Welcome to Learning English, a daily 30-minute program from the Voice of America.

I'm Katie Weaver.

And I'm Mario Ritter, Jr.

This program is designed for English learners, so we speak a little slower and we use words and phrases, especially written, for people learning English.

Coming up on the show, California officials have declared a state of emergency over the spread of bird flu.

It is affecting milk cows in that state and causing sickness in some people in other U.S. states. The avian influenza virus or bird flu has spread among

wild birds, farm birds, and many mammal species. Anna Mateo reports on the situation with the virus for this week's health and lifestyle report.

We close the show with The Lesson of the Day from Jill Robbins and Andrew Smith.

But first, former American president Jimmy Carter died December 29th at the age of 100.

His presidency was marked by rising inflation and unemployment.

He helped negotiate a peace agreement between Egypt and Israel.

He returned the Panama Canal to Panama, recognized mainland China, and signed an arms

limitation agreement with the former Soviet Union.

He also faced what is now known as the Iran hostage crisis.

Here is Mario Ritter with a look back at the life of Jimmy Carter.

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter has died at the age of 100.

His presidency was marked by rising inflation and unemployment.

He helped negotiate a peace agreement between Egypt and Israel.

He returned the Panama Canal to the Central American country, recognized mainland China,

and signed an arms limitation agreement with the former Soviet Union.

However, in 1979, Iran took U.S. embassy workers hostage in Tehran.

The Iran hostage crisis dominated his final years in the White House and contributed to his defeat

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