Just listen

Chapter 68

Calls for a Gene Revolution

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Fill in the blanks while listening. Then check your answers.

• 
  This is Steve Ember with the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.
  
• 
  There are sixty-eight million _1__________ of genetically engineered crops.
  
• 
  This is about five percent of all cropland in the world, and _2__________.
  
• 
  The Green Revolution produced the modern systems and chemicals of agriculture. _3__________ increased in many countries.
  
• 
  Experts say the world must find new ways to fight _4__________ and feed its growing population.
  
• 
  But, unlike the Green Revolution, biotechnology has been supported mainly by private _5_________.
  
• 
  Ninety-nine percent of genetically _6__________ crops are either soybeans, corn, cotton or canola.
  
• 
  The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization says little research has been done on food crops like _7__________, rice, potatoes and cassava.
  
• 
  An F.A.O. report last month expressed concern that _8__________is not helping developing nations. Six countries grew ninety-nine percent of all biotech _9__________last year: Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, South Africa and the United States.
  
• 
  Almost all these crops have special genes to _10__________ damage by insects or by chemicals used to kill unwanted plants.
  
• 
  The F.A.O. says there is little research on biotech plants that could resist crop _11__________ in poor countries, or provide extra vitamins.
  
• 
  He also says there is less scientific _12__________ on the environmental effects, so each product must be carefully observed.
  
• 
  Yet the industry has had some successes _13__________.
  
• 
  This VOA Special English Agriculture Report was written by Mario Ritter. This is Steve Ember.
  

By Mario Ritter Broadcast: June 1, 2004
b. Fill in the gaps with the appropriate form of the words given in the box.
expanding - debate – revolution – agriculture - productivity

1. 
   Marxists used to believe that __________ will eventually occur in all capitalist countries.
   
2. 
   __________ is still largely based on traditional methods in some countries.
   
3. 
   The air in the balloon ___________ when heated.
   
4. 
   __________ in the steel industry improved by 5% last year.
   
5. 
   In a formal __________, two people speak for a subject and two speak against it.
   

Chapter 69

Bush Announces New Steps to AID…

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Before listening to the text, fill in the blanks with the given words. Then check your

answers while listening.
a. expert-trade-progress–refuge-constitution-training-provinces-improve

This is Steve Ember with In the News in VOA Special English.

President Bush this week announced more steps to help Afghanistan. He met at the White House Tuesday with Afghan President Hamid Karzai. At a news conference, they spoke of _1__________ toward democracy. Mister Bush said Afghanistan is no longer, in his words, "a terrorist factory sending thousands of killers into the world." He offered American _2__________ for Afghan politicians. Other steps include more schools for Afghan children, as well as training and aid for businesswomen. And Mister Bush said the two countries plan to seek a _3__________ agreement and expand an education exchange program. Afghanistan was formerly ruled by the Taliban group which provided _4__________for al-Qaida. After al-Qaida attacked the United States on September eleventh, two-thousand-one, American-led forces ousted the Taliban. Since then, international efforts have helped _5__________ schools, health care and roads. Afghanistan has a new _6__________. Women have more rights. And the country is preparing for elections in September. But officials are worried about violence in the _7__________and threats from the Taliban and allied Islamic groups. This week, Al Jazeera television showed what it said were new images of al-Qaida members training in Afghanistan. But the American commander there and a terrorism _8__________ said the tape was likely made somewhere else. The Afghan government has limited control outside Kabul. Parts of the country are still controlled by local leaders and militants. President Karzai has promised to disarm the groups.
b. commanders-loyal-invasion-extremism-fled-current - appealed - threaten –injured - recovery
Late this week, local _9__________ took control of the capital of Ghor province. Officials said ten men died in fighting. The governor _10__________. The United States has about twenty-thousand troops in Afghanistan. They face almost daily attacks blamed on fighters _11__________ to the Taliban and al-Qaida. In Washington, members of Congress have expressed concern about progress toward an Afghan National Army and police force. Opposition Democrats have said the _12__________ of Iraq last year took away resources from Afghanistan. President Karzai spoke to a joint meeting of Congress. He thanked the United States for its support. He also honored American soldiers killed or _13__________ in Afghanistan. Mister Karzai noted strong economic growth in his country. But he said there is still "a long road ahead." He said Afghanistan needs more investment to help its economic _14__________. And he called for NATO to do more. NATO's __15__________ duties include commanding the International Security Assistance Force in Kabul. President Karzai also _16__________ for American help to stop the spread of drug crops in Afghanistan. He said profits from the illegal trade _17__________ his government and finance terrorism and _18__________.

