TEXTOS PARA O 1º COLEGIAL – CAD.04

NAPPLES PIZZA PROTECTED BY EU

            Pizza makers in Naples are celebrating after gaining official European Union recognition. It’s the end of a battle that began 25 years ago and is aimed at protecting Neapolitan pizzas from imitations.

            For 25 years pizza makers in Naples have been trying to get their product protected, and now it is, being granted a TSG, or Traditional Speciality Guaranteed label by EU. The head of the pizza makers’ association said the trademark was a great honour. The EU’s agriculture commissioner said Neapolitan pizza was now part of Europe’s food heritage.

            It means that all pizzerias aspiring to supply the real thing are, in future, supposed to be vetted by a special commission that will check standards. They include using only San Marzano tomatoes and fresh buffalo mozzarella cheese.

The Italian farmers’ association says that half of Italy’s 25.000 pizzerias currently use wrong ingredients, like East European cheese or Ukrainian flour.

            Italy now tops the EU chart for products that are protected. It has 180, more than Spain or France. Protected status enables producers to not only boast about their exclusivity but also charge a premium. And now pizza makers from Naples will get their slice of the action. 

                                                          

                                                                       (Duncan kennedy – BBC News, Italy)

GOOGLE TESTING SELF-DRIVING CAR

            Google is testing a car it believes is the future of motoring. The Internet giant has been testing the car that drives itself for several months. It has driven along thousands of miles of public roads in California. The car is guided by sensors, lasers and video cameras. A Google spokesperson explained to concerned motorists that the car has never been driven “unmanned,” and had test drivers, just in case things went wrong. The tech company says its vehicles are still “very much at the experimental stage”. Google’s interest in artificial intelligence is a sign that it wants to branch out beyond the web. It is an extension of its Street View project, in which millions of streets have been photographed and put online.

            Google’s blog said the company’s entry into the world of automotive technology is part of its plans to make the world a better place. “Larry [Page] and Sergey [Brin] founded Google because they wanted to help solve really big problems using technology,” it wrote. The blog continued: “One of the big problems we’re working on today is car safety and efficiency. Our goal is to help prevent traffic accidents, free up people’s time and reduce carbon emissions by fundamentally changing car use.” Google “CEO” “(Chief Executive Officer = OFICIAL CHEFE EXECUTIVO = PRESIDENTE)” Eric Schmidt said last month that it was unfortunate that cars were invented before computers: “Your car should drive itself; it’s amazing to me that we let humans drive cars,” he told reporters.

                                                                                  (breakingnewsenglish)

HOMELESS MAN IN CREDIT CARD HONESTY

            A homeless man in New York has repaid the trust paid in him by a woman who gave him her credit card. Jay Valentine, 32, was standing on a Manhattan street asking for small change when Merrie Harris, 45, lent him

her Platinum AmEx card. Onlookers were shocked to see the woman hand it over and walk off. Valentine said he bought deodorant, body wash, a pack of cigarettes and bottled water, all costing about $25. A short time later, he went back to the restaurant where Ms Harris was eating to return the card to her. For his efforts, he was awarded the title of Most Honest Homeless Man in the City. Valentine also received an offer from a New York-based airline to apply to be a flight attendant and $5,000 from an anonymous Texan.

            Ms Harris, an advertising executive, was also applauded for her act of generosity and trust. She told reporters she never doubted Mr Valentine would do anything dishonest with her card, saying: "What he did was no surprise to me.” She asked: “Are we only supposed to trust people we know?” Valentine said he never thought about abusing Harris’ trust in him: "I wasn't tempted at all. She trusted me, and I didn't want to violate that trust," he said. He added: "It sets a good example that people in need – like me - can and should be trusted." What is now in question is the security procedures of the store Valentine shopped in. Staff obviously did not check his signature or look at the photo id on the AmEx card.

                                                                                  (breakingnewsenglish

CANINE SUICIDE PUZZLE

             Can dogs commit suicide? That is the puzzling question being asked by dog lovers and animal behaviourists today in a small town in Scotland. At least five dogs are known to have leaped 13 metres to their deaths from a bridge in the town of Dumbarton. The bridge is now known as Rover’s Leap and is next to a  supposedly  haunted mansion  built in  1863, which was used as the location for a BBC TV series called Tales from the Madhouse. The latest suicidal canine completely distressed its owner by suddenly making a beeline for the bridge and jumping to its death. Animal psychologists are baffled at this abnormal behaviour and are keen to understand what is triggering it. Dogs are not like lemmings, which jump to their deaths in thousands, but are fully able to understand heights, just as humans are. Dogs would also have no reason to take their own lives  –  something unheard  of in the canine world, especially happy pet dogs from good families. All dog owners in the area have been advised to keep their dogs on a leash when they approach the bridge in future, until this mystery has been cleared up.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                               (braklinglishnewsenglish)

                                                            Sunbeds

            In the UK, a country known for its bad weather and lack of sunshine, therre appears to be na ever increasing number of very tanned young people. So just how are they achieving their golden tans? Some are opting for the sun-free otion and are getting their tan from a bottle. However, it appears that others are turning to tanning salons, of which there are thousands in the UK.

