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Every day, more than 110,000 automobiles cross a historic and beautiful bridge in northern California. The span is called the Golden Gate Bridge. It is named after the body of water below it. The Golden Gate Strait connects the Pacific Ocean with San Francisco Bay. The bridge links the city of San Francisco with Marin County to the north. Joseph Strauss was the chief engineer of the Golden Gate Bridge. Building began in 1933. The bridge was opened for use in 1937. The distance between the main towers is almost 1,300 meters long. That was the longest suspension bridge span in the world for almost thirty years. Then, in 1964, the larger Verrazano Narrows bridge opened in New York City. Today, the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge in Japan has the longest span. Strauss used newly developed protective equipment for the men who worked on the bridge. These included a special safety net under the bridge. But still, 11 workers fell to their deaths during the building project. The color of the bridge, international orange, is very important. It was chosen partly because it is easier to see through the heavy fog that often covers San Francisco. Many people consider the Golden Gate Bridge the most beautiful bridge of its kind in the world. More than 2 billion vehicles have crossed the bridge since its opening. But wheels are not the only way to cross the bridge. The Golden Gate is also open to walkers. Many people walk across each year and there is no cost to do so. On clear days, the bridge provides excellent views of San Francisco, ships down below and birds all around. Strauss wrote a poem about his bridge when the work was completed. Here is part of “The Mighty Task is Done.” “At last the mighty task is done; Resplendent in the western sun The Bridge looms mountain high; Its titan piers grip ocean floor, Its great steel arms link shore with shore, Its towers pierce the sky.” This report was written by VOA Learning English.

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.