VOASE071201_People In America

01 December 2007

Margaret Sanger, 1883-1966: She Led

the Fight for Birth Control for Women
She became an important part of what has been called one of the most life-changing political
movements of the 20th century.

VOICE ONE:

I’m Shirley Griffith.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Sarah Long with the VOA Special English

Program, People in America. Today, we tell about
one of the leaders of the birth control movement,
Margaret Sanger.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Many women today have the freedom to decide when

they will have children, if they want them. Until about Margaret Sanger
fifty years ago, women spent most of their adult lives
having children, year after year. This changed because of efforts by activists like
Margaret Sanger. She believed that a safe and sure method of preventing
pregnancy was a necessary condition for women’s freedom. She also believed birth
control was necessary for human progress.

Margaret Sanger was considered a rebel in the early nineteen hundreds.

VOICE TWO:

The woman who changed other women’s lives was born in eighteen eighty-three in
the eastern state of New York. Her parents were Michael and Anne Higgins.

Margaret wrote several books about her life. She wrote that her father taught her to
question everything. She said he taught her to be an independent thinker.

Margaret said that watching her mother suffer from having too many children made
her feel strongly about birth control. Her mother died at forty-eight years of age after
eighteen pregnancies. She was always tired and sick. Margaret had to care for her
mother and her ten surviving brothers and sisters. This experience led her to
become a nurse.

Margaret Higgins worked in the poor areas of New York City. Most people there had
recently arrived in the United States from Europe. Margaret saw the suffering of
hundreds of women who tried to end their pregnancies in illegal and harmful
ways. She realized that this was not just a health problem. These women suffered
because of their low position in society.

Margaret saw that not having control over one’s body led to problems that were
passed on from mother to daughter and through the family for years. She said she
became tired of cures that did not solve the real problem. Instead, she wanted to
change the whole life of a mother.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

In nineteen-oh-two, Margaret married William Sanger. They had three

children. Margaret compared her own middle-class life to that of the poor people she
worked among. This increased her desire to deal with economic and social
issues. At this time, Margaret Sanger became involved in the liberal political culture
of an area of New York City known as Greenwich Village. Sanger became a labor
union organizer. She learned methods of protest and propaganda, which she used
in her birth control activism.

Sanger traveled to Paris, France, in nineteen thirteen, to research European methods

of birth control. She also met with members of Socialist political groups who
influenced her birth control policies. She returned to the United States prepared to
change women’s lives.

VOICE TWO:

At first, Margaret Sanger sought the support of leaders of the women’s movement,
members of the Socialist party, and the medical profession. But she wrote that they
told her to wait until women were permitted to vote. She decided to continue working
alone.

One of Margaret Sanger’s first important political acts was to publish a monthly
newspaper called The Woman Rebel. She designed it. She wrote for it. And she
paid for it. The newspaper called for women to reject the traditional woman’s
position. The first copy was published in March, nineteen fourteen. The Woman
Rebel was an angry paper that discussed disputed and sometimes illegal
subjects. These included labor problems, marriage, the sex business, and
revolution.

Sanger had an immediate goal. She wanted to change laws that prevented birth
control education and sending birth control devices through the mail.

VOICE ONE:

The Woman Rebel became well known in New York and elsewhere. Laws at that
time banned the mailing of materials considered morally bad. This included any form
of birth control information. The law was known as the Comstock Act. Officials
ordered Sanger to stop sending out her newspaper.

Sanger instead wrote another birth control document called Family Limitation. The
document included detailed descriptions of birth control methods. In August,
nineteen fourteen, Margaret Sanger was charged with violating the Comstock Act.

Margaret faced a prison sentence of as many as forty-five years if found guilty. She
fled to Europe to escape the trial. She asked friends to release thousands of copies
of Family Limitation. The document quickly spread among women across the United
States. It started a public debate about birth control. The charges against Sanger
also increased public interest in her and in women’s issues.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Once again, Margaret Sanger used her time in Europe to research birth control
methods. After about a year, she decided to return to the United States to face
trial. She wanted to use the trial to speak out about the need for reproductive
freedom for women.

While Sanger was preparing for her trial, her five-year-old daughter, Peggy, died of
pneumonia. The death made Sanger feel very weak and guilty. However, the death
greatly increased public support for Sanger and the issue of birth control. The many
reports in the media caused the United States government to dismiss charges
against her.

VOICE ONE:

Margaret Sanger continued to oppose the Comstock Act by opening the first birth
control center in the United States. It opened in Brownsville, New York in nineteen
sixteen. Sanger’s sister, Ethel Byrne, and a language expert helped her. One
hundred women came to the birth control center on the first day. After about a week,
police arrested the three women, but later released them. Sanger immediately
re-opened the health center, and was arrested again. The women were tried the
next year. Sanger was sentenced to thirty days in jail.

With some support from women’s groups, Sanger

started a new magazine, the Birth Control Review. In
nineteen twenty-one, she organized the first American
birth control conference. The conference led to the
creation of the American Birth Control League. It was
established to provide education, legal reform and
research for better birth control. The group opened a
birth control center in the United States in nineteen Margaret Sanger, center,
twenty-three. Many centers that opened later across surrounded by workers at
the country copied this one. the American Birth Control
League
Sanger was president of the American Birth Control
League until nineteen twenty-eight. In the nineteen thirties she helped win a judicial
decision that permitted American doctors to give out information about birth control.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Historians say Margaret Sanger changed her methods of political action during and
after the nineteen twenties. She stopped using direct opposition and illegal
acts. She even sought support from her former opponents.

Later, Sanger joined supporters of eugenics. This is the study of human

improvement by genetic control. Extremists among that group believe that disabled,
weak or “undesirable” human beings should not be born. Historians say Sanger
supported eugenicists only as a way to gain her birth control goals. She later said
she was wrong in supporting eugenics. But she still is criticized for these
statements.

VOICE ONE:

Even though Margaret Sanger changed her methods, she continued her efforts for
birth control. In nineteen forty-two, she helped form the Planned Parenthood
Federation of America. It became a major national health organization after World
War Two.

Margaret Sanger moved into areas of international activism. Her efforts led to the
creation of the International Planned Parenthood Federation. It was formed in
nineteen fifty-two after an international conference in Bombay, India. Sanger was
one of its first presidents.

The organization was aimed at increasing the acceptance of family planning around
the world. Almost every country in the world is now a member of the international
group.

VOICE TWO:

Margaret Sanger lived to see the end of the Comstock Act and the invention of birth
control medicine. She died in nineteen sixty-six in Tucson, Arizona. She was an
important part of what has been called one of the most life-changing political
movements of the Twentieth Century.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

This Special English program was written by Doreen Baingana and produced by Caty
Weaver. I’m Shirley Griffith.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Sarah Long. Join us again next week for another PEOPLE IN AMERICA
program on the Voice of America.
VOASE071201_Words and Their Stories

01 December 2007

Money: He Hit the Jackpot

What does it take to have a rich life?

Now, the VOA Special English program, WORDS AND THEIR STORIES.

(MUSIC)

I think people everywhere dream about having lots of money. I know I do. I would
give anything to make money hand over fist. I would like to earn large amounts of
money. You could win a large amount of money in the United States through
lotteries. People pay money for tickets with numbers. If your combination of numbers
is chosen, you win a huge amount of money – often in the millions. Winning the
lottery is a windfall.

A few years ago, my friend Al won the lottery. It changed his life. He did not have a
rich family. He was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Instead, my friend
was always hard up for cash. He did not have much money. And the money he did
earn was chicken feed – very little.

Sometimes Al even had to accept hand-outs, gifts from his family and friends. But
do not get me wrong. My friend was not a deadbeat. He was not the kind of person
who never paid the money he owed. He simply pinched pennies. He was always
very careful with the money he spent. In fact, he was often a cheapskate. He did
not like to spend money. The worst times were when he was flat broke and had no
money at all.

One day, Al scraped together a few dollars for a lottery ticket. He thought he would
never strike it rich or gain lots of money unexpectedly. But his combination of
numbers was chosen and he won the lottery. He hit the jackpot. He won a great
deal of money.

Al was so excited. The first thing he did was buy a costly new car. He splurged on
the one thing that he normally would not buy. Then he started spending money on
unnecessary things. He started to waste it. It was like he had money to burn. He
had more money than he needed and it was burning a hole in his pocket so he
spent it quickly.

When we got together for a meal at a restaurant, Al paid every time. He would
always foot the bill, and pick up the tab. He told me the money made him feel
like a million dollars. He was very happy.

But, Al spent too much money. Soon my friend was down and out again. He had no
money left. He was back to being strapped for cash. He had spent his bottom
dollar, his very last amount. He did not even build up a nest egg. He had not
saved any of the money.

I admit I do feel sorry for my friend. He had enough money to live like a
king. Instead, he is back to living on a shoestring -- a very low budget. Some
might say he is penny wise and pound foolish. He was wise about small things,
but not about important things.

(MUSIC)

WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, in VOA Special English, was written by Jill
Moss. I’m Faith Lapidus.
VOASE071202_Development Report

02 December 2007

Group Works to Build Peace Through

Medicine
Physicians for Peace sends teams of volunteers to developing countries to provide medical training
and care.

This is the VOA Special English Development Report.

How do you define diplomacy? For the group Physicians for Peace, diplomacy is all
about bringing medical education and care to places where they are needed most.

This nonprofit organization brings together medical

volunteers from different cultures and opposing sides
of conflicts. Its message is "building peace and
international friendships through medicine."

Physicians for Peace is based in the American state of

Virginia. Doctor Charles Horton, a plastic surgeon
known for his humanitarian work, established the
group in the nineteen eighties.

A young patient in Rwanda More then five hundred teams of doctors, dentists,
nurses and others have gone to nearly sixty countries. Some programs have lasted
for years. For example, Physicians for Peace has had a program to treat burn victims
in Nicaragua since nineteen ninety-two. Other developing nations use this program
as an example for their own burn care programs.

In Africa, the group is active in Liberia, Senegal, Mali and Malawi. And, in January,
Physicians for Peace will launch a class in pediatrics and general surgery in Eritrea.

Thirteen medical students will learn about treating children and performing operations.
In the future they will train others. The project involves a partnership with George
Washington University Medical Center in Washington and the Eritrean Health
Ministry.
In the Philippines, Physicians for Peace is helping to provide eye care to people who
have never had their eyes examined before. The group is also helping to fit
replacement arms and legs for people who have had limbs removed.

The group is also helping rebuild a pediatric hospital in Sri Lanka that was destroyed
by the Indian Ocean tsunami in two thousand five. And two times a year, it sends
medical volunteers to the West Bank.

Charity Navigator, a service that rates nonprofit organizations, gives Physicians for
Peace its top rating. Health care providers from the United States donate their time
and pay their own travel costs. The group had a budget last year of thirty-five million
dollars. Most of that was the value of donated medical supplies.

Ron Sconyers, a retired Air Force brigadier general, is the chief executive officer of
Physicians for Peace. He tells us that the group goes only where it is invited. He says
it receives more requests for assistance than it can meet, but works hard not to turn
anyone down.

And that's the VOA Special English Development Report, written by Jill Moss. I’m
Steve Ember.
VOASE071202_This Is America

02 December 2007

How a Chemist Gets a Reaction From a

Class of English Learners
David Bennett taught science at a boys' school. Now he helps adults improve their American English.
Also, advice about learning the language.

Correction attached

VOICE ONE:

Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special

English. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Shirley Griffith. This week on our program, we

talk about learning English.

(SOUND) An English as a Second

Language class in Plano,
VOICE ONE:
Texas. ESL programs all over
the country report putting
We are listening to a class of English language
people on wait lists for
learners. For this exercise they have to repeat a series
classes.
of words beginning with the letter T. Some laugh as
they struggle with the words. They are trying to say "The tip of the tongue to the
teeth."

TEACHER AND STUDENTS: "The tip of the tongue to the teeth. The tip of the
tongue to the teeth."
TEACHER: "OK."
STUDENTS: "The tip of the tongue to the teeth."
TEACHER: "Uh-huh, it's also a bit of a tongue twister."
VOICE TWO:

The teacher, David Bennett, speaks slowly and clearly. He has a doctorate in
chemistry. He retired from teaching science at a private boys school in Washington,
D.C. Now he teaches this English class two times each week at a church in nearby
Bethesda, Maryland.

Not all of the exercises are tongue twisters -- a mouthful like "she sells seashells by
the seashore."

DAVID BENNETT: "Wake."

STUDENTS: "Wake. Wake."

Here, David Bennett leads the class in pronouncing words that begin with W.

DAVID BENNETT: "So I can wake in the morning, or I wake up. Wake. Wall."
STUDENTS: "Wall."
DAVID BENNETT: "Wall, yes. What’s the next one?"
STUDENTS: "Walk."
DAVID BENNETT: "Walk, yes walk."
ONE STUDENT: "Walk."
DAVID BENNETT: "Walk. There’s no L sound in it at all. It’s just walk. OK."
ONE STUDENT: "Warm."
ALL: " Warm"
DAVID BENNETT: "The room’s warm. Warm. Warm. A duck has feet that are, that
have, a web. Or a spider makes a web."

VOICE ONE:

In class on this autumn day are seven women from six countries: Belgium, Bolivia,
Brazil, France, Japan and Slovakia. Some are in the United States because of their
husband's work. Others are here to work in child care as au pairs.

The women have already studied beginning English. They are taking the class
because they want to learn more American English. They want to be able to
understand common expressions like "beating around the bush." That means to
avoid answering a question or saying something directly.
David Bennett points out that another expression -- "beating the drum" -- has two
meanings. It could simply mean playing the musical instrument, a drum. Or it could
mean leading a campaign, like beating the drum for political change.

VOICE TWO:

Learning a language can be a chance to learn about a culture as well. Recently the
students read a story from the Internet about the history of the American holiday of
Thanksgiving.

Pencils and pens flew over copies of the story as the students marked words they did
not understand, so they could ask the meaning.

As each student read a part of the story to the class, the teacher would repeat any
word they did not say correctly. Then the speaker would repeat the word after him.

VOICE ONE:

The teacher also asked the women about festivals or holidays in their own countries.
A young au pair from Bolivia talked about a fish festival at Lake Titicaca. As she
talked her words started to come with greater ease.

Another woman described a grape festival in Slovakia. Others talked about wine and
film festivals. Their teacher listened carefully and repeated words that were hard for
them to say.

VOICE TWO:

Yet even words that might be easy to say can still lead to misunderstandings, at least
in spoken English. David Bennett talks about the word "week." Spelled W-E-E-K it
means a period of time. There are seven days in a week. But "weak," spelled
W-E-A-K, has a very different meaning. It means the opposite of strong.

VOICE ONE:

The students in the class practice what they learn among themselves. The program
centers not just on writing, but also speaking and understanding English.

There are different ways to teach a language. These days, English teachers are
taught that the best method is the communicative approach. The goal is for students
to be able to communicate in their new language. This means teaching the language
used in real-life situations -- like getting a job or completing medical forms or
speaking to a child's teacher.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Language schools can cost hundreds or thousands of

dollars. But some programs, like the one in Bethesda,
cost only the price of the workbooks. Many religious
groups organize classes like this. Classes are also
offered through public schools and community
colleges.
Dominican immigrant Elena
Clarisa Sepulveda was on a English lessons are in strong demand in the United
wait list for more than one States, and people may have to wait for an opening.
year for ESL classes
VOICE ONE:

English learners and teachers can find many free resources on the Internet, including
at sites like manythings.org and eslcafe.org. Two other resources that might also be
of interest to teachers are TESOL and TESL-L.

TESL-L is an international discussion list for teachers of English as a second or

foreign language. They represent all levels of experience and training. There is no
cost to subscribe to this independent online list. The easiest way to find it is to do an
Internet search for T-E-S-L-dash-L.

T-E-S-O-L is TESOL, short for Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages.

About fourteen thousand members belong to this organization. TESOL is also
connected with other education groups throughout the world. For more information,
the Web site is tesol.org.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Kelly Lopez is an American citizen who was born in Honduras. Spanish was her first
language. Her advice for English learners is to think in English instead of just
translating. She also suggests trying to find people who were born in the United
States and practice with them.
VOICE ONE:

Maria Neves of Recife, Brazil, was in the United States several years ago to attend a
dance program in New York. She keeps English fresh in her mind by writing letters to
American friends. She also suggests that language learners record their voice, then
listen and try to correct mistakes. And, she says, "Never miss an American movie."

Reading English subtitles or closed captioning can also be helpful when watching
DVDs or television shows.

Movies, TV shows and songs have helped millions of people learn languages. But
there are other useful resources that adult learners might not think of -- like children's
books and comic books.

VOICE TWO:

Adults can do a good job of learning languages, but children are just naturally better
while their brains are still forming. Nine-year-old Ukyeon Kim from South Korea is a
good example. He attends the fourth grade at a public school in Fairfax County,
Virginia.

The family has decided to return to South Korea. But people who know Ukyeon say
he learned English very fast. He thinks his mother had something to do with that. She
read books to him in English before the family came to the United States.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

SooJee Han is in the United States through a cooperative program at the Washington
Center for Internships and Academic Seminars. She is from Seoul where she studied
international relations at the Graduate School of International Studies.

She learned to read and write English in school in South Korea. But mostly she
learned the grammar and structure of the language. More recently, she discovered
Special English programs, like this one. She says they have helped her improve her
English skills.

(SOUND)
SOOJEE HAN: "A good thing is, several years ago, I was lucky to find VOA English
on the Internet. And I was so glad they have Special English. The broadcasters read
news with slow speech so I can follow their accurate pronunciations."

VOICE TWO:

SooJee Han likes to download MP3 files from voaspecialenglish.com and listen to
them on her iPod while walking or riding the train. In fact, she even asked for, and
received, an internship in the Special English office.

Special English does not teach English the way a foreign language program would.
But many people find it highly useful as a way to improve their American English.

Transcripts of programs -- including this one -- can be downloaded along with MP3
files at voaspecialenglish.com. And there are links to other resources for people who
want to learn the world's most widely taught foreign language.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Our program was written by Jerilyn Watson and produced by Caty Weaver. I’m Steve
Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Shirley Griffith. Listen again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special
English.

---

Correction: Nine-year-old Ukyeon Cho was misidentified in this story as Ukyeon Kim.
VOASE071203_Agriculture Report

03 December 2007

Want to Grow a Root? Beets Are Hard

to Beat
Advice for growing a colorful and nutritious vegetable.

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.

Beets are a tasty root vegetable that do not require much

work to grow. People might think beets are always dark red.
But they can also be pink, yellow or white. Beets with circles
of red and white inside are known as candy cane or candy
stripe beets.

Beets are high in nutrients including folate, iron and fiber.

They can be eaten fresh or frozen, canned or pickled. And
A Yale student carries
not just the root but also the tops can be eaten. The leaves
beets grown on an
make good salads when the plants are young, and the
organic farm near the
greens can be cooked when the plants are older.
university in New
Beets like cool temperatures, between sixteen and eighteen Haven, Connecticut
degrees Celsius. They grow best in full sun and in loose soil that is not too wet.

Remove stones from the soil while preparing the ground. And test the soil before
adding lime and fertilizer. Some experts say the best fertilizers for beets are low in
nitrogen. Beets need the acidity level in the soil to be six to seven and a half.

Beet seeds can be planted as soon as the soil is able to be worked at the start of the
growing season. Planting them every two or three weeks would provide a continuous
harvest into the fall.

Iowa State University horticulture specialist Cindy Haynes suggests planting the
seeds one and one-quarter centimeters deep. They should be planted in rows that
are spaced thirty to forty-six centimeters apart.
A beet seed is a fruit containing several seeds. Overcrowding the plants will mean
that the roots cannot spread out and grow. Thin the beets by removing the smaller
ones. These can be used as greens.

Cindy Haynes says little or no fertilizer is needed in fertile soils. But once the seeds
are planted, she does suggest covering the soil with a little mulch to protect it during
rains and dry periods. She also suggests putting a fence around the plants to keep
away rabbits and deer.

She says the only work needed once beets have been thinned is weeding and, when
the weather is dry, a weekly watering.

For best results, beets should be picked when the roots are two and one-half
centimeters around. Beets much larger than that can be tough and have to be cooked
for a long time.

Some people like beets prepared simply in butter. Others like to cook them with
cinnamon and ginger.

And that’s the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. For
links to more information about growing beets, from the Iowa State University
Extension and Ohio State University, go to voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Jim Tedder.
VOASE071203_Science In the News

03 December 2007

Scientists Get Skin Cells to Act Like

Stem Cells, but Much Work Remains
Also: Some researchers fear a new study could lead people to believe that weighing too much is not
as big a health problem as many had thought. And we answer a question about the AIDS virus.

Correction attached

VOICE ONE:

This is SCIENCE IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Pat Bodnar. This week, we will tell about efforts to
make what appear to be embryonic stem cells without using
embryos. We will tell how body fat may help to protect against
some diseases. We also answer a question about the
disease AIDS and report on its spread.

(MUSIC)
File photo of
VOICE ONE: embryonic stem cells
in a laboratory dish
American and Japanese scientists have reported a major
discovery in the creation of human stem cells. The scientists say they have found a
way to make human skin cells act like embryonic stem cells. Two groups of
scientists performed similar experiments in different parts of the world. They
reported their findings in the scientific publications Cell and Science.

Both teams did generally the same thing. They injected skin cells with four kinds of
retroviruses. Each retrovirus carried a different gene that helps control embryo
development. The scientists say the four genes "reprogrammed" the skin cells. The
genes turned other genes on or off and caused the skin cells to act like embryonic
stem cells.

VOICE TWO:

Scientists can make stem cells grow into any kind of cell of the body, such as nerve
or heart cells. Scientists believe stem cells could be used in future treatments for
many diseases.

Until now, scientists were able to get human stem cells by taking them from a human
embryo several days after fertilization. The embryo was destroyed in the
process. The need to destroy human embryos has made stem cell research one of
the most divisive political issues in the United States.

James Thomson of the University of Wisconsin helped write the report published in
Science. He said he believes more scientists will attempt to reprogram cells to get
stem cells instead of taking them from embryos.

VOICE ONE:

The scientific publication Cell reported the results of researchers at Kyoto University
in Japan. They said they were able to make the newly created stem cells produce
many kinds of tissue cells. One of the researchers was Shinya Kamanaka. In June,
his team identified four genes in the skin cells of mice that could turn other genes on
or off to make skin cells act like embryonic stem cells.

The researchers say they still must confirm that the reprogrammed human skin cells
really are the same as stem cells from human embryos. They say they have much to
learn about the reprogrammed stem cells before they could possibly be tested in
people. One concern is that the cells might lead to cancer because the retroviruses
used to reprogram the skin cells can cause changes in their genes. In fact, one gene
used by the Japanese researchers can cause cancer.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Is it healthy or unhealthy to be too fat? Some researchers fear a new study could
lead people to believe that weighing too much is not as big a health problem as many
had thought. They say that may or may not be true.
The new study included medical information about almost forty thousand
Americans. The information was collected between nineteen seventy-one and two
thousand four. The study also included the causes of death of more than two million
people in two thousand four.

Federal government researchers wanted to learn if some earlier studies were

correct. Those studies suggested reduced health dangers from being
overweight. The researchers found that people who were overweight, but not
extremely overweight, died at lower rates than people of normal weight. The findings
were published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

VOICE ONE:

The researchers found a higher death rate in extremely overweight or obese people
from heart disease. But obese people did not have an increased chance of dying
from cancer. And they found that being thin increased the death rate from all
diseases except heart disease and cancer.

The researchers also found more than one hundred thousand fewer deaths among
overweight people than was expected. They said being overweight was linked to
death only from diabetes and kidney disease, not heart disease or cancer. They
also found a protective effect against other causes of death such as injuries,
pneumonia, tuberculosis and Alzheimer's disease.

VOICE TWO:

The researchers do not know why being overweight should protect people from some
diseases. But they said it could be that extra weight may help make the body
stronger to fight off sickness. They also said it is important to remember that the
results are about people who weigh too much, not people who are very overweight or
obese.

Other researchers have problems with the study. They say the dangers of weighing
too much have already been established by research. They say many studies have
linked being overweight to increased chances of developing diabetes, heart disease
and high blood pressure.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:
 United Nations officials say fewer people than they thought
are infected with the virus that causes AIDS. The agency
known as UNAIDS estimated last year that more than
thirty-nine million people were living with H.I.V. -- the human
immunodeficiency virus. Last month, agency officials
reduced that to a little more than thirty-three million. They
say the lower number represents better information and
In August, information from more countries.
demonstrators in Cape
The single biggest reason, however, was an intensive
Town, South Africa,
re-examination of the problem of AIDS in India. At the same
urged the government
time, the agency reduced its estimates for five African
to do more to
countries. Also, UNAIDS says it now believes the number
fight AIDS
of new H.I.V. cases each year reached a high in the late
nineteen nineties.

VOICE TWO:

Even as the number of new infections has dropped, the number of people living with
H.I.V. is increasing. Better treatments are extending lives, and more people are
getting the drugs. The new report also says prevention efforts appear to be
changing risky behavior in several of the countries most affected by H.I.V.

But U.N. officials say AIDS is still one of the leading causes of death worldwide and
the major cause in Africa. African death rates remain high, they say, because
treatment needs are not being met.

African countries south of the Sahara had almost seventy percent of the new H.I.V.
cases reported this year. But UNAIDS officials say this is a notable reduction since
two thousand one.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:
We recently received a letter from a listener in
Burma. Joseph San Min wants to know if mosquitoes can
carry and infect people with the virus that causes
AIDS. The short answer is, luckily, no. However, scientists
did worry and investigate the possibility after the disease
was first recognized.

When a mosquito bites a person, it does not release any of

Mosquitoes do not
its own blood or blood from an earlier bite into the
infect people with the
victim. What the mosquito releases in a bite is its own
virus that causes AIDS
saliva. This substance helps the insect feed on the human
blood.

VOICE TWO:

Some viruses and parasitic organisms can live for many days in mosquitoes and are
able to reproduce. The viruses and parasites also are able to enter the insect’s
saliva glands. Then they could pass to a person during a bite from the host
mosquito.

But, the human immunodeficiency virus, H.I.V., cannot live in mosquitoes. The
mosquito’s system considers the virus as food. So the mosquito eats and breaks
down the virus as part of the larger blood meal. H.I.V. never infects the insect.

VOICE ONE:

There were theories that a mosquito could pass H.I.V. if the insect moved
immediately from one bite to another. If the mosquito first fed on someone infected
with H.I.V., the insect might have virus particles on its mouth. Let us say the
mosquito flew immediately to feed on a non-infected person. Could the remaining
blood particles on its mouthparts pass to the second person?

The answer is no for two reasons. The first is just the result of simple mosquito
behavior. Mosquitoes rest between meals. The second is that a mosquito cannot
carry enough H.I.V. particles on its mouthparts to infect a person.

People with H.I.V. do not always have high levels of the virus in their blood. But
even if a mosquito bit someone with high levels, the insect would not carry enough
blood away on its mouth to make a difference.
(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

This SCIENCE IN THE NEWS was written by Shelley Gollust, Nancy Steinbach and
Caty Weaver. Our producer was Brianna Blake. I'm Pat Bodnar.

VOICE ONE:

And I'm Steve Ember. Join us again at this time next week for more news about
science in Special English on the Voice of America.

---

Correction: Japanese researcher Shinya Yamanaka was misidentified in this story

as Shinya Kamanaka.
VOASE071204_Explorations

04 December 2007

The Power of Crowds: Designing a Way

to Harvest Electricity
Also: Astronomers discover a fifth planet orbiting a nearby star. And details of the recent shuttle flight
to the International Space Station.

VOICE ONE:

I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Shirley Griffith with EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English. This week,
we tell about a system of planets orbiting a star called Fifty-Five Cancri. And we
hear about a plan to harvest electricity from crowds. But first, we begin with the
latest trip of the space shuttle Discovery to the International Space Station.

(SOUND)

VOICE ONE:

That was the sound of the space shuttle Discovery

landing at Kennedy Space Center in the state of
Florida last month. It was the one hundred twentieth
shuttle flight and the twenty-third to the International
Space Station.

The United States space agency had two main goals

for this flight of Discovery. First, the crew was to
move a structure from one side of the space station to
the other. And then they were to add a new room to
Shuttle Discovery landing at
the space station. But the astronauts faced two
the Kennedy Space Center
unexpected problems during the mission.

VOICE TWO:

NASA calls the new addition to the space station the Harmony connecting
module. Harmony was built in Torino, Italy as part of an agreement between NASA
and the European Space Agency. It is the first new room added to the space station
since two thousand one. Harmony is about seven meters long and about four
meters wide. It will permit future shuttle missions to attach the European Space
Agency's Columbus Research Laboratory.

It will also permit a Japanese experimental module to be added as well. Harmony

will be a passageway between the laboratories and the rest of the space station.

VOICE ONE:

NASA officials had known there was a problem with a device linked to the solar
energy system of the space station. The part, called a joint, lets one set of solar
arrays point toward the sun at all times. Solar arrays are flat solar energy collectors
that gather sunlight and turn it into electricity. The solar arrays provide power to the
space station.

NASA engineers noted that the joint did not appear to be operating correctly. It
shook as it moved and used too much power. NASA decided to use the fourth
spacewalk of the mission to examine the joint. Astronaut Daniel Tani went outside
the space station to make the examination. He looked inside the joint and found
small pieces of metal.

NASA officials had hoped that the metal would be aluminum and not steel. This
would have meant that important moving parts were not rubbing together. However,
later examination of the metal showed that it was, in fact, steel.

This meant the joint was damaging itself when it moved. Supervisors for the space
station decided to stop using the joint so that its parts would not rub against one
another.

VOICE TWO:

A second problem developed with one of the space station's solar arrays. The
shuttle astronauts had to move a structure carrying a solar array from one side of the
space station to the other. To do so, they folded the large flat solar panels and
moved the structure.

But a wire caught on one of the solar panels, tearing it

in two places when the

astronauts extended it again. The crew used the

space station's robotic arm to carry astronaut Scott
Parazynski to the torn area on the solar array. He
was able to repair the array using parts made by the
crew on the shuttle.

The repair was very dangerous because the array

Scott Parazynski repairs the
carries more than one hundred volts of electrical
damaged solar array on the
current. But Scott Parazynski successfully fixed the
International Space Station
tear in the solar panel and the space station crew was
able to fully extend the array.

The space station is now being prepared for a visit from space shuttle Atlantis. This
mission will attach the Columbus Research Laboratory to the International Space
Station. Launch for Atlantis is planned for December sixth.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Science has made it possible to harvest energy from the wind, sun and water. All
these renewable resources are used today to power an energy-hungry world. But
imagine harvesting energy from crowds of people moving to and from work every
day. That is one of the possibilities of piezoelectricity, the science of gaining power
from motion.

Some materials create an electrical charge when they are placed under pressure or
stretched. These materials are said to be piezoelectric. Some crystals, such as
quartz, and some ceramic materials are piezoelectric.

VOICE TWO:

James Graham and Thaddeus Jusczyk are two graduate students at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge. They designed a way to
capture the energy of people's footsteps. They created a design for a special floor
covering that moves a little when people step on it. The movement would create an
electrical current that could be captured to provide electrical power.

Mister Graham and Mister Jusczyk say one footstep could create enough energy to
light two sixty-watt lights for one second. That might not sound like very much
energy. But consider what hundreds of thousands of footsteps might create in an
underground train station in a major city. The two researchers note that it takes
about twenty-eight thousand steps to power a train for one second.

