Hi there! Welcome back to a brand new episode of News Bites.

I’m Nancy Sun.

And I’m Hope Ngo.

Coming up today, pens that smell like Taiwan, and beavers to the rescue.

And in today’s News Flash, it's time to get started!

All that and more, coming up next.
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打開筆蓋 聞到台灣的香氣
Pens that Smell Like Taiwan

We're starting out with something simple.

Something you use every day.

A pen.

But not just any pen.

Pens that smell like Taiwan!

A company made these special pens.

And they showed these pens at a special event.

Everyone stopped to check out these pens.

They stood in a long line...

They opened the pen caps (筆蓋)...

And they took a big sniff.

Some people said "Oooh, yes!"

And some people said "Ewww, no!"

What's going on here?

Well, the company said most pens are all about writing well.

But they wanted to try something different.

They wanted pens that could make you feel something...

Bring back a memory...

Make you smile.

They thought...

Taiwan has amazing food.

Night markets are full of incredible things to eat and drink.

Smells that every Taiwanese person knows and loves.

So what if you could put those smells in a pen?

And that is exactly what they did.

It's all in these seasonings (香料) markers.

These pens smell like the cooking smells of Taiwan!

Love it or hate it, there's coriander (香菜)!

There's also basil (九層塔), the green herb that goes on top of fried chicken at
the night market!

Or how about sesame oil, like the smell of sesame oil chicken on a cold
winter day.

And there's also garlic, black pepper, and ginger (蒜、黑胡椒、薑)!

But wait, what if your favorite thing about Taiwan is its drink shops?

Well, there's another set of pens for Taiwan's most loved drinks.

There's passion fruit iced tea, like summer in a pen.

There's jasmine green tea, light and refreshing (清爽).

And of course there's milk tea, a Taiwanese classic (經典).

這些趣味的筆融入了台灣夜市小吃和人氣手搖飲的香氣。

These pens sound like a lot of fun!

If you could choose for yourself...

What smell would you put in a pen?

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野生河狸成為英國治水秘密武器
Beavers to the Rescue! A UK City Gets its Flooding Fixed

We are going to London!

To meet some very special city residents.

Beavers!

In a part of London, there is a place called Paradise Fields.

And Paradise Fields is... well... right in the middle of the city.

But a few years ago, this patch of land was transformed into a lush, green,
watery wetland.

Who made this?

Five wild beavers.

For years, whenever there was heavy rain, Paradise Fields flooded.

To fix it, the city would have to use lots of heavy machines and concrete
(水泥).

That's expensive, and not very good for nature.

But a wildlife expert had a different idea.

"Why don't we bring back beavers?"

Beavers live partly in water and partly on land.

They chew through sticks and trees.

They eat the bark (樹皮)...

And use the wood to build dams (水壩)!

They build dams across streams and rivers.

The dams stop water from flowing.

This creates ponds and wetlands.

Natural reservoirs (天然的水庫)!

The beavers also dig canals (運河).

These canals spread through the land, like a web of water.

Wild beavers went extinct in the UK about 400 years ago.

Humans hunted them.

But now, the five beavers brought to Paradise Fields got straight to work.

They built dams.

They created ponds.

They dug canals.

They turned a patch of land into a beautiful wetland.

By the beavers' second winter at Paradise Fields, there was no flooding in
the area.

For the first time in a decade!

The wetland works like a sponge.

When heavy rain falls, the water soaks into the wetland.

No flooding.

Just five beavers.

Doing what beavers do.

河狸的水壩可以幫助降低淹水風險，過濾髒污，讓水質變好。

And the wetland they created is now home to birds, butterflies, bats, fish
and shrimp.

There are now eight beavers at Paradise Fields.

And this spring, a new litter of baby beavers, called kits, was born!

Living in the city...

Right alongside beavers.

Doesn't seem like such a wild idea!
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RECAP

So, in today's News Bites:

A company made pens that smell like night market seasonings and drinks

Love it or hate it, there's coriander!

And of course there's milk tea, a Taiwanese classic.

The company says it wanted to use smells that every Taiwanese person knows
and loves.

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And,

For years, whenever there was heavy rain, Paradise Fields flooded.

So the city brought in five wild beavers, and they got straight to work!

They built dams, created ponds, and dug canals.

By the beavers' second winter at Paradise Fields, there was no flooding in
the area.

For the first time in a decade!

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NEWS FLASH

In today’s News Flash, a phrase for getting down to it.

"Get to work" means to start doing something, to stop waiting and begin.

Like, "The project is due tomorrow, we need to get to work!"

Now, "get STRAIGHT to work" means the same thing...

But faster, like right now!

The word "straight" here means without stopping, without doing anything else.

And now you know.
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If you have a fun fact or a joke you’d like to share with us, record your
message and send us your Bite-Sized Break to newsbites@icrt.com.tw, and you
might hear it in an upcoming episode!

We’ll see you next time for an exciting new episode of News Bites!