2022年5月30日「モバイル英語学習」第740号 (英語エッセイ): Goodbye, iPod!

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After selling iPods for almost 22 years, Apple has decided to stop making them. The iPod changed the way people bought music and listened to music. It was a music player like the Sony Walkman, which played cassettes, but unlike the original Walkman, it played digital music. An iPod could hold 1,000 songs, and Apple starting selling digital music cheaply, only 99 cents (about 100 yen) for each song. People made regular talking programs called podcasts (iPod + broadcast) which, unlike radio, you could listen to at any time. These days, people don’t need an iPod. Instead of buying and keeping music on their devices, they use music streaming services. Besides, iPhones and other cell phones can do everything that an iPod can do. (by Prof. Douglas Jarrell)
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2022年1月6日「モバイル英語学習」第724号 (英語エッセイ): Toyota Outsells GM

Notes
GM ゼネラルモーターズ(英語: General Motors Company)は、アメリカ合衆国の自動車メーカーである。本社はミシガン州デトロイト;
outsell より多く売れる;
semiconductor chips 半導体チップ;
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Last year, Toyota became the largest car seller in the United States. This is big news because GM had been the largest seller of cars and trucks in America every year since 1931. How did Toyota outsell GM? First of all, Toyota produces many kinds of hybrid cars, and these cars became more popular in 2021 as the price of gasoline went up. Hybrid cars are cheaper to run than regular cars because they use less gasoline. Another reason is that GM couldn’t get enough semiconductor chips to make its cars. Many parts of cars need these chips. GM had more problems than Toyota getting chips and couldn’t make as many cars as it wanted to sell. (by Prof. Douglas Jarrell)
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