Stories in English

Improve your listening and vocabulary with English lessons about current events and trending topics

The Potala Palace in Lhasa, Tibet, is the former home of the Dalai Lama

The Dalai Lama is the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists in exile

May 12, 2025:

The Dalai Lama is the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism, one of three major schools of Buddhism. Though he leads only a fraction of the world’s Buddhists, his influence is global due to his role as a symbol of Tibet’s struggle for religious freedom. Now the Dalai Lama is 89, and confronting the fact that he will be the first in over 600 years to die outside Tibet.

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LinkedIn offices in Sunnyvale, California. — 773

LPS.1; CC0; via Wikimedia Commons

How LinkedIn became a place to share, not just network

May 8, 2025

LinkedIn has evolved from a resume and networking site into a platform where users share personal stories, professional lessons, and insights. Changes to the algorithm, a shift in user behavior during the pandemic, and a more civil atmosphere have turned LinkedIn into a space for authentic content and unexpected influence.

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St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City — 772

How does the Catholic Church choose a new pope?

May 5, 2025

When a pope dies or resigns, the College of Cardinals, made up of senior advisors, convenes at the Vatican to elect a successor. Cardinals under age 80 enter a secret Conclave inside the Sistine Chapel, where they vote in silence and prayer until one candidate receives a two-thirds majority. White smoke signals the world that a new pope has been chosen.

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Mjøstårnet is an 18-story tower in Norway — 771

Øyvind Holmstad; CC BY-SA 4.0; via Wikimedia Commons

Tall buildings made of wood? It’s possible with mass timber

May 1, 2025

Mass timber is a new type of engineered wood that allows buildings to reach heights once thought impossible for timber. It’s efficient to build, environmentally friendly, and gaining popularity in cities around the world, especially in Europe. But challenges like fire safety and moisture still remain.

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A selection of popular Stories from our archives

Everyone in South Korea will take a year or two off their ages this year

South Korea scraps its unique age and everyone gets a year or two younger

July 20, 2023

New 'age' brings the country into alignment with how other countries calculate age

South Korean pop culture is spreading around the globe.

A wave of Korean culture is crashing over the world—and it’s amazing

May 21, 2020

From pop music to cosmetics (and now sports) Korean culture is everywhere

A view of a Japanese pagoda with mountains in the distance on a clear day

Family comes first: Japan to restore traditional family-name-first convention

January 23, 2020

Japan originally put the given name first as a way to integrate with Western cultures

Shimin Gu (GFDL 1.2 or GFDL 1.2), via Wikimedia Commons

Chinese pilot hailed as a hero after windshield blows out mid-air

May 28, 2018

Emergency at 32,000 feet

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A Le Creuset pot with a lid in Volcanique — 770

최광모; CC0; via Wikimedia Commons

Le Creuset celebrates 100 years of colorful cooking

April 28, 2025

French company's fiery-red cookware is a staple of kitchens around the globe

GPT-generated image showing a white stork flying over a meandering river in an unconfined river valley — 769

Source: ChatGPT's imagination

Updates: Daniel Kahneman, decision-making expert, chose assisted dying

April 24, 2025

Also: Europe inches closer to a new design for its paper currency

The SpaceX Dragon Freedom spacecraft after it splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico — 768

Photo: NASA

Updates: Astronauts come home after 9 months in space; running records fall

April 21, 2025

Also, El Salvador drops Bitcoin as legal tender and Trump pauses the penny

Crumbl cookies on the company's signature pink background — 767

Frosting, flavor, and flair: How Crumbl cookies became a social media sensation

April 17, 2025

Gourmet dessert company leverages virality to tempt fans worldwide

Whiplash after Trump imposes and then pauses new tariffs

April 14, 2025

The great top sheet debate: Bedding essential or outdated extra?

April 10, 2025

Microsoft retires Skype, the app that changed voice and video calling

April 7, 2025

Co-living brings the ‘sharing economy’ home

April 3, 2025

All about tariffs: what they are, who pays them, why they exist

March 31, 2025

Return to sender: Denmark will eliminate universal mail service, ending a 400-year-old tradition

March 27, 2025

The ethical dilemmas self-driving cars must navigate

March 24, 2025

Where are all the self-driving cars we were promised?

March 20, 2025

Amazon now has full control over James Bond’s future

March 17, 2025

A manual transmission is now a luxury for enthusiasts

March 13, 2025

After devastating fires, LA battles mudslides and plans its recovery

March 10, 2025

Why Los Angeles is so susceptible to fires

March 6, 2025

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