Confidence in Chinese milk turns sour

BEFORE READING 

1. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

1.	confidence	a.	toxic
2	tainted	b.	basic
3.	infants	c.	trust
4.	poisonous	d.	lethal
5.	deadly	e.	safety measure
6.	checks	f.	responded
7.	rectify	g.	examinations
8.	fundamental	h.	damaged
9.	reacted	i.	correct
10.	precaution	j.	young children

Chinese consumers are losing confidence in their country’s dairy industry after the latest tainted milk products scandal. Almost 6,500 babies and children have become ill and four have died. Several hundred infants now have extreme kidney failure. Many parents are furious and upset that their young children need operations to remove stones from their kidneys. The reason for this tragedy is milk powder makers adding a poisonous plastic compound to their products. The country’s biggest dairy company, the Sanlu Group, admitted finding the deadly melamine chemical in its baby powder. Melamine increases the level of protein in milk. The same chemical has also been found in liquid milk. Supermarkets are clearing their shelves of domestic milk products.


The Chinese government has ordered emergency checks on all dairy products. It found ten per cent of the items it tested contained melamine. Officials have promised consumers that they will punish those responsible for the scandal. China’s news agency Xinhua reported: "Local authorities should rectify the dairy industry so as to bring a fundamental change to the dairy market and products." The crisis has spread beyond China’s borders, with Malaysia, Singapore and Japan banning Chinese milk imports. Starbucks coffee chain in China has reacted quickly. Hundreds of its coffee shops have stopped serving drinks with milk, which is affecting its business. A company spokesman said this was a precaution “due to the serious nature” of the situation.

COMPREHENSION 

1. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):

a.	Chinese milk is going bad very quickly because of global warming.	T / F
b.	Nearly 6,500 children died because of milk products in China.	T / F
c.	Many children need operations after the milk damaged their kidneys.	T / F
d.	Supermarkets are emptying their stores of Chinese milk products.	T / F
e.	China’s government hasn’t started testing milk products yet.	T / F
f.	Chinese authorities said it will punish all wrongdoers in the crisis.	T / F
g.	The milk scandal has so far stayed within China’s borders.	T / F
h.	Starbucks coffee shops in China continue to sell coffee with milk.	T / F

Men more attracted to women in red

BEFORE READING

1. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

1.	suggests	a.	rating
2	conducted	b.	impact
3.	score	c.	give
4.	provide	d.	thinking
5.	data	e.	particular
6.	fascinating	f.	argues
7.	awareness	g.	opportunity
8.	effects	h.	statistics
9.	certain	i.	carried out
10.	chance	j.	interesting

A new study suggests that men are more physically attracted to a woman if she wears red clothes. The report from New York’s University of Rochester conducted different experiments to find out the effects of colour on human relationships. Researchers asked more than 100 men to give a score to photographs of women. The men had to rate the women according to how pretty they were, how much the men would like to kiss them, their intelligence and how kind they looked. They also had to provide details of what kind of date they would like to take the women on. The results showed that that the women in the pictures who wore red scored higher and were more likely to be taken on an expensive date. The data showed the colour red made no impact on the scores for intelligence and kindness.



The research was carried out by psychology professor Andrew Elliot and his team. He said: “It's fascinating to find that something as [ever-present] as color can be having an effect on our behavior without our awareness.” This is one of the first scientific studies to look at the effects of colour on human behaviour. For most of us, however, it will come as no surprise that red is the colour of love and passion. Look no further than red roses on Valentine’s Day and the popularity of deep red lipsticks. Elliot says men may be genetically programmed to be attracted to females wearing red. He said certain apes also display such behaviour. Women in the study did not rate the pictured females as prettier, neither did they have the chance to rate men wearing different colours.

COMPREHENSION 

1. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):

a.	Men prefer women who wear red clothes.	T / F
b.	Part of a study was for men to kiss an intelligent woman in a red dress.	T / F
c.	A study said men might spend more on a date if the woman wore red.	T / F
d.	Men said that women who wore yellow were kind.	T / F
e.	The researcher said we are very aware of how colour affects us.	T / F
f.	Few people would be surprised that red is the colour of passion.	T / F
g.	Male apes prefer female apes who wear red.	T / F
h.	Women were more attracted to men who wear different colours.	T / F

"Toilet Theme Park" opens in S. Korea

BEFORE READING 

1. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article.

