embrace electric cars compared to other countries because of what they describe as "serious cultural and political resistance" to change.
Petrol prices recently hit US$1.60 a litre here. If those costs continue to rise then Australia's indifference to electric-powered vehicles could begin to change.

[negar92]

Living on another planet



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Report (830 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/300312_witn_report_audio_120330_witn_another_plane t_report_au_bb.mp3)
Words (828 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/300312_witn_words_audio_120330_witn_another_planet _words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/03/120330104414_120329_witn_living_on_another_planet. pdf)







Summary


30 March 2012Scientists in Chile say a new study suggests there are billions of planets in our galaxy with conditions which could be capable of supporting life. Astronomers are working with technology known as High Accuracy Radial Velocity Planet Searcher - or HARPS.
ReporterJason Palmer





Report

Thousands of years of astronomy spent wondering about potentially habitable planets in the universe and then 64 billion come along at once.
The discovery of new planets has in recent years become commonplace but most have been spotted by looking at changes in the light of their bright stars. Now we have a view into the smaller, darker red dwarfs that make up 80 percent of stars in our galaxy.
The HARPS team peered at a representative sample of stars estimating that 40% of the 160 billion red dwarfs in our galaxy has a super-Earth circling in theGoldilocks or habitable zone; that's where the temperature is just right for liquid water.
Astronomers are getting better at spotting smaller planets close to Earth's size and it seems that everywhere they look and in every way they look, planetsabound. There's still a long way to go to determine whether any of them has conditions suitable for life and a long way again to search for life itself.
But with billions of kitchens in which the ingredients of life might come together, it's ever more difficult to doubt that the recipe has been tried elsewhere

[negar92]

Swallowing the dictionary



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Report (1.4 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/april_fools_audio_120330_witn_swallowing_dictionar y_report_au_bb.mp3)
Words (895 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/03/april_fools_words_120330_witn_swallowing_dictionar y_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/03/120330165907_120401_witn_april_fools.pdf)





Summary

April Fools' Day 2012
A drug which could implant the entire vocabulary of a language into the taker's body is being trialled in the UK. If successful, it's predicted that mankind's centuries-long struggles with foreign language learning could be over in a gulp.
Reporter
James Hardbluster


Report

In the past, people who have used too many complicated words to get their messages across have been accused of swallowing the dictionary. Now, thanks to thepioneering work of scientists at the Linguistic Institute of Artificial Replication, it's become possible to eat - and then regurgitate - the whole of the English language.

The drug, called Verbumisol, triggers a chemical reaction in the brain which creates a stockpile of words. Electrical impulses are then fired directly at the larynx. The mucous membranes stretch causing the air modulation to realign according to the patterns of English pronunciation. Within an hour, a person with no knowledge of English, can produce the vocabulary of a native speaker.

Professor Leugenaar, who is in charge of the trial, demonstrates with a volunteer from Indonesia:

"Stephani here took this pill just 59 minutes ago, so she should be able to simply think in her own language yet produce perfect English when the clock hits 60 minutes. Please start Stephani."

L. I. A. R. claim this invention has the potential to change human history, end all wars, and put a stop to boring grammar lessons. However, critics of the drug say that it has some serious side effects, such as verbal diarrhoea, a tendency to talk endlessly about the weather and a habit of apologising for no reason.

[negar92]

Presidential plagiarism



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Report (959 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/04/120402_witn_report_with_sting_120402_witn_presiden tial_plagiarism_report_au_bb.mp3)
Words (928 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/04/120402_witn_words_120402_witn_presidential_plagiar ism_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/04/120402121610_120329_witn_presendential_plagiarism. pdf)





Summary

2 April 2012
The Hungarian President Pal Schmitt, has resigned after a university committee found that he had largely copied his 1992 doctoral thesis from the work of others. The report below was filed before resignation was announced.
Reporter
Nick Thorpe


Report

The allegations against President Schmitt began in January when a leading Hungarian weekly magazine, HVG, published what it said was clear proof that a large part of his 1992 doctoral thesis on the history of the Olympic games was a word-for-word translation of a work by a Bulgarian author.

President Schmitt is a well-respected former sportsman, who twice won Olympic medals in the Hungarian fencing team. He is also stalwart member of the governing Fidesz party, and was elected in 2010 for a 5-year term. An investigatory committee of the Budapest Semmelweis University confirmed that much of the thesis was copied, but criticised the former university authorities for failing to enforce sufficiently high standards.

Now the rector of the university has said he will begin proceedings tostrip the President of his honorary title of doctor. President Schmitt said that he had no intention of resigning. What happens next may depend on the degree of support he feels from his own party

[negar92]

Eurozone unemployment



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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/04/120403142539_120403_witn_eurozone_unemployment.pdf )





Summary

3 April 2012
Unemployment in countries which use the Euro – the Eurozone - has increased according to new official figures. Over 17 million people, or 10.8 per cent of the workforce were unemployed in February.
Reporter
Andrew Walker



Report

The new figures from the European Union's statistical agency show the Eurozone's persistent economic problems. Aggressive action by the European Central Bank - in the shape of a trillion Euro of three-year loans to the financial institutions - has certainly brought relative calm to the markets.

