Learn English from Daily News - Read An Article WITH ME!

Today we're going to review a news article  

together so you can listen  and learn at the same time.

You're going to improve your  listening skills, reading grammar,  

vocabulary and pronunciation all at the  same time in a fun and engaging way.

Welcome back to JForrest English.

Of course.

I'm Jennifer.

Now let's get started.

First, I'll read the headline.

Japanese firm unveils a vertical  pod that lets you nap upright.

So in this picture here you  can see the vertical pod.

So POD is the name for this unit and then  vertical is the fact that it's upright,  

so vertical and then horizontal is across.

So it's not a horizontal pod  like your bed is horizontal.

This is a vertical pod and  it lets you nap upright.

So just like I said horizontal,  you would be sleeping in your bed,  

you would not be upright, you would be lying down.

So in this case, for napping for sleeping,  

the opposite of upright would be lying  down because that's how we normally sleep.

Except if you were in Japan  using one of these vertical pods,  

you'll be napping upright just  like this woman in the photo.

So what do you think?

Before we even read this article?

Do you think you could nap in this pod upright?

Share your thoughts, Yes or no?

Put that in the comments.

Certainly an interesting concept.

I wrote that information for you and  I also wrote the definition of nap.

I think it should be well known, but a nap is  of course a short sleep, usually during the day.

Now in this example, nap is a verb, which of  course you can do to nap, just like to sleep.

So I could ask you, oh, do you nap?

Do you nap?

I'm asking you do you sleep for a  short period of time during the day?

Do you nap?

Now, it's very common to use nap as a noun.

If you use nap as a noun, you have two choices of  verbs and it does not matter which one you use.

Both are very common and natural.

Do you take naps?

Do you have naps?

So you can use either one equally?

So what about you?

Do you nap?

Do you take naps?

Do you have naps?

Share that in the comments as well.

Now maybe you'll start taking more  naps if you had this vertical pod.

Now don't worry about writing all these notes  because I summarize everything in a free  

lesson pedia, so you can look for the link in the  description before we continue with the article.

I also wrote the definition for unveil.

This is a verb to unveil.

When you unveil something, you show it for the  first time or you introduce it for the first time.

So when this vertical pod was  unveiled, it means the public.

You and I were able to see it for the first time.

So the Japanese firm Firm  is another word for company.

Japanese firm.

Japanese company unveils a vertical  pod that lets you nap upright.

All right, let's find out more about this.

It's interesting that it's also in a public place.

I don't know if I could nap in a public  place with people just walking around.

Interesting concept though.

Let's find out.

Experts have long argued that  having a power nap at work.

OK, let's look at this because you could  say experts have argued that having a  

power nap at work and then whatever  it is, we'll get to that in a second.

But notice how they added have long argued this is  

another way of saying experts  have argued for a long time.

So instead of saying for a long time,  experts have argued for a long time,  

you can simply take the word long and use it  before the verb, experts have long argued.

So maybe you could say I have long said that  

improving your English is  important for your career.

So I've said for a long time, so I  haven't just said this once or twice.

I've long said experts have long  argued that having a power nap.

Let's take a look at power nap.

A power nap is a nap, but when I hear a power nap,  

I picture a nap that is  for a short period of time.

So you're really this just there  to have a very short nap for the  

sole purpose of waking up and  being able to perform better.

Whereas you could have a nap  on a Sunday afternoon just  

for the purpose of relaxing and pure enjoyment.

But a power nap.

You just want to have a very short nap  so you can wake up and be more energized,  

more productive, work better, work smarter.

Have you ever had a power nap?

Do you think the idea of power  naps is a good idea or a bad idea?

Share that in the comments as well.

OK, have long argued that having a  power nap can at work, so not on a  

Sunday afternoon at home, on the couch at  work can increase alertness, Alertness.

This is your adjective, an adjective  to just say that you are very awake.

Your alertness is you're very you're very awake.

So you should never drive if  you're not alert because if  

you're not very awake that can be very dangerous.

So your your amount of mentally being very awake.

Alertness boost, productivity boost is a  very common way of saying increase increase.

We use this a lot especially  in a business context.

For example, we need to boost our sales.

We need to increase our sales.

I wrote that example here for you.

Now of course, boost is a verb,  so you have to conjugate it.

In this example that nap,  that should say nap not help.

That nap really boosted my alertness.

