لغات مهم و کاربردی و مورد استفاده در اخبار

[Persia1]

Global obesity on the rise

Global obesity on the rise

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  More fat, more sugar, more salt, less exercise – more and more people around the world are suffering the consequences. Since 1980, the WHO's report reveals levels of obesity have doubled in every region of the world. Half a billion people, or 12 per cent of the global population, are now considered obese. One in three adults suffer from high blood pressure – a condition that causes half of all deaths from stroke and heart disease. And blood sugar levels are rising too – 10 per cent of the world's population is diabetic.
  
  The WHO's report is not all bad news though: the statistics show that maternal mortality rates have fallen dramatically in the last 20 years, from over half a million in 1990 to less than 300,000 in 2010. And vaccination campaigns have significantly reduced deaths from childhood diseases such as measles.
  
  But the global rise in deaths from heart disease, cancer and diabetes, and the rise in the conditions which lead to those deaths, is causing alarm. The WHO wants all its member states to tackle risk factors such as poor diet, and smoking, and set targets for reducing deaths.

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[Persia1]

HIV home testing

HIV home testing

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  If the panel's recommendation is taken up by the Food and Drug Administration, OraQuick would become the first instant HIV test available over the counter in America. Using a mouth swab to detect the presence of antibodies, it delivers a result in just twenty minutes. In home trials, the product proved 93 per cent accurate, compared with 99 per cent accuracy when similar tests are conducted by medical professionals.
  
  Supporters say the kit would advance the fight against HIV Aids by encouraging more people to test for the virus in the privacy of their own homes. Currently, almost a quarter of a million Americans are believed to be HIV positive without realising it - that's roughly a fifth of all infections.
  
  Researchers estimate that, each year, the new test would identify an additional 45,000 carriers of the virus and avert four thousand new transmissions. But the panel also advised that the packaging should carry warnings about the variable accuracy of home-testing, and a toll-free phone number offering counselling to those testing positive.
  
  There are already other home tests on the US market. But they require a blood test which must be sent to a laboratory for analysis. Last week, another FDA panel recommended for the first time a drug to protect healthy people from contracting HIV.

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[Persia1]

Cashing in on the Olympics?

Cashing in on the Olympics?

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  It's not quite in the Olympic spirit. Before day one of the torch relay was completed, one of the golden symbols appeared for sale online. A torch used on day one is currently attracting bids on the internet auction site, eBay, in excess of $79,000. According to the seller the money will go toregional charities. But what's to stop participants cashing in and pocketing the money themselves? Julia Immonen was awarded her relay place after rowing across the Atlantic with a team of women. She says she can't understand why anyone would want to sell such a prestigious item.
  
  One torch is thought to have sold for more than $237,000. Given that the participants were asked to pay just $314 to keep the torches that is quite aprofit. A spokesperson for LOCOG - the Olympic organising committee - said the torches were the personal property of the individual runners and it was their choice to do with them as they wanted. She said she only hoped they went to a good home.
  
  Compared to the controversies over the scale of commercial sponsorship for London 2012, and the control of the brand, this may be of minor concern. The torch relay is the moment when the magic and mystique of the Games touches local communities. It is a-once-in-a-lifetime experience and for most people seeing it pass by is enrichment enough.

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[Persia1]

America's changing identity

America's changing identity

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

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[Persia1]

African child adoptions

African child adoptions

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  The African Child Policy Forum says more than 41,000 African children have been sent overseas for adoption in the past eight years. Most go to the United States, others to Western Europe and Canada. The situation is especially dramatic in Ethiopia which, the report says, now sends more children abroad for adoption than any other country, apart from China.
  One reason for the increase in adoption from Africa is that it is more difficult to adopt children from countries in South America and Eastern Europe because many have limited or shut down overseas adoption programmes. As a result, the report says, countries such as the United States have turned en masse to Africa to find children to adopt.
  The African Child Policy Forum insists every child has the right to be reared in the country in which it was born, an opinion shared by Mr Bekele of the Abebech Gobena orphanage [in Ethiopia]: "We prefer local adoption to international adoption because the children will not be uprooted from their culture, from their people, and they will not forget their country or their language."

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[Persia1]

Japan's radiation phone

Japan's radiation phone

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  Japanese mobile phones are known for their advanced features – they can be used to swipe through barriers at train stations, watch television, or even measure body fat and tell the user if they have bad breath.
  
  Now Softbank, a major mobile network, has launched a handset with a built-in Geiger counter. It has a button that users can press to see how much radiation they are being exposed to. Sales are likely to be driven by widespread fear over the meltdowns at the Fukushima nuclear power station last year.
  
  Many Japanese say they don't trust reassurances from the Government and the plant's operator, TEPCO. Sales of conventional Geiger counters have soared and in some places people have clubbed together to buy expensive equipment to check for radiation in food.
  
  Softbank is yet to announce a price for the radiation-monitoring phone, which will be released in the summer, saying only that it will be affordable.

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[Persia1]

Can you spell?

Can you spell?

