NPR 2008-04-11

American Airlines which for a third straight day cancelled hundreds of flights as it carries out inspections¹ of its MD-80 jetliners said today it hopes to be able to resume normal operations by the weekend. So far, the nation’s largest airline has to scrub upwards² of 2500 flights after grounding nearly its entire stable of medium-range jets to inspect wiring on the airplanes. Richard Aboulafia is an airline industry analyst³ at the Teal group. He says while the latest incident is likely to hurt the airline in the near term. He says longer term, it’s tough to say what kind of effect it will have. “I think their finances and image will be hurt by this, but, at the end of the day, they’re still a big network carrier. And it’s very difficult to actually fatally damage a big network carrier.” Spokesman for American Airlines says another 930 flights had to be cancelled today. Several other airlines including Alaska and Midwest Airlines have also cancelled flights for inspections.

The problems with the American Airlines’ jets continue to leave travellers scrambling⁴ for other arrangements. From KUT in Austin, Crystal Chavez reports thousands of passengers have been inconvenienced.

More than 20 American flights in and out of the Austin Bergstrom International Airport were cancelled today. The airport is quieter than it was Wednesday. Some folks were put up in hotels; others were rebooked, then rerouted. Jim Halbrook is an airport spokesman. He says American Airlines’ efforts to accommodate customers is giving other airlines some business. “By booking them on other airlines, they’ve also done this to the point of busing a couple of hundred people to Dallas and Houston so that they can catch flights on the other airlines from those cities’ airports.” Despite some cancellations, American Airlines does have some MD-80 planes operating out of Austin’s airport. Company officials say cancellations could extend into Saturday. For NPR News, I’m Crystal Chavez, in Austin.

The Senate today approved a housing bill aimed at stimulating⁵ purchases of foreclosed-upon homes and boosting the housing industry. The measure faces certain changes in the House, however. NPR’s Brian Naylor reports.

The bill was approved by an 84-12 vote. It gives tax credits to people who buy foreclosed homes, but the biggest beneficiaries would be home builders who would receive billions of dollars in tax breaks. The House is taking a different approach and will consider a bill targeting first-time home buyers and one to give people at risk of foreclosure a chance to refinance their loans with goverenment-backed mortgages. Senate Majority Leader Harry⁶ Reid said the Senate-passed bill was just the beginning of the process and that he expected Congress and the White House could reach agreement on legislation fairly quickly. Brian Naylor, NPR News, the Capitol.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 54 points today to close at 12,581. The NASDAQ gained 29 points. The S&P 500 was up 6 points.

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Facing higher gas prices and a slower economy, US consumers handed retailers⁸ their worst March in more than a decade. According to an industry trade group, sales at the nation’s chain stores were up just a scant⁹ half a percent last month. Only a couple of major discounters, Wal-mart and Costco weighed in with stronger-than-expected sales numbers. Britt Beamer is a retail⁷ analyst at America’s Research Group. He says consumers are becoming increasingly strapped¹⁰. “Basically, consumers are only shopping for what they have to buy. And when they are gaining their income tax refund¹¹ checks, virtually, all the money is going to pay off credit card debts and bills, and virtually none of that is going to retail spending.” Analysts¹² also noted¹³ in addition to a weaker economy and falling home prices, March also featured colder-than-normal weather and an early Easter.

A spring blizzard¹⁴ forced the Colorado Rockies to cancel a baseball game scheduled for today. The storm has also made travel difficult around the region. From Denver, NPR’s Jeff Brady reports.

The Rockies was scheduled to play against the Atlanta Braves, but with several inches of snow on the field, the game has been postponed¹⁵ to June 16th. A spokeswoman for the Rockies says getting snowed-out is pretty unusual, but it did happen three years ago. The blizzard closed a 150-mile stretch of freeway in southern Wyoming and made commutes¹⁶ dangerous. About five inches of snow is expected in Denver. More typical spring weather will return, though. Forecasters say the sun will be back Friday, and this weekend, temperatures could reach near 70 degrees. Jeff Brady, NPR News, Denver.

Claims for first-time jobless benefits fell by 53,000 last week to 357,000. A number of analysts said the drop in claims may be more of an anomaly than anything else. They cite the fact that so-called four-week moving average rose to its highest level since October of 2005.

1 inspections   

n.检查( inspection的名词复数 )；检验；视察；检阅

参考例句：

• Regular inspections are carried out at the prison. 经常有人来视察这座监狱。
• Government inspections ensure a high degree of uniformity in the standard of service. 政府检查确保了在服务标准方面的高度一致。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 upwards   

adv.向上，在更高处...以上

参考例句：

• The trend of prices is still upwards.物价的趋向是仍在上涨。
• The smoke rose straight upwards.烟一直向上升。

3 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

4 scrambling   

v.快速爬行( scramble的现在分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞

参考例句：

• Scrambling up her hair, she darted out of the house. 她匆忙扎起头发，冲出房去。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• She is scrambling eggs. 她正在炒蛋。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 stimulating   

adj.有启发性的，能激发人思考的

参考例句：

• shower gel containing plant extracts that have a stimulating effect on the skin 含有对皮肤有益的植物精华的沐浴凝胶
• This is a drug for stimulating nerves. 这是一种兴奋剂。

6 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

7 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

8 retailers   

零售商，零售店( retailer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
• Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。

9 scant   

adj.不充分的，不足的；v.减缩，限制，忽略

参考例句：

• Don't scant the butter when you make a cake.做糕饼时不要吝惜奶油。
• Many mothers pay scant attention to their own needs when their children are small.孩子们小的时候，许多母亲都忽视自己的需求。

10 strapped   

adj.用皮带捆住的，用皮带装饰的；身无分文的；缺钱；手头紧v.用皮带捆扎(strap的过去式和过去分词)；用皮带抽打；包扎；给…打绷带

参考例句：

• Make sure that the child is strapped tightly into the buggy. 一定要把孩子牢牢地拴在婴儿车上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The soldiers' great coats were strapped on their packs. 战士们的厚大衣扎捆在背包上。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 refund   

v.退还，偿还；n.归还，偿还额，退款

参考例句：

• They demand a refund on unsatisfactory goods.他们对不满意的货品要求退款。
• We'll refund your money if you aren't satisfied.你若不满意，我们愿意退款给你。

12 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

13 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

14 blizzard   

n.暴风雪

参考例句：

• The blizzard struck while we were still on the mountain.我们还在山上的时候暴风雪就袭来了。
• You'll have to stay here until the blizzard blows itself off.你得等暴风雪停了再走。

15 postponed   

vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发）

参考例句：

• The trial was postponed indefinitely. 审讯无限期延迟。
• The game has already been postponed three times. 这场比赛已经三度延期了。

16 commutes   

上下班路程( commute的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She commutes from Oxford to London every day. 她每天上下班往返于牛津与伦敦之间。
• Barbara lives in Oxford and commutes. 芭芭拉住在牛津，通勤往来。