1.	proving	a.	warmheartedly
2	hit	b.	holds
3.	affectionately	c.	valued
4.	appreciated	d.	steams / fogs
5.	mists	e.	turning out to be
6.	promotion	f.	fans
7.	hosts	g.	tourist sites
8.	attractions	h.	thought / reflection
9.	enthusiasts	i.	encouragement
10.	introspection	j.	success

A city in South Korea has added a new attraction to its cultural landscape - the world's first "Toilet Theme Park". The Restroom Cultural Park in the city of Suwon is proving a huge hit with locals and tourists alike. The latest tourist site is dedicated to the memory of former city mayor Sim Jae-duck, affectionately known as "Mr Toilet". He believed the toilet is a very important and under-appreciated aspect of world culture. Visitors to the park can admire its toilet-bowl-shaped exhibition hall as well as dozens of bronze statues in various toilet positions. They can even sit on Mr Kim's original toilet, which includes a full-length glass door that mists up when it is being used.


A city in South Korea has added a new attraction to its cultural landscape - the world's first "Toilet Theme Park". The Restroom Cultural Park in the city of Suwon is proving a huge hit with locals and tourists alike. The latest tourist site is dedicated to the memory of former city mayor Sim Jae-duck, affectionately known as "Mr Toilet". He believed the toilet is a very important and under-appreciated aspect of world culture. Visitors to the park can admire its toilet-bowl-shaped exhibition hall as well as dozens of bronze statues in various toilet positions. They can even sit on Mr Kim's original toilet, which includes a full-length glass door that mists up when it is being used.

COMPREHENSION 

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if  a-h  below are true (T) or false (F).

a.	The world's second theme park about toilets opened in South Korea.	T / F
b.	The theme park is liked by tourists and local people.	T / F
c.	The theme park was inspired by an ex-mayor known as "Mr Toilet".	T / F
d.	The theme park has a toilet-bowl-shaped exhibition hall.	T / F
e.	The city of Suwon hosts the Golden Toilet Art Carnival every year.	T / F
f.	One of the city's top attractions is a toilet-shaped house.	T / F
g.	Reports are the former city mayor was born in a restroom.	T / F
h.	The ex-mayor said the toilet aided thinking and disease prevention.	T / F

Belly full of cocaine

A Canadian woman has been detained in Colombia after allegedly trying to smuggle two kilograms of cocaine out of the country stashed under a fake pregnant belly.The twenty-eight-year-old woman was arrested after trying to board a plane back to Toronto."The National Police for the Anti-Narcotics Squad arrested a twenty-eight year-old Canadian citizen, Ritchie Tabitha Leah, who was trying to smuggle 2 kilograms of cocaine from the El Dorado International Airport. The Canadian citizen tried to fool public security forces by faking a pregnancy."According to officials, two kilograms of cocaine could fetch up to $60,000 in Canada. If convicted for drug trafficking, Leah could face up to eight years in prison.

Difficult words:

detain (catch and put at the police station) 

allegedly (it is not sure)

smuggle (move something illegally)

stash (hide)

fool (trick)

pregnancy (having baby)

drug trafficking (buying and selling drugs)

Burger King releases meat perfume

BEFORE READING

1. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

1.	perfume	a.	comments
2	captures	b.	concerned
3.	essence	c.	presents
4.	features	d.	success
5.	mood	e.	aftershave
6.	desperately	f.	spirit
7.	feedback	g.	urgently
8.	irresistible	h.	atmosphere
9.	worried	i.	catches
10.	big hit	j.	attractive

What do you buy the man who has everything for Christmas? How about some perfume that smells of meat? The US hamburger giant Burger King has just released a fragrance for men based on the smell of its Whopper burger. The company is advertising the scent, called Flame, on its website firemeetsdesire.com. It says: “The Whopper sandwich is America’s favourite burger. Flame….captures the essence of that love and gives it to you.” The website also invites visitors to “Behold the scent of seduction.” The site features a variety of romantic images, including candlelit baths, wine and sunsets. Burger King says Flame will allow men to “Set the mood no matter what mood you’re in the mood for”.


The scent is on sale online for $3.99, although just five days before Christmas, it was sold out. It is on sale in New York, for those who desperately want to buy a bottle. The website that is marketing Flame has a lot of feedback from some very satisfied customers. It seems the body spray is doing some amazing things to make men more irresistible. We found several people who were more than happy with their purchase. Jason Lowe from San Diego said: “I like the smell but would like the body spray to have the smell of extra cheese.” Carmen Diaz from Los Angeles said she loved the smell, but was worried about the number of dogs that now followed her husband. The fragrance has not yet been a big hit with vegetarians.