In the News, in VOA Special English, was written by Cynthia Kirk. This is Steve Ember. By Cynthia KirkBroadcast: June 19, 2004

Chapter 70

Electronic Games in Education

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• 
  A group called the Education Arcade recently _1__________a conference in Los Angeles to discuss the future of educational games.
  
• 
  The Education Arcade brings together international game designers, publishers, teachers and _2__________ .
  
• 
  This is a yearly trade show where companies _3__________new games and educational products.
  
• 
  The group began to _4__________ ways to use technology in teaching and learning.
  
• 
  The group recently _5__________ announced that a “Games for Learning” statement will be placed on some products.
  
• 
  This should begin to _6__________ in American stores in about six months.
  
• 
  The Entertainment Software Association says fifty _7__________ of all Americans age six and older play computer and video games.
  
• 
  They say many companies are not _8__________ to invest that much money and time in educational games when other kinds sell better.
  
• 
  Still, companies have been creating systems like hand-held educational _9__________ made by LeapFrog. And new _10__________role-playing games are being developed.
  
• 
  This VOA Special English Education Report was written by Nancy Steinbach. This is Steve Ember.
  

By Nancy Steinbach Broadcast: May 27, 2004

Chapter 71

Long-Life Concrete Bridges

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Put the lines in order: Then check your answers while listening.

This is Robert Cohen with the VOA Special English Development Report.

a.

___The economic costs are greatest for developing countries.

___Each year, road accidents kill a million people and injure millions more.

___Earlier this year, the United Nations called for a campaign to improve road safety.

b.

___Another is better roads and bridges.

___Professor Paul Tikalsky leads the experiments by a team at Pennsylvania State University.

___He says bridges made of concrete now last about twenty-five to thirty-five years.

___One way to avoid accidents is better driving.

___ Engineers in the United States have designed ten new concrete mixtures that they think could make

bridges last longer.

___But he says the new mixtures might extend that to seventy-five or even one-hundred years.

c.

___The materials in the cement hold the concrete together.

___Concrete is made of stone, sand, water, and cement.

___People keep looking for new ways to improve concrete. Professor Tikalsky says it is one of the most complex of all chemical systems.

___Ancient Romans built with concrete.

___Yet strengthened concrete bridges did not appear until the late eighteen-hundreds.

d.

___One of the products is fly ash.

___The new mixtures designed by his team contain industrial waste products.

___This is released into the air as pollution when coal is burned.

___He says these make the concrete better able to resist damage from water and salt over time.

e.

___This is the most costly material in concrete.

___Professor Tikalsky says particles of fly ash are almost exactly the same size and chemical structure as Portland cement.

___So using fly ash to replace some of it would save money.

Over the next two years, engineers will study ten bridges in Pennsylvania. These were built from the different cement mixtures designed by Professor Tikalsky’s team. He says longer-lasting bridges could save the state more than thirty-five-million dollars a year. And he says the materials would be environmentally friendly.

The federal government is paying for part of the research. Engineers anywhere can use the technology. Professor Tikalsky says some of the ideas have already been put to use in China, the Philippines and other countries. You can find more about this research on the Pennsylvania State University Web site. The address is www.psu.edu. Again, the site is www.psu.edu.

This VOA Special English Development Report was written by Jill Moss. This is Robert Cohen.






Chapter 72

Graduation Speakers

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Before listening to the text fill in the blanks with the given words.

