Britney Spears' music scares off pirates
31st October - "Easier"
Ship captains in the Indian Ocean are using a new tactic to keep pirates away – songs sung by U.S. pop star Britney Spears. |
Media says Obama knew US spied on Merkel
29th October - "Harder"
Several German news sources are questioning how much President Obama knows about the US spying on German Chancellor Angela Merkel.... |
Japanese food to get UNESCO status
27th October - "Easier"
The United Nations is going to put traditional Japanese food on its list of important world cuisines. |
Baldness treatment a 'step closer'
25th October - "Harder"
Help may soon be at hand (or head) for the millions around the world who suffer from and worry about baldness. Scientists say they are close to ... |
More people think online dating is OK
23rd October - "Easier"
A new report says most Americans think online dating is a good way to meet people. Almost 60 per cent of Internet users said.... |
Housework not good exercise, says study
21st October - "Harder"
A new study suggests housework is not the quality form of exercise many people consider it to be. The report even said that those who .... |
BBC plans 2,500 hours of World War I shows
19th October - "Easier"
The BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) has released details of its programme schedule to mark the centenary of World War I. It is planning... |
Eating popcorn makes ads less effective
17th October - "Harder"
The advertising people see while at the movies is less effective when audiences eat popcorn. This is the conclusion of a newly-published study.... |
Education adviser attacks UK schools
15th October - "Easier"
A top adviser to the British government has attacked the quality of British schools and teachers. |
Republicans and Obama in debt crisis talks
13th October - "Harder"
After more than ten days of stalemate in the U.S., things have finally begun to start moving. Both sides sat down for talks about the.... |
| No Lesson |
Top store hits back at "wardrobing" fraud
9th October - "Harder"
An upmarket chain of U.S. department stores has taken action to stop people buying expensive clothes, wearing them once and then.... |
Jet-lag drug is a step closer
7th October - "Easier"
Everybody who flies long distances hates jet lag. Traveling across different time zones upsets your body clock. People can have jet lag for... |
| No Lesson |
Hunger affects one in eight people
3rd October - "Easier"
A new report from the United Nations says one in eight people around the world does not have enough food. The U.N. reports that.... |
New TomTato plant grows potatoes and tomatoes
1st October - "Harder"
A horticultural company in the U.K. is marketing a revolutionary new plant that grows both tomatoes and potatoes. It is called the TomTato and .... |
| No Lesson |
Iran's Rouhani addresses UN General Assembly
27th September - "Harder"
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani addressed the United Nation's General Assembly on Tuesday, calling for "constructive engagement" with.... |
Scientists find gene that erases memories
25th September - "Easier"
Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have found the gene that could help people forget traumatic experiences.... |
Multiple-path stories for English students
23rd September - "Harder"
A new project to help English learners with their reading skills may soon be under way, if the developers can reach their funding target. ... |
Syria says it will destroy chemical weapons
21st September - "Easier"
The president of Syria, Bashar al-Assad, has said he will follow a plan to destroy his country's chemical weapons. He told reporters.... |
| No Lesson |
Blobfish are the ugliest animals
17th September - "Easier"
Most people do not know what a blobfish is. It is the world's ugliest animal. It is also the new mascot of the Ugly Animal Preservation Society. |
A third of kids get no bedtime story
15th September - "Harder"
It seems the age-old tradition of children getting a bedtime story before sleeping is on the wane in Britain. A new study reveals that around a third.... |
Women should have babies before 35
13th September - "Easier"
A top expert on fertility has said women should have babies before they are 35 years old. She said the age of 35 is like when the "clock strikes 12". |
Trekker lost in Andes found alive
11th September - "Harder"
A Uruguayan man who disappeared before the start of winter in the Andes Mountains has been found alive and well. Raul Fernando Gomez, 58, got lost in a snow blizzard while .... |
Police arrest a coconut
9th September - "Easier"
Police officers in the Maldives have arrested a coconut. They said it was full of black magic and that someone was using it to try and change the results of an election. |
Samsung unveils new smartwatch
7th September - "Harder"
Samsung has entered the newly-emerging smartwatch market by unveiling its multi-function timepiece, the Galaxy Gear. It is a digital.... |
EU plans to stop cars speeding
5th September - "Easier"
The European Union has a plan to stop cars speeding. It hopes to reduce the number of people who die in traffic accidents... |
Internet damaging 20,000 U.K. stores
3rd September - "Harder"
The Internet has changed the nature of the way we shop. More and more of us are shopping online instead of in "bricks and mortar" stores.... |
U.S. fast-food workers stop working
1st September - "Easier"
Fast-food workers in 58 cities in the USA did not go to work on Thursday. They went on strike because they want more money. |
