Development Report

VOA News (美国之音特别英语)1. Peace Prize for W omenThis is the VOA Special English Development Report.Each year, 1. in Oslo, Norway announces the winners of its famous Nobel Prizes. Most winners of the Nobel Peace Prize have been men. Only 2. have been women since the prize was first presented in 3. .Now 4. for Women and the human rights group International Alert have presented a new award to 5. . It is called the 6. Peace Prize for Women. Officials will present the award every three years. The award 7. women's actions in building peace, protecting women's human rights and supporting community life during and after war.Experts say women are usually not as 8. the peace process as men are. However, their work to 9. normal community life after peace has been reached is very 10. . Because of this, International Alert says women also need to be recognized as leaders in peace building.Earlier this month, 11. received the Millennium Peace Prize for Women. One of the winners is the Colombian group Ruta Pacifica de las Mujeres - or Women's Road to Peace. This group has organized protests against the 12. between rebel groups and the Colombian government.The group Leitana Nehan Women's Development Agency also won the peace prize. It helped in the peace process between the 13. and rebel forces in Papua New Guinea. Another winner is the group Women in Black. It is an international organization that organizes protests against 14. .Flora Brovina also received the peace prize. She organized the League of Albanian Women of Kosovo. Doctor Brovina has taught 15. medical skills to people in Kosovo.Asma Jahangir and Hina Jilani are also peace prize winners. They worked to support16. and women's rights in Pakistan. And the leader of the17. in Rwanda also won the Millennium Peace Prize, after her death. V eneranda Nzambazamariya helped re-build Rwanda after the mass killings in Nineteen-Ninety-Four. She died in a 18. last year.This VOA Special English Development Report was written by Jill Moss.2. Intel Science Talent SearchThis is the VOA Special English Science Report.A teen-age girl from the state of Connecticut has won 1. in the Intel Science Talent Search. The 2. was known as the Westinghouse Science Talent Search until 3. . It is the oldest program in the United States that honors the science projects of high school students. The Intel Science Talent Search celebrated its sixtieth anniversary this year.The winners receive money for a 4. and a new computer. More than 5. students entered projects for the competition. The students were from thirty-six states and 6. . Forty-nine percent were female and fifty-one percent were male. Their research projects involved every area of science, including7. .Forty students were invited to Washington, D.C. for 8. by well-known scientists. They judged the students on their 9. . They also questioned the students about scientific problems before deciding on the top ten winners.The first place winner was Mariangela Lisanti of Westport, Connecticut. She received one-hundred-thousand dollars for her college 10. . Her physics project involved the use of single atoms or molecules to create 11. . She developed a new way to measure electron movement in tiny structures.The second place winner was Nathaniel Jay Craig of Sacramento, California. He received seventy-five-thousand dollars for his college education for a 12. . He developed a method for expressing the strength of specially prepared glass by describing the super cooled liquid from which it was formed.The third place winner was Gabriel Drew Carroll of Oakland, California. He received fifty-thousand dollars for his college education. His mathematics project involved the 13. .The president of Intel, Craig Barrett, praised all the 14. as future leaders. He said their understanding of science and mathematics is important for 15. the technological world today. And it is important for making the best decisions in the future.This VOA Special English Science Report was written by Nancy Steinbach.3. EPA Rejects Arsenic Limits in W aterThis is the VOA Special English ENVIRONMENT REPORT.The United States Environmental Protection Agency says it plans to 1. a rule that would have 2. reduced the amount of arsenic permitted in drinking water. The new rule was approved at the end of the Clinton presidency. It was suspended after President Bush 3. in January.The Bush 4. says the rule needs more study. The new rule would have reduced the acceptable level of arsenic in 5. by eighty percent. It was designed to reduce the public health risk from arsenic in drinking water.Arsenic is a 6. found naturally in rocks, soil, water, air, plants and animals. It also can be released during mining operations.Arsenic is mainly transported by water. The highest levels of arsenic are found mostly in the western American states. At unsafe levels, arsenic can cause cancer and other diseases.7. groups have argued for years that arsenic 8. should be reduced. They say studies show the limits are necessary for protecting millions of Americans from cancer and other health threats.But the mining industry and some cities and states strongly 9. the rule on reducing arsenic in drinking water. They said it would cost hundreds of millions of dollars to put into effect. The mining industry took 10. action in an attempt to block the rule. Environmental groups say the Bush administration is 11. to withdraw the rule because of pressure by the mining industry.The Environmental Protection Agency set the current limit for arsenic in Nineteen-Seventy-Five. But a report by the National Academy of Sciences two years agofound that the current limit does not meet the E-P-A's goal of protecting 12. . The group said the current limit should be 13. as soon as possible.The limit approved by President Clinton also was approved by the European Union and the World Health Organization several years ago.But E-P-A officials say Mister Clinton's action was not supported by scientific 14. . They say arsenic levels should be reduced, but not necessarily as low as the rule required.The E-P-A will seek 15. scientific studies about the issue and the possible cost to 16. . A final decision is expected after a public comment period.This VOA Special English ENVIRONMENT REPORT was written by Cynthia Kirk.4. International Y ear of MountainsThis is the VOA Special English Environment Report.Mountains are about one-fifth of the world's land 1. area. Mountains area very important part of the earth's 2. and environment. They contain important3. , such as forests. They provide the most important resources for about one-tenth of the world's population. Mountains also provide goods and services to more than half the people in the world.4. snow from mountains provides water for hundreds of millions of people. For example, the Himalayan Mountains supply drinking water for the people of India. Mountains are also important areas for winter sports. Millions of people visit countries in Europe to5. mountains every year.Mountains are also important in the cultures of many people. For example, the ancient Incas of South America built their most important cities and 6. high in the mountains. Machu Picchu is an ancient Incan city in the Andes Mountains. It is one of the most popular places to visit in Peru.Mountains are important to the world. But there are problems involving mountains in many places. People who live in mountain areas are usually poor. There is often very little 7. in these areas. Mountain environments are sometimes not 8. very well. When this happens, eco-systems supporting plant and animal life suffer.In some areas, too many trees are 9. n. When it rains heavily, water can rush down the sides of mountains and flood villages and cities. Serious flooding kills many people and animals every year. In addition, 10. can cause 11. to come crashing down in powerful 12. .The United Nations wants to help more people learn about the importance of mountains as well as their problems. So 13. has named the year Two- Thousand- Two the "International Year of Mountains." Many activities including 14. have been planned for next year. The U-N Food and Agriculture Organization is leading this special 15. of mountains.Y ou can get more information on mountains and the "International Y ear of Mountains" at the Internet address, w-w-w-dot- mountains-two-thousand-two-dot-org.This VOA Special English Environment Report was written by Gary Garriott.5. W orld Mothers StudyThis is Bill White with the VOA Special English Development Report.The international support group, Save the Children, has 1. a new study on the condition of mothers around the world. The report rates ninety-four countries on issues important to mothers. They include health care and family planning services, the health of their children, education and political involvement. Sweden, Norway and Denmark were rated the highest, followed by other 2. countries. The United States was rated eleventh. This is just one place ahead of Cuba, which was the highest rated developing country. Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, and Guinea Bissau were at the bottom of the list.Beryl Levinger was the leading researcher for the report. Mizz Levinger says the report 3. what Save the Children has been saying for more than seventy years. The lives of children around the world will not improve 4. .Mizz Levinger says there is a direct link between the health of children and the quality of health care, 5. services and education offered to mothers.The ten countries rated worst in the study have problems with 6. . Less than one-third of the births in those countries are attended by trained health care professionals. Also, only three percent of the women use a system to prevent 7. . In these countries, one in twelve women die during childbirth. In the top ten countries on the list, the 8. for women during childbirth is only one in 6,000.Save the Children says more educational programs for mothers and girls will improve the ability of women to 9. . The group says millions of lives could be saved if more money was invested in 10. . Mizz Levinger says family planning alone could prevent one-fourth of all deaths among new-born babies and their mothers. It would teach women to 11. . In addition, Mizz Levinger says education about the 12. at home are also needed.The study by Save the Children is part of a new 13. aimed at improving the health and education of mothers around the world. The group hopes to pressure 14. to increase international aid for women's programs.This VOA Special English Development Report was written by Jill Moss.6. Insects to Control Harmful TreesThis is Bill White with the VOA Special English ENVIRONMENT REPORT.Researchers are planning to use 1. to stop the spread of a harmful tree in the American state of Florida. The melaleuca tree 2. to spread throughout the Everglades. The Everglades is 3. that is home to many kinds of plants and animals.Scientists with the Agricultural Research Service have been 4. to control the melaleuca. The tree is native to Australia. In that country, more than one-hundred kinds of insects feed on it and 5. . The melaleuca was first brought to the United States 6. . But it had no natural insect enemies in its new environment. So melaleuca trees spread 7. across the southern United States.The tree kills and replaces other plant life in the Everglades. It is now blamed for environmental losses of up to 8. dollars a year.The Fergusonina fly is a natural enemy of the melaleuca. An 9. small worm, called a nematode, lives inside the fly. A team of American scientists is working with the 10. . They collected Fergusonina flies from Australia. The scientists put the flies on test plants to see if they attacked them. They found that the flies are likely to 11. only on the melaleuca trees in Florida. The flies would not harm other plants. This information was important for officials who 12. to send thousands of flies to the University of Florida for additional tests. Ted Center is the chief of the Agriculture Department's Invasive Plant Research Laboratory. He says tests show that the Fergusonina fly and the nematode are 13. different from other insects that attack other plants. He says this means that they 14. only in one kind of plant. The scientists now are planning more testing before proposing the release of the insects in the Everglades.Four years ago, scientists from Florida and Australia 15. another natural enemy of the melaleuca, the snout beetle. Scientists have released 16. of those insects in 17. . The scientists believe the Fergusonina fly and nematode would help the beetle and 18. against the melaleuca trees.This VOA Special English Environment report was written by George Crow7. Health Care Training for Native VillagesThis is Bill White with the VOA Special English DEVELOPMENT REPORT.Many countries have a 1. to provide health care in distant villages. The Medical Mission Sisters is an 2. that helps with this. It began seventy-five years ago. The Roman Catholic workers help provide health care training for people who are not served by modern hospitals, doctors and medicines.Isabel Harmon has been a 3. for fifty years, many of them in Africa. She is living in Oaxaca, Mexico, now. Sister Isabel helps with a training program in the city of Oaxaca for 4. from villages of native people. It teaches these 5. how to help themselves and others in the villages improve their health.Sister Isabel spends about three days a week, much of the year, traveling to the distant villages 6. . There she continues the training.For example, she teaches people how to 7. their bodies need to be healthy. Their villages are too high in the mountains to 8. that usually provide these vitamins. So she teaches people to cook a common plant, garlic 9. . Then the yellow part of eggs is added and the mixture 10. in the sun. Next, the nuts, almonds and pecans, 11. . The mixture then is put into small vitamin capsules that 12. . People take one each day with their usual diet of tortillas and beans.During the training program, the health care promoters are taught 13. . Such knowledge as the medical use of 14. is often lost when local medicine men and women die. For example, basil is used in many countries to add taste to foods. But traditionally the leaves of the plant have been used to help heal 15. . For stomach pain, the leaves are cooked in water and the liquid drunk. For an earache, the oil from the leaves is dropped in the ear.Sister Isabel has helped produce a book that describes common plants in the Oaxacaarea and explains how they can be used for healing. She hopes the idea of 16. will spread so people in many countries can improve their own medical care.This VOA Special English Development Report was written by Marilyn Christiano. This is Bill White.8. Apes EndangeredThis is Bill White with the VOA Special English ENVIRONMENT REPORT.Great apes are the animals most like humans. Experts say that 1. if nothing is done to save them. The United Nations Environment Program has begun a campaign called the Great Ape Survival Project.Its members are working with 2. . Their goal to prevent the disappearance of 3. . The project targets areas in Africa and southeast Asia where apes are threatened by 4. .Ten years ago, there were more than 5. mountain gorillas in eastern and central Africa. Today, there are only about 6. . They are disappearing from forests in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Uganda. Many of them are being killed for food as part of the growing 7. bush-meat trade.Congo was once a safe area for gorillas. But years of war and 8. have made the gorillas easier targets for hunters. Miners searching for minerals also hunt the great apes. The gorillas that are left have to be protected by armed soldiers in national parks.Bonobos are small apes found only in the forests of Congo. Twenty years ago, there were about 9. bonobos. There are only about three-thousand today. Some bonobos have fled to nearby countries. Most of them are being hunted for food. Many chimpanzees 10. in countries where they once lived. Fifty years ago, there were millions of chimpanzees across western and central Africa. Today, only about 11. chimpanzees remain. The orangutan is endangered in Indonesia's rainforests. The rainforests are 12. because of farming, cutting down trees and gold mining in protected areas.13. say apes need more protection in national parks. They say local people need to be educated about the value of apes and their importance to the environmental system. Experts say the apes are important for 14. because they are so closely related to humans.United Nations officials say they need one-million dollars to support the Great Ape Survival Project. They want private companies to 15. the campaign.This VOA Special English ENVIRONMENT REPORT was written by Cynthia Kirk. This is Bill White.。

