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レアジョブオリジナルの英会話ニュース教材です。世界の時事ネタを中心に、ビジネスから科学やスポーツまで、幅広いトピックのニュースを毎日更新しています。本教材を通して、ビジネスで使える実用的な英会話表現や英単語を身に付けることができます。

レアジョブ英会話 Daily News Article Podcast RareJob

    • Education

レアジョブオリジナルの英会話ニュース教材です。世界の時事ネタを中心に、ビジネスから科学やスポーツまで、幅広いトピックのニュースを毎日更新しています。本教材を通して、ビジネスで使える実用的な英会話表現や英単語を身に付けることができます。

    Researchers look at alternative sources of rubber

    Researchers look at alternative sources of rubber

    Katrina Cornish, a professor at Ohio State University who studies rubber alternatives, raises dandelions and the desert shrub guayule in greenhouses at the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center in Wooster, Ohio.

    She and other researchers harvest the stretchy rubber substances they produce and use special machines to dip them into medical gloves, parts for trachea tubes, and others. And she thinks those products could forever alter the landscape of agriculture in the United States.

    Most rubber comes from the Hevea tree and processing happens overseas—the U.S. isn’t prepared to process rubber domestically. But Cornish also says the threats of disease, climate change, and international trade tensions also mean that it would be a smart investment to work on growing and processing domestic alternatives.

    Cornish thinks that just as Tesla opened up the possibility of mainstream electric cars by first marketing the product as a luxury good, premium goods need to be made with dandelion and guayule to inspire producers to grow more meaningful amounts of either of those crops.

    But while some of the researchers and farmers are optimistic about the potential of these crops, they also say drastic changes would need to happen in markets and processing before we ever see fields full of these out-of-the-box plants.

    In the meantime, farmers in the U.S. rely on an agricultural economy built on scale, so they farm the crops that allow them options of where to sell, said Curt Covington, senior director of institutional business at AgAmerica Lending. He added that the bankers financing those farmers often don’t want to take the risk of a full switch to a crop that doesn’t have established markets. That, he said, could be a problem for the country as climate change exacerbates threats to crops like cotton and alfalfa, thirsty crops grown in the Southwest, in the future.

    Though guayule only uses half as much water as cotton and alfalfa, if the economics don’t support it, that doesn’t do the majority of farmers much good.

    This article was provided by The Associated Press.

    • 2 min
    Plush wars? Squishmallows toy maker and Build-A-Bear sue each other over ‘copycat’ accusations

    Plush wars? Squishmallows toy maker and Build-A-Bear sue each other over ‘copycat’ accusations

    It turns out there are lots of sharp elbows in the plush toy business. Build-A-Bear and the makers of Squishmallows are facing off in federal court.

    Kelly Toys and its Berkshire Hathaway-controlled parent company Jazwares have sued Build-A-Bear, saying its new “Skoosherz” toys copy the look and feel of their mega-popular Squishmallows products.

    The Skoosherz line, which Build-A-Bear began selling last January, has the “same distinctive trade dress” of Squishmallows, the complaint filed says, pointing to similarities in shape, face style, coloring and fabric.

    “If a picture is worth a thousand words, comparing the Squishmallows original products to Build-A-Bear’s copycats speaks volumes,” Moez Kaba, an attorney representing Kelly Toys and Jazwares, said in a statement. The companies will “vigorously defend” their intellectual property rights, he added.

    Jazwares is seeking unspecified damages and for Build-A-Bear to stop selling Skoosherz products.

    But Build-A-Bear hit back with its own lawsuit, claiming Skoosherz does not infringe on the Squishmallows makers’ rights. It wants a declaratory judgment saying that the Squishmallow maker’s claimed trade dress rights are invalid and unenforceable.

    The St. Louis-based retailer says Skoosherz products are based on its own original plush animals, “which have been sold for a number of years.” The lawsuit notes that products from other companies using features laid out in Jazwares’ complaint were around long before Squishmallows were created.

    “If each aspect of the claimed trade dress were in fact protected trade dress, it would be virtually impossible for competitors to create alternative designs,” Build-A-Bear added. It said Squishmallows’ own line has also evolved and is not always consistent.

