Author: natixis-ezine

‘Sesame Street’ debuts Ji-Young, first Asian American muppet

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Read time : 3 mins

Level : Advanced

By TERRY TANG Associated Press

What’s in a name? Well, for Ji-Young, the newest muppet resident of “Sesame Street,” her name is a sign she was meant to live there.

“So, in Korean traditionally the two syllables they each mean something different and Ji means, like, smart or wise. And Young means, like, brave or courageous and strong,” Ji-Young explained during a recent interview. “But we were looking it up and guess what? Ji also means sesame.”

At only 7 years old, Ji-Young is making history as the first Asian American muppet in the “Sesame Street” canon. She is Korean American and has two passions: rocking out on her electric guitar and skateboarding. The children’s TV program, which first aired 52 years ago this month, gave The Associated Press a first look at its adorable new occupant. Continue reading

Airbnb reports $834 million 3Q profit as revenue soars

natixis-ezine

Read time : 2 mins

Level : Intermediate

By DAVID KOENIG AP Business Writer

Airbnb said Thursday that it earned $834 million on record revenue in the third quarter as more people got vaccinated and went back to traveling.

When companies closed offices in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, that freed some employees to work remotely using video technology, and Airbnb said the result was a huge jump in rentals.

The San Francisco-based home-sharing company said in a letter to shareholders that it believes the trend of work flexibility will accelerate. Airbnb noted that major companies including Ford and Amazon have announced policies that will allow for more remote work, and it predicted others will do the same.
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Inside and outside climate talks, youths urge faster action

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Read time : 3 mins

Level : Advanced

By SETH BORENSTEIN and FRANK JORDANS Associated Press

GLASGOW, Scotland (AP) — Young people both inside and outside of the United Nations climate talks are telling world leaders to hurry up and get it done, that concrete measures to avoid catastrophic warming can’t wait.

Ashley Lashley, a 22-year-old from Barbardos who is on her country’s climate negotiation team in Glasgow, thought about how to communicate the need for urgency during a session on carbon trading. As she listened to other delegates debate the intricate and intractable topic that has baffled negotiators for more than six years, a phrase popped into her head: ‘”blah-blah-blah.” Continue reading

Mexico celebrates Day of the Dead after pandemic closures

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Read time : 3 mins

Level : Intermediate

By MARCO UGARTE and LISSETTE ROMERO Associated Press

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico returned Sunday to mass commemorations of the Day of the Dead, after traditional visits to graveyards were prohibited last year because of the coronavirus pandemic.

But the one-year hiatus showed how the tradition itself refuses to die: Most families still celebrated with home altars to deceased loved ones, and some snuck into cemeteries anyway.
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Back in Europe, Biden tries to show allies US is with them

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Read time : 3 mins

Level : Advanced

(Kevin Lamarque/Pool Photo via AP)

By JOSH BOAK, ZEKE MILLER and AAMER MADHANI Associated Press

ROME (AP) — Nearly five months after President Joe Biden declared “America is back” on his first presidential visit abroad, the president’s challenge now that he’s back in Europe is convincing the world that America is here to stay.

Attending twin summits in Rome and then Scotland, Biden is asking world leaders to cast their lot with a country that seems unable to agree on its own future.

His visit is set against the backdrop of the ongoing struggle to get his signature domestic agenda through Congress. The president’s fellow Democrats have steadily pared back Biden’s proposed spending on families, health care and renewable energy to build support for the plan and battled over the tax hikes needed to pay for it. Continue reading