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  Mencap designed the site because they believe that standards of spelling are falling in Britain, with serious consequences for people's ability to weather the global downturn. A survey commissioned for the charity revealed that 65% of people were unable to spell the word 'necessary' correctly, and only one-in-five people successfully completed a short spelling test.
  
  Despite the results, three-quarters of those questioned thought they were good spellers, and agreed that it was an important skill to have.
  
  Grant Morgan is the Creative Director for the Mencap Spellathon. He says the 'autocorrect' function on computer software is the main culpritfor the decline in standards.
  
  Mr Morgan says those who can't spell are at an immediate disadvantage in the workplace, and could lose out to competitors if, for example, theymisspell words on their CV. In an increasingly tough international market, the problem could damage Britain as a whole. Mencap is holding an online spellathon championship, where age may well trump youth.

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[Persia1]

Olympic ceremony plans

Olympic ceremony plans

Summary

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


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  At 55, the director Danny Boyle already has a 30-year career behind him marked by audacity and imagination. He started out in the theatre and TV then moved with success into the cinema: Trainspotting, Sunshine and the Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire are all his: it's notable that each is totally different. So when the London Olympics took on Danny Boyle to create this year's opening ceremony they knew to expect the unexpected.
  
  The traditional walk-through of competing athletes will still happen but it'll be preceded by an hour's pageant called 'Green and Pleasant' which will be unlike anything seen at any Olympics. The set will transform the huge Olympic stadium into a recreation of the British countryside, with rolling meadows and a bucolic village green. There'll be horses, cows, geese and three sheepdogs.
  
  Danny Boyle says it will be the starting point of a definition of what modern Britain is, not just London. Danny Boyle says that four years ago Beijing was the highpoint of a certain type of ceremonial spectacle. What we see next month will be more inclusive and warmer. As a director Danny Boyle has always shown a talent for avoiding the obvious so we can expect further surprises to come.

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[Persia1]

Poll finds India worst for women

Poll finds India worst for women

Summary

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



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  The survey assesses nineteen of the world's developed and emerging countries - including Mexico, Indonesia and Brazil. India's neighbours, including Pakistan and Bangladesh, were not included.
  
  India scored poorly largely because of such practices as under-age marriage, dowry-abuse, domestic violence and female foeticide. The country's Domestic Violence Act, passed seven years ago, was described as progressive. But gender violence, fuelled by social prejudice against girls does persist, especially in low income families.
  
  Some people may be surprised that India ranks lower than Saudi Arabia where women are not allowed to drive and have not yet had the chance toexercise the right to vote. In India, the status of women is closely linked to wealth and class. There are plenty of well-educated, professional women who enjoy personal freedoms and a Western lifestyle. India first had a female prime minister in the nineteen sixties and currently has its first female President. But their experience stands in marked contrast to the lives of rural women in the least developed states.
  
  Canada was described as the best country for women, followed by Germany and then the United Kingdom. The United States ranked sixth.

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[Persia1]

Dallas comeback

Dallas comeback

Summary

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








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  It was the soap opera that gripped us with the feuding and love-lives of the Ewing family, oil millionaires from Texas, who despite their vast wealth, all chose to live side by side in a vast ranch. Dallas became so popular that it was sold to TV networks around the world and the 1980 cliff hanger of 'who shot JR', the show's resident villain, was watched by 80 million people.
  
  JR of course, survived the shooting, and now his character, played by Larry Hagman, is swaggering through Texas once more, alongside hissaintly brother Bobby, and alcoholic ex-wife Sue-Ellen. The original series became synonymous with a free-market 'greed is good' view of the world, where it was acceptable, and even expected, that the rich would flaunt their wealth.
  
  So making money will still be the main motivator for most of the Ewings. Yet in the middle of a global downturn, with real Americans struggling to find jobs and pay their bills, will anyone want to watch it again? Larry Hagman is optimistic. He says the original series became popular during a US recession, as people chose to stay at home to save money, and watched TV instead. Of course, what viewers will really want to see, is JR getting away with double-crossing his own family... again... and again... and again...

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[Persia1]

Record refugee numbers

Record refugee numbers

Summary

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



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  Ivory Coast, Libya, Somalia, Sudan – in 2011 4.3 million people were forced to flee their homes; the highest number, the UN refugee agency says, in over a decade. Of them 800,000 fled across borders, seeking protection in neighbouring countries. By the end of the year the total number of refugees and internally displaced worldwide stood at forty-two and a half million people – without their homes, possessions or livelihoods, often dependant on support from communities in developing countries, with themselves few resources.
  
  The UN refugee agency says this latest report on global displacement shows worrying trends – forced displacement is affecting increased numbers of people, and among the displaced, more and more are having to wait years, even decades, to return home. Overall, Afghanistan accounts for the largest number of refugees, followed by Iraq, Somalia and Sudan. The UN refugee agency says it is grateful that, by and large, the international system of protection is being respected; countries are keeping their borders open to those in need.
  
  Nevertheless, the UN knows that as the global economic crisis continues, help for refugees is unlikely to be a top political priority – and the refugee agency says testing times lie ahead.

