VOASE0125_Economics Report

25 January 2007

Moving Beyond Talk on Climate Change
How companies are feeling the heat to cut greenhouse gases.

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This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.

One of the top issues this week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, was climate change. But the business and political leaders gathered for the yearly event in the Swiss Alps were not the only ones talking about the subject.

President Bush, in his State of the Union message Tuesday, proposed rules to increase production of renewable fuels, like ethanol from corn. He also said new technologies are needed to deal with what he called "the serious challenge of climate change."

California recently passed rules to require industries to release less carbon dioxide and other gases blamed for trapping heat. Some companies believe it is just a question of time before the federal government could do the same. So they are positioning themselves to have a voice in the policy-making.

On Monday, leaders of ten big companies proposed federal rules to limit the release of greenhouse gases. The companies are members of the United States Climate Action Partnership.

One possibility for the country is a trading system like the European Union has. Companies would have permits to release a set amount of greenhouse gases. Businesses that stay within their limits could trade their surplus to bigger polluters.

Since nineteen ninety-five, the United States has had a trading system for sulfur emissions that cause acid rain.

But some companies think other ideas, like new taxes on polluters, are a better way to cut greenhouse gases.

Any new rules would hit some industries harder than others. For example, forty percent of the carbon dioxide from American industry comes from power producers, especially those that burn coal. The United States is the world's biggest producer of carbon dioxide, followed by China.

On February second, in Paris, a scientific group established by the United Nations plans to release a major report on climate change. The report, six years after the last one, is expected to take the strongest position yet about the influence of human activity.

The group is said to be at least ninety percent sure that human activity is the main cause of global warming in the last half-century. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change puts most of the blame on the burning of fossil fuels. And the report is expected to say that scientists around the world believe temperatures will continue to rise.

And that's the VOA Special English Economics Report. Transcripts and MP3 files are at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Mario Ritter.

VOASE0125_American Mosaic

25 January 2007

Cesar Millan: Famous Dog Trainer, but Not All Experts Follow His Lead

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HOST:

Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC in VOA Special English.

(MUSIC)

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

We answer a question about American lawmakers …

Play some music from the North Mississippi Allstars …

.And report about a world famous expert on dogs.

The Dog Whisperer

HOST:

Americans own about seventy-three million dogs. Many people have problems training their animals. Some are turning to dog expert Cesar Millan. Faith Lapidus has more.

FAITH LAPIDUS:

Cesar Millan's television show is called "Dog Whisperer." It is broadcast in several countries, including the United States, Japan and Thailand. Millan has also written a book about his life and ideas about dog training. It is called "Cesar's Way: The Natural, Everyday Guide to Understanding and Correcting Common Dog Problems."

The TV show and book try to improve the relationships between people and their dogs. Millan also works with difficult dogs at his Dog Psychology Center in Los Angeles, California.

Cesar Millan says dogs are happy and calm when they know and trust their leader. He says dog owners must be the leader or the dog will become confused and act in anti-social ways. The animal might become uncontrollable. It may bark all the time or even bite someone.

Cesar Millan says the best way to train a dog is to prevent this behavior in the first place. He says the owner must be a good leader and provide a lot of exercise to keep the dog happy.

Pet owners call on him when they have a problem. These situations appear on his television show, "Dog Whisperer." Recently, he visited a home where the dog barked loudly when people used some cooking equipment. The dog was afraid of the noise, and its loud barking was interfering with the lives of its owners.

Cesar Millan placed the dog in a small space. Then he operated the equipment very close to the animal until the dog stopped barking. The owners said the dog stopped being afraid of the noise after that.

However, not all dog experts agree with all of Millan's methods. They say it is true that dogs need good leadership and a lot of exercise. But they say it can be cruel and dangerous to force a dog to face its fears as in the example we described. They say the animal might attack. Some dog experts are concerned about people trying the methods they see on television without getting good advice about their own dog.

Cesar Millan has said that his methods are not the only ways to train dogs successfully. He also has said that people should seek professional help when trying to change their pet's behavior. And his television show repeatedly tells people not to try the methods without professional help.

Terms in Congress

HOST:

Our listener question this week comes from Dhaka, Bangladesh. Sabuj asks about the difference between the words "senator" and "congressman."

The Capitol building

The United States Congress has two parts: the House of Representatives and the Senate. House lawmakers are called representatives. Those in the Senate are called senators. All of them can be called legislators. They can also be called members of Congress. But not all can be called congressmen. Why? Because some of them are women.

Currently, seventy-one of the four hundred thirty-five members of the House of Representatives are women. In the Senate, sixteen of the one hundred senators are women.

You might hear the media use the title of congressman or congresswoman for members of the House of Representatives. Rarely is a senator addressed this way, although it would not be wrong.

When Congress meets, there are special rules about how members behave. One of the rules deals with what to call a member. In the House of Representatives, members speak of another member as the "gentleman" or "gentlewoman" from the state they represent. They are not permitted to call members by name. Members also may speak of another member as "my colleague", or "my distinguished colleague." This is also true in the Senate.

Members of the House of Representatives must not speak until the speaker of the House calls on them to do so. In the Senate, the presiding officer gives permission for members to speak. Members of both houses of Congress are also barred from using offensive language in meetings.

All these rules deal with what is called congressional decorum. And, like all rules, sometimes they are violated. Punishment differs based on the violation. However, sometimes the worst punishment is unofficial. For example, offensive language on the floor of the House or Senate can seriously harm an elected official's public image.

The North Mississippi Allstars

HOST:

The North Mississippi Allstars play music that combines the sounds of southern blues with rock and roll. Their songs are an energetic mixture of old and new styles. Critics have praised the six albums this group has made over the years. They say the North Mississippi Allstars represent a new kind of musicians. Barbara Klein has more.

BARBARA KLEIN:

North Mississippi Allstars

The North Mississippi Allstars are three musicians. Chris Chew and the brothers Luther and Cody Dickinson are all from the southern state of Mississippi. This is an area with a rich and old tradition of music. But these men do not just recreate music of the past. They have reinvented the sound of the blues into something fresh and different. Listen to “Deep Blue Sea” from their latest album, “Electric Blue Watermelon."