But parts of the wider economy are still struggling. The number of unemployed across the Eurozone is nearly one and a half million higher than a year ago.

There remains a striking divergence between the region's struggling countries and the more successful ones. Unemployment is below six per cent in Austria, the Netherlands and Germany, but over 20 per cent in Spain and Greece. In both the latter countries, the unemployment rate for young people is over 50 per cent.

A separate private-sector survey of managers in industry points to a continued decline in manufacturing production. That adds to evidence suggesting the Eurozone economy as a whole may have contracted in the first quarter of the year, as it did at the end of 2011. If that does turn out to be the case it would be arecession

[negar92]

Ageing populations



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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/04/120410110307_120504_witn_ageing_population_pdf.pdf )



Report

While Europe and Japan were among the first places to see their population ageing, the phenomenon is now occurring fastest in low and middle-income nations and WHO says the most dramatic changes are taking place in countries such as Cuba, Iran and Mongolia.
This means that where in the past infections were considered the greatest challenge, now even in the poorest countries the biggest health burdensfor older people come from conditions such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes, dementia and sight and hearing loss.
WHO says present heath systems are poorly designed for the chronic care needs arising from this pattern of disease. The campaigning organisation HelpAge International welcomed the new focus on the impact of ageing but said the global community was still worryingly slow to act.
HelpAge cited Ghana where it said nearly sixty per cent of older people suffer from high blood pressure often leading to strokes and heart attacks but only five per cent are able to control it through medication.

[negar92]

Herbal medicines and cancer



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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/04/120412121026_121204_witn_herbal_medicine.pdf)



Report

For thousands of years the aristolochia plant with its reddish-yellow flowers has been a mainstay of Chinese herbal medicine. Sometimes referred to as birthwort in Europe, the toxic nature of the plant was discovered in the 1990s when dozens of Belgian women began developing kidney failure and urinary tract cancers. They had been using aristolochia-based slimming aids at clinic.

Now scientists say that the key element, aristolochic acid, is responsible for the very high levels of kidney disease and urinary tract tumours in Taiwan. It's estimated that about one in three of the population there have used herbal medicines containing the toxin. The country has the world's highest incidence of cancers of the upper urinary tract - and in their study the scientists say more than half can be directly linked to the ingredient.

While products containing aristolochic acid are banned in many countries, one of the big concerns is China. In 2004 a study suggests Chinese farmers produce enough of the plant to dose 100 million people. Scientists are concerned that in the decades to come, disease caused by the aristolochia will create an international public health problem of considerable magnitude.

[negar92]

Bad manners means bad coffee!



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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/04/120413141941_120413_witn_bad_manners_coffee_pdf.pd f)



Report

Little Red Roaster is a bit of an upmarket, market stall. Here they don't do bad coffee or bad manners. The owner has put his foot downbecause he got fed up with having to compete for the attention of certain customers…

Darren Groom, shop owner:
They order it by going 'I'll have a cappuccino' and we then can't ask the relevant questions, do you want sugar, would you like a lid? We just had an increase in people doing it and being upset when we said we wouldn't serve them until they finished their call, so we put the sign up.

Most of his clientele say he's absolutely right…

Vox pops of customers:
I think it's a really good idea. I think. I've worked in pubs before and I think it's quite rude when you're talking to customers and making eye contact and then, suddenly the phone goes or they're on the phone talking to you.

Everybody's got a mobile phone so you tend to get sort of sidelined and the mobile phone becomes a priority, whereas actually it becomes a secondary issue.

If people on the stalls did it to the customer then the customer would probably walk off.

Darren and his wife have a coffee shop too where the same ban prevails albeit not to universal approval…

Darren Groom, shop owner:
Some people turn their nose up at and snarl and think it's ridiculous and that we're being a bit precious but you can't please everybody.

Darren insists he's not out to start a campaign - he just wants to make his life a little easier.

[negar92]

Thickening glaciers



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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/04/120417113421_120417_witn_glacial_decline.pdf)



Report

Glacial decline and the gradual loss of polar ice caps has been a worrying trend over recent decades, but scientists have been aware of an apparently curious anomaly with the Karakoram, which contains some of the world's biggest mountains including the second highest, K2. It has about 20,000 square kilometres of glaciers, accounting for three percent of the total area of ice outside the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets.

Now a team of French scientists has carried out a detailed survey over a large area of the range using sophisticated remote-sensing measurements. Writing in the scientific journal, Nature, they say they found that in the first years of this century the Karakoram's glaciers had actually expanded by a small amount, while in the neighbouring Himalayas they'd been shrinking.

