英语新闻报道

US state approves same-sex marriage statute

[ 2012-02-10 16:14 ]

A bill to legalize gay marriage in Washington state won final legislative approval on Wednesday in a vote that moved the state one step closer to becoming the seventh to recognize same-sex nuptials.

Washington's Democratic Gov Christine Gregoire said she looked forward to signing the measure and "putting into law an end to an era of discrimination" even as opponents, led by religious conservatives, vowed to seek its repeal at the polls in November.

The approval in the state House of Representatives came a day after gay marriage advocates won a key legal victory in California when a federal appeals court declared a voter-approved gay marriage ban in that state unconstitutional.

The measure cleared the state House of Representatives 55-43, a week after it was passed by the state Senate by a 28-21 vote. Democrats, accounting for the lion's

share of support for the bill, control both legislative bodies in the state capital Olympia but enjoy a bigger majority in the 98-seat House.

Two Republicans joined 53 Democrats in voting for the bill, while two Democrats sided with 41 Republicans in opposition.

Democratic Rep Jamie Pedersen, a gay lawmaker from Seattle who has sponsored gay rights bills in the House for several years, said domestic partnership laws, which the state has had for years, are "a pale and inadequate substitute for marriage." Pedersen, during his remarks on the House floor, read from Tuesday's ruling by the San Francisco-based 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals, citing a section that stated "marriage is the name that society gives to the relationship that matters most between two adults."

Questions:

1. Which US state is on its way to legalizing gay marriage?

2. How many other states recognize same-sex nuptials?

3. Who opposes legalizing gay marriage?

Answers:

1. Washington

2. 6

3. Religious conservatives

Pizza Hut seeks bigger piece of pie

[ 2012-02-09 14:49 ]

Pizza Hut, a restaurant chain owned by Yum! Brands, announced it will open at least 150 more restaurants in China this year as its parent company moves forward with plans to expand overseas.

"Pizza Hut will accelerate its development speed in China," said Peter Kao, brand general manager of Pizza Hut and Pizza Hut Delivery of Yum! China. "We plan to invest more than 700 million yuan ($111.2 million) and open at least 150 restaurants in third- or fourth-tier cities this year."

Yum! Brands Inc, based in Louisville, Kentucky, has more than 36,000 restaurants in more than 117 countries and regions, according to its official website.

In 1987, Yum! entered China by opening its first KFC store. The catering giant now has more than 4,400 restaurants in the country - KFCs, Pizza Huts, Taco Bells, East Dawnings and Little Sheep.

On Tuesday, Yum! Brands reported that its fourth-quarter profit had increased by 30 percent from the same period a year ago, a result it attributed to its global expansion and the sales increase it has seen at its China stores.

The company's net income increased to $356 million, or 75 cents a share, from $274 million, or 56 cents, a year earlier, Yum! said in the statement.

Yum!, which has about 18,800 restaurants outside the United States, said its

fourth-quarter sales at stores that have been open at least 12 months increased by 21 percent in China. The company said it opened 656 stores in the country last year, a record number.

It gets more than 40 percent of its revenue from China.

By contrast, same-store sales during the quarter increased by 1 percent in the US, driven by growth at the Pizza Hut chain, Yum! said.

In addition to the store opening, Yum! announced that its plan for privatizing Little Sheep Group took effect on Feb 1, making the hotpot chain a subsidiary of Yum! That change has given the company a much bigger presence in the Chinese market. The acquisition is expected to cost Yum! about HK $4.557 billion ($586.5 million).

"China's catering industry is on a fast development track and has achieved annual growth of about 20 percent during the past 30 years," said Jing Linbo, vice-president of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' national academy of economic strategy.

"In 2011, sales revenue from the Chinese catering industry was estimated to reach 2.05 trillion yuan, up 16.9 percent from the year before.

"By the end of 2015, the industry's sales revenue is expected to reach 3.7 trillion yuan. That will provide a huge market for foreign restaurant companies, including Yum!" Questions:

1. What is Pizza Hut’s plan for China?

2. Who is its parent company?

3. Where is it based?

Answers:

1. It will open at least 150 more restaurants in China this year.

2.Yum! Brands Inc.

3.Louisville, Kentucky.

Smoking is dumb and dumbing

[ 2012-02-08 16:33 ]

Men who smoke suffer a more rapid decline in brain function as they age than their non-smoking counterparts, with their cognitive decline as rapid as someone 10 years older but who shuns tobacco, scientists said on Monday.

In a large, long-term study, British researchers found that while there seems to be no link between cognitive decline and smoking in women, in men, the habit is linked to swifter decline, with early dementia-like cognitive difficulties showing up as early as the age of 45.

The research adds to an already large body of evidence about the long-term dangers of smoking - a habit the World Health Organization refers to as "one of the biggest public health threats the world has ever faced."

Smoking causes lung cancer, which is often fatal, and other chronic respiratory

diseases. It is also a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, the world's number one killers.