VOICE ONE:

Gathering power from the movements of large groups of people is called "crowd
farming." And interest in crowd farming continues to grow. Mister Graham and
Mister Jusczyk took first prize at an international competition on city design earlier
this year. The Holcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction held the competition.
At this point, Mister Graham and Mister Jusczyk only have designs for their large
crowd farming project, not a finished product.

However, they have built a smaller example of

piezoelectronics to show how it can work. They
made a seat that creates electricity when someone
sits on it. The action of sitting on the seat turns a
wheel that creates an electrical charge. This then
turns on lights attached to the seat. Mister Jusczyk
has said that one of the goals of his work is to have
Seat designed by James people understand the relationship between their
Graham and Thaddeus movements and the energy produced.
Jusczyk makes electricity
(MUSIC)
when someone sits
VOICE TWO:

Space scientists have been searching nearby stars for planets with great
success. The United States space agency says that two hundred sixty-four
exoplanets have been discovered so far. But, until now, few of the planetary
systems found orbiting other stars have been like our own solar system. That has all
changed with the discovery of a fifth planet orbiting a star called Fifty-Five Cancri in
the constellation Cancer.
Astronomers have known of at least one planet circling Fifty-Five Cancri since
nineteen ninety-six. The star is forty-one light years away from Earth. It is also very
similar to our own sun.

Last month, astronomers announced the discovery of a fifth planet orbiting Fifty-Five
Cancri. What makes the discovery extraordinary is that the new exoplanet orbits in
what astronomers call a "habitable zone." This means temperatures on the planet
may be warm enough for liquid water to exist either on its surface or on one of its
moons.

VOICE ONE:

The fifth exoplanet is about the size of the planet

Saturn. Its mass is about forty-five times greater than
that of Earth. Scientists believe it is unlikely to hold
life. But they say that the exoplanet could have one
or more large moons like Titan, a large moon of
Saturn in our own solar system. Such a moon could
hold water and the conditions for life. Astronomers
add that there may be small planets similar to Earth in
this complex planetary system.
An artist's picture of the fifth
Astronomers can find exoplanets by looking for very
exoplanet discovered orbiting
small movements in nearby stars. The movements
55 Cancri, a star similar to
are evidence that the gravity of a massive planet is
our sun
acting on the star. By observing a star long enough,
astronomers can uncover this evidence. But currently astronomers do not have the
technology to discover Earth-sized planets orbiting even nearby stars.

VOICE TWO:

Scientists made the observations at the Lick Observatory near San Jose, California
and the Keck Observatory in Mauna Kea, Hawaii. More than three hundred twenty
separate measurements were needed to identify each of the planets in the
system. Eighteen years of observations were required. The observations started
before anyone knew there were planets orbiting other stars. The United States
space agency and the National Science Foundation supported the research.

Other planets in the system orbit the star at distances similar to planets in our own
solar system. The closest orbits at only about five and one half million kilometers
from Fifty-Five Cancri. After our own sun, Fifty-Five Cancri now has the most known
planets of any star.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

This program was written and produced by Mario Ritter. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Shirley Griffith. You can find more space and technology news on our Web
site, voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for Explorations in VOA Special
English.
VOASE071204_Health Report

04 December 2007

Controlling Cholera May Be Easier

Than Thought
A computer model shows that existing oral vaccines could cut new cases in high-risk areas. And only
half the population would need vaccinating once every two years.

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

There are low-cost vaccines, taken by mouth, that can protect against cholera. The
vaccine is commonly provided to international travelers, but not to communities that
suffer cholera epidemics. There are questions about how effective it would be as a
control measure.

New findings suggest that it would be highly effective. These are based on the
predictions of a computer model. Researchers say the model shows that the vaccine
could reduce new cases in high-risk areas by ninety percent. And they say only half
the population would have to take it once every two years.

Cholera is a serious bacterial disease found mainly in

developing countries. People can get it from water or
food that comes in contact with human waste. The
intestinal infection causes a loss of fluids.

Cholera is treated by drinking an oral rehydration

solution which replaces lost fluids and salts. In the
most severe cases, fluids are injected into the body.
Without treatment, it usually kills people within
Angolan children gathering
eighteen hours to several days. Estimates are that the
water at a waste-filled
disease kills at least one hundred thousand people a
stream. A cholera epidemic
year.
in Angola killed over one
thousand people last year. Ira Longini at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research
Center in Seattle, Washington, led the new work. A team from the United States,
South Korea and Bangladesh based it on a large study of oral cholera vaccine.

The study took place between nineteen eighty-four and nineteen eighty-nine. It
involved two hundred thousand women and children in rural Bangladesh.

The team developed the computer model based on the results of the study. The
model showed that if fifty percent of a high-risk community is vaccinated, many
unvaccinated people also would be protected.

The researchers say the number of new infections could drop below one in one
thousand people in the unvaccinated population. This would be the result of what is
known as "herd protection."

The idea is that vaccinated people would not become infected, so they would not
create conditions for spreading the disease. Unvaccinated people then would have a
better chance of avoiding it.

Ira Longini says researchers are very good at predicting where cholera is likely to
spread. So vaccination efforts could target those areas. The findings appear in the
medical journal published by the Public Library of Science and available free of
charge at plos.org.

And that's the VOA Special English Health Report, written by Caty Weaver. For more
health news, along with transcripts and MP3 files of our reports, go to
voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.
VOASE071205_Education Report

05 December 2007

Excuse Me, Professor, How Much Do

You Earn?
We answer a question about the salaries of American professors.

This is the VOA Special English Education Report.

Today we answer a question from a listener who wants to become a Spanish

professor. Orlando Carvajal asks how much professors earn in the United States.

We looked in the almanac published by the Chronicle

of Higher Education. It shows that the average salary
for full professors last year was ninety-nine thousand
dollars. For associate professors it was seventy
thousand. And for assistant professors it was fifty-nine
thousand dollars.

Private, independent schools pay more than public

colleges and universities. But how do professors
compare with other professions? For that we turn to
Money from the sale of books
the latest numbers from the Bureau of Labor
written by professors can add
Statistics.
to their salaries. Florida State
University professor Darrin Assistant professors earned about the same last year
McMahon shows his book as workers in business and financial operations. But
'Happiness: A History.' they earned about ten thousand dollars less than
computer programmers, for example.

The highest paying group of jobs in the United States is in management. The average
wage last year was ninety-two thousand dollars. Next came lawyers and other legal
workers, at eighty-five thousand.
Orlando also asks about benefits, things like health insurance and retirement plans.
Benefits differ from school to school just as salaries do.

The Chronicle Almanac shows that new assistant professors in foreign language
earned forty-eight thousand dollars last year. That was a little more than the national
average for all education jobs. But averages do not tell the whole story.

Sally Hadden is an associate professor of history and law at Florida State University
in Tallahassee. She notes that language professors generally earn less than those in
subjects like engineering, for example.

But these days, professors of some languages, including Arabic, can earn much
more than Spanish professors. Universities are competing for them with government
and industry.

Professor Hadden also notes that colleges in different areas of the country pay
different salaries. Some states have strong unions that have negotiated set increases
in salaries for professors.

And different schools value different skills in their professors. Community and liberal
arts colleges generally value good teaching skills more than big research universities
do.

Salaries can also be tied to something else -- tenure. More about that next week.

And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach.
Our reports are online with transcripts and MP3 files at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm
Steve Ember.
VOASE071205_The Making of a Nation

05 December 2007

American History Series: Britain Says

No to 'No Taxation Without
Representation'
The Stamp Act said the colonists had to buy a British stamp for every piece of printed paper they used.
They refused. Parliament finally cancelled the law -- but passed an act saying Britain could pass any
law it wanted.

VOICE ONE:

This is Rich Kleinfeldt.

VOICE TWO:

And this is Sarah Long with the MAKING OF A NATION, A VOA Special English
program about the history of the United States.

(MUSIC)

Today, we tell about relations between the American colonies and Britain after the
French and Indian War about two hundred fifty years ago.

VOICE ONE:

The French and Indian War was one part of a world conflict between Britain and
France. It was fought to decide which of the two powerful nations would rule North
America.
The British defeated the French in North America in
seventeen sixty-three. As a result, it took control of
lands that had been claimed by France. Britain now
was responsible for almost two million people in the
thirteen American colonies and sixty thousand
French-speaking people in Canada. In addition to
political and economic responsibilities, Britain had to
protect all these colonists from different groups of
Indians.
Detail from ''The Death of
This would cost a lot of money. Britain already had
General Wolfe,'' a 1770
spent a lot of money sending troops and material to
painting by Benjamin West.
the colonies to fight the French and Indian War. It
James Wolfe was a British
believed the American colonists should now help pay
general killed during the 1759
for that war.
battle in which his troops won
(MUSIC) a victory over the French at
Quebec, Canada.
VOICE TWO:

The colonists in America in seventeen sixty-three were very different from those who
had settled there more than one hundred years before. They had different
ideas. They had come to consider their colonial legislatures as smaller -- but similar
-- to the Parliament in Britain. These little parliaments had helped them rule
themselves for more than one hundred years. The colonists began to feel that their
legislatures should also have the powers that the British Parliament had.

VOICE ONE:

The situation had changed in England too. In seventeen-oh-seven, the nation

became officially known as Great Britain. Its king no longer controlled Parliament as
he had in the early sixteen hundreds. Then, the king decided all major questions,
especially those concerning the colonies.

But power had moved from the king to the Parliament. It was the legislature that
decided major questions by the time of the French and Indian War, especially the
power to tax. The parliaments in the colonies began to believe that they should have
this power of taxation, too.

(MUSIC)
VOICE TWO:

The first English settlers in America considered themselves citizens of

England. They had crossed a dangerous ocean to create a little England in a new
place, to trade with the mother country and to spread their religion. By seventeen
sixty-three, however, the colonists thought of themselves as Americans.

Many of their families had been in North America for fifty to one hundred
years. They had cleared the land, built homes, fought Indians and made lives for
themselves far away from Britain. They had different everyday concerns than the
people in Britain. Their way of life was different, too. They did not want anyone else
to tell them how to govern themselves.

VOICE ONE:

The British, however, still believed that the purpose of a colony was to serve the
mother country. The government treated colonists differently from citizens at
home. It demanded special taxes from them. It also ordered them to feed British
troops and let them live in their houses. Britain claimed that the soldiers were in the
colonies to protect the people. The people asked, "From whom?"

As long as the French were nearby in Canada, the colonists needed the protection of
the British army and navy. After the French were gone -- following their defeat in the
French and Indian War -- the colonists felt they no longer needed British military
protection.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

The British government demanded that the colonists pay higher and higher
taxes. One reason was that the British government wanted to show the colonists
that it was in control. Another reason was that Britain was having money
problems. Foreign wars had left it with big debts. The British thought the colonists
should help pay some of these debts, especially those resulting from the French and
Indian War.

The American colonists might have agreed, but they wanted to have a say in the
decision. They wanted the right to vote about their own taxes, like the people living
in Britain. But no colonists were permitted to serve in the British Parliament. So
they protested that they were being taxed without being represented.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

In seventeen sixty-four, the British Parliament approved the Sugar Act. This
legislation placed taxes on sugar, coffee, wines and other products imported to
America in large amounts. It increased by two times the taxes on European
products sent to the colonies through Britain. The British government also approved
new measures aimed at enforcing all trade laws. And it decided to restrict the
printing of paper money in the colonies.

The American colonists opposed all these new laws. Yet they could not agree about
how to resist. Colonial assemblies approved protests against the laws, but the
protest actions were all different and had no real effect. Business groups tried to
organize boycotts of goods. But these were not very successful...until the British
government approved another tax in seventeen sixty-five: a tax on stamps.

VOICE TWO:

The Stamp Act probably angered more American

colonists than any earlier tax. It said the colonists
had to buy a British stamp for every piece of printed
paper they used. That meant they would be taxed for
every piece of a newspaper, every document, even
every playing card.

The colonists refused to pay. Colonial assemblies

approved resolutions suggesting that the British
Parliament had no right to tax the colonies at
Detail from a proof sheet of
all. Some colonists were so angry that they attacked
one-penny stamps. Under the
British stamp agents.
Stamp Act, these were to be
used on newspapers, History experts say the main reason the colonists
pamphlets and all other were angry was because Britain had rejected the idea
papers larger than half a of "no taxation without representation." Almost no
page. colonist wanted to be independent of Britain at that
time. Yet all of them valued their local self-rule and their rights as British
citizens. They considered the Stamp Act to be the worst in a series of violations of
these rights.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

The American colonists refused to obey the Stamp Act. They also refused to buy
British goods. Almost one thousand storeowners signed non-importation
agreements. This cost British businessmen so much money that they demanded that
the government end the Stamp Act. Parliament finally cancelled the law in seventeen
sixty-six. The colonists immediately ended their ban against British goods.

VOICE TWO:

The same day that Parliament cancelled the Stamp Act, however, it approved the
Declaratory Act. This was a statement saying the colonies existed to serve Britain,
and that Britain could approve any law it wanted. Most American colonists
considered this statement to be illegal.

History experts say this shows how separated the colonies had become from
Britain. Colonial assemblies were able to approve their own laws, but only with the
permission of the British Parliament. The colonists, however, considered the work of
their assemblies as their own form of self-rule.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

In this cartoon, British

Treasury Secretary George
Britain ended the Stamp Act but did not stop Grenville is carrying a child's
demanding taxes. In seventeen sixty-seven, coffin marked 'Miss
Parliament approved a series of new taxes called the Ame-Stamp born 1765 died
Townshend Acts. These were named after the 1766'
government official who proposed them. The
Townshend Acts placed taxes on glass, tea, lead, paints and paper imported into the
colonies.

The American colonists rejected the Townshend Acts and started a new boycott of
British goods. They also made efforts to increase manufacturing in the colonies. By
the end of seventeen sixty-nine, they had reduced by half the amount of goods
imported from Britain. The colonies also began to communicate with each other
about their problems.

VOICE TWO:

In seventeen sixty-eight, the Massachusetts General Court sent a letter to the

legislatures of the other colonies. It said the Townshend Acts violated the colonists'
natural and constitutional rights. When news of the letter reached London, British
officials ordered the colonial governor of Massachusetts to dismiss the
legislature. Then they moved four thousand British troops into Boston, the biggest
city in Massachusetts -- and the biggest city in the American colonies.

VOICE ONE:

The people of Boston hated the British soldiers. The soldiers were controlling their
streets and living in their houses. This tension led to violence. That will be our story
next week.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Today's MAKING OF A NATION program was written by Nancy Steinbach. This is

Sarah Long.

VOICE ONE:

And this is Rich Kleinfeldt. Join us again next week for another Special English
program about the history of the United States.
______
This was program #10 in THE MAKING OF A NATION
VOASE071206_American Mosaic

06 December 2007

A Museum in Pittsburgh Gives Its

Dinosaurs a Timely Makeover
Also: A listener in Cambodia asks about the space race between the United States and the former
Soviet Union. And music from a new album by Judy Kuhn, singing songs of Laura Nyro.

HOST:

Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC in VOA Special English.

(MUSIC)

I'm Doug Johnson. On our show this week:

We listen to some music from Judy Kuhn …

Answer a question about the Space Race …

And tell about a new display of dinosaur bones.

Dinosaurs In Their Time

HOST:

A family at the Cretaceous

Dinosaurs are not what they used to be, at least not at Seaway part of the exhibit
the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania. Katharine Cole tells us about big changes in the museum's Dinosaur
Hall.

KATHARINE COLE:

The Carnegie Museum has one of the largest collections of dinosaur bones in the
world. The only problem is that the way they were presented all these years was
wrong.

Visitors might have come away with the idea that all dinosaurs were huge, slow
moving creatures. But newer discoveries show that dinosaurs were generally smaller
and faster than scientists once thought.

So directors of the Carnegie Museum decided to rebuild the ten dinosaurs in their
collection. And they added new ones.

Andrew Carnegie, the wealthy businessman, built the Dinosaur Hall a century ago.
He paid for a scientific trip that discovered a new kind of dinosaur. Those bones are
still in the collection. But it was time to give the hall a makeover. Now, after more than
two years and thirty-six million dollars, most of the work is finished.

The museum opened its new exhibit to the public on November twenty-first. The
collection is now called "Dinosaurs in Their Time."

Museum officials say the aim is to show the great diversity of life that existed during
the Mesozoic period. The dinosaurs are placed among examples of the hundreds of
plants and animals that shared their environments.

Officials say they wanted to show the way groups of dinosaurs really lived. The
rooms in the exhibit hold plants and animals that existed more than one hundred fifty
million years ago. And they show how some creatures evolved into animals that exist
today.

The new exhibit at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh is three
times the size of the old one. It will hold nineteen dinosaurs once the second part
opens in the spring.

The Space Race

HOST:

Our VOA listener question this week comes from Cambodia. Rey Sopheak asks
about the history of the space race between the United States and the former Soviet
Union.

It began fifty years ago. In October of nineteen fifty-seven, the Soviets launched the
first manmade satellite into orbit around Earth. It was called Sputnik One. Weeks later
Sputnik Two was launched.

Their success was a victory for the Communists. It added to the tensions of what was
known as the Cold War, which many people worried could lead to nuclear war. And it
pushed Americans to teach more science and math in school -- and to work harder to
reach outer space.

Three months later, the United States launched its own satellite. Then, in nineteen
sixty-one, the Soviet Union sent the first person into space, Yuri Gagarin. American
Alan Shepard followed less than a month later.

The race continued. The finish line was the moon. And
it was reached when the crew of Apollo Eleven landed
in nineteen sixty-nine. Americans returned to the
moon five more times. No one has been back since
nineteen seventy-two. NASA, the American space
agency, hopes to send astronauts to the moon again
by two thousand nineteen. That will be the fiftieth
anniversary of the first landing.

Today, there is cooperation between the Russian and

Neil Armstrong took this
American space programs. Astronauts and
picture of Buzz Aldrin during
cosmonauts share duties on the International Space
the Apollo 11 mission to the
Station. And other countries are expanding their
moon
space programs.

In two thousand three, China became the third country ever to send a person into
space using its own rocket. Then, in two thousand five, it sent a crew of two on a
five-day flight. Another manned trip is planned next year. And China launched a
moon orbiter in October.
Other active countries include Japan, India and South Korea. Some experts say that
space exploration today should not be compared to the Cold War space race fifty
years ago. Just this week, a Chinese official said his country's moon orbiter has no
military purposes and that China supports the peaceful use of space.

Judy Kuhn Sings Laura Nyro

HOST:

Laura Nyro was one of the most influential singers and songwriters of the nineteen
sixties and seventies. Judy Kuhn is a Broadway singer who has performed on concert
stages around the world. Their talents combine on a new album. Shirley Griffith plays
some of the music.

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH:

Judy Kuhn has been nominated for several awards for singing in musicals on
Broadway in New York. She has also performed in musicals in other cities, in concert,
on television and in movies. Her new album is called "Serious Playground: The
Songs of Laura Nyro."

Judy Kuhn says Laura Nyro's songs live in a world where loneliness and loss exist
side by side with joy in the pleasures of life. Here she sings "Sweet Blindness."

(MUSIC)

Laura Nyro was born in New York in nineteen forty-seven. She began writing songs
as a teenager. Her songs combined the music of gospel, pop, soul, folk, rock and
jazz.

When she was nineteen, she released the first of four albums of personal and
emotional songs. Judy Kuhn says this opened the door for female songwriters who at
that time were not recording their own songs.

Several of Laura Nyro's songs became huge hits when they were recorded by other
performers. These include Barbra Streisand, the Fifth Dimension, Blood, Sweat and
Tears and Three Dog Night. Here Judy Kuhn sings "Stoney End."

(MUSIC)
Laura Nyro died of ovarian cancer in nineteen ninety-seven at the age of forty-nine.
Her music influenced many female singer-songwriters working today. Judy Kuhn
recorded "Serious Playground" to honor the composer of these beautiful, sad and
joyful songs. We leave you with "Save the Country."

(MUSIC)

HOST:

I'm Doug Johnson. I hope you enjoyed our program today.

Our writers were Shelley Gollust and Nancy Steinbach. Caty Weaver was our
producer. Transcripts and MP3 files of our programs are at voaspecialenglish.com.

Send your questions about American life to mosaic@voanews.com. And please

include your full name and where you are from. Or write to American Mosaic, VOA
Special English, Washington, D.C., two-zero-two-three-seven, U.S.A.

Join us again next week for AMERICAN MOSAIC, VOA’s radio magazine in Special
English.
VOASE071206_Economics Report

06 December 2007

Sovereign Wealth Funds: When

Governments Become Players
Government-owned investment funds are estimated to control over $2 trillion in assets. Most funds are
tied to oil money.

This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.

Last month, America's biggest bank, Citigroup, agreed to sell five percent of its
shares to the government of Abu Dhabi. The deal, worth seven and a half billion
dollars, was another example of growing investments by sovereign wealth funds.

These are owned by governments. They are separate from the holdings of central
banks. Sovereign wealth funds are estimated to hold
more than two trillion dollars.

The largest is the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority,

established in nineteen seventy-six. The emirate does
not say how much its fund is worth. Estimates are
between five hundred billion and nine hundred billion
dollars.

Most sovereign wealth funds are tied to money from

Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab
oil exports. Oil prices reached a record high near one
Emirates
hundred dollars a barrel in November. Oil is traded in
dollars. And dollars have been flowing into Gulf economies like Abu Dhabi.

But there is a limit to how much money can be pumped into an economy without
causing inflation to jump.

Brad Setser is a fellow for geoeconomics at the Council on Foreign Relations in New
York. He notes that one problem facing these oil exporters is that their currency
values are linked to the dollar, and the dollar has fallen.
Oil exporters can use sovereign wealth funds to build up reserves of money to protect
against a drop in oil prices. But a severe drop seems unlikely. So instead they are
making foreign investments that they hope will pay good returns.

Sovereign funds are known for highly conservative investments. But now some
appear willing to take more risk.

Not all funds involve oil money. A good example is the China Investment Corporation.
This newly formed company is financed by selling government bonds and buying
foreign exchange from the Chinese central bank.

Much of the money in the China Investment Corporation is meant to provide capital
for state-owned Chinese banks. The fund will also support the international
expansion of state-owned Chinese companies. The fund is expected to reach a value
of about two hundred billion dollars.

Back to Abu Dhabi: Ministers from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting
Countries met there on Wednesday. They decided to leave OPEC production
unchanged for now, but agreed to meet again February first. They also welcomed
their thirteenth member, Ecuador, which rejoined OPEC in November.

And that's the VOA Special English Economics Report, written by Mario Ritter. I'm
Steve Ember.
VOASE071207_In the News

07 December 2007

US Intelligence Report Enters Into

Debate on Iran Nuclear Issue
American intelligence agencies say Iran halted a weapons program in 2003. But President Bush and
some other leaders say Iran is still a danger.

This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

Sixteen government agencies form what is known as the intelligence community in

the United States. From time to time, this community puts together reports called
National Intelligence Estimates that deal with foreign activities and threats. Parts are
sometimes made public.

This week, officials released major judgments from a

new report on Iran's nuclear activities. It says Iran
operated a secret program to develop nuclear
weapons but halted that program in late two thousand
three.

The report suggests that Iran did so mainly because of

international pressure. It says Iran may be more open
to influence than was thought. But Iran continues to
Iran says its nuclear program
enrich uranium for civilian use, the report says, and
is only for producing energy.
this could be used to produce weapons if desired.
A reactor building is shown at
The report says Iran might have enough nuclear Iran's Bushehr nuclear power
material to build a bomb in the next three to eight plant in 2005.
years, at the earliest. But it says Iran now appears less determined to produce
nuclear weapons than was believed.

The findings came as a surprise. A National Intelligence Estimate two years ago said
Iran was working hard to develop nuclear weapons.
President Bush said the report released Monday was the result of better intelligence.
But he said nothing has changed. He said Iran is still a danger. And he urged
governments to continue to pressure Iran about its nuclear activities. That the
program was halted, he says, is not as important as the finding that it once existed
and could be restarted.

The report comes as the Bush administration has been trying to win support for new
international restrictions against Iran. In recent weeks, the president has warned that
the world cannot risk a nuclear-armed Iran, saying it could lead to World War Three.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called the new American intelligence report
a declaration of victory. He says it shows that Iran's nuclear program is for energy,
not weapons.

In Israel, Defense Minister Ehud Barak rejected the intelligence report. He said he
believes it is incomplete and that Iran has restarted its nuclear weapons program. He
offered no evidence, though.

On Thursday, NATO foreign ministers expressed support for a proposed third set of
sanctions in the United Nations Security Council. And, in Paris, French President
Nicolas Sarkozy and visiting German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Iran is still a
danger. Britain also says it remains concerned about Iran's nuclear program.

But Russia and China have resisted further sanctions. Russian and Chinese officials
say the new report will have to be considered in those discussions. Both countries, as
permanent members of the Security Council, could veto any additional sanctions.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake.
Transcripts and MP3s of our reports are at voaspecialenglish.com. I’m Steve Ember.
VOASE071208_Word Master

08 December 2007

Take a Deep Breath: Tips on Preparing

for an Oral Presentation
AA: I'm Avi Arditti with Rosanne Skirble, and this week on WORDMASTER: English
teacher Nina Weinstein joins us from Los Angeles for an oral presentation about oral
presentations.

NINA WEINSTEIN: "You know, some people will tell you, well,
don't be nervous. I think that's kind of counterintuitive because
you're going to be nervous -- you feel what you feel. But I think
it's important to realize that everybody is nervous. And so I
give students breathing exercises that they can do before the
presentation."

AA: "Talk a little bit about those breathing exercises."

NINA WEINSTEIN: "There's a very simple breathing exercise you can do where you
take a deep breath and hold it in your chest, as full as you can make it. And now push
it down to your lower abdomen.

"And I have my students put their hands on their lower abdomen so that they can feel
the breath all going down to the lower abdomen. You're going to hold it to the count of
ten, and then you're going to very slowly breathe it out through your nose."

RS: "That's like my yoga class. This is the same thing I do in my yoga class. Similar."

NINA WEINSTEIN: "And how do you feel now?"

RS: "How do I feel?

AA: "Lightheaded?"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "No, but did it make you feel calmer?"

RS: "Yeah, it relaxes you. I mean, proper breathing is good."

NINA WEINSTEIN: "Well, it is, but they don't focus on this in classrooms necessarily,
or in places where people are preparing to do presentations. So this is just a skill that
they can use before the presentation. I also tell them to go off by themselves for a few
minutes and just kind of center and focus on what it is they're trying to transmit to the
audience.

"A lot of times people are nervous because they're focused on themselves. And I tell
them that's not the focus. When you're giving a talk, people are there to get the
information and they may notice you for a minute or two. But as soon as you start to
talk, if you're the authority, they'll forget about you and they'll just be listening to what
you're saying."

RS: "So we've taken a little hike. We've prepared ourselves -- "

NINA WEINSTEIN: "We've come back."

RS: "We've come back, we've prepared ourselves with breathing exercises. How do
we get started?"

NINA WEINSTEIN: "I have students put notes on three-by-five cards, but I tell them
that they're not going to be reading those notes. They're going to be just practicing
those before the speech or before the presentation -- because, again, [you're] the
authority. And if you're the authority, you shouldn't be reading. You should know what
you're going to be saying. So they practice that.

"And I also caution the ones who are doing PowerPoint -- and a lot of people really
like to do PowerPoint presentations. And that's fine, but I caution them that the
PowerPoint is the assistant. They're the presentation and so they should not be
focused wholly on the PowerPoint. It should just be a kind of augmentation or help for
the presentation."

AA: "Well, this raises a question here, because I've sat through a lot of PowerPoint
presentations and I've always wondered: are you supposed to read what's on the
slide or do you just put a few words on the slide? I mean, what do you recommend for
people to do with PowerPoint?"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "What I've come to the conclusion of is that we shouldn't be
reading on the screen, because if we're reading what's on the screen, we're not
listening to the speaker. And so there should just be a few points on the screen. It
shouldn't be mostly words anyway. Words can be said. We don't need the words on
the screen.

"One of my students gave a very effective PowerPoint presentation on robots and

what robots will be doing for homeowners and elderly people in the future. And what
he did was he showed a soccer game at a RoboCup international competition. And
so that got the audience's attention, that was on the PowerPoint and that was really
effective, because that's not something he could say as effectively as he could show."

"Another example was a student who gave a presentation on E.Q., which is the
emotional intelligence [quotient]. And so in order to get the audience involved in that,
she gave a very short test in the beginning, of maybe five questions that we would
answer. And based on our answers she told us how much E.Q. we had. And then she
began her discussion. So something like that, that's an example that pulls us in,
something we can do as the audience, something that's shown to us that helps us
relate to the topic, and then the audience is yours from that moment on."

AA: Nina Weinstein will have more advice about oral presentations a week from now.

RS: And that's WORDMASTER for this week. Archives are at

voanews.com/wordmaster. And our e-mail address is word@voanews.com. With Avi
Arditti, I'm Rosanne Skirble.
VOASE071208_People In America

08 December 2007

Barbara Cooney, 1917-2000: She

Created Popular Children's Books

Now, the VOA Special English program PEOPLE IN

AMERICA. Today, Shirley Griffith and Steve Ember
tell about the life of Barbara Cooney, the creator of
many popular children’s books. She died in March
two thousand.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:
For sixty years Barbara Cooney created children’s Barbara Cooney
books. She wrote some. And she provided pictures
for her own books and for books written by others. Her name appears on one
hundred ten books in all.

The last book was published six months before her death. It is called "Basket
Moon." It was written by Mary Lyn Ray. It tells the story of a boy who lived a
century ago with his family in the mountains in New York state. His family makes
baskets that are sold in town. One magazine describes Barbara Cooney's paintings
in "Basket Moon" as quiet and beautiful. It says they tie together "the basket maker’s
natural world and the work of his craft."

VOICE TWO:
Barbara Cooney was known for her carefully detailed work. One example is in her
artwork for the book "Eleanor." It is about Eleanor Roosevelt, who became the wife
of President Franklin Roosevelt. Miz Cooney made sure that a dress worn by
Eleanor as a baby was historically correct down to the smallest details.
Another example of her detailed work is in her retelling of
"Chanticleer and the Fox." She took the story from the
"Canterbury Tales" by English poet Geoffrey
Chaucer. Barbara Cooney once said that every flower and
grass in her pictures grew in Chaucer's time in
fourteenth-century England.

VOICE ONE:
Barbara Cooney wondered at times if her concern about
details was worth the effort. "How many children will know
or care?" she said. "Maybe not a single one. Still I keep
piling it on. Detail after detail. Whom am I pleasing -- besides myself? I don't
know. Yet if I put enough in my pictures, there may be something for everyone. Not
all will be understood, but some will be understood now and maybe more later."

Miz Cooney gave that speech as she accepted the nineteen fifty-nine Caldecott
Medal for "Chanticleer and the Fox." The American Library Association gives the
award each year to the artist of a picture book for children. She received a second
Caldecott Medal for her folk-art paintings in the book, "Ox-Cart Man."

VOICE TWO:

Barbara Cooney’s first books appeared in the nineteen forties. At first she created
pictures using a method called scratchboard.

The scratchboard is made by placing white clay on a hard surface. Thick black ink is
spread over the clay. The artist uses a sharp knife or other tool to make thousands
of small cuts in the top. With each cut of the black ink, the white clay shows
through. To finish the piece the artist may add different colors.