OK, so here boost is in the past simple  because it's a completed past action.

That nap really boosted my alertness.

Now previously I think I said  alertness is an adjective.

If I said that it is not, that's incorrect.

Alertness is the noun form is  speaking about alert being alert,  

alert is the adjective, and  alertness is the noun form.

So it's just speaking about  it as a thing, as a concept.

So my alertness, because we often have articles or  possessives before nouns, so alertness is a noun.

I put it here for you.

And alert is an adjective.

I'm sorry if previously I said the wrong thing.

Now again, your alertness is  your feeling of being awake,  

and we often talk about it with mentally awake.

So you could also say that nap  helped me become more alert.

So in this case, alert is our adjective.

I am alert.

I feel alert.

I've become more alert.

That nap helped me become more alert.

So this is what the article or the  company who created this vertical pod  

for upright napping is suggesting  as the importance of having naps.

Let's continue, boost productivity  and even make you more creative.

Are you enjoying this lesson?

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This is my premium training program where  we study native English speakers from TV,  

the movies, YouTube, and the news so you  can improve your listening skills of fast  

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Now let's continue with our lesson.

Now a Japanese firm remember  firm company has revealed before.

Do you remember the verb that  they used in the headline?

It was unveiled, unveiled.

When you reveal something, you also introduce  it or make it known, show it for the first time.

So in this context, is exactly the same.

Has unveiled has revealed.

Now they've revealed A bizarre pod.

By using the adjective bizarre, they're saying  it's strange, strange, bizarre, unusual.

And it is right.

The fact that it's an upright and you  nap upright instead of lying down,  

so you're in a vertical position rather  than a horizontal position, That is bizarre.

Most people don't sleep like that.

At least in North America we don't.

If you're in Japan, you can let us know.

Is this a common practice in Japan?

Have you ever seen this pod in Japan?

So if you're watching from Japan or you've been to  Japan, please share your thoughts on this as well.

So that's what they mean  by bizarre as an adjective.

So we can say strange or unusual strange, unusual,  

bizarre pod that makes it easier than ever  before for workers to grab some shut eye.

So to grab some shut eye, well  right now I'm closing my eyes.

But you can also say I'm shutting my eyes  is not very common to say shut your eyes,  

but you can say that is more common to  say close your eyes, close your eyes.

But this is where the expression  shut eye comes from, Shut eye.

So if you want to grab some, shut eye is  another way of saying grab some sleep.

Sleep OK?

And remember a nap is just a short  sleep, usually during the day.

And American English speakers, we  commonly replace the verb get with grab.

It's very common for us to do this.

It's more informal, it's more casual,  but it's very frequently done.

It would be very common for  an American to text a friend,  

or call a friend or just say to  a friend, a Co worker, anyone.

Hey, do you want to grab a coffee?

Do you want to grab a coffee after work?

Extremely common.

I use it all the time myself and  it's just a replacement to do.

You want to get a coffee, which  I guess is also a replacement to  

do you want to have a coffee after  work, but very common to use grab.

You don't have to use it if  you're not comfortable with it,  

because it does depend on the specific  context if it's appropriate or not,  

but it is important that you understand  what it means in the context.

Even if you choose not to use it,  you don't want to use it yourself.

That's fine, you can just use get or have.

But again, important to understand this is  how native speakers speak in the real world.

So for it makes it easier than ever before for  

workers to grab some shut eye,  get some sleep, Giraffe nap.

So this is the name of the pod, giraffe nap.

Giraffe nap is a vertical pod that  lets office employees sleep upright.

Upright.

So again, very interesting.

Of course they're not targeting this for your  home, because why would you get this in your home?

You have your couch, you have your bed.

That's where you would have a nap, right?

But this is for the office, so  they're targeting office employees.

So it lets office employees sleep  upright, much like the long necked mammal.

The long necked mammal, Of course,  they're talking about a giraffe,  

and that's where the name came from.

Because a giraffe sleeps upright,  many animals sleep upright.

Not really a trait of humans,  but many animals sleep upright,  

about the size as a small public phone booth.

It contains a series of platforms.

So notice here the sentence structure,  because we're not starting with a subject,  

this is just additional information about the pod.

But the sentence really starts  here 'cause this is our subject it.

Otherwise you would say it is about  the size as a small public phone booth.

It contains and then you can continue on.

It contains a series of platforms.

This would be a separate sentence.

