Greece has a beautiful new museum at the foot of* the Acropolis, the hill that was the center of ancient Athens. It will have treasures* from the Parthenon temple, whose ruins are at the top of the hill.
However, they have deliberately* left a space* blank.* This space is for the “Elgin Marbles,” a group of statues which were taken from Greece by Thomas Bruce, the Earl of Elgin, between 1801 and 1812.
At the time, Bruce was the British ambassador to the Ottoman empire, of which Greece was a part. Even at the time, he was criticized in England for being a vandal.
The works were part of his private collection for a while, until the British Museum bought them in 1816. Now, the Greeks want them back.
“The whole world can now see the most important sculptures from the Parthenon together,” Greek president Karolos Papoulias said. “Some are missing. It’s time to heal* the wounds* on the monument by returning them.”
The British Museum has offered to loan* the works to the new museum, but only on the condition that they recognize* British ownership.*
The museum’s opening ceremonies were attended* by 400 guests, including numerous heads of state. However, there was no British representative present.
Vocabulary:
fight over
at the foot of
treasure
deliberately
space
blank
heal
wound
loan
recognize
ownership
attend
Question for discussion:
Should Britain return the statues?

Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova has been modeling a high-tech dress, which may be lighting up our lives soon.
The dress uses wireless* technology to light up when the person wearing it receives a phone call. “When you’re in a pub or a bar, you can never, ever hear your phone,” designer Georgie Davis said. Davis, who is a fashion student, designed the dress as a student project.
Sharapova helped launch* the project, modeling the dress in the window of a luxury department store in London.
Vocabulary:
wireless
launch
gimmick
Question for discussion:
Is this a good idea, or just a good gimmick?*

A pub in a small town in Spain is encouraging* their customers* to verbally abuse* their bartenders.*
Casa Pocho, in Cullera, near Valencia, even offers free drinks for especially original or comical insults.*
Co-owner Bernard Mariusz, who is from Poland, thinks that people need to release* their frustrations in this time of economic crisis. “That way they don’t take it out on* their family,” he said.
Vocabulary:
encourage
customer
abuse
bartender
insult
release
take out on
Question for discussion:
Would you like to drink at that pub?

Jon Matthews, a 59 year old English man, has won approximately 12,000 Euros, just by being alive!
Matthews was diagnosed with cancer in April, 2006. Doctors told him he would die in less than one year. He decided to bet against them.
“We had never been asked to accept a bet of this nature* before, but as Jon approached* us directly and was adamant* that it would give him an additional* incentive* to battle* his illness, we offered him the bets he wanted,” Graham Sharpe, a spokesman for the betting company, said.
He will collect another 12,000 Euros (10,000 pounds) if he is still alive on June 1st of next year.
“I know I’m going to die eventually,*” Matthews said.
Vocabulary:
bet
nature
approach
adamant
additional
incentive
battle
eventually
Question for discussion:
Do you like to bet?

Villagers* in Mukou, China have created* a new kind of community center.
They have a camphor tree* which is 1,800 years old and has large, spreading* branches.*
As it branches out, there is a space* in the center which is 30 meters wide. The villagers have built a tree house there, and moved in two large tables. There is enough room* for people to comfortably read, talk and play games.
“It’s the best place to sit in the summer as it is so cool and it’s a great feeling to be so high up in the tree,” one villager said.
Vocabulary:
villager
create
camphor tree
spreading
branch
space
room
Question for discussion:
Have you ever had a tree house?

Artist Scott Donahue has created a pair of new statues for a pedestrian* bridge in California, and one of them is testing the definition of art.
The statue itself is non-controversial - just people flying kites.*
But, around the base* of the statue are a series of smaller sculptures.* One of them is of two dogs having sex, and one is of a dog defecating.*
“I am showing what dogs do at the dog park,” he said.
Vocabulary:
pedestrian
fly kites
base
sculpture
defecate
Question for discussion:
Where is your favorite statue?