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[Persia1]

Pregnancy the 'biggest killer' for teenage girls

Pregnancy the 'biggest killer' for teenage girls

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  28 June 2012
  Pregnancy is the biggest killer of teenage girls worldwide. A new report by Save the Children says that one million teenage girls die or suffer serious injury, infection or disease due to having a baby. The charity says the lack of access to contraception is at the root of the problem.
  Reporter:
  Emily Buchanan
  
  
  
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  In many countries it's normal for girls to be married off young. They often quickly become pregnant but their bodies are not developed enough to give birth. In one clinic in a poor region of northern Liberia, a third of all babies are born to girls between 15 and 19. Some are as young as 13.
  
  A Save the Children project manager there, George Kijana, says these young mothers are prone to a lot of medical complications. [For example] a fistula causes a lot of pain and incontinence, and girls are frequently then ostracised from their families. Babies too are more at risk, far more likely to die if their mother's under 18.
  
  For years contraceptive programmes have struggled for funding and support as the religious right in the US has pressed Washington to oppose them. But world leaders will be congregating in London next month for a family planning summit hosted by the British government and the Gates Foundation. They will be urging action to make contraception not just more available to girls, but to empower them to use it by helping their families understand the health benefits of later pregnancies.
  
  Charities point out that there could be huge cost benefits - with $1 spent on family planning saving at least $4 on treating the complications fromunintended pregnancies.

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[Persia1]

Body confidence

Body confidence

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  26 June 2012
  A government guide to help parents teach their children how to be confident about their bodies is being launched. The pack shows how digitally enhanced images of celebrities affect youngsters' self-esteem, and it offers advice on how to talk to children about the subject.
  Reporter:
  Linda Hardy
  
  
  
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  This is what children and teenagers are increasingly faced with. An array of seemingly picture perfect faces and bodies tanned, toned andtransformed from what they once were and it's that transformation that the new parent pack hopes to explain – showing parents and their children how images are altered in the media, the actress Keira Knightley before and after the effects of airbrushing. 20 year old Rachel Johnson is a recovering anorexic, and says getting parents involved is key.
  
  "I think it is education for parents, it's actually being able to talk to parents, actually being able to ask those questions 'what do I do?'. And it's not there to scare parents it's there just to raise the profile a little bit more just to get the children to talk about body image."
  
  Aimed at parents of six to eleven year olds it gives them tips on how to talk to their children about their own bodies and is available online. It follows the success of a teaching pack launched for primary schools last year which also revealed that images aren't always what they seem.

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[Persia1]

New app for children who can't speak

New app for children who can't speak

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  5 July 2012
  New technology promises to give thousands of children who cannot speak a voice. An app called Proloquo2Go allows 6-year-old Ruby Dunn to tap on symbols on a tablet computer - and then have a sentence read out in a child's voice. The software, which features the voices of two British children, is among a number of innovations now helping children with special needs.
  Reporter:
  Rory Cellan-Jones
  
  
  
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  Voice of tablet computer:
  "Mary, Mary, quite contrary."
  
  Six-year-old Ruby Dunn has autism and can't speak. But now a software application on an mp3 player and on a tablet computer is giving her a voice.
  
  Voice of tablet computer:
  "What grows in the garden?"
  "The flowers. The flowers grow in the garden."
  
  Pauline Hoygreen works with her to make sure she is integrated in to school life. In one-on-one sessions they communicate through the app:
  
  Pauline Hoygreen, teacher:
  "It's giving her her own voice and it's giving her a child's voice for her to be able to communicate to a teacher, her one-to-ones, the children in the class and the children around the rest of the school."
  
  Ruby was born 14 weeks premature and very tiny, so life has been a bit of a struggle.
  
  Voice of tablet computer:
  "Can I have lasagne, broccoli, carrots?"
  
  At lunchtime the app allows her to order her meal.
  
  Voice of tablet computer:
  "I want the wheels on the bus please."
  
  And in the classroom, Ruby uses it and other technology to play a full part in lessons.
  
  It's worth saying there are now plenty of apps, some of them free, available on all sorts of devices which are designed to help children with disabilities. The one we've been looking at is pretty expensive – it costs around £130 – but Ruby's family say it's made a huge difference to her life.
  
  Ruby's father:
  "There's a lot of frustration involved with autism and quite often Ruby's trying to pull you to show you something, you're not quite sure what it is she's looking at or what she's looking for or what she's asking for. But now she's got this tool, this brilliant tool, that's able to give her this voice, it's taken a lot of frustration out. We find it's calmed her down a lot."
  
  With school over it's time to head home with the technology which has given Ruby and thousands like her a better connection to their world.

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[Persia1]

Calorie counting menus

Calorie counting menus

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  6 July 2012
  Restaurants in Ireland are to be given six months to voluntarily implement calorie menu labelling which will allow diners to see exactly how healthy their food choices are. The country's health minister has said if restaurants don't comply with the voluntary scheme, he may bring forward legislation on the matter.
  Reporter:
  Ruth McDonald
  
  
  
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  Ireland has a proud tradition of producing good quality food, which is enjoyed at home and abroad. But like many developed countries, it's also battling obesity - nearly forty per cent of adults here are overweight.
  