有机食品行业市场现状分析及未来三到五年发展趋势报告Analysis of the Current Status of the Organic Food Industry Market and Future Development Trends Report in the Next Three to Five YearsIntroduction:Organic food industry has been growing rapidly over the past decade. People are becoming more health conscious and aware of the negative effects of consuming chemicals and pesticides. This has led to an increase in demand for organic food products. In this report, we will analyze the current status of the organic food industry market and provide insights into the future development trends in the next three to five years.Current Status of the Organic Food Industry Market:The global organic food market size was valued at 89.7 billion in 2020 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.9 from 2021 to 2028. The Asia-Pacificregion is expected to witness the fastest growth during the forecast period. The demand for organic food products is increasing due to the growing awareness of the health benefits associated with organic food products.The organic food industry market is characterized by the presence of several players, both global and regional. The key players in the market are focusing on expanding their product portfolio and geographic reach through mergers and acquisitions. For instance, in 2020, Nestle acquired Freshly, a meal delivery service that offers organic food products, to expand its product portfolio in the organic food segment.The COVID-19 pandemic has also played a significant role in the growth of the organic food industry market. Consumers are becoming more health-conscious and are willing to pay a premium for organic food products. The pandemic has also led to an increase in online sales of organic food products.Future Development Trends in the Next Three to Five Years:1. Increasing Demand for Organic Food Products:The demand for organic food products is expected to increase in the next three to five years due to the growing awareness of the health benefits associated with organic food products. The trend towards healthy eating is expected to continue, which will drive the growth of the organic food industry market.2. Expansion of Online Sales:The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increase in online sales of organic food products. This trend is expected to continue in the next three to five years as consumers become more comfortable with online shopping. E-commerce platforms are expected to play a significant role in the growth of the organic food industry market.3. Rise of Plant-Based Organic Food Products:The trend towards plant-based food products is expected to continue in the next three to five years. Consumers are becoming more conscious of the environmental impact of consuming animal products. This has led to an increase in demand for plant-basedorganic food products.4. Investment in Research and Development:The key players in the organic food industry market are expected to invest heavily in research and development to innovate and introduce new products. This will help them to expand their product portfolio and gain a competitive edge in the market.Conclusion:The organic food industry market is expected to grow rapidly in the next three to five years due to the increasing demand for organic food products. The rise of online sales, the trend towards plant-based food products, and investment in research and development are expected to be the key growth drivers for the industry. The key players in the market are expected to focus on expanding their product portfolio and geographic reach through mergers and acquisitions.。

