English Listening Practice — September 18, 2026

📰 Denmark speeds up Ukraine aid package after Russian warship fires flares at helicopter

Denmark has fast-tracked an air defense aid package for Ukraine worth 1.8 billion Danish crowns ($276 million).

The expedited allocation follows a tense confrontation in international waters.

A Russian frigate fired flares without warning at a Danish military helicopter, narrowly missing the aircraft.

Defence Minister Jeppe Bruus noted that efforts to rattle Denmark have backfired.

Rather than deterring the Nordic nation, the incident prompted the government to ramp up its defensive assistance well ahead of schedule.

⚔️ At least 16 killed after vehicle loaded with explosives rams into Pakistan mosque

A suicide car bomb targeted a mosque in northwestern Pakistan, claiming at least 16 lives.

Five police officers are among the dead.

The attack occurred in the Kohat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, adjacent to a local police headquarters.

Security forces subsequently engaged in an active firefight with the perpetrators on site.

Officials confirmed that one assailant was killed during the confrontation.

Meanwhile, emergency personnel continue rescue operations at the scene.

⚖️ Judge says Trump can't demolish Kennedy Center. And, lawsuits target voter intimidation

A federal judge has barred President Trump from demolishing the Kennedy Center without providing a 30-day notice.

The ruling follows a vote by the center’s board to shut down the complex due to fiscal strains and structural decay.

Trump recently suggested the facility could be torn down unless his name appears on the main building.

He also asserted that the venue has lost millions of dollars, though he provided no supporting evidence.

The judicial decision establishes a mandatory grace period, preventing any immediate dismantling of the historic cultural landmark.

📰 Warren Buffett steps down as chair of Berkshire Hathaway after over 50 years

Warren Buffett is stepping down as chair of Berkshire Hathaway after more than five decades at the helm.

The 96-year-old investor will transition immediately to chair emeritus while retaining his seat on the board.

His son, Howard Buffett, will take over as the conglomerate's new chair as part of a long-planned succession.

Howard has served as a director since 1993.

Warren Buffett expressed full confidence in the leadership tandem of his son and CEO Greg Abel, who assumed the chief executive post earlier this year.

📰 BOJ hikes rates to 1.25% as chief Ueda cites shift in policy phase

The Bank of Japan has lifted its benchmark interest rate to a multidecade high of 1.25 percent.

Policymakers finalized the rate hike in a split vote following a two-day board meeting.

The move directly increases the nation's uncollateralized overnight call rate.

Governor Kazuo Ueda announced that monetary policy has officially transitioned into a new phase.

The central bank acted to rein in mounting upside inflation risks, aligning with investor expectations to keep price pressures in check.

📰 ‘I pay a lot more for fewer and fewer items’: five US shoppers on their food budgets

More than half of Americans now struggle to afford groceries.

Despite past promises from Donald Trump to bring down food costs, relief has yet to materialize.

A confluence of factors has worsened the strain.

Supply chain disruptions, tariff disputes, geopolitical conflicts in Ukraine and Iran, climate fallout, and deep cuts to Snap benefits have all driven up prices.

Consequently, consumers are feeling the pinch.

One unemployed single adult, earning $15,600 annually, spends $300 a month on groceries.

This expenditure consumes roughly 75 percent of their total monthly budget.

📰 Scientists discover cells that cheat death and rebuild damaged tissue

Researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science have unlocked a longstanding biological puzzle.

In a study published in Nature Communications, the team mapped how damaged tissues rebuild via compensatory proliferation.

The breakthrough centers on caspases, enzymes predominantly known for dismantling dying cells.

Instead of driving destruction, these enzymes paradoxically help key cells evade death and orchestrate tissue repair.

While vital for healing, this resilient response could also clarify why some cancers recur after therapy.

🤖 OpenAI ‘ethically hacked’ with help of Anthropic’s Claude chatbot

Cybersecurity researchers at Hacktron AI successfully breached OpenAI by leveraging Anthropic’s Claude chatbot.

Operating under OpenAI’s ethical hacker reward programme, the team compromised employee accounts through a Discourse discussion forum.

They utilized Claude-generated code to submit a benign pull request to OpenAI’s GitHub repository.

This maneuver enabled the researchers to access the company’s software cache.

Hacktron disclosed the vulnerability to OpenAI, emphasizing that their theoretical access was vast, though they ultimately downloaded no source code.

🖥️ Caltech’s tiny new chip can steer light in 74 quadrillionths of a second

Caltech researchers have engineered a compact device capable of steering light at extraordinary speeds.

The chip uses one light beam to redirect another in just 74 quadrillionths of a second.

That translates to 74 femtoseconds, roughly the time light takes to traverse a human hair.

To overcome weak natural interactions, lead author Claudio Hail and professor Harry Atwater deployed nanoengineered optical metasurfaces.

These ultrathin structures dramatically bolster interaction strength and operational efficiency.

The team published their findings in Nature Nanotechnology.

📰 Ronaldo named in Jesus' first Portugal squad

Cristiano Ronaldo has secured a place in Jorge Jesus’s maiden Portugal squad.

The move puts to rest lingering speculation about the 41-year-old forward’s international retirement.

The Al-Nassr striker features in a 25-man roster for four Nations League fixtures between September 24 and October 4.

Jesus took the helm after Roberto Martinez stepped down following Portugal’s World Cup exit.

Ronaldo had previously declined to confirm his future following July’s round-of-16 defeat against Spain.

🎵 British rapper Sway dies aged 44

British rapper Sway, born Derek Andrew Safo, has died at his residence in Ghana at the age of 44.

The Mobo organisation broke the news online, which the artist's associate Kash Ahmad later confirmed to the BBC.

Sway carved out a distinct legacy in British music.

In 2006, he became the first unsigned rapper to clinch a Mobo Award.

He later built on that breakthrough in 2012 by scoring a top-ten hit with the single "Level Up."

⚖️ Judge rules court must get notice as Trump threatens to tear down Kennedy Center

A judge has issued a direct ruling regarding President Trump and the Kennedy Center.

Under the court's decision, Trump cannot proceed with tearing down the facility without formal advance warning.

Specifically, the judge mandated that the court must receive at least thirty days of prior notice before any demolition begins.

This directive follows threats from Trump to raze the property.

Consequently, any effort to dismantle the structure remains restricted until that thirty-day notification requirement is fully met.