JIM: Who’s the tall woman next to Barbara?

CHARLES: That’s her friend Mary. Didn’t you meet her at Steve’s party?

JIM: No, I wasn’t at Steve’s party.

CHARLES: Oh! Then let me introduce you to her now. Mary, this is my friend Jim.

MARY: Hi, Jim. Nice to meet you.

JIM: You, too. Would you like a drink?

MARY: Sure, let’s go get one.

Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

Informal Introductions

People who spend a lot of time sitting down might reduce their health risks by drinking coffee, a new study suggests.

Researchers from China wanted to look at the health effects of coffee drinking and time spent sitting.

They looked at health data for nearly 11,000 people in the US and followed them for up to 13 years.

During the period of the study, 945 people died, including 284 from heart disease.

The research team found that people who sat for over eight hours a day were almost 50% more likely to die from all causes, and nearly 80% more likely to die from heart disease.

That's compared to people who sat for fewer than four hours per day.

Sitting for a long time has been linked to increased risks of diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity and more.

The researchers also found that people who drank the most coffee — three or more cups per day — reduced their risk of death from all causes by over 30% compared to those who drank no coffee. And they were more than 50% less likely to die from heart disease.

And drinking coffee even seemed to protect people from the health risks of sitting down: coffee drinkers could sit for more than six hours a day and still have about the same risk of death as non-coffee drinkers who sat for less than six hours.

However, the researchers said they didn't look at the effects of different types of coffee on our health, so they couldn't be sure which type was best.

They wrote that more research would be needed on this "miracle" drink.

 Spend Too Long Sitting? Coffee Could Help!

More than half of US adults work while they're on vacation, according to a new survey.

A public relations company called Movchan Agency found that 54% of Americans sometimes or always work while they're on holiday.

There's a name for taking a trip and bringing your work with you: a "workcation."

This is usually something a worker plans, letting them get a break from the office without using up paid days off.

But according to the survey, some people have no choice — their work follows them even when they want to take a break.

So while 34% of people said they work on vacation because they love what they do, 29% do it because they're afraid of losing their job.

And about a quarter of people said their boss even asks them to work when they're on holiday.

Almost half of the people surveyed said they feel guilty if they're not working during their vacation.

The report says its results show that workplace boundaries have been broken, and burnout is on the horizon.

Many people are already feeling burned out by work. Others admitted to arguing with a partner during their holiday because of the work they're doing on vacation, while almost half have canceled an activity on their trip for work reasons.

Business psychologist Roger Hall told Fox Business that we need to use holiday time to rest our minds.

He said: "The human brain needs time for rest and quiet in order to repair itself."

He added that because many of us can work from anywhere, we don't get that rest.



More than Half of Americans Work while on Holiday

Passengers flying on some routes could have to spend almost $80 more to help European airlines pay for sustainable fuels.

According to European Union (EU) rules, airlines will have to use more sustainable fuel starting in January. Two percent of the fuel they use will have to be sustainable in 2025, but that will increase to 6% in 2030 and 70% in 2050.

This is part of the EU's plan to reduce carbon emissions, with the airline industry said to produce 2% of the world's carbon emissions.

However, sustainable fuels are much more expensive than normal jet fuel, and German airline Lufthansa has announced that travelers will have to pay more for flights leaving on or after January 1, 2025.

Lufthansa said it spends billions every year on new technologies, and has been working to help make flying more sustainable. It added that it has also supported research into global weather and climate, but that it can't pay for sustainable fuels without help from customers.

Passengers will have to pay extra on any flight leaving from any EU country, as well as from Norway, Switzerland and the UK.

Any flights booked for 2025 from now on will include the extra cost, and customers flying on any Lufthansa-operated airline will have to pay. The Lufthansa group also operates Eurowings, Austrian Airlines, Swiss Air, Brussels Airlines and Lufthansa City Airlines.

People taking short-haul flights in economy class may only need to pay about $5 more, according to Reuters, while those flying long-haul in first class could pay almost $80.

Many other airlines have said they won't be increasing prices, but they want governments to do more to help them.