DEVELOPMENT REPORT – March 18, 2002: Pot-in-Pot Cooling DeviceBy Jill MossThis is the VOA Special English Development Report.In many developing countries, it is difficult to keep food cool. Most areas do not have electricity to operatedevices to keep food cold, called refrigerators. Food often spoils, or becomes unsafe to eat within days. This cancause diseases and loss of money for farmers. However, in Nigeria, one man is working to change this. Mohammed Bah Abba, a teacher, invented a cooling device using two round containers made of clay. Mister Abba ’s invention is called a Pot -in-Pot Preservation Cooling System. A small pot is placed inside a larger one. The space between the two pots is filled with wet sand. The inner pot can be filled with fruit, vegetables or drinks. A wet cloth covers the whole cooling system. The device keeps some foods fresh for several weeks.Food stored in the small pot is kept from spoiling through a simple evaporation process.Water in the sand between the two pots evaporates through the surface of the larger potwhere drier outside air is moving. The evaporation process creates a drop in temperature ofseveral degrees. This cools the inner container and helps destroy harmful bacteria found infood.Mister Abba started producing his cooling device in nineteen-ninety-seven. Since then, hehas given more than twelve-thousand devices to people in villages in Nigeria. He estimatesthat within five years, people all over the country will be using his invention. Mister Abbaalso hopes to export his Pot-in-Pot cooling system to other hot, dry nations facing similarproblems. The Rolex Watch Company of Switzerland has also recognized thevalue of this cooling system. Two years ago, Mister Abba received the Rolex Award forEnterprise. This award is given every two years. It awards people trying to developprojects aimed at improving human knowledge and well-being. Winners receive financialassistance to help develop and extend their projects. An international committee considersprojects in science and medicine, technology, exploration and discovery, the environmentand cultural history.You can learn more about the Rolex Awards for Enterprise on the Internet Web site, w-w-w-dot-rolexawards-dot-com. Or you can write to the Rolex awards committee at P-O-Boxone-three-one-one, one-two-one-one Geneva, twenty-six, Switzerland.This VOA Special English Development Report was written by Jill Moss.Email this article to a friendPrinter Friendly Version Mohammed Bah Abba(Pictures -。

《中国中药资源发展报告（2019）》综述——中药资源发展七十年历程与展望Summary of the Development Report of Chinese Traditional Medicine Resources in 2019—Development of Chinese Traditional Medicine Resources in the Last 70 Years and Future ProspectsChina Food & Drug Administration Magazine《中国中药资源发展报告（2019）》延续以往体例，从中药资源普查、质量与安全、价格、产量、国际贸易、产业发展、药用资源保护7个方面系统阐述了2019年度中药资源的发展现状，同时新增中药产业科技创新发展章节，从发展现状、面临的问题、战略目标3个方面介绍我国中药产业科技创新发展情况。

两个专题报告分别介绍了“浙八味”和“四大怀药”的道地资源及其产业【摘要】中药资源产业经过七十年发展，从过去的由中国药材公司统购统销，到改革开放后的市场化探索，再到现在已进入法制化与规范化发展时期。

过去的七十年，我国开展了四次全国性的中药资源普查，基本摸清了我国中药资源家底；推动了大量野生药材的驯化抚育，300余种常用中药材已实现人工栽培，选育了257个中药材新品种；传统中药材交易市场开展现代化探索，“互联网+中药材”在中药材交易中占比不断提升；中药工业化水平不断提升，2019年我国中药产业实现主营业务收入6519.5亿元，占医药工业主营业务收入的24.9%；中药资源质量监管体系和标准化体系基本建立；中药国际化成效初显，中医药已传播至183个国家或地区，2018年我国出口中药类产品39.09亿美元。

尽管中药资源产业得到蓬勃发展，但中药资源保护任务仍然艰巨、产业结构与工业化需求不匹配、产业发展呈内卷化趋势等问题依然存在，未来应从中药材种子种苗产业、促进中药产业高质量发展等方面发展中药资源产业。

The Human Development Report人类发展报告In the year 2000, 147 world leaders agreed to work together to reduce poverty by 2015 or earlier. 在2000年，来自世界各国的147位领导人一致同意共同努力到2015年或在更早的时间减少贫困。

From this agreement came the Human Development Report.由此产生了人类发展报告。

One of the most important sections of this report is the Human Development Index. 这份报告一个最重要的部分是人类发展指标。

This examines the achievements of 175 countries.它审阅了175个国家的发展成就。

The Index measures a country’s achievements in three ways: life expectancy ( how long people usually live), education and income.指标从三个方面衡量一个国家的成就：寿命、教育和收入。

The index has some surprises. 这项指标显示了一些令人意外的情况。

Norway is at the top of the list, while the US is at number 7.挪威高居榜首，而美国则排在第七。

The other top five countries are : Iceland (2), Sweden (3), Australia (4), the Netherlands (5).位于前五位的其他国家是：冰岛（2），瑞典（3）澳大利亚（4）荷兰（5）。

