Here is my latest blog post.  You can find a text and an audio version on my site.  I talk about ways in which automatic translators can go wrong.  Enjoy!

https://www.difficultenglishexplained.com/translations-gone-wrong-how-automatic-translators-can-fail-you/

Difficult English Explained

Translations Gone Wrong: How Automatic Translators Can Fail You

Meta invests $15bn in Scale AI, doubling start-up’s valuation

The deal values the data-labelling company at $29bn

The Short And Sweet English Learning Podcast

Episode 16, Meta invests $15bn in Scale AI

主要介绍“1.走下坡路2.没戏3.节骨眼儿”这三个汉语口语习惯语的意思及用法

A Course in Chinese Colloquial Idioms

How To Use 1.走下坡路2.没戏3.节骨眼儿 in Chinese Colloquial Idioms

说到这里，他就长时间地陷入沉思之中。
And he sank into a reverie, which lasted a long time.
然后，从口袋里掏出了我画的小羊，看着他的宝贝入了神。
Then, taking my sheep out of his pocket, he buried himself in the contemplation of his treasure.
你们可以想见这种关于“别的星球”的若明若暗的话语使我心里多么好奇。
You can imagine how my curiosity was aroused by this half-confidence about the "other planets."
因此我竭力地想知道其中更多的奥秘。
I made a great effort, therefore, to find out more on this subject.
你是从哪里来的，我的小家伙？
My little man, where do you come from?
你的家在什么地方？
What is this ‘where I live, of which you speak?
你要把我的小羊带到哪里去？
Where do you want to take your sheep?
他沉思了一会，然后回答我说：
After a re?ective silence he answered:
好在有你给我的那只箱子，夜晚可以给小羊当房子用。
The thing that is so good about the box you have given me is that at night he can use it as his house.
那当然。
That is so.
如果你听话的话，我再给你画一根绳子，

And if you are good I will give you a string, too,
白天可以栓住它。再加上一根杆子。我的建议看来有点使小王子反感。
so that you can tie him during the day, and a post to tie him to.
但是小王子对我喊到：“栓住它，多么奇怪的主意。”
But the little prince seemed shocked by this offer: "Tie him! What a queer idea!"
“如果你不栓住它，它就到处跑，那么它会跑丢的，”我说。
"But if you don’t tie him," I said, "he will wander off somewhere, and get lost."
我的这位朋友又笑出了声：“你想要它跑到哪里去呀？”
My friend broke into another peal of laughter: "But where do you think he would go?"
不管什么地方。它一直往前跑。
Anywhere. Straight ahead of him.
这时，小王子郑重其事地说：“这没有什么关系，我那里很小很小。
Then the little prince said, earnestly: "That doesn’t matter. Where I live, everything is so small!"
接着，他略带伤感地又补充了一句：“一直朝前走，也不会走出多远”
And, with perhaps a hint of sadness, he added: "Straight ahead of him, nobody can go very far..."

小王子-The Little Prince-Read in Chinese

小王子第七章：它跑到哪里去

Beginner Chinese Listening

AI Vocabulary in Chinese

Dans cet épisode de 5 minutes en français, nous explorons l’expression française “être à côté de la plaque”, très utilisée pour exprimer une erreur, un malentendu ou un décalage entre ce que l’on dit et la réalité.

Ce que vous apprendrez dans cet épisode :
✅ La signification exacte de l’expression et son registre de langue

✅ Comment l’utiliser dans différents contextes : professionnel, académique et informel

✅ Les nuances pour l’adoucir et parler de manière polie ou diplomatique

✅ Des expressions similaires : se tromper, être dans l’erreur, ne pas être pertinent

✅ Des exemples concrets tirés de situations professionnelles

5 minutes en français 

Etre à côté de la plaque

This is your reminder that growth starts with a decision. In this inspiring episode of English Learners Boost, “This Is Your Year” motivates English learners to build confidence, embrace mistakes, and take charge of their learning journey. Join a licensed professional science teacher and English tutor as she shares encouragement, mindset shifts, and practical motivation—plus an invitation to book an English lesson on iTalki and experience a supportive, confidence-building teaching approach. This year, your progress begins now. 🌱✨

English Learner's Boost

This is your Year 

Ancient Egyptians loved and respected cats, believing they brought good luck.

Some families even dressed their cats in jewelry, and mummified them after death. They would mourn the death of their cat by shaving off their eyebrows, and continue to mourn until their eyebrows grew back.

Inspired by this ancient love for cats, the Shanghai Museum in China held a special event called Meowseum Nights.

Held 10 times during last summer and fall, the event invited 200 cats and 2,000 people to explore the exhibition On Top of the Pyramid: The Civilization of Ancient Egypt.

Some of the artifacts shown in the exhibition came from a temple discovered years ago in Egypt. The temple was for Bastet, an Egyptian goddess who could change into a cat. This gave the Shanghai Museum another reason to use cats as the theme for their event.

Museum director Chu Xiaobo said that the event was created to bring cat lovers to the museum, as in Shanghai, where there are over a million pet cats, cat-friendly public spaces are rare.

"There are dog parks, dog brunches, but not that much for cat parents to do with their pets," Wen Liuli, a visitor to the exhibition, told The Art Newspaper.

The museum took measures to keep all visitors and artifacts safe. Cats had to stay in strollers or bags, but there were certain areas where people could take their cats out for photos, such as in front of a statue of Bastet. All the other artifacts were kept behind glass.

The museum also had vets, doctors, and even an ambulance on-site, and over 80 animal welfare workers attended each night to help and give advice.

While the museum doesn't plan to hold another Meowseum Night, Chu hopes it might inspire other museums to try similar ideas.

"Cat people now have a special affection for the Shanghai Museum," he said.




Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

Cats Take a Tour of Ancient Egypt at Chinese Museum

こんにちは！Atsushiです。
北海道の今日の天気は晴れ。
気温は24℃です。

今日は8/11。今日は日本では、なんの日か知っていますか？

今日は、山の日という祝日national holidayになっています。「山の日」とは、「山に親しむ機会を得て、山の恩恵に感謝する」という日です。

日本はおよそ6～7割が山地で、海に囲まれていますよね。日本人は、昔から山や海に畏敬の念respectを抱きながら自然とともに生きてきました。

そして2016年から8月11日が山の日となりました。
日本のいろんな場所で、山にまつわるイベントが開催されています。もしかしたら、今日は登山をしている人も多いかもしれませんね。

私の登山の経験ですが、大阪にいる時は時々山登りをしていました。有名なところだと六甲山なども登りました。

1番の経験はやはり富士山です。
夜10時ごろから登りはじめ、8合目あたりで仮眠をし、夜明けに山頂まで登り、日の出を見ました。

日の出を見ることを、朝日を拝むとか、正月だと初日の出を拝む、など言いますね。

話がそれましたが、富士山の山頂での日の出は言葉では表現できないほどの美しさと、満足感、達成感があります。
寒いですけどね！

北海道にも山がたくさんありますので、また山登りを始めてみようと思います。



はい、ということで、今回も最後まで聞いていただき、ありがとうございます！

ではまた！