It's unclear why this is happening, but it seems that by a quirk in the weather pattern that's not fully understood, less heat is being delivered to the Karakoram and the mountains are receiving heavier falls of snow.

[negar92]

Sleepy teenagers



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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/04/120419175105_120419_witn_teenagers_pdf.pdf)



Report

This bedroom is a battleground. Morgan's 17, and like most other teenagers, she struggles to surface.

Noelle Delaney, Mother:

Some days it is very difficult…you know I have to go in there two, three times. I have been known to pull her by her feet out of her bed.

Morgan Delaney, Student:

It's too early to get up in the morning, especially in the winter when it's quite dark out. It just seems like you're getting up in the middle of the night, you just want to be back in bed.

And that's why sleep scientists studied Morgan and her friends for two weeks. These wrist-mounted s e n s o r s monitored their every move – waking and sleeping.

Analysis of that data surprised the scientists. They found that consistently the teenagers get just six and a half hours sleep a night. Most adults need at least eight. When the clocks moved forward to British Summer Time the youngsters got even less – just six hours a night.

Joanne Bower, University of Surrey:

You've got something inside you called your circadian rhythm which insures the same thing happens the same time every day and one of those things is the [B]secretion of melatonin which is the hormone that makes you sleepy. Now for an adult you expect that to be early evening, in teenagers it happens much later so even if you put your teenager in bed at say ten at night it may be that they don't secrete their melatonin until midnight, one o'clock, so they're staring at the ceiling just not sleepy.

Consistent sleep deprivation can affect concentration, memory or even mood. The scientists behind this study say more research is needed because, like Morgan, most teenagers have busy lives - what they're not getting is enough rest.

[negar92]

Drugs scandal hits China



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Words (768 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/04/120424_witn_china_drugs_vocab_with_intro_120424_wi tn_china_drugs_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/04/120424113138_120424_witn_china_drugs.pdf)



Report

The mass confiscations of suspect capsules show the authorities' determination to be seen to be acting promptly after the scandal was uncovered a week ago.

Chinese television reported then that several companies were making drug capsules from industrial gelatin, containing potentially toxic levels of chromium and retrieved from discarded scraps of leather.

The safety of food and drugs is a constant public worry in China, with frequent outcries over fake medicines and substandard products. Government investigators have now been sent to Zhejiang, Hebei and Jiangxi provinces; state media said large amounts of industrial gelatin were confiscated there and in the province of Shandong.

Among those detained are a local official and a sales manager from Hebei, who are suspected of ordering a factory to be burned down to destroy the evidence.

[negar92]

British battle over GM crops



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Report (1 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/05/witn_120504_gm_crops_report_with_intro_120504_witn _gm_crop_report_au_bb.mp3)
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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/05/120504122157_120504_witn_gm_crops.pdf)



Report

An anti-GM campaign group, Take the Flour Back, are planning a mass action to wreck experimental plots of a new variety of genetically-modified wheat later this month. But in a novel tactic, scientists at Rothamstead Research are asking campaigners to talk to them, rather than attack the plantation.

Professor John Pickett is the lead researcher: "Please don't destroy our crop. We'd love to continue this dialogue. We would really hope to deal with your concerns and I think we ought to move together on this. But if you destroy the crop, we will not learn anything from the very hard work that we've been putting into this project over the last thirty years."

Professor Pickett says the GM wheat will repel small insects by attracting parasitic wasps to attack the pests. He believes it is environmentally friendly as it'll result in less pesticide being used.

Since the method of changing the DNA of organisms was developed, it has split opinion into those that believe it could feed the world and those who think that fiddling with the building blocks of life could produce unintended and possibly harmful consequences. At the moment it seems that the battle will continue to be fought in the fields of Britain.

[negar92]

Britain's new mayors



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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/05/120501145628_120501_witn_britains_mayors_v2.pdf)



Report

A decade ago when London chose its first directly elected mayor some feared it would become a shallow political beauty contest. But the idea has taken off. 16 authorities now elect or are about to elect their mayor; ten more British cities are about to decide.

This is Birmingham's so called Council House built with some grandeur in the nineteenth century to run Britain's second largest city. If voters say yes, they could scrap the traditional council here and choose an executive mayor. But one recent poll suggested the idea is unpopular and voters here remain divided.

Some experts want to go further and give mayors control of local health and policing, though that remains highly controversial. Many democracies around the world already have directly or indirectly elected mayors and in mainland Europe it's common.
So a 'yes' vote in a large number of British cities could be followed by more; in a decade local government will have been transformed.

