BBC English Learning- Audio & Vocabulary - Downloadable

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World's most premature baby

Amillia Taylor was born on October 24th last year, just twenty-one weeks and six days after conception. She was delivered by Caesarean section, barely the length of a ballpoint pen and weighing just two-hundred-and-eighty-three grams.

A team of doctors at the Baptist Children's Hospital in Miami were at first doubtful that Amillia could live. Four months later they are celebrating a remarkable story of survival. Despite respiratory difficulties, digestive problems and a minor brain haemorrhage, Amillia is thriving. She now weighs more than one-point-eight kilos and is expected to be allowed to go home with her parents within the next few days.

It's believed that Amillia is the most premature baby on record to have survived and her case reopens the on-going debate about at what stage a foetus should be regarded as potentially viable. Clearly Amillia's story is hugely satisfying for her doctors and of course her parents but others in the medical community are stressing that hers is anything but a typical outcome. It is previously unheard of for a baby born at less than twenty-three weeks' gestation to live.

Jeremy Cooke, BBC News, New York

conception
تشکیل نطفه جنین، بارداری

delivered
به دنیا آورده شد

Caesarean section
عمل سزارین

barely
به ندرت

haemorrhage
خونریزی

thriving
پررونق، در اینجا: سالم و قوی و درحال رشد

premature
نارس، زودتر از موعد

foetus
جنین

potentially viable
امکان بالقوه زنده ماندن

gestation
دوره بارداری

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Mexico drugs crackdown

In the latest attempt to get a grip on the cartels' violent activities, the government is despatching two thousand six hundred people. They include forces from the defence ministry, the navy and the security ministry.

It brings the total number of federal forces fighting drug gangs around Mexico to around twenty-six thousand. The latest deployments will be sent to the North Eastern States of Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas. The navy will send vessels to patrol the Gulf Coast to try to intercept drug shipments.

The normally quiet city of Monterrey, capital of Nuevo Leon has seen fourteen active or former police officers killed so far this year. Many of the victims were tortured and there have been a number of beheadings.

In all of Mexico there have been more than two hundred cartel related murders this year. President Calderon has been praised inside Mexico and by the Americans for his leadership in taking on the cartels, but there have also been complaints about a lack of results.

Duncan Kennedy, BBC News, Mexico City

to get a grip on
تحت کنترل درآوردن، مهار کردن

cartels
کارتل ها

despatching
اعزام، فرستادن برای ماموریتی که معمولا باید با سرعت انجام شود

navy
نیروی دریایی

deployments
صف آرایی، استقرار، در اینجا: گروهی از نیروهای امنیتی که مامور تکمیل برنامه ای شده اند.

vessels to patrol the Gulf Coast
کشتی ها یا قایق هایی که مامور گشت در اطراف سواحل خلیج مکزیک هستند تا مطمئن شوند فعالیت های غیرقانونی صورت نمی گیرد

to intercept drug shipments
جلوی ارسال محموله های مواد مخدر را گرفتن

tortured
دراینجا: شکنجه شدند

taking on
به عهده گرفتن کاری، روبرو شدن، در اینجا: مبارزه کردن

a lack of results
بی نتیجه، بدون موفقیت

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Tamiflu supply problems

Tamiflu is made from shikimic acid but until recently there was only one significant source of supply. The acid was extracted from the seeds of the star anice plant, which for centuries has been used in flavouring oriental cooking. The entire world crop of star anice comes from just four provinces in China, and it's only harvested in three months of the year.

Shortage of star anice would have been a major constraint on increasing production of Tamiflu, except that a few months ago a way was found of making shikimic acid artificially. Roche now derives some of the raw material it needs from fermenting e-coli bacteria. Other drug companies can copy this - but it won't be easy and it won't be quick. Every batch of Tamiflu takes a year to make - and at one of the ten stages the material is highly explosive.

Roche now says its willing to let other drug companies manufacture Tamiflu, but even if this does happen soon it will certainly be months, and possibly years, before stocks are big enough to meet potential demand in the event of a bird flu pandemic in humans.

Mark Gregory, BBC business reporter

extracted from
استخراج شده از، گرفته شده از

harvested
درو شده، از زمين گرفته شده است

Shortage
کمبود

a major constraint
مانعی بزرگ

artificially
به طور مصنوعی، دست ساز

derives
در اينجا: دريافت می کند، می گيرد

batch
دسته، مجموعه

stocks
موجودی، ذخيره

potential demand
تقاضای احتمالی

in the event of a bird flu pandemic in humans
اگر آنفولانزای مرغی به صورت اپيدمی و همه گير بروز کند

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A test to be British

For years those becoming British citizens simply had to swear an oath of allegiance in front of a lawyer and then receive a certificate in the post. But in 2004 Britain introduced a compulsory citizenship ceremony which required new citizens to take a broader oath promising to respect Britain's rights, freedoms and laws and all of this in front of civic dignitaries dressed in full regalia. Now the government is going even further: it's launching a test designed to establish knowledge of the country and its language.

The test contains twenty-four questions on life in the United Kingdom and will last for 45 minutes. If applicants don't pass the first time they can try again and again. The questions range from simple tests of knowledge such as - what's the minimum age for buying alcohol? To exploring more complex cultural issues - How interested are young people in politics? The government believes the test is part of a process that will help new citizens to feel they belong and ease racial tension by removing suspicion of immigrants.

Supporters point to other countries which have similar schemes - particularly the United States where citizenship classes and ceremonies have long been common practice. Opponents however say it's all too nationalistic and puts undue pressure on newcomers to conform, working against the efforts to build a multi-cultural society in Britain.

Paul Keller, BBC

to swear an oath of allegiance
to promise officially that you will follow the laws of a country

compulsory
something which must be done

civic dignitaries
government officials

regalia
traditional and official ceremonial costumes

applicants
people who have applied to become British citizens

ease racial tension
make conflict between races less

have long been common practice
have been done regularly for a long time

Opponents
People who are against something

undue pressure
unnecessary influence

to conform
to change the way you act so that you fit in

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[meisam317]

dera @mir

how are you

i think you grab there leter from bbc

[mir@]

dera @mir

how are you

i think you grab there leter from bbc

Yes, u're right.

These are grabbed from BBC.

As I have stated in the Title of the topic!!!