001.Increasing Food Security in Dry Areas of the Middle EastThis is the VOA Special English Development Report.Agricultural experts have launched a land and water management project in the Middle East. The project seeks to increase food security in dry areas. Researchers say the water availability in some of the areas has dropped well below the internationally recognized standard.Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, the West Bank, Syria and Yemen are all taking part in the project. It is part of a larger ten-year effort called the Water and Livelihoods Initiative. The project is also expected to increase household income for farmers in the areas.The United States Agency for International Development provided one million dollars for the Water and Livelihoods Initiative. Scott Christianson is an agricultural development advisor with U.S.A.I.D. He helped develop the project while working for the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas. He says the countries taking part in the project were all carefully selected.SCOTT CHRISTIANSON: "They all share a socio-economic and cultural heritage that's fairly homogeneous. We feel that it's going to maximize our opportunity for trading of knowledge that we will generate in the project."Research by the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas and its partners has already proven to be successful. New irrigation methods are expected to double wheat production while using one-third of the water required for full irrigation. Experts say the new methods also increase crop production up to five times more than crops that depend on rainfall only.The International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas will provide technical support for the project. Officials from the International Water Management Institute and the International Food Policy Research Institute are also taking part in the effort.Each team will be joined by experts from local research institutions, universities and government agencies.SCOTT CHRISTIANSON: "We have good partnerships among the countries within each agro-eco system so that through this twinning they can learn lessons from each other and work together effectively through time."Scott Christianson and other officials met in Amman, Jordan last week. They attended an international conference on food security and climate change in dry areas. Nearly one-fourth of the world's people live in these areas.Officials say more must be done to deal with water shortages in agriculture. If not, they say, the future of food security, economic development and social stability in dry areas will be put at risk.And that's the VOA Special English Development Report, written by June Simms. I'm Steve Ember.002.Breathing Easier: The Art of Stove Making27 January 2010More than three billion people are at risk from indoor air pollution because of the heating or cooking fuels they use. Most live in Africa, India and China. They use biomass fuels like wood, crop waste, animal waste or coal. These solid fuels may be the least costly fuels available. But they are also a major cause of health problems and death.For more than thirty years, the Aprovecho Research Center has been designing cleaner, low-cost cooking stoves for the developing world. Dean Still is the director of the group which is based in the United States. He notes a World Health Organization estimate that more than one and a half million people a year die from breathing smoke from solid fuels.DEAN STILL: "And half of the people on planet Earth every day use wood or biomass for cooking. These are the people on Earth who have less money, and the richer people use oil and gas. It's been estimated that wood is running out more quickly than oil and gas. And so it is very important for the poorer people to have very efficient stoves that protect their forests and that protect their health."Every year Aprovecho holds a "stove camp" at its testing station in Cottage Grove, Oregon. Engineers, inventors, students and others come together to design and test different methods and materials for improving stoves.Over the years, the group has made stoves using mud, bricks, sheet metal, clay, ceramics and old oil drums. Most of the stoves look like large, deep cooking pots. They have an opening at the bottom for the fire and a place on top to put a pot.In the late nineteen seventies, Aprovecho produced a popular stove called the Lorena. The Lorena was very good at reducing smoke and warming homes. But new tests years later found that it was not very efficient. The Lorena used twice as much wood as an open fire, and took much longer to heat food.Since then, Dean Still says they have experimented with countless other designs.DEAN STILL: "Our goal is to make a very inexpensive stove -- let's say five dollars -- that makes very, very little smoke, so it's safe for health, diminishes global warming and diminishes deforestation. And so it's an ongoing problem to work on."Aprovecho has now partnered with a stove manufacturer in China. The company is making Aprovecho's first mass produced stoves. They are said to use forty to fifty percent less wood than an open fire, and produce fifty to seventy-five percent less smoke. A company called StoveTec is selling them through its Web site for less than ten dollars. Dean Still says that more than one hundred thousand have been sold so far.003.Steps Urged to Prevent Snakebites, Improve TreatmentsThis is the VOA Special English Health Report.This is the VOA Special English Development Report.Snakes bite an estimated five and a half million people worldwide each year. Experts say tens of thousands of people die from venom poisoning.An untreated or incorrectly treated bite might require the removal of a bitten foot, for example, or an arm. Each year around four hundred thousand amputations are the result of snakebites.Last year, for the first time, the World Health Organization added snakebites to its list of "neglected tropical diseases." This recognition aims to bring greater attention to the problem.Scientists know of about three thousand kinds of snakes. About six hundred of them are venomous. These are most often found in rural areas in tropical climates.Asia and Africa have the highest number of snakebites -- together about four million a year. Latin America and islands in the South Pacific follow.The highest number of victims are agricultural workers. Snakebites are also common among fishermen, hunters and children. Many victims live in areas with poor or non-existent health care systems and where antivenom treatments are often not available.Antivenom is the only cure. But experts say antivenom technologies and their use need to be improved. Problems include a shortage of manufacturers and the high cost of treatment.Also, there is a widespread lack of knowledge among local health workers about how to use antivenoms. The treatments can cause dangerous and even deadly reactions if not used carefully.Antivenom contains proteins from animals such as horses or sheep. The animals are injected repeatedly with one or more different snake venoms to produce immunity.The Lancet medical journal recently published a series of reports on snakebite prevention and treatment. David Warrell at the University of Oxford in England co-wrote one of them. He praised efforts by the W.H.O. to establish common practices for the production, regulation and control of antivenom. But he says more must be done.The authors say community education