[negar92]

Sight problems for students in Asia



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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/05/120508124302_120508_witn_sight_problems.pdf)



Report

The strong emphasis on educational achievement in China, Japan and other parts of South-East Asia may be coming at a heavy price. Researchers say that hard work at school plus the lack of exposure to outdoor light is damaging the eyes of almost 9 out of 10 students - with 1 in 5 at serious risk of visual impairment and blindness.
The scientists say that young people need up to 3 hours a day of outdoor light - but many infants are also missing out as they nap during the middle of the day. Dr. Ian Morgan is the lead author of the study:
I think what's happened in South-East Asia is we've got a double whammy. We've got the massive educational pressures and we've got the construction of a child's day in a way that really minimises the amount of time they spend outside in bright light.
The scientists say that genetic factors, long thought to play a big role in short sightedness, are not as important as the environment. They point to Singapore as a place with several distinct ethnic groups, all of whom are now suffering high levels of myopia.
The authors suggest that mandatory time outdoors should be considered by educational authorities across South-East Asia as a way of dealing with the problem

[negar92]

Worst place to be a mother



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Report (782 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/05/120510_witn_report_with_intro_120510_witn_mothers_ report_au_bb.mp3)
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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/05/120510124244_120510_witn_mothers.pdf)



Report

This year's report highlights the major impact nutrition has on the welfare of mothers and children, in particular, the chronic malnutrition thatundermines physical and mental growth, producing stunting and what Save the Children calls the vicious cycle of mothers stunted in childhood who go on to give birth to underweight and vulnerable babies.

Food emergencies compound the impact, and Niger is at the epicentre of the emergency currently developing in the Sahel. After two years at the bottom of the index Afghanistan has moved up one position, partly, Save the Children says, because it's invested in more front-line health workers.

The agency says the simple measure of supporting more mothers to breastfeed could save a million children's lives a year.

Save the Children identifies Norway as the best place to be a mother. It ranks the United Kingdom tenth.

[negar92]

Vidal Sassoon dies



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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/05/120511122522_120511_witn_vidal_sassoon_dies.pdf)



Report

His creative cuts helped dress a cultural revolution in the 1960s, and his products have had a place in the world's bathroom cabinets for decades. Vidal Sassoon was born in Britain and opened his first salon in London in 1954, giving what he called "geometry" and "architectural shapes" to hair.

His styles freed women's fashion from the high and heavy 'beehives' into cuts that were easy to manage. Wash-and-wear styles like the bob cut fitted in with the emerging feminist movement. "Women were going to work and assuming their own power," he famously said. "They didn't have time to sit under the dryer."

He expanded his salons in the UK and US before branching out into shampoos and styling products. Vidal Sassoon died at his home on Mullholland Drive in Los Angeles after a long illness. Reports have suggested he'd been suffering from leukaemia. He was 84.

[negar92]

Global obesity on the rise



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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/05/120518133610_120518_witn_global_obesity.pdf)



Report

More fat, more sugar, more salt, less exercise – more and more people around the world are suffering the consequences. Since 1980, the WHO's report reveals levels of obesity have doubled in every region of the world. Half a billion people, or 12 per cent of the global population, are now considered obese. One in three adults suffer from high blood pressure – a condition that causes half of all deaths from stroke and heart disease. And blood sugar levels are rising too – 10 per cent of the world's population is diabetic.

The WHO's report is not all bad news though: the statistics show that maternal mortality rates have fallen dramatically in the last 20 years, from over half a million in 1990 to less than 300,000 in 2010. And vaccination campaigns have significantly reduced deaths from childhood diseases such as measles.

But the global rise in deaths from heart disease, cancer and diabetes, and the rise in the conditions which lead to those deaths, is causing alarm. The WHO wants all its member states to tackle risk factors such as poor diet, and smoking, and set targets for reducing deaths.

[negar92]

HIV home testing



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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/05/120517121900_120517_witn_hiv_home_testing.pdf)



Report

If the panel's recommendation is taken up by the Food and Drug Administration, OraQuick would become the first instant HIV test available over the counter in America. Using a mouth swab to detect the presence of antibodies, it delivers a result in just twenty minutes. In home trials, the product proved 93 per cent accurate, compared with 99 per cent accuracy when similar tests are conducted by medical professionals.

Supporters say the kit would advance the fight against HIV Aids by encouraging more people to test for the virus in the privacy of their own homes. Currently, almost a quarter of a million Americans are believed to be HIV positive without realising it - that's roughly a fifth of all infections.

Researchers estimate that, each year, the new test would identify an additional 45,000 carriers of the virus and avert four thousand new transmissions. But the panel also advised that the packaging should carry warnings about the variable accuracy of home-testing, and a toll-free phone number offering counselling to those testing positive.

There are already other home tests on the US market. But they require a blood test which must be sent to a laboratory for analysis. Last week, another FDA panel recommended for the first time a drug to protect healthy people from contracting HIV.

[negar92]

Cashing in on the Olympics?



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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/05/120522115803_120522_witn_olympic_torch.pdf)



Report

It's not quite in the Olympic spirit. Before day one of the torch relay was completed, one of the golden symbols appeared for sale online. A torch used on day one is currently attracting bids on the internet auction site, eBay, in excess of $79,000. According to the seller the money will go toregional charities. But what's to stop participants cashing in and pocketing the money themselves? Julia Immonen was awarded her relay place after rowing across the Atlantic with a team of women. She says she can't understand why anyone would want to sell such a prestigious item.