  On Wednesday the country's health minister backed a report calling for calorie labelling, which would mean that Irish restaurants, like this one, and fast food outlets would have to show exactly how many calories are in the dishes that they serve.
  
  The health minister said the country's food businesses have six months to introduce calorie menu labelling, or else face the possible introduction of acompulsory scheme.
  Some fast food chains here already label their menus, allowing customers to make healthier choices if they wish. But the country's restaurant association has claimed it will cost each outlet around seven thousand dollars to implement calorie labelling.
  
  The move is supported, however, by the findings of the report, which show that most people here support calorie labelling in food outlets. This is a country with a track record of acting on public health - Ireland was one of the first places in the world to implement a blanket smoking ban in public places, for example.

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[Persia1]

Costa Concordia captain speaks out

Costa Concordia captain speaks out

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  9 July 2012
  The Italian captain of the Costa Concordia – the cruise ship that hit rocks and sank - has released a letter defending his actions. In this first detailed public explanation since the catastrophe, Captain Francesco Schettino says he took a series of steps that averted an even greater disaster.
  Reporter:
  Alan Johnston
  
  
  
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  As the man in command of the Costa Concordia on the night she sank, Captain Schettino became a hate figure in the Italian media. Blame has been heaped on him for sailing his vessel recklessly close to a reef off the island of Giglo. But now, for the first time, he's tried to explain his actions publicly.
  
  In a letter released by his lawyers, the captain seems to suggest that he should have been told by one of his crew that he was too close to the shore. But he says that he realised that he was too near shallow water when he saw breaking waves off to his left. He then immediately swung the vessel away to the right. That meant, he says, that a very serious head-on collision with the reef was avoided.
  
  Instead there was a less damaging, glancing blow that enabled the ship to limp on rather than sink immediately with huge loss of life. Captain Schettino even suggests that what he calls "a divine hand" might have been guiding him as he made the crucial decision to turn. He says that after the collision he put into operation an emergency plan that involved shutting watertight doors and sailing his stricken ship into shallower water. This made it possible, he says, to abandon the vessel more safely. And again, he argues, this action saved lives.

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[Persia1]

A dog's life

A dog's life

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Report

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

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

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

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

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[Persia1]

Baby panda loses life

Baby panda loses life

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Report

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

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

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

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[Persia1]

Olympic hopefuls

Olympic hopefuls

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Not everyone has the same profile as Usain Bolt, but there are other Olympic athletes here in London who've gained superstar status, albeit within the confines of their own national boundaries. Take the Ukrainian fencer, Olga Kharlan, who caused a sensation in Beijing by almost single-handedly prising the team gold medal from the Chinese. She was just 18 then, and the former dancer and model is hoping for further success.

Another celebrity in his homeland, but at the opposite end of the age scale, is 71-year-old Hiroshi Hoketsu. The Japanese dressage rider is poised to become the second oldest Olympian of all time. Still fit and lean, he puts his longevity down to an avoidance of oily food.

China topped the medals table four years ago and another strong performance is expected. Their star turn could come in the aquatic centre. Sun Yang is considered the finest distance swimmer in the world. Standing at an imposing two metres tall, he might eveneclipse the serial champion Michael Phelps.

Finally to track and field and Caster Semenya, who will be making her Olympic debut. The South African wasn't allowed to celebrate her 800 metres world title in 2009 as doubts over her genderemerged. She said that's now all behind her and if she wins a medal in London will dedicate it to Nelson Mandela who helped her through those tough times.


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[Persia1]

Olympic drug cheats

Olympic drug cheats

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Mariem Selsouli gave a sample which contained a banned diureticshortly after running the fastest time this year over 1500 metres in Paris earlier this month. She has become one of more than a hundred athletes worldwide who have been caught in the last six months.

The anti-doping operation at this Olympics will be the most rigorousin history. There are new ways to detect banned substances like human growth hormone and synthetic testosterone which have previously dipped beneath the radar. But despite the advances, the Director General of the World Anti-Doping Agency has expressedcaution. David Howman feared as many as one in ten athletes at the Games could be cheating the system. And he said thesophisticated dopers are difficult to trap.

WADA said intelligence gathering had become key in identifyingpotential cheats and that individual athletes have been targeted. Samples taken in London will be kept for the next eight years. The message to those who want to use banned products was they would never be able to rest at ease. Although the International Olympic Committee has been criticised for not re-testing the batch from the 2004 Games in Athens until recently.

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[Persia1]

US drought pushes up food prices

US drought pushes up food prices

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The drought affecting large parts of the Midwest has witheredcorn and soybeans in the fields. Those are the staple crops most commonly used to feed animals. As a result, beef, pork and dairy prices are expected to jump next year - but fruit and vegetables will not be affected because those crops are usually irrigated. The department of Agriculture had been predicting a bumper year for corn, but didn't realise how bad the drought would get when it made its food price projections last month. Other countries will also be affected, because US food exports have jumped dramatically in the past few years.