Scratchboard is hard work, but this process can create fine detail. Later, Barbara
Cooney began to use pen and ink, watercolor, oil paints, and other materials.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Barbara Cooney was born in New York City in nineteen seventeen. Her mother was
an artist and her father sold stocks on the stock market. Barbara graduated from
Smith College in Massachusetts in nineteen thirty-eight with a major in art history.

During World War Two Barbara Cooney joined the Women's Army Corps. She also
got married, but her first marriage did not last long. Then she married a doctor,
Charles Talbot Porter. They were married until her death. She had four children.

VOICE TWO:

Barbara Cooney said that three of her books were as close to a story of her life as
she would ever write. One is "Miss Rumphius," published in nineteen
eighty-two. We will tell more about "Miss Rumphius" soon.

The second book is called "Island Boy." The boy is named Matthias. He is the
youngest of twelve children in a family on Tibbetts Island, Maine. Matthias grows up
to sail around the world. But throughout his life he always returns to the island of his
childhood. Barbara Cooney also traveled around the world, but in her later years
always returned to live on the coast of Maine.

VOICE ONE:

The third book about Barbara Cooney’s life is called "Hattie and the Wild Waves." It
is based on the childhood of her mother. The girl Hattie lives in a wealthy family in
New York. One day she tells her family that she wants to be a painter when she
grows up. The other children make fun of the idea of a girl wanting to paint houses.

But, as the book explains, “Hattie was not thinking about houses. She was thinking
about the moon in the sky and the wind in the trees and the wild waves of the
ocean."

Hattie tries different jobs as she grows up. At last, she follows her dream and
decides to "paint her heart out."

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:
Of all of Barbara Cooney's books, the one that seems to
affect people the most is "Miss Rumphius." It won the
American Book Award. It was first published in
nineteen eighty-two by Viking-Penguin. "Miss
Rumphius" is Alice Rumphius. A young storyteller in
the book tells the story which begins with Alice as a
young girl:

VOICE THREE:

"In the evening Alice sat on her grandfather's knee and

listened to his stories of faraway places. When he had
finished, Alice would say, 'When I grow up, I too will go to faraway places, and when I
grow old, I too will live beside the sea.’

‘That is all very well, little Alice,' said her grandfather, 'but there is a third thing you
must do.'

'What is that?' asked Alice.

‘You must do something to make the world more beautiful,' said her grandfather.

'All right,' said Alice. But she did not know what that could be.

In the meantime Alice got up and washed her face and ate porridge for
breakfast. She went to school and came home and did her homework.

And pretty soon she was grown up."

VOICE ONE:

Alice traveled the world. She climbed tall mountains where the snow never
melted. She went through jungles and across deserts. One day, however, she hurt
her back getting off a camel.

VOICE THREE:

“'What a foolish thing to do,' said Miss Rumphius. 'Well, I have certainly seen
faraway places. Maybe it is time to find my place by the sea.' And it was, and she
did.

Miss Rumphius was almost perfectly happy. 'But there is still one more thing I have
to do,' she said. 'I have to do something to make the world more beautiful.'
But what? 'The world is already pretty nice,' she thought, looking out over the
ocean."

VOICE TWO:

The next spring Miss Rumphius' back was hurting again. She had to stay in bed
most of the time. Through her bedroom window she could see the tall blue and
purple and rose-colored lupine flowers she had planted the summer before.

VOICE THREE:

"'Lupines,' said Miss Rumphius with satisfaction. 'I have always loved lupines the
best. I wish I could plant more seeds this summer so that I could have still more
flowers next year.'

But she was not able to."

VOICE ONE:

A hard winter came, then spring. Miss Rumphius was feeling better. She could take
walks again. One day she came to a hill where she had not been in a long time. "'I
don't believe my eyes,' she cried when she got to the top. For there on the other side
of the hill was a large patch of blue and purple and rose-colored lupines!”

VOICE THREE:

"'It was the wind,' she said as she knelt in delight. ‘It was the wind that brought the
seeds from my garden here! And the birds must have helped.' Then Miss
Rumphius had a wonderful idea!"

VOICE TWO:

That idea was to buy lupine seed -- lots of it. All summer, wherever she went, Miss
Rumphius would drop handfuls of seeds: over fields, along roads, around the
schoolhouse, behind the church. Her back did not hurt her any more. But now
some people called her "That Crazy Old Lady."

The next spring there were lupines everywhere. Miss Rumphius had done the most
difficult thing of all. The young storyteller in the book continues:

VOICE THREE:

"My Great-aunt Alice, Miss Rumphius, is very old now. Her hair is very white. Every
year there are more and more lupines. Now they call her the Lupine Lady. ...

"'When I grow up,' I tell her, 'I too will go to faraway places and come home to live by
the sea.'

'That is all very well, little Alice,' says my aunt, 'but there is a third thing you must do.'

'What is that?' I ask.

"'You must do something to make the world more beautiful.'"

VOICE ONE:

Many readers, young and old, would agree that Barbara Cooney did just that.

VOICE TWO:

Many of Barbara Cooney's later books took place in the small northeastern state of
Maine. She spent summers there when she was a child, then moved to Maine in her
later years.

She loved Maine. She gave her local library almost a million dollars. The state
showed its love for her. In nineteen ninety-six, the governor of Maine declared
Barbara Cooney a "State Treasure."

(MUSIC)

ANNOUNCER:

This Special English program was written by Avi Arditti and produced by Paul
Thompson. Your narrators were Shirley Griffith and Steve Ember. Adrienne Arditti
was the storyteller. Join us again next week for another PEOPLE IN AMERICA
program on the Voice of America.
VOASE071208_Words and Their Stories

08 December 2007

More Money: Money Can Make People

Do Strange Things
Also: Some researchers fear a new study could lead people to believe that weighing too much is not
as big a health problem as many had thought. And we answer a question about the AIDS virus. Also:
Astronomers discover a fifth planet orbiting a nearby star. And details of the recent shuttle flight to the
International Space Station.

Now, the VOA Special English program, WORDS AND THEIR STORIES.

(MUSIC)

Many people believe that money makes the world go around. Others believe that
money buys happiness. I do not agree with either idea. But I do admit that money
can make people do strange things. Let me tell you about a person I once knew who
liked to play card games for money. He liked to gamble.

My friend Bob had a problem because he liked to gamble at all costs. He would
play at any time and at any price. To take part in a card game such as poker, my
friend would have to ante up. He would have to pay a small amount of money at the
beginning of the game.

Bob always played with cold, hard cash --only coins and dollar bills. Sometimes my
friend would clean up. He would win a lot of money on one card game. He liked to
tell me that one day he would break the bank. What a feeling it must be to win all of
the money at a gambling table!

Other times my friend would simply break even. He neither won nor lost
money. But sometimes Bob would lose his shirt. He would lose all the money he
had. He took a beating at the gambling table. When this happened, my friend
would have to go in the hole. He would go into debt and owe people money.
Recently, Bob turned to crime after losing all his money. In his job, he kept the
books for a small business. He supervised the records of money earned and spent
by the company. Although my friend was usually honest, he decided to cook the
books. He illegally changed the financial records of the company. This permitted
him to make a fast buck. My friend made some quick, easy money dishonestly.

I never thought Bob would have sticky fingers. He did not seem like a thief who
would steal money. But, some people will do anything for love of money.

Bob used the money he stole from his company to gamble again. This time, he
cashed in. He made a lot of money. Quickly he was back on his feet. He had
returned to good financial health. His company, however, ended up in the red. It
lost more money than it earned. The company was no longer profitable.

It did not take long before my friend’s dishonesty was discovered. The company
investigated and charged him with stealing. Bob tried to pass the buck. He tried to
blame someone else for the deficit. His lie did not work, however. He ended up in
jail. Today, I would bet my bottom dollar that my friend will never gamble again. I
would bet all I have that he learned his lesson about gambling.

(MUSIC)

WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, in VOA Special English, was written by Jill
Moss. I’m Faith Lapidus.
VOASE071209_Development Report

09 December 2007

More People Hear Call of Mobile

Activism
MobileActive.org seeks to share knowledge of people using mobile phones to effect change.

This is the VOA Special English Development Report.

Activists fight for different things. But one thing many

activists around the world hold in common is their use
of mobile phones as a tool for their work.

In South Africa, for example, AIDS activists are using

text messages to direct people to the nearest H.I.V.
testing station.

In Argentina, activists used their phones to get city

officials in Buenos Aires to support a waste reduction
Pro-democracy activists in campaign.
2006 listen to parliament
proceedings on a mobile Politicians are often a target of mobile activism.
phone in Katmandu, Nepal
(SOUND)

This is a ringtone popular among Filipinos in the last two years. It came, supposedly,
from a phone call between President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and an election official.
Opponents said the call showed that she cheated in the two thousand four elections.
The Philippine government said the call was recorded illegally and then falsified.

These and other examples of mobile activism can be found at MobileActive.org.

MobileActive describes itself as a community of people who are using mobile
technology in their work to make the world a better place. So far, two thousand
people have become members of the site.
MobileActive.org offers free information about mobile-related tools and services. It
also has resource guides on how to sign up voters, organize campaigns or raise
money using mobile technology.

Nokia, the mobile phone company, gave the group money to create its resource
guides. Other partners have helped build its Web site and organize small training
events. MobileActive hopes to hold its next meeting in July in Johannesburg.

Katrin Verclas helped start MobileActive in two thousand five. She lives in New York
but we reached her on her mobile phone in Amman. She was in Jordan for a meeting
of nongovernmental organizations and civil society groups. They were discussing
uses for mobile technology in observing elections.

She noted that in many countries, mobile phones are the least costly way to
communicate, and far more common than the Internet.

More than three billion people worldwide use mobile phones. And Katrin Verclas says
people keep finding new uses for the technology. The goal of MobileActive, she says,
is to collect their stories and experiences and then spread that knowledge.

And that's the VOA Special English Development Report, written by Jill Moss. I’m
Steve Ember.
VOASE071209_This Is America

09 December 2007

A Quilt Exhibit Pieces Together a Story

About American History
The exhibit "Going West! Quilts and Community" shows the creative expression and skill of
generations of women.

VOICE ONE:

Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Shirley Griffith. This week on our program, we visit a quilting exhibit at the
Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C.
Quilts are colorful bed coverings made by sewing together pieces of cloth into
different designs. These finely crafted works of art celebrate the creativity and skill of
generations of women.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

The Renwick exhibit is called "Going West! Quilts and Community." It includes fifty
quilts made from around the eighteen thirties to the nineteen thirties in the area of
what is today the Midwestern state of Nebraska.

Robyn Kennedy is the chief of the Renwick Gallery. She says the guest curator of the
exhibit, Sandi Fox, wanted to look at the quilts that settlers in a certain area of the
United States brought with them, then later made. Sandi Fox looked at more than two
thousand quilts before she chose the ones to show.

VOICE TWO:
Starting in the eighteen forties, three major paths leading to the western territories of
the United States ran alongside each other. The Oregon Trail, Mormon Trail and
California Trail came together along the Great Platte River. This area by eighteen
fifty-four was called the Nebraska Territory.

Settlers in their wagons pulled by horses followed these trails to find land and create
a new life for themselves. Some settlers continued on to areas further west. But
others decided to settle in Nebraska. The Renwick exhibit explores quilts made by
settlers and later generations of quilters in this part of America known for its severe
winters.

VOICE ONE:

A few of the quilts in the "Going West!" exhibit were treasures that families brought
with them from Europe as reminders of the life they left behind. For example, one
family from Sweden who settled in Nebraska in the eighteen sixties brought with them
a whole cloth quilt made from red silk.

The quilt is remarkable for its richly detailed stitching. Looking at this quilt, you can
imagine how the family enjoyed its warmth and beauty while building a new life in
America.

Robyn Kennedy explains how some quilts in the exhibit tell a story about the groups
of people who settled in Nebraska.

ROBYN KENNEDY: "Well, it really gives you an idea of the sense of community that
these people had. Many of these were done as fund raisers for a variety of different
projects. And sometimes they were auctioned several times. People would pay
twenty-five cents to have their name on it, but then once the completed quilt was
done, then that would be auctioned off."

VOICE TWO:
 For example, one red and white piece called the
"Omaha Commerce Quilt" was made in eighteen
ninety-five by a women’s aid group at a Lutheran
church. Local businesses bought advertising space on
the quilt. Different women in the church group stitched
each cloth advertisement.

The quilt was probably set out to create publicity for

the businesses that gave money to the women’s
cause. It might also have been sold to raise more
''The Omaha Commerce
money.
Quilt''
made in 1895. On loan from Robyn Kennedy points to a quilt that shows a
the Durham Western community coming together for another reason.
Heritage Museum.
ROBYN KENNEDY: "This is an anniversary quilt for
this couple, for their fiftieth anniversary, nineteen-oh-seven. But they first got married
in eighteen fifty-seven. So this is their community celebrating."

VOICE ONE:

This shiny blue quilt with yellow stitching also represents a change in the technology
of quilt making. One area of the quilt was clearly sewn by hand by different friends
and family members of the married couple being honored.

But the words sewn into the center of the cloth proudly announce that they were
stitched with a sewing machine made by the New Home company.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Other quilts tell a story about an individual’s life. Edith Withers Myers made a quilt
called "You Are the Darling of the Earth" in about eighteen ninety-eight. This crazy
quilt is like a written journal of this young woman’s social life.

Crazy quilts are a popular form of quilt design. There is no set pattern. A quilter can
use her imagination to piece together cloth in whatever form or shape she wishes.
Edith Meyers stitched onto her quilt words describing parties and dances she
attended. She stitched in the names of her friends as well as popular slang words at
the time, including "toots" and "buzz."

VOICE ONE:

For a quilt made in about nineteen ten, a woman

named Azuba Read recreated the objects found in a
hat maker’s store. She was a professional hat maker
herself. She covered her spirited crazy quilt with
flowers and feathers like the ones she might have
placed on the hats she made for women.

VOICE TWO:

By definition, a quilt is made from two layers of fabric

“The Milliner’s Quilt” by with a soft material such as wool or cotton batting in
Azuba Read. On loan from between. The two sides of fabric are sewn together to
the Nebraska Prairie keep the filling from moving around inside the quilt.
Museum of the Phelps
County Historical Society. The stitches can be made in such a way as to form
detailed patterns or designs on the quilt. A quilt made
from a solid piece of fabric on top is called a whole cloth quilt.

Patchwork quilts are made from many pieces of different colored fabrics that have
been sewn together, or "pieced," in a design. Often the small pieces of fabric that
make up the quilt come from old pieces of clothing.

A quilter can also sew different pieces of fabric onto the top of the quilt to form
designs. This method is called appliqué.

VOICE ONE:

Quilting in general is not American. Through history, cultures around the world have
created quilted coverings and clothing. But quilting in the United States developed
qualities that are now very much American, such as patchwork.

Quilts were more than warm protection against cold winters. Quilt making provided
women with an important form of creative expression and invention. Quilting is also a
social activity. Quilters come together at quilting bees to work on coverings together
and to enjoy socializing.
VOICE TWO:

There are many traditional American designs that appear on quilts. These include the
double wedding ring, bear’s paw and honeycomb patterns.

Some patterns like the wagon wheel, log cabin and lone star represent the
experiences of settlers on the American frontier.

VOICE ONE:

Quilt exhibits are very popular in the United States. The Smithsonian has had several
quilt exhibits over the years. People enjoy the expressive colors and inventiveness of
the art. And quilt exhibits are especially popular among the large and active quilting
communities around the country.

Every Tuesday and Friday, for the exhibit, several members of the Annapolis Quilting
Guild set up their materials in the Renwick Gallery. The quilters are there to answer
the questions of museum visitors and to show them how quilts are made.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

One quilt in the exhibit tells a story about a life other

than that of the person who made it. In fact, historians
do not know who made "The Civil War Quilt." In
eighteen sixty-one, a young soldier in the American
Civil War was ordered to visit nearby farms and ask
for warm blankets for the troops.

One family gave Joseph Miller this extraordinarily

detailed appliqué quilt covered in red flowers and
leaves. He kept the quilt throughout the war. It
''The Civil War Quilt'' on loan
became black with dirt, but somehow remained in one
from the Gage County
piece. After the war, he cleaned the quilt and kept it
Historical Society Museum
with him for the rest of his life.

VOICE ONE:

Looking at the beautiful condition of the quilts at the Renwick Gallery, you might find it
hard to believe many are well over a hundred years old.
Robyn Kennedy explains that to help preserve the quilts, the Renwick shows them in
rooms that have low lighting. The quilts are hung from the walls in such a way as to
permit air to move behind them. Also, museum workers always wear white gloves
when touching the quilts. The oils or dirt on a person’s hands could harm the cloth.

Miz Kennedy says the museum sometimes has a problem with visitors who want to
touch the quilts to look at how they were made. So the Smithsonian offers public
"white glove" events where visitors can look up close at the methods used for each
quilt.

When the quilts travel, they are gently folded, wrapped in acid-free paper and placed
in acid-free boxes.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Some quilts in the show are made from more unusual

materials. For example, one is made out of the cloth
from men’s suits. Another quilt, from nineteen
thirty-five, is made from men's neckties. "The Holen
Boys Ties Quilt" is made from almost one hundred silk
ties.

They form a striking pattern and radiate outwards like

the rays of the sun. Robyn Kennedy says that
ninety-three relatives of the Holen family plan to visit
''The Holen Boys Ties Quilt''
their ancestral quilt at the Renwick.
by Ellen Holen. On loan from
VOICE ONE: the Nebraska Prairie
Museum of the Phelps
The Holen quilt helps show that generations later, the County Historical Society.
personal stories and experiences captured by these
skillful works of art are still powerful. The quilts remain as expressive and lovely today
as they were when they first were stitched.

VOICE TWO:

Our program was written and produced by Dana Demange. I’m Shirley Griffith.

VOICE ONE:
And I’m Steve Ember. Our programs are online with transcripts and MP3 files at
voaspecialenglish.com. We also have pictures of some of the quilts in the exhibit.
Join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English.
VOASE071210_Agriculture Report

10 December 2007

Finding Ways to Deal With Harmful

Algae
Dangerous blooms are believed to be increasing worldwide, creating risks for sea life and people as
well as economic losses. But not all ''red tides'' are a threat.

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.

In the sea, at the base of what scientists call the food web, are single-celled plants.
These microscopic algae provide the energy for the web that feeds higher forms of
life.

Under some conditions, algae suddenly begin to

spread very quickly, an event known as a bloom.
Usually blooms are not harmful. But some kinds of
algae produce poisons. These toxins can be deadly to
sea animals and also dangerous to people.

When algae bloom, they can discolor the water as

they form dense areas near the surface. You may
have heard the term "red tide." But experts at the
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute in
Algae-affected waters in
Massachusetts say this is incorrect.
Hong Kong's Victoria Harbor
Blooms are not connected with tides. And they not in June, after a harmful bloom
always red -- the water can appear brown or greenish. near the southern Chinese
And, in fact, some algae can be harmful without city of Shenzhen
discoloring the water.

So instead of "red tide," scientists use the term "harmful algal (al-ghul) bloom." Algal
is the adjective form of alga, a single plant. But they also just say HAB for short.
The toxins can very quickly kill fish, such as herring and anchovies, that feed on
algae. But even if they survive they can be dangerous to eat. Not only that, bigger fish
that eat the algae-eaters may also be dangerous.

Some toxins harm only sea life. But others can cause severe stomach and intestinal
problems as well as neurological disorders and even death in people. The only way
to know if these toxins are present, unless people get sick, is through laboratory
testing of fish and shellfish.

Experts say the meaty or hard muscle parts of shrimp, crab, scallops and lobster are
safe to eat because they do not absorb the poison. But people should not to eat the
liver or other organs or soft tissues. Also, people should not eat other kinds of
shellfish during a HAB. These include oysters, clams, mussels and whelks.

In the United States, the government says harmful algal blooms cause more than
eighty million dollars in economic losses each year. A government report in July
noted that HABs are widely believed to be increasing worldwide.

The report was the first step in a process to create a plan for predicting and dealing
with them in American waters. In Florida, for example, satellites and computer
models are now being used to provide algae forecasts that are just like weather
reports.

And that’s the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. For
links to more information about harmful algae, go to voaspecialenglish.com. I’m
Steve Ember.
VOASE071210_Science In the News

10 December 2007

In California, Wildfires Compete With

Cars in Producing CO2
Also: Using ultraviolet light to purify water. And advice for treating minor injuries.

VOICE ONE:

This is SCIENCE IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Bob Doughty. On our program this week, we will tell about an environmental
study of the recent wildfires in California. We will also tell how some water-treatment
products use ultraviolet light to destroy harmful organisms. And we offer suggestions
for treating minor cuts and wounds.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

American scientists have been studying the effects of

the recent wildfires in California. One study confirmed
that large fires produce large amounts of carbon
dioxide, a gas linked to climate change. It also found
that such fires produce as much carbon dioxide in a few
weeks as California's motor vehicle traffic does in a
year.

Vehicles, factories and power stations produce carbon

dioxide and other greenhouse gases. Such gases have
An air tanker drops fire
been shown to trap warm air in Earth's atmosphere.
retardant chemicals in
Many climate scientists believe these gases are
Malibu, California, in
responsible, at least in part, for rising temperatures on
November
Earth.

VOICE TWO:

The study used satellite observations of fires and a new computer program. The
program created estimates of carbon dioxide production based on the amount of
plants burned.

The study estimated that fires in the United States mainland and Alaska release
about two hundred ninety tons of carbon dioxide each year. That is about four to six
percent of the amount of carbon dioxide released by burning fossil fuels like oil.

The study found that fires are responsible for a higher percentage of the greenhouse
gases in some western and southeastern states. Very large fires can quickly release
huge amounts of carbon dioxide into Earth's atmosphere.

VOICE ONE:

Christine Wiedinmyer works for America's National Center for Atmospheric Research.
She developed the computer program to study the wildfires. Her estimates show the
fires produced nearly eight million metric tons of carbon dioxide in just a one-week
period. That is almost twenty-five percent of the monthly average production from all
fossil fuel burned in California.

Miz Wiedinmyer worked on the study with Jason Neff of the University of Colorado at
Boulder. He says the recent wildfires in the United States partly resulted from a
century of fire suppression. He says attempts to control fire have had the unplanned
effect of storing more carbon in our forests and reducing the effect of burning fossil
fuels. As these forests now begin to burn, that stored carbon is moving back into the
atmosphere. Professor Neff says this may affect the current problems with carbon
dioxide.

VOICE TWO:

The study found that evergreen forests in the South and West are the main reason for
carbon dioxide emissions from fires. Fires in grasslands and agricultural areas have
less carbon dioxide because of less plant life there. Generally, carbon dioxide
emissions are highest during the spring in the southeastern and central United States.
During the summer, the emissions are highest in the West.

(MUSIC)
VOICE ONE:

You are listening to SCIENCE IN THE NEWS in VOA Special ENGLISH. With Bob
Doughty, I'm Steve Ember in Washington.

(MUSIC)

Viruses, bacteria and other organisms in dirty water sicken hundreds of millions of
people every year. Yet there are many different water-treatment technologies
available.

Some systems use ultraviolet light to destroy harmful organisms. One product that
disinfects water with UV light is called AquaStar, made by Meridian Design. The
American company says most UV water-purification systems put into homes have
one or more filters. These use carbon or mesh to catch impurities. The filters are
added to improve the taste and smell of water.

But the company says a complex system like this is often not needed in situations
where the aim is just to make water safe to drink.

VOICE TWO:

The AquaStar device is a one-liter bottle with an ultraviolet lamp inside. The user
pushes a button and the light goes on for about a minute and a half. Two small
batteries provide power to the light.

Two electrical engineers, Dan Matthews and Kurt Kuhlmann, designed the system.
They brought it to market in January of two thousand five. Since then, they say,
Meridian Design has sold about two thousand devices a year, at a price of
eighty-nine dollars.

VOICE ONE:

Meridian's newest water treatment device is called the mUV ("move"). This micro-UV
device floats and is small enough to use in a glass. It works like the AquaStar purifier
but has a rechargeable battery.

Dan Matthews says the mUV can be connected to almost any battery for enough of a
charge to clean twelve liters of water. He says Meridian Design is currently
supporting a project by the Mexican nonprofit organization Niparajá. The group is
producing containers that disinfect water with UV lights powered by the sun. The
containers hold fifteen liters.

The device is called the UV Bucket, and it won an award last year from the World
Bank. Families in parts of Baja California Sur, Mexico, and in Guatemala are using it.

VOICE TWO:

Meridian Design is also working with several partners on a solar-powered version of

its AquaStar purifier. This has already been developed and is now being tested. Dan
Matthews says the goal is to be able to sell it at a low price.

Meridian Design is also working with a partner to develop a different kind of

solar-powered purification system. This one would make a chlorine-based
disinfectant out of salt added to water. The goal there is to be able to store large
amounts of water and keep it disinfected.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Finally, we have some helpful first aid information. First Aid is the kind of medical care
given to a victim of an accident or sudden injury before trained medial help can arrive.

First Aid treatments are generally easy to carry out. They can be taught to people of
all ages. Learning them is important. Knowing how to treat someone in an emergency
can mean the difference between life and death.

VOICE TWO:

Minor cuts are common and are usually not serious injuries. But they can become
dangerous and lead to infection when left untreated. An increasing number of
bacterial skin infections are resistant to antibiotic medicines. These infections can
spread throughout the body.

Bacteria can enter the body through even the smallest cut in the skin. Taking good
care of any injury that breaks the skin can help prevent an infection.

Medical experts suggest first cleaning the wound with clean water. Lake or ocean
water should not be used. To clean the area around the wound, medical experts
suggest using a clean cloth and soap. There is no need to use liquids such as
hydrogen peroxide or iodine.

VOICE ONE:

It is important to remove all dirt and other materials from the wound. After the wound
is clean, add a small amount of antibiotic ointment or cream. Studies have shown that
these medicated products can aid in healing. They also help to keep the surface of
the wound from becoming dry. Finally, cover the cut with a clean bandage while it
heals. Change the bandage daily and keep the wound clean.

VOICE TWO:

As the wound heals, inspect for signs of infection including increased pain, redness
and fluid around the cut. A high body temperature is also a sign of infection. If a
wound seems infected, let the victim rest. Physical activity can spread the infection. If
infection develops, seek the help of a medical expert.

For larger wounds, or if bleeding does not stop quickly, add direct pressure. Place a
clean piece of cloth on the area and hold it firmly in place until the bleeding stops or
medical help arrives.

VOICE ONE:

Direct pressure should be kept on a wound for about twenty minutes. Do not remove
the cloth if the blood drips through it. Instead, put another cloth on top and continue
pressure. Use more pressure if the bleeding has not stopped after twenty minutes.
Deep cuts usually require immediate attention from trained medical experts.

Doctors suggest getting a tetanus vaccination every ten years. A tetanus booster
shot may be required if a wound is deep or dirty.

To learn more about first aid, contact a hospital or local organization like a Red Cross
or Red Crescent society. There may be training programs offered in your area.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

This SCIENCE IN THE NEWS was written by Brianna Blake, Soo Jee Han and Jill
Moss. Our producer was Brianna Blake. I'm Bob Doughty.
VOICE ONE:

And I'm Steve Ember. Read and listen to our programs at voaspecialenglish.com.
Join us again at this time next week for more news about science in Special English
on the Voice of America.
VOASE071211_Explorations

11 December 2007

Erie Canal: How an Idea That Some

Laughed at Became America's First
National Waterway
In 1825, the canal joined the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean. It made New York City a major port,
but the effects were wider reaching than that.

VOICE ONE:

I’m Shirley Griffith.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Steve Ember with EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English. In the early
eighteen hundreds, traveling in the United States was dangerous. Business and
trading were limited. Then came the waterway called the Erie Canal. It helped build
America.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

July Fourth, eighteen seventeen, was a special day in Rome, New York. People
there celebrated the anniversary of America’s independence from Britain. They also
marked the groundbreaking for the building of the Erie Canal. When it was
completed eight years later, the canal became America’s first national waterway.
 The Erie Canal crossed the state of New York from
the city of Buffalo on Lake Erie to Albany and Troy on
the Hudson River. The Hudson River flowed into the
Atlantic Ocean at New York City. So the canal joined
the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean. The canal
made New York City a major port.

VOICE TWO:
A painting of the Erie Canal at
Buffalo, New York The difficulty of traveling through the Appalachian
Mountains had kept many people from going west. The mountains also prevented
people in the West from sending their wood and farm products east. But the canal
overcame the natural barrier of those mountains. It helped open the American
West. The Erie Canal made the United States a richer and stronger young nation.

VOICE ONE:

Politicians, businessmen, farmers and traders had talked about creating a canal
connecting the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean for one hundred years. A lawyer
and politician named De Witt Clinton finally succeeded in getting the canal built.

As early as eighteen-oh-nine, Clinton saw the need for the canal. Then he had to
defend his idea against people who laughed at him. Some critics called the canal
“Clinton’s Folly” -- a stupid project. In eighteen twelve, the federal government
rejected a proposal to provide money for the canal.

But five years later, the New York State legislature provided more than seven million
dollars for the project. The lawmakers named Clinton to head a committee to
supervise the development of the canal. De Witt Clinton was elected governor of New
York that same year.

VOICE TWO:

The Erie Canal was five hundred eighty-four kilometers long, more than eight meters
wide at the bottom and one and one-half meters deep. It could not have been
completed without the hard and dangerous labor of many workers. Historians say
about one-third of the workers had recently moved to the United States from Ireland.
They received about fifty cents a day for building the Erie Canal.
The men used explosives to break the rocky earth. Many workers were
injured. Many were infected with the disease malaria. Twenty-six workers died of
smallpox. Some were buried in unmarked graves along the canal.

VOICE ONE:

Big guns were fired in October, eighteen twenty-five, in

Buffalo, New York. The cannons were part of a
celebration to observe the completion of the Erie
Canal. Governor De Witt Clinton and his wife left
Buffalo on a barge called the Seneca Chief. The boat
moved at the rate of less than five kilometers per
hour. It reached the Hudson River nine days later. To
mark the arrival, Governor Clinton dropped some water
from Lake Erie into the Hudson River. A painting of Governor De
Witt Clinton pouring out
VOICE TWO:
water from Lake Erie into
Within ten years, the Erie Canal had repaid the cost of the Hudson River
building it. Transportation of products by canal was less costly than other
methods.The waterway carried barges. Most of these boats had flat bottoms for
carrying goods. The barges measured up to twenty-four meters long and about four
and one-half meters wide. Mules and horses on land pulled the barges through the
canal using ropes. Eighty-three devices called locks raised the barges on the canal
by more than one hundred seventy meters from the Hudson River to Lake Erie.

Men and animals worked hard to pull the barges. A mule named Sal became
famous in a folksong called “The Erie Canal.” Ken Darby and the Whiskeyhill
Chorus sing about life on the canal.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Over time, the canal grew. Many improvements were made between eighteen
thirty-five and eighteen sixty-two. But a few years later, the canal began to lose
importance. Trains were becoming an easier and more profitable way to transport
goods.
As the Erie Canal was losing business, some of its levees began to break. Levees
normally hold back the water, preventing floods. The breaks damaged the towpaths
next to the canal and stopped travel.

VOICE TWO:

Age or heavy rains often caused the levees to break. But the breaks were not
always an accident. Towns like Forestport, New York had been suffering from the
closing of businesses. Then, in the last years of the eighteen hundreds, several area
levees broke under suspicious conditions.

Breaks in the levees should have been bad news for Forestport. Difficult repairs
were needed. But few people in the town seemed sad about the breaks. Instead,
many were pleased. Almost two thousand men were brought in to repair the
damage. That was more than the normal population of Forestport. People crowded
into places to eat, drink and play games of chance. The town had money again. Life
became as profitable and wild as it had been during the best days of trade on the
canal.