(MUSIC)

The Dickinson brothers grew up in a world filled with musical influences. Their father is a well-known record producer named Jim Dickinson. In fact, he helped the North Mississippi Allstars make this latest record. He says there is a special musical spirit in the Mississippi hill country.

Here is a song the band sings with the country singer Lucinda Williams. It is called “Hurry Up Sunrise”.

(MUSIC)

The North Mississippi Allstars are performing around the United States. People around the country can hear their lively songs and experience a new version of the blues. We leave you now with the title song from an earlier album, "Fifty-One Phantom”.

(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 was also our producer. To read the text of this program and download audio, go to our Web site, voaspecialenglish.com. And join us again next week for AMERICAN MOSAIC, VOA’s radio magazine in Special English.

VOASE0124_The Making of a Nation

24 January 2007

Dewey Defeats Truman in 1948. Oops, Make It Truman Defeats Dewey
Political experts were sure the president would lose to Thomas Dewey, but Harry Truman campaigned fiercely to prove everyone wrong.

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VOICE ONE:

THE MAKING OF A NATION -- a program in Special English by the Voice of America.

(MUSIC)

Presidential elections are exciting events in American politics. Few elections for the White House have been as exciting as the one in nineteen forty-eight. And few have had such surprising results.

VOICE TWO:

President Harry Truman holds up Chicago Daily Tribune declaring "Dewey Defeats Truman," based on early results

Four candidates were nominated for president in the nineteen forty-eight election. One was the man already in the White House, the candidate of the Democratic Party, President Harry Truman. Truman had been the party's successful vice presidential candidate in nineteen forty-four. When President Franklin Roosevelt died a year later, Truman became president.

Truman did not do well during his first few months in office. He made several serious mistakes. He had trouble with the economy and organized labor. His party lost control of the Senate and the House of Representatives in the congressional elections of nineteen forty-six.

Most Americans had little faith in Truman's ability as a leader. They expected that he would lose the presidential election in nineteen forty-eight if he chose to be a candidate.

VOICE ONE:

President Truman chose to run for another term in the White House. And he planned to win. In the months following the democratic defeat in the congressional election, he took several strong steps to show his leadership.

Truman called on the Congress to pass a number of laws to help black people. He took firm actions in his foreign policy toward the Soviet Union. And he began to speak out with much more strength to the American people.

VOICE TWO:

Truman succeeded in winning the presidential nomination of the Democratic Party. "I will win this election," Truman told the Democratic convention that nominated him. "And I will make the Republicans like it!"

The Republicans nominated New York state Governor Thomas Dewey.

Dewey campaign sign

Dewey was a wise and courageous man. He also was very serious. Truman campaigned by telling the voters that Dewey did not understand the needs of the average American. He called Dewey a candidate of rich people.

One day, Dewey got angry at a railroad engineer because his campaign train was late for a speech. Truman charged that this proved that Dewey did not understand the problems of railroad engineers and other working Americans. He tried to make the election a choice between hard-working Democrats and rich Republicans.

VOICE ONE:

Two other men also were candidates for the presidency. Both were from newly created parties.

One was Strom Thurmond of the state of South Carolina. He was the candidate of the States Rights Democratic Party, also known as the Dixiecrat Party. Most of his supporters were white Americans from the southeastern part of the country. They opposed giving full rights to black people.

The other candidate was Henry Wallace of the Progressive Party. His supporters believed that Truman had turned away from the progressive ideas of Franklin Roosevelt.

VOICE TWO:

Both Thurmond and Wallace had broken away from the Democratic Party. Most political experts believed those two candidates would take votes away from President Truman. They believed Republican candidate Dewey surely would win the election. This seemed especially true because President Truman did not have strong public support.

Harry Truman, however, was a fighter. He did not believe the election was lost. He took his campaign to the American people.

VOICE ONE:

"I had always campaigned," said Mister Truman, "by going around talking to people and meeting them. Running for president was no different.

"I just got on a train," Truman said, "and started across the country to tell people what was going on. I wanted to talk to them face to face. When you are standing there in front of them and talking to them, the people can tell whether you are telling them the facts or not."

VOICE TWO:

Truman at the back of a train as he begins his 1948 presidential campaign tour

Truman campaigned with great energy. He made hundreds of speeches as his train moved across the country. He spoke to farmers in Iowa. He visited a children's home in Texas. And he discussed issues with small groups of people who came to visit his train when it stopped in rural areas of Montana and Idaho.

Dewey and the Republicans laughed at Truman's campaign. They said it showed that Truman needed votes so badly that he had to spend his time looking for them in small villages. Truman said the criticism proved that Republicans did not care for the average American.

VOICE ONE:

Dewey also campaigned across the country by train. But he showed little of the fire and emotion in his speeches that made Truman's campaign so exciting. A reporter wrote: "Governor Dewey is acting like a man who has already been elected and is only passing time, waiting to take office. "

Dewey had good reasons to feel so sure of being elected. Almost every political expert in the country said Truman had no chance to win. The Wall Street Journal newspaper, for example, printed a story about what Dewey would do in the White House after the election. And the New York Times said that Dewey would win the election by a large vote.

VOICE TWO:

Truman refused to accept these views. Instead, he spoke with more and more emotion against Dewey. Most Americans still believed that Truman would lose. But they liked his courage in fighting until the end. At the end of one speech, a citizen shouted, "Give them hell, Harry! We will win!" And soon, Truman supporters across the country were shouting, "Give 'em hell, Harry!"

Truman campaigned until Election Day. He made a special appeal to working people, Jews, blacks, Catholics, and other traditional supporters of the Democratic Party. In his final radio speech, he promised to work for peace and a government that would help all people. Then he went to his home in the state of Missouri to wait with the rest of the country for the election results.