            So why do the British prefer to be bronzed? Often, they are trying to emulate their favorite celebrities, footballers, or footballers´ wives. Research from the British Sunbed Association suggets that many people believe a tan makes them feel and look healthier.

            This is a belief that is most definitely not shared by Cancer Research UK. They firmly state that being tanned is not a sign of health. In fact, they are strongly against young people using sunbeds. On their website, they state that people who use sunbeds before the age of 35 have a higher six of melonoma.

            The dangers of tanning did not appear to concern ten-year-old Kelly Thompson who hit headlines in April after receiving severe burns from spending 16 minutes on a sunbed. Kelly´s mother was horrified that her daughter had been allowed to use the sunbeds and that the tanning salon was unmanned. She noted that: “There was no one to give advice on using these potentially dangerous machines.”

            Whether THE British government has been taking heed of such recent tanning tragedies is not clear. What is clear however is that self-regulation in the sunbed industry looks unlikely to continue. Just after Kelly´s story was reported in the news, the government issued a statement advising that people under 18 should not use sunbeds and that all salons should be supervised by trained staff.

                                                                                  (News about Britain – BBC)  

THE RIGHT OF RETURN

            Recently, Nebraska introduced a low that allows parents to abandon their unwanted children in designated hospitals - no questions asked. The law was designed to help young women who had got pregnant by mistake to be able to give up their babies without fear of prosecution. However, the law was so vaguely defined that it effectively allows any parent to abandon any child up to the age of 18 at one of the hospitals. Numerous teenagers have already been dumped. For instance, one single father handed over nine of his ten children - aged between 20 months and 17 years old. Now people from out of state are taking advantage of the law. In October 2008 a 14-year-old girl from lowa was dumped in an Omaha hospital by her grandparents. That girl was eventually returned home but a week later a woman from Michigan drove for 12 hours in order to get rid of her 13-year-old son.

                                                                                  (THINKIN ENGLISH)

Technology

LIKE A CHILD WITH SENSE

BY KAY ITOI

Are you lonely? Do you have trouble getting up on time?

If you live in Japan, help is on the way. Starting this week, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries will begin taking orders for Wakamaru, the world’s first communicative home-use robot. Those willing to pay $14,300 will get a one-meter-tall bright yellow companion who will follow them around, keep them on schedule, chatter idly and even worry if they get stuck in traffic.

Life with Wakamaru will be a lot like having a precocious child who likes to house-sit and never throws tantrums. In the morning, the robot will come to your bed to wake you at a preprogrammed hour. While you dress, he’ll recite the day’s headlines and advise if you should take an umbrella. He moves about smoothly on a wheeled pedestal, and will even see you off at the door. (cont.)

Technology

LIKE A CHILD WITH SENSE (CONT.)

Wakamaru’s enormous round eyes and childlike gestures are what first attract people, says Junji Suzuki, a Mitsubishi Heavy manager. The robot can recognize up to 10,000 words – and respond with phrases from “I love you” to “The typhoon season is here!” When he can’t make

sense of what you say, he beeps and inclines his head. The way he looks up at you ‘just melts you,” says Suzuki.

The robot goes wherever you go, following sound and movement. When you are relaxing on the sofa, he’ll come near and start talking nonsense – just like a real kid. But he’s less self-absorbed than most children; Wakamaru panics if you don’t get home by the promised time, and will send a message to your mobile. If you fail to respond, he’ll start contacting your family and friends. Wakamaru can also remember 10 faces and emits a warning when an unfamiliar figure enters.

Mitsubishi Heavy will ship just 100 units by the year-end, and depending on the response – which GOOD LIFE predicts will be enthusiastic – it will decide how much to expand production in the future.

Wakamaru will soon have some robotic friends – or rivals. Several Japanese high-tech giants, including Sony and Fujitsu, formed a consortium last year to develop domestic robots. Now, if only they could make one that does the laundry.

(Newsweek)