TOEIC TOEFL IELTS TRAINING

Transcription

1 DAY 81 Families get government help with housework Working families in two towns in Germany will get government help with the housework. The towns are in the German state of Baden- Wuerttemberg. The government decided to test a new project to help people, especially women, who work overtime. The plan is to give vouchers to employees who work extra hours. The employees can use the vouchers to get help with the housework, such as cleaning, laundry, ironing, vacuuming and dusting. The idea behind the project is to help support family life and to reduce the shadow economy. The shadow economy is when people pay for goods and services in cash but do not pay tax on them. This means the government loses a lot of money. tax for the government. Another spokesman, Dr. Ralf Kleindiek, said: "With professional help in the home, it is easier to balance work and family life." 1. Assistance /əˈsɪs.təns/ 2. Reduce / /rɪˈdus/ 3. Describe /dɪˈskrɑɪb/ TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if a-h below are true (T) or false (F). Families all across Germany will get government help with housework. The new project is especially aimed at men. The government also wants to get people to pay more tax. The shadow economy helps the government to get more money. Government spokesman Christian Rauch explained more about the project. He said: "Our experience shows that well-qualified women work fewer hours than they would like because they want to carry out household duties in addition to family responsibilities. If these women increase their working hours by five to ten hours and receive a voucher from us, they can afford quality help with the housework." He added that the new system would also create more jobs for people in the household-help industry and create more A spokesman said well-qualified women want to work less. Women need to work an extra five to ten hours to get a voucher. The new system will help to create more jobs. A spokesman said the project will help to balance work and family life. / F

2 DAY 82 Explanation : Chances are slim!!! What are your chances of getting into Carol Yale? Judy My chances are slim. I hear those Ivy League Colleges are Carol Judy tough to get into. I know. I'd have better chance at the state University. Carol Sure. It's not a bad school either. Judy I'd rather be a big fish in a small pond. If you say that someone doesn't stand a chance of achieving something, you mean that they cannot possibly achieve it. Example : Neither is seen as standing any chance of snatching the leadership from him. KEY WORDS AND PHRASE 1. Prior /ˈprɑɪ ər/ 2. Estimate /ˈes tə mət/ 3. Adopted /əˈdɒp.tɪd/ Pattern Practice 1. I filed a leave prior to my surgery. 2. What is the estimate value of our new project? 3. South Korea has always been my adopted city.

3 DAY 83 Egg freezing offered as perk to female employees Female workers in the UK are to be offered an unusual perk by their employers. British companies are considering offering egg freezing as a perk. Tech companies like Apple and Facebook already offer egg freezing as a benefit to female employees, and now other companies may follow the tech giants' lead. Many British companies are in talks with IVF clinics about providing the option of egg freezing to women. The UK's largest chain of fertility clinics, CARE Fertility, said it has been in discussion with several high-profile employers. The perk comes at a considerable cost to employers. Apple and Facebook have been offering subsidized egg freezing to female staff at a cost of up to 16,000 ($20,000) per employee. Companies will provide the egg-freezing perk to allow women in their 20s or 30s to focus on their careers. The idea is that women could make use of their frozen eggs in their 40s when they meet the right partner or are financially stable. Rob Smith, clinical director of CARE London, said: "Successful pregnancy at that age is very low indeed so by freezing eggs earlier on they will just have that guarantee at the back of their mind." Mr Smith said the perk was also an option for couples wanting to conceive later in life. Critics of the idea said it was wrong to prioritise careers over having children. One said: "When [IVF] is done purely to protect their job, I think it's extraordinary that women think this is liberating." 1. Remarkable /rɪˈmɑr kə bəl/ 2. Detractor /dɪˈtræk tər/ 3. Emancipate /ɪˈmæn səˌpeɪt/ TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if a-h below are true (T) or false (F). Companies in the USA will start freezing eggs for female employees. Apple and Facebook already freeze eggs for their female workers. Fertility clinics are talking to famous companies about egg freezing. Egg freezing is not so expensive for companies like Apple and Facebook. Egg freezing lets young women focus on their job. A fertility clinic director said pregnancy was successful at older ages. Critics said it was good women chose careers over starting a family. A critic suggested egg freezing was not liberating for women.

4 Day 84 Explanation : If you say that something is better than nothing, you mean that it is not what is required, but that it is better to have that thing than to have nothing at all. It's better than nothing!!! Jim Did you ask Mr. Davidson for a raise Yes, I asked for 80 cents any hour Carmen more. Jim Did you get it? Carmen No, I got 30 cents Jim That's too bad. Oh, it is alright. It is better than Carmen nothing. Example : - After all, 15 minutes of exercise is better than nothing. KEY WORDS AND PHRASE 1. Whiz /hwɪz, wɪz/ 2. Particular /pərˈtɪk jə lər, pəˈtɪk-/ 3. Apartment /əˈpɑrt mənt/ Pattern Practice 1. He is so whiz, no wonder he is so successful. 2. Is there a particular restaurant you d like to eat at? 3. They lived in a six-room apartment on the eighth floor.

5 DAY 85 China launches first Chinese-made aircraft carrier China's navy is growing stronger and stronger. On Wednesday, it launched its first aircraft carrier that it built completely on its own. China now has two aircraft carriers. The first one was built by Russia and came into service in The new 50,000-ton carrier is the first to be developed and built by China. It was launched at a ceremony in the shipyard of the China Shipbuilding Corporation. Navy officials followed tradition and broke a bottle of champagne on the carrier's bow. Development of the new carrier started in The shipyard started building it in late The Chinese Navy will test the new carrier at sea for the next three years. It will go into service in 2020 after all of the airplanes it needs are ready. A spokesperson for the Chinese said he was, "proud of the great achievement made by the country in modernizing the national defense and military". He added that the aircraft carrier would help to strengthen China's ability to protect itself. He also said China could now look after its borders and protect its shipping and trade routes. A social media user on Weibo (the Chinese Twitter) said the new carrier was, "a symbol of China's technological power, industrial capability and overall strength". There are reports that China is planning to build at least two and possibly up to four more carriers. The new carriers could be as big as the biggest U.S. Navy carriers. They could weigh as much as 100,000 tons. 1. Emblem /ˈem bləm/ 2. Modernize /ˈmɑd ərˌnɑɪz/ 3. Rout /rut, rɑʊt/ TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if a-h below are true (T) or false (F). The article said China is now the strongest country in the world. China now has two aircraft carriers. Officials broke a bottle of champagne over the new aircraft carrier. The carrier will go into service when its airplanes are ready. A spokesperson said he was proud of China's modernization. The spokesman said China needed more carriers to protect its borders. A report said China would build another 10 aircraft carriers. China will soon build a carrier that weighs 1,000,000 tons.