There is an expression in English: I will sleep on it. This means that you want to think about things for a while, at least overnight.
However, scientists* at the University of California, led* by psychiatrist Sara Mednick, have proven* that there is a great deal of truth in the old saying. “We found that - for creative problems that you’ve already been working on - the passage of time* is enough to find solutions.* However, for new problems, only REM* sleep enhances* creativity,” she said.
In the experiment, 77 volunteers* were given a test in the morning. In the test, they were shown groups of three words and asked to find a fourth word that could be associated with* all three. Then, some of them were allowed* to take a nap.* While they were sleeping, their brains were scanned to see how deeply they were sleeping.
Researchers found that those who had a nap did better in the afternoon tests than those that hadn’t had the naps, and those who had entered* a period of REM sleep did the best of all.
Vocabulary:
scientist
led
prove
passage of time
solution
REM sleep
enhance
volunteer
be associated with
be allowed
take a nap
enter
Question for discussion:
Do you take naps?

Four years ago, Jeffrey Lawal Balogun was an average English college student. Then, one day when he was late for a class he was running to catch a bus.
A coach* from a local track and field club* saw him and introduced* him to Clarence Callender, one of Britain’s top sprinting coaches. Now, Balogun hopes to compete* at the 2012 Olympics.
”I always knew that I was fast, but I didn’t really know how to get into running,” he said. “The funny thing is, I missed the bus.”
Vocabulary:
track
discover
coach
track and field club
introduce
compete
Question for discussion:
Are you a fast runner?

Residents* of a street in England with an embarrassing* name have finally succeeded in* getting it changed. There are only four homes on Butt Hole Road, and the residents shared* the 300 pound (approximately 350 Euro) fee* to have the street’s name legally changed.
The street was named hundreds of years ago, when a water butt was an open barrel* used to collect* rain water. The term is still in use, but not widely known except by people who like gardening and prefer ancient methods. Today, butt hole is a vulgar term for the anus.*
The street will now be known as Archer* Way, because it is not far from an ancient castle.
“It was a bit tedious* having the street laughed at all the time,” said Elizabeth Brennan, 77. “The new name is much nicer.”
Vocabulary:
resident
embarrassing
succeed in
share
fee
barrel
collect
anus
archer
tedious
Question for discussion:
Do you like your street’s name?

Thomas Prusik-Parkin, 49, is in trouble for impersonating his mother. Police say that when his mother died in 2003, at the age of 73, Prusik-Parkin gave a false social security* number and date of birth to the funeral director* so her death would not show up on government records.*
Then, over the last six years, he has frequently dressed as his mother to collect her social security checks, get mortgages* and even to renew her driver’s license. In each case, he was accompanied* by an accomplice, Milton Rimolo, who would help the “frail* old lady” to walk and communicate with officials.*
Prusik-Parkin was caught* when the owner of the building where he lived figured it out* and called police.
Vocabulary:
impersonate
social security
funeral director
record
mortgage
be accompanied
frail
official
be caught
figure out
Question for discussion:
Have you ever forged your mother’s or father’s signature?

A Belgian teenager is suing* a tattoo artist for 10,000 Euros, saying he didn’t understand what she wanted. “I explicitly* said in my native tongue,* French, and also in a little bit of English when he looked confused,* that I wanted three little stars only near my left eye,” Kimberly Vlaminck, 18, said.
Tattoo artist Rouslan Toumaniantz, who is Romanian, says the charges* are baseless.* “The trouble all started when she went home and her father and boyfriend threw a fit.* They are saying things now like I doped* her or hypnotized her. What rubbish. She asked for 56 stars and that’s what she got.”
Vlaminck said that she fell asleep during the procedure. Toumaniantz disputes* that, as well. “She was awake and looked into the mirror several times as the procedure was taking place.”
Vocabulary:
remorse
sue
explicitly
native tongue
confused
charge
baseless
throw a fit
dope
dispute
Question for discussion:
Do you have any tattoos?