VOICE ONE:

Republicans across the country greeted Election Day happily. They were sure that this was the day that the people would choose to send a Republican back to the White House after sixteen years.

Some of the early voting results from the northeastern states showed Truman winning. But few Republicans worried. They were sure Dewey would be the winner when all the votes were counted.

The editor of the Chicago Tribune newspaper also was sure Dewey would be the next president. He published a newspaper with a giant story that said "Dewey Defeats Truman."

VOICE TWO:

The Chicago Tribune was wrong. Everyone was wrong. Everyone, that is, except Harry Truman and the Americans who gave him their votes. Truman went to bed on election night before all the votes were counted. He told his assistant that he would win.

Truman woke early the next morning to learn that he was right. Not only did he defeat Dewey, but he won by a good number of votes. And he helped many Democratic congressional candidates win as well. The Democrats captured both houses of Congress.

Harry Truman would go on to serve four more years in the White House. He would make many difficult decisions as America moved into the second half of the twentieth century.

VOICE ONE:

Many of the decisions were necessary because of America's new responsibilities as leader of the Western world.

Mister Truman would send American troops to South Korea to help the United Nations defend South Korea against aggression from North Korea. He would join other Western leaders in establishing a new alliance, NATO, to provide for the joint defense of Europe and North America. Mister Truman and later presidents would make decisions to send economic and military aid, in huge amounts, to countries all around the world.

VOICE TWO:

These worldwide responsibilities produced many changes in the United States, especially in the policies and actions of the United States government. But the system of the government did not change. It remained the same as that created by the Constitution in seventeen eighty-seven. Only a few details were changed to better protect and represent the people of the United States.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

You have been listening to THE MAKING OF A NATION, a program in Special English by the Voice of America. Your narrators have been Harry Monroe and Rich Kleinfeldt. Our program was written by David Jarmul. The Voice of America invites you to listen again next week to THE MAKING OF A NATION.

VOASE0124_Explorations

23 January 2007

Older People Go Back to College to Learn New Things, Get Fresh Start
Part three in a series.

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VOICE ONE:

I'm Barbara Klein.

VOICE TWO:

Donald Vitkus, a longtime factory worker, decided to seek a degree in human services at Holyoke Community College in Holyoke, Massachusetts, after losing his job

Like more than 80,000 "nontraditional" students in the US, Emma Ferguson decided to return to school full time to earn a bachelor's degree. The 50-year-old grandmother walks to class as a first-year student at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts.

And I'm Steve Ember with Explorations in VOA Special English. We continue the series about how older Americans are keeping their minds active. Today we tell about some of the adult education programs offered by colleges and universities.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Martin Feldman was a chemistry professor for forty years. He retired from Howard University in Washington, D.C. about five years ago. Mister Feldman says when he retired he thought he would like to do something he had not done before. Yet, he says, he was not really interested in spending a lot of time as a student in a classroom, writing papers and taking tests.

One day Mister Feldman found a list of classes offered at Montgomery College near his home in Silver Spring, Maryland. The college lets people sixty years and older who live in Montgomery County take classes. They do not have to pay the normal tuition cost, just the cost of supplies.

Mister Feldman decided to try a sculpture class. It teaches students how to make art out of clay, wood, metal and plastic. And it meets only one day a week.

VOICE TWO:

Martin Feldman says he quickly decided he really liked sculpture. So he has continued with the class, experimenting with combining different materials and shapes.

About half of the members of the sculpture class are older adults who live in the area. They take the class for no college credit. The other students are college age. They are taking the class for credit to get a degree and are paying tuition to take it.

VOICE ONE:

Martin Feldman is also taking a class at a private school of art and design as a regular student. His artwork had to be judged good enough for him to be accepted in the class. And he has to pay the full cost.

Mister Feldman is happy he was able to try something completely new when he retired. He has decided to spend a month at an art school in San Miguel Allende, Mexico. He will try something else new while he is there – learning to make sculpture by welding metal.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Most big universities have continuing education programs that offer traditional classes for older adults who want to continue learning. Some provide training programs that give people who complete them a certificate to prove they have gained new skills. The cost for university classes can be high, even for continuing education students.

Many smaller colleges offer traditional classes at lower cost and provide other programs for older adults in their area who have different educational needs. Prince George’s Community College in Maryland is one of them.

Camille Crawford is head of a program called Seasoned Adults Growing Educationally, or SAGE, at Prince George’s Community College. It is part of the Workforce Development and Continuing Education division of the college. The program is thirty years old.

VOICE ONE:

Miz Crawford says SAGE offers more than four hundred classes every four months. The classes are held in about sixty places all around Prince George’s County. About five thousand older adults are taking classes at any one time. They do not have to travel to the college. They can take classes near where they live.

People can take SAGE classes in community centers, retirement communities and religious centers. The cost is very low. For fifty dollars, people over sixty who live in Prince George’s County can take as many classes as they want in a four-month period.

VOICE TWO:

SAGE offers classes in art, computers, finance, heath, history, languages and music. Professors who teach at Prince George’s Community College also teach the SAGE classes. One professor told Miz Crawford that when he started teaching a SAGE class he realized again why he became a teacher. He said the older adults were a joy to teach. They were in the class because they wanted to learn, not because they had to be there to get a college degree.

Miz Crawford says some of the SAGE students never finished high school so they would not have been admitted to most colleges. SAGE classes are open to everyone. Adults who never thought they would have a chance to take college level classes are able to do so in the SAGE program.

VOICE ONE:

Camille Crawford says many of the college’s continuing education classes are related to work. Some of the older adults in the area need to keep working to earn money, even if they have retired from their jobs. So the Workforce and Continuing Education division of Prince George’s Community College has programs to help provide new job skills for older adults. Some of these people moved to the area from another country and do not have the skills needed for jobs in the United States.

Prince George’s County Department of Family Services identifies the people who should be given training for a job. The college provides free training and placement in an internship program with a non-profit organization or a government agency. The adult students are paid a minimum wage while they are in training. The federal government helps support the program.