One torch is thought to have sold for more than $237,000. Given that the participants were asked to pay just $314 to keep the torches that is quite aprofit. A spokesperson for LOCOG - the Olympic organising committee - said the torches were the personal property of the individual runners and it was their choice to do with them as they wanted. She said she only hoped they went to a good home.

Compared to the controversies over the scale of commercial sponsorship for London 2012, and the control of the brand, this may be of minor concern. The torch relay is the moment when the magic and mystique of the Games touches local communities. It is a-once-in-a-lifetime experience and for most people seeing it pass by is enrichment enough.

[negar92]

America's changing identity



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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/05/120521140311_120521_witn_american_births.pdf)



Report

The US census bureau recorded that just over two million babies were born to ethnic and racial minorities in the year to July 2011, making up just over half of new arrivals. In 1990, just 37% of births were from racial minorities. It means for the first time non-Hispanic white babies being born in the US are in the minority.
Analysts have pointed to several factors which could account for the shift. The overall birth-rate in the US is declining, but that drop is steepestamong white people, thought to be the fault of the weaker economy. The economic slow-down could also account for fewer Hispanics entering the United States from abroad.
Sociologists have suggested the data is evidence of a sweeping change underway in the racial make-up of the United States. The older generation is dominated by white people, but the younger demographic is increasingly diverse. Racial minorities make up just over a third of America's population. Trends such as the one identified here suggest that is likely to change over time.

[negar92]

Japan's radiation phone



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Words (947 KB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/05/120601_witn_radiation_phone_vocab_120601_witn_radi ation_phone_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/05/120531160931_120601_witn_radiation_phone.pdf)



Report

Japanese mobile phones are known for their advanced features – they can be used to swipe through barriers at train stations, watch television, or even measure body fat and tell the user if they have bad breath.

Now Softbank, a major mobile network, has launched a handset with a built-in Geiger counter. It has a button that users can press to see how much radiation they are being exposed to. Sales are likely to be driven by widespread fear over the meltdowns at the Fukushima nuclear power station last year.

Many Japanese say they don't trust reassurances from the Government and the plant's operator, TEPCO. Sales of conventional Geiger counters have soared and in some places people have clubbed together to buy expensive equipment to check for radiation in food.

Softbank is yet to announce a price for the radiation-monitoring phone, which will be released in the summer, saying only that it will be affordable.

[negar92]

Can you spell?



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Words (1 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/05/120604_witn_can_you_spell_words_120529_witn_can_yo u_spell_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/05/120531111034_120604_witn_spelling.pdf)


Report

Mencap designed the site because they believe that standards of spelling are falling in Britain, with serious consequences for people's ability to weather the global downturn. A survey commissioned for the charity revealed that 65% of people were unable to spell the word 'necessary' correctly, and only one-in-five people successfully completed a short spelling test.

Despite the results, three-quarters of those questioned thought they were good spellers, and agreed that it was an important skill to have.

Grant Morgan is the Creative Director for the Mencap Spellathon. He says the 'autocorrect' function on computer software is the main culpritfor the decline in standards.

Mr Morgan says those who can't spell are at an immediate disadvantage in the workplace, and could lose out to competitors if, for example, theymisspell words on their CV. In an increasingly tough international market, the problem could damage Britain as a whole. Mencap is holding an online spellathon championship, where age may well trump youth.

[negar92]

Olympic ceremony plans



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Summary

14 June 2012
Details have been released of the opening ceremony of the London Olympic Games at the end of July. The man behind the concept is the film and theatre director Danny Boyle who says he wants to create an entirely new style of ceremony which celebrates Britain's history and culture.
Reporter:
Vincent Dowd


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Words (1 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/06/120614_witn_ceremony_words_120614_witn_ceremony_wo rds_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/06/120614121037_120614_witn_ceremony.pdf)



Report

At 55, the director Danny Boyle already has a 30-year career behind him marked by audacity and imagination. He started out in the theatre and TV then moved with success into the cinema: Trainspotting, Sunshine and the Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire are all his: it's notable that each is totally different. So when the London Olympics took on Danny Boyle to create this year's opening ceremony they knew to expect the unexpected.

The traditional walk-through of competing athletes will still happen but it'll be preceded by an hour's pageant called 'Green and Pleasant' which will be unlike anything seen at any Olympics. The set will transform the huge Olympic stadium into a recreation of the British countryside, with rolling meadows and a bucolic village green. There'll be horses, cows, geese and three sheepdogs.

Danny Boyle says it will be the starting point of a definition of what modern Britain is, not just London. Danny Boyle says that four years ago Beijing was the highpoint of a certain type of ceremonial spectacle. What we see next month will be more inclusive and warmer. As a director Danny Boyle has always shown a talent for avoiding the obvious so we can expect further surprises to come.