Chastity Bono, daughter of actress and singing legend Cher and Sonny Bono (who died in a skiing acccident in 1998), is changing her sex.
Chastity, who is 40, was named after Cher’s first film, in which she played a bisexual. Ironically, when Chastity (who is now known as Chaz) first told her parents she was gay, it was Cher who reacted angrily and locked her out of* the house. However, she has since become more supportive.*
“”Chaz is embarking on* a difficult journey,* but one that I will support,” she said. “I respect the courage it takes to go through this transition* in the glare* of public srutiny* and although I may not understand I will strive* to be understanding. The one thing that will never change is my abiding* love for my child.”
Vocabulary:
lock out of
supportive
embark on
journey
transition
glare
scrutiny
strive
abiding
Question for discussion:
What makes some people want to change their sex?

Mimi Beardsley Alford is writing a book, “Once Upon* a Secret,” that will tell all about her love affair with U.S. President John Kennedy.
The love affair began in June, 1962, when she was a 19 year old White House intern,* and lasted* until his assassination.*
Mimi moved on* with her life. She got married, had children, and got divorced. But she never told anyone about the affair.
Then, in 2003, an author and a historian named Robert Dallek wrote a book about Kennedy called “An Unfinished Life.” In that book, he talked about the affair.
“Obviously, she had a special relationship with the president,” said Barbara Gamareiken, who also worked in the Kennedy White House and was the source* for Dallek’s book. “She couldn’t type.”* According to the book, Beardsley was flown around the world on Air Force jets to meet with Kennedy, and was once seen by the press* hiding* in the back seat of a limousine that Kennedy had just exited.
Now Mimi has decided to tell her side of the story.
Vocabulary:
once upon... - Es war einmal ...
intern - Intern
last - letstens
assassination - die Ermordung
move on - umziehen
source - die Quelle
type - Tastaturschreiben
press - die Presse
hide - verstecken
loss of innocence - Verlust der Unschuld
be struck - finden
profound - tief
Question for discussion:
What do you know about President Kennedy?

Roh Moo-hyun, who was President of South Korea from February, 2003 to February, 2008, killed himself May 23rd.
He was hiking* near his home town, Bongha Mauel, when he jumped from a cliff* at 6:40 in the morning.
According to his lawyer, he left a suicide note* which said “Too many people are suffering* because of me.”
Last month, prosecutors* questioned* Roh about allegations* that he, and his family, had accepted approximately 4.3 million Euros in bribes.*
Vocabulary:
hike - die Wanderung
cliff - die Klippe
suicide note - der Selbstmord Hinweis
suffer - leiden
prosecutor - der Staatsanwalt
question - die Frage
allegation - die Behauptung
bribe - die Bestechung
Question for discussion:
Are all politicians corrupt?

Roh Moo-hyun, 1946 - 2009

Chen Fuchao, who was heavily in debt,* had been standing on a bridge in southern China for hours when a man came near to him, shook his hand, and pushed him off.
Chen survived the 8 meter fall, because emergency crews* had begun to inflate* a cushion* below him, but he injured* his elbows and spine.*
The man who pushed him, Lai Jiansheng, said “I pushed him off because jumpers like Chen are very selfish.* Their action violates* a lot of public interest.”
11 people have jumped from the Haizhu bridge in the last 2 months.
Vocabulary:
suicide - Selbstmord
push - drücken
debt - schulden
emergency crew - Notfall Gruppe
inflate - aufblasen
cushion - Kissen
injure - verletzen
spine - Wirbelsäule
selfish - selbstsüchtig
violate - gegen
Question for discussion:
Is it wrong to kill yourself?

Legoland in England is making a giant* mosaic of author J.K. Rowling out of 48,000 white, yellow and gray lego bricks.* The mosaic is so tall that a ladder* was needed to add the final pieces.
Rowling was chosen for the mosaic in a poll* of British schoolchildren. In response to the question “Who is the ultimate* hero of the last ten years?,” Rowling won first place easily. Second place went to Zac Efron, who stars* in the High School Musical movies. U.S. president Barack Obama was in third place.
Vicky Brown, the park’s general manager, said “We are thrilled* that J.K. Rowling topped this poll* as her books have been a great inspiration to children of all ages.”
Vocabulary:
top - Spitze
giant - riesig
brick - Backstein
ladder - Leiter
poll - Liste
ultimate - ultimative
star - Stern / berühmter Mensch
thrilled - fasziniert
Question for discussion:
Have you read the Harry Potter books?