VOICE TWO:

Camille Crawford says that one of the first questions asked of anyone seeking a job today is: “What computer skills do you have?” So the Workforce and Continuing Education division of Prince George’s Community College combines job preparation skills with computer training. Those who successfully finish the program receive certificates to prove they are trained to work in an office.

Miz Crawford says the training and continuing education programs have provided older adults with new skills. Many who are now working part time feel they are doing something meaningful in their retirement years.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

The University Continuing Education Association is the oldest organization in the United States of continuing education programs in colleges and universities. It began in nineteen fifteen. The organization now has about four hundred fifty members. These college and universities are in most of the American states and in about thirty countries from Australia to Kuwait.

VOICE TWO:

Timothy Sloate is director of research for the University Continuing Education Association. He says studies have shown that many baby boomers plan to keep working at least part time after they retire. Baby boomers are the large group of Americans born between nineteen forty-six and nineteen sixty-four. The oldest members of the group are just turning sixty and thinking of retiring from their jobs.

Mister Sloate says many baby boomers are planning to learn new things in retirement. Others, he says, are looking for job training. They want to learn new skills to use when they are retired.

Timothy Sloate says the members of the University Continuing Education Association are expanding their learning in retirement programs. One way is through the growth of classes that are offered online. These online classes let adults far from the college or university take a class through their computers in their homes.

VOICE ONE:

The University Continuing Education Association organizes about fifteen conferences a year for its members in different areas of the country. It provides a monthly newsletter. It does research that helps members develop new programs. And it offers professional development for continuing education administrators.

In November, two thousand six, the University Continuing Education Association held a unity conference with the China Continuing Education Association at the University of Massachusetts in Boston.

Thirty officials from major American universities and thirty from Chinese universities shared common problems and solutions. One educator from China and one from the United States discussed the continuing education situation in their countries at each meeting during the two days of the conference. They talked about a single subject such as new developments in online teaching for adults or changes in the market for continuing education.

Organizers are planning to hold an American and Chinese continuing education conference each year. The next one will be held later this year at Tsinghua University in Beijing.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

This program was written by Marilyn Christiano. It was produced by Mario Ritter. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE ONE:

And I'm Barbara Klein. You can read other programs in this continuing education series on our Web site, voaspecialenglish.com. Listen again next week for another EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English.

VOASE0124_Education Report

24 January 2007

Higher Education in the US: Life as a Teaching Assistant
Many states are trying to make sure that foreign TAs can speak English well enough to communicate with students.

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This is the VOA Special English Education Report.

Graduate students often work as teaching assistants while they study in the United States. Teaching assistants may get money or get to take classes for free, or both.

A T.A. usually works about twenty hours each week. In some cases, the professors they assist have big undergraduate classes with hundreds of students. The professor gives one or two lectures a week, and teaching assistants lead smaller discussions at other times.

They also give tests, grade work, provide laboratory assistance and meet with students who need help. And they have their own educations to think about.

Labor unions have been working to organize teaching assistants who feel overworked and underpaid. Some schools have had strikes.

Another issue is the language barrier. Many states have proposed to require that teaching assistants be able to speak English well enough for students to understand them. Universities have increased their efforts to deal with this problem.

Our example school this week is the University of Southern California, in Los Angeles. The Institute of International Education says more foreign students go to USC than any other American university.

The American Language Institute at USC provides training to help international teaching assistants improve their English. The university requires most non-native English speakers to pass a test before they can become a T.A.

Those who went to college in an English-speaking country do not have to take the test. The same is true for those who scored at least twenty-seven on the speaking part of the TOEFL Internet-based test.

The exam at USC is a fifteen-minute spoken test that involves two examiners. Students talk about their education and interest in the school. Then they present some issue or idea from their area of study, and answer questions about it from the examiners.

Those who do not score high enough on the test have to take classes to improve their English. Until their English is better, some departments give them jobs that do not require them to communicate with students.

And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. Listen next week for the next part in our Foreign Student Series on higher education in the United States.

MP3 files and transcripts of the series are at voaspecialenglish.com. If you have a question or comment, write to special@voanews.com, and be sure to include your name and country. I'm Bob Doughty.

VOASE0123_Science In the News

23 January 2007

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Snow
The chemistry of a resource that provides much of the water we use.

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VOICE ONE:

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

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Barbara Klein. Today, we tell you everything you ever wanted to know about snow.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Digging out from a blizzard

Winter weather has returned to northern areas of the world. In much of the United States, winter means the return of snow. Snow is a subject of great interest to weather experts. Experts sometimes have difficulty estimating where, when or how much snow will fall. One reason is that heavy amounts of snow fall in surprisingly small areas. Another reason is that a small change in temperature can mean the difference between snow and rain.

VOICE TWO:

Snow is a form of frozen water. It contains many groups of tiny ice particles called snow crystals. These crystals grow from water particles in cold clouds. They usually grow around a piece of dust. All snow crystals have six sides, but they grow in different shapes. The shape depends mainly on the temperature and water levels in the air.

Snow crystals grow in one of two designs -- platelike and columnar. Platelike crystals are flat. They form when the air temperature is about fifteen degrees below zero Celsius. Columnar snow crystals look like sticks of ice. They form when the temperature is about five degrees below zero.

VOICE ONE:

The shape of a snow crystal may change from one form to another as the crystal passes through levels of air with different temperatures. When melting snow crystals or raindrops fall through very cold air, they freeze to form small particles of ice, called sleet.

Groups of frozen water droplets are called snow pellets. Under some conditions, these particles may grow larger and form solid pieces of ice, or hail.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

When snow crystals stick together, they produce snowflakes. Snowflakes come in different sizes. As many as one hundred crystals may join together to form a snowflake larger than two and one-half centimeters. Under some conditions, snowflakes can form that are five centimeters long. Usually, this requires near freezing temperatures, light winds and changing conditions in Earth’s atmosphere.

