Listen to me reading a news article about Artificial Intelligence in the workplace from my Conversational English course. 

Listen to English with Pip

News article: AI and the workplace

Learning Vietnamese through Story

Truyện thiếu nhi - Khi mẹ vắng nhà

跟我们一起看看，你对太空和宇宙了解多少吧？

Chillchat (Learn Chinese and Chill)

关于太空和宇宙，你知道多少？How much do you know about space and universe?

You may sometimes notice people at airports wearing a green lanyard with sunflowers on it. This is usually worn by people who have a hidden disability — disabilities that can't always be seen from the outside, such as learning difficulties or autism.

But soon, you might start noticing the Sunflower lanyard somewhere new: Lego pieces.

The toy company announced on December 3 — International Day of Persons with Disabilities — that it has partnered with Hidden Disabilities Sunflower, the UK company that first created the lanyards in 2016.

Lego is releasing three sets featuring the lanyard: one for its Duplo toys, which are for kids under the age of 8; an airport set for older children; and a set with over 3,000 pieces for adults. The sets will go on sale between January and June 2025.

People will also be able to add the Sunflower lanyard when customizing their own Lego pieces at official Lego stores in parts of Europe and North America.

The Lego Group said it's proud to have created what it calls "the world's first toys to feature the official Sunflower lanyard," and hopes the sets will promote inclusion for people of different ages and with different disabilities.

On Lego's website, Martin Moxness, an adult Sunflower lanyard user, said seeing the lanyard on Lego pieces will help normalize hidden disabilities.

"As a child, this would have been life-changing and would have made me feel seen and accepted," he added.

According to the World Health Organization, one in six people around the world lives with some form of disability, many of them hidden. Disability inclusion is an important part of achieving health for all, it said.

Over 280 airports around the world now recognize the Sunflower lanyard, Hidden Disabilities said.

Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

Lego Announces New Toys with 'Hidden Disability' Lanyards

There's an old English saying that goes: "Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise."

But according to a recent study, "late to bed and late to rise" may actually be better for your brain — though researchers didn't check if it does anything for your health or your wallet.

A study published in BMJ Public Health looked at data from nearly 27,000 people who reported how long they slept, and whether they were a "morning lark" — someone who wakes up early — or a "night owl," who sleeps late.

The participants, aged between 53 and 86, also did cognitive tests that checked their reasoning, memory, and how quickly they could process information.

It was found that night owls performed best on the cognitive tests — ahead of those who described themselves as neither morning people nor night people. And morning larks had the lowest cognitive scores of all.

People's bodies have times when they naturally prefer to sleep. And Raha West of Imperial College London, the study's lead author, said that while it's possible to gradually shift your sleeping times, it's very difficult to completely change from a morning person to a night person.

However, she also said the results just show the trend, and not the truth for every individual.

The authors also noted that their results, which focused on older adults, contrasted with past research on adolescents, which found that young morning larks actually had better health and better mental well-being.

Speaking to The Guardian, Jacqui-Ann Hanley of Alzheimer’s Research UK, who wasn't involved with the study, also said it isn't clear if being a morning person leads to poorer cognitive results in older adults, or if the weaker cognitive abilities that come with aging just make people get up earlier.

The study also found that people generally got better cognitive scores if they reported sleeping between seven and nine hours each night.

'Night Owls' May Have Better Brains

Yuka-Nami Japaneasy Channal

あまいものに「目がない」です！

¡YA LLEGÓ LA PRIMAVERA! En este episodio , Jon (Madrid) Y Joan (Barcelona) hablarán sobre los clichés primaverales, dando su opinión con mucho humor, ¡y mucho más! ¡Relájate y escúchanos!

¡Qué Pasa! Podcast en Español

¡LA PRIMAVERA LA SANGRE ALTERA!

In questo episodio racconteremo la storia di Alberto Spiedini e della sua cucina giapponese con influenze italiane. 





Principali verbi nel testo: 

apprezzasse: 3 pers sing congiuntivo imperfetto verbo “apprezzare”

avesse: 3 pers sing congiuntivo imperfetto verbo “avere”

sarebbe stata: 3 pers. sing. condizionale passato verbo “essere”

si è trasferito: 3 pers sing passato prossimo verbo riflessivo “trasferirsi”

erano: 3 plurale imperfetto verbo “essere”

è diventato:  3 pers. singolare  passato prossimo verbo “diventare”

ha creato: 3 pers. singolare  passato prossimo verbo “creare”

avesse fatto: 3 pers singolare congiuntivo trapassato verbo “fare”

se semini, raccogli: Periodo ipotetico del primo tipo: realtà – certezza (indicativo + indicativo)

ho investito: 1 pers. singolare  passato prossimo verbo “investire”

se preparassi…sarebbe più…: Periodo ipotetico del secondo tipo: possibilità (congiuntivo imperfetto+ condizionale presente)

se non avessi creato…non mi sarei….:Periodo ipotetico del terzo tipo: impossibilità nel passato (congiuntivo trapassato + condizionale passato)

ho notato: 1 pers. singolare  passato prossimo verbo “notare”

venivo:  1 pers. singolare imperfetto verbo “venire”

sono arrivato: 1 pers. singolare  passato prossimo verbo “arrivare”

ho faticato: 1 pers. singolare  passato prossimo verbo “faticare”

correva:  3 pers. singolare  imperfetto verbo “correre”

riuscirei: 1 pers. singolare  condizionale presente verbo “riuscire”
rimanerci: rimanere+ci = rimanere lì







Parole da scoprire nel testo: 

Avere un debole= avere una passione per un certo argomento o qualcosa. 
nipponica: del Giappone
scuola prestigiosa: scuola che gode di alto prestigio, quindi importante. 
indefesso: instancabile
estrosa: piena di originalità
tradizione culinaria: tradizione della cucina
titubanti: perplesse, piene di dubbi.
ha messo su famiglia: ha una famiglia. (Modo di dire italiano)
perplesso: con dubbi

Italiano espresso

Livello B1/B2: La cucina giapponese e un po' italiana di Alberto

You know, before you dive into any new structure of learning, it’s super important to ask all the WHYS. Be curious! Find out the reasons behind a grammatical rule, a sentence structure, or even the way a word is pronounced. Trust me, when you know the reasons why something is presented the way it is, it becomes so much easier to remember and use in conversation and writing.

Think of it like building a house. You need a solid foundation of bricks even though you might just see the pretty, colorful windows. Behind every beautiful house is a strong foundation of bricks, which once laid, cannot be removed. It’s the same with language. Once you know the reasons behind the rules, you’re stuck with them in a good way!