[negar92]

Poll finds India worst for women



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Summary

15 June 2012
A survey of some of the world's richest countries suggests that India ranks the worst for women, coming even lower than Saudi Arabia. The poll, by the Thomson Reuters Foundation, looked at a range of factors, from women's education and health care to job opportunities and violence against women.
Reporter:
Jill McGivering



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Report (1 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/06/120615_witn_report_with_intro_120615_witn_india_wo men_report_au_bb.mp3)
Words (1 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/06/120615_witn_words_with_intro_120615_witn_india_wom en_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/06/120615105821_120615_witn_india_women.pdf)



Report

The survey assesses nineteen of the world's developed and emerging countries - including Mexico, Indonesia and Brazil. India's neighbours, including Pakistan and Bangladesh, were not included.

India scored poorly largely because of such practices as under-age marriage, dowry-abuse, domestic violence and female foeticide. The country's Domestic Violence Act, passed seven years ago, was described as progressive. But gender violence, fuelled by social prejudice against girls does persist, especially in low income families.

Some people may be surprised that India ranks lower than Saudi Arabia where women are not allowed to drive and have not yet had the chance toexercise the right to vote. In India, the status of women is closely linked to wealth and class. There are plenty of well-educated, professional women who enjoy personal freedoms and a Western lifestyle. India first had a female prime minister in the nineteen sixties and currently has its first female President. But their experience stands in marked contrast to the lives of rural women in the least developed states.

Canada was described as the best country for women, followed by Germany and then the United Kingdom. The United States ranked sixth

[negar92]

Dallas comeback



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Summary

18 June 2012
In terms of comebacks, it could be one of the most unlikely. Yet one of the world's most popular long-running TV series, Dallas, is returning to television. There will be new characters, but the show's producers are hoping viewers will once again get excited by JR's evil plans, and his brother Bobby's selfless devotion.
Reporter:
John McManus








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Report (1.1 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/06/120618_witn_dallas_report_with_intro_120618_witn_d allas_report_au_bb.mp3)
Words (844 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/06/120618_witn_dallas_words_with_intro_2_120618_witn_ dallas_words_3_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/06/120618163501_120618_witn_dallas.pdf)



Report

It was the soap opera that gripped us with the feuding and love-lives of the Ewing family, oil millionaires from Texas, who despite their vast wealth, all chose to live side by side in a vast ranch. Dallas became so popular that it was sold to TV networks around the world and the 1980 cliff hanger of 'who shot JR', the show's resident villain, was watched by 80 million people.

JR of course, survived the shooting, and now his character, played by Larry Hagman, is swaggering through Texas once more, alongside hissaintly brother Bobby, and alcoholic ex-wife Sue-Ellen. The original series became synonymous with a free-market 'greed is good' view of the world, where it was acceptable, and even expected, that the rich would flaunt their wealth.

So making money will still be the main motivator for most of the Ewings. Yet in the middle of a global downturn, with real Americans struggling to find jobs and pay their bills, will anyone want to watch it again? Larry Hagman is optimistic. He says the original series became popular during a US recession, as people chose to stay at home to save money, and watched TV instead. Of course, what viewers will really want to see, is JR getting away with double-crossing his own family... again... and again... and again...

[negar92]

Record refugee numbers



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Summary

19 June 2012
The United Nations refugee agency says 2011 was a record year for forced displacement, with more people fleeing their homes than at any time since the year 2000. In its latest report on global trends in asylum, the agency says it is concerned by the increasingly large numbers of displaced people, and by the fact that many who flee remain stuck in camps for many years.
Reporter:
Imogen Foulkes



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Words (932k) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/06/120619_witn_record_refugee_numbers_vocab_120619_re cord_refugee_numbers_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/06/120619120019_120619_witn_record_refugee_numbers.pd f)



Report

Ivory Coast, Libya, Somalia, Sudan – in 2011 4.3 million people were forced to flee their homes; the highest number, the UN refugee agency says, in over a decade. Of them 800,000 fled across borders, seeking protection in neighbouring countries. By the end of the year the total number of refugees and internally displaced worldwide stood at forty-two and a half million people – without their homes, possessions or livelihoods, often dependant on support from communities in developing countries, with themselves few resources.

The UN refugee agency says this latest report on global displacement shows worrying trends – forced displacement is affecting increased numbers of people, and among the displaced, more and more are having to wait years, even decades, to return home. Overall, Afghanistan accounts for the largest number of refugees, followed by Iraq, Somalia and Sudan. The UN refugee agency says it is grateful that, by and large, the international system of protection is being respected; countries are keeping their borders open to those in need.

Nevertheless, the UN knows that as the global economic crisis continues, help for refugees is unlikely to be a top political priority – and the refugee agency says testing times lie ahead.