Snow contains much less water than rain. About fifteen centimeters of wet snow has as much water as two and one-half centimeters of rain. About seventy-six centimeters of dry snow equals the water in two and one-half centimeters of rain.

VOICE ONE:

Much of the water we use comes from snow. Melting snow provides water for rivers, electric power centers and agricultural crops. In the western United States, mountain snow provides up to seventy-five percent of all surface water supplies.

Snowfall helps to protect plants and some wild animals from cold, winter weather. Fresh snow is made largely of air trapped among the snow crystals. Because the air has trouble moving, the movement of heat is greatly reduced.

Snow also is known to influence the movement of sound waves. When there is fresh snow on the ground, the surface of the snow takes in, or absorbs, sound waves. However, snow can become hard and flat as it becomes older or if there have been strong winds. Then the snow’s surface will help to send back sound waves. Under these conditions, sounds may seem clearer and travel farther.

VOICE TWO:

Generally, the color of snow and ice appears white. This is because the light we see from the sun is white. Most natural materials take in some sunlight. This gives them their color. However, when light travels from air to snow, some light is sent back, or reflected. Snow crystals have many surfaces to reflect sunlight. Yet the snow does take in a little sunlight. It is this light that gives snow its white appearance.

Sometimes, snow or ice may appear to be blue. The blue light is the product of a long travel path through the snow or ice. In simple terms, think of snow or ice as a filter. A filter is designed to reject some substances, while permitting others to pass through. In the case of snow, all the light makes it through if the snow is only a centimeter thick. If it is a meter or more thick, however, blue light often can be seen.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Snow falls in extreme northern and southern areas of the world throughout the year. However, the heaviest snowfalls have been reported in the mountains of other areas during winter. These areas include the Alps in Italy and Switzerland, the coastal mountains of western Canada, and the Sierra Nevada and Rocky Mountains in the United States. In warmer climates, snow is known to fall in areas over four thousand nine hundred meters above sea level.

VOICE TWO:

Each year, the continental United States has an average of one hundred snowstorms. An average storm produces snow for two to five days. Almost every part of the country has received snowfall at one time or another. Even parts of southern Florida have reported a few snowflakes.

The national record for snowfall in a single season was set in nineteen ninety-eight and nineteen ninety-nine. Two thousand eight hundred ninety-five centimeters of snow fell at the Mount Baker Ski area in the northwestern state of Washington.

VOICE ONE:

People in many other areas have little or no snowfall. In nineteen thirty-six, a physicist from Japan produced the first man-made snow in a laboratory. During the nineteen-forties, several American scientists developed methods for making snow in other areas. Clouds with extremely cool water are mixed with man-made ice crystals, such as silver iodide and metaldehyde crystals. Sometimes, dry ice particles or liquid propane are used. Today, special machines are used to produce limited amounts of snow for winter holiday ski areas.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Snow is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of people in the United States every year. Many people die in traffic accidents on roads that are covered with snow or ice. Others die from being out in the cold or from heart attacks caused by extreme physical activity.

Several years ago, a major storm caused serious problems in the eastern United States. It struck the Southeast in January, ninety ninety-six, before moving up the East Coast. The storm was blamed for more than one hundred deaths. It forced nine states to declare emergency measures.

Virginia and West Virginia were hit hardest. In some areas there, snowfall amounts were more than one meter high. Several states limited driving to emergency vehicles. Most major airports were closed for at least a day or two.

A week later, two other storms brought additional snow to the East Coast. In the New York City area, the added weight of the snow forced the tops of some buildings to break down. Many travelers were forced to walk long distances through deep snow to get to train stations.

VOICE ONE:

People may not be able to avoid living in areas where it snows often. However, they can avoid becoming victims of winter snowstorms.

People should stay in their homes until the storm has passed. While removing large amounts of snow, they should stop and rest often. Difficult physical activity during snow removal can cause a heart attack. It is always a good idea to keep a lot of necessary supplies in the home even before winter begins. These supplies include food, medicine, clean water, and extra power supplies.

VOICE TWO:

Some drivers have become trapped in their vehicles during a snowstorm. If this happens, people should remain in or near their car unless they see some kind of help. They should get out and clear space around the vehicle to prevent the possibility of carbon monoxide gas poisoning.

People should tie a bright-colored object to the top of their car to increase the chance of rescue. Inside the car, they should open a window a little for fresh air and turn on the engine for ten or fifteen minutes every hour for heat.

People living in areas where winter storms are likely should carry emergency supplies in their vehicle. These include food, emergency medical supplies, and extra clothing to stay warm and dry. People in these areas should always be prepared for winter emergencies. Snow can be beautiful to look at, but it can also be dangerous.

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VOICE ONE:

This SCIENCE IN THE NEWS program was written by George Grow. Our producer was Brianna Blake. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Barbara Klein. Join us again next week for more news about science in Special English on the Voice of America.

VOASE0123_Health Report

23 January 2007

Vaccination Campaign Cuts Measles Deaths; New Goal Set
Organizers of the Measles Initiative say more than two million lives have been saved, mostly in Africa. Next target is India.

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This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

Measles is one of the most infectious viruses known. It spreads through the air when people infected with the disease cough or sneeze. Children in wealthier countries are usually vaccinated to protect against measles.

A child in Togo receives measles vaccination

An international campaign called the Measles Initiative was launched in two thousand one to vaccinate children in developing countries. The aim was a fifty percent reduction in deaths related to measles by two thousand five.

Last week, organizers of the Measles Initiative announced that the final numbers showed a sixty percent drop in deaths.

In nineteen ninety-nine, the year used for comparison, there were eight hundred seventy-three thousand deaths. Six years later that number had dropped to three hundred forty-five thousand.

The organizers say more than two million lives have been saved, mostly in Africa. Health officials report a seventy-five percent drop in deaths in Africa connected to measles.

Measles itself is usually not a direct cause of death. Deaths are commonly the result of infections like pneumonia or severe diarrhea. Those who survive can suffer brain damage, blindness or other disabilities.

