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Saudi Arabia’s government adds 5% tax on some goods

2017年8月1日

Business - E

Vocabulary: incur – to lose money, owe money, or have to pay money as a result of doing something The company incurred huge losses over the past six years. defer – to delay something until a later time The board deferred its decision to sell the company until later this year. expatriate – someone who lives in a country that is not his/her own country The convicted murderer is an expatriate worker from Spain. reintroduction – the act of bringing something into use or existence again They were protesting against the reintroduction of the consumption tax. Saudi Arabia is one of the top oil exporters in the world. However, the country…
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Easier learning through smartphones

2017年7月18日

technology

Vocabulary: unconventional – out of the ordinary; not based on what is generally done or believed This is an unconventional school as teachers don’t give students homework. utilize – use; make use of I would like to utilize my time doing more productive things. gadget – a small device or machine with a particular purpose Before, I used different gadgets to listen to music, watch movies and call someone. Now, I can do all of those with just one. noteworthy – deserving attention because of being important or interesting It is noteworthy that nobody in this room is interested in taking a day off. Unconventional forms of learning and instruction…
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Mediterranean food for a healthier brain

2017年7月4日

Health - Intermediate

There’s enough evidence and scientific research that support a healthy diet for a sound body and mind. A recent study not only substantiates this, but also specifically identifies Mediterranean diet as being key to keeping a healthy brain through old age. If we’re not careful with the food we eat, our brain will suffer as we get older. Thanks to a recent research, now we know that adding Mediterranean food like olive oil, salad, and more fruits helps conserve our brain into old age. As we age, our brains get smaller; but if we keep our brain healthy, the shrinkage will amazingly be slower. According to research, bigger brains have…
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Retiring seniors go on working

2017年5月18日

Japan - Expert

Among the ranks of developed countries, Japan is one of those with labor shortage woes. To tackle such shortage, the country needs to come up with more policies to pull retirees back into the workforce. Florian Kohlbacher, an adjunct professor at Temple University’s Tokyo campus and director of the Economist Corporate Network for North Asia, says that 60 in Japan is still young. Most Japanese people have long, healthy lives. An overhaul in company policies, work culture and seniority policies is needed to encourage seniors to continue working after retirement. People who’ve found jobs after their mandatory retirement want to keep working not only to stay active — they actually…
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Company introduces ‘snowflake test’ to eliminate whiny millennial applicants

2017年5月18日

Business - E

  The Silent Partner Marketing released a questionnaire for job applicants which has gone viral online. The questionnaire, also known as the snowflake test, is designed to eliminate applicants who would whine at work. CEO Kyle Reyes created the test to determine who will fit with his company’s and client’s creative culture. Mr. Reyes defines snowflakes as entitled, liberal millennials who would complain without a strong basis. The thirty-item questionnaire contains a candidate’s view on America, law enforcement, and criticism. Mr. Reyes made this test to see how responsible the candidate is. Other companies would like to adopt this test but was hesitant due to the negative feedback it might…
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Shrimp considered as part of a healthy diet

2017年5月18日

Health - Intermediate

  Over the years, eating shrimp has been not recommended for consumption of patients with health problems and high cholesterol due to its 189 milligrams of cholesterol. This has been believed to be the “bad” cholesterol; however, in a recent study, it shows that shrimp can boost the “good” cholesterol, making it an addition to a healthy heart diet. Aside from its good cholesterol content, this favorite seafood contains healthy nutrients like vitamin B12 and antioxidants, and has no trans-fat. To make shrimp heart-friendly, preparing it with less to no oil at all is the best choice. Baking or boiling it is better than sautéing it with butter or oil….
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Time Warner merges with AT&T

2017年5月5日

Business - E

  Shareholders of the parent company of CNN, HBO, TNT, and others namely as Time Warner casted their votes to approve merging with AT&T amounting to $84.5 billion. Although support from shareholders were highly expected, it would be more challenging to receive a green light from the government since US President Donald Trump criticized the deal when he was still running for the office. He believed that CNN distributes fake news. Randall Stephenson, CEO of AT&T, welcomed the criticism. He also stated that since they are a large company, they handle controversies from time to time as well as hundreds of consumers daily. He also believed that by combining Time…
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How North Korea makes its money

2017年5月4日

World News - Expert

North Korea’s economy is one of the most closed economies in the world but they find ways to get money out of their people. North Korea’s source of foreign banknotes come from selling tons of coal to China every year, exporting other merchandise and basic goods, hacking financial organizations in 18 countries and sending North Koreans to work abroad under force labor. They are believed to work in industries like mining, logging, textiles, and construction. John Park, director of the Korea Working Group at the Harvard Kennedy School, believes Pyeongyang kept a lot of money in China that the government can use to fund its weapons programs. By keeping the…
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Tokyo taxis lowered fare

2017年5月4日

Japan - Expert

Riders delightfully welcomed the new Tokyo taxi fare, which is fairly affordable for people who use cabs for short distances. Leaflets were handed out to the public to introduce the new fare system to interested passengers at taxi stands. Commuters, especially elders, were so pleased to know about the new and improved fare system. The new fare for the first 1.052 kilometers is ¥410. It used to be ¥730 for the first two kilometers. Taxis have stickers of the new fare system in both English and Japanese. This fare revision was set in motion to address the continuous plunge in the the number of taxi passengers. Taxi companies also hope…
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Standford University offers program for older professionals

2017年5月2日

Education - E

  Stanford University opened a new course for retirees who are planning their careers for the next 20-30 years. A former Stanford Dean, Dr. Phil Pizzo, believes that the transition from middle age to retiring age is overwhelming so he opened up an opportunity for retirees to study and do more in life. The Stanford’s Center of Longevity agrees to this plan, saying that universities are not only for people starting their careers, but also for people who successfully ended their careers. Students, also known as fellows have flourished from their chosen careers. Fellows like David Gensler from Gensler, Mary Ittelson from Ittelson Consulting, and Pradeep Jotwani from HP Inc….
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