VOICE ONE:

The administration of New York Governor Theodore Roosevelt grew

suspicious. Officials investigated. State officials charged several men from
Forestport with plotting to damage canal property.

Newspaper reporter Michael Doyle wrote a book called “The Forestport Breaks.” He
wrote the book after researching his ancestors who had lived in Forestport. Mister
Doyle said he learned that his great-grandfather took part in the wrongdoing.

At the beginning of the book, a farmer sees water flooding over a levee in
Forestport. He warns local officials. His warning prevents more severe damage.
But some of the townspeople do not praise the farmer for his action. Instead, Mister
Doyle writes that they want to kill him.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

By nineteen-oh-three, some businesses were pressuring New York to build a whole

system of canals. These people did not want the railroads to completely control the
transport of goods. So the state formed the New York State Barge Canal System in
nineteen eighteen. The Erie Canal became the largest part, linked to three shorter
canals.

The canal system stayed busy until nineteen fifty-nine. At that time, the United
States and Canada opened the Saint Lawrence Seaway. This waterway permitted
ocean ships to sail up the Saint Lawrence River and through the Great Lakes. The
Erie Canal lost a lot of its business.

VOICE ONE:

But the Erie Canal and the other parts of the New York
canal system got help. In nineteen ninety-one, people
who cared about the historic canal held a big public
event. The group is called Erie’s Restoration Interests
Everyone. It made the same trip that had celebrated
completion of the Erie Canal in eighteen twenty-five.

As Governor and Missus Clinton had done, the group

traveled from Buffalo, New York to the Hudson River. A
The Fairport Lift Bridge
man taking the part of De Witt Clinton dropped water
over the Erie Canal
from Lake Erie into New York Harbor.

A few days later, citizens voted to take measures to re-develop the canal
system. Today, barges still use the system to transport heavy goods. One estimate
says the canal system carries more than four hundred thousand tons of goods each
year. More than one hundred fifty thousand pleasure boats also use the system
each year.

VOICE TWO:

Today, an area called the Canalway National Heritage Corridor contains parts of the
Erie Canal of the eighteen hundreds. You can walk, run or ride a bicycle in this
area. You can take pictures or study plants, birds and other wildlife. You can ride
on the canal in a small boat called a canoe.

Or, you can take a historic Erie Canal boat trip. Thousands of people do this every
year. The boat moves slowly along the water. You can listen to guides tell about
the animals and the men who pulled the barges. And, musicians play songs of the
days when the Erie Canal was helping a young nation grow.
(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

This program was written by Jerilyn Watson and produced by Mario Ritter. I’m Shirley
Griffith.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Steve Ember. Join us again next week for EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special
English.
VOASE071211_Health Report

11 December 2007

Want to Stay Warm in Winter? Think

COLD
Four steps to take to avoid frostbite and hypothermia.

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

Winter in many places means ice skating, sledding and

snowball fights. But unless someone is prepared,
outdoor fun can also mean frostbite and hypothermia.
Today we talk about how to stay warm, dry and safe.

Frostbite is damage that happens when skin is exposed

to extreme cold for too long. It mainly happens on the
hands, feet, nose and ears.

People with minor cases of frostbite that affect only the

skin may not suffer any permanent damage. But if
deeper tissue is affected, a person is likely to feel pain every time the area gets cold.

If blood vessels are damaged, people can suffer an infection, gangrene. Sometimes,
doctors have to remove frostbitten areas like fingers and toes.

Hypothermia happens when the body cannot produce as much heat as it loses. The
condition comes on slowly. Signs include uncontrollable shaking, unusually slow
breathing and difficulty thinking clearly. If not treated, hypothermia can be deadly.

The best way to avoid cold-related injuries is to be prepared for the outdoors. Here is
a simple way to remember four basic steps to staying warm. Think of COLD --
C.O.L.D.
The C stands for cover. Wear a hat and scarf to keep heat from escaping through the
head, neck and ears. And wear mittens instead of gloves. Gloves may not keep
hands as warm because they separate the fingers.

The O stands for overexertion. Avoid activities that will make you sweaty. Wet clothes
and cold weather are a bad mix.

L is for layers. Wearing loose, lightweight clothes, one layer on top of another, is
better than a single heavy layer of clothing. Also, make sure outerwear is made of
water resistant and tightly knit material.

Can you guess what the D in COLD stands for? D is for dry. In other words, stay as
dry as possible. Pay attention to the places where snow can enter, like the tops of
boots, the necks of coats and the wrist areas of mittens.

And a couple of other things to keep in mind, one for children and the other for adults.
Eating snow might be fun but it lowers the body's temperature. And drinking alcohol
might make a person feel warm, but what it really does is weaken the body’s ability to
hold heat.

Next week, experts talk about what to do, and not to do, to help someone injured by
extreme cold.

And that’s the VOA Special English Report, written by Caty Weaver. For more health
news, along with transcripts and MP3s of our reports, go to voaspecialenglish.com.
I’m Faith Lapidus.
VOASE071211_Word Master

11 December 2007

A Fast Way to Make Yourself a Better

Understood Speaker? Slow Down
AA: I'm Avi Arditti with Rosanne Skirble, and this week on WORDMASTER: More
advice about giving oral presentations.

Last week English teacher Nina Weinstein talked about ways to get mentally
prepared. The most important part of any speech is you, Nina says. But for the
audience, the focus is not you but the information they are there to get. And one way
for English language learners to make themselves more understandable is to slow
down.

NINA WEINSTEIN: "You can't make your pronunciation perfect

if it's not there yet. You need to take pronunciation classes or
whatever, but you still have to give your speech. And so one of
the most effective ways to be understood is to cut your speed
in half. Whenever you're speaking to a group you have to slow
down anyway, even if you're a native speaker. So that's one
technique.

"Another technique is to open your mouth wider. A lot of times

students feel that they're pronouncing the 'th' sound or the 'w' sound or the 'b' sound
fully, but in actuality if their mouths are not open wide, then maybe thirty percent of
the sound is being trapped. And so just doing those two things makes it easier for the
audience to understand you no matter what level you are."

RS: "So how would you practice doing these skills? Basically what we've talked about
is the end game, of actually making a presentation. How do you get there? How do
you practice -- can you divide this up into bits?"

AA: "Do you write out the speech word for word and try to memorize it?"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "No, no, I don't encourage my students to do that, and none of
the places that I've taught have encouraged that. If you write it out word for word,
then what you're ultimately going to do is memorize it, and then you're reading. You
just memorize something, and you're kind of giving that as if you're reading it. No, I
have my students put it on three-by-five cards and just put lines as if they're outlining
it, just put things that will help them with the sequence of it, so they don't forget
something that they want to say.

"As far as the actual practicing of it, they practice in front of a mirror, we practice in
class. But one of the things that they should do that I think is really effective is to have
someone videotape them. Because one of the issues about giving a speech is
controlling your body language.

"You don't want to stand like a statue, but on the other hand you don't want nervous
gestures. I had a student who played with his hair the whole time, so that becomes
really distracting and it focuses the audience's attention on the fact that he's nervous.

"So if you videotape, you're going to see something like that. Or sometimes students
will kind of sway back and forth a little bit or maybe they're holding the cards in their
hands and they're tapping on them with their index finger, or those kinds of things that
can be caught if they videotape."

AA: "And kind of look back and forth across the audience as you talk, look in front and
in back? What do you tell people to do with their gaze?"

NINA WEINSTEIN: "They need to make eye contact. What happens sometimes is
that students will sweep the audience but they won't go all the way to each side, so
the people on the ends are left out. And that's how it feels as an audience member if
the speaker doesn't look at you, you feel as if you've been left out.

"So you want to make sure that you're looking at everyone. You don't have to actually
look at them, but you have to look in their direction, so it feels like you're looking at
them. In a small group, you actually will be looking at them. But let's say that you're
speaking in front of fifty people or a hundred people. You won't actually be looking at
each person, but you'll be sweeping the room so that it looks like you are."

RS: "And just moving on beyond the classroom, how do you think that by doing these
kinds of oral presentations in the classroom can help them with their English
language learning outside the classroom?"
NINA WEINSTEIN: "I think it can help them in every way. First of all, they get
confidence because they feel what it is to be in control of English. I think when we
learn another language we know that we're not in control. We're trying our best and
we're juggling so many different skill areas and so forth. But the tricks that I teach
them, the slowing down, the opening your mouth wider, if there's a grammar issue
and people don't understand, you can go back to the basic grammar structure of
subject-verb-object -- these are all tricks and tools for them to control themselves in
English.

"And so I think once they feel that, my students tell me that they apply it to their other
classes, whether they're giving oral presentations or they're just expressing their
opinion in a class. It's basically the same skill."

AA: English teacher and author Nina Weinstein comes to us from the VOA bureau in
Los Angeles. Her books are available through Amazon.com. And you can find
previous segments with Nina at our Web site, voanews.com/wordmaster. And that's
WORDMASTER for this week. Our e-mail address is word@voanews.com. With
Rosanne Skirble, I'm Avi Arditti.
VOASE071212_Education Report

12 December 2007

Excuse Me, Professor, How Much Do

You Earn?
Second of two reports about salaries for professors in the U.S.

This is the VOA Special English Education Report.

Now, we continue our discussion from last week about the pay for professors in the
United States. We looked at the averages. Today we narrow that to one example.

Andrew McMichael is a young history professor in his sixth

year at Western Kentucky University, a state school in
Bowling Green. He started as an assistant professor,
teaching seven courses a year.

His starting pay was forty-three thousand dollars, plus

benefits. These included health insurance for himself and his
family, life insurance and a retirement plan.
Andrew McMichael
His position was on the tenure track. This meant the university would have to decide
either to award him tenure, which provides job security, or ask him to leave.

He requested tenure after five years. He had to present evidence of his research,
teaching and service on committees.

Teaching skills are measured through evaluations by students and observations by

other professors. The research requirement includes publishing three articles or
writing a book or translating a foreign work into English.

Professors may think they have met all the requirements for tenure, but there are no
guarantees. The process can seem mysterious and unfair.
In recent years many schools have reduced their number of tenured positions. Doing
that saves money and gives administrators more control. It also means greater
competition for fewer jobs.

Earlier this year, Andrew McMichael received the decision about his future at
Western Kentucky. It was good news: he earned tenure.

That meant a promotion to associate professor. It also meant a ten percent pay
increase as well as a one-time payment for good work.

He now earns almost fifty-eight thousand dollars a year -- not a huge amount, he
admits. And he knows that even a starting professor outside the liberal arts, in an
area like accounting, earns a lot more.

He also knows that his school could hire someone to teach the same number of
classes he does for about fifteen thousand dollars, with no benefits. But being a
professor means more than teaching classes.

Professor McMichael says tenure will mean the freedom to speak out and do
research on whatever he wants. History is not his only interest. In the spring he will
be team-teaching a class with a biologist on the history and science of beer and
brewing.

And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach.
Last week's report about pay for professors can be found at voaspecialenglish.com.
I'm Steve Ember.
 VOASE071212_The Making of a Nation

12 December 2007

American History Series: A Tea Party at

Night, on the Road to Revolution
Relations between Britain and its American colonies changed after the Boston Tea Party in 1773.
The colonists began to prepare to fight for their independence.

VOICE ONE:

This is Sarah Long.

VOICE TWO:

And this is Rich Kleinfeldt with THE MAKING OF A NATION, a VOA Special English
program about the history of the United States.

(MUSIC)

Today, we tell about the start of the American colonies' war for independence from
Britain in the late seventeen hundreds.

VOICE ONE:

The road to revolution lasted several years. The most serious events began in
seventeen seventy. War began five years later.

Relations between Britain and its American colonists were most tense in the colony of
Massachusetts. There were protests against the British policy of taxing the colonies
without giving them representation in Parliament. To prevent trouble, thousands of
British soldiers were sent to Boston, the biggest city in Massachusetts. On March
fifth, seventeen seventy, tension led to violence. This is what happened.

VOICE TWO:
 It was the end of winter, and the weather was very
cold. A small group of colonists began throwing rocks
and pieces of ice at soldiers guarding a public
building. They were joined by others, and the
soldiers became frightened. They fired their guns.

(SOUND)

Five colonists were killed. The incident became

known as the Boston Massacre.
The Boston Massacre in
1770, as drawn by Henry VOICE ONE:
Pelham
The people of Massachusetts were extremely
angry. The soldiers were tried in court for murder. Most were found innocent. The
others received minor punishments. Fearing more violence, the British Parliament
cancelled most of its taxes. Only the tax on tea remained.

This eased some of the tensions for a while. Imports of British goods
increased. The colonists seemed satisfied with the situation, until a few years
later. That is when the Massachusetts colony once again became involved in a
dispute with Britain.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

The trouble started because the British government wanted to help improve the
business of the British East India Company. That company organized all the trade
between India and other countries ruled by Britain. By seventeen seventy-three, the
company had become weak. The British government decided to permit it to sell tea
directly to the American colonies. The colonies would still have to pay a tea tax to
Britain.

The Americans did not like the new plan. They felt they were being forced to buy
their tea from only one company.

VOICE ONE:

Officials in the colonies of Pennsylvania and New York sent the East India
Company's ships back to Britain. In Massachusetts, things were different. The
British governor there wanted to collect the tea tax and enforce the law. When the
ships arrived in Boston, some colonists tried to block their way. The ships remained
just outside the harbor without unloading their goods.

On the night of December sixteenth, seventeen

seventy-three, a group of colonists went out in a small
boat. They got on a British ship and threw all the tea
into the water. The colonists were dressed as
American Indians so the British would not recognize
them, but the people of Boston knew who they
were. A crowd gathered to cheer them. That
incident -- the night when British tea was thrown into
Boston harbor -- became known as the Boston Tea
Party. Detail from 'Boston Tea Party'
by W.D. Cooper, published in
(MUSIC)
the 1789 book 'The History of
VOICE TWO: North America'

Destroying the tea was a serious crime. The British government was
angry. Parliament reacted to the Boston Tea Party by punishing the whole colony of
Massachusetts for the actions of a few men. It approved a series of laws that once
again changed relations between the colony and Britain.

One of these laws closed the port of Boston until the tea was paid for. Other laws
strengthened the power of the British governor and weakened the power of local
colonial officials.

In June, seventeen seventy-four, the colony of Massachusetts called for a meeting of

delegates from all the other colonies to consider joint action against Britain.

VOICE ONE:

This meeting of colonial delegates was called the First Continental Congress. It was
held in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in September, seventeen
seventy-four. All the colonies except one was represented. The southern colony of
Georgia did not send a delegate.

The delegates agreed that the British Parliament had no right to control trade with the
American colonies or to make any laws that affected them. They said the people of
the colonies must have the right to take part in any legislative group that made laws
for them.

VOICE TWO:

The First Continental Congress approved a series of

documents that condemned all British actions in the
American colonies after seventeen sixty-three. It
approved a Massachusetts proposal saying that the
people could use weapons to defend their rights. It
also organized a Continental Association to boycott
British goods and to stop all exports to any British
colony or to Britain itself. Local committees were
created to enforce the boycott.
As one of its final acts, on
One of the delegates to this First Continental
October 25, 1774, the First
Congress was John Adams of Massachusetts. Many
Continental Congress
years later, he said that by the time the meeting was
approved a petition to King
held, the American Revolution had already begun.
George III
(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Britain's King George the Second announced that the New England colonies were in
rebellion. Parliament made the decision to use troops against Massachusetts in
January, seventeen seventy-five.

The people of Massachusetts formed a provincial assembly and began training men
to fight. Soon, groups of armed men were doing military exercises in towns all
around Massachusetts and in other colonies, too.

VOICE TWO:

British officers received their orders in April, seventeen seventy-five. By that time,
the colonists had been gathering weapons in the town of Concord, about thirty
kilometers west of Boston. The British forces were ordered to seize the
weapons. But the colonists knew they were coming and were prepared.
Years later, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote a poem about what happened. The
poem tells about the actions of Paul Revere, one of three men who helped warn the
colonial troops that the British were coming:

(SOUND)

Listen my children and you shall hear

Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere.
On the eighteenth of April in Seventy-five
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.

He said to his friend, "If the British march

By land or sea from the town tonight
Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry arch
Of the North Church tower as a signal light, --
One if by land, and two if by sea;
And I on the opposite shore will be,
Ready to ride and spread the alarm
Through every Middlesex village and farm
For the country folk to be up and to arm."

VOICE ONE:

British troops, sent to secure

American arms and supplies,
were resisted by
Massachusetts militiamen at
Lexington and Concord on
April 19, 1775. This
When the British reached the town of Lexington, they document printed a few days
found it protected by about seventy colonial later shows coffins
troops. These troops were called "Minute Men" representing the Americans
because they had been trained to fight with only a killed.
minute's warning. Guns were fired. Eight colonists
were killed.

No one knows who fired the first shot in that first battle of the American
Revolution. Each side accused the other. But the meaning was very clear. It was
called "the shot heard round the world."

(SOUND)

VOICE TWO:

From Lexington, the British marched to Concord, where they destroyed whatever
supplies the colonists had not been able to save. Other colonial troops rushed to the
area. A battle at Concord's north bridge forced the British to march back to Boston.

It was the first day of America's war for independence. When it was over, almost
three hundred British troops had been killed. Fewer than one hundred Americans had
died.

VOICE ONE:

The British troops had marched in time with their drummers and pipers. The
musicians had played a song called "Yankee Doodle." The British invented the song
to insult the Americans. They said a Yankee Doodle was a man who did not know
how to fight. After the early battles of the revolution, the Americans said they were
glad to be Yankee Doodles.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Following the battles at Lexington and Concord, the Massachusetts government

organized a group that captured Fort Ticonderoga on Lake Champlain in New York
State. The other colonies began sending troops to help. And another joint colonial
meeting was called: the Second Continental Congress. That will be our story next
week.
(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Today's MAKING OF A NATION program was written by Nancy Steinbach. This is

Sarah Long.

VOICE TWO:

And this is Rich Kleinfeldt. Join us again next week for another Special English
program about the history of the United States.
______

This was program #11 in THE MAKING OF A NATION

VOASE071213_American Mosaic

13 December 2007

A First for Girls in This Year's Siemens

Math and Science Competition
Also: A question from Burma about the White House. And music from the latest album by Melissa
Etheridge.

HOST:

Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC in VOA Special English.

(MUSIC)

I'm Doug Johnson. On our show this week:

We listen to some music from Melissa Etheridge …

Answer a question about the White House …

And tell about the results of a recent high school science competition.

Siemens Competition

HOST:

Last week, the Siemens Foundation announced the winners of the Mathematics,
Science and Technology Competition for high school students. The foundation
created the competition nine years ago to improve student performance in math and
science in the United States. It is open to any student who is a citizen or legal
resident. Barbara Klein has more.

BARBARA KLEIN:
This year was a first in the history of the Siemens
Competition. It was the first time females won the top
prizes in both the individual and team competitions.

The individual winner was Isha Jain of Bethlehem,

Pennsylvania. She received one hundred thousand
dollars toward her college education for her research
into bone growth. The Siemens judges said she is
Isha Jain
the first to discover that bone growth takes place in
many different short periods of time. They said her work was equal to that of a
graduate student in college.

The top team winners were Janelle Schlossberger

and Amanda Marinoff of Plainview, New York. They
are sharing one hundred thousand dollars for their
college educations. They did research on the
disease tuberculosis. They created a molecule that
helps block drug-resistant tuberculosis bacteria from
reproducing. The contest judges said the students
Janelle Schlossberger and created new compounds to kill tuberculosis by
Amanda Marinoff targeting a protein that could lead to a new treatment
for drug-resistant TB.

The Siemens Foundation joined with the College Board and six universities to start
the competition. The Siemens Foundation president says the number of girls
entering the contest has increased each year. This year, more than one thousand
six hundred students took part. Forty-eight percent were female.

Experts from the universities judge competitions in six areas of the country. The
individual and team winners from those contests then compete nationally. They
demonstrate their projects to a group of university professors and scientists. This
year, the judges were led by Joseph Taylor, a winner of the Nobel Prize in physics.

As part of their prize, the winning students will ring the closing bell at the New York
Stock Exchange in February.

The White House

HOST:
Our listener question this week comes from Burma. Tharr
Naing wants to know about the White House, the home of the
President of the United States and his family. This famous
building is at sixteen hundred Pennsylvania Avenue, in the
center of Washington, D.C.

The first American President, George Washington, worked

The White House
with the city planner Pierre L’Enfant to choose the land for the
new presidential home. A competition was held to find a building designer. Nine plans
were considered, and the architect James Hoban won.

Construction began in seventeen ninety-two. The first president to live there was
John Adams. He and his wife Abigail moved into the White House in eighteen
hundred.

During the war of eighteen twelve, British troops burned most of the inside of the
White House. James Hoban helped rebuild it. Over the years, each president has
made changes or additions to the building. For example, the north portico area of the
building was added under President Andrew Jackson. Presidents also changed the
furniture inside to show current styles.

The White House walls are made of stone that is painted white. But the famous
building has had other names over time, including the President’s House and the
Executive Mansion. In the early nineteen hundreds, President Theodore Roosevelt
made the White House the official name.

In the nineteen thirties, President Franklin Roosevelt decided to rebuild and expand
part of the building that became known as the West Wing. Some of the public rooms
in the White House are named after a color. There is the Blue Room, the Green
Room and the Red Room.

In December, the White House becomes filled with holiday decorations, based on a
theme. The subject of the Christmas tree decorations this year is National Parks.
First lady Laura Bush thought of the idea because she hikes in the parks throughout
the year. She says that the White House sent a Christmas tree decoration to each of
America’s more than three hundred national parks. Different artists painted each
ornament in a way to celebrate that national park. To see pictures of these holiday
decorations, you can visit www dot white house dot gov.

Melissa Etheridge
HOST:

Melissa Etheridge has been making rock music for

twenty years. This award-winning performer recently
released her ninth album called “The Awakening.” It
is Etheridge's first record since she discovered she
had cancer in two thousand four. The songs express
the story of her life and her spiritual sense of
awakening after overcoming her sickness. Katherine
Cole has more.

(MUSIC)
Melissa Etheridge
KATHERINE COLE:

That was “California,” one of the first songs on the album. It tells how Melissa
Etheridge left her home and family in the state of Kansas to follow her dreams of
fame in California. Etheridge has said that she hopes listeners will take time out of
their busy days to listen to her album from beginning to end. She says the songs tell a
universal story about her political and spiritual beliefs and discoveries. The main
influence for the album was her cancer. Melissa Etheridge believes the cancer gave
her a new power and fearlessness.

Here is the song “I’ve Loved You Before.” Etheridge imagines how she and the
person she loves have searched for and found each other in past lives.

(MUSIC)

Melissa Etheridge is also known for her interest in social activism. She strongly
supports the environmental “green” movement. She wrote the song “I Want to Wake
Up” for former Vice President Al Gore’s movie on climate change called “An
Inconvenient Truth.” She also supports rights for people in same-sex relationships.

And, in several songs on “The Awakening”, Etheridge expresses her political beliefs.
We leave you with “Imagine That.” In it, Melissa Etheridge criticizes the United
States government’s policy over the war in Iraq. She praises the activist Cindy
Sheehan whose son was killed in the war.

(MUSIC)

HOST:
I'm Doug Johnson. I hope you enjoyed our program today.

It was written by Dana Demange and Nancy Steinbach. Caty Weaver was our
producer. To read the text of this program and download audio, go to our Web site,
voaspecialenglish.com.

Join us again next week for AMERICAN MOSAIC, VOA’s radio magazine in Special
English.
VOASE071213_Economics Report

13 December 2007

Helping Subprime Borrowers: Too

Little? Too Much?
How a private alliance brought together by the Bush administration plans to try to keep some people
from losing their homes.

This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.

Imagine that you want to buy a house but are not sure
you could meet the monthly

payments. Your credit history is considered subprime

-- not good enough for the lowest interest rates
available.

But a broker who finds lenders for homebuyers offers

you a deal. A loan with payments low enough to fit
your budget. After two or three years, however, your
payments will go up, possibly thirty percent or more.
Do you accept?

In the United States, an estimated two million subprime adjustable-rate mortgages

are expected to reset higher in the next two years. These loans make up about seven
percent of all mortgages. But now many of the owners are in danger of losing their
homes because of rising payments.

Last week, President Bush announced a plan to help some people with subprime
loan troubles. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson brought together a new private
alliance called HOPE NOW. He and other government officials met with lenders, loan
servicers, investors and others to work out terms of the plan.
The goal is to help families keep their homes -- and help avoid further injury to the
already weak housing market. Lenders generally do not want to be in the business of
selling houses reclaimed through foreclosure.

The White House says as many as one million two hundred thousand homeowners
could receive assistance under the plan. They could be helped in one of three ways,
depending on their situation.

One way is by refinancing an existing loan into a new private mortgage. Another is by
moving their mortgage into a loan secured by the Federal Housing Administration.
And the third way is by freezing their current interest rate for five years.

The plan is only for loans that were started between January of two thousand five and
July of this year and that have not reset already. Borrowers must be living in the
home and facing a payment increase of ten percent or more.

Democrats in Congress say the plan does not do enough to protect homeowners. Yet
some critics say it does too much, helping people who borrowed more than they
should have.

Not only that, subprime loans were sold to investors worldwide as mortgage-related
securities. Some investors could go to court to try to stop the loans from being
renegotiated. But with the current troubles in the housing and credit markets, they
may have to settle for whatever they can get.

And that's the VOA Special English Economics Report, written by Mario Ritter. I'm
Steve Ember.
VOASE071214_In the News

14 December 2007

Writers Strike Throws Shadow on

Hollywood's Season to Honor Itself
The main issue is payment for movies and TV shows that appear on the Internet. Producers say it is
too early to know how much profit can be made from the Web, or how it should be divided.

This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

More than ten thousand film and television writers in

the United States have been on strike since
November fifth. Work has stopped on many TV shows
and movies.

The international market for American entertainment

means that Americans are not the only ones watching
and waiting for a settlement.

This week, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association Thousands of members of

announced nominees for its Golden Globe Awards the Writers Guild of America
next month. This is supposed to be an exciting time in and their supporters march in
Hollywood: the awards season, leading up to the Los Angeles last month
Academy Awards in February.

But tensions are growing. The strike could continue into the New Year.

Talks broke down a week ago between the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance
of Motion Picture and Television Producers. The writers now accuse the producers of
violating federal labor law by breaking off the negotiations. The producers rejected
the charges.
The most recent negotiations ended last week when the producers refused to
continue talks until the writers drop several demands. Among these is a proposal to
include writers of reality shows and animated programs in their union.

But the main issue is this: Writers and producers have been unable to agree about
payment for work that appears on the Internet. The download market for TV shows
and movies is still small but expected to grow. No one knows exactly how much "old
media" will move into new media.

Writers want a share of the profits. But producers say it is too early to know how
much profit can be made on the Web, and how that money should be divided. Their
proposals would need to renegotiated in the future.

TV shows are already competing for attention with Web sites and video games. Yet
the strike could end up costing shows more fans. Without new material, programmers
have to fill time with repeats and depend heavily on reality shows and game shows.

The first programs affected were late-night shows. Without writers to keep people
laughing, the programs immediately went to repeats. But now, Daily Variety has
reported that some late-night shows may be returning by early January -- with or
without their writers.

After all, who wants old jokes from hosts like Jay Leno, David Letterman and Jon
Stewart during a presidential campaign?

The dispute may become even more complex once movie and TV directors begin
their own negotiations with the producers alliance. The current contract between the
Directors Guild of America and production companies ends in June.

The directors decided this week to go forward with negotiations, but not until January.
They say they want to give the writers and producers one last chance to return to
talks. A writers strike in nineteen eighty-eight lasted twenty-two weeks.

An entertainment industry strike affects a lot of people. Think of all the names in the
closing credits of shows and movies. In Los Angeles alone, film and television
production creates an estimated thirty billion dollars in economic activity each year.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. I’m Steve
Ember.
VOASE071215_People In America

15 December 2007

Kurt Vonnegut, 1922-2007: His Books

Combined Science Fiction and Humor
With Social Criticism

VOICE ONE:

I’m Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Shirley Griffith with PEOPLE IN AMERICA in

VOA Special English. Today we tell about Kurt
Vonnegut, a writer and thinker who shook up the
country with his unusual writing style and subjects. He
helped energize huge numbers of young people to
protest the Vietnam War and to always question the
powers that be.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:
Kurt Vonnegut
It took Kurt Vonnegut about twenty-five years to write
his most famous book, “Slaughterhouse-Five.” It was published in nineteen
sixty-nine. The book remains required reading in high school and college English
classes across the country. It includes this description of the fire-bombing of
Dresden, Germany, by Allied forces during World War Two, as witnessed by a soldier
named Billy Pilgrim:

READER:

“There was a fire-storm out there. Dresden was one big flame. The one flame ate
everything organic, everything that would burn.

It wasn’t safe to come out of the shelter until noon the next day. When the
Americans and their guards did come out, the sky was black with smoke. The sun
was an angry little pinhead. Dresden was like the moon now, nothing but
minerals. The stones were hot. Everybody else in the neighborhood was dead.

So it goes.”

VOICE TWO:

Kurt Vonnegut, a prisoner of war like Pilgrim, witnessed the bombing of

Dresden. The waste of human life and other treasures greatly angered him. His
novels contain some of that anger. But Vonnegut always balanced his work with
humor and the use of wildly unlikely events presented as normal.

For example, in "Slaughterhouse-Five," Billy Pilgrim visits the

make-believe planet Tralfamadore. He and a beautiful movie star
named Montana Wildhack fall in love there in a clear ball of a
house. They are studied by the Tralfamadorians and find
happiness.

Kurt Vonnegut compared the science fiction in

“Slaughterhouse-Five” to the clowns in the plays of sixteenth
century English writer William Shakespeare. Vonnegut believed
such literary devices give the reader a rest before the story gets
serious again.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Kurt Vonnegut’s own life was also filled with tragedy and laughter. He was born in
nineteen twenty-two in Indianapolis, Indiana. His father was a building
designer. His mother was from an extremely wealthy family. She suffered from
mental illness and unhappiness as a failed writer. Vonnegut said his mother would
have periods of madness where she would emotionally abuse his father. Vonnegut
said his father was the gentlest man on the planet. Edith Vonnegut killed herself on
Mother’s Day, in nineteen forty-four. The act affected her son his whole life.

In nineteen fifty-eight, Kurt Vonnegut’s sister and her husband died within two days of
each other. Vonnegut and his wife at the time adopted the couple’s three children.
VOICE TWO:

Kurt Vonnegut was interested in writing from at least his teenage years. He worked
on his high school’s newspaper. Later he studied at Cornell University in Ithaca,
New York and became an editor of that school’s newspaper. Vonnegut studied
biochemistry. He followed in the footsteps of his older brother, Bernard, who was a
scientist. However, Kurt Vonnegut was not a very good student. He left Cornell in
nineteen forty-three and joined the army during World War Two. German forces
captured him during the Battle of the Bulge in Western Europe.

Vonnegut’s experiences as a soldier and the bombing of Dresden were among the
major influences in his life. He was a pacifist, someone who opposes war and
violence for settling conflict. He once said: “You can teach people savagery. They
may need savagery, but it’s bad for the neighbors. I prefer to teach gentleness.”

