Welcome to Spotlight. I’m Joshua Leo.

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　　And I’m Liz Waid. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

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　　Maru is a popular international star. He lives in Japan. But people all over the world know him. Every day, millions of people watch his short films, or videos, on the internet. They watch Maru play. They watch him explore his environment. They watch as he discovers new things. But there is something about Maru that may surprise you. He is a cat.

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　　If you have ever used the internet, you may have noticed that there are a lot of cats. Other people have noticed this too. In fact, experts have even studied it! People love sharing pictures and videos of their cats. And people love seeing and watching them too! But why is that? Today’s Spotlight is on cats on the internet.

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　　Cats have been interesting to people for a long time. In many different cultures, people believed cats were full of mystery. In ancient stories from Egypt and Greece, goddesses took the form of cats. Later, in other parts of Europe, cats began to represent something else. Some people said that cats represented the devil. But cats also lived with people as pets. Today, cats are a very popular pet. In fact, Scientific American magazine says there are more than 600,000,000 cats living with humans worldwide.

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　　But how did cats go from pets to internet stars? As early as 1870, people took pictures of their cats. The old pictures show cats doing normal things. Sometimes the pictures even include signs with words on them. Some were even supposed to be funny! These were very similar to the kinds of silly cat pictures on the internet now. But the first cats to appear on the computer appeared in the early 1990s. People shared pictures of their cats on an early form of the internet. They talked with each other about the best way to care for cats. Then, in the late 1990s, blogs began appearing on the internet. Using blogs, people could write more about their cats, and even share videos. Some websites even devoted whole days to posting cute or funny pictures of cats. People shared more and more pictures and videos of cats.

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　　Today there are many famous internet cats. Some cats are famous for their videos and websites. These are cats like Maru, the cat from the beginning of this program. The woman who owns Maru puts new videos on youtube often. People visit his website or youtube to see what Maru is doing. People can buy things from Maru too like shirts and cups. He even has three books written about him. Another famous cat is called “Grumpy Cat”. Grumpy cat looks as if she is angry, or grumpy all the time. Grumpy cat usually appears in pictures.

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　　Pictures are a popular way cats exist on the internet. Some are memes, like Grumpy Cat. People share these memes over the internet. These cat picture memes often show a cat in a strange or funny position. They often include funny words. They use wrong words or letters as if the cat is speaking in a strange form of English.

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　　One of the most famous cat memes is called “I can has cheezburger?”. In this picture, there is a fuzzy gray cat. Its eyes and mouth are all open wide. A person has used a computer program to write the words “I can has cheezburger?” at the top of the picture. The picture is cute. But it is also funny. The cat looks as if he is asking for a cheeseburger! This picture was the first on a website about cat memes. This website is even called “I can has cheezburger”. This website began as a place to share cat memes. Ben Huh bought the small website in 2007, with a group of investors. But today, it is part of a group of sites. He earns millions of dollars every year managing them.

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　　But even just making and sharing cat videos and memes on the internet can be a full-time job. In 2006, William Braden was in film school in the United States. He needed to produce a film for his final project. He chose to make a film about his black and white cat Henry. He made the film in a traditional French style. A voice on the video says Henry’s thoughts in the French language. Today, Braden makes Henry videos and manages his cat’s projects as his job.

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　　Braden knows that this job sounds silly. But he uses some of the money to give back to cats. He donates some of the money he earns to cats living in shelters. These shelters help cats whose owners have hurt them, or cats who do not have homes. They can use the money to buy cat food and supplies, and to pay for adoption fees.

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　　But why do people on the internet like cats so much? How can websites like these be successful? Some experts believe that cats amaze us. Often, it is very difficult to train a cat. So, when people see a cat do something amazing, they know it did the trick without training.

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　　Or are cats popular because they are funny? Laura Miller is a writer for the magazine Salon. She suggests that cats always seem dignified and important. They look as if they think they are better than everyone else. So, when we see a cat in a funny position, we think the cat is getting what it deserves. It is becoming less important. That can be very funny to people.

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　　Or maybe people just love seeing cats on the internet because cats are cute. Michael Newall is a philosopher of art at the University of Kent. He thinks cats make people think of small babies. So, seeing funny and cute pictures of cats makes people react strongly.

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　　We may never know the answer. But we do know one thing. Cats will be on the internet for a long time. Matt Smith produces videos and pictures for the internet. He explains why he thinks there will always be more cats on the internet.

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　　“There are also almost always more pictures of cats. There is a lot of video of cats because so many people have cats. That means there is a lot of basic material for meme creation.”

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　　What about you? Do you watch cat videos on the internet? Do you enjoy cat memes? Which ones are your favourites? Tell us your thoughts about cats on the internet. Write to us at radio @ radioenglish . net. Or leave a comment on the script page of this program.

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　　The writer of this program was Liz Waid. The producer was Michio Ozaki. The voices you heard were from the United States and the United Kingdom. All quotes were adapted for this program and voiced by Spotlight. You can listen to this program again, and read it, on the internet at http://www.radioenglish.net This .program is called, ‘Cats on the Internet’.

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　　You can also find us on Facebook - just search for Spotlight Radio. We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program. Goodbye.