This alone cannot be a separate  sentence because there is no subject.

But you can turn it into a separate sentence  by having your subject and then if you have a  

subject you have course need a verb, and then the  rest of the sentence which describes the subject.

It is about the size as a small  public phone booth it contains,  

but here this is just additional  information about the size.

So this is a more casual way of  saying approximately about I slept  

for about 20 minutes, approximately 20 minutes.

You could also say around 20 minutes.

All three of those are very commonly used.

Approximately is the most formal and then around  About our more casual ways of saying it, it  

contains a series of platforms that support body  weight while blocking out noise from the outside.

OK, if you block something  out, you're blocking out noise.

It means you're preventing it from from entering.

We specifically use the phrasal verb  to block out with light and noise.

So in this case, it's noise.

So if you're in this public place, you don't  

have to worry about wearing earplugs  because the pod itself is soundproof.

It blocks out the noise.

But I wonder if it blocks out the light, because  the room is very light and when you're napping  

it's probably easier if it's dark, but it looks  like it does have a cover, and maybe when you  

close the cover it becomes completely dark as  well, so it could also block out the light.

Otherwise, you might want to wear  an eye mask to block out the light,  

and I wrote that example here.

This eye mask really blocks out the light.

Let's continue.

However, at just 8.4 feet high and four feet wide,  

claustrophobes might want  to opt for the office sofa.

OK, claustrophobes.

The more common expression is claustrophobics.

Listen to the pronunciation claustrophobic,  claustrophobic, and then you add an S to it to  

mean all claustrophobic people, claustrophobics,  claustrophobics, people who are claustrophobic.

And then if you just say claustrophobics,  it means people who are claustrophobic.

So claustrophobics don't like small  spaces, it makes them very uncomfortable.

So maybe even being in an elevator would be  uncomfortable because it's a small enclosed space.

And of course our vertical  pod is a small enclosed space.

Especially if you put the cover over it to block  out the light, it would feel even more enclosed.

So if you're claustrophobic, you  wouldn't like this claustrophobes.

Claustrophobics wouldn't like this.

Claustrophobes might want  to opt for the office sofa.

If you opt for something, it means  you choose that as an option.

So let's say you're going mattress shopping and  

there are so many different types  of mattresses to choose from.

You could say we opted for a firm mattress  to mean that you chose a firm mattress,  

and there were many, many other options.

Now, to use this expression,  there could just be two options,  

firm and soft, and you opted  for the firm mattress you.

We use the preposition for  if it's followed by a noun.

If it's a verb, then you just use the infinitive.

We opted to buy a firm mattress and opt is a verb,  

so you need to conjugate it and  that's why it's in the past simple.

With the Ed, we opted to buy a firm mattress,  

which is just another way of saying  we chose to buy a firm mattress.

So claustrophobes might want  to opt for the office sofa,  

so they have the vertical pod, which  might make them feel claustrophobic.

Or they have the office  sofa, so if they opt for it,  

they choose the office sofa and  they don't choose the vertical pod.

What about you?

Which one would you opt for?

Would you opt for the pod or the sofa?

I think I would personally give the pod a try.

I'm not claustrophobic so that wouldn't  bother me at all and it looks interesting.

I would definitely like to  try a power nap in the pod.

The giraffe pod.

OK, let's continue.

The firm said it's working towards a society  where everyone can easily take a nap.

So remember, here we have our verb take a nap.

But you can also use which verb have.

You can also use have a nap.

Or you could also just say  where everyone can easily nap.

And you can just use nap as a verb.

So instead of take a nap, have a nap.

You can just say easily nap.

So I'll put this one under here.

Can easily nap.

Can easily have a nap.

Can easily take a nap and ultimately  improve business and healthcare.

So the company believes in naps.

They they think that they're very beneficial,  

so they want everyone in  society to regularly have naps.

Do you think that would be a good idea?

Feel free to share.

There are probably many people who have been  unable to get rid of their physical fatigue.

Fatigue is another way of saying tiredness,  sleepiness, that feeling of being tired.

But fatigue, it sounds stronger.

It affects your whole health.

Fatigue.

So I wrote Extreme tiredness  for fatigue and to get rid of.

This is another way of saying to eliminate, to  permanently remove, to get rid of, to get rid of  

their physical fatigue and stress and have endured  sleepiness and continued to work, The firm says.

The verb endure simply means to experience, but  we only use it for difficult, negative things.