    Squishmallows were created in 2016 and have skyrocketed in popularity. According to market research firm Circana, the brand’s 8-inch plush assortment was the top-selling toy in the U.S. last year. The toys also have become an online sensation. Celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Lady Gaga, for example, have shared images of their collections on social media.

    In a statement, Jazwares accused Build-A-Bear of going to great lengths to capitalize on Squishmallows’ success. Jazwares’ lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District in California, added that Skoosherz’s look, name and marketing have already confused consumers — causing potential losses in sales.

    This article was provided by The Associated Press.

    • 2 min
    FDA expands use of asthma drug Xolair to treat severe food allergies

    FDA expands use of asthma drug Xolair to treat severe food allergies

    A medication used to treat asthma can now be used to help people with food allergies avoid severe reactions, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said.

    Xolair, the brand name for the drug omalizumab, became the first medication approved to reduce allergic reactions caused by accidental exposure to food triggers. Patients as young as age 1 with allergies can take the drug by injection every two to four weeks, depending on their weight and their body's response to allergens.

    An estimated 17 million people in the U.S. have the type of food allergies that can cause rapid, serious symptoms, including severe, whole-body reactions that are potentially deadly.

    People who use Xolair must continue to avoid the foods that cause them reactions, such as peanuts, cashews, hazelnuts, walnuts, milk products and eggs. The medication allows them to tolerate higher amounts of such foods without causing major reactions.

    Many people with allergies — and their families — live with constant anxiety about exposure to allergens and often avoid dining out and other social situations. “To have this protection is going to be life-changing,” said Dr. Robert Wood, director of the pediatric allergy division at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center.

    The FDA decision is based on a study led by Wood and funded by the National Institutes of Health. It showed that Xolair allowed about 68% of participants with peanut allergies to tolerate about 600 milligrams, or about 1/2 teaspoon, of peanut protein, compared with about 6% of those who received dummy injections.

    The results were similar for other allergens such as tree nuts, milk, egg and wheat, a study abstract reported. Full results were expected to be presented at a meeting and published in a peer-reviewed journal in February.

    Wood estimated that 25% to 50% of people with food allergies, particularly children and young adults, would elect to use Xolair.

    The drug has been used “off-label” to treat food allergies, said Dr. Ruchi Gupta, director of the Center for Food Allergy & Asthma Research at Northwestern University. She welcomed full approval of the product.

    The medication is not approved for emergency treatment of allergic reactions.

    This article was provided by The Associated Press.

    • 2 min
    UK Motorhome industry shows resilience post-pandemic and despite cost of living crisis

    UK Motorhome industry shows resilience post-pandemic and despite cost of living crisis

    If you are dreaming of a summer escape in the great outdoors, where everyday is an adventure on the open road, then the UK Caravan Camping and Motorhome Show is full of inspiration. This six-day event is where all of the latest camping equipment, caravans and motorhomes are launched to the public.

    One of the motorhomes launched at the show is Bailey's new Alora, a four-berth motorhome that weighs 3,500 kg—meaning it can be driven by anybody with a standard UK driving license. The Alora costs around £75,000 depending on the model specifications.

    Since 1948, Bailey has made half a million leisure vehicles and is one of the most popular UK manufacturers in the sector.

    Simon Howard, marketing director of Bailey of Bristol says: “I mean, as an industry, we fared very well after the pandemic because obviously a caravan, a motorhome, was a very safe, secure way to go on holiday. You're in your own protective bubble, if you like. But also, there was a big sort of surge in staycations because you couldn't travel abroad. And again, caravans and motorhomes are an ideal way to do that. But people who bought during that period are now finding that the vehicle is very, very flexible. And you needn't just stay in the UK, if you want to go farther abroad, you can do.”

    During the COVID pandemic, lockdowns and travel restrictions meant many people in the UK were forced to take domestic holidays.

    Other sectors of the tourism industry suffered a serious decline during the pandemic – for example, the cruise ship sector, where international travel restrictions and guidelines promoting respectful distances saw large fleets anchored at port and unable to operate.

