The earthquake that struck near Mexico City Tuesday came exactly 32 years after an 8.0 magnitude quake hit the area.
The 1985 earthquake killed nearly 10,000 people.
Mexican officials say more than 200 people are confirmed dead following Tuesday’s quake. Many buildings were damaged, while others were destroyed.
Rescue workers searched the capital and other areas on Wednesday in hopes of finding survivors. 
Mexican Interior Minister Miguel Osorio Chong says his country’s armed forces and police will continue working until they explore all possibilities of finding more people alive.
Civilians joined the search and rescue teams shortly after the quake. They used heavy machinery and, in some cases their hands, to clear away wreckage from homes, schools and other buildings.
Scientists say the earthquake had a magnitude of 7.1. The United States Geological Survey defines magnitude as a number that represents the relative size of a quake.
The quake’s epicenter was near the city of Puebla, 120 kilometers southeast of Mexico City.
Ken Hudnut is a science adviser with the U.S. Geological Survey in Pasadena, California. He told VOA that the land on which the buildings were set up could be a reason for the collapses.
"Some of the buildings are on old lake beds, and that can amplify the shaking and cause the shaking to last longer, and that can make for more damage.”
On Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump sent a message of support on Twitter. He wrote, “God bless the people of Mexico City. We are with you and will be there for you.”
On Wednesday, Israel announced plans to send 70 people to Mexico to help with rescue efforts. A military spokesman said the team will help examine buildings to identify their damage and safety levels.
The earthquake hit less than two weeks after another quake killed more than 90 people in southern Mexico. The U.S. Geological Survey said the two quakes appeared to be unrelated.
The Earth’s outermost surface is made up of large tectonic plates. As many as 20 tectonic plates cover the planet. They move slowly, sometimes sliding under one another. When that happens, earthquakes can take place.
Ken Hudnut says the two recent quakes in Mexico have similarities.
“So both of them occurred within the plate that's going down underneath the plate that is overriding up on top. And both of them had some extensional movement, which is unusual. The more typical thing is like the 1985 earthquake that did much more damage in Mexico City than either of these…”
I’m Ashley Thompson.
 
George Grow wrote this story for Learning English based on VOA, AP and Reuters news reports. Hai Do was the editor.
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Words in This Story
 
lake – n. a large, inland body of standing water
amplify – v. to expand; to make larger or greater
tectonic plate – n. large pieces of the Earth’s outer shell
occur – v. to happen; to exist or appear
typical – adj. normal for someone or something
 
We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.(2017/09/21 07:02)