He was not always gentle on himself, however. He battled depression for most of his
life. In nineteen eighty-four, he tried to kill himself by taking too much sleep medicine.
He said later that children of a parent who committed suicide will naturally think of
death as a sensible solution to any problem.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

After World War Two, Vonnegut married a childhood friend, Jane Cox. They moved
to Chicago, Illinois in nineteen forty-five. They had three children. Vonnegut studied
anthropology at the University of Chicago. He also worked as a reporter.

Kurt Vonnegut also began writing short stories. They were published in literary
magazines. In nineteen fifty-two he wrote his first novel. “Player Piano” was
influenced by Vonnegut’s work at the power company, General Electric. Vonnegut
said it was there that he got the idea of everything being controlled by
computers. He told Playboy Magazine in nineteen seventy-three that it made perfect
sense to have little clicking boxes, as he called them, make all the decisions for
humans. But he said it was not good for human workers to be replaced by
machines.

Vonnegut said that he wrote science fiction because General Electric was science
fiction to him. “Player Piano” describes a place called Ileum where the humans have
surrendered to a computer.
Writers of science fiction are often considered less serious than writers of other kinds
of fiction. As a result, Vonnegut’s work was published in paperback and ignored by
critics for several years.

VOICE TWO:

But people started listening more closely to Kurt Vonnegut’s literary voice in the
nineteen sixties. There was great public anger and protest over American military
action in Vietnam. Distrust for the United States government was growing. Young
people and minorities especially were speaking up against America’s leaders and
cultural restrictions.

Vonnegut’s statements about America, its people and its leaders mixed perfectly with
that atmosphere. His novels became favorites of many people involved in the
anti-establishment, politically progressive movement of that time.

“Cat’s Cradle,” published in nineteen sixty-three, is one example. It tells the story of a
fictional scientist who helped invent the atomic bomb and something even more
dangerous – a substance called ice-nine. “Cat’s Cradle” is an extremely funny
condemnation of many things. These include the arms race at the time -- efforts by
countries to increase their nuclear weapons. It also makes jokes about organized
religion and the United States government.

VOICE ONE:

In nineteen sixty-four, “Cat’s Cradle” won a Hugo Award for science fiction. Also that
year, Kurt Vonnegut began teaching at the Writers Workshop at the University of
Iowa. He was a professor for many years and taught English at several universities
and colleges. He wrote at least fifteen more books, including non-fiction.
 One of those books was “Breakfast of Champions,” published in
nineteen seventy-three. Vonnegut tells the story of a wealthy
and crazy car salesman named Dwayne Hoover. Hoover reads science fiction
books written by a man named Kilgore Trout. Hoover becomes more and more sure
that the books are not fiction but reality.

Here Kurt Vonnegut reads from an early version of “Breakfast of Champions.” The
reading took place in New York City in nineteen seventy.

KURT VONNEGUT:

"My name is Dwayne Hoover and I am an experiment by the creator of the

universe. I am the only creature in the entire universe who has free will. I am the
only creature who has to figure out what to do next and why. Everybody else is a
robot.

I am pooped. I wish I were a robot too. It is perfectly exhausting having to reason all
the time in a universe I never made."

VOICE TWO:

Kurt Vonnegut and his wife Jane separated in nineteen seventy. Vonnegut married
photographer Jill Krementz nine years later. They adopted a daughter.

Vonnegut continued to be politically outspoken. He used the American political crime

called the Watergate scandal in his novel “Jailbird.” He was also an early
environmental activist. He spoke often and loudly about the long-term dangers of
fossil fuel use, pollution and waste of natural resources. Vonnegut also condemned
the Bush administration and the war in Iraq that began in two thousand three.

VOICE ONE:

Kurt Vonnegut published his last book in two thousand five. “A Man Without A
Country” is a collection of his opinions of many subjects, including issues in modern
American society.

He died in two thousand seven after suffering brain injuries from a fall in his home.
He was eighty-four. Kurt Vonnegut’s children placed notes of thanks to his fans on
the Vonnegut Web site. His daughter Nanny wrote: “I am so sorry for your loss as
well as mine.”

(MUSIC)
VOICE ONE:

Our program was written and produced by Caty Weaver. Jim Tedder read the
"Slaughterhouse Five" passage. I'm Steve Ember with Shirley Griffith. You can learn
about other famous Americans at voaspecialengish.com. And join us again next
week for PEOPLE IN AMERICA in VOA Special English.
VOASE071215_Words and Their Stories

15 December 2007

Money, Money, Money: Dinner Is on the

House
Working hard to bring home the bacon.

Now, the VOA Special English program WORDS AND THEIR STORIES.

(MUSIC)

Most people enjoy working for several reasons. Their job might be fun, or they like
their employer and the other people at work. Most people I know, however, work for
the money. I do not know anyone who is loaded, or extremely rich. Most of my
friends work to earn enough money to live. They have to make ends meet. They
have to earn enough money to pay for the things they need. Some even live from
hand to mouth. They only have enough money for the most important things.

They struggle to earn enough money to bring home the bacon. It can be difficult to
earn enough money for a family to survive. Sometimes, poor people even get caught
short. They do not have enough money to pay for what they need.

Or they have to spend or lay out more money than they want for something. When
this happens, poor people have to tighten their belts and live on less money than
usual. I hate when I have to live on less money. It takes me longer to get back on
my feet, or return to good financial health.

However, other people are on the gravy train. They get paid more money than their
job is worth. These people make a bundle. They really rake in the cash. In fact,
they make so much money that they can live high off the hog. They own the best of
everything and live in great ease. Sometimes they pay an arm and a leg for
something.
Because money is no object to wealthy people, they will pay high prices for
whatever they want. Sometimes, they even pay through the nose. They pay too
much for things.

I am not rich. I did not make a killing in the stock market when my stocks increased
in value. Yet, I am not poor either. When I go out with friends, I do not want to shell
out or pay a lot of money. Often, my friends and I will chip in or pay jointly for a fun
night out. When we go to restaurants the meal is Dutch treat. Each person pays
his or her own share.

Once, the owner of a restaurant gave us a dinner on the house. We did not have to
pay for our meals. However, I admit that we had to grease someone’s palm. We
had to pay money to the employee who led us to our table. The money was for a
special request. Yes, it was a buy off. The employee put us at the top of the list for
a table instead of making us wait like everyone else. We had a great time that night
and the meal did not set me back at all. I did not have to pay anything.

Because of that experience, I will always remember that nice things still happen in a
world that is driven by money. But, that is just my two cents worth. It is just my
opinion.

(MUSIC)

WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, in VOA Special English, was written by Jill
Moss. I’m Faith Lapidus.
VOASE071216_Development Report

16 December 2007

Project Seeks Free E-Books for

Colleges in Developing Nations
The Global Text Project aims to fill a Web-based library with 1,000 textbooks.

This is the VOA Special English Development Report.

Books are a high cost of higher education. But the Global Text Project hopes to
create a free library of one thousand electronic textbooks for students in developing
countries.

The aim is to offer subjects that students may take in

their first few years at a university. The books could be
printed or read on a computer or copied onto a CD or
DVD.

Two professors in the United States are leading the

Global Text Project.

Richard Watson is the acting head of the department

of management information systems at the University
of Georgia. And Donald McCubbrey is a professor of The Global Text Project aims
information technology and electronic commerce at to fill a Web-based library
the University of Denver, in Colorado. with 1,000 books

Professor Watson tells us that the idea for this project goes back several years. He
was teaching a computer programming class but did not have a good textbook. So he
asked his students to each write part of a book that he would organize and edit.

By the end of the term, Professor Watson had a finished product. Since then he has
used it for other classes. Now, Professors Watson and McCubbrey are seeking
volunteers to supervise the creation of books for the library. They are looking for
professors or other professionals.
The Global Text Project is similar in technology to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
that anyone can edit on the Internet. But only one or two people will be able to make
the final edits in texts.

The project includes a committee of scholars, mostly from developing countries, to

advise on required textbooks and their content.

Globaltext.org has a link to the Prototype Global Text Library, with two books on
information systems and economic analysis. Other free texts on subjects including
linear algebra and oceanography are also available at globaltext.org.

The group’s first book on information systems is being tested in Ethiopia and
Indonesia. Professor Watson says the plan is to offer about ten free books within the
next year, including an English grammar text.

Project organizers also want to offer textbooks in Arabic, Chinese and Spanish. They
are working with a translation company in the United States. And Professor Watson
says students could also get involved.

For example, a student learning English in an Arab country could translate part of a
book into Arabic. Then another student and the class professor could check the
translation.

And that’s the VOA Special English Development Report, written by Jill Moss. For a
link to the Global Text Project, go to voaspecialenglish.com. I’m Bob Doughty.
VOASE071216_This Is America

16 December 2007

Getting a Feel for the Finger Lakes and

Champlain, Not a Great Lake but Nice
Anyway
Exploring some of the lakes of New York state, including Lake Champlain.

VOICE ONE:

Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I’m Barbara Klein.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Steve Ember. This week on our program, we tell you about Lake Champlain
and the Finger Lakes in the northeastern United States.

(MUSIC)

VOICE
ONE:

Lake Champlain borders two states, New York and

Vermont, and Quebec, Canada. Many people like to
vacation at this freshwater lake. They enjoy sailing
and fishing, water skiing, swimming, or just sitting at
the water’s edge, daydreaming. The waters can look
so still and blue, like a painting, though they can also
become rough with waves when the wind blows.
Iceboarding on Lake
VOICE TWO:
Champlain
Much of the area around Lake Champlain has a country feeling. Nearby are woods
where people can hike. In the fall, visitors can watch the sugar maple trees surrender
their colorful autumn leaves.

Many animals and birds live around Lake Champlain. Road signs warn drivers to
watch out for moose, big animals that can walk into the road.

Visitors at the lake also keep their eyes open for "Champ." Champ is like an
American Nessie, the sea monster that supposedly lives in Loch Ness in Scotland.

VOICE ONE:

Over the years there have been reports of some thing in Lake Champlain. A nineteen
seventy-seven photograph only fed the mystery. In the distance it shows what
appears to be a large creature in the water. Champ can also be found helping the
local economy by appearing on souvenirs like T-shirts and coffee cups.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Lake Champlain is a long, narrow body of water. The lake is one hundred
ninety-three kilometers long and nineteen kilometers at its widest. It reaches a depth
of one hundred twenty-two meters.

The lake flows north from Whitehall, New York. Over the Canadian border it makes
its way into the Richelieu River in Quebec. The Richelieu joins the Saint Lawrence
River which feeds into the Atlantic Ocean at the Gulf of Saint Lawrence.

Lake Champlain lies in a valley between the Green Mountains of Vermont and the
Adirondack Mountains of New York.

A number of communities are near Lake Champlain. The largest is Burlington, a city
of thirty-eight thousand people in Vermont.

VOICE ONE:

Lake Champlain has more than seventy islands. One island in Vermont, Isle La Motte,
is known for its prehistoric geological formations. The Chazy Reef on the island
contains coral, like a reef in a warm, tropical ocean.
Scientists say this is because when the Chazy Reef began to form hundreds of
millions of years ago, it was in the southern half of the world. Then the plates that
form the surface of the Earth began to move around and gave the reef a new home.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Lake Champlain is named for the French explorer Samuel de Champlain who first
saw it in sixteen-oh-nine.

In the seventeen hundreds, the Champlain Valley

became a battleground in the French and Indian War,
also known as the Seven Years' War. French troops in
Canada built a fort to control passage to the lake as a
defense against British troops moving north. The
French named it Fort Carillon. But in seventeen
fifty-nine, the British took control of the fort and
renamed it Ticonderoga.

Troops from the English colonies that would become

A ferryboat travels across
the United States supported the British army in the
Lake Champlain as the sun
war. But later, during the American Revolution,
drops
colonial troops fought against the British at Fort
Ticonderoga.

And later still, during the War of Eighteen Twelve, the Americans defeated the British
in the Battle of Lake Champlain. The defeat not only ended British demands for
territory in New England. It also put an end to British hopes of controlling the Great
Lakes area.

VOICE ONE:

The Great Lakes are Michigan, Erie, Huron, Superior and Ontario. Champlain is
smaller than any of them. But in March of nineteen ninety-eight, it joined the list --
Congress declared Champlain the sixth Great Lake.

This was because of efforts by Patrick Leahy, a senator who has represented
Vermont for more than thirty years. Senator Leahy was trying to get research money
for Lake Champlain from the National Sea Grant Program. This program operates
under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The program pays for water research at universities that border either the oceans or
the Great Lakes. So Senator Leahy got the words "Great Lakes including Lake
Champlain" into the bill.

Many people in Midwestern states that border the Great Lakes were not at all happy.
John Glenn, the former astronaut who was then a senator from Ohio, put it this way:
"I know the Great Lakes. I’ve traveled the Great Lakes. And Lake Champlain is not
one of the Great Lakes."

VOICE TWO:

Still, there are similarities. Lake Champlain has wildlife and rock formations that are
similar to or even the same as the Great Lakes. All six were formed from the same
huge piece of ice. And all six flow into the Saint Lawrence River in Canada.

Lake Champlain also has the same kinds of environmental problems, including
pollution and nonnative sea life, as the Great Lakes.

VOICE ONE:

For people in the Champlain area, having it declared a Great Lake was great news.
They saw it as a chance to get more help for the lake’s problems, and more national
attention for the area.

But the measure that declared Lake Champlain a Great Lake lasted less than three
weeks. The angry reaction from the Midwestern states succeeded in killing it.
Vermont, however, still won the right for its researchers to ask for money under the
National Sea Grant Program.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:
In central New York state, there are five lakes that
look like fingers on a map. Their names come from
American Indian culture. Seneca. Cayuga. Keuka.
Canandaigua, and Skaneateles.

These are the five major Finger Lakes. Cayuga Lake

is the longest among them. But Seneca Lake is the
biggest and the deepest, at almost two hundred
meters.

Compare that to the nine-meter depth of Grapevines stand empty of

Honeoye Lake. Honeoye is among what are their fruit on a hillside
considered the six minor Finger Lakes in central and overlooking Keuka Lake
western New York. The others are Owasco, Otisco, Canadice,Hemlock and
Conesus.

VOICE ONE:

Most of the eleven lakes contain cold water fisheries like trout as well as bass and
other warm water fishing.

The Finger Lakes area is home to industries and large cities like Syracuse and
Rochester. But there are still many farms. And the area has a large number of grape
vineyards and wine producers.

VOICE TWO:

Several colleges and universities are in the Finger Lakes area. They include Ithaca
College, Colgate University and Cornell University.

Cornell honors Cayuga Lake in its school song, which begins: "Far above Cayuga’s
waters / With its waves of blue / Stands our noble alma mater / Glorious to view.”

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

The first people to view the beauty of the Finger Lakes were the Indians. The Iroquois
believed that the Great Spirit formed the lakes. The Great Spirit was closely linked
with nature.
VOICE TWO:

Science tells us that a large body of ice moved across the land. The last glacier
covered large areas of what is now the northeastern United States about twenty
thousand years ago. The glacier moved south and then north again.

In doing so, it moved through many river valleys. It made the valleys deeper and
wider than they were before. Then the ice started melting and moved north again.
The glacier left huge amounts of soil and rocks in what scientists call the Valley
Heads Moraine. A moraine is a landform created by all the material carried and left by
a glacier.

VOICE ONE:

The Valley Heads Moraine prevented old rivers from flowing south, as they had
before. This left the valleys filled with water. And this is how scientists say the Finger
Lakes came to be.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Our program was written by Jerilyn Watson and produced by Caty Weaver. I’m Steve
Ember.

VOICE ONE:

And I’m Barbara Klein. Transcripts and MP3s of our programs can be downloaded at
voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA
Special English.
VOASE071217_Agriculture Report

17 December 2007

When the END Comes: Fighting Exotic

Newcastle Disease
The infection spreads quickly among chickens and other birds and can cause huge economic losses.

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.

Exotic Newcastle disease is a bird virus found in many parts

of the world. Many kinds of birds carry it. But it especially
affects chickens and a few others.

It spreads very fast and there is no treatment. Many birds die

without appearing sick. The infection does not present a
serious health threat to humans. But economic losses can
be huge as birds are destroyed and trade is restricted to
contain outbreaks.

Exotic Newcastle disease, also known as END, is the most severe form of Newcastle
disease.

Experts say the easiest way to prevent the virus is to import birds from flocks that are
disease-free. Vaccines are also used, although experts say the virus may sometimes
cause deaths even in vaccinated flocks.

In the United States, the Agriculture Department says poultry birds are rarely
vaccinated against the virus unless an outbreak happens. The most recent outbreak
began in two thousand two in California. State officials said it cost more than one
hundred sixty million dollars to fight. California was declared disease-free the next
year, after the killing of more than three million birds.

The Global Invasive Species Database says signs of the disease may appear from
two to fifteen days after a bird is infected. An infected hen lays fewer or no eggs, or
eggs with thin shells. A sick bird may develop breathing and intestinal problems and
twist its head and neck. It may run around in circles or not move at all.

Exotic Newcastle disease spreads fastest among birds kept close together. The virus
is spread through bird droppings and fluid from the nose, mouth and eyes.

To control outbreaks, experts advise quick destruction of infected flocks. They also
advise limiting entry to farms and disinfecting vehicles as they come and go.

People can also transport the virus on their shoes and clothes. The virus can survive
several weeks in a warm, moist environment. And there seems to be no limit if it is
frozen. But ultraviolet rays in sunlight can kill it.

To reduce infection risks, the Organization for World Animal Health warns against
keeping any pet birds on a farm. It even advises against hiring pet bird owners as
farm workers. The Agriculture Department says Amazon parrots, for example, can
spread the virus for more than a year but not get sick.

And that's the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm
Steve Ember.
VOASE071217_Science In the News

17 December 2007

What Diabetes Is, How It Is Treated, and

What You Can Do to Prevent It
Learn about the different kinds of diabetes, and how exercise and diet may reduce the risk of
developing type two diabetes.

VOICE ONE:

This is SCIENCE IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English. I'm Faith Lapidus.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Bob Doughty. Today, we tell about the disease

diabetes. The United Nations World Health Organization
says diabetes killed more than one million people around
the world in two thousand five. The W.H.O. says the
disease was also involved in many other deaths. It
warns that deaths linked to diabetes are likely to increase
by more than fifty percent in the next ten years without
urgent action. Doctors say people can
reduce the risk of some
(MUSIC)
kinds of diabetes by
VOICE ONE: increasing exercise and
eating a healthy diet
Diabetes is the name for a medical condition in which too
much glucose, or sugar, builds up in the blood. Diabetes develops when the body
does not make enough of the hormone insulin or makes no insulin at all. It also can
develop when the body is not able to use the insulin that is made.

The body changes food into a sugar called glucose. Glucose enters the blood and is
taken to cells in all parts of the body. Insulin helps the muscles, organs and tissues
take in the glucose and change it into energy.
VOICE TWO:

The pancreas is the organ that produces insulin. When too much glucose is in the
blood, the pancreas produces the necessary insulin and sends it into the blood. The
insulin reduces the level of blood sugar by letting it enter cells.

Diabetes is present when too much glucose remains in the blood and does not enter
cells. If the amount of glucose in the blood remains too high, it begins to damage the
body.

Over time, diabetes can cause blindness, kidney disease, and nerve damage. High
glucose levels in the blood also can lead to strokes and heart disease. Blood flow
also is affected, especially in the legs. Often, victims of diabetes must have a foot or
even a leg removed because of problems linked to the disease. Diabetes patients
are more likely than other people to die of heart disease or kidney failure.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

There are two main kinds of diabetes: type one and type
two. Type one diabetes generally affects children and
young people. It results from a lack of insulin
production. The exact cause is not known. But some
experts believe the body’s defenses against disease for
some reason destroy the cells that produce insulin.

Signs of the disease may develop suddenly. People

suffering from type one Diabetes may develop a strong
desire for food or something to drink. Other signs are
A type 1
increased production of liquid wastes, loss of body weight,
diabetes patient
changes in eyesight and feeling extremely tired.
prepares her insulin
People with type one diabetes almost always need daily injections of
insulin. Diabetes patients must always know their blood sugar levels. When
glucose levels are too high, they must use insulin to reduce them. Type one patients
must inject insulin every day, often several times. Type two patients may use
medicines that help reduce their glucose levels.

(MUSIC)
VOICE TWO:

The World Health Organization estimates that about ninety

percent of people with diabetes worldwide have type
two. This kind of diabetes was seen only in adults until
recently. It is now being increasingly seen in children who
are very fat.

Most people with type two diabetes are overweight and need
physical exercise. Their bodies cannot produce enough
People in New Delhi,
insulin to reduce glucose levels in their blood. Or their
India, join in a
bodies do not react correctly to the insulin being produced.
campaign against
diabetes on World Signs of type two diabetes are similar to those of type
Diabetes Day, one. But experts say many people with type two diabetes
November 14, 2007. have no signs. As a result, the disease may not be
recognized until after the patient has already begun to develop medical problems.

VOICE ONE:

Steve Fuchs is a dental health expert who lives in Washington, D.C. When he was
fifty years old, he became concerned about an unusual feeling in his feet. So he
went to a foot doctor. The doctor said the unusual feeling could be an early sign of
diabetes. He urged Mister Fuchs to seek immediate medical help.

The foot doctor was correct. Steve Fuchs was found to have type two
diabetes. Steve says he was not really surprised because his father and other family
members also had the disease.

VOICE TWO:

Experts say genes seem to be important in the development of diabetes. They say
that about ninety percent of those with type two diabetes have family members who
also had the disease.

In recent years, scientists have found several genes linked to type two
diabetes. Some also are linked to being extremely overweight. Medical experts say
people with type two diabetes can take steps to help their cells get more glucose from
the blood. This can be done with medicine, increased physical exercise and dietary
changes.
VOICE ONE:

Allison Brown is a mother of two young children. She lives with her family in
Cleveland, Ohio. She discovered her extremely high blood sugar levels a few years
ago after a blood test required by an insurance company. She had never
experienced any signs of diabetes.

Miz Brown says she was fairly surprised to learn the test results. But at the same
time she was not shocked because her grandmother and great grandmother also had
diabetes.

Her doctor immediately treated her with medicine to reduce her blood sugar
levels. She began exercising more and changed her diet. Today, Miz Brown takes
medicine and eats no carbohydrates or sugar and not a lot of fruit. Carbohydrates
such as potatoes, pasta and rice appear in the blood as sugar. And many kinds of
fruit enter the blood as sugar.

VOICE TWO:

Allison Brown measured her blood sugar levels even more carefully when she
became pregnant. She says pregnancy can be dangerous for a diabetic person
without medical supervision.

She visited her doctors often and had many tests. She also began injecting insulin
instead of taking pills to control her blood sugar. She changed back to taking the
medicine after each of her children was born.

Miz Brown says it is important for people to measure their blood sugar levels so
diabetes can be discovered before it begins to damage the body. She says diabetes
changes your life, but you will be healthier as a result of medical treatment.

VOICE ONE:

Allison Brown knew she had diabetes before she became pregnant. But some
women develop unexpected diabetes during pregnancy. This is called gestational
diabetes, and usually disappears after the baby is born.

Hormones produced during pregnancy slowly stop the action of insulin in the
body. Usually, the woman's pancreas is able to produce more insulin to answer this
change. If not, sugar levels will increase, and the woman will develop gestational
diabetes.
Treatment for gestational diabetes is similar to the treatment for type two diabetes:
dietary changes and exercise. Some women also may need to take insulin.

Medical researchers say gestational diabetes increases the risk of the developing
child having diabetes later in life. Also, women who have had it are at a sixty percent
increased risk of developing type two diabetes. But doctors say women can reduce
that risk by keeping a healthy weight and exercising.

VOICE TWO:

Women who develop gestational diabetes know they are at increased risk for the
disease. Others who get type two diabetes have no idea they may develop it. That
is why medical experts say it is so important for people to get health examinations,
because diabetes can be prevented.

Doctors have identified a condition they call pre-diabetes. This is when a person has
higher than normal levels of glucose in the blood, but not high enough to be
considered diabetes.

Doctors say people with this condition can reduce the chance of getting diabetes by
increasing exercise and eating low-fat foods. At least two kinds of medicine have
been shown to be effective in preventing diabetes in people with pre-diabetes.

Doctors say healthy people should have their blood sugar tested every year,
especially those with a family history of diabetes. That way, they will have a chance
to change their medical futures and prevent or delay the development of diabetes.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

This SCIENCE IN THE NEWS program was written by Nancy Steinbach. Our
producer was Brianna Blake. I'm Faith Lapidus.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Bob Doughty. Read and listen to our programs at

voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for more news about science in
Special English on the Voice of America.
VOASE071218_Explorations

18 December 2007

For Art Lovers, Art Basel in Miami

Beach Was the Place to Be
Visitors could see art from 200 galleries representing 30 countries.

Correction attached

VOICE ONE:

I’m Bob Doughty.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Pat Bodnar with EXPLORATIONS in VOA

Special English. Today, we travel to the warm and
sunny city of Miami, Florida to visit the largest modern
art show in the United States. For the past six years,
art galleries, dealers, and artists from all over the
world have gathered for Art Basel Miami Beach. Many
other smaller art fairs also take place around the city.
For five days in December, these fairs in Miami
become an important center of the art industry and
market. Choe U-Ram’s mechanical
flower
(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Art Basel Miami Beach is linked to Art Basel, a famous art show that has been taking
place for over thirty-eight years in Switzerland.

The Miami version of the show was held this year in the Miami Convention Center
from December fifth to the ninth. Forty-three thousand people visited the fair, which
included art from two hundred galleries in thirty countries. Walking through the fair is
an exciting experience in which you are completely surrounded by art. You might feel
like you are in a museum, but the artwork around you is all for sale. On the walls of
the many gallery exhibition spaces, you could find works by some of the most famous
artists in the world such as Pablo Picasso and Andy Warhol. There were also works
by many important living artists such as Barbara Kruger, Anish Kapoor, and Damien
Hirst.

VOICE TWO:

Modern art can take surprising forms. You are as likely to find videos, machines, or
light bulbs as you are to find paintings and photographs. One unusual sculpture
combined ice and sound.

(SOUND)

This sculpture is by American artist Kelly Nipper. Pieces of ice hanging from a metal
form fell onto a surface similar to a drum instrument. The falling drops made a sound,
which was then repeated much more loudly by a speaker device.

VOICE ONE:

You might even find a few pieces that do not at first

seem like a work of art. For example, the artist Xu
Zhen made an installation piece that looks like a
modern food shop in China. The artist recreated
boxes and bottles of common foods and drinks. He
included lights and shelves for storage. There was
even a woman operating the cash register where
visitors could try to pay for goods. But all of the
Xu Zhen’s supermarket work containers were empty. So the store became pointless.
of art Xu Zhen makes an interesting statement about
modern society and the culture of buying and using, or
consuming, goods.

VOICE TWO:

Art that comments on the culture of consumption serves as a reminder that Art Basel
is, after all, about business. Millions of dollars of art are bought and sold at this event.
Many companies pay large amounts of money to help support the show and its many
events and parties. For some collectors, buying art is more about making an
investment than about having something nice to hang on the wall.

VOICE ONE:

The art market can be very competitive. Some collectors decide to “flip” art by
purchasing art from a gallery at a good price. As the artist’s work becomes more
popular, its price increases because there is higher demand than supply. Several
years later, a collector can sell the same piece of art at an auction house where
buyers compete to purchase the piece. The collector can then make a great deal of
money. To fight this problem, art galleries can require buyers to sign an agreement
that if they resell the art, they must first make an offer to sell it back to the art gallery.

Some art collectors like the fact that they can get higher prices for their works in the
competitive sales environment of an auction house. But for artists, higher prices
mean their work is less likely to be bought by museums. And some artists would
rather see their works enjoyed by collectors rather than treated like a traded object.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Art Basel may be the place to buy some of the most costly and famous art. But more
than twenty other art fairs also take place in Miami at the same time.

One of them is called Pulse Miami, now in its third year. This contemporary art show
included works from eighty galleries in sixteen countries. The show takes place in the
Wynwood area of Miami, which is filled with industrial buildings and warehouses.
Helen Allen helped create Pulse. She says that in such a competitive area as the art
world, Pulse helps support new and inventive art and programs that are separate
from the Art Basel show.

VOICE ONE:

One striking artist at Pulse is represented by the Pavel Zoubok Gallery in New York
City. Mark Wagner makes extraordinarily detailed collage works. He cuts pieces of
paper and sticks them with glue to a paper surface to create pictures. But the kind of
paper he uses might surprise you.

MARK WAGNER:
"Hello, I’m Mark Wagner. I’m an artist based out of Brooklyn and I make artwork
that’s

made entirely out of the U.S. one dollar bill. I was making
a lot of collage and realized that a lot of people were
drawn to things that were familiar to them, so eventually
ended up on what’s the most familiar piece of paper in
America, and it’s the one-dollar bill. Everyone has it in
their hands all the time. And, I wanted to take that thing
that everyone was familiar with and make something very
unfamiliar out of it."

Since the American President George Washington is on

A collage by Mark
the dollar bill, many of Mark Wagner’s works show
Wagner
Washington doing different activities. In one work, he is
cutting a cherry-tree while in another piece he is rowing a boat in a sea of dollar bills.

VOICE TWO:

Another gallery at Pulse called bitforms showed artists who make moving sculptures.
One work by Choe U-Ram looked like a large metal flower that opened and closed.
The work was as artistically interesting as it was mechanically perfect.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

The NADA art fair is organized by the New Art Dealers Alliance. Galleries from
Europe, Mexico, Japan and other countries come together in a building called the Ice
Palace to show their art. For example, Rodeo Gallery from Istanbul showed the work
of the Turkish artist Ahmet Öğüt. Özge Ersoy works with this gallery. She explained
that this artist's twenty-three drawings show different important artists, museum
directors and art historians. With these works and others, he explores the power
structures that exist within the art world.

VOICE TWO:

One gallery from New York City had a moving sculpture called “The Message” by
David Ellis and Roberto Lange. You could hear the work before you could actually
see it.
(SOUND)

“The Message” consists of a processor that controls a typewriter and a box of bottles
and paint cans. The typewriter writes out the words of a song onto paper while a
drum instrument hits glass and metal objects to create a beat. Listen as one of the
artists explains more.

ROBERTO LANGE:

“My name is Roberto Lange. The piece is called “The Message” and it is based on
the Grandmaster Flash song “The Message.” So, it types out the lyrics and keeps the
lyrics in tempo of the beat. The piece was made by David Ellis and myself. David Ellis
he put the whole sculpture together and did the whole concept and I did the musical
composition aspect of it.”

VOICE ONE:

Other shows took place in more unusual settings. Fountain, a show with galleries
from Brooklyn, New York, was held in a warehouse. If you were tired of seeing art
inside, you could walk outside Fountain and see well-known graffiti artists creating
spray-painted pictures on the walls. The galleries Aqua and Flow held their shows in
hotels. And another group of galleries showed their collections on a boat called the
SeaFair. This seventy meter long yacht was specially built to be an exhibition space.
If you got tired -- or seasick -- from looking at art, you could rest at one of the
restaurants on the boat.

