CET-4 Listening Practice: A Cashless Canteen and Smartphone Lessons

Good afternoon, and welcome to the lunchtime news.

Our first story is about a university canteen that no longer takes cash.

Since September, students at Hillside University have paid for meals by phone or with their student card.

The canteen says lunchtime queues now move twice as fast as before.

However, some students complained at first, because their phones sometimes ran out of battery.

So the canteen added charging points, and student cards are always accepted.

But the bigger change is about food waste.

Last year, the canteen threw away about three hundred kilograms of food every week.

Now main dishes come in smaller portions, and second helpings are free.

At the salad bar, students pay by weight, so they only take what they need.

Any leftovers are collected each evening and sent to a nearby farm to feed pigs.

After just two months, food waste has already fallen by almost half!

The university plans to try the same ideas in its other two canteens next term.

Now for our second story, from a community centre across town.

Thank you. Every Saturday morning, this hall is full of smartphones and laughter.

About thirty university students volunteer here to help older residents with their phones.

Most learners are over seventy, and many had never used a smartphone before.

The first thing everyone wants to learn is how to make a video call.

Last week, one grandmother saw her new baby grandson on a video call for the first time!

Next, the volunteers show them how to book a doctor's appointment on their phone.

Before, many of them waited in long lines at the hospital early in the morning.

However, the most important lesson is how to avoid scams.

Last year, local police received over five hundred reports of phone scams against older people.

So the students teach one simple rule: never share a password with anyone.

The volunteers say they have learned a lot too, especially how to be patient.

The centre now hopes to start a second class on Sunday afternoons.

That's all for today's lunchtime news.

Thank you for listening, and have a lovely afternoon.