 
Last week, Apple told the world about its latest products at an event in California. The company presented three new iPhones, new Apple Watches, and a new Apple TV. The company is also making big changes to its stores. We will start with those.
Apple Town Centers
If a friend says he or she is going to the Apple Town Square, you may wonder where it is. It is in the same place as your local Apple store. Apple stores will now be known as "Apple Town Squares."
Apple says that much more happens at its stores than sales. People come there to do other things and Apple wants to make its stores more inviting.
Spaces will be created for learning, meeting, researching and more. The so-called Board Room will help app designers create new apps. The Forum will help people create, using photography, music and more. Customers also will be able to attend classes at such Town Squares to learn how to use Apple products.
The Avenue will feature Apple products for sale so the centers will remain a place to go to shop.
Apple Watch Series 3
At the Apple event, the company also announced its third version of the Apple Watch, the Series 3. This watch can have a cellular connection separate from the iPhone to which it is connected.
​The cellular connection is available only in some countries and with some carriers. Be sure to check whether your carrier offers a connection to the new Apple Watch if this is an important feature to you.
Note that you will have to pay your cell phone carrier a fee for the cellular connection. Check with your carrier to find out how much that fee will be.
Users can make and answer phone calls and text messages from the Watch, even if their phone is not nearby.The Watch uses the same phone number as the iPhone to which it is connected.
The Watch has an altimeter so it can better track your workout. It will know whether you are working hard to climb stairs, ladders or mountains.
Apple is also getting serious about people using Apple Watch as a heart monitor. The watch can give a warning signal if your heart rate is fast when you are not exercising.
Apple and Stanford University are studying whether Apple Watch can detect irregular heartbeats, a condition known as atrial fibrillation or AFib. Apple and Stanford plan to ask Apple Watch owners to volunteer for the study.
Siri, Apple’s digital assistant, can speak to you from the watch. Ask it a question and Siri will answer.
The price of the new Apple Watch in the US starts at about $330 without a cellular connection. A cellular connection will add about $60 to that price. Pay about $30 more for a larger version of the watch.
Apple TV
Apple also presented an updated model of its Apple TV streaming box. The company says Apple TV 4K provides new features and a sharper image with more vibrant colors.
The insides of the streaming box have been upgraded as well for faster and smoother video. This should improve the Apple TV gaming experience. At the event, Apple showed a new game called Sky being played through Apple TV 4K using a remote control that is included.
See, Apple TV, Fire TV or Roku?
The new Apple TV will also notify you about sporting events and breaking news. You can get notifications when your favorite teams are playing and see all sporting events currently being played. You can choose to see all the scores or hide them.
4K videos will now be available in iTunes. And if you purchased a movie in HD from iTunes and now it comes in 4K, Apple will upgrade your movie for free.
Apple TV 4K with 32 GB of storage will cost $175. The model with 64GB of storage will cost $195.
iPhones
Apple introduced three new iPhones:
iPhone 8
iPhone 8 Plus
iPhone X
iPhone 8 and 8 Plus
The iPhone 8 and 8 Plus are more advanced versions of the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus. Their screen sizes are the same as the earlier models, with the 8 having a screen of 11.9 centimeters and the 8 Plus being 14 centimeters.
One major change in the new phones is their glass back which permits wireless charging. That means you can rest your phone on a charging pad, instead of having to insert a cable into the phone. Of course, you can still use a cable if you want.
Apple says the battery life of 8 and 8 Plus is about the same as that of the Apple 7.
​The 8 and 8 Plus come with an A11 Bionic chip that is supposed to be speedy. These phones are designed for 3D games and augmented reality apps.
See Augmented Reality vs. Virtual Reality – What’s the Difference?
Apple showed an example of someone being at a Major League Baseball game and using the MLB app to see the stats of the players on the field using augmented reality.
The screens on these phones are more advanced with truer and brighter colors and more pixels on the display. The phones are water and dust-resistant.
The phone’s cameras have faster processors and image stabilization for better focus.
Apple showed a Portrait Lighting feature that darkens the background of the photo so all that shows is the subject's face. This feature will be available on the iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X.
These phones are available with 64 or 256 GB of storage space and in the colors gray, silver or gold.
Pricing begins at almost $700 for the iPhone 8 and just under $800 for the iPhone 8 Plus.
iPhone X
To celebrate the tenth anniversary of the first iPhone, Apple is releasing the iPhone X.
The first thing you will notice when you see the iPhone X is the screen. Instead of having a border (known as a bezel in tech terms), this phone's screen is edge to edge.
Although the iPhone X is smaller than the iPhone 8 Plus, it has a slightly larger screen. Its “Super Retina” display provides a richer image as well.
Like the 8 and 8 Plus, the X has a glass back for wireless charging. The X is also water and dust-resistant.
The camera on the X is like the 8 Plus, the iPhone X has the Portrait Lighting effect. But unlike the 8 Plus you can employ Portrait Lighting from both front and back cameras on the X.
No home button
Unlike any other Apple phone, the X has no home button. Apple says “Instead of pressing a button, a single swipe now takes you home from anywhere.”
Now, for Siri or Apple Pay, users press the power button along the edge of the X.
Face ID
Fingerprint ID is a thing of the past with the iPhone X. Instead, Apple introduced Face ID. Now, all you have to do is look at the phone to unlock it.
But you really have to look into the screen. The phone has what Apple calls "Attention Awareness." If you are not looking directly at the phone, it will not unlock.
Apple says Face ID works in the dark. It says it even works as your looks change, like when you wear a hat or glasses. It even is supposed to work if you are growing a beard.
Apple tested iPhone X with photos and masks. It says neither fooled the phone into unlocking.
The company did note, however, that identical twins can fool Face ID. So if you have an identical twin whom you do not trust, you might want to do the more traditional lock by password.
Like Touch ID, Face ID can be used with Apple Pay and third party apps for identification.
Animojis
The same tech that maps your face for Face ID on the iPhone X is also used on a new feature called Animojis. These are 12 different emojis that can move with your face so you can make them smile, frown, or do anything else you can do with your face.
 
 
 
 
 
You can put these animojis in text messages you send in Apple's iMessage app. You can also record a video message as an animoji.
Availability
If you want the iPhone X, you will have to wait. Apple begins taking orders for the phone on October 27. It will be available in silver or gray with either 64 or 256 gigabytes of storage.
Prices for the iPhone X begin at just under $1000.
I’m ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Caty Weaver. And I’m Pete Musto.
 