VOICE TWO:

Philae Knight works for the New York art sellers Phillips de Pury and Company. She
says that smaller art shows like Pulse and NADA allow experienced art collectors the
satisfaction of discovering the work of artists who are not yet well known. And, she
says that the shows are also great for beginning art collectors to find work they love
at good prices.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:
Visiting Art Basel and the other shows was about
more than just the art. It was also a good excuse for a
party. Every day there were many social gatherings
and concerts throughout the city. For example, the
American rock musician Iggy Pop gave a concert one
night on the beach. Another night, Busta Rhymes and
Moby performed. And visitors could watch the artist
Jona Cerwinske paint a picture in the swimming pool
of the Delano Hotel. Jona Cerwinske making art in
the swimming pool of the
VOICE TWO:
Delano Hotel
Art Basel and its satellite shows gave visitors an exciting chance to explore and
discover every imaginable kind of art. Visitors got to experience the inventiveness,
energy and creativity of art today.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

This program was written and produced by Dana Demange. I’m Bob Doughty.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Pat Bodnar. To learn more about Art Basel and see photographs of its
galleries and visitors, you can visit w-w-w dot art basel dot com. To read the text of
this program and download audio, go to our Web site, voaspecialenglish.com. Join
us again next week for EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English.

---

Correction: Art Basel Miami Beach was held at the Miami Beach Convention Center
in the city of Miami Beach, not at the Miami Convention Center, or the city of Miami,
as reported in this story.
VOASE071218_Health Report

18 December 2007

In Treating Hypothermia, Slow and

Gentle Are Best
Sudden movements of cold blood in the body can cause shock and a heart attack. Second of two
reports.

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

We talked last week about ways to avoid hypothermia and other cold-weather injuries.
Today we are going to talk about emergency treatment.

Hypothermia can be mild, moderate or severe. Mild hypothermia is something that

most people who live in cold climates have experienced. You feel so cold that your
body starts to shake, not very much but uncontrollably.

The treatment for mild hypothermia starts with getting out of the cold, and changing
into dry clothes if necessary. Drinking warm, non-alcoholic liquids and eating
something sugary can stop the shivering. Taking a warm bath or sitting by a fire or
doing some exercise can also help the body warm up. These are all common sense
treatments.

But the treatment changes when people enter the moderate or severe stages of
hypothermia. Their body temperature drops below thirty-five degrees Celsius. They
lose the ability to think clearly. Their muscles become stiff. They might bump into
things or fall over objects.

Adrienne Freeman is a park ranger at Yosemite National Park in California. She is

part of the Yosemite Search and Rescue team. She says rescuers will first try to
prevent additional heat loss by placing extra covering around a victim’s chest, head
and neck.
She says it is important to work fast to get people out of the cold and to medical help
as soon as possible. But she says it is equally important to move the victim slowly
and gently.

Ranger Freeman says any rough or sudden movement can force cold blood from the
arms, legs and hands deep into the warmer middle of the body. The sudden flow of
cold blood can create shock, a serious condition. It can also cause a dangerously
abnormal heartbeat.

Adrienne Freeman says the process of "rewarming" a person needs to be done

slowly, in a hospital setting. She says something else to keep in mind is that a
hypothermia victim may seem dead but still be alive.

An extremely low body temperature can cause the heart to beat so slowly that a pulse
may be difficult to find. Ranger Freeman says members of search and rescue teams
have a saying that victims are not dead until they are warm and dead.

And that’s the VOA Special English Health Report, written by Caty Weaver. If you
missed last week's advice about how to avoid cold-weather injuries, it can be found at
voaspecialenglish.com. I’m Faith Lapidus.
VOASE071219_Education Report

19 December 2007

College Athletes: Students First,

Athletes Second?
A rundown of the debate over the treatment of players in American schools. First of two parts.

This is the VOA Special English Education Report.

One of our listeners has a question about college athletes in the United States. Amni
Garcia in Mexico would like to know how much they study.

Well, we suppose that like any other students, there are those who study a lot, those
who study just enough and those who struggle. But this question touches on a hotly
debated subject.

College sports, especially football and basketball, are

a big industry. Nationally rated teams and television
broadcast rights can be worth millions of dollars.

This could be seen as a good deal all around.

Colleges invest in their players and, in return, the
schools earn money and attention. The athletes often
get a free education. And they gain experience that
might lead to a chance to play professionally.

But critics question the morality of a situation where Football great Joe Namath,
college athletes may seem valued more as athletes right, graduating Saturday
than as college students. Praise is heard for recent from the University of
improvements in graduation rates. Yet critics say that Alabama -- 42 years after he
some players who finish college never really learn left to join the New York Jets
anything except their sport.
Getting back to the question of how much college athletes study, a better answer
would be: it all depends. The expectations and pressures on athletes differ from
school to school and sport to sport.

The National Collegiate Athletic Association governs college sports in the United
States. For the past few years, this organization has been increasing requirements
for student athletes. That includes high school students who want to compete on
Division One teams -- the top division in college sports.

College athletes are required to make continual progress toward earning their degree.
New reforms aim to punish Division One schools that do not graduate enough of their
athletes.

Yet finishing college is not always a goal for students who are good enough to play
professionally. Is this short-term thinking? A sports career may not last very long, or
lead to the wealth and fame that young players may dream of. But there are always
exceptions.

Fans of American football may remember the retired New York Jets quarterback Joe
Namath. Last weekend, he graduated from the University of Alabama. He left that
school forty-two years ago to play for the Jets. Now he is sixty-four, but he went back
-- in part, he says, because he had promised his mother to finish his education.

And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach.
Next week, more on the subject of college athletes. I'm Steve Ember.
VOASE071219_The Making of a Nation

19 December 2007

US History: A Declaration for Life,

Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness
A 33-year-old Virginia planter, Thomas Jefferson, wrote the Declaration of Independence in 17 days.
America’s colonial leaders wanted the world to understand why they were rebelling against Britain.

VOICE ONE:

This is Rich Kleinfeldt.

VOICE TWO:

And this is Sarah Long with THE MAKING OF A NATION, a VOA Special English
program about the history of the United States. Today, we continue the story of the
American Revolution against Britain in the late seventeen hundreds.

(SOUND)

VOICE ONE:

Battles had been fought between Massachusetts soldiers and British military forces in
the towns of Lexington and Concord. Yet, war had not been declared. Even so,
citizen soldiers in each of the thirteen American
colonies were ready to fight.

This was the first question faced by the Second George Washington's
Continental Congress meeting in Philadelphia, commission as
Pennsylvania. Who was going to organize these men commander-in-chief, signed
into an army? Delegates to the Congress decided by John Hancock and
that the man for the job was George Washington. He Charles Thompson
had experience fighting in the French and Indian
War. He was thought to know more than any other
colonist about being a military
commander. Washington accepted the position. But he said he would not take any
money for leading the new Continental Army. Washington left Philadelphia for Boston
to take command of the soldiers there.

VOICE TWO:

Delegates to the Second Continental Congress made one more attempt to prevent
war with Britain. They sent another message to King George. They asked him to
consider their problems and try to find a solution. The king would not even read the
message.

You may wonder: Why would the delegates try to prevent war if the people were
ready to fight? The answer is that most members of the Congress -- and most of the
colonists -- were not yet ready to break away from Britain. They continued to believe
they could have greater self-government and still be part of the British Empire. But
that was not to be.

VOICE ONE:

Two days after the Congress appointed George

Washington as army commander, colonists and
British troops fought the first major battle of the
American Revolution. It was called the Battle of
Bunker Hill, although it really involved two
hills: Bunker and Breed's. Both are just across the
Charles River from the city of Boston.

Massachusetts soldiers dug positions on Breed's Hill

one night in June, seventeen seventy-five. By
Detail from a drawing made
morning, the hill was filled with troops. The British
shortly after the Battle of
started to attack from across the river. The
Bunker Hill by British
Americans had very little gunpowder. They were
Lieutenant Thomas Page
forced to wait until the British had crossed the river
and were almost on top of them before they fired their guns. Their commander
reportedly told them: Do not fire until you see the whites of the British soldiers' eyes.

VOICE TWO:

The British climbed the hill. The Americans fired. A second group climbed the
hill. The Americans fired again. The third time, the British reached the top, but the
Americans were gone. They had left because they had no more gunpowder. The
British captured Breed's Hill. More than one thousand had been killed or wounded in
the attempt. The Americans lost about four hundred.

That battle greatly reduced whatever hope was left for a negotiated settlement. King
George declared the colonies to be in open rebellion. And the Continental Congress
approved a declaration condemning everything the British had done since seventeen
sixty-three.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

The American colonists fought several battles against

British troops during seventeen seventy-five. Yet the
colonies were still not ready to declare war. Then, the
following year, the British decided to use Hessian
soldiers to fight against the colonists. Hessians were
mostly German mercenaries who fought for anyone
who paid them. The colonists feared these soldiers
and hated Britain for using them.

At about the same time, Thomas Paine published a

General George Washington
little document that had a great effect on the citizens
in 'The Prayer at Valley
of America. He named it, "Common Sense." It
Forge,' painted by H.
attacked King George, as well as the idea of
Brueckner
government by kings. It called for independence.

About one hundred fifty thousand copies of "Common Sense" were sold in
America. Everyone talked about it. As a result, the Continental Congress began to
act. It opened American ports to foreign shipping. It urged colonists to establish
state governments and to write constitutions. On June seventh, delegate Richard
Henry Lee of Virginia proposed a resolution for independence.

VOICE TWO:

The resolution was not approved immediately. Declaring independence was an

extremely serious step. Signing such a document would make delegates to the
Continental Congress traitors to Britain. They would be killed if captured by the
British.
The delegates wanted the world to understand what they were doing, and why. So
they appointed a committee to write a document giving the reasons for their
actions. One member of the committee was the Virginian, Thomas Jefferson. He
had already written a report criticizing the British form of government. So the other
committee members asked him to prepare the new document. They said he was the
best writer in the group. They were right. It took him seventeen days to complete the
document that the delegates approved on July fourth, seventeen seventy-six. It was
America's Declaration of Independence.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Jefferson's document was divided into two parts. The

first part explained the right of any people to revolt. It
also described the ideas the Americans used to create
a new, republican form of government. The
Declaration of Independence begins this way:

ANNOUNCER:

When in the course of human events, it becomes

necessary for one people to dissolve the political
From Thomas Jefferson's first bands which have connected them to another, and to
attempt at writing the assume among the powers of the earth, the separate
Declaration of Independence and equal station to which the laws of nature and of
Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that
they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

VOICE ONE:

Jefferson continued by saying that all people are equal in the eyes of
God. Therefore, governments can exist only by permission of the people they
govern. He wrote:

ANNOUNCER:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal and that they
are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are
Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments
are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the
governed.

VOICE ONE:

The next part states why the American colonies decided to separate from Britain:

ANNOUNCER:

That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the
Right of the People to alter or abolish it.

VOICE ONE:

This is why the Americans were rebelling against England. The British believed the
Americans were violating their law. Jefferson rejected this idea. He claimed that
the British treatment of the American colonies violated the natural laws of God. He
and others believed a natural law exists that is more powerful than a king.

The idea of a natural law had been developed by British and French philosophers
more than one hundred years earlier. Jefferson had studied these philosophers in
school. In later years, however, he said he did not re-read these ideas while he was
writing the Declaration. He said the words came straight from his heart.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

The second part of the Declaration lists twenty-seven complaints by the American
colonies against the British government. The major ones concerned British taxes on
Americans and the presence of British troops in the colonies. After the list of
complaints, Jefferson wrote this strong statement of independence:

ANNOUNCER:

That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent
States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown and that all
political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be
totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States they have the full Power to
levy War, conduct Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and do all other
Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do.
VOICE TWO:

The last statement of the Declaration of Independence was meant to influence the
delegates into giving strong support for that most serious step -- revolution:

ANNOUNCER:

And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine
Providence we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred
Honor.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Today's MAKING OF A NATION program was written by Nancy Steinbach. Shep

O’Neal read the Declaration of Independence. This is Rich Kleinfeldt.

VOICE TWO:

And this is Sarah Long. Join us again next week for another VOA Special English
program about the history of the United States.
______

This was program #12 in THE MAKING OF A NATION

VOASE071220_American Mosaic

20 December 2007

The Washington Crafts Show Brings

Together Artists Using Many Different
Materials
Also: A listener in Burma asks how Americans celebrate Christmas. And holiday music nominated for a
Grammy Award.

HOST:

Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC in VOA Special English.

(MUSIC)

I'm Doug Johnson. On our show this week:

We listen to some holiday music that has been nominated for a Grammy Award …

Answer a question about how Americans celebrate Christmas …

And tell about a yearly craft show.

Washington Craft Show

HOST:

Earlier this year, we told about the Smithsonian Craft Show that takes place in
Washington, D.C., in the spring. This month, another yearly craft show was held in
the city. Visitors to the Washington Craft Show could see the work of almost two
hundred skilled artists from around the United States. The artists make beautiful
works of art out of materials such as glass, cloth, wood, metal and paper. Faith
Lapidus tells us more.

FAITH LAPIDUS:
The company Crafts America organizes three craft shows every year. The shows are
in Westchester County, New York; West Palm Beach, Florida, and Washington,
D.C. Every year, Crafts America appoints three craft experts to choose from among
one thousand artists who apply to be in the craft show. The judges rate each artist on
creativity, skill, and quality.

Walking through the Washington Craft Show is an exciting experience filled with
artistic surprises. For example, you might see basket containers made by Christine
and Michael Adcock. These artists from the state of California weave together fiber
material from plants. They create wildly unusual baskets in different shapes and
earthy colors.

Jeung-Hwa Park makes colorful scarves to wear around the neck. But her silk and
wool creations are more like sculptures than just clothing. She forms the material to
make small balls that almost look like bubbles. At the Craft Show, Miz Park hung all
her scarves based on color. Her exhibit space looked like a rainbow of cloth art.

David D’Imperio is an artist and inventor who works

with light. His lights for the home combine the details
of machinery with the forms found in nature. One light,
called "La Brea," is made for placing on a table or
desk surface. It looks like a small bending tree made
from stainless steel. The branches of the tree have
very small LEDs or Light Emitting Diodes. The La
Brea light combines modern technology with the
David D’Imperio's ''La Brea'' timeless beauty of trees.
light
To see pictures of the work made by these artists and
many others, you can visit www.craftsamericashows.com.

Christmas in America

HOST:

Our listener question this week comes from Burma. Soe Lwin Kyaw asks how
Americans celebrate Christmas, December twenty-fifth, the day Christians believe
Jesus Christ was born.

Not all Americans celebrate Christmas. Members of the Jewish and Muslim religions,
for example, generally do not. But those who do celebrate Christmas do so in many
different ways. Many Christians will go to church the night before the holiday or on
Christmas Day. Christian ministers will speak about the need for peace and
understanding in the world. This is the spiritual message of Christmas.

Many other Americans will celebrate Christmas as an important, but non-religious,

holiday. They have put bright colorful lights on the outside of their houses. For many
people, the most enjoyable tradition is buying a Christmas tree, placing it in their
house and decorating it with lights and beautiful objects. On Christmas Eve or
Christmas morning, the family will gather around the tree to
open presents.

Some people will travel long distances to be with their families

for Christmas. But others will take a holiday trip to a warm
area. Elizabeth Varela of McLean, Virginia likes to go to Florida
with her husband and two little boys. But, she says, this year
they do not feel as carefree about financial issues. She says
they will stay home and save money.

Most Christmas celebrations include some kind of gift exchange.

Many young children believe gifts come from Santa
A Christmas tree is
Claus. Tradition says Santa is a fat, happy man who brings
a holiday tradition
presents to children around the world on the night before
for many
Christmas.
Americans
Some people pay little attention to Santa, however. Kris Solberg is director of a
Baptist pre-school in Falls Church, Virginia. She says Santa is not a major subject in
classes. She says she wants her students to think more about the birth of Jesus
Christ.

Santa Claus is also the subject of debate this year in the United States. The acting
Surgeon General Steven Galson recently said the fat man is a bad example for
children. He was speaking at a conference on obesity among children. His
comments created much debate for and against fat Santas.

Americans also continue to debate the appearance of Christmas traditions in public

places. Some argue that such displays may offend or insult people who do not
celebrate the holiday. And they say such displays violate laws that separate religion
and government. But opponents say the United States is a majority Christian country
based on freedom of religion. They say moves to restrict displays and traditions
connected to the holiday amount to a “War on Christmas.”
Christmas Music Nominated for Grammies

HOST:

The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences has announced the list of
nominees for the two thousand eight Grammy Awards. The ceremony will be held in
Los Angeles, California in February. Barbara Klein tells us about some of them.

BARBARA KLEIN:

The Grammy Awards recognize excellent musical recordings and the people who
create them. The award is a small statue that is shaped like the early record player
called a gramophone. The word “Grammy” is a short way of saying gramophone.

Members of the Recording Academy choose the best music each year. Awards are
given for all kinds of music — popular, jazz, classical, country, rap and many others.

Singers nominated for the Traditional Pop Vocal Album

award this year are Michael

Buble, Queen Latifah, Barbra Streisand, James Taylor

and Bette Midler. Two of the nominated albums have
Christmas songs. The first is "James Taylor At
Christmas." Here is one of the songs on that album,
"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas."

(MUSIC)

The other Christmas album nominated for a Pop Vocal

Grammy this year is Bette Midler's "Cool Yule." We
leave you now with the title song.

(MUSIC)

HOST:

I'm Doug Johnson. I hope you enjoyed our program today. It was written by Dana
Demange, Nancy Steinbach and Caty Weaver, who also was our producer. To read
the text of this program and download audio, go to our Web site,
voaspecialenglish.com.
Send your questions about American life to mosaic@voanews.com. Please include
your full name and mailing address. Or write to American Mosaic, VOA Special
English, Washington, D.C., two-zero-two-three-seven, U.S.A. Join us again next
week for AMERICAN MOSAIC, VOA’s radio magazine in Special English.
VOASE071220_Economics Report

20 December 2007

Volunteer Experts Help Businesses in

Developing Economies
How a trip to Ghana added up for an accountant sent by the International Executive Service Corps.

This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.

Abe Mirza is an American, fifty-nine years old and retired. He was trained as an
accountant. In fact, he has three degrees in financial record keeping. And he has
over twenty years of experience as a business executive.

After four years of retirement, he decided that it was time to

give something back.

On the Internet, he found an economic development

organization, the International Executive Service Corps. This
private, nonprofit group links volunteer experts and paid
consultants with local business people in developing countries.
It was established in the United States in nineteen sixty-four as
a Peace Corps for businesspeople.

In September, the International Executive Service Corps paid for Abe Mirza to travel
to West Africa. He spent more than two months preparing for an intensive, two-week
experience as a volunteer in Ghana. He went to Accra, the capital, to meet with
bankers and businesspeople.

From his early meetings he learned that the bankers wanted the businesspeople to
keep better financial records. So he taught major accounting methods to eighty
businesspeople.

These were leaders of medium-sized businesses, like Home Food Processing and
Cannery, a seller of palm oil and spices. Another example was All Pure Nature, a
maker of shea butter for skin care and other products.
The businesses were large enough to be ready to export their goods. But they had
not reached the level of record keeping that would permit them to develop a lending
relationship with banks.

The owners all had the same need to understand international accounting rules.
Accountants in Ghana and other countries are adopting a new system of financial
reporting.

Abe Mirza had to provide a lot of information. He says it was like learning everything
for a four-year college degree in one week. He not only showed the businesspeople
how to present financial statements. He also showed them how, and why, banks look
at the information.

Abe Mirza says he did a lot in his years as a businessman, but nothing compares to
the feeling of satisfaction he got from his short time in Ghana.

And that's the VOA Special English Economics Report, written by Mario Ritter. For a
link to the International Executive Service Corps, go to voaspecialenglish.com. You
can also find transcripts and MP3 files of our reports. I'm Bob Doughty.
VOASE071221_In the News

21 December 2007

Two Years of Talks Lie Ahead to Write a

New Global Warming Treaty
Agreement reached at the U.N. Climate Change Conference in Bali will launch negotiations on a
replacement for the Kyoto Protocol after 2012.

This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

Ten thousand delegates from one hundred ninety

countries attended the United Nations Climate
Change Conference in Bali, Indonesia. It ended last
Saturday with an agreement to begin negotiations for
a new treaty on global warming. The new treaty will
replace the Kyoto Protocol when parts of that treaty
end in two thousand twelve.
United Nations Secretary
Most countries seemed pleased with the steps taken
General Ban Ki-moon gives a
in Bali. The agreement is being called the Bali
speech in Bali
Roadmap. It took thirteen days to reach the
agreement, one day longer than planned. A major area of dispute in the final hours
was whether to include detailed goals for reductions in the release of heat-trapping
gases.

The European Union led a group of countries and environmentalists that wanted to
include them. But a group led by the United States and including Canada, Japan and
Saudi Arabia objected.

In the end, the American delegation accepted a compromise. Emissions targets were
made into a footnote at the end of the document. The road map calls for emission
levels recorded in two thousand to be cut in half by two thousand fifty. But future
negotiations will decide whether or not detailed goals are included in a final treaty.
The next step will be two years of negotiations on a new treaty. Conferences are
planned for Warsaw next year and Copenhagen in two thousand nine.

U.N. climate scientists warned this year of the risk of disaster unless emissions are
reduced sharply by two thousand twenty. The scientists say there is a danger of
rising seas, severe droughts and extinctions of plants and animals.

The U.N. scientists shared this year’s Nobel Peace Prize with Al Gore, the former
American vice president. Speaking in Bali, he said the United States was mainly
responsible for blocking progress at the conference. He spoke before the agreement
was announced in Bali.

In Washington, President Bush this week signed into law a major energy bill. Among
other things, cars and light trucks will have to average five more kilometers per liter of
fuel by two thousand twenty.

The bill aims to reduce the nation's dependence on oil and to limit harm to the
environment. But shortly after the signing, federal officials rejected a proposal by
California to increase restrictions on vehicle emissions in that state.

California was seeking permission from the Environmental Protection Agency to set
pollution rules that go further than current federal law. But the head of the agency
said the Bush administration is moving forward with what he called a clear national
solution. He said this is better than if individual states were to act alone and set their
own rules.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger says he plans to sue the federal

government. The E.P.A. refusal also affects sixteen other states that want to set their
own carbon dioxide limits on cars and trucks.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. I’m
Steve Ember.
VOASE071221_Word Master

21 December 2007

Words of 2007, From 'Surge' to 'Left of

Boom' to 'E-Mail Bankruptcy'
ADAM PHILLIPS: Welcome to Wordmaster. I'm Adam Phillips sitting in for Avi Arditti
and Roseanne Skirble. Today we look at some of the interesting English words that
popped up in 2007. My guest today is author, editor and public radio host Grant
Barrett.

GRANT BARRETT: "And I am a lexicographer. That means I

am somebody that compiles and edits dictionaries for a living. I
specialize in new words and slang. It's the kind of stuff that
most people don't know about yet but I'm there early. I hunt it
down, I figure out what it means and then I put it into print."

AP: "Let's start with the serious stuff first. The war in Iraq has
been foremost in many people's minds and I understand there Grant Barrett
have been some new words have come out of that. For
instance, the word 'surge.'"

GB: "That's right. Surge was a term that came about, I think it was at the end of 2005.
And what it meant was that the American government was going to send more troops
to Iraq in order to better fight the war there.

"And the troops themselves however it call it the splurge. It's kind of their way of
poking fun at it. By splurge, they mean they are throwing a lot of money and a lot of
resources and a lot of technology at a problem.

AP: "What's boom? I understand boom is a word."

GB: "Well, boom specifically, of course, is an instance of an explosion. So let's say an

IED -- an improvised explosive device -- is a boom. But the way the government looks
at it and the Defense department looks at that [is] you're left of boom. When you talk
about 'left of boom' you talk about all the things you do in order to prevent those
explosions or to prepare for them. And when you talk about 'right of boom' you talk
about all the things you do after an explosion happens. And that means better
hospital care or better methods of tracking down the person who caused the
explosions."

AP: "Why 'left' or 'right' for those meanings?"

GB: "Well, if you look at a timeline typically, what is to the left is always older and
what is to the right is newer."

AP: "Of course, soldiers are always great at grisly slang. I understand there is a new
word - meat tag."

GB: "Yes, meat tag. Soldiers wear dog tags around their necks. These have their
identification numbers on them and their names. Now some soldiers, because they
are worried about their bodies not being recognized if they should die in an explosion,
are getting their information tattooed on their body. It's put on their skin with ink."

AP: "Elsewhere in the news, there has been a lot of talk about global warming, the
environment and all that. I understand there is an interesting phrase that sounds sort
of like global warming -- but isn't."

GB: "The phrase is global weirding. And I think that requires a little bit of explanation.
By weirding we mean that the changes in temperature and changes in the
environment are making animals do strange things. Like they will migrate differently
or they will go to countries they never went to before. Others are dying off; others are
thriving. We're getting strange storms in parts of the world that have never had that
kind of weather before. Generally, it's very unusual patterns. And altogether, you can
say it's weird or odd."

AP: "The bees. They may - or may not - be an example of global weirding right?"

GB: "Yes. This year, one of the terms that came about was colony collapse disorder.
The beekeepers who keep bees in order to pollinate agricultural crops are coming
back to the hives and finding them empty. The hives are just dying. And they are not
sure why the bees are dying. It could be mites, which are very tiny little insects that
inhabit the beehives. We don't know. Definitely weird."
AP: "Now, money and computers are always a favorite theme. I understand you have
a couple of words along that line."

GB: "Yeah. One of the terms I really like this year is e-mail bankruptcy. And I should
say that this term, unlike the others, isn't necessarily brand-new, but what it is, it
came to importance this year. It became really significant."

AP: "What's the 'bankruptcy' element?"

GB: "That comes from banking. When you are in debt and you can't pay it off you can
go to court and say 'I am sorry, I can't do this anymore. I can't pay my debts. I am
officially declaring bankruptcy.

"And e-mail bankruptcy is when you have so much e-mail -- that is, so many digital
messages -- that you can't handle them, and you give up. And you say to yourself 'I'm
not even going to bother with these.' And you either delete them or you file them
away and then you send a blanket response, one generic response, to everybody
that ever sent you a message and says 'Look. If you didn't get a reply from me, you're
never going to get a reply from me. I am declaring e-mail bankruptcy. It's done!'"

AP: "Now, on the other end of the gravity scale, we've got pap."

GB: "Pap is short for paparazzi. Paparazzi is an Italian word that means
photographers of stars and famous people. And they are like gnats. They are like
bugs. If you're famous, they are constantly hovering around you and taking
photographs. And taking photographs like that is now called 'papping.' So there is a
new verb, to pap. which is to take a photograph of a famous person."

AP: "Thank you very much, Grant, for talking to us. And I wish you a very great year
full of lots of new words and great meanings!"

GB: "And global weirding to you, too!"

AP: Grant Barrett is the co-host of "A Way with Words," a language-related public
radio program and the editor of "The Double-Tongued Dictionary." For
WORDMASTER, I'm Adam Phillips.
VOASE071222_Word master

22 December 2007

Five New Year's Resolutions for

Learners to Improve Their English
AA: I'm Avi Arditti with Rosanne Skirble, and this week on Wordmaster: English
teacher Lida Baker suggests five resolutions for people who want to improve their
English in the New Year.

LIDA BAKER: "My first resolution that I would recommend

people make is to spend a certain amount of time listening to
English -- and it can be five minutes a day or it can be 10
minutes a week or it can be whatever suits a person's work
schedule, life schedule or whatever. But it's really important to
set goals and to stick to them. And it would be very helpful if
people had Internet access to do this, because what I'm going
to recommend is listening to sites that have scripts included. "

RS: "What do you do if you don't have access to a computer, how can you listen
better?

LIDA BAKER: "Well, almost everyone all over the world has access to pop music.
And one of my resolutions would be to spend time listening to English music. The
advantage of listening to music is that it's a really wonderful way to work on your
pronunciation, because you get a feeling for the stress and the rhythm of the
language when you're singing. And also music is full of idioms, so it's a terrific way to
learn colloquial vocabulary and to work on your pronunciation. And a third advantage
of listening to music is that it's really easy to remember.

"So for people who have access only to a radio, even they can do something to
improve their English just by listening to pop music. And I might add, if you do have
access to the Internet, there are lots of Internet sites that will give you the lyrics to pop
songs. Do a search, type 'music' or 'songs' plus 'lyrics,' and you'll find sites where you
can type in the name of the song and it will give you the lyrics to the song.

RS: "So spend a little bit more time listening, or have a goal for listening. Listen to
English music. What else?"

LIDA BAKER: "Something else I tell my students, and they're always surprised when
I tell them this, is read children's books."

AA: "That makes sense, though."

LIDA BAKER: "Yeah. Why do you say that?"

RS: "Well, few words."

AA: "It's simpler."

RS: "Direct, simple. Lots of pictures."

LIDA BAKER: "There you go."

RS: "That puts it in a context."

LIDA BAKER: "There you go. And the other thing is, you can find children's books at
all levels. If you were a total beginner in English, you start with books that have just a
few words on the page and lots of pictures, and you can work your way up to books
that have relatively speaking more text and fewer illustrations. But again, children's
books are very motivating. To this day I enjoy reading the books that I read to my
daughter when she was a little girl."

AA: "So now we've got the listening to the radio, listening to music, going online and
looking for scripts of programs to go with the audio, reading children's books. What's
your next resolution?"

LIDA BAKER: "Learn a new word every day. And if you don't have time to do it every
day, do it every other day. Again, pick a realistic goal. Choose your word, look up the
meaning, but then don't stop there. Look at the examples in the dictionary for how the
word is used. Is it used as a noun? Is it a verb? Is it used to talk about people? If it's
an adjective, does it have a positive meaning or a negative meaning? So look for
what's called the connotation of the word. And then, when you're sitting in your car, or
you're walking to the bus stop or sitting on the bus, practice. Put the word into your
own sentences. Think of ways that you could use that word.

"And so now we come to our last resolution, which in a way is the most difficult one,
because my last resolution would be, even if it's only very occasionally, talk to native
speakers every chance you get."

RS: Lida Baker teaches English and writes textbooks in Los Angeles, California.

AA: That's all for Wordmaster this week. Our e-mail address is word@voanews.com.
And Internet users can read and listen to all of our segments at
voanews.com/wordmaster.

RS: With Avi Arditti, I'm Rosanne Skirble.

VOASE071222_People In America

22 December 2007

Johnny Cash, 1932-2003: 'The Man in

Black' Recorded More Than a
Thousand Songs
He recorded not only country music, but religious songs, rock and roll, folk and blues.

VOICE ONE:

I’m Faith Lapidus.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Doug Johnson with the VOA Special English program PEOPLE IN AMERICA.
Today we tell about world famous country music performer Johnny Cash.

(MUSIC: "I Walk The Line")

VOICE ONE:

That was Johnny Cash singing his first major hit

record, “I Walk The Line”. It has sold more than two
million copies since it was released in nineteen
fifty-six.

Music industry experts say Johnny Cash recorded one

thousand five hundred songs during his life. He sold
more than fifty million records. He recorded not only
country music, but religious songs, rock and roll, folk
and blues.
Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash’s music could be as dark as the black
clothes he always wore. Those songs told stories
about poor people, outlaws, prisoners, coal miners, cowboys and laborers. He sang
about loneliness, death, love and faith. He also sang very funny songs, like this one,
“A Boy Named Sue.”

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Johnny Cash was born in nineteen thirty-two in the southern state of Arkansas. His
parents were poor cotton farmers. He worked in the fields alongside his parents,
three brothers and two sisters.

He also listened to country music on the radio. He began writing songs and he
performed on radio programs. After high school, he joined the United States Air
Force. He served as a radio operator in Germany.

He returned to the United States in nineteen fifty-four and married Vivian

Liberto. They moved to Memphis, Tennessee. He got a job selling kitchen
equipment and went to school to learn how to be a radio announcer.