programs could help prevent snakebites by teaching people how to avoid them. They also suggest actions like providing protective boots to wear while working in fields, and not sleeping on the ground.Also important is providing information about where dangerous snakes are most likely to live and when they are most active.004. New Vaccine Joins Campaign to End PolioTThis is the VOA Special English Development Report.The World Health Organization has begun to use a new vaccine against polio. Officials say it will become a major tool in the campaign to end a disease that mainly affects children under age five.The new formulation is known as B.O.P.V. , or bivalent oral polio vaccine. It was used for the first time in December in a polio immunization campaign in Afghanistan.Carol Pandak is with the PolioPlus program of the service organization Rotary International. She explains that health workers have been using what are called trivalent vaccines in some places. These are areas like Afghanistan where more than one kind of polio virus exists.There are three types of polio virus. The trivalent vaccine is least effective against type three, more effective against type one and highly effective against type two. As a result, few new casesof type two have been reported since nineteen ninety-nine.This has led to greater use of monovalent vaccines to protect against either type one or type three polio. But Carol Pandak says the monovalent vaccine is not enough in areas with both.CAROL PANDAK: "You address the type one, and the type three cases go up. You address the type three, and the type one cases go up."Rod Curtis at the World Health Organization in Geneva says the new bivalent vaccine solves this problem.ROD CURTIS: "The beauty of the bivalent vaccine is that it is able to attack both types of wild polio virus in one dose."Carol Pandak says tests found the new vaccine to be thirty percent more effective than the trivalent vaccine.More than thirty new cases of polio were reported in Afghanistan last year. About half were type one and the others type three. Rod Curtis says that shows the importance of the new vaccine targeting both viruses at once. Officials say similar vaccination campaigns are planned this year in India, Nigeria and Pakistan.Intensive vaccination campaigns have reduced the number of new polio cases reported worldwide to fewer than two thousand a year. The Global Polio Eradication Initiative says the number has fallen by ninety-nine percent since nineteen eighty eight.Polio is highly infectious. One victim in two hundred suffers permanent paralysis, usually in the legs. Five to ten percent of those victims die when their breathing muscles fail.005. Solar-Powered Pumps Aid African FarmersThis is the VOA Special English Development Report.A new study in West Africa shows how farm irrigation systems powered by the sun can produce more food and money for villagers. The study in Benin found that solar-powered pumps are effective in supplying water, especially during the long dry season.Sub-Saharan Africa is the part of the world with the least food security. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that more than one billion of the world's people faced hunger last year. Around two hundred sixty-five million of them live south of the Sahara Desert. Lack of rainfall is one of their main causes of food shortages.Jennifer Burney from Stanford University in California led the study. The research team helped build three solar-powered drip irrigation systems in northern Benin.Between thirty and thirty-five women used each system to pump water from the ground or a stream. Each woman was responsible for farming her own one hundred twenty square meters of land. They also farmed other land collectively.The solar-powered irrigation systems produced an average of nearly two metric tons of vegetables per month. During the first year, the women kept a monthly average of almost nine kilograms of vegetables for home use.They sold the surplus produce at local markets. The earnings greatly increased their ability to buy food during the dry season which can last six to nine months.People in the two villages with the systems were able to eat three to five more servings of vegetables per day. But making the surplus available at markets also had a wider effect.The study compared the villages with two others where women farmed with traditional methods like carrying water in buckets. The amount of vegetables eaten in those villages also increased, though not as much.The researchers note that only four percent of the cropland in sub-Saharan Africa is irrigated. Using solar power to pump water has higher costs at first. But the study says it can be more economical in the long term than using fuels like gasoline, diesel or kerosene. And solar power is environmentally friendly.The study appears this month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.006. New Treatment for Sleeping SicknessThis is the VOA Special English Development Report.The World Health Organization is using a new combination of drugs to treat human African trypanosomiasis disease, also known as sleeping sickness. The drugs nifurtimox an eflornithine will be given out in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.Officials from the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative say the new treatment has fewer side effects. It is also more effective and less costly than the drugs traditionally used. In addition, the new treatment reduces the number of injections needed. And it shortens the amount of time patients must spend in the hospital.Sleeping sickness threatens millions of people in thirty-six countries in Africa. Most live in poor rural areas. The disease is caused by the trypanosoma parasite. It is spread to humans through the bite of infected tsetse flies.Common signs of sleeping sickness include fever, headaches, extreme tiredness and pain in the muscles and joints. Early identification of the disease may be difficult because many infected people do not show any immediate symptoms.Over time, the parasites invade the central nervous system. The disease causes sleep disorders, mental confusion, personality changes, speech problems, seizures and coma. If left untreated, sleeping sickness kills.The World Health Organization estimates that about sixty thousand people are currently infected with the disease. It develops in two different forms. Trypanosoma gambiense is responsible for ninety percent of the reported cases of sleeping sickness. People infected with this form may develop the disease over many years without any major symptoms. The disease develops more quickly over a few weeks or months in people infected with trypanosoma rhodesiense.Until now the drug melarsoprol was used to treat patients in the advanced stage of sleeping sickness.But the drug requires many painful injections several times a day for several weeks. It also causes bad side effects, some of which can be deadly.In Uganda, a new study has confirmed earlier research linking the spread of sleeping sickness to infected farm animals. The writers of the study have called for stronger rules requiring cattle to be treated before being sold at market. The study was published in the Public Library of Science.007. Bringing Light to Homes in Poor CountriesThis is the VOA Special English Development Report.More than one and a half billion people around the world live without electricity. Finding better ways to bring light to the poor is