Carolyn Nicander Mohr wrote this report for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.
For more on the event, see Apple Reveals New iPhones
Which of Apple's announcements are most interesting to you? Are the upgrades worth it to you? Will you be getting a new iPhone? If so, which one? Share your thoughts in the Comments Section below or on our Facebook page.
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Words in This Story
 
forum - n. a place or opportunity for discussing a subject
customer - n. someone who buys goods or services from a business
avenue - n. a wide street
cellular - n. relating to a system that uses radio waves instead of wires to send telephone signals
altimeter - n. an instrument used for measuring the altitude of something
monitor - n. a device that shows and records information about a condition or function of the body
streaming - adj. playing continuously as data is sent to a computer over the Internet
vibrant - adj. very bright and strong​
remote - adj. capable of being controlled from a distance​
advanced - adj. having or using new and modern methods​
augmented reality - n. an enhanced version of reality created by the use of technology to add digital information on an image of something
stats - n. a number that represents a piece of information
stabilize - v.  to make (something) steady​
focus - v. to adjust (something, such as a lens or a camera) to make an image clear
emoji - n. a small digital image or icon used to express an idea, emotion, etc., in electronic communication(2017/09/21 07:01)

About six years ago, actor Alec Baldwin made some news, but not for a role in a new movie or a television appearance.
He was removed from an American Airlines flight for playing ‘Words with Friends’ on his mobile phone.
Stories from 2011 say Baldwin may have continued playing the game even though he was told to put his phone away.
But now, if Baldwin is still a fan of the game, he has a lot more words to choose from.
The game developer recently announced it is adding 50,000 words from popular culture.
Some of the words include BFF, delish, hangry, bae and bestie.
BFF stands for “best friends forever.” Something that is “delish” tastes very good. Someone who is hungry and angry is “hangry.”
A man might call his girlfriend his “bae” and a person’s BFF might also be her “bestie.”
Gurpreet Singh supervises the game for Zynga, the company that created the game.
He said Zynga gets 5,000 suggestions per day for new words.
The words may not be familiar to English learners, but they are “slang,” or non-traditional words that are not found in dictionaries.
Zynga says the game has been installed on 200 million phones since 2009. According to the company, at any given time, about 57 million Words with Friends games are going on.
The new words will give players over 200,000 words to choose from.
“Twerk” and “selfie” were added to the game in 2014. Earlier this year, “covfefe” was added. If you recall, that was a strange word that appeared in one of President Donald Trump’s tweets in late May.
A selfie is a photo someone takes of oneself using the camera built into a mobile phone. A twerk is a kind of dance move.
Singh says he knows a lot of these words are not correct English words. But he and his team pay attention to popular terms that might help people have more fun when they are playing.
Right now, one of his favorite words is “queso.” It is worth a lot of points when he is playing Words with Friends. Queso is the Spanish word for cheese. But in the United States, people understand this as melted cheese one might order at a Mexican restaurant or pour on top of tortilla chips.
I’m Dan Friedell.
 
Dan Friedell adapted this story for Learning English based on reporting by the Associated Press. Hai Do was the editor.
Will you enjoy playing Words with Friends now that there are more words to choose from? We want to know. Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.
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Words in This Story
 
twerk – n. a dance move that requires shaking the part of the body that you sit on
tortilla chip – n. a thin, hard piece of food (called a chip) that is made from corn and usually salted(2017/09/21 07:00)

 
Apple announced its new iPhones last week, but competitors’ mobile phones can do many of the same things for less money.
The new iPhone 8 and X have wireless charging, edge-to-edge glass screen and dual cameras.
But all of these features are already available in smart phones from China’s Huawei and Oppo, and Korea’s Samsung.
While Apple asks buyers to pay $1,000 for its high-end model, some Asian phone makers can offer similar features for less.
At one time, Chinese manufacturers copied features and designs from others to produce low-cost phones. But they have now added high-end features to their phones and they control nearly half the global mobile phone market.
MediaMarktSaturn is Europe’s biggest electronics seller. A spokesperson for the store told Reuters that, “Huawei is seen as a relevant competitor to Apple and Samsung (by) covering all major price points and placing big investments in marketing and sales.”
She also said that the Chinese companies Huawei, ZTE, Lenovo and TCL were among the top-10 best-selling smartphones in its stores.
Chinese manufacturers’ fast growth has been fueled by strong sales in China. But they now export 40 percent of their smartphones. That is almost double the number from just three years ago, according to the Hong Kong investment company CLSA.
Huawei is currently the world’s third largest phone maker behind Samsung and Apple. According to research company Canalys, the Chinese company is getting closer to second-place Apple and might overtake it later this year.
The Chinese firm even made fun of Apple’s new facial recognition feature with a Facebook video “RealAIphone.” Huawei plans to show its top-of-the-line Mate 10 phone on Oct. 16. The phone will have artificial intelligence features such as instant translation and image recognition and will cost less than $1,000.
Other Chinese companies are looking to enter the high-end smartphone market.
Xiaomi, for example, showed a full-screen phone this month with all-ceramic ‘unibody’ design and 12-megapixel front camera. The special edition Mi MIX 2 sells for $720.
Also, Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo are working to add ultrasound sensors under smartphone screens to improve the touch function.
Neil Shah is research director at the company Counterpoint. He said Chinese companies with a lot of sales are able to access many of the same parts for phones and offer many features. He said that has hurt Apple’s growth.
Still a gap
However, Apple still has a big lead over its Chinese competitors in the high-end market. And few experts think Apple fans will switch from the iPhone X to Huawei’s Mate 10.
The average selling price of smartphones from the top Chinese makers - Huawei, Oppo and Vivo - is just $248, or two-thirds less than the cheapest iPhone 8.
Apple has 63 percent of the market for phones priced higher than $600 compared to just 3 percent for Huawei, according to research from the Swiss bank UBS.
“The biggest challenge they (Chinese firms) face would be proving to consumers their products and brand are worth paying that much for,” said Xiaohan Tay, an expert at the research firm IDC.
I’m Mario Ritter.
 