Then check your answers while listening.
a. honorary diploma - completing their education - comment on - former students - hold

ceremonies -graduation ceremonies- colored caps
This is Steve Ember with the VOA Special English Education Report.

May and June are the months when most American high schools and colleges hold their _1____________. Elementary and middle schools also _2____________ for children finishing those levels of education.

And much older people may be _3____________, too. Men and women in their seventies and eighties receive high school diplomas or college degrees. Last year, in California, a high school in San Francisco awarded an _4_________ to a woman ninety-seven years old.

Traditionally at graduation ceremonies, the students wear dark _5_________ and gowns over their clothing. Most graduations include speakers. Schools often invite famous guests or _6_______________ who became highly successful. Or both.

Justice Sandra Day O’Connor of the Supreme Court spoke at Stanford University in California. That was where she went to college.

Universities often want speakers who can _7________________ world events. Vice President Dick Cheney spoke at Florida State University last month. President Bush spoke at three graduations this year. He spoke at Concordia University in Wisconsin and Louisiana State University. He also spoke at the Air Force Academy in Colorado.

b. choices for - honorary doctorate - speak at - for using -
Well-known reporters often _8____________ graduations. For example, Ted Koppel spoke at the University of California, Berkeley, last month. He has a nightly news program on national television.

Entertainers are also popular_9_______________ graduation speakers. One very busy speaker this year is the actor and comedian Bill Cosby. He spoke at the Berklee College of Music in Massachusetts and at Johns Hopkins University in Maryland. He also spoke at Temple University, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Bill Cosby has spoken at Temple University many times. That is where he went to college.

Bono was also in Philadelphia. The singer from the Irish rock band U2 spoke last month at graduation ceremonies at the University of Pennsylvania. University officials praised Bono _10_______________ his popularity to help developing nations and fight against AIDS. He also received an _11______________ degree.

This VOA Special English Education Report was written by Nancy Steinbach. This is Steve Ember.

By Nancy Steinbach Broadcast: June 3, 2004
Chapter 73

Hybrids

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This is Steve Ember with the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.

• 
  Since _1___________, farmers have chosen the seeds for the coming year from _2___________ and best plants in their crop.
  
• 
  The hope is that these seeds will have the same good _3___________ as their parent plants.
  
• 
  In nineteen-oh-six, the _4___________ researcher G.H. Shull started work on breeding corn in New York State.
  
• 
  He found that if he _5___________two inbred groups of corn plants, he could create a stronger new line of corn.
  
• 
  This process is _6___________ crossbreeding. It _7___________ hybrids from putting together different kinds of related plants.
  
• 
  Researchers soon _8___________ that they could crossbreed four inbred lines of corn.
  
• 
  Hybrid corn first _9___________ in nineteen-twenty-one.
  
• 
  By nineteen-ninety-five, half of all the rice _10___________China was hybrid.
  
• 
  This animal is strong and good for work, although it cannot ___________.
  
• 
  IThis fish had almost _12___________ from the wild.
  
• 
  Hybrids are not the answer to every problem_13___________.
  
• 
  But hybrids have been an important development for _14___________.
  

This VOA Special English Agriculture Report was written by Mario Ritter. This is Steve Ember.

Broadcast: June 8, 2004



Chapter 74

INDIA Elections

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Fill in the blanks with the given words. Then check your answers while listening.
a. resigned - allies - defeated - coalition - praise - growth - expressed - legislature

• 
  This is Steve Ember with In the News in VOA Special English.
  
• 
  India’s Congress Party has _1___________ the party of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in national parliamentary elections.
  
• 
  The Congress Party and its _2___________won a majority of seats in the national _3___________.
  
• 
  Congress Party leaders will form a new _4___________government and name a prime minister.
  
• 
  Mister Vajpayee officially _5___________Thursday following the defeat of India’s ruling coalition, the National Democratic Alliance.
  
• 
  Leaders from the prime minister’s B.J.P party and its allies _6___________surprise at the election results.
  