the goal of researchers like David Irvine-Halliday.In the late nineteen nineties, the Canadian professor was working in Nepal when his return flight was canceled. A delay gave him time to take a fourteen-day hiking trip in the Himalayas.As he tells it, one day he looked in the window of a school and noticed how dark it was. This is a common problem for millions of children around the world -- and not just at school, but also at home.Many families use kerosene oil lamps. There are many problems with these lamps. They produce only a small amount of light. They are dangerous to breathe. And they are a big fire danger, causing many injuries and deaths each year.Kerosene costs less than other forms of lighting, but it is still costly in poor countries. Professor Irvine-Halliday says many people spend well over one hundred dollars a year on the fuel.When he returned to Canada, he began researching ways to provide safe, clean and affordable lighting. He began experimenting with light-emitting diodes, LEDs, at his laboratory at the University of Calgary in Alberta. As a professor of renewable energy, he already knew about the technology.Light-emitting diodes are small glass lamps that use much less electricity than traditional bulbs and last much longer.Professor Irvine-Halliday used a one-watt bright white L.E.D. made in Japan. He found it on the Internet and connected it to a bicycle-powered generator. He remembers thinking it was so bright, a child could read by the light of a single diode.In two thousand, after much research and many experiments, he returned to Nepal to put the systems into homes. His Light Up the World Foundation has now equipped the homes of twenty-five thousand people in fifty-one countries.DAVID IRVINE-HALLIDAY: "The one-time cost of our system -- which consists of a small solar panel, a little motorcycle-sized battery and a couple of LED lamps, which basically live forever, as well as the solar panel -- is less than one hundred dollars. So, one year of kerosene would pay for a solid-state lighting system."Now his aim is to develop a lower-cost lighting system. In January, David Irvine-Halliday is leaving the University of Calgary. He has also decided to give up leadership in the Light Up the World Foundation to start a company in India.And that's the VOA Special English Development Report, written by June Simms with Rosanne Skirble. I'm Christopher Cruise.008. Increase in Illegal Killing of Rhinos in Africa, AsiaThis is the VOA Special English Development Report.A new report says the illegal killing of rhinos for their horns is increasing in Africa and Asia.Rhinoceros poachers are killing an estimated two to three of the rare animals each week.Experts say demand in Asia -- especially Vietnam and China -- currently drives most trade in rhino horns from southern Africa. The horns are often used to make traditional medicines, or handles for dagger knives.The report is from the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and an organization known as Traffic.Most African rhino poaching is in Zimbabwe and South Africa. Experts found that two hundred ten rhinos were illegally killed in South Africa in the last three years.The estimate for Zimbabwe is two hundred thirty-five. The situation threatens gains made in its rhino populations in the nineteen nineties. In the last two years, only six people were found guilty of poaching charges out of forty-one arrested.In two thousand one, sixty-eight percent of African rhino horns entering illegal trade were recovered. By this year, nine out of ten were heading to Asian markets without interference.The report says poaching and illegal horn trade has increased in South Africa even with new measures against it.Adding to the problem, poachers today are more skilled at killing rhinos, and not only with guns. They also use quieter methods, like veterinary drugs, poison and crossbows.An international agreement on protecting endangered animals and plants provides for sport hunting of white rhinos in Africa. But the horns often enter illegal markets.Not all the news is bad, however. The report notes that rhino populations are increasing in some areas. These include both white rhinos and black rhinos in the wild in Africa.Africa had an estimated seventeen thousand white rhinos and four thousand black rhinos as of two years ago. Current estimates for Asia are around three thousand rhinos. But even with poaching, growth is reported in some areas of India and Nepal.Wildlife activists are urging governments to do more to fight rhino poaching.The report was presented to the organization known as CITES. CITES is the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. The next conference of countries that are parties to the agreement is in March in Doha, Qatar.009. Looking for New Ways to Fight MalariaThis is the VOA Special English Development Report.Scientists continue to seek better weapons against malaria. Each year the number of cases is in the hundreds of millions worldwide. Around a million people die, most of them in Africa. Economic losses from the disease amount to an estimated one percent of the African economy each year.George Dimopoulos is an associate professor at the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute in Baltimore, Maryland.GEORGE DIMOPOULOS: "Forty-two percent of the earth's population live in areas where malaria transmitting mosquitoes exist. All of these people are in risk of being infected with malaria. The sad thing is that the majority of people that are killed by malaria are children because there immune system is not strong enough to ward off this infection."Malaria is caused by a parasite called Plasmodium. The organism is injected into peoplethrough the bite of infected mosquitoes. Malaria can be treated, but in many areas the parasites have become resistant to different drugs.George Dimopoulos and his team are studying ways to make mosquitoes resist infection by the parasite. There are hundreds of kinds of mosquitoes in the world. Most do not spread malaria. Some have immune systems that kill Plasmodium.GEORGE DIMOPOULOS: "We are particularly interested in these type of immune reactions that are responsible for killing the malaria parasite. Because we think once we understand how they work, we could be able to manipulate the mosquito genetically and convert mosquitoes that can transmit malaria into mosquitoes that cannot transmit malaria."The researchers have developed a way to make genetic changes in the three mosquito species known to spread malaria. The changes cause their systems to attack the parasite, blocking its development. Other researchers are working on ways to spread these genetically modified insects among mosquito populations.Professor Dimopoulos says there is still a long way to go, but current malaria research is highly promising.A new vaccine is in final testing. So far it has proven effective at preventing the disease in half of those vaccinated -- which is more than ever before.And at the Malaria Institute at Macha in Zambia, researchers are developing an easier way to identify malaria. The test uses saliva instead of blood to diagnose the infection.Current efforts in malaria control are mainly based on the use of insecticide sprays and treated bed nets. But George Dimopoulos says malaria needs to be attacked with drugs, with vaccines, with bed nets -- with whatever researchers can find.GEORGE DIMOPOULOS: "Malaria needs to be attacked with multiple weapons. There is not one