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[Persia1]

Learning Irish English

Learning Irish English

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[h=2]Report[/h]

Oliver Lyons runs the Swan Institute, which has been a fixture on Dublin's main shopping street for the past decade. His school attracts around 4,000 students a year, from Europe and beyond, with more and more coming from the Middle East and China.
This year, many schools like Oliver's are reporting extra business, due, they think, to the Olympics in London. Some even suggest that reports of higher costs for accommodation and flights into the UK might have led more students to choose Ireland. And the Irish accent, rather than being viewed as a handicap, is actually quitesought after by students, Oliver says: "Irish English tends to be pretty clear in its pronunciation, easier to actually study. People have said that, for example, in the UK, in advertising agencies, the Irish accent is considered attractive because it's got no particularclass connotation, and it's a warm, friendly, inflection and tone. I think people find that attractive."
And how do you tell if someone's studied English here or not? Theclue is in what Oliver tells me is the rhotic R:
"In Irish English when we speak we simply put the 'r' - we pronounce it when it's actually there, when it's not there, we don't pronounce it."
"So give me an example - a difference between ..."
"Law. When we say 'the law', we don't say 'the law-r'."
So next time you meet an English language student, listen out for that 'r'. Apparently, it's a giveaway.

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[Persia1]

Lost Boy runs for Olympic gold

Lost Boy runs for Olympic gold

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The journey to London 2012 for the American runner Lopez Lomong has been long and extraordinary. He was one of the so-called Lost Boys - thousands of child refugees who fled civil war in Sudan.
Lopez Lomong:
My journey started when I was 6 years old, in the little village of Kimatong. We were in a church when the rebel soldiers came in and ordered everyone to lay down. They took all the young kids to the training camp - I was too young to hold an AK-47 and go to war because I was only 6 years old. I witnessed a lot of kids dying every day because of the food they were giving us. They were giving us a grain which was mixed with sand - a lot of kids were eating this food - but it doesn't digest in the stomach and they die.
One night Lopez Lomong managed to crawl out of the rebel camp and started running. He thought he was going back to his village, but his first ever race took him all the way to Kenya, where he spent the next 10 years in a refugee camp. Life was hard and he would run to forget his hunger. But one day he caught a glimpse into another world. He spent all the money he had - five shillings - to watch one Olympic race on TV.
Lopez Lomong:
I saw Michael Johnson running the 400m final and he ran so fast. What really inspired me so much is that when he went to receive the medal I saw the tears come out of his face – in Africa, a grown-up person cannot cry like that. I thought, why did he cry? He just won the race, he wasn't last. But eventually I ended up seeing that he was running behind something bigger than himself – he was running for his country. From that moment, I said I would like to run for that country one day, and he became my role model from that point.
His dreams came true when the United States agreed to take 3,500 of Sudan's Lost Boys as part of a government resettlement programme. He even met his hero Michael Johnson and after years of training he qualified for the Beijing Olympics, where he was their flag bearer.
But he has never forgotten his roots and frequently visits South Sudan, where he helps to provide clean water, education and medicine through his foundation, '4 South Sudan'. He truly represents these Olympics because he's not just running for gold for the glory, but to inspire the next generation in America and across Africa.

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[Persia1]

The Crying Games

The Crying Games

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As the national anthem of the Dominican Republic played, Felix Sanchez cried uncontrollably. The winner of the 400m hurdles took deep breaths, trying to regain his composure, but his bottom lip continued to wobble and his tears continued to flow. He is not the only one to have shown his soft side at London 2012. Countlessathletes across all disciplines have been weeping on podiums. The former Olympic table tennis player, Matthew Syed, says this wellspring of emotion is understandable.
Matthew Syed, former Olympic table tennis player:
This is one of the great joys of the Olympics. It is like a wonderful opportunity to experience emotional intensity, for us as viewers, for the athletes too. And when you deconstruct what they've gone through to get to this stage: the sacrifices, all of the hardships, the ambitions, the neurosis, that is wound up in that moment, you can kind of understand why it sometimes gets too much for them.
All that pressure leads to tears of despair as well. The Chinese weightlifter, Wu Jingbao, said he was ashamed for disgracing the motherland after failing to win gold. And the Olympic hosts - famed for their stiff upper lip - have been choking up along with the best of them. The British Olympic champions Victoria Pendleton, Chris Hoy, and Jess Ennis, all wept openly as they collected their medals.

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[Persia1]

Sporting rivalry

Sporting rivalry

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The Australian team has had a disappointing time at the Games so far, achieving far fewer gold medals than expected. Their team officials have conceded that they won't reach their aim of finishing among the top 5 countries, a blow exacerbated by the fact that their sporting rivals, Great Britain, are way ahead in the medal count.

The Australian sports minister, Kate Lundy, says her country is unlikely to catch up and that she will honour a bet made with the British sports minister to row a length of the Olympic rowing venue in a Great Britain shirt. Her British counterpart, Hugh Robertson, is relieved not to have to carry out his forfeit in central London.

