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Words and Their Stories: Fireworks

August 29th, 2010 at 07:29am Under Words and their stories

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Now the VOA Special English program WORDS AND THEIR STORIES. I’m Rich Kleinfeldt. Today we tell about the word fireworks.

The expression fireworks gets its meaning from the fireworks that people shoot into the sky when they are celebrating a great event. Rockets explode to fill the dark, night sky with bright reds and blues, with yellows and greens and whites.

The expression also means a great show of noisy anger, or something exciting. For example, a defense lawyer in a court trial may become very emotional in arguing with the government lawyer about evidence affecting the accused. The judge finally stops the loud argument and calls the two lawyers forward. He tells them, “I want no more of these fireworks in my courtroom.”

Another kind of fireworks can be any event or activity that is especially exciting. One such event is falling in love. If anything can produce fireworks, it is a sweetheart’s kiss or the touch of a lover’s hand. Often movie or television cartoons show fireworks to represent the excitement of a kiss.

People use the expression fireworks throughout the year. But if you live in the United States and want to see real fireworks, the best time of the year is about now. The Fourth of July is Independence Day in the United States. Americans traditionally celebrate their nation’s freedom with giant public parties and fireworks at night.

In Washington, for example, large crowds gather near the Washington Monument to listen to music and watch a huge fireworks show. In other cities and smaller towns, local people listen to band concerts and watch fireworks explode in a dark sky.

Many other countries around the world also enjoy the tradition of exploding fireworks on special days. In Australia, the city of Sydney begins each new year with a fireworks show at midnight. China is the birthplace of fireworks. Large fireworks shows were held often during earlier times in China. Now, people use small fireworks to help celebrate weddings and birthdays.

France also has a great fireworks tradition. A large fireworks show always takes place on Bastille day which celebrates the beginning of the French Revolution. The French city of Cannes holds an international fireworks competition each year in July and August.

In India, people have been using fireworks for more than five hundred years. A great Indian fireworks show takes place during the religious celebration of Diwali, every autumn.

Fireworks shows are popular around the world. But if I do not end this program right now, there will be fireworks from my producer.

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This VOA Special English program, WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, was written by David Jarmul. I’m Rich Kleinfeldt.

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Eating White Rice Increases Risk of Diabetes

August 27th, 2010 at 07:27am Under Health report

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This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

Rice is an important part of many people’s diets. Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health in Massachusetts have released a report about rice. It shows that eating white rice increases the risk of type two diabetes. However, eating brown rice reduces the risk of the disease.

The World Health Organization says more than two hundred twenty million people worldwide have diabetes. Type two diabetes results when the body cannot effectively use the sugar it produces.

More than thirty-nine thousand men and one hundred fifty-seven thousand women took part in the study. They were asked about their diet and day-to-day activities, as well as any pre-existing diseases. The study found that the people who ate five or more servings of white rice per week had a seventeen percent increased risk of developing type two diabetes. But those who ate two or more servings of brown rice a week had an eleven percent reduced risk of getting the disease.

Brown rice is the grain in its natural form. White rice results after it has been refined. This involves removing the outer cover, including the husk, bran and germ. Only the inner white kernel is left. White rice is often enriched to replace some nutrients lost during the refining process.

Qi Sun is the lead writer of the report. He says the outer parts of brown rice slow down the work of the body’s digestive enzymes into starch. This means that the release of sugar into the bloodstream is slower after eating brown rice compared to white rice.

A diet of foods that quickly release sugar into the bloodstream has been linked with a greater risk of type two diabetes. The exact reason for this is not known.

Doctor Sun says less refined grains have more nutritional value than refined grains. He says replacing white rice with whole grains like whole wheat or barley could result in a thirty-six percent lower chance of developing type two diabetes. He says people should replace white rice and other refined carbohydrates with whole grains whenever possible.

However, brown rice does not last as long as white rice because of the oil-rich layer of bran. This makes it less usable in poor communities. The International Rice Research Institute is working to develop kinds of white rice whose starch is released more slowly.

And, that’s the VOA Special English Health Report. I’m Steve Ember.

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