    However, camping and caravanning could still be enjoyed domestically, and its outdoor nature meant it felt like a safer option for many people.

    It's a trend the Camping and Caravan Club witnessed, and is now reporting bookings and memberships for 2023 have exceeded figures from 2019.

    This article was provided by The Associated Press.

    • 2 min
    Lyft shares rocket 62% over a typo in the company’s earnings release

    Lyft shares rocket 62% over a typo in the company’s earnings release

    Lyft shares jumped 62% after the closing bell on February 13 thanks in part to a typo in the ride-hailing company’s earnings release that appears to have sent investors’ auto-trading algorithms—or “bots”—into a buying frenzy.

    Lyft’s fourth-quarter report initially forecast that an important profit metric was expected to climb by 500 basis points, or 5%, in 2024. However, the company informed investors about five minutes after the original release that there was one zero too many in that number and corrected it to 50 basis points, a much more realistic 0.5%.

    Shares retreated after the correction but remained more than 37% higher—at $16.69 per share—in early February 14 trading because the company topped most Wall Street expectations for the quarter.

    Lyft’s gross bookings beat Wall Street forecasts, rising 17% year-over-year to $3.7 billion. Lyft’s guidance for first-quarter bookings between $3.5 and $3.6 billion also came in higher than projections. The San Francisco company earned 19 cents per share in the period, more than doubling the 8 cents that industry analysts were expecting.

    Lyft has appeared to turn things around since the last quarter of 2022 when it posted a whopping loss of 76 cents per share. In the four subsequent quarters of 2023, Lyft has easily beat profit targets, twice posting profits when Wall Street was expecting losses.

    The company has long played second fiddle to rival Uber, which softened the pandemic ride demand slump by expanding rapidly into food delivery.

    The profit metric that contained the typo on February 13 is referred to as adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) margin expansion, which is calculated as a percentage of gross bookings, according to Lyft.

    With February 14’s boost, Lyft shares are now in the green for 2024, up more than 11% to date.

    This article was provided by The Associated Press.

    • 2 min
    ‘Soaring’ over hills or ‘playing’ with puppies, study finds seniors enjoy virtual reality

    ‘Soaring’ over hills or ‘playing’ with puppies, study finds seniors enjoy virtual reality

    John Knox Village was one of 17 senior communities around the country that participated in a recently published Stanford University study that found that a large majority of 245 participants between 65 and 103 years old enjoyed virtual reality, improving both their emotions and their interactions with staff.

    The study is part of a larger effort to adapt VR so it can be beneficial to seniors’ health and emotional well-being and help lessen the impact dementia has on some of them.

    During the testing, seniors picked from seven-minute virtual experiences such as parachuting, riding in a tank, watching stage performances, playing with puppies and kittens, or visiting places like Paris or Egypt. The participants wore headsets that gave them 360-degree views and sounds, making it seem like they had been all but dropped into the actual experience.

    Anne Selby, a 79-year-old retired counselor and artist, found VR “stimulated virtually every area of my brain, all of the senses.”

    Stanford’s peer-reviewed study, working with the company Mynd Immersive, found that almost 80% of seniors reported having a more positive attitude after their VR session and almost 60% said they felt less isolated socially. The enjoyment lessened somewhat for older respondents whose sight and hearing had deteriorated.

    Those who found VR less enjoyable were also more likely to dislike technology in general.

    In addition, almost 75% of caregivers said residents’ moods improved after using VR. More than 80% of residents and almost 95% of caregivers said talking about their VR experience enhanced their relationships with each other.

    Separate from the study, John Knox Village uses virtual reality in its unit that houses seniors who have Alzheimer’s disease and other dementia. It helps spur memories that lead to conversations with caregivers.

    Chris Brickler said Mynd Immersive systems will soon attach to Google Earth, so seniors can virtually visit neighborhoods where they lived, schools they attended, and places they have visited, sparking further conversations with caregivers.

    This article was provided by The Associated Press.

    • 2 min

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