The fierce rivalry between the two teams was spawned by cricket, and the Ashes series between England and Australia that's stagedroughly every two years since the 1880s. They also fight forsupremacy in rugby.

Australia's lacklustre Olympic performance has led to calls for the government to increase funding for sports, but the Australian Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, said today that the country should enjoy the Games now and examine the team's overall performance later.

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[Persia1]

IOC withholds South Korean medal

IOC withholds South Korean medal

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14 August 2012
The Korean Olympic Committee says a South Korean footballer acted in the heat of the moment when he held up a sign with a political message after his team's Olympic Games victory over Japan. The player, midfielder Park Jong-woo, was investigated for holding a placard after the bronze medal Olympics match on Friday.
Reporter:
Kevin Kim




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The sign that's put the South Korean footballer onto the headlines read "Dokdo is our land." Dokdo, or Takeshima in Japanese, are a set of islands half way between Korea and Japan, that have beendisputed between the two countries for decades.

A Korean Olympics Committee official told reporters that the sign that the midfielder displayed was handed to him by spectators at the end of the match, and the player simply ran with it overcomewith the joy of victory. FIFA, the world football governing body, has asked the Korean Football Association to further investigate the incident and provide results by the 16th.

Political messages are banned at the Olympics and the 23-year-old footballer was barred from attending the medal award ceremony.

In South Korea, passion remains high over the rocky islands under dispute. For many Koreans, it is a reminder of 35 years of colonial rule by Japan. While Korean territory before its annexation was eventually returned, the claim to Dokdo or Takeshima has continuously been disputed.

On Friday, a few days before Korea's Liberation Day, President Lee Myung Bak made a surprise visit to Dokdo, the first South Korean President to set foot on the disputed islands, generating fiercecriticism from Japan.

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[Persia1]

Confronting witchcraft in Britain

Confronting witchcraft in Britain

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16 August 2012
In Britain there are signs that child cruelty linked to spiritual beliefs is a growing phenomenon. There have been a number of cases of ritual torture and killings involving children, mainly in families from the African community. Now the British government has released an action plan to try to confront the problem.
Reporter:
Tom Esslemont




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There have been some shocking cases of violent child abuse in Britain in recent years. To mention just two: Kristy Bamu was murdered in 2010 because his attackers thought he was a witch. He was 15. And then there was the gruesome case of the headless torso belonging to a five or six-year-old boy found in the River Thames a decade ago.

In trying to tackle the problem, the government has brought together faith leaders, charities, the police and social workers. Under its new action plan it urges closer cooperation between these groups. Those critical of the plan, while welcoming it as an important step, say more faith leaders need to acknowledge the problem of ritual killings.

Despite the differences of opinion which exist, the government says it will now help provide support to those who witness such activity. It also says it wants to appoint mentors – people who can listen to members of affected communities. But the government admits that more research is needed for the problem to be properly eradicated.

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[Persia1]

Where is the best city to live?

Where is the best city to live?

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13 August 2012
If you've ever wished the place you live had better transport or less crime, or more cultural offerings, then you might want to consult the new Global Liveability Survey, which lists the best and worst cities to live in around the world.
Reporter:
Beth McLeod


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A slick advert by the Melbourne tourist board shows pictures of itsenviable schools, beaches, transport system and nightlife, all of which have helped it earn the number one spot as the world's most liveable city.

The 140 cities in the survey are judged on five broad categories:stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education andinfrastructure. The top scorers tend to be mid-sized cities in wealthy countries with a low population density. Some seven of the top ten – including Vancouver, Toronto and Sydney – are in Australia or Canada. Vienna, Helsinki and Auckland also made the top ten.

Of the cities surveyed – and some like Kabul and Baghdad were not included for safety reasons – Dhaka in Bangladesh was rated the least liveable. Lagos, Harare, Algiers and Karachi all scored poorly as well.

The city that has dropped fastest down the list in the last year is Damascus, due to the ongoing conflict in Syria, while infrastructure improvements in China mean that cities like Shanghai and Suzhou have scored better than they did last year.

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[Persia1]

لغات كاربردي در متون خبری​

1- Wednesday marks one year since five Japanese abducted by North Korean agents​

abduct: to take someone away by force​

ربودن‏، دزديدن​

2- the kidnapped victims' hope for a reunion with loved ones has dwindled.​

dwindl: to gradually become less and less or smaller and smaller.​

كاهش يافتن، كم شدن​

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3- The political standoff led to a six-month delay in passing this year's budget.​

standoff: a situation in which neither side in a fight or battle can gain an advantage​

وقفه، حالت عدم پيشروي​

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4- an attempt to break the stalemate​

stalemate:a situation in which it seems impossible to settle an argument or disagreement, and neither side can get an advantage.​

بن بست​

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5- Ms. Fukie Chimura says she is worried that the abduction issue is being sidelined​

sideline: to keep somebody or something from participating in an activity​

جلو انجام كاري را گرفتن، كاري را متوقف كردن، بازيگري را از انجام بازي محروم كردن​