• 
  His campaign noted the country’s eight percent _7___________ rate, which made it one of the world’s fastest growing economies. He also won _8___________ for his efforts to reduce tensions between India and Pakistan.
  

b. efforts with- gained- unpopular with- throughout- parliamentary– peace- governed- provide

• 
  They criticized the government for failing to _9___________ citizens with jobs, clean water, and e
  

lectricity.

• 
  Congress Party officials said India’s new government would continue peace _10___________Pakistan
  

begun by Mister Vajpayee.

• 
  The two countries re-opened _11___________talks last year.
  
• 
  Congress Party leader Sonia Gandhi could become India’s next prime minister.
  
• 
  But Missus Ghandi is _12___________ some Indians because she was born in Italy.
  
• 
  The Congress Party led by the Nehru-Gandhi family _13___________for almost fifty years after India
  

_14___________ independence from Britain in nineteen-forty-seven.

• 
  But a year later, she led her party to its worst-ever defeat in _15___________elections. In recent months, however, she has worked to strengthen the Congress Party.
  
• 
  She spoke at hundreds of campaign gatherings _16___________ the country.
  
• 
  In the News, in VOA Special English, was written by Cynthia Kirk. This is Steve Ember.
  

By Cynthia Kirk Broadcast: May 15, 2004

Chapter 75

Inflation and the U.S. Consumer…

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Before listening to the text fill in the blanks with the given words. Then check your

answers while listening.

1. 
   based on -rose at - utility - lead to - experts - concern about
   

• 
  This is Bob Doughty with the VOA Special English Economics Report.
  
• 
  _1___________ inflation is in the news a lot lately. In the United States, prices have risen especially for gasoline and other forms of energy.
  
• 
  Higher energy prices _2___________ higher prices for other goods.
  
• 
  Oil prices are high. But _3___________ say this is not the only reason for the current fuel prices.
  
• 
  But drivers need lots of fuel for popular sport _4___________ vehicles and personal trucks.
  
• 
  Government economists reported that inflation _5___________ a yearly rate of four-point-four percent between December and April.
  
• 
  These numbers are _6___________ the Consumer Price Index.
  

b. pay for - goes up -keep down- made up - paid by - look at

• 
  Such action raises the cost to borrow money. Less borrowing and spending can help _7___________ prices.
  
• 
  But the committee meets again in June. One measure it will _8___________ is the Consumer Price Index.
  
• 
  In the next year, the price _9___________ to eleven cents.
  
• 
  The Department of Labor gathers prices that Americans _10___________ medicines, housing, clothes and food..
  
• 
  The Consumer Price Index is _11___________ of thousands of measures.
  
• 
  It measures prices 12_____________ about eighty-seven percent of Americans.
  
• 
  This VOA Special English Economics Report was written by Mario Ritter. This is Bob Doughty.
  

By Mario Ritter  Broadcast: May 21, 2004


Chapter 76

Internatıonal Children’s Digital Library

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Before listening to the text fill in the blanks with the given words. Then check your

answers while listening.
a. write it down - to offer - designed for - free of charge - appears on - looking for-explore-meant to
T

his is Steve Ember with the VOA Special English Education Report.

_1_______ a good children's book? Internet users can find hundreds of them. These books are from around the world. And they are _2_______. The project is called the International Children’s Digital Library.

The goal is _3_______ electronic versions of more than ten-thousand children's books in at least one-hundred languages. We will give the address of the Web site at the end of this report. So get ready to _4_______.
Project developers have been working with children to design easy ways to search the collection and read the books. An image of each page _5_______ the computer. Users can also print copies on paper.

Officials say the project has been _6_______ two main groups of users. The first is children between the ages of three and thirteen, along with their teachers and parents. The second group is researchers in the area of children’s literature.

The books chosen for the collection are _7_______ help children understand the world in which they live. Literature is one way to teach young people about new ideas. The idea behind the collection is that an interesting story not only helps children understand who they are. It may also influence their desire to _8_______ the world.