[negar92]

Pregnancy the 'biggest killer' for teenage girls



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Report (1.1 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/06/witn_120628_report_with_intro_120628_witn_teenage_ pregnancy_report_au_bb.mp3)
Words (1.1 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/06/witn_120628_words_120628_witn_teenage_pregnancy_wo rds_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/06/120628120457_120628_witn_teenage_pregnancy.pdf)



Summary

28 June 2012
Pregnancy is the biggest killer of teenage girls worldwide. A new report by Save the Children says that one million teenage girls die or suffer serious injury, infection or disease due to having a baby. The charity says the lack of access to contraception is at the root of the problem.
Reporter:
Emily Buchanan



Report

In many countries it's normal for girls to be married off young. They often quickly become pregnant but their bodies are not developed enough to give birth. In one clinic in a poor region of northern Liberia, a third of all babies are born to girls between 15 and 19. Some are as young as 13.

A Save the Children project manager there, George Kijana, says these young mothers are prone to a lot of medical complications. [For example] a fistula causes a lot of pain and incontinence, and girls are frequently then ostracised from their families. Babies too are more at risk, far more likely to die if their mother's under 18.

For years contraceptive programmes have struggled for funding and support as the religious right in the US has pressed Washington to oppose them. But world leaders will be congregating in London next month for a family planning summit hosted by the British government and the Gates Foundation. They will be urging action to make contraception not just more available to girls, but to empower them to use it by helping their families understand the health benefits of later pregnancies.

Charities point out that there could be huge cost benefits - with $1 spent on family planning saving at least $4 on treating the complications fromunintended pregnancies.

[negar92]

Body confidence



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Report (1 MB) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/06/witn_120626_body_confidence_report_with_intro_1206 26_witn_body_confidence_report_au_bb.mp3)
Words (874 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/06/witn_120626_body_confidence_vocab_with_intro_12062 6_witn_body_confidence_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/06/120626104148_120626_witn_body_confidence.pdf)


Summary

26 June 2012
A government guide to help parents teach their children how to be confident about their bodies is being launched. The pack shows how digitally enhanced images of celebrities affect youngsters' self-esteem, and it offers advice on how to talk to children about the subject.
Reporter:
Linda Hardy



Report

This is what children and teenagers are increasingly faced with. An array of seemingly picture perfect faces and bodies tanned, toned andtransformed from what they once were and it's that transformation that the new parent pack hopes to explain – showing parents and their children how images are altered in the media, the actress Keira Knightley before and after the effects of airbrushing. 20 year old Rachel Johnson is a recovering anorexic, and says getting parents involved is key.

"I think it is education for parents, it's actually being able to talk to parents, actually being able to ask those questions 'what do I do?'. And it's not there to scare parents it's there just to raise the profile a little bit more just to get the children to talk about body image."

Aimed at parents of six to eleven year olds it gives them tips on how to talk to their children about their own bodies and is available online. It follows the success of a teaching pack launched for primary schools last year which also revealed that images aren't always what they seem.

[negar92]

New app for children who can't speak



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Words (834 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/07/120705_witn_childrens_app_words_with_intro_120705_ witn_app_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/07/120705122922_120705_witn_childrens_app.pdf)



Summary

5 July 2012
New technology promises to give thousands of children who cannot speak a voice. An app called Proloquo2Go allows 6-year-old Ruby Dunn to tap on symbols on a tablet computer - and then have a sentence read out in a child's voice. The software, which features the voices of two British children, is among a number of innovations now helping children with special needs.
Reporter:
Rory Cellan-Jones



Report

Voice of tablet computer:
"Mary, Mary, quite contrary."

Six-year-old Ruby Dunn has autism and can't speak. But now a software application on an mp3 player and on a tablet computer is giving her a voice.

Voice of tablet computer:
"What grows in the garden?"
"The flowers. The flowers grow in the garden."

Pauline Hoygreen works with her to make sure she is integrated in to school life. In one-on-one sessions they communicate through the app:

Pauline Hoygreen, teacher:
"It's giving her her own voice and it's giving her a child's voice for her to be able to communicate to a teacher, her one-to-ones, the children in the class and the children around the rest of the school."

Ruby was born 14 weeks premature and very tiny, so life has been a bit of a struggle.

Voice of tablet computer:
"Can I have lasagne, broccoli, carrots?"

At lunchtime the app allows her to order her meal.

Voice of tablet computer:
"I want the wheels on the bus please."

And in the classroom, Ruby uses it and other technology to play a full part in lessons.

It's worth saying there are now plenty of apps, some of them free, available on all sorts of devices which are designed to help children with disabilities. The one we've been looking at is pretty expensive – it costs around £130 – but Ruby's family say it's made a huge difference to her life.

Ruby's father:
"There's a lot of frustration involved with autism and quite often Ruby's trying to pull you to show you something, you're not quite sure what it is she's looking at or what she's looking for or what she's asking for. But now she's got this tool, this brilliant tool, that's able to give her this voice, it's taken a lot of frustration out. We find it's calmed her down a lot."

