Статьи^RSS → Голос Америки^RSS 10-я страница

The weather was good on the morning of April eighth. One sailor described the sea as being as smooth as glass. The container ship, Maersk Alabama, was sailing through the Gulf of Aden to the port of Mombasa, Kenya, on the east coast of Africa. The American-operated ship carried thousands of tons of agricultural materials for the World Food Program and other aid organizations.But, for days, a small boat had been following the Maersk Alabama. In it, four heavily armed Somali men were watching and waiting. Now, the pirates saw their chance. They moved to board the ship.Captain Richard Phillips sounded a warning and the crew took positions in several parts of the ship. Soon the pirates had climbed on board.Their goal: hijack the ship and hold the crew hostage until the ship's owners paid for their release.

This summer, heavy rains and flooding have caused more than five hundred deaths in South Asia. More than ten million people have been forced from their homes. Huge amounts of cropland, animals and property have been destroyed.  Officials and aid groups say a public health crisis threatens about thirty million people throughout India, Nepal and Bangladesh.The World Meteorological Organization says the rain in South Asia is just one of many extreme weather events this year.  The United Nations agency announced last week that January and April were the warmest months on record worldwide. The discovery appears to support environmental changes confirmed by the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in February.  The group said that it was more than ninety percent sure that carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases from human activities have been the main cause of global warming.

Some mothers in Senegal are learning a new way to save the lives of babies born too soon. The idea is not really new. It borrows from the way mother kangaroos carry their young in front in a pouch. The joey -- what Australians call a baby kangaroo -- stays in this built-in baby carrier until it can survive independently.Kangaroo mother care is also known as the skin-to-skin method for premature babies. The direct contact with the mother keeps the baby warm. It also lets the baby breastfeed at any time.