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6- bilateral negotiations between Israel and Syria​

bilateral: involving two groups or nations​

دو طرفه دو جانبه​

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7- Diplomats say there have been intermittent contacts about the matter between Tokyo and Pyongyang.​

intermittent: stopping and starting often and for short periods​

متناوب، نوبه اي، چند بار وقفه و آغاز​

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8- Some support groups contend that North Korea probably abducted dozens of Japanese.​

contend: to argue or state that something is true​

ادعا كردن، بيان داشتن، ابراز كردن​

9- The land behind the factory is stony and derelict.​

زمین پشت کارخانه سنگلاخ و متروکه است​

derelict: a derelict building or piece of land is in very bad condition because it has not been used for a long time.​

متروکه، رها شده​

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10- Isn't it time we did something to protect the elderly from unscrupulous business people?​

آیا زمان آن فرا نرسیده که برای حمایت افراد مسن از دست بازرگانان بی تفاوت کاری انجام دهیم.​

unscrupulous: behaving in an unfair or dishonest way​

بی تفاوت، بی توجه به نیک و بد. بی پروا​

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11- Police have removed over 50 squatters from the housing estate.​

پلیس بیش از 50 نفر از غصبی نشینیان را از مجتمع مسکونی بیرون کرد.​

squatter: someone who lives in an empty building or on a piece of land without permission and without paying rent.​

چمباتمه زن، قوز کن، غصبی نیشین، متصرف، کسی که در محلی بدون اجازه و دادن پول مینشیند.​

housing estate: a large number of houses that have been built together in a planned way​

مجتمع مسکونی​

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12- They had been evicted for non-payment of rent.​

آنها بعلت ندادن هزینۀ اجاره محکوم به تخلیه ملک شده بودند.​

evict :to tell someone legally that they must leave the house they are living in​

خارج کردن، بیرون کردن، حکم به تخلیۀ جائی کردن​

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13- Inflation has begun to level off.​

دیگر تورم به مرحلۀ ثبات رسیده است.​

level off: to stop rising or falling and become steady.​

ثابت شدن، کم و زیاد نشدن​

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14- The cars were produced quickly, at the expense of safety.​

ماشینها سریع تولید شدند ولی به بهای کم گذاشتن از مسائل ایمنی.​

at the expense of: if something is done at the expense of someone or something else, it is only achieved by doing something that could harm the other person or thing.​

با کم گذاشتن در، با ضرر رساندن به، به قیمت کم گذاشتن در چیزی​

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15- The new head of Liberia's transitional government is a little-known businessman, Gyude Bryant.​

رئیس دولت موقت لیبریا یک تاجر به نام گیود بریانت است که شهرت چندانی ندارد.​

transitional government: a temporary government, usually one that governs until official elections can take place in a country​

دولت انتقالی، دولت موقت.​

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16- An interim government was established.​

یک دولت موقت تاسیس شد.​

interim: intended to be used or accepted for a short time only, until something or someone final can be made or found​

موقت.​

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17- In Ivory Coast, Liberian refugee Mark Zaway said he was following the day's events closely.​

در ساحل عاج، مارک زاوی که یک لیبرائی پناهنده است گفت: که از از نزدیک حوادث طول روز را دنبال میکند​

Ivory Coast: a country in West Africa​

ساحل عاج.​

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18 - 19- U.N. peacekeepers deployed in Liberia provided heavy security for the inauguration ceremony.​

مدافعان صلح سازمان ملل که در لیبریا مستقر شدند برای مراسم افتتاحیه امنیت بالائی را به کار گرفتند.​

deploy: to organize or move soldiers, military equipment etc so that they are in the right place and ready to be used​

مستقر کردن.​

inaugurate: to hold an official ceremony when someone starts doing an important job in government​

افتتاح کردن. مراسم بازگشائی یا شروع چیزی را برقرار کردن.​

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20- The argument deteriorated into a fight.​

بحثها به جنگ و دعوا منجر شد.​

deteriorated into something: to develop into a bad or worse situation​

منجر شدن، انجامیدن، (در موردی که کار بدتر میشود​

 

[Persia1]

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21- These talks are critical to the future of the peace process.​

این مذاکرات برای روند صلح در آینده بسیار مهم است.​

critical: something that is critical is very important because what happens in the future depends on it​

بسیار مهم، ضروری​

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22- But Gloucester learnt their lesson and threw their weight behind the task.​

ولی گلاستر (شهری در انگلیس) وظائفش را فهمید و از پروژه حمایت کرد.​

throw your weight behind somebody/something: to support a plan, person etc and use your power to make sure they succeed:​

حمایت کردن، پشتیبانی کردن​

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23- If elected, Mr. Aliyev has promised to carry on his father's policies, and even pledged to keep many of his advisors in the next government.​

علیف اگر انتخاب شود قول داده است که سیاستهای پدرش را دنبال کند و حتی متعهد شده است که بسیاری از مشاورین پدرش را در دولت بعدی خود در پست خود ابقا کند.​

pledge: to make a formal, usually public, promise that you will do something​

قول دادن، متعهد شدن، ملتزم شدن​

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24- 25- The opposition alleges widespread abuse and intimidation during the election campaign​

