[193] Vienna and Zurich voted best cities in the World.

TRAVEL NEWS WIRE…

Vienna and Zurich voted best cities in the World. The Mercer consulting group has ranked Vienna, Austria as the most livable city in the World, followed by Zurich, Switzerland, and Auckland, New Zealand. The city of Auckland is the only one in the Southern Hemisphere to reach the top 10. The top Asian city was Singapore. The ranking includes safety levels, transportation ease, exchange rates, political stability, and other factors. The list is updated annually.

HEALTH AND TECH NEWS

Simple bench turns into a medical stretcher At the Medical Japan exhibition in Osaka, a Japanese company displayed a new product that acts as a simple bench in a hospital reception area, but can be used as a stretcher in emergencies or in multiple-injury disasters. The main seating plank of the bench can be detached, and safety straps hold the injured patient in place. The manufacturer is targeting public areas such as hospitals, bus stops, train stations, hotel lobbies, and other places with high levels of public movement.

THIS WEEK’S NATURAL PHRASE

in hot water

Lyndsey: I heard that Andy was in some kind of trouble. What happened to him?

Brett: He took his father’s car and then got into an accident. But he doesn’t have the money to pay for repairs, so now he’s in hot water until he can find a way to fix the car.

Explanation: When a person is “in hot water” it means that they in big trouble, or they have a lot of pressure to deal with. We can say “He’s in hot water with his boss” or “He’s in hot water with his parents.”

THIS WEEK’S MEDICAL PHRASE

unbearable

Maternity Ward Patient: Can you please give me a stronger anesthetic for the childbirth? The pain is unbearable.

Doctor : If you really feel that the pain is unbearable, we will increase the epidural injection. You will feel better, but you will also need a longer time to recover.

Explanation: When pain is “unbearable” it means that the patient cannot stand or tolerate the pain. To “bear” is to accept something, while “unbearable” means that the body cannot accept the pain, or the weight.

THIS WEEK’S BUSINESS/EMAIL PHRASE

upsell

Hello Molly:

We have more customers than last year, but they are only buying the cheapest products that we are selling. We need to tell our sales staff to upsell the customers with more expensive products.

Explanation: An “upsell” means to sell the customer a better version of the product for a higher price. A fast-food restaurant will try to upsell the customer a full super cheeseburger set instead of just a normal sized burger. A customer might go into a shoe store to buy a standard pair of shoes, but the salesman will try to upsell the customer to buy a pair of expensive Italian leather shoes.