magic bullet to control this disease."010. Some Tips for Cold Storage of FoodsThis is the VOA Special English Development Report.Before refrigerators were invented, the next best thing was an ice box. But another way to keep food fresh is to use an evaporative cooler. A common design is a tall box with several shelves inside to hold the food. The shelves are pieces of metal with many small holes through them. The sides of the box are covered with pieces of thick cloth.Containers of water are placed at the top and bottom of the cooler. The ends of each piece of cloth lie in the water so the cloth stays wet.The cooler is put outdoors, but not in the sun. Air will pass through the wet cloth. The inside of the box will stay several degrees cooler than the outside air temperature. And this may be cool enough to keep foods fresh, at least for a short time.Some foods can make you sick if they are stored in conditions that are not cold enough to prevent the growth of harmful organisms. Freezing can keep some foods in good condition for months after the growing season. Yet foods can be damaged if they are kept too cold.The British development group Practical Action says the best way to prepare foods for storage is at harvest time while still in the field.Use a sharp knife and place the harvested items on a clean surface or directly into storagecontainers. Do not put them on the ground.Use clean water to remove dirt, and keep the water clean. Usually it is better not to remove outer leaves from fruits and vegetables before storage. Without the leaves, food can become dry.Fruits and vegetables must be cool from field heat before they are put into storage. But cooling them in water can spread fungus throughout the food. A better idea is to harvest foods either early or late in the day, then leave them to cool naturally.Some fruits and vegetables must be stored at zero to four degrees Celsius. Any colder, and they might be damaged. Some foods need to be stored at four to eight degrees, and some need to be stored above eight degrees for best results.Wet the fruits and vegetables so they do not become too dry. The best time to do this is before storage. Cover the items in plastic once they reach the right "critical temperature" for storage. Most fruits and vegetables need the relative humidity in storage to be kept between eighty-five and ninety-five percent.Finally, leave space between the food containers and the walls of the cold storage area so air can flow. Keep the space clean. And try not to open the doors too often.011. Results of UN Food Summit Seen as DisappointingThis is the VOA Special English Development Report.Last week, the United Nations held a World Summit on Food Security. But the three-day meeting in Rome produced only limited measures to fight rising hunger. The U.N. World Food Program says more than a billion people -- one in six worldwide -- do not get enough food to be healthy.The troubled world economy is not the only cause of recent increases. The poorest countries continue to face high food prices, which have fallen elsewhere. The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization says more than thirty nations continue to need emergency food assistance.Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the food crisis has forced millions of families into poverty and hunger. He said six million children die of hunger every year. And he warned that food security is closely connected to the issue of climate change.BAN KI-MOON: "At a time when the global population is growing, our global climate is changing. By twenty fifty we will need to grow seventy percent more food. Yet weather is becoming more extreme and unpredictable."The delegates in Rome promised to continue efforts to reduce by half the number of hungry people by two thousand fifteen. But critics pointed out that world leaders made a similar promise more than ten years ago.Several countries promised to increase aid for agriculture, to help developing nations become more independent.Still, critics deplored a lack of greater action. Leaders from more than sixty countries were in Rome. But Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was the only leader from a major industrial nation in the Group of Eight. An official from Kenya, Adam Barre Duale, said it showed a lack of unity in the fight against hunger.ADAM BARRE DUALE: "We need both the developed world and the developing countries to come together and to give and support a global initiative in the war against hunger."The Food and Agriculture Organization says more than forty billion dollars a year needs to be invested in agriculture to defeat world hunger. The growing problem has affected developing countries, but also industrialized nations.The government estimates that forty-nine million people in the United States were "food insecure" last year. That means their households, at some time during the year, had difficulty providing enough food for all members because of a lack of resources. Almost fifteen percent of all households were in that situation. And the Agriculture Department says the numbers may be even higher this year.012. Project Finds New Homes for Unwanted Bikes From USThis is the VOA Special English Development Report.Americans bought an estimated eighteen and a half million bicycles last year. Some bikes never get much riding. Mostly they gather dust. But a project based in Washington is putting unwanted bikes from the United States to good use in developing countries.Keith Oberg is the director of Bikes for the World.KEITH OBERG: "Everybody has an old bicycle, and it is usually not ridden. It sits there in the garage, or basement or shed, going to waste."Stephen Popick recently had two bikes to donate.STEPHEN POPICK: "I brought in two mountain bikes that my wife and I have ridden for the past ten years. My bikes wouldn't fetch a nice price and wouldn't be worth trying to sell, but they could be useful to somebody else."Bikes for the World collects bicycles and delivers them at low cost to community programs in developing countries. It shipped more than five thousand bikes during the first eight months of this year. Last year it shipped about ten thousand three hundred.The bicycle recycling program is one of the largest in the United States. It is a sponsored project of the Washington Area Bicyclist Association.Bikes for the World began in two thousand five. Since then it has shipped more than forty thousand bikes to communities in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, says director Keith Oberg.KEITH OBERG: "We work currently with partners in seven countries actively -- in Uganda, Ghana. We're talking to an organization that we would like to ship to in Liberia. We have shipped to Namibia and the Gambia in the past. And in Central America we ship to Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras, Guatemala, and we are talking to two organizations in El Salvador."Bikes for the World partners with nonprofit groups in the United States to collect unwanted bikes. Then it works with nonprofits in the other countries to get the bikes to organizations and individuals that need them the most.For example, the Bicycle Empowerment Network Namibia uses the bikes to provide transportation for health workers. That makes it possible for them to visit more patients each day. The organization also has bicycle ambulance services to transport the sick.The Bicycle Empowerment Network also provides training and support to help local。