Cash formed a band with two friends and performed at local events. They began
recording for Sun Records in Memphis. One of the songs Cash wrote became the
first country music hit record for the company. It was “Cry, Cry, Cry.”

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Johnny Cash continued to record on his own for Sun Records. He performed all
across the United States and Canada. He also appeared on radio and television
shows. His next big hit record sold more than one million copies. It was a hit for a
second time in nineteen sixty-eight after Johnny Cash recorded it live at Folsom
Prison. It was “Folsom Prison Blues.”

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

By nineteen fifty-eight, Johnny Cash was a successful recording artist, songwriter

and singer. He was invited to perform at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville,
Tennessee. He performed his music in front of live audiences in the United States
and in other countries. But he was often afraid to perform in front of a lot of people.
He began using drugs to help him perform and quickly became dependant on the
drugs. His serious drug problem caused the end of his marriage.

Johnny Cash said he took drugs regularly for seven years during the nineteen
sixties. Then he would drive cars and boats too fast and get into dangerous
accidents that almost killed him. He finally decided that he needed to stop taking
drugs. One of his best friends, country singer June Carter, helped him through this
difficult time. The Carter family is considered one of the earliest country and western
singing groups.

Johnny Cash and June Carter recorded together. They won a Grammy award in
nineteen sixty-eight for best country and western performance by a group. The song
was “Jackson.”

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Johnny Cash and June Carter were married in

nineteen sixty-eight. They performed many times
with the Carter family. She also helped him
re-discover his Christian faith.

Years earlier, June Carter had written a song about

her feelings for Johnny. His record of that song
became one of his biggest hits, “Ring Of Fire.”

(MUSIC)
June Carter Cash
VOICE TWO:

Johnny Cash had his own television show and also acted in movies. He published
two books about his life. He won many awards, including eleven Grammy Awards
and the Kennedy Center Honors. He was elected to both the Country Music Hall of
Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He also received a Grammy Lifetime
Achievement Award.

Johnny Cash suffered many health problems as he got older. When June Carter
Cash died in May, two thousand three, his friends feared the worst. But Cash
decided to continue recording.

He recorded more than fifty songs in the four months before he died on September
twelfth, two thousand three, in Nashville. He was seventy-one years old.

VOICE ONE:

Fans say that Johnny Cash’s music was important because it told simple stories
about life and death. They say he cared about social issues and continued to
express support for those who are poor and without political power. One of the last
songs he recorded was one made popular by the rock and roll group Nine Inch
Nails. It is called “Hurt.”

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

A reporter once asked Johnny Cash what he hoped people would remember about
his music. Cash said he hoped people would remember that his music described the
feelings of love and life. That it was different. And that it was honest.

(MUSIC: "I Walk The Line")

VOICE ONE:

This Special English program was written by Nancy Steinbach. It was produced by
Lawan Davis. Our studio engineer was Suleiman Tarawalay. I’m Faith Lapidus.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Doug Johnson. Join us again next week for another PEOPLE IN AMERICA
program on the Voice of America.
VOASE071222_Holiday Program

22 December 2007

White Christmas: One of the Best

Loved Holiday Songs
This is Steve Ember with a VOA Special English holiday program.

(MUSIC)

Music fills the air. Colorful lights shine brightly in

windows. Children and adults open gifts from loved
ones and friends. These are all Christmas traditions.

Another tradition is snow. Christmas in the northern

part of the world comes a few days after the start of
winter. In many places, a blanket of clean white snow
covers the ground on Christmas Day. This is what is
meant by a "White Christmas."

Of course, many places do not get snow at Christmas. In fact, they may be very
warm this time of year. People who like snow, but live where it is warm, can only
dream of having a white Christmas.

American songwriter Irving Berlin captured these feelings in his song, "White
Christmas." It is one of the most popular Christmas songs of all time.

The opening words explain why the singer is dreaming of a white Christmas. Most
people never hear these words so they never really understand the true meaning of
the song. Here’s how it starts:

The sun is shining.

The grass is green.

The orange and palm trees sway.

I’ve never seen such a day in Beverly Hills, L.A.

But it’s December the twenty-fourth

And I’m longing to be up north.

Up north, where it is cold and snowy. Not south, where it is warm and sunny.

Over the years, hundreds of singers and musicians have recorded "White
Christmas." But the version most people still know best was sung by Bing Crosby.

(MUSIC)

Songwriter Irving Berlin was born in Russia in eighteen eighty-eight. He did not
celebrate Christmas as a religious holiday. He was Jewish.

(MUSIC)

But his song celebrates an idea of peace and happiness that anyone, anywhere --
snowy or not -- can enjoy.

To all of you, best wishes this holiday season from all of us in VOA Special
English. This is Steve Ember.
VOASE071223_Development Report

23 December 2007

Do-It-Yourself: Preparing Fish for

Drying or Smoking
Rule number one: begin with fish that are just out of the water. First of two parts.

This is the VOA Special English Development Report.

Canning and freezing are not the only ways to keep

fish for future use. Today we have the first of two
reports describing, step by step, how to prepare dried
or smoked fish.

Begin with fish that are just out of the water. If the fish
are small, leave their heads on. Cut off the heads if
the fish are longer than twenty centimeters or weigh
more than one hundred fifteen grams.

Now clean the freshly caught fish. Cut off the scales
and cut open the stomach. Remove everything inside. Then wash the fish in clean
water and rub salt into them.

Next, put the fish in a container with a solution of three hundred grams of salt and one
liter of water. This will remove the blood from the meat.

Keep the fish in the salt water for about thirty minutes. Then remove them and wash
them in clean water. Now, put the fish in a solution that has more salt in the water. It
should be salty enough so that the fish float to the top. If the fish sink to the bottom,
add more salt to the water in the container.

Cover the container with a clean piece of wood. Hold the wood down with a heavy
stone. Leave the fish there for about six hours. After that, remove them from the salt
water and place them on a clean surface. Cover the fish with a clean piece of white
cloth and let them dry.
But we are not done yet. We will discuss the next steps in drying fish next week. We
will also describe the smoking process.

Another method of preparing fish is called dry salting. Wooden boxes or baskets are
used for dry salting.

After cleaning the fish, put a few of them on the bottom of the box or basket. Cover
them with salt. Put more fish on top. Cover them with salt too. Continue putting fish
and salt in the container until it is full.

Do not use too much salt when using the dry salting method. You should use one part
salt to three parts fish. For example, if you have three kilograms of fish, you should
use one kilogram of salt.

Remove the fish after a week or ten days. Wash them in a mixture of water and a
small amount of salt and let them dry.

We have talked a lot about salt. Keep in mind that doctors advise people to limit the
sodium in their diet. It can raise blood pressure, and some people have more of a
reaction than others.And that's the VOA Special English Development Report.
Transcripts and MP3 archives of our reports can be found at voaspecialenglish.com.
I'm Steve Ember.
VOASE071223_This Is America

23 December 2007

From Traditional to Modern, Sampling

This Year's Christmas Records
Songs from 10 holiday albums released in 2007.

Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special

English. I'm Barbara Klein.

Music is traditionally a big part of Christmas

celebrations. This week on our program, we have
songs from some of the new holiday albums that
came out in two thousand seven.

(MUSIC)

This is singer Patti Labelle with "Nativity." Jimmy Jam High school singers at the
and Terry Lewis wrote the song and produced her Christmas tree lighting at the
new album, "Miss Patti’s Christmas." state Capitol in Harrisburg,
Pennsylvania, on December
So when is a Christmas album not just a Christmas 12
album? When it is also the top selling album on pop
music charts: Josh Groban’s "Noel."

Here is Josh Groban singing "I’ll Be Home For Christmas."

(MUSIC)

Another singer with a new holiday album is Michael

Buble. Here he is with the title song from "Let It Snow."

(MUSIC)
From "Let It Snow" we move on to "Snow Angel," the new album from the
husband-and-wife team of Over the Rhine. Linford Detweiler and Karin Bergquist
wrote most of the songs on their new album. And even traditional Christmas songs
like "O Little Town of Bethlehem" get surprise elements. Here is their version, called
"Little Town."

(MUSIC)

Fans of the rock band the Smithereens can dance to the songs on their new release,
"Christmas With the Smithereens." Here is "Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree."

(MUSIC)

The Isley Brothers Featuring Ronald Isley add a touch of

romance to the season with their new album, "I’ll Be
Home for Christmas." The Isleys have performed since
the nineteen fifties, but this is their first holiday album.
Here is "Winter Wonderland."

(MUSIC)

Among this year's Christmas albums, "My Holiday" from

Mindy Smith might be the prettiest and it might be the
best. This was the opinion of a New York Times critic. The recording artist Chely
Wright wrote several of the songs. Mindy Smith wrote several others, including the
title track.

(MUSIC)

Fans of traditional holiday music with a country feel could find lots of it on "A Classic
Christmas" from Toby Keith. This two-disc set includes "Little Drummer Boy."

(MUSIC)

For a less traditional country Christmas, there is Raul Malo's "Marshmallow World
and Other Holiday Favorites." Here is his version of the Spanish Christmas song
"Feliz Navidad."

(MUSIC)

Our show was written and produced by Caty Weaver. I’m Barbara Klein.
We hope you can join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special
English, on the radio or at voaspecialenglish.com.

We leave you with a new version of one of the most popular holiday songs on
American radio. Here is Johnny Mathis singing "The Christmas Song" on the new
Mannheim Steamroller album, simply called "Christmas."

(MUSIC)
VOASE071224_Holiday Program

24 December 2007

Christmas With the Mormon

Tabernacle Choir
Music has always been an important part of the holiday.

HOST:

I’m Shirley Griffith with a VOA Special English program for the Christmas holiday.

Christians around the world are celebrating the birth of Jesus

Christ. In the United States, people are observing the
Christmas holiday in homes and religious centers. Music has
always been an important part of Christmas. Holiday music
fills the air. Today, we will hear a program of Christmas
music performed by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

(MUSIC)
Mormon Tabernacle
Choir HOST:

That was the Mormon Tabernacle Choir with “Joy To the World.” The Mormon
Tabernacle Choir is one of the largest singing groups in the world. It has more than
three hundred singers.

(MUSIC)

The members of the choir offer their time and skills without payment. All choir
members are Mormons who belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day
Saints.

Many Christmas songs sound most beautiful when sung by a large group. Here is
the choir performing a Ukrainian song, “Carol of the Bells.”

(MUSIC)

HOST:
“Silent Night” is perhaps the best known of all Christmas songs. An Austrian
clergyman named Joseph Mohr wrote the words. His friend Franz Gruber wrote the
music. The song was performed for the first time at a religious service on the night
before Christmas in eighteen eighteen.

At that time, it was performed with a single musical instrument -- a guitar. Here are
the men of the Tabernacle Choir with “Silent Night.”

(MUSIC)

HOST:

The Mormon Tabernacle Choir is based at the Mormon Tabernacle in Salt Lake City,
Utah. The choir made its first recording in nineteen ten. Since then, it has made
more than one hundred fifty recordings.

One recording of holiday music is called “A Mormon Tabernacle Choir

Christmas.” You are listening to music from that recording.

(MUSIC)

HOST:

This is Shirley Griffith. We hope you enjoyed our program of Christmas music. This
program was written and produced by George Grow. Our studio engineer was Greg
Burns. All of us in Special English wish you a very happy holiday season.
VOASE071224_Agriculture Report

24 December 2007

Special Trees and Plants Are Part of

the Christmas Tradition
Evergreen trees, mistletoe and poinsettias brighten the holiday.

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.

December twenty-fifth is Christmas. The holiday has many traditions. Some

special trees and plants are part of the Christmas tradition.

One of the most popular is the evergreen tree. It is usually a pine or a fir. It remains
green during the cold, dark months of winter in the northern part of the world. Many
people buy an evergreen tree for Christmas. They put it in their house and hang small
lights and colorful objects on its branches. Some people buy living trees and plant
them after the Christmas holiday. Others cut down a tree or buy a cut tree.

Another popular evergreen plant is mistletoe. It has small white berries and leaves
that feel like leather. The traditional Christmas mistletoe is native to Europe. Mistletoe
is a parasite plant. It grows by connecting itself to a tree and stealing the tree's food
and water. It can be found on apple trees, lindens, maples and poplars. Priests of
the Druid religion of ancient Britain and France believed mistletoe had magical
powers. Today, some people hang mistletoe in a doorway at Christmas time. If you
meet someone under the mistletoe, tradition gives you permission to kiss that person.

One of the most popular plants at Christmas is the poinsettia.

These plants are valued for their colorful bracts, which look
like leaves. Most poinsettias are bright red. But they also
can be white or pink. Poinsettias are native to Mexico. They
are named after America's first ambassador to Mexico, Joel
Poinsett. He liked the plant and sent some back to the
United States. Many people believe that poinsettias are
Poinsettia poisonous. But researchers say this is not true. They say
the milky liquid in the plant's stem can cause a person's skin
to become red. If children or animals eat the leaves they may become sick, but they
will not die.

Two thick, sticky substances from trees have been part of Christmas from the
beginning. They are frankincense and myrrh. Both have powerful, pleasant
smells. Tradition says three wise men carried them as gifts to the Christ child in
Bethlehem.

Finally, there are several herbs used in Christmas foods, drinks and
decorations. One is sage. Its leaves are cooked with turkey or goose. And
sweet-smelling rosemary plants are hung on doors or cut to look like little Christmas
trees.

And that's the VOA Special English Agriculture Report. We wish all of our listeners
happy holidays. I'm Steve Ember.
VOASE071225_Explorations

18 December 2007

Protecting Native American Languages

and Culture
The last of our four-part series on keeping traditions alive.

VOICE ONE:

I’m Barbara Klein.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Steve Ember with EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English. This is the last
in our series of reports about efforts to keep traditional ways alive. Today we tell
about attempts to preserve Native American cultures and languages.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

In December two thousand six, the Esther Martinez

Native American Languages Preservation Act became
an American law. United States Representative
Heather Wilson of New Mexico wrote the bill to help
stop American Indian languages from
disappearing. She says languages are an important
part of American heritage and, once lost, will never be
recovered.

The purpose of the law is to help keep Native

Representative Heather
American languages alive through language
Wilson at the 2004
immersion programs. In immersion programs, the
Republican National
native language is used most of the time to teach
Convention in New York
different subjects and to communicate with students.

Federal money will be provided to teach endangered languages to tribal members,

especially children, who do not speak their native language. Native American
programs called "language nests," survival schools, and restoration programs will
compete for the three-year grants. Tribes can receive money to expand existing
programs and to create new programs.

VOICE TWO:

To receive federal money, language nests must provide language teaching and
childcare for at least ten children under the age of seven. They also must offer
classes in the native language to parents of the students.

Language survival schools have to provide at least five hundred hours of teaching in
a native language to each of at least fifteen students. Survival schools also must
provide teacher training.

Language restoration programs must provide at least one Native American language
program for the community and train teachers of such languages. The restoration
programs also must develop Native American language teaching materials.

VOICE ONE:

Willard Gilbert is the president of the National Indian Education Association, known
as NIEA. NIEA works with all tribes to make sure the educational and cultural needs
of Native American students are met. Mister Gilbert says the Esther Martinez Native
Languages Preservation Act should help create new speakers of languages that are
dying out.

He says there were one hundred seventy-five Native American languages still
spoken in nineteen ninety-six. However only twenty of these languages will still be
spoken by the year two thousand fifty without urgent help to keep them alive.

Representative Wilson says native languages were very important to Esther

Martinez. She says passage of the law helps to honor her and her work.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:
Esther Martinez was a Tewa language teacher and
storyteller. She lived in northern New Mexico at San
Juan Pueblo, now known by its Tewa name, Ohkay
Owingeh. Missus Martinez worked for years to
preserve the Tewa language spoken in six of the
northern New Mexico pueblos. She was honored in
two thousand six by the National Endowment for the
Arts for her language work and storytelling. She died
in a car accident on the way home from receiving the
award. She was ninety-four. Esther Martinez

The National Endowment for the Arts called Missus Martinez a national treasure. It
said Esther Martinez had been a keeper of the language that was the center of
Pueblo expression and identity.

VOICE ONE:

Esther Martinez grew up in a community where storytelling was the only way of
passing on knowledge. The Tewa language was spoken, not written. Missus
Martinez began to learn to write Tewa in the nineteen sixties when she was
fifty-four. She took some college classes and began teaching the language to
children in the San Juan school. She wrote a San Juan Tewa language dictionary
that was published in nineteen eighty-three.

In two thousand three, "My Life in San Juan Pueblo, Stories of Esther Martinez" was
published. The book contains stories about her life and traditional Tewa teaching
stories. Tessie Naranjo of Santa Clara Pueblo was a friend of Esther Martinez for
many years. In a foreword to the book Miz Naranjo explains that their people come
from a tradition that values the music of language. In Tewa, she says, the words
sing as they are spoken; they create images. She says the stories in the book honor
this love of language.

VOICE TWO:

In "My Life in San Juan Pueblo," Missus Martinez explains about life when she was a
child. She tells about taking care of sheep, grinding corn, and helping an old man
who took care of animals. She tells about traveling by horse and wagon. And she
tells how she got her name, Blue Water, the English version of her Tewa name.

VOICE ONE:
Missus Martinez learned most of the traditional teaching stories from her
grandfather. In her book she writes: “You who have grandparents to talk to are so
lucky, because I treasure my grandparents and the things that I have learned from
them. My grandfather was a storyteller. Indian people get their lessons from stories
they were told as children. So a lot of our stories are learning experiences.”

Tessie Naranjo says storytelling connects Pueblo people to their past. Stories told
by older people in the community taught about community values, correct behavior
and relationships with other people.

VOICE TWO:

In nineteen eighty-eight, Esther Martinez began telling the traditional Tewa stories in
English. These stories often involve animals and imaginary creatures. Sue-Ellen
Jacobs was a professor at the University of Washington. She worked with Esther
Martinez for many years recording her stories and developing CDs for the Tewa
Language Project. She says stories serve both a religious and everyday purpose in
the pueblo.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

The Northern Pueblos Institute is part of Northern New Mexico College in

Espanola. Tribal leaders began the Institute about fifteen years ago. They wanted
to create a center at the college level for Pueblo people to do research and take
classes. Tessie Naranjo and Sue-Ellen Jacobs have been directors of the Institute
for about three years. One of the programs the Institute offers is for language
teachers in the northern New Mexico pueblos. They teach children of all ages in
area schools and adults at night. The teachers knew the language but had problems
with classroom management.

So the Northern Pueblos Institute decided to try to help them. Now, the teachers
meet at Northern New Mexico College to share ideas and learn from each other
about ways to be effective teachers.

VOICE TWO:
Through the Northern Pueblos Institute, Miz Naranjo and Miz Jacobs have developed
a new program called Pueblo Indian Studies. It is a two-year college degree
program designed to protect the culture of Pueblo Indian people.

It offers classes such as Agricultural Practices Among Pueblo Indians, Native

American Literature and Plants and Animals of the Tewa World. Tessie Naranjo
says some of the young parents in the program want their children to learn the old
stories from their communities. So in an independent study class they will be able to
work with Sue-Ellen Jacobs to create CDs of traditional stories told at least in part in
Tewa.

Miz Jacobs says the Pueblo Indian Studies program is trying to support members of
the Pueblo communities to help their cultures and languages survive. However, she
says, the program is also seeking students who are not from the Pueblos so they can
understand the traditions and culture of the Pueblo people.

VOICE ONE:

Sue-Ellen Jacobs says the community school at Ohkay Ohwingeh is continuing

Esther Martinez’s efforts to keep the Tewa language alive. She says that although
the school does not have an immersion program, almost everyone who teaches or
works there speaks Tewa. That means the children hear the language used all day.

Tessie Naranjo says it is important to create new language speakers at the college
level, the community level and the individual level. Everyone must get involved, she
says, because without new speakers of native languages, the cultures will
disappear.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

This program was written by Marilyn Rice Christiano and produced by Mario
Ritter. I’m Steve Ember.

VOICE ONE:

And I’m Barbara Klein. You can find the other parts of this series at
voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for EXPLORATIONS in VOA
Special English.
VOASE071225_Health Report

25 December 2007

Taking the Pulse of Public Opinion

About Health Problems
Researchers asked people in 47 countries to rate public health issues and the efforts of donor nations.

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

What do you think of health in your country? Researchers asked people in

forty-seven countries around the world. They also asked them what they think of the
efforts of donor nations. The findings are in the new Kaiser/Pew Global Health
Survey.

Majorities in almost every country said wealthier

nations are not doing enough to help poorer ones.
That includes help with economic development,
reducing poverty and improving health.

But in countries that receive the most development aid,

people were much more likely to say that wealthy
nations are doing enough. And in wealthier nations,
there was strong support to do more to help.

AIDS orphans wait for food in The Kaiser Family Foundation and the Pew Global
Manzini, Swaziland Attitudes Project did the survey.

The top health concern in the Latin American and Middle Eastern countries in the
survey was fighting hunger and poor nutrition. In Central and Eastern Europe, people
said they worry most about their ability to get health care. And in parts of Africa and
Asia, the most pressing health issue is preventing and treating H.I.V., the virus that
causes AIDS.
In some countries, large majorities said AIDS is a bigger problem now than it was five
years ago. But in most countries, the survey found a strong sense of progress in
treating and preventing H.I.V.

Yet finding new drugs and other treatments for public health problems is one thing.
Putting them to use in developing countries where they could save thousands of lives
each day is another.

Scientists at the Fogarty International Center in Maryland say more work in the area
of implementation science could bridge the problem. Karen Hofman is head of
international science policy at the center, part of the National Institutes of Health. She
describes implementation science as the next level for health research.

One example she notes is male circumcision. Studies have found that it may help
prevent the spread of H.I.V. But different cultures react differently to the idea of
circumcision. Doctor Hofman says researchers must now study how best to employ
this medical intervention in culturally sensitive ways.

Another example is drugs that are normally effective in suppressing H.I.V. In poor
countries, these might not work in patients who also suffer from malaria, tuberculosis
or bad nutrition. In other words, Doctor Hofman says, when it comes to treatments,
one size does not fit all.

And that’s the VOA Special English Health Report, written by Jill Moss. I’m Steve
Ember.
VOASE071226_Education Report

26 December 2007

Rating College Football Teams Off the

Field
U.S. schools face growing pressure to make sure athletes graduate. Second of two parts.

This is the VOA Special English Education Report.

Today we have the second of two reports about the education of college athletes in
the United States. Millions of Americans follow college sports, mainly football and
basketball. Schools with good teams are under pressure to win. But now they are
also under pressure to do more to make sure their players get a complete education.

On January seventh, the two top college football

teams will play in New Orleans for the national
championship. Ohio State, rated number one, will play
number two Louisiana State.

Privacy laws limit what schools can say about

academic performance. Still, we wondered how these
two universities support their football players off the
field as well as on.
Ohio State quarterback Todd
Boeckman throws a pass Stan Jefferson directs player development for the
during a game in October football program at Ohio State University. He says all
the players can receive the same academic help. This includes, in their first year of
school, required meetings of what is known as the Interactive Study Table.

This is a program in which players meet with a tutor before classes to discuss their
work. Stan Jefferson tells us that players also meet with counselors who make sure
they are progressing toward their degrees.

L.S.U. says on its Web site that football players there also receive extra help. It says
one hundred tutors are available and can provide help in every subject.
We noted last week that the organization that governs college sports is paying closer
attention to academic performance. Schools now receive an academic progress rate,
or APR, from the National Collegiate Athletic Association. This number represents
graduation rates for athletes on scholarships in each sport.

An APR of nine hundred twenty-five equals a graduation success rate of about sixty
percent. So how are the top schools doing? Nine hundred fifty was the average APR
for all the male sports teams in Division One in the last report in May.

Football teams had a lower average -- nine hundred thirty-one. Louisiana State had
an APR of nine hundred forty-one. And the Ohio State football team had an APR of
nine hundred twenty-eight.

Teams below nine hundred twenty-five must develop plans to improve their athletes'
academic performance.

Good athletes often get a free education on a scholarship. Critics say it is only fair to
these young players to invest in their minds as much as their bodies.

And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach.
The first part of our report can be found at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.
VOASE071226_The Making of a Nation

26 December 2007

American History Series: How the

Revolution Against Britain Divided
Families and Friends
Political disagreement about the war divided Benjamin Franklin and his son, William, for the rest of
their lives.

VOICE ONE:

This is Rich Kleinfeldt.

VOICE TWO:

And this is Ray Freeman with THE MAKING OF A NATION, a VOA Special English
program about the history of the United States. Today, we continue the story of the
American Revolution against Britain in the late seventeen hundreds.

(SOUND)

VOICE ONE:

George Washington and the

colonists fight the British in
''Washington Midway Delegates to the American Continental Congress
Between the Two Armies at approved and signed a Declaration of Independence
Princeton'' by H. van Ingen on July Fourth, seventeen seventy-six. The new
country called the United States of America was at
war with Britain. Yet, not everyone in the former colonies agreed on the decision.

No one knows for sure how many Americans remained loyal to Great Britain. The
Massachusetts political leader, John Adams, thought about thirty-three percent of the
colonists supported independence, thirty-three percent supported Britain, and
thirty-three percent supported neither side. Most history experts today think that
about twenty percent of the colonists supported Britain. They say the others were
neutral or supported whichever side seemed to be winning.

VOICE TWO:

As many as thirty thousand Americans fought for the British during the war. Others
helped Britain by reporting the movements of American rebel troops.

Who supported Britain? They included people appointed to their jobs by the king,
religious leaders of the Anglican Church, and people with close business connections
in Britain.

Many members of minority groups remained loyal to the king because they needed
his protection against local majority groups. Other people were loyal because they
did not want change or because they believed that independence would not improve
their lives. Some thought the actions of the British government were not bad enough
to make a rebellion necessary. Others did not believe that the rebels could win a war
against such a powerful nation as Britain.

VOICE ONE:

Native American Indians did not agree among themselves about the
revolution. Congress knew it had to make peace with the Indians as soon as the war
started, or American troops might have to fight them and the British at the same
time. To prevent trouble, American officials tried to stop settlers from moving onto
Indian lands.

In some places, the Indians joined the Americans, but generally they supported the
British. They expected the British to win. They saw the war as a chance to force the
Americans to leave their lands. At times, the Indians fought on the side of the British,
but left when the British seemed to be losing the battle. Choosing to fight for the
British proved to be a mistake. When the war was over, the Americans felt they
owed the Indians nothing.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Black slaves in the colonies also were divided about what side to join during the
American Revolution.

Thousands fought for the British, because that side offered them freedom if they
served in the army or navy. Some American states also offered to free slaves who
served, and hundreds of free blacks fought on the American side. Many slaves,
however, felt their chances for freedom were better with the British. Details are not
exact, but history experts say more blacks probably joined the British in the North
than in the South.

VOICE ONE:

At least five thousand African-Americans served with the colonial American

forces. Most had no choice. They were slaves, and their owners took them to war
or sent them to replace their sons. Others felt that a nation built on freedom might
share some of that freedom with them.

In the South, many slave owners kept their slaves at home. Later in the war, every
man was needed, although most slaves did not fight. Instead, they drove wagons
and carried supplies. Many African-Americans also served in the American
navy. Blacks who served in the colonial army and navy were not separated from
whites. Black and white men fought side by side during the American Revolution.

History experts say, however, that most black slaves spent the war as they had
always lived: working on their owners' farms.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

The American rebels called themselves patriots. They called British supporters
Tories. Patriots often seized Tories' property to help pay for the war. They also
kidnapped Tories' slaves to be used as laborers for the army. Many Tories were
forced from towns in which they had lived all their lives. Some were tortured or
hanged. In New Jersey, Tories and patriots fought one another with guns, and
sometimes burned each other's houses and farms.

VOICE ONE:

Some history experts say the American Revolution

was really the nation's first civil war. The revolution
divided many families. Perhaps the most famous
example was the family of Benjamin Franklin. Ben
Franklin signed the Declaration of Independence. His
son William was governor of the colony of New
Jersey. He supported the king. Political
disagreement about the war tore apart this father and
A painting of Benjamin son for the rest of their lives.
Franklin by Joseph-Siffrede
VOICE TWO:
Duplissis
Different ideas about the war existed among the patriots, too. That is because the
colonies did not really think of themselves as one nation. They saw themselves as
independent states trying to work together toward a goal. People from
Massachusetts, for example, thought Pennsylvania was a strange place filled with
strange people. Southerners did not like people from the North. And people who
lived in farm areas did not communicate easily with people who lived in coastal towns
and cities.

This meant that the Continental Congress could not order the states to do anything
they did not want to do. Congress could not demand that the states provide money
for the war. It could only ask for their help.

George Washington, the top general, could not take men into the army. He could
only wait for the states to send them. History experts say George Washington
showed that he was a good politician by the way he kept Congress and the thirteen
states supporting him throughout the war.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:
As the people of America did not agree about the war, the people of Britain did not
agree about it, either. Many supported the government's decision to fight. They
believed that the war was necessary to rescue loyalists from the patriots. Others did
not think Britain should fight the Americans, because the Americans had not invaded
or threatened their country. They believed that Britain should leave the colonies
alone to do as they wished.

King George was not able to do this, however. He supported the war as a way to
continue his power in the world, and to rescue British honor in the eyes of other
national leaders.

Whichever side British citizens were on, there was no question that the war was
causing severe problems in Britain. British businessmen could no longer trade with
the American colonies. Prices increased. Taxes did, too. And young men were
forced to serve in the royal navy.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

At the start of the war, the British believed that the rebellion was led by a few
extremists in New England. They thought the other colonies would surrender if that
area could be surrounded and controlled. So, they planned to separate New
England from the other colonies by taking command of the Hudson River Valley.

They changed this plan after they were defeated in the

Battle of Saratoga in New York state. Later, they
planned to capture major cities and control the coast
from Maine in the north to Georgia in the south. They
failed to do this, although they did occupy New York
City for the whole war, and at times had control over
Philadelphia and Charleston.

VOICE ONE:

British general John The British experienced many problems fighting the
Burgoyne surrenders at war. Their troops were far from home, across a wide
Saratoga, New York, in ocean. It was difficult to bring in more forces and
October 1777, as painted by supplies, and it took a long time. As the war continued,
Percy Moran American ships became more skilled at attacking
British ships at sea.

The colonial army had problems, too. Congress never had enough
money. Sometimes, it could not send General Washington the things he
needed. Often, the states did not send what they were supposed to. Americans
were not always willing to take part in the war. They were poorly trained as soldiers
and would promise to serve for only a year or so.

VOICE TWO:

The political and economic developments of the American Revolution concerned not
just the Americans and the British. European nations were watching the events in
America very closely. Those events, and the reactions in Europe, will be our story
next time.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Today's MAKING OF A NATION program was written by Nancy Steinbach. This is

Rich Kleinfeldt.

VOICE TWO:

And this is Ray Freeman. Join us again next week for another VOA Special English
program about the history of the United States.

_____

This was program #13 in THE MAKING OF A NATION

VOASE071227_American Mosaic

27 December 2007

Movies, Music and Much More: A Look

Back at 2007
Some of the year's highlights on AMERICAN MOSAIC.

HOST:

Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC, in VOA Special English.

(MUSIC)

I'm Bob Doughty. On our show this week:

We look back at two thousand seven -- some stories we have reported, listener
questions we have answered and music we have played.

(MUSIC)

That was a song from the Disney television movie, "High School Musical Two." Last
summer, we reported that it was the most popular show ever broadcast on an
American cable television network. The music from the show is the second best
selling album of the year. Billboard Magazine says it has sold two million seven
hundred thousand copies.