Spanish festival charges for tomato throwing
30th August - "Harder"
Spain's economic woes have led to one of its famous Tomatina tomato-throwing festival becoming a "pay-to-join" event.... |
First photos of Prince George
28th August - "Easier"
Britain's royal family released the first official photos of Prince George on Sunday. The photos are a little different because a royal photographer.... |
Volunteering helps you live longer
26th August - "Harder"
Volunteering can make you happier and help you live longer, according to a new study. A research paper published on Friday in the journal... |
| No Lesson |
One Direction's movie premieres in London
22nd August - "Harder"
The British boy band One Direction created a frenzy in the heart of London when thousands of adoring fans turned up to see their.... |
Good grammar means more money
20th August - "Easier"
Most people think big companies use grammar very well. A new study shows that big companies make grammar mistakes. |
Facebook "selfies" can harm relationships
18th August - "Harder"
A study from the U.K. indicates that people who post too many "selfies" (photos of themselves) on Facebook and similar social networks.... |
Google starts one-dollar charity app
16th August - "Easier"
The search engine giant Google has started a new app that lets people give just $1 to different charities. Its 'One Today' app shows.... |
Scientists search for real Mona Lisa
14th August - "Harder"
Scientists say they are close to finding the remains of the woman who modelled for Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece the Mona Lisa.... |
U.K. sending warships to Gibraltar
12th August - "Easier"
Britain says it will send ten warships to Gibraltar on Monday. The ships will make a stop on their way to the Middle East. Many people... |
Mothers face workplace discrimination
10th August - "Harder"
More than one in four British mothers who have returned to work feel discriminated against. This is according to a survey conducted by... |
People eat first "Google burger"
8th August - "Easier"
Two food critics have eaten meat that was grown in a lab. It is the first time anyone has eaten artificial meat. |
U.S. rock group banned from Russia
6th August - "Harder"
A rock group from the USA have been banned from performing at a music festival in Russia after the bass player stuffed the Russian flag inside... |
Babies given away on Pakistan TV show
4th August - "Easier"
A talk show in Pakistan has given away two baby girls live on television. The show is called Aman Ramzan and it is hosted by a popular celebrity Aamir Liaquat Hussain. |
Saudi prince says fracking will hurt his nation
2nd August - "Harder"
A Saudi billionaire prince has warned that his country's economy faces danger unless it diversifies away from oil. A whopping 92 per cent.... |
| No Lesson |
'World of Warcraft' loses 2 million players
29th July - "Harder"
Two million people have stopped playing "World of Warcraft", one of the world's favourite online games, in 2013.... |
Ex-US President shaves head to help boy
27th July - "Easier"
Ex-U.S. President George H.W. Bush has shaved his head to make a 2-year-old boy feel better. The boy, Patrick, is the son ... |
Scientists discover depression molecule
25th July - "Harder"
Scientists say they have discovered the part of the brain that is responsible for us feeling miserable, anxious and stressed.... |
Superman & Batman to be in same movie
23rd July - "Easier"
Superman and Batman will be in the same film together for the first time ever. The movie will be in cinemas in the summer of 2015. |
U.S. city of Detroit goes bankrupt
21st July - "Harder"
Detroit, once a powerhouse of American industry, has filed for bankruptcy, to become the biggest city to declare insolvency in U.S. history.... |
Palm surgery to change your future
19th July - "Easier"
People in Japan are having surgery on their hands to change their future. The Japanese are big believers in palm reading. They spend a lot of money on visiting palm readers. |
| : No Lesson |
Typewriters to stop Russian computer leaks
15th July - "Easier"
Western newspapers are reporting that Russia is to start using typewriters to stop computer leaks. However, Russian newspapers say this is not true. |
No frying eggs in Death Valley, says park
13th July - "Harder"
Officials at the Death Valley National Park have appealed to visitors to refrain from trying to fry eggs on rocks or the ground.... |
Letter of the alphabet for 'the' invented
11th July- "Easier"
An Australian businessman has invented a new, 27th, letter for the English alphabet. It is a symbol to replace the word "the". |
| No Lesson |
Woman marries a bridge
7th July - "Easier"
Artist Jodi Rose fell in love with the 600-year-old Le Pont du Diable (the Devil's Bridge) in France and got married to it last month. |
Indian repatriates 3,700 prisoners in UAE
5th July - "Harder"
An Indian businessman in the UAE has helped repatriate nearly 3,700 prisoners trapped in a legal limbo in the United Arab Emirates. |
World's largest building opens in China
3rd July - "Easier"
China is building up a large collection of the biggest things in the world. The latest addition is the world's largest building. |
Obama praises Mandela as an "inspiration"
1st July - "Harder"
U.S. President Barack Obama has hailed Nelson Mandela as a personal inspiration while on a visit to South Africa.... |
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