Notes :
equivalent: 同等のもの，相当物;
Marmite: 《商標》マーマイト（英国製の、イーストと野菜エキスのペースト；パンに塗ったり調味料にする）;
nutritious: 栄養のある，健康に良い;
bring up: ～を育てる;
extract: 抽出した物、エキス;
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Perhaps the least well-known of Japanese foods is natto. Everyone has heard of sushi, tempura, and wasabi but very few have heard of natto. This is probably for a very good reason: it tastes…well, it’s hard to describe. It is a food that many would describe as a “love it or hate it food”. Oddly enough, there is perhaps a foreign equivalent, a food that some people really love and others can’t stand. It is called Marmite. Like natto, Marmite is known for its very distinctive taste which can be described having a strong, slightly salty flavour. Like natto it is also very nutritious and many children in the UK are brought up on it. It contains yeast extract, salt, vegetable extract and vitamins: B1, B2. (by Prof. Simon Smith)
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Notes :
strike ～を襲う;
prediction 予言;
devastation 荒らすこと，荒廃（状態）;
day off 休日;
city［the city 集合的に］その市の（全）市民，住民;

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In 1923 Raffaele Bendandi predicted that on January 2, 1924, a major earthquake would strike Italy. He was wrong – by two days. It struck on January 4, killing 30,000 people.
Bendandi died in 1979 leaving many other predictions. One such prediction was for the 11th of May 2011, in Italy, in which he predicted total devastation. Because of this many Italians took a day off. On that day, however, no earthquake occurred and the city slept peacefully. In Spain on the same day however an earthquake hit a small town killing 9 people – it was the worst earthquake in forty years. (by Prof. Simon Smith)
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