مخالفین اظهار داشتند که در طول فعالیتهای انتخاباتی سوء استفاده ها و رعب و وحشت همه جا فراگیر بود.​

allege: to say that something is true or that someone has done something wrong, although it has not been proved​

اظهار داشتن، ادعا کردن​

intimidate: to frighten or threaten someone into making them do what you want​

ترساندن، مرعوب ساختن​

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26- They also say the media and election officials are biased in favor of the president's son.​

آنها همچنین بیان داشتند که رسانه ها و مامورین انتخابات به نفع فرزند رئیس جمهور جهت گیری کرده بودند (حقیقت را عوض کردند).​

bias: to unfairly influence attitudes, choices, or decisions​

از مسیر اصلی منحرف کردن، سمت گیری کردن، ناعادلانه تغییر موضع دادن.​

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27- The report of the investigation had been watered down.​

گزارش مربوط به تحقیق سانسور شده است.​

water something down: to make a statement, report etc less forceful by changing it or removing parts that may offend people - used to show disapproval:​

سانسور کردن.​

28- He needs to go before the public and make a clean breast of it.​

او باید به مردم مواجه شود و به آن کار اعتراف کند.​

make a clean breast of it/things: to admit that you have done something wrong​

به انجام کار خطائی اعتراف کردن​

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29- The builders may have adhered to the letter of the law, but not its spirit.​

سازندگان (مثل خانه) ممکن است خود را ملزم به رعایت نص صریح قانون بدانند ولی به روح قانون نه.​

the letter of the law: the exact words of a law or agreement rather than the intended or general meaning​

نص صریح قانون.​

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30- Although not a public figure, he was a man of great influence.​

او هرچند فرد سرشناسی نبود ولی مردی بود که نفوذ زیادی داشت.​

public figure: known about by most people​

سرشناس، مشهور.​

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31- We have heard it over and over from John Q Public when asked how he would vote.​

ما بارها این مسئله را از مردم آمریکا هنگامی که از آنها سوال میشد چگونه رای میدهند، شنیده ایم.​

John Q Public / Citizen: name designating an average or typical U.S. citizen​

مردم عادی آمریکا، شهروندان آمریکائی​

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32- 33- Judges are under the thumb of the bureaucracy.​

قضات تحت تاثیر تشریفات اداری هستند (رعایت قوانین تشریفاتی را لازم میدانند).​

be under somebody's thumb: to be so strongly influenced by someone that they control you completely​

تحت سلطۀ چیزی بودن، تحت نفوذ چیزی بودن، تحت تاثیر شدید از چیزی بودن​

bureaucracy: a complicated official system which is annoying or confusing because it has a lot of rules, processes etc​

تشریفات اداری، ورق بازی، دیوان سالاری​

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34- We are facing a testing crisis.​

ما با بحران سختی روبرو هستیم.​

testing: a testing situation, experience etc is difficult to deal with​

سخت. مشکل​

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35- Many people find it hard to live on a basic state pension.​

برای بسیار از مردم مشکل است که بر اساس حقوق بازنشتگی که از دولت میگیرند امرار معاش کنند.​

state pension (British English) / public pension (American English): an amount of money paid regularly by the government to someone who does not work any more like when they are retired.​

حقوق بازنشستگی که دولت ان را پرداخت میکند.​

36- Look in the Rear-View Mirror​

از آینۀ عقب به پشت سرت نگاه کن​

rear-view mirror: a mirror fixed inside the windscreen of a motor vehicle enabling the driver to see the vehicle or road behind.​

آینه بغل در وسایل نقلیه​

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37- This has some affinity with the Marxist position.​

این (مسئله) با موقعیت مارکسیست ارتباط های نزدیکی دارد.​

affinity: a close relationship between two things because of qualities or features that they share​

وابستگی، ارتباط تنگاتنگ​

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37- The president faced a tepid response from the audience​

رئیس جمهور با استقبال سردی از طرف حضار (شنوندگان) مواجه شد.​

tepid: a feeling, reaction etc that is tepid shows a lack of excitement or interest​

استقبال سرد، استقبال معمولی.​

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38- In many cases they have the option of continuing on for a baccalaureate at the University of Dayton.​

در بسیاری از موارد در دانشگاه دایتون برای گرفتن مدرک لیسانس افراد حق انتخاب دارند که (به تحصیل) ادامه بدهند یا نه.​

baccalaureate: a university bachelor's degree​

مدرک لیسانس.​

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39- a temporary aberration in US foreign policy​

کج روی های زودگذری در سیاست خارجی ایالت متحده​

aberration: an action or event that is different from what usually happens or what someone usually does​

کج روی، انحراف​

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40: Both governments voted to abrogate the treaty.​

هر دو دولت بر لغو معاهده رای دادند​

abrogate: to officially end a legal agreement, practice etc​

لغو کردن، منسوخ کردن، پایان دادن​