COMPREHENSION 

1. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):

a.	Burger King is selling perfume that smells of its burgers.	T / F
b.	The new fragrance is called ‘Fire, Meats, Desire’.	T / F
c.	Burger King’s Whopper sandwich is America’s best-selling burger.	T / F
d.	The perfume’s website has a variety of images of burgers and meat.	T / F
e.	There is plenty of the perfume left if you want to buy it online.	T / F
f.	A man said he would like the perfume more if it has a cheesy smell.	T / F
g.	A woman said her husband wore the scent and started following dogs.	T / F
h.	Strangely, the biggest customers for the perfume are vegetarians.	T / F

Cubans can now build their own homes

BEFORE READING

1. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

1.	quickly	a.	to be had
2	rely	b.	limits
3.	reforms	c.	likely
4.	restrictions	d.	depend
5.	stick to	e.	huge
6.	serious	f.	salary
7.	tiny	g.	fast
8.	potential	h.	follow
9.	wage	i.	changes
10.	available	j.	small

Times are changing quickly in Cuba. Cubans can now build their own houses for the first time in 50 years. The country's president, Raul Castro, has announced changes to help the nation's housing shortage. For the past five decades, people had to rely on the government to provide them with houses. There was no such thing as housing loans or a property market. The new reforms will allow people to get loans to build their own homes. There will still be many restrictions. All new properties must follow strict building guidelines. The government has announced dimensions for new houses that all architects must stick to. Mr. Castro explained his decision live on television, telling his people: "I've given you this amount of space....Now build your little home with whatever you can."


Housing has become a serious problem in Cuba. There are now too few houses for people to live in. Overcrowding is reaching record levels as more and more people live with their families in tiny properties. Cuba's government has had difficulty keeping to its targets of building 100,000 new homes per year. The situation has been made worse by three huge hurricanes that hit the island in 2008. Hundreds of thousands of homes were destroyed in the fierce winds and driving rain. One potential Cuban homeowner, Jose Santana, was delighted with the news. "My dream to have my own home may soon come true," he said. This may be easier said than done. The average wage in Cuba is just $17 a month, and most building materials are only available on the black market.

COMPREHENSION 

1. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):

a.	People in Cuba are attending free house-building workshops.	T / F
b.	People could build their own homes 55 years ago.	T / F
c.	Cubans have been unable to get a housing loan for the past 50 years.	T / F
d.	People in Cuba are free to design their houses any way they choose.	T / F
e.	There aren’t enough houses in Cuba for people to live in.	T / F
f.	Cuba’s government couldn’t manage to build 100,000 houses a year.	T / F
g.	Very bad weather in 2008 added to Cuba’s housing shortage.	T / F
h.	Average wages in Cuba are only $170 a month.	T / F

China closes 1250 sites for healthier Web

BEFORE READING 

1. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

1.	shut down	a.	quickly
2	effort	b.	tough
3.	immoral	c.	circulate
4.	aimed	d.	attempt
5.	complex	e.	cautioned
6.	distribute	f.	closed
7.	warned	g.	clean up
8.	inappropriate	h.	designed
9.	rapidly	i.	unsuitable
10.	censor	j.	wrong

The Chinese government has shut down around 1,250 Internet sites that contain pornographic material. It is the latest effort by China to crack down on immoral content. In addition to the crackdown, authorities have arrested 41 people involved in putting pornography online. The deputy director of China’s Internet Affairs Bureau, Liu Zhengrong, said the focus of the government’s actions is to create a safer environment for children who use the Internet. Liu told reporters: "The campaign is aimed at creating a healthy Internet environment for all young people and making the Internet in China safer and more reliable." Liu outlined the difficulties ahead, saying: "Our biggest challenge is that the Internet is still growing…. We are facing a long-term, complex and huge task."


In China it is illegal to distribute pornographic material. The Xinhua news agency reports that in the past three weeks the government has received more than 18,000 complaints about inappropriate content. Officials have also warned China’s most popular sites, including Google and Baidu, to do more to block pornographic material from their searches in China. The task of censoring sites in China seems to be an uphill battle. China has the largest online community in the world. There are almost 300 million users in China and this number is growing rapidly, at the rate of a quarter of a million a day. There are also 20,000 new sites uploaded to the Web every week. Many people fear the crackdown might also aim to censor news sites such as the BBC and Voice of America.

COMPREHENSION 

1. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):

a.	China has closed some sites about unhealthy eating and lifestyles.	T / F
b.	The government has arrested 41 people.	T / F
c.	The government wants a healthier online environment for kids.	T / F
d.	An official said the speed of the Internet’s growth is a problem.	T / F
e.	The article said over 80,000 people complained to China’s government.	T / F
f.	China has the world’s largest number of Internet users.	T / F
g.	There are 250,000 new Chinese users going online every day.	T / F
h.	The article said China is going to crack down on the BBC and VOA.	T / F