The first sign of infection is usually a high body temperature for as long as a week. Patients may develop a runny nose, cough, red and watery eyes and white spots inside the mouth. After several days, a skin rash develops, first usually on the face and upper neck.

A case of measles can be just a mild and unpleasant part of childhood. But severe cases are more likely in children with poor diets or weakened defenses from conditions like HIV/AIDS.

Children under the age of five and adults over the age of twenty are more likely to suffer severe cases. People who recover from measles can never get it again.

The Measles Initiative includes the American Red Cross, the World Health Organization and UNICEF, the United Nations Children's Fund.

The campaign has cost almost four hundred million dollars. Officials say about five hundred million more will be needed to meet a new goal by two thousand ten. The goal now is to reduce measles deaths worldwide to less than ten percent of the rate in the year two thousand.

The campaign will now center its efforts in Asian countries, especially India. Each year, about one hundred thousand Indian children die as a result of measles.

And that's the VOA Special English Health Report, written by Caty Weaver. I'm Mario Ritter.

VOASE0123_Agriculture Report

23 January 2007

US Farmers Face Big Winter Losses, With Two Months Still Left to Go
A freeze hits California's citrus industry hard, while animal losses from recent snow and ice storms are still being counted in the Plains states.

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This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.

A lot of American farmers have had a rough early winter.

In California, frozen oranges

In California, citrus growers are facing hundreds of millions of dollars in losses from a freeze earlier this month. Oranges and lemons in California's main growing areas were not the only victims. The arctic cold front known as the Siberian Express also damaged other fruit and vegetable crops.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger estimated losses at one billion dollars. He declared an emergency in ten counties to provide state assistance to those affected.

The freeze could mean months without work for thousands of farm laborers, packing house workers and truck drivers. It will also mean higher food prices across the country.

Much of the damage happened in the San Joaquin Valley, but it was spread around the state. Citrus growers in California store their fruit on the tree. Less than a third of this year's crop had been harvested when the freeze hit.

Avocados, strawberries and blueberries were also hit hard. The strawberries were nearly ready for harvest, and only about five percent of the avocados had been picked. Some avocado growers said this was their worst winter in sixteen years. Spinach, lettuce and other greens were also affected.

California is the nation's top agricultural state, and top grower of fresh citrus. Florida's big orange crop is used mostly for juice.

In Colorado, farms and ranches under snow

Right now, other states are struggling with the effects of snow and ice storms in recent weeks. In some places, there was six meters of snow on the ground.

Animal losses are still being counted in the Great Plains. The affected states include Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas. Some states have been approved for emergency federal aid.

Some ranchers still do not know where all their cattle have gone, or how many are dead. The Colorado Cattlemen's Association estimates that the final count in that state alone could be eight thousand to fifteen thousand. That would mean a loss of more than ten million dollars just in cattle.

In some states, National Guard helicopters not only rescued people but also dropped hay to cattle trapped without food in the snow. Shortages of hay have pushed up prices, adding to economic losses.

And even cattle that have been saved may not be out of danger. Many cows were pregnant, and many could lose their calves. Other cattle weakened by the conditions may not survive the winter.

And that's the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Faith Lapidus.

VOASE0121_This Is America

21 January 2007

Hillary Clinton Enters the Race for a Prize As-Yet Unclaimed by Any Woman in American Politics
Now that the US has a female House speaker, could the presidency be next in 2008?

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VOICE ONE:

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

Senator Hillary Clinton announced Saturday on her Web site that she is forming a presidential exploratory committee. Details below.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Faith Lapidus. Women in American politics is our report this week.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Nancy Pelosi won her first election to Congress twenty years ago this June.

She led the California State Democratic Party in the early eighties. After that she served at the national level as finance chair of the campaign committee for Democrats in the Senate. She also kept busy with her five children.

Nancy Pelosi came from a political family. She was good at raising money but had never been a candidate for public office herself.

VOICE TWO:

Then in nineteen eighty-seven, the death of a Democratic representative in San Francisco led to a special election. Nancy Pelosi narrowly won her party's nomination to enter the race.

Since then, voters in the heavily Democratic district have re-elected her to Congress ten times.

Nancy Pelosi is welcomed by former speaker Dennis Hastert

Now she holds the powerful job of speaker of the House of Representatives. Under the Constitution, the speaker becomes president of the United States if ever the president and vice president are unable to serve.

VOICE ONE:

Displeasure with the Iraq war was a driving force in the victory for the Democrats in the elections last November. The Republican Party lost control of both houses of Congress for the first time in twelve years.

Nancy Pelosi was the minority leader in the House. As expected, she became the new speaker when the One Hundred Tenth Congress opened on January fourth.

NANCY PELOSI: "By electing me speaker, you have brought us closer to the ideal of equality that is America's heritage and America's hope."

Nancy Pelosi is the first woman ever elected to lead the House. At her swearing-in, she thanked the new minority leader, Republican John Boehner, for pointing that out.

NANCY PELOSI: "This is an historic moment and I thank the leader for acknowledging it. Thank you, Mister Boehner. It's an historic moment for the Congress. It's an historic moment for the women of America."

VOICE TWO:

The new Congress has a record number of women, including ten newly elected to the House.

Twenty years ago, when Nancy Pelosi was first elected, men filled all but twenty-two seats in the House. Now seventy-one of the four hundred thirty-five members, or sixteen percent, are women. Most are Democrats.

VOICE ONE:

Historically many of the women who have served in the Senate were never elected. They were appointed to complete the term of a husband or other male relative who resigned or died.

Seeds of Peace campers from the Middle East with Maine Senator Olympia Snowe on Capitol Hill

Fifteen years ago, only two of the one hundred senators were women. Now the number is a record sixteen.

One of the five Republicans, Olympia Snowe of Maine, has served in both houses of Congress and both houses of her state legislature.

VOICE TWO:

Two women are new to the Senate this year. Both are Democrats. Amy Klobuchar enforced the law as chief prosecutor in the largest county in Minnesota. Claire McCaskill served as state auditor before she became the first woman ever elected a senator from Missouri.