With school over it's time to head home with the technology which has given Ruby and thousands like her a better connection to their world.

[negar92]

Calorie counting menus



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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/07/120706103309_120706_witn_calories.pdf)



Summary

6 July 2012
Restaurants in Ireland are to be given six months to voluntarily implement calorie menu labelling which will allow diners to see exactly how healthy their food choices are. The country's health minister has said if restaurants don't comply with the voluntary scheme, he may bring forward legislation on the matter.
Reporter:
Ruth McDonald



Report

Ireland has a proud tradition of producing good quality food, which is enjoyed at home and abroad. But like many developed countries, it's also battling obesity - nearly forty per cent of adults here are overweight.

On Wednesday the country's health minister backed a report calling for calorie labelling, which would mean that Irish restaurants, like this one, and fast food outlets would have to show exactly how many calories are in the dishes that they serve.

The health minister said the country's food businesses have six months to introduce calorie menu labelling, or else face the possible introduction of acompulsory scheme.
Some fast food chains here already label their menus, allowing customers to make healthier choices if they wish. But the country's restaurant association has claimed it will cost each outlet around seven thousand dollars to implement calorie labelling.

The move is supported, however, by the findings of the report, which show that most people here support calorie labelling in food outlets. This is a country with a track record of acting on public health - Ireland was one of the first places in the world to implement a blanket smoking ban in public places, for example.

[negar92]

Costa Concordia captain speaks out



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Words (826 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/07/witn_120709_words_with_intro_120709_costa_concordi a_captain_words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/07/120709145743_120706_witn_concordia_captain.pdf)


Summary

9 July 2012
The Italian captain of the Costa Concordia – the cruise ship that hit rocks and sank - has released a letter defending his actions. In this first detailed public explanation since the catastrophe, Captain Francesco Schettino says he took a series of steps that averted an even greater disaster.
Reporter:
Alan Johnston



Report

As the man in command of the Costa Concordia on the night she sank, Captain Schettino became a hate figure in the Italian media. Blame has been heaped on him for sailing his vessel recklessly close to a reef off the island of Giglo. But now, for the first time, he's tried to explain his actions publicly.

In a letter released by his lawyers, the captain seems to suggest that he should have been told by one of his crew that he was too close to the shore. But he says that he realised that he was too near shallow water when he saw breaking waves off to his left. He then immediately swung the vessel away to the right. That meant, he says, that a very serious head-on collision with the reef was avoided.

Instead there was a less damaging, glancing blow that enabled the ship to limp on rather than sink immediately with huge loss of life. Captain Schettino even suggests that what he calls "a divine hand" might have been guiding him as he made the crucial decision to turn. He says that after the collision he put into operation an emergency plan that involved shutting watertight doors and sailing his stricken ship into shallower water. This made it possible, he says, to abandon the vessel more safely. And again, he argues, this action saved lives.

[negar92]

A dog's life



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Words (889 K) (http://http-ws.bbc.co.uk.edgesuite.net/mp3/learningenglish/2012/07/witn_120710_words_with_intro_120710_witn_dogs_life _words_au_bb.mp3)
Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/07/120710164404_120710_witn_dogs.pdf)





Report


Eight million years ago, a shift in the climate caused more barren, open landscapes to spread across the globe. And without the cover of trees, large animals grouped together for protection.

This, the scientists say, was when wild dogs started to work together, teaming up to drive big prey out of the herd. The Colombian team examined the skulls of more than 300 dog species, building a timeline that revealed how their jaws and teeth hadevolved.

This revealed that the wolves from which our domestic dogsdescend started to change when they began to hunt in packs. From then on, the dogs with the biggest teeth and most powerful jaws were most likely to succeed in overpowering their prey, so they passed their 'hypercarnivorous' genes on to the next generation.

The researchers say that this is what's given our pet dogs such good evolutionary reasons to really enjoy chewing on bones.

[negar92]

Baby panda loses life



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Text (http://wsdownload.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/pdf/2012/07/120712121006_120712_witn_baby_panda_dies.pdf)




Report


The sorrow in Japan at the death of the baby panda was as heartfelt as the euphoria at its long-awaited birth. NHK television broke into its programming to announce the news. The director of Ueno zoo in Tokyo wiped away tears as he explained that the male cub hadinhaled milk while breastfeeding, leading to pneumonia. The baby was found motionless on his mother's chest: efforts to revivehim failed.

He was conceived naturally by two giant pandas sent from China last year just before the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan. The animals provided some welcome lighter news, and their baby's every wriggle was chronicled avidly in the Japanese media. China is famed for its panda diplomacy: last week Beijing expressed hope that the panda's birth would improve its testy relations with Japan.

On Wednesday the Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said Chinalamented the loss of the cub and believed the Japanese people would be grieving too. But panda births in captivity are notoriouslyfraught. Some conservationists say these endangered animals are just too rare to be traded as diplomatic trophies - and that moving them between countries is a further risk to their health.