Beginner

Turrón

2017年3月28日

Lifestyle

Pre-reading questions: Do you like sweets? What is the most popular dessert in your country? Turrón is a popular Spanish dessert made from honey, sugar and nuts. The best turrón is at the Convent of Hermanas Clarisas. Twenty-two nuns make several kinds of turrón at the convent. The most popular turróns of the convent are Turrón de Trufa, made with chocolate beans; and, Turrón de Yema Tostada, a soft turrón made from egg yolk mixed with ground almonds and sugar, and burned on top with a special iron. For the nuns at the Convent of Hermanas Clarisas, their work is a gift. Vocabulary: dessert [noun] – sweet food eaten at…
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Beginner

E.U. fines three banks $520 million

2017年3月23日

Business - B

Pre-reading questions: What is the most famous bank in your country? Are banks good or bad? Discuss. JPMorgan Chase, HSBC and Credit Agricole were charged by European Union officials a total of $520 million. They were fined for secretly working together to control the market. They also illegally shared important information to get more money. Four banks were fined for the same reasons three years ago. According to a European Union official, if banks continue to have this kind of control, only a few can benefit. Vocabulary: European Union [proper noun] – a union of 28 states that are located primarily in Europe charge [verb] – to ask an amount…
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Beginner

Blueberry juice helps improve brain function

2017年3月22日

Health - Beg

Pre-reading questions: Do you like to eat fruits? What are your favorite fruits? Our brain functions decline as we get old. In a study conducted, it was found out that elderly people who drink concentrated blueberry juice every day have healthier brains as compared to those who don’t. The study also suggests that blueberry juice helps improve memory. Blueberry is a small round fruit that contains flavonoids. Flavonoids are considered to be healthy for our body. Vocabulary: blueberry [noun] – a small round fruit with blue, purple, or blackish skin flavonoid [noun] – substance that is found in fruits that is healthy for the body improvement [noun] – better than…
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Beginner

People keep their smartphones longer

2017年3月21日

technology

Pre-reading questions: Do you like using your smartphone? Why do people like smartphones a lot? A research in 2016 says that Americans keep their phones for about 22.7 months before changing it. The report was almost the same with large European users. On the other hand, the research shows that people in China change their phones faster. This is because there are a lot of budget phones available in the country. Also in China, there are many buyers and sellers of smartphones so people can buy phones easily and more frequently. Vocabulary: research [noun] – a study of a subject or topic large [adjective] – big budget [adjective] – cheap,…
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Beginner

Japanese public deeply skeptical over its corporate leaders

2017年3月20日

Business - B

Pre-reading questions: Do you trust people easily? Please explain your answer. Do you think trust is important? Why? A recent survey reveals that many workers in Japan don’t trust their CEOs. Even though Japan is a developed nation, only a few percentage of its workers trust their corporate leaders. Meanwhile, other developed countries such as India and China trust their officials. As per Ross Rowbury, Japan’s workers tend to doubt their officials because they don’t always see their presence at work. Vocabulary: trust [verb] – believe official [noun] – a worker with a high rank CEO [noun] – chief executive officer doubt [verb]- lack of trust improvement [noun]- change for…
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Beginner

Donald Trump’s inauguration as US president

2017年3月20日

World News - Beginner

Pre-reading questions: How do you prepare for an important ceremony? What do you think of President Donald Trump? Donald Trump is the 45th President of the United States of America, replacing Barack Obama in the White House. Trump became president at noontime of January 20. The main ceremony was held at the White House followed by many parties around Washington DC. The official inauguration ceremony was held in front of the Capitol. After the inauguration, Donald Trump gave his first speech as the president. Vocabulary: inauguration [noun] – the act of putting someone into an official position with a ceremony president [noun] – head of state replace [verb] – change;…
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Beginner

Sony’s Lifelog app offers new features

2017年3月16日

technology

Pre-reading questions: How do you use your smartphone? Do you monitor your food? Why or why not? Lifelog is an application for health. It is from Sony and it can be used on smartphones. To use its new feature, you just take a picture of any food and the app will give you a complete information about it. The app will give you a calorie count of your food and personalized nutritional advice. The application still needs more testing for accuracy. Vocabulary: application [noun] – program designed for a purpose calorie [noun] – a unit of energy; a way of describing how much energy your body could get from eating…
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Beginner

Free Wi-Fi on Mount Everest

2017年3月16日

Lifestyle

  Pre-reading questions: Have you tried mountain climbing? Which places do you think still don’t have wi-fi?   Nepal plans to make free wi-fi zones to help with communication and to aid rescuers. At 5,360 meters high, this will be the highest location of wi-fi ever made. Mount Everest is very popular to tourists especially mountaineers. Nepal plans to make more wi-fi zones to help people send messages and possibly, save lives.   Vocabulary: rescuer – [noun] someone who saves another person’s life from danger base camp – [noun] a place where food and things are kept by people who are climbing the mountain location – [noun] place tourist –…
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Beginner

The world’s richest race

2017年3月15日

Sports - Beginner

Pre-reading questions: Are you interested in any type of race? What do you think about horse racing? Arrogate* took the biggest prize in a horse race in Florida last Saturday. Shaman Ghost* was second and Neolithic* finished third. Chrome, ridden by jockey Victor Espinoza, took the ninth spot. Twelve horses raced and their owners paid $1 million each to join. The event was attended by celebrities including UFC champion Conor McGregor. Most eyes were on Arrogate and California Chrome. A total of 12,000 racegoers watched the event. *Arrogate, Shaman Ghost and Neolithic are the names of the horses that raced Vocabulary: prize [noun] – reward; something given to someone who…
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Beginner

Morning coffee might slow down aging

2017年3月15日

Health - Beg

  Pre-reading questions: Do you drink coffee every day? How many cups of coffee can you drink in a day?   A study says that our morning coffee is not really bad for our health. Older people with low levels of infection are all coffee drinkers. People who drink more than 5 cups of coffee per day show low levels of inflammation. Researchers says that constant inflammation causes diseases of aging, like diabetes and heart problems. Inflammation is still needed by the immune system; it fights infection and toxic compounds. But, it loses control when a person is aging.   Vocabulary: inflammation – [noun] a condition in which a part…
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Beginner