"While we were aware that smoking is a risk factor for respiratory disease, cancer, and cardiovascular disease, this study shows it also has a detrimental effect on cognitive aging and this is evident as early as 45 years," says Severine Sabia of University College London, who led the study and published it in the Archives of General Psychiatry journal.

In an interview, she said one explanation for the gender difference found in this study might be the larger amount of tobacco smoked by men, or the fact that there was a significantly lower proportion of women than men among those involved in the research.

Sabia's team looked for possible links between smoking history and cognitive decline in the transition from midlife to old age using data from 5,099 men and 2,137 women, who are involved in a large research project called the Whitehall II study, which is based on employees of the British Civil Service.

The average age of those taking part was 56 when they had their first cognitive assessment.

The study used six assessments of smoking status over 25 years and three cognitive assessments over 10 years, and found that smokers showed a cognitive decline as fast as non-smokers 10 years older.

"A 50-year-old male smoker shows a similar cognitive decline as a 60-year-old male never smoker," Sabia said.

She also found that men who quit smoking in the 10 years before the first cognitive testing point were still at risk of greater cognitive decline, especially in executive

function – which covers various complex cognitive processes involved in achieving a particular goal.

Long-term ex-smokers, however, did not show a faster decline in their brain functions or cognitive abilities.

Sabia says more research is now needed to find out why there was a difference between men and women in this study, and to look into possible mechanisms that might link declining brain function to smoking.

Questions:

1. What link was made between male smokers and brain function?

2. When do symptoms appear?

3. What else is linked to smoking?

Answers:

1.Men who smoke suffer a more rapid decline in brain function as they age than their non-smoking counterparts.

2.Early dementia-like cognitive difficulties show up as early as the age of 45.

3.Smoking causes lung cancer, which is often fatal, and other chronic respiratory diseases. It is also a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases.

'I love u' text messages a turnoff for women

[ 2012-02-14 16:53 ]Australian women may have embraced the digital era, but they prefer a face-to-face declaration of affection to an "I love u" text and find men addicted to their mobile phones a major turnoff.

That's according to a study carried out by romance publisher Mills & Boon, timed to coincide with Valentines Day on Tuesday.

The 2012 Australian Romance Report found 91 percent of woman expected to be asked out on a date with a telephone call rather than via a mobile phone message. And 86 percent of respondents were more comfortable saying "I love you" in person than via a text message.

The least romantic of gestures was declaring one's love via a relationship status change on Facebook.

At a time when women see themselves as more independent than ever before, many of the traditional beliefs about romance still resonate, said Michelle Laforest of publisher Harlequin Enterprises, which carried out the survey.

While most single woman would admit that the rules of dating have changed, 61 percent still believe a guy should "ask me out".

The online survey of 1,200 single women aged 18 to 55 also revealed 76 percent would be more willing to stand in front of someone naked with the lights on than send a naked photograph by text.

When it came to relationship deal-breakers, a Blackberry/iPhone dependency and Facebook photos with ex-lovers rated highly as turnoffs.

Asked what they most wanted in a partner, women were mostly traditional, nominating a killer smile, a great sense of humour and an accent as their biggest turn-ons. Questions:

1. Who carried out the study?

2. What percentage of woman expected to be asked out on a date with a telephone call rather than via a mobile phone message?

3. How many single women took part in the survey?

Answers:

1. Mills & Boon

2. 91%

3. 1,200

Shanghai court postpones iPad decision

Shanghai court postpones iPad decision

[ 2012-02-24 16:26 ]

The Shanghai Pudong New Area People's Court on Thursday rejected a request by Shenzhen Proview Technology to stop Apple from selling iPads in the city.

The court said it could not support Proview's application because no ruling has been made on whether Apple has violated Proview's exclusive right to use the iPad trademark.

A lawsuit over the right to use the trademark in China is still under the second instance trial at Guangzhou people's higher court, which is scheduled to hold a hearing on Wednesday.

Xie Jinnan, a lawyer for Apple, said he was notified about the court's decision but is not authorized to make further comments on the case.

Proview's lawyers could not be reached.

Shu Jianxin, a Shanghai-based intellectual property attorney who has been following the case, said the Shanghai court is being cautious to wait for the Guangdong court's verdict.

The lawsuit in Guangdong will decide whether the trademark should be exclusively used by Shenzhen Proview Technology, while the case in Shanghai will decide whether the distributors of Apple products have the right to use it.

Shu said they are quite different lawsuits, but if the Guangdong court rules that Apple has no right to use the iPad trademark, then the Shanghai court might take the decision into consideration.

A legal expert said the Shanghai court's decision to suspend the case might be good news for Apple.

Liu Chuntian, professor of intellectual property at Renmin University of China, said Proview has to provide more evidence proving Apple had infringed on its trademark rights if it wants to win the suit.

In Shanghai's Apple flagship store, shop assistants said some customers have come to ask about the lawsuits, but they have not seen any changes in the sales of iPad products.

"We sell as many iPads as usual and I don't think the lawsuits have impacted the sales of the products," said a shop assistant.