We also reported about other musical shows during two thousand seven. We played
songs from the Broadway musical "Spring Awakening" and the movie
"Dreamgirls." Here, Jennifer Hudson sings "I Am Changing " from that movie.

(MUSIC)

In May, we reported about a new album from singer Josh Groban. Now he has
another best selling album -- of Christmas music. Billboard Magazine says Josh
Groban's "Noel" is the top selling album of two thousand seven. It has sold almost
three million copies. Here Josh Groban sings "The Christmas Song."
(MUSIC)

Several music critics say the song "Rehab" by British singer Amy Winehouse is the
best single of the year. "Rehab" is on the album "Back To Black." We played
another song from that album when we reported about Winehouse in June. Listen
as Amy Winehouse sings "Rehab."

(MUSIC)

This year, "American Mosaic" answered questions from listeners in twenty-four

countries around the world. We heard from people in Burma, Russia, Egypt, Norway,
Argentina, Hungary, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Zimbabwe, China, Japan and others.

They asked many different kinds of questions about American life. For example,
places in the United States like the Alamo, the White House, the Everglades, the
Great Lakes and an area of New York City called Hell's Kitchen. Some questions
were about American history, such as the Jim Crow Laws, the Marshall Plan, the
Whiskey Rebellion and the Space race. Some listeners wanted to know more about
American business. So we discussed buying a car, told about the store Wal-Mart,
and explained the advertising expression "Diamonds Are Forever." We also
answered questions about elections, urban legends, traffic, pop culture, u.f.o.'s and
global warming.

Listeners also wanted to know about the movie rating

system and the television show "Twenty-Four." And
they asked about actors Julianne Moore, Sandra
Bullock and Linda Blair.

We answered questions about musicians, and played

some of their music. They included singer Hillary
Duff, the punk rock group Green Day and the heavy
metal band Linkin Park. Here is a song from that
group's album, "Minutes to Midnight," that was
Sandra Bullock
released in May. It is called "What I've Done."

(MUSIC)

Another question we answered this year was about the Billboard Hot One Hundred
List. This is the list of the one hundred most popular singles in the United States.
Billboard also releases a Hot One Hundred List for the end of the year. We leave you
now with the song named by Billboard Magazine as the top single of two thousand
seven -- "Irreplaceable" by Beyonce.

(MUSIC)

I'm Bob Doughty. I hope you enjoyed our program

today. It was written by Nancy Steinbach. Mario Ritter
was our producer. To read the text of this program and
download audio, go to our Web site,
voaspecialenglish.com. You can also find the scripts of
all the stories we talked about in our report today.

Please continue to send questions about American life to

Beyonce
mosaic@voanews.com. Or write to American Mosaic,
VOA Special English, Washington, D.C., two-zero-two-three-seven, U.S.A. Be sure
to include your full name and mailing address.

And thank you to everyone who sent us holiday greetings. We received beautiful
postcards from listeners in Algeria, Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Burma,
Cambodia and Costa Rica. Also from the Czech Republic, Denmark, Ethiopia,
Indonesia, Iraq, Italy, Japan, Libya, Malta, the Netherlands, Thailand and Tunisia.

Join us again next week for AMERICAN MOSAIC, VOA’s radio magazine in Special
English. And Happy New Year to everyone!
VOASE071227_Economics Report

27 December 2007

World Bank Finds China's Economy 40

Percent Smaller Than Thought
New methods for measuring economic production show that China's economy is smaller. Also, China
invests more overseas than foreign investors do in China.

This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.

China has one of the world's fastest growing

economies. In two thousand seven, the Chinese
economy grew by more than eleven percent for most
of the year.

But recently the World Bank announced that the

Chinese economy was smaller than had been
thought. The World Bank released its International
Comparison Program report on December
seventeenth. It said that the size of the world
A worker smokes a cigarette
economy had been overestimated. And it found that
while carrying bags in Beijing
the total value of goods and services produced by
China had been overestimated by forty percent.

The World Bank used new tools to compare the economies and buying power of
people in one hundred forty-six countries. This year's report marked the first time
that China took part in the World Bank's International Comparison Program.

The World Bank says China is the second largest economy after the United States by
its new measurements. But the revaluation has caused experts to reconsider
economic progress in China.

It also raises questions about the exchange rate of Chinese money. Critics have
long argued that China should let the value of its money rise freely against the value
of the dollar and other currencies. It may be that Chinese money is not undervalued
if the Chinese economy is not as large as once thought. However, some experts
point to other economic statistics to argue that China's money is undervalued.

China faces other problems as well. Inflation hit an eleven-year high in

November. The country's huge trade surplus reached a record two hundred
thirty-eight billion dollars in the first eleven months of this year. This has raised
tensions with trading partners, such as the United States and the European
Union. And China has been criticized for permitting its manufacturers to produce
unsafe products.

Two thousand seven marks another event for China's economy. It is the first year in
which China invested more money in foreign countries than foreign countries
invested in China. The Wall Street Journal says Chinese companies and the
government invested over twenty-nine billion dollars in foreign companies. Investors
from the rest of the world invested less than twenty-two billion dollars in Chinese
companies this year.

And that's the VOA Special English Economics Report, written by Mario
Ritter. Transcripts and archives are at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.
VOASE071228_In the News

28 December 2007

Virginia Tech Killings Voted Top News

Story of 2007 by US Editors
Associated Press releases top news story picks of the year.

This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

On December twentieth, the editors and news directors of the Associated Press
voted for the top ten news stories of two thousand
seven.

They chose the tragic killings of thirty-two people at

Virginia Tech, a university in Blacksburg, Virginia, as
the top news story of the year. Twenty-three-year-old
Seung-Hui Cho shot students and professors at his
university on April sixteenth before taking his own life.
It was the worst mass shooting in American history. On April 23, a moment of
silence was observed for
The United States home mortgage crisis was second
each of the 32 Virginia Tech
on the list of top stories this year. Many homeowners
shooting victims
have lost, or are in danger of losing, their homes
because of rising payments. A sharp drop in housing prices also caused major
losses in financial markets.
Major General Rick Lynch The war in Iraq was voted the third top story this year,
speaks with Sunni Sheik down from last year, when it was the top news
Emad Ghurtani, right, in story. A major increase in American troops in Iraq is
Haswah, Iraq, in October believed to have improved the nation’s security
situation. Still, thousands of Iraqis and hundreds of
Americans were killed in violence in Iraq. Critics say the troop increase failed to
meet what was supposed to be the main goal -- to give Iraqi leaders the chance to
work for political unity.

Rising oil prices was next on the list. Oil prices hit record highs this year, reaching
almost one hundred dollars a barrel. The increase in fuel costs pushed American
lawmakers to pass a new energy bill. It requires cars and light trucks to use less
gasoline by two thousand twenty.

Also among the top news stories was a series of recalled exports from China. These
products included poisonous toothpaste, unsafe pet food and toys containing
dangerous lead paint.

Another major issue this year was global warming. United Nations climate scientists
warned about the danger of rising seas, severe dry weather and the disappearance
of plants and animals. The U.N. scientists shared this year’s Nobel Peace Prize with
former American Vice President Al Gore.

In the American state of Minnesota, a large bridge

over the Mississippi River collapsed on August
first. Thirteen people were killed and about one
hundred others were injured.

The American presidential campaign was also the

subject of major new stories this year. Many
candidates traveled around the country seeking
support in the primary elections that will choose the
The collapsed bridge over the
nominees from the two major political parties.
Mississippi River near
Also in the United States, debate continued on Minneapolis, Minnesota
immigration after a compromise plan failed in Congress because of Republican Party
opposition. Illegal immigration is among the major presidential campaign issues.

And finally, the United States and several other countries continued to press Iran to
stop enriching uranium. Iran said it never had a nuclear weapons program. But a
recent American intelligence report said Iran did have a nuclear weapons program,
but that it ended in two thousand three.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. I’m
Steve Ember.
VOASE071229_People In America

29 December 2007

Remembering Four Interesting People

Who Died This Year
Learn about the lives of philanthropist Brooke Astor, daredevil Evel Knievel, business leader Leona
Helmsley and jazz musician Max Roach.

VOICE ONE:

I’m Faith Lapidus.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Steve Ember with PEOPLE IN AMERICA in VOA Special English. Today
we remember four interesting Americans who died in two thousand seven.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

The woman often called the First Lady of New York

died on August thirteenth. Brooke Astor was one
hundred five years old. The extremely wealthy and
famous New Yorker spent much of her life helping the
needy in her beloved city.

She was born Brooke Russell in Portsmouth, New

Hampshire. She was the only child of a high level
military officer. She lived in several countries and
liked learning about different cultures.
Brooke Astor
VOICE TWO:

After two earlier marriages, she married Vincent Astor in nineteen fifty-three. He
came from a family that had been rich for at least one hundred years. Among other
things, he owned many buildings in New York City.

Brooke Astor became one of the richest women in the world when Vincent Astor
died. She also became head of a huge charity organization founded by her
husband. He reportedly had told her she would have fun giving away his money.

VOICE ONE:

And apparently she did. Missus Astor gave tens of millions of dollars mainly to places
and people in New York City. She said it was the sensible choice because that was
where the money had been made. She gave financial support to the city’s cultural
centers, its poor and disabled as well as to many other smaller charities. She won a
Presidential Medal of Freedom for her work.

Brooke Astor also wrote two books about her life. She suffered from Alzheimer’s
disease in the last years of her life. When she died, the mayor of New York, Michael
Bloomberg, said the city would not be what it is today without her support.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

America lost its most famous daredevil this year. Evel

Knievel rode motorcycles through the air in
increasingly dangerous and exciting tricks in the
nineteen sixties and seventies. He became a folk
hero.

Robert Craig Knievel was born in nineteen thirty-eight

in Butte, Montana. As a boy, he was arrested for
stealing car parts. He said the police gave him the
nickname “Evil,” spelled E-V-I-L. He later legally Evel Knievel
changed his first name to "Evel," spelled E-V-E-L.

Evel Knievel began riding motorcycles in his teens. He said his first motorcycle was
a Harley Davidson he had stolen. He was a good athlete and played professional ice
hockey for a time. He also served in the United States Army where he became a
paratrooper. He made more than thirty jumps from airplanes.

VOICE ONE:

Evel Knievel performed his first public motorcycle jump when he was
twenty-seven. He had just opened a motorcycle store and wanted the public to know
about it. He lined up several cars along with a box of poisonous snakes and a
mountain lion tied up at the end. He drove his motorcycle up a ramp and began the
twelve-meter long jump. He landed in the rattlesnakes.

Later, he began performing such tricks all over the United States and
Europe. Sometimes his jumps were successful; sometimes they were not. But his
shows were always popular. Toy companies sold dolls that looked like him. His life
story was told in two movies and a song about him became a hit.

VOICE TWO:

But Evel Knievel’s body suffered greatly. He said he had as many as fifteen major
operations to repair broken bones. One crash was so bad he was in a coma and lost
consciousness for a month. Knievel’s personal choices also damaged his
health. He drank too much alcohol and used illegal drugs. In his later years, he also
suffered from diabetes and an incurable lung disease. The former daredevil died
November thirtieth in Clearwater, Florida, at the age of sixty-nine.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

She was known as the "Queen of Mean" because she

was not a very nice person. Leona Helmsley owned
costly hotels and other property in New York
City. She died August twentieth of heart failure. She
was eighty-seven.

Leona Rosenthal was born in nineteen twenty in a

rural area of New York state. Her family moved to
Brooklyn, New York, where she grew up.

She became a successful real estate agent, selling

Leona Helmsley
homes in New York City. She met a rich investor,
Harry Helmsley, as a result of her work. He soon
asked her to work for one of his companies. Shortly after that he left his wife of more
than thirty years and married Leona in nineteen seventy-two.

VOICE TWO:

Over the years, the Helmsleys owned property worth five billion dollars. At one time,
they owned the famous Empire State Building in New York City and thirty hotels
around the country. Leona became the main spokesperson for their hotels. She
was the star of a very successful advertising campaign.

Reports of Leona Helmsley’s treatment of employees and family members often

appeared in New York newspapers. She was criticized for her self-important
behavior. A former housekeeper said Helmsley told her that she and her husband did
not pay taxes. “Only the little people pay taxes,” Helmsley reportedly added.

But Leona Helmsley later may have regretted that statement. In nineteen
eighty-nine she was found guilty of not paying federal income taxes. She served
eighteen months in prison and had to pay millions of dollars.

When she died, Leona Helmsley left twelve million dollars to her little dog, Trouble.
The money is to care for him until the end of his life. It was the largest amount of
money she left anyone, including her brother and grandchildren.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

And finally we remember the inventive and highly skilled jazz drummer, Max Roach.

(MUSIC)

He died August sixteenth in New York City at the age of eighty-three. He had been
sick for several years.

Max Roach established an unusual new rhythm to jazz

that was an important part of the birth of bebop. Until the
nineteen forties, jazz drummers mainly served to keep
musical time. But Max Roach believed the drums had
greater musical possibility. The drum beat style he and
others established was more closely linked to the
melody of the music. Here he plays at a live concert in
Frankfurt, Germany in nineteen fifty-two. The song is
“Undecided.” He performs with several other jazz greats
including saxophone player Lester Young.
Max Roach
(MUSIC: “Undecided”)

VOICE TWO:
Maxwell Lemuel Roach was born in a small town in North Carolina in nineteen
twenty-four. His family moved to Brooklyn, New York when he was four. Max’s
mother was a gospel singer and he followed in her musical footsteps. He learned to
play the piano and bugle as a very young boy. But by the age of ten he was playing
the drums for gospel bands.

When he was still a teenager Max began playing with Duke Ellington’s orchestra at
the Paramount Theater in Brooklyn. He also played at music clubs in the Harlem
area of Manhattan. Listen now as he plays “Garvey’s Ghost,” recorded in nineteen
sixty-one.

(MUSIC: “Garvey’s Ghost”)

VOICE ONE:

Max Roach won many awards and honors. He was among the most politically active
jazz musicians. In nineteen sixty, he made an album called "We Insist! Max Roach's
Freedom Now Suite." It was about the black people's struggle for equality in the
United States and Africa.

In the nineteen seventies, Max Roach formed an all percussion orchestra called
M’Boom. We leave you with Max Roach and that group performing “A Quiet Place.”

(MUSIC: “A Quiet Place”)

VOICE TWO:

This program was written and produced by Caty Weaver. I’m Steve Ember.

VOICE ONE:

And I’m Faith Lapidus. Join us again next week for People in America in VOA Special
English.
VOASE071229_Words and Their Stories

29 December 2007

Get Your Act Together: Organization Is

the Name of the Game
Some expressions that might be heard at business meetings.

I'm Susan Clark with the Special English program, WORDS AND THEIR STORIES.

(MUSIC)

A woman from Japan was telling a friend about her trip to the United States. The
woman had visited major businesses and investment companies in New York City
and Chicago.

"I studied English before I left home, " she said. "But I still was not sure that people
were speaking English."

Her problem is easy to understand. Americans in business are like people who are in
business anywhere. They have a language of their own. Some of the words and
expressions deal with the special areas of their work. Other expressions are
borrowed from different kinds of work such as the theater and movie industry.

One such saying is get your act together.

When things go wrong in a business, an employer may get angry. He may shout,
"Stop making mistakes. Get your act together."

Or, if the employer is calmer, he may say, "Let us get our act together."

Either way, the meaning is the same. Getting your act together is getting organized.
In business, it usually means to develop a calm and orderly plan of action.

It is difficult to tell exactly where the saying began. But, it is probable that it was in the
theater or movie industry. Perhaps one of the actors was nervous and made a lot of
mistakes. The director may have said, "Calm down, now. Get your act together."
Word expert James Rogers says the expression was common by the late nineteen
seventies. Mister Rogers says the Manchester Guardian newspaper used it in
nineteen seventy-eight. The newspaper said a reform policy required that the British
government get its act together.

Now, this expression is heard often when officials of a company meet. One company
even called its yearly report, "Getting Our Act Together."

The Japanese visitor was confused by another expression used by American

business people. It is cut to the chase.

She heard that expression when she attended an important meeting of one company.
One official was giving a very long report. It was not very interesting. In fact, some
people at the meeting were falling asleep.

Finally, the president of the company said, "Cut to the chase."

Cut to the chase means to stop spending so much time on details or unimportant
material. Hurry and get to the good part.

Naturally, this saying was started by people who make movies. Hollywood movie
producers believe that most Americans want to see action movies. Many of their
movies show scenes in which the actors chase each other in cars, or in airplanes or
on foot.

Cut is the director's word for stop. The director means to stop filming, leave out some
material, and get to the chase scene now.

So, if your employer tells you to cut to the chase, be sure to get to the main point of
your story quickly.

(MUSIC)

This WORDS AND THEIR STORIES program was written by Jeri Watson. I'm Susan
Clark.
VOASE071230_Development Report

30 December 2007

Do-It-Yourself: How to Dry or Smoke

Fish, Part 2
Last week we described how to prepare fish by cleaning and salting them. Now, the next steps.

This is the VOA Special English Development Report.

Today we have the second of two reports explaining how to prepare fish by drying or
smoking them for future use.

We talked last week about the first steps of cleaning

and salting freshly caught fish. Internet users who
missed that report can find it at voaspecialenglish.com.

To dry fish, you will need either a drying table or a

place to hang them. If a table is used, it should have a
top made of wire screen or thin pieces of wood with
space between each piece.

Lay the cleaned, wet salted fish on top of the table. Do not let them touch each other.
Be sure that air can reach the fish from all sides, including the top and bottom.

Build a small smoky fire under the drying table for the first day to keep the flies away.
After that, you can keep the flies away by covering the fish with a thin cloth. Do not let
the cloth touch the fish.

Fish taste better if they are out of bright sunlight while they are being dried. For best
results, put the drying table under a tree. Turn the fish over every other day. Small
fish will dry in about three days if the air is dry. Large fish will take a week or ten days
to dry.

After the fish have dried, place them in a basket. Cover them with clean paper or
large leaves. Then put the basket in a cool, dry place, not on the ground.
To smoke the fish, you must first remove as much of the saltwater as possible. The
smoking can be done in a large, round metal container. Remove the top of the drum
and cut a small opening on one side at the bottom.

Cover the top with a strong wire screen. This is where you put the fish. Build a small
fire in the drum by reaching in through the opening at the bottom.

Wood from fruit trees makes good fuel for your fire. Such wood will give the smoked
fish good color and taste. Hardwoods such as hickory, oak and ash also burn well.

It is important to keep the fire small, so it does not burn the fish. You want a lot of
smoke but very little flame. One way to get a lot of smoke is to use green wood, not
dried wood.

You should smoke the fish for five days or longer if you plan to keep them for a long
time. After you finish smoking the fish, remove them and let them cool. Then wrap
them in clean paper.

Put the fish in baskets and keep them in a cool, dry place off the ground. Dried fish
must be kept completely dry until they are eaten.

And that's the VOA Special English Development Report. Transcripts and MP3
archives of our reports can be downloaded at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve
Ember.
VOASE071230_This Is America

30 December 2007

Beyond 'Auld Lang Syne': Music That

Plays at the Heart Like New Year's
Music and emotions go hand in hand. Songs can make us feel the heartbreak of a lost love, or the
excitement of finding a new love.

Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember, and today
we bring you music for the New Year.

(MUSIC)

In the United States and other countries, this old Scottish song, "Auld Lang Syne" is
played when a new year begins. It is about remembering old friends.

New Year's is a holiday for memories and for

hopes. The past and the future come together at
midnight. Not surprisingly, emotions are as much a
part of New Year's Eve as noisemakers and fireworks.
After all, a traditional way to welcome the New Year is
to kiss the person you love.

"Old Lang Syne" lends its name to a modern song

about a man and a woman who once were lovers.
One day, a week before New Year's, they meet again
by chance. The singer is Dan Fogelberg and the song
is called "Same Old Lang Syne."

(MUSIC)

On December sixteenth, two thousand seven, fans of Dan Fogelberg lost an old
friend. The American singer and songwriter died of prostate cancer at the age of
fifty-six. He was known for the kind of soft rock popular in the nineteen seventies and
eighties. "Same Old Lang Syne" was one of the hits from his nineteen eighty-one
album "The Innocent Age."
The idea of meeting an old lover by chance is also at the heart of a Paul Simon song.
Here is the title song from Paul Simon's nineteen seventy-five album "Still Crazy After
All These Years."

(MUSIC)

Chance meetings are one of life's little surprises. They can happen anywhere -- in a
market, on the street, even in a taxicab. This song by Harry Chapin is called "Taxi."

(MUSIC)

Harry Chapin was a popular folk singer and songwriter. In nineteen eighty-one, at the
age of thirty-eight, he died in a car crash on his way to a performance.

Music and emotions go hand in hand. Songs can make us feel the heartbreak of a
lost love, or the excitement of finding a new love. Songs can also capture the pain of
a wish that a person knows will never come true. Here is James Blunt with "You're
Beautiful."

(MUSIC)

The nineteen eighty-nine movie "When Harry Met Sally" was about a
relationship. Billy Crystal plays Harry and Meg Ryan is Sally. They meet and
become friends, though not at first. Later, they fall in love, though not for very long.
Then, on New Year's Eve, Harry comes to his senses and finds Sally at a party.

(SOUND)

From New Year's Day, we turn to "A New Day." That was the name of Celine Dion's
music and dance show at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada. It closed on
December fifteenth, two thousand seven, after almost five years. It earned a reported
four hundred million dollars in ticket sales.

The show's run ended two months before the start of a worldwide tour for a new
album by the Canadian singer. But some fans came to the show again and again, so
closing night was like an emotional goodbye to an old friend.

We leave you with Celine Dion and a song that some of you will probably sing along
with. From the nineteen ninety-seven movie "Titanic," here is "My Heart Will Go On."

(MUSIC)
We hope you will join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special
English, on the radio or online at voaspecialenglish.com. Wishing you a happy New
Year from all of us, I'm Steve Ember.
VOASE071231_Science In the News

31 December 2007

Imagine, There Was a Time When

People Had No Need to Measure Time
Exploring one of the universe's great mysteries.

This is SCIENCE IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember. This
week our program is about a mystery as old as time. Bob Doughty and Sarah Long
tell about the mystery of time.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

If you can read a clock, you can know the time of day.
But no one knows what time itself is. We cannot see it.
We cannot touch it. We cannot hear it. We know it
only by the way we mark its passing.

For all our success in measuring the smallest parts of

time, time remains one of the great mysteries of the
universe.

VOICE TWO: A sundial at the state Capitol

in Olympia, Washington, on a
One way to think about time is to imagine a world rare winter day when the
without time. There could be no movement, because skies were clear enough for it
time and movement cannot be separated. to work

A world without time could exist only as long as there were no changes. For time and
change are linked. We know that time has passed when something changes.

VOICE ONE:
In the real world -- the world with time -- changes never stop. Some changes happen
only once in a while, like an eclipse of the moon. Others happen repeatedly, like the
rising and setting of the sun. Humans always have noted natural events that repeat
themselves. When people began to count such events, they began to measure time.

In early human history, the only changes that seemed to repeat themselves evenly
were the movements of objects in the sky. The most easily seen result of these
movements was the difference between light and darkness.

The sun rises in the eastern sky, producing light. It moves across the sky and sinks in
the west, causing darkness. The appearance and disappearance of the sun was
even and unfailing. The periods of light and darkness it created were the first
accepted periods of time. We have named each period of light and darkness -- one
day.

VOICE TWO:

People saw the sun rise higher in the sky during the summer than in winter. They
counted the days that passed from the sun's highest position until it returned to that
position. They counted three hundred sixty-five days. We now know that is the time
Earth takes to move once around the sun. We call this period of time a year.

VOICE ONE:

Early humans also noted changes in the moon. As it moved across the night sky, they
must have wondered. Why did it look different every night? Why did it disappear?
Where did it go?

Even before they learned the answers to these questions, they developed a way to
use the changing faces of the moon to tell time.

The moon was "full" when its face was bright and round. The early humans counted
the number of times the sun appeared between full moons. They learned that this
number always remained the same -- about twenty-nine suns. Twenty-nine suns
equaled one moon. We now know this period of time as one month.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:
Early humans hunted animals and gathered wild plants. They moved in groups or
tribes from place to place in search of food. Then, people learned to plant seeds and
grow crops. They learned to use animals to help them work, and for food.

They found they no longer needed to move from one place to another to survive.

As hunters, people did not need a way to measure time. As farmers, however, they
had to plant crops in time to harvest them before winter. They had to know when the
seasons would change. So, they developed calendars.

No one knows when the first calendar was developed. But it seems possible that it
was based on moons, or lunar months.

When people started farming, the wise men of the tribes became very important.
They studied the sky. They gathered enough information so they could know when
the seasons would change. They announced when it was time to plant crops.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

The divisions of time we use today were developed in ancient Babylonia four
thousand years ago. Babylonian astronomers believed the sun moved around the
Earth every three hundred sixty-five days. They divided the trip into twelve equal
parts, or months. Each month was thirty days. Then, they divided each day into
twenty-four equal parts, or hours. They divided each hour into sixty minutes, and
each minute into sixty seconds.

VOICE TWO:

Humans have used many devices to measure time. The sundial was one of the
earliest and simplest.

A sundial measures the movement of the sun across the sky each day. It has a stick
or other object that rises above a flat surface. The stick, blocking sunlight, creates a
shadow. As the sun moves, so does the shadow of the stick across the flat surface.
Marks on the surface show the passing of hours, and perhaps, minutes.

The sundial works well only when the sun is shining. So, other ways were invented to
measure the passing of time.
VOICE ONE:

One device is the hourglass. It uses a thin stream of falling sand to measure time.
The hourglass is shaped like the number eight --- wide at the top and bottom, but very
thin in the middle. In a true "hour" glass, it takes exactly one hour for all the sand to
drop from the top to the bottom through a very small opening in the middle. When the
hourglass is turned with the upside down, it begins to mark the passing of another
hour.

By the eighteenth century, people had developed mechanical clocks and watches.
And today, many of our clocks and watches are electronic.

VOICE TWO:

So, we have devices to mark the passing of time. But what time is it now? Clocks in
different parts of the world do not show the same time at the same time. This is
because time on Earth is set by the sun's position in the sky above.

We all have a twelve o'clock noon each day. Noon is the time the sun is highest in the
sky. But when it is twelve o'clock noon where I am, it may be ten o'clock at night
where you are.

VOICE ONE:

As international communications and travel increased, it became clear that it would

be necessary to establish a common time for all parts of the world.

In eighteen eighty-four, an international conference divided the world into twenty-four

time areas, or zones. Each zone represents one hour. The astronomical observatory
in Greenwich, England, was chosen as the starting point for the time zones. Twelve
zones are west of Greenwich. Twelve are east.

The time at Greenwich -- as measured by the sun -- is called Universal Time. For
many years it was called Greenwich Mean Time.

VOICE TWO:

Some scientists say time is governed by the movement of matter in our universe.
They say time flows forward because the universe is expanding. Some say it will stop
expanding some day and will begin to move in the opposite direction, to grow smaller.
Some believe time will also begin to flow in the opposite direction -- from the future to
the past. Can time move backward?

Most people have no trouble agreeing that time moves forward. We see people born
and then grow old. We remember the past, but we do not know the future. We know a
film is moving forward if it shows a glass falling off a table and breaking into many
pieces. If the film were moving backward, the pieces would re-join to form a glass and
jump back up onto the table. No one has ever seen this happen. Except in a film.

VOICE ONE:

Some scientists believe there is one reason why time only moves forward. It is a
well-known scientific law -- the second law of thermodynamics. That law says
disorder increases with time. In fact, there are more conditions of disorder than of
order.

For example, there are many ways a glass can break into pieces. That is disorder.
But there is only one way the broken pieces can be organized to make a glass. That
is order. If time moved backward, the broken pieces could come together in a great
many ways. Only one of these many ways, however, would re-form the glass. It is
almost impossible to believe this would happen.

VOICE TWO:

Not all scientists believe time is governed by the second law of thermodynamics.
They do not agree that time must always move forward. The debate will continue
about the nature of time. And time will remain a mystery.

(MUSIC)

Our program was written by Marilyn Christiano and read by Sarah Long and Bob
Doughty. I'm Steve Ember. Listen again next week for Science in the News, in VOA
Special English.
VOASE071231_Word master

31 December 2007

Forget the Gunplay, These Cowboys

Get Their Kicks From Wordplay
AA: I'm Avi Arditti with Rosanne Skirble, and this week on WORDMASTER:
palindromes aplenty.

RS: A palindrome is something that reads the same backwards or forwards.

Palindromes make us think of Janus, the Roman god with one face looking forward
and another looking backward.

AA: And from Janus we get January, and from that we get the idea to rerun "The
Ballad of Palindrome" each New Year.

RS: It features a skit that spoofs a cowboy show on television in the 1950s called
"Paladin." Here now is the group Riders in the Sky joined by singer and songwriter
Johnny Western.

SOUND: "The Ballad of Palindrome/Palindrome: The Scene

with Johnny Western"

RS: That's Riders in the Sky from their 1998 album "A Great
Big Western HOWDY!" on the Rounder Records label.

AA: And that's WORDMASTER for this week. Our e-mail Riders in the Sky
address is word@voanews.com, and our segments are all online at
voanews.com/wordmaster. Wishing you a happy and healthy New Year, with
Rosanne Skirble, I'm Avi Arditti.
VOASE071231_Holiday Program

31 December 2007

Choosing the Right Calendar Takes

Time
Will it be cats, cars, beautiful women in swimsuits or Elvis?

Now, a Special English program for the New Year. I'm Faith Lapidus.

The New Year is the time for new beginnings. It is also the time to buy a new
calendar. Yet it can take a lot of time just to choose the right one. There are lots and
lots of choices. There are small ones. Big ones. Calendars that sit on a desk.
Calendars that hang on the wall. Calendars to carry around. Calendars that show a
whole month or one day at a time.

Of course, in one way all calendars are the same. They all list the same days of the
year in exactly the same order. But people do not buy calendars just to know what
day it is. Calendars have become popular gifts because many are filled with beautiful
pictures.

Some have pictures of famous art works. It is like hanging a different painting on your
wall each month. You can even learn from calendars. They often give information
about their subject -- such as famous writers or American Indians or flower gardens.

There are calendars about food and about beautiful places in the world. Calendars
about sports and about movies. Funny calendars with popular cartoon characters.
Calendars of famous people, like Elvis Presley or
Marilyn Monroe.

Women are not the only

For pet lovers, there are calendars with pictures of subject of sexy calendars.
cats doing unusual things. Three hundred sixty-five of This one honors firefighters
them – one for each day of the year. Calendars of from the New York Fire
dogs wearing clothes. And calendars of beautiful Department.
women in swimming suits, not wearing much at all.

Would you rather look at pictures of cars? There are calendars with those, too. For
busy mothers, there is a magnetic calendar to hang on the wall. There are even
calendars for children who can draw the pictures themselves.

Some people do not just look at their calendars. They use them to write down
important things they must remember, like meetings or doctor’s appointments. Busy
people can buy small calendars to carry around to help them organize and plan their
life.

But what if they forget to look at their calendar? Do not worry, there are electronic
organizers that make sounds to remind people of things they must do. These days, if
you forget something, it is getting harder and harder to find a good excuse.

Some people do not like little calendars, or big ones, or noisy electronic ones. They
are happy just to write down notes to themselves on small pieces of paper. The
smaller the better, usually.

These people never worry about all the time it takes them to find their small pieces of
paper when they need them.

I'm Faith Lapidus wishing all our listeners a Happy New Year.