So I wouldn't say, oh, I endured  a beautiful day at the park it  

because a beautiful day at the  park is not a difficult thing.

I endured a night of terrible  sleep, so I experienced it,  

but I experienced it in a very negative way.

I endured a night of difficult,  restless sleep, so now I'm fatigued.

I'm extremely tired, so have endured  sleepiness and continue to work, the firm says.

Now we are approaching an era where  we're breaking down such stereotypes.

So if you breakdown a stereotype,  it means you try to eliminate it.

So you could use the get rid of.

We're trying to get rid of, eliminate such  stereotypes, eliminate and I'll write down,  

get rid of and the stereotype, although  they don't specifically say it here,  

I guess the stereotype would be that it's  normal to be fatigued and continue to work.

So it's normal to to just go through your 8  hours even though you're very tired, rather than  

have a nap, a power nap, and try to boost your  alertness, your productivity, your creativity.

I think that's the stereotype because I don't know  about in your country or your part of the world,  

but in North America, I would say naps  aren't really something that most adults do.

And I guess it's probably viewed more  as as like why do you need a nap?

You shouldn't take a nap, you  should just work through it.

You need to work through the day.

That's more the attitude, I would say in North  America, naps are generally for children and the  

elderly, but not really adults and certainly  not in the middle of the day at work.

It it's it's not a common practice.

It's certainly not viewed as a positive thing.

So that's probably the stereotype.

What about in in your country,  in your part of the world?

Is our naps viewed more  positively as being productive?

Is it appropriate for an adult to have  a nap in the middle of the day at work?

So share that because I would be really  interested to know because in North  

America I would say currently I it isn't a common  practice, It wouldn't be viewed very positively.

And I think that's the stereotype they're  trying to break down, eliminate, get rid of.

Let's continue.

The company recommends a nap time of 20 minutes.

So a nap time of 20 minutes.

That's the total length of the nap.

I'm laughing a little because when you say, oh,  it's nap time, this is what we say to children.

And remember I said, oh, in North America,  it's not common for adults to have a nap.

I have only ever heard of nap  time in the context of a child.

Oh, it's nap time.

Oh, it's my kids nap time.

Sorry, I can't.

I can't grab a coffee.

It's my kids nap time.

But in this context, that's  not how they're using it.

They're just saying a nap duration of 20 minutes.

It's just funny seeing nap time because as I  said, that's what parents use with their children.

So a nap duration of 20 minutes as anything longer  than 30 minutes can affect your sleep at night.

So again, that's the concept of a power nap.

A power nap.

There's really that emphasis  on the nap not being very long,  

and the sole purpose of it is so you can wake  up more alert, more productive, more creative.

Not because you want to have this relaxing,  

enjoyable, lazy sleep on the  couch on a Sunday afternoon.

That's not the purpose.

So a power nap.

And that's the end of our article.

So I'm interested to hear your thoughts  about naps and how your culture,  

your society, your country views naps in general.

Because I shared at least how  it's viewed in North America.

And now what I'll do is I'll read  the article from start to finish  

and this time you can focus on my pronunciation.

Japanese firm unveils a vertical  pod that lets you nap upright.

Experts have long argued that having a  power nap at work can increase alertness,  

boost productivity, and  even make you more creative.

Now a Japanese firm has revealed A bizarre pod  

that makes it easier than ever before  for workers to grab some shut eye.

Giraffe Nap is a vertical pod that  lets office employees sleep upright,  

much like the long necked mammal.

About the size as a small public  phone booth, it contains a series  

of platforms that support body weight  while blocking out noise from the outside.

However, at just 8.4 feet high and four feet wide,  

claustrophobes might want  to opt for the office sofa.

The firm said it is working towards a  society where everyone can easily take  

a nap and ultimately improve  business and healthcare.

There are probably many people who have been  unable to get rid of their physical fatigue  

and stress and have endured sleepiness  and continue to work, the firm says.

Now we are approaching an era where  we're breaking down such stereotypes.

The company recommends a nap time of 20 minutes,  

as anything longer than 30 minutes  can affect your sleep at night.

Did you enjoy this lesson?

Do you want me to make more lessons  where we review news articles together?

If you do, then put nap time.

Put now time in the comments.

I don't know about you, but I'm feeling a little  bit sleepy just after reading this article,  

so put nap time in the comments  and maybe we should all take a nap.

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