J.K. Rowling

Hajnal Ban is a city councillor* in Logan City (suburban Brisbane), Australia. It was recently discovered* that 7 years ago, she had drastic cosmetic surgery.
Ban, who is now 31, went to the Ilizarov Orthopaedic clinic in Kurgan, Russia, and paid them over 21,000 Euros to break her legs in 4 places and, over a period of 9 months, stretch them slowly. Before the operation, Ban was 155 centimeters tall. Now, she is 162.5 centimeters tall.
“I have absolutely no regrets,*” she said. I was prepared, I did my research* and I’m very lucky because the results are good.”
Vocabulary:
stretched - gedehnt
councillor - Gemeinderat
discover - Anzeigebild
regret - bedauern
research - wiederfinden
appearance - Aussehen
Question for discussion:
Would you have surgery to change your appearance?*

Hajnal Ban

J. W. Lown, the mayor of San Angelo, Texas (population 88,000) was recently elected* to a 4th term.* However, before starting his 4th term, he ran away to Mexico with his gay lover.
His lover, whose name has not been revealed,* was a college student in San Angelo and his relationship with the mayor began in March.
People in San Angelo had not known that Lown, 32, was gay. However, that was not the reason* that Lown and his lover went to Mexico. They went because his lover is Mexican, and couldn’t stay in the U.S. legally.
“We had to do the right thing and wait in line* for a visa,” Lown said. He said they would return “if the people of San Angelo will welcome me back.”
It seems as if they will. He was elected with 89% of the vote,* and city councilwoman* Charlotte Farmer said she has received many phone calls supporting* Lown. “They love our mayor and quite frankly* so do I,” she said.
Lown’s job as mayor is part time* and only pays 600 dollars a year. He also owns a real estate agency.
Vocabulary:
mayor - Bürgermeister
be elected - gewählt werden
term - Begriff
be revealed - gezeigt werden
reason - der Grund
line - Einklang
vote - Abstimmung
councilwoman - Stadträtin
support - unterstützen
frankly - offen
part time - Teilzeit
Question for discussion:
Will this end his political career?

J.W. Lown Makes a Personal Call

In August of 2007, some very special tomato seeds* were delivered* to the International Space Station. They had been genetically modified by Mariya Khodakovskaya, a researcher* at North Carolina University, to grow* in space.
They didn’t do very well. “The seedlings* grew for a short period, and then they got no taller and died,” said Chris Brown, a plant* biologist who is also at the University of North Carolina.
However, the new breed* is doing very well here on Earth, because they can go for several weeks without water, and may be grown even in the harshest* desert.
Vocabulary:
space - Raum
seed - Samen
be delivered - geliefert werden
researcher - Forscher
seedling - Sämling
plant - Pflanze
breed - Rasse
harsh - hart
desert - Wüste
Question for discussion:
Is genetically modified food safe?

On a spring day in 1953, two baby girls were born in a hospital in eastern Oregon. They grew up happily, got married, had children of their own and became grandparents. Then, last summer, they found out* that they had been switched at birth.
So, Kay Rene Qualls (who was raised as Kay Rene Reed) and DeeAnn Shafer (who was raised as DeeAnn Angel, were actually each raised* by the other one’s parents.
They found out* when an 86 year old woman who had known both mothers and had long suspected* the truth showed Kay’s “brother” Bobby a photo.
“It looked like Kay Rene when she was in about 7th grade,” he said. “But it wasn’t. It was DeeAnn Shafer’s sister.”
Marjorie Shafer (who raised DeeAnn, but was Kay Rene’s biological mother) had told the nurses* at the hospital that she thought there was a mistake, but they convinced* her otherwise.
The two women have become friends, and now celebrate their birthday (May 3rd) together. “You can’t look back,” DeeAnn Shafer said. “It just drives you crazy.*”
Vocabulary:
switched - eingeschaltet
at birth - bei der Geburt
be raised - sei aufgeschüttelt
found out - herausgefunden
suspect - verdächtig
nurse - Krankenschwester
convince - Ueberzeugung
drive crazy - Wahnsinnig werden
Question for discussion:
What is family?

Kay Rene Qualls and DeeAnn Shafer