At the state level, women are governors of nine of the fifty states.

VOICE ONE:

Across the country, the victory for Democratic candidates in November brought back memories. It was similar to the elections of nineteen ninety-four -- only then, it was the other way around. That was the year of what became known as the Republican revolution.

In Congress, all of the representatives and a third of the senators are elected every two years. Now all the attention is on two thousand eight, when Americans will also elect a new president.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

America won its independence in seventeen seventy-six. But it was not until nineteen twenty that American women won a constitutional right to vote.

Women have made gains in society, but people talk about a "glass ceiling." This is the idea that women may face unwritten limits on their rise to power in jobs or other areas.

Nancy Pelosi says her election as speaker of the House means that women have finally broken, in her words, the "marble ceiling."

VOICE ONE:

The sixty-six-year-old speaker quickly set to work on the legislative goals of House Democrats for the first one hundred hours of the new Congress. The issues were as different as increasing the federal minimum wage and reducing interest rates on student loans.

But there were disputes among Democrats over some of her early decisions. For example, some members of her party disagreed with her choice for chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. She chose Silvestre Reyes of Texas over Jane Harman of California -- the longest-serving Democrat on the committee.

VOICE TWO:

Nancy Pelosi was born Nancy D'Alesandro. She was one of five children in a family in the Little Italy area of Baltimore, Maryland. Her father, Thomas D'Alesandro Junior, was the mayor of Baltimore. Before that he represented the city for five terms in the House of Representatives. Later, his son Thomas the Third also became mayor of Baltimore.

Daughter Nancy graduated in nineteen sixty-two from Trinity College -- now Trinity Washington University -- in the nation's capital. The following year she married Paul Pelosi, a wealthy businessman from San Francisco.

VOICE ONE:

In Congress, Nancy Pelosi served on the House Appropriations Committee, which deals with federal spending. In two thousand two she was elected minority leader.

Many women are proud of her success. But women are fifty-one percent of the population and their numbers in Congress fall far short of that.

VOICE TWO:

Last year, even extra money from the Democratic Party failed to help many female candidates win seats in Congress.

One woman who appeared likely to win a seat in the House was Tammy Duckworth of Illinois. She was a helicopter pilot in the Iraq war. She lost both legs when her helicopter was shot down. Before the election, Tammy Duckworth was ahead in public opinion. But when the ballots were counted, Republican Peter Roskam had narrowly defeated her.

VOICE TWO:

Some people say it is harder for women than men to win elections. They say voters may worry that women will be soft on issues like illegal immigration. Or voters, male as well as female, are suspicious of women in power.

Others argue that while some voters might discriminate against women, most base their choices on a candidate's positions.

Political observers can argue all day about why Congress does not have more women.

VOICE ONE:

And the fact is, they can all be right. America is a big country. What influences voters in one area may have no effect in another. In some cases, what might count most is the ability of a candidate to raise enough money for an effective media campaign.

Even a candidate for local office may have to raise money for a campaign.

VOICE TWO:

Some groups make special efforts to help female candidates. But in political fund-raising there are no guarantees.

For example, Elizabeth Dole sought the Republican nomination for president in two thousand. She dropped out, saying she could not raise enough money for a campaign. She is now a senator from North Carolina.

'I'm In,' Clinton Declares

VOICE ONE:

Raising money might not be such a problem for Hillary Rodham Clinton. Senator Clinton has long been considered the frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination next year. Finally, on Saturday, she announced that she is forming a presidential exploratory committee, the first step toward becoming a candidate.

HILLARY CLINON: "You know, after six years of George Bush, it is time to renew the promise of America. Our basic bargain -- that no matter who you are or where you live, if you work hard and play by the rules you can build a good life for yourself and your family."

The wife of former president Bill Clinton was elected a senator from New York in two thousand, and re-elected last November.

No major American party has ever nominated a woman for president. And only one woman, Democrat Geraldine Ferraro, was a candidate for vice president. That was in nineteen eighty-four.

Most Americans say they would vote for a female president. But lately there has been a lot of excitement about another Democrat. Illinois Senator Barack Obama announced last Tuesday that he has formed a presidential exploratory committee.

A number of other Democrats and Republicans have also announced exploratory committees. Federal election rules permit individuals to "test the waters." They can raise money and see if they have enough public support before officially declaring themselves candidates.

VOICE TWO:

Condoleezza Rice has often been spoken of as a possible Republican presidential candidate. But the secretary of state says she does not want to be president.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Our program was written by Jerilyn Watson and produced by Caty Weaver. I'm Faith Lapidus.

VOICE ONE:

And I'm Steve Ember. Transcripts and MP3 files of our programs are at voaspecialenglish.com. Please join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English.

VOASE0121_Development Report

21 January 2007

'FabLabs' Help Communities Design Their Own Solutions
A project at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology sets up fabrication laboratories to help developing countries.

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This is the VOA Special English Development Report.

Imagine a world without manufacturers. Or at least not as we now think of them. Instead, we as individuals control the technology to design and make most anything we want.

That world exists now in the mind of Neil Gershenfeld. Professor Gershenfeld is a computer scientist and physicist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He directs the Center for Bits and Atoms at M.I.T.

The center is exploring the relationship between computer science and physical science. The work is receiving financial support from the National Science Foundation.

Neil Gershenfeld wants to help developing countries create technological tools to solve their own problems. He says this is one way to bring the results of the digital revolution to the developing world.

An antenna project at a FabLab in Ghana

And many of those solutions might come out of personal fabrication laboratories -- or "FabLabs." So far the center has set up about fifteen of these laboratories around the world.

Each FabLab comes equipped with about twenty thousand dollars' worth of electronics, design tools and computers. The labs are all similar but they are put to use in very different ways.

In Costa Rica, for example, students used a FabLab to develop new educational technologies. They also developed environmental sensing systems for farmers.