Hai Do adapted this story for Learning English based on Reuters news report. Mario Ritter was the editor.
Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.
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Words in This Story
 
edge-to-edge –adj. completely covering the front of the device
features –n. a quality or ability
high-end –adj. a costly line of products
relevant –adj. relating to something in a useful way
top-of-the-line –adj. the highest or most advanced product among those sold by a company
artificial intelligence –n. related to machines like computers that can copy intelligent human behavior
ceramic –n. made from clay
function –n. a special purpose or ability
challenge –n. something that is difficult to do
consumers –n. a person who buys good or services  
brand –n. a set of products that have a name(2017/09/21 06:56)

 
A United Nations report says Afghanistan’s version of the Islamic State group has expanded its activities to all seven provinces in the country.
It said the group operated in just one province last year.
The UN Office of Humanitarian Affairs reported an increase in fighting between Afghan forces and Taliban militants this year. But it said attacks by the Islamic State of Khorasan Province (ISK-P) weakened security in the country.
The UN report said the growing insecurity “is not only characterized by increased attacks on district centers, but also by a doubling of attacks attributable to...(the) Islamic State of Khorasan to more than 230 in the first half of the year.”
The report noted that until the first half of 2016, the Islamic State forces operated only in the eastern province of Nangarhar. United States and Afghan officials have repeatedly said that the group is operating in southern Nangarhar and parts of nearby Kunar province. They claim that ground and air attacks in recent months have killed hundreds of fighters linked to the group and reduced the territory it controls.
The UN group said an increase in fighting in Afghanistan displaced more than 50,000 civilians in August. That is the largest monthly displacement of Afghan civilians this year.
It also said that Taliban-led militants attacked or fought for control of at least eight district centers in seven Afghan provinces during the month.
From January to the end of July, anti-state armed groups attacked and took control of more than 12 district centers across the country. Afghan security forces have since retaken control of just two of them. There has usually been heavy fighting involved in retaking the centers.
The U.S. military dropped more than 550 bombs in August, the most in one month. Last week, a U.S. official told VOA that most of the bombs were dropped on Helmand and Nangarhar provinces.
The United Nations says the number of Afghan civilians killed or injured this year has reached record levels. It has called on all sides to protect civilians.
The UN agency says insecurity in Afghanistan is likely to increase during the rest of 2017. It said no seasonal end to the fighting is expected because winter is expected to arrive later than normal Afghan winters.
Fighting is expected to increase after U.S. President Donald Trump announced a “new strategy” on Afghanistan last month. The new policy is designed to end the conflict with the Taliban in what has become the longest foreign military operation in U.S. history.
On Monday, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis announced that the U.S. is sending another 3,000 troops to the country. That is an increase of more than 25 percent in the number of American troops there.
The latest deployment will increase the number of U.S. forces in Afghanistan to more than 14,000. The Afghan war began almost 16 years ago when U.S. forces were ordered to overthrow a government led by the Taliban and members of the al-Qaida terror group. The invasion followed the al-Qaida-led attacks against New York and Washington on September 11th, 2001.
 I’m Kelly Jean Kelly.
Correspondent Ayaz Gul reported this story from Islamabad. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted the report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.
 
We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, or visit our Facebook page.
_____________________________________________________________
Words in This Story
 
characterize – v. to describe the qualities of someone or something
attributable - adj. of or related to qualities belonging to a person or thing
district – n. a territorial division; an area
strategy – n. a careful method or plan
 
 (2017/09/21 06:55)