Unit 1 Regional Focuses�� Domestic Turmoil and War1 1. After Benghazi attacks�� Islamist extremists akin to al��Qaeda stir fear in eastern Libya1 2. Syrian unrest spills into Lebanon5 3. North Korea moves missile to coast�� but limited threat seen9 Unit 2 Conflicts in the Middle East15 1. “Terrorist” explosion on Tel Aviv bus jeopardises Hamas truce deal15 2. Hizbollah debates dropping support for the regime of President Bashar al��Assad 19 3. The Israel��Palestine conflict won’t go away24 Unit 3 The African Scene30 1. Boko Haram�� Borno residents want permanent military presence30 2. What are Western and African powers up against in Mali�� Algeria?34 3. CAR�� how Bozizé lost his piece of Africa39 Unit 4 Violence and Terrorist Attacks in the U.S.46 1. Terrorists hijack 4 airliners�� destroy World Trade Center�� hit Pentagon; hundreds dead46 2. “I Saw Bodies Falling Out— Oh�� God�� Jumping�� Falling”52 3. 2nd bombing suspect caught after frenzied hunt paralyzes Boston56 Unit 5 American Election 201262 1. With debates over�� candidates race to clinch vital states62 2. Heated fight for presidency goes to voters67 3. Will we be better off in 2016?72 Unit 6 Social News—the U. S.78 1. Storm barrels through region�� leaving destructive path78 2. Nation reels after gunman massacres 20 children at school in Connecticut83 3. Some give up their guns as others rally against tighter laws87 Unit 7 National News—the UK93 1. David Cameron’s critics are wrong. He’s on the verge of something great 93 2. MPs to escape expenses investigations after paperwork destroyed by Parliament 98 3. Thatcher’s death has Britain peering back through time102 Unit 8 Social News—South Africa109 1. Bloody gunfight109 2. Marikana�� 900 bullets112 3. Nelson Mandela’s condition “unchanged”�� officials say117 Unit 9 Social News—Life and Lawsuits123 1. Victim’s friend tells of brutal gang attack123 2. Family sues over Hout Bay tragedy127 3. Oscar Pistorius charged with Reeva Steenkamp murder131 Unit 10 Environmental Protection—Saving Wild Lives138 1. Rangers in isolated Central Africa uncover grim cost of protecting wildlife 138 2. Saving two��ton giraffe a tall order143 3. Cape’s abalone is well on the way to extinction148 Unit 11 Computer Technology and the Internet155 1. The web is the most conservative force on Earth155 2. Google pledge to downgrade piracy sites under review160 3. Simultaneous translation by computer is getting closer164 Unit 12 Science and Technology172 1. Grandma’s curse172 2. It’s snowing�� and it really feels like the start of a mini ice age176 3. Climate change alters ecosystems from Walden Pond to “The Shack”181 Unit 13 World Economy186 1. The economy is holding up surprisingly well in a year of austerity186 2. IMF calls on UK to do more to boost economy191 3. EU�� South Korea to ally on faster mobile access195 Unit 14 Business News201 1. Chinese trade with Africa keeps growing; fears of neocolonialism are overdone 201 2. “We’re happy” — Frenzy drives traffic to retailers205 3. EU duties on Chinese solar panels losing member state support210 Unit 15 The London 2012 Olympics216 1. London Olympics opening ceremony quirky�� fun�� loud�� British216 2. Licence to thrill! London welcomes the world with spectacular three��hour Olympic Opening Ceremony celebrating Great Britain220 3. Don’t Deny the Joy of Usain Bolt225 Unit 16 Culture News231 1. Eid Al��Adha�� the story and traditions231 2. Coming to bad ends�� stories that refuse closure235 3. The Box and the Keyhole240 Unit 17 The British Pub and Drinking Culture247 1. A Pub Crawl through the Centuries247 2. Still the Moon under Water252 3. Booze buses and drunk tanks to tackle Britain’s drinking culture256 Unit 18 Entertainment News261 1. Scarlett Johansson in Broadway’s Cat on a Hot Tin Roof�� What did critics think?261 2. Story of Young Woman’s Awakening Is Top Winner265 3. Jennifer Lawrence�� interview�� ‘I do worry that I’m too in your face’268 Keys to Understanding Ideas in the News274