In Pabal, India, villagers used a FabLab to improve the design process for diesel engines that are used for many purposes in the community. That was one of their first projects. A FabLab in Takoradi, Ghana, is developing machines powered by the sun for cooking and other uses.

Developing countries are not the only ones with FabLabs. In Norway, farmers used one to design what they call "sheep radios." They wanted a radio frequency identification system to be able to follow a sheep from birth to market.

People have also used FabLabs to test new designs for business ideas.

Sherry Lassiter works at the Center for Bits and Atoms at M.I.T. She says three laboratories recently opened in South Africa.

The hope is that in the future, FabLabs will become economically self-supporting. They might even be able to design new versions of themselves to keep up with demand.

In fact, Professor Gershenfeld imagines a time when personal fabrication laboratories are truly personal -- a FabLab in every home.

And that's the VOA Special English Development Report, written by Jill Moss. For a link to the Center for Bits and Atoms at M.I.T., go to voaspecialenglish.com. I’m Jim Tedder.

VOASE0120_People In America

20 January 2007

James Brown, 1933-2006: The Godfather of Soul Influenced Many Kinds of Music During His 50-Year Career
Brown was also called "the hardest working man in show business."

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VOICE ONE:

I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Barbara Klein with People in America in VOA Special English. Today we tell about James Brown, the musician called "The Godfather of Soul."

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

James Brown

That was James Brown singing his famous hit song from nineteen sixty-five, "I Got You (I Feel Good.)" With this song, Brown went from a rhythm and blues singer to a pop music star. It helped him gain a huge number of white fans as well as black ones. He became a famous and wealthy singer, songwriter and performer. But this huge success was very different from the poverty of his early life.

VOICE TWO:

James Brown was born in nineteen thirty-three in a one-room house near Barnwell, South Carolina. His father, Joe Brown, had a job removing fluids from pine trees in the surrounding woods. He sold the sap for making turpentine. The boy's mother left the family when he was seven years old. James and his father moved to Augusta, Georgia.

Young James had musical abilities. He learned to play the guitar, piano and drums. He did this while picking crops in the fields and shining people's shoes to earn money to survive.

VOICE ONE:

James loved the African-American church music called gospel. He loved it when the church's religious leader would sing this music and drop to his knees with emotional shouts and screams. Brown later used this kind of emotional singing in his own performances.

He also liked the sound of the jazz and rhythm and blues performer Louis Jordan. Jordan had recorded a song called "Caldonia" and other popular songs in the late nineteen forties and nineteen fifties.

VOICE TWO:

By the time he was thirteen, James Brown had formed his own music group. He later joined a group called the Flames. The band played at drinking places, restaurants, colleges and other places in the South.

These young performers copied the sounds of successful rhythm and blues groups. They also included in their shows a song co-written by James Brown. It was called "Please, Please, Please."

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

This was the song that launched James Brown's career. He was able to stop doing low-paying jobs. He said the success of the song gave him the chance to have some of the things he could not have dreamed of. "Please, Please, Please" was recorded in nineteen fifty-six. It sold more than one million copies. It made James Brown famous in the United States. And it became part of his electrifying stage performances.

Brown would be on stage with an eighteen-piece band and a group of dancers. His emotional singing included unusual sounds and screams. He danced around the stage performing movements that had not been seen before. He created his own musical and performing style.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

That was another James Brown hit song, "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" from nineteen sixty-five. Brown said that song was one of the most important things he ever did in the way of changing music rhythms. With that song, Brown created the music he called "funk." This later came to be called "soul" music. And James Brown became known as "The Godfather of Soul." He followed this hit a few months later with "I Got You (I Feel Good)", an even bigger hit.

VOICE ONE:

James Brown also became known as "the hardest working man in show business." During the nineteen sixties, he performed his exciting show almost non-stop in city after city in the United States and in other countries.

At the same time, Brown worked for civil rights for African-Americans. He supported black business ownership as the most important way to what he called "real black power." He urged black people to be proud of themselves. And he urged young people to continue their education and not drop out of school. His message was positive instead of angry. He recorded this song in nineteen sixty-eight, "Say it Loud ( I'm Black and I'm Proud.)"

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Over the years, James Brown had problems in business, with taxes and in his personal life. During the nineteen seventies, his popularity decreased as disco music became popular. But he made a comeback in the early nineteen eighties, with "Living in America," his first hit in years.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

In nineteen eighty-six, James Brown was one of the first performers invited into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He became one of the most successful recording artists in history. With the exception of Elvis Presley, no pop artist had more hit records. He had ninety-four songs in the Top One Hundred songs. And he had more Top Twenty single records than any other recording artist up to that time.

But, in nineteen eighty-eight, he committed some crimes. He spent two and one-half years in prison. He was pardoned of his crimes in two thousand three.

VOICE TWO:

James Brown received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in nineteen ninety-two. He later talked about what he had tried to do to help young people. He said he tried to teach through his music. He thought it was very important to make young people proud of themselves and willing to work for what they wanted. He said life is sometimes really hard, but you can make it a lot better if you try to prepare for it.

VOICE ONE:

James Brown saw himself as an example of "the American dream." That means that a person can rise from poverty to wealth and success if he or she works hard. Brown influenced the music of his time and many performers who came after him. He showed his personality and energy in his famous shout:

"If you are an American or you're just a human being and got any blood going through your veins -- AHHOOWW! I feel good!"

VOICE TWO:

James Brown performed until the very end of his life and continued to help his community. Three days before his death, he joined volunteers at his yearly event to give toys to needy children in Augusta, Georgia. He had planned to perform on New Year's Eve at B.B. King's Blues Club in New York City.

James Brown, "The Godfather of Soul," died December twenty-fifth, two thousand six in Atlanta, Georgia. He was seventy-three. During his fifty-year career, he made many music fans feel good.

(MUSIC: "I Got You (I Feel Good)")

VOICE ONE:

This program was written by Shelley Gollust. It was produced by Lawan Davis. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Barbara Klein. You can read scripts and download audio at our Web site, voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for People in America in VOA Special English.