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Wilbur and Orville Wright are the American inventors who made a small engine-powered flying machine. They proved that flight without the aid of gas-filled balloons was possible. Wilbur Wright was born in 1867 near Melville, Indiana. His brother Orville was born four years later in Dayton, Ohio. As they grew up, the Wright brothers experimented with mechanical things. Later, the Wright brothers began to design their own flying machine. They used ideas they had developed from earlier experiments with a toy helicopter, kites, the printing machine and bicycles. Soon, they needed a place to test their ideas about flight. The best place with the best wind conditions seemed to be a piece of sandy land in North Carolina along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. It was called Kill Devil Hill, near the town of Kitty Hawk. The Wright brothers did many tests with gliders at Kitty Hawk. With these tests, they learned how to solve many problems. By the autumn of 1903, Wilbur and Orville had designed and built an airplane powered by a gasoline engine. The plane had wings 12 meters across. It weighed about 340 kilograms, including the pilot. On December 17th, 1903, they made the world's first flight in a machine that was heavier than air and powered by an engine. Orville flew the plane 36 meters. He was in the air for 12 seconds. The two brothers made three more flights that day. Four other men watched the Wright brothers' first flights. One of the men took pictures. Few newspapers, however, noted the event. It was almost five years before the Wright brothers became famous. In 1908, Wilbur went to France. He gave demonstration flights at heights of 90 meters. A French company agreed to begin making the Wright brothers' flying machine. Orville made successful flights in the United States at the time Wilbur was in France. The United States War Department agreed to buy a Wright brothers' plane. Wilbur and Orville suddenly became world heroes. But the brothers were not seeking fame. They returned to Dayton where they continued to improve their airplanes. They taught many others how to fly. Wilbur Wright died of typhoid fever in 1912. Orville Wright continued designing and inventing until he died many years later, in 1948.

And now Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning English. Springtime is a time of renewal and growth. Many plants end their long winter sleep and form new buds and shoots. Beautiful flowers will soon be showing their bright colors. And the grass will grow thicker and greener again. Some flowers bloom in a very noticeable way but that is not the case with grass. Imagine you are sitting in a grassy field. And you have only one job – to watch the grass grow. That does not sound very interesting. In fact, it sounds really boring. That idea is what gives us the expression “like watching grass grow.” We use this expression to describe an experience that is uninteresting. Another good word to describe it is tedious. We use this expression in many situations. Let’s hear a few examples: After the politician won his campaign, he gave a two-hour long acceptance speech. Two hours! It was as much fun as watching grass grow. I really don’t like watching long sports games. It’s like watching grass grow. Now, grass grows on the ground all the time. And usually, we don’t give it much thought. If you stand in one place for a long time, the grass will continue to grow under your feet. For people who are always active, always moving, always on-the-go, we can say they don't let grass grow under their feet. We can also say beneath their feet. And sometimes we use this expression as a command. Let’s hear some examples: Don’t let the grass grow beneath your feet. Get back to work. She certainly doesn’t let the grass grow under her feet. She’s been traveling non-stop for over a year. And that’s all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories. Until next time, I’m Anna Matteo.

The Empire State Building remains a popular place to visit in New York City. The structure sits in a central part of New York’s Manhattan area. It was built at a time when many developers were racing to become the first to complete the world’s tallest building. Construction on the Empire State Building started in January 1930. Building operations began two months later. The structure went up very quickly, with workers completing framing for the structure at a rate of about four-and-a-half floors per week. When completed in 1931, the Empire State Building was just over 443 meters tall, with 102 floors. The measurement included a 62-meter-tall lightening pole on top. It was the world’s tallest building at the time and remained so for more than 40 years. On May 1, 1931, the president of the United States, Herbert Hoover, took part in an opening ceremony. He pressed a button that turned on the lights to officially open the building. By 1946, the Empire State Building had become the headquarters for numerous organizations and supported more than 15,000 employees. But over time, the building never became as popular with large companies as the developers had hoped. Today, the structure houses mostly small businesses. The Empire State Building opened during the Great Depression, a long-lasting economic crisis that affected the U.S. and other economies around the world. This resulted in lower than predicted building costs. The structure alone cost about $25 million, while the cost of the land brought the price up to more than $40 million. Today, New York City officials estimate that more than 2.5 million people visit the Empire State Building each year. At least half the visitors come from other countries. The building has observation areas on two floors. The first is on the 86th floor and the other on the 102nd. The upper area has top-to-bottom windows on all sides to provide 360-degree views of the city skyline. Building officials say that on a clear day, visitors can see up to 120 kilometers. On the way up, visitors can stop at an exhibit area on the second floor. Among the things to see there is a model of the moving hand used in the popular 1933 movie King Kong. In the film, King Kong climbs the Empire State Building. The huge creature is then attacked by military planes and falls to his death.

The inventor Thomas Alva Edison had a major effect on the lives of people around the world. Thomas Edison is remembered most for the electric light, his phonograph, and his work with motion pictures. Edison was born on February 11, 1847, in Milan, Ohio. He was mostly self-taught. His mother taught him reading, writing, and mathematics. He learned from books, and he experimented. At the age of 10, he experimented with chemicals and electricity. He built a telegraph machine and, at the age of 16, he went to work as a telegraph operator. He continued his work with electricity, making improved telegraph machines, and he invented an electrical voting machine. Edison earned enough money from his early inventions to start his own company in 1871. Instead of working alone, he worked with a group of employees on many different projects at one time. They asked the United States government for patents to protect more than one hundred devices or inventions each year. He was an extremely busy man. In 1913, a popular magazine at the time called Thomas Edison the most useful man in America. He almost never slept more than four or five hours a night. He usually worked 18 hours each day because he enjoyed what he was doing. A reporter asked Edison in 1917 which of his many inventions he enjoyed the most. He answered, the phonograph was really the most interesting. The hardest invention to develop, he said, was the electric light. He said that it was the most difficult and the most important. He also invented the modern motion picture film. In 1928, he received a special medal of honor from the Congress of the United States. Thomas Edison died on January 6, 1931. People worldwide have had easier and more enjoyable lives because of his inventions.

For many English learners, speaking is the most difficult part of the language to master. To improve your speaking skills, you need to be able to practice with other English learners or English speakers. One way to do this is by joining – or starting – an English club. In today’s Education Tips, we discuss how English clubs can be helpful to your language-learning process. English clubs for language learning There are many reasons why English clubs can help learners of all ages and levels improve their English. The most important reason is that they offer learners a chance to practice English by actually speaking it. There are other advantages, too. English clubs are less formal than a classroom setting. Many learners find them more fun than usual English classes. They also let learners practice English in more real-life situations. This can increase a learner’s desire to practice and learn on their own. Bonnie Norton and Ernst Von Glasersfeld are learning theory experts. They say that using a language in authentic situations is very important for learners. So is being motivated to practice and improve, they say. Now that you understand some of the benefits of an English club, let’s discus how you can create your own club. ​Starting an English club Step1: Finding club members: The first step in starting an English club is to find club members. There are different ways to do this. If you are a teacher creating the club for your students, then the easiest way is to put up signs in classrooms advertising the club’s first meeting. You can also pass around a sign-up sheet in classes. If you are trying to start a club at your place of work, you can advertise your club by sending an email around to coworkers. You can also put up signs about the club around the workplace. If your club is open for anyone to join, you can use the internet to find members. Websites such as Meetup or Facebook are great places to announce club meetings and communicate with members. Step 2 – Find a meeting location: Next, you must find a place for your club to meet. This step is very important. The location of your club will affect how many people come to your meetings. It is important to consider several things when choosing a location.