NPR 2008-07-18

The Food and Drug Administration has lifted its warning on eating fresh tomatoes. Officials say the salmonella outbreak is still ongoing¹, but varieties of tomatoes on the market now have been given the all-clear. NPR's Allison Aubrey reports.

 FDA officials say farms producing tomatoes that may have led to illnesses early on in the salmonella outbreak are no longer harvesting or shipping² product. Therefore, they say consumers may eat all types of tomatoes they find in their local grocery stores. The warnings on fresh jalapeno and serrano peppers, however, remain in place, as does the investigation³ into the source of the bacteria. The FDA has dispatched a team to Mexico to investigate one packing facility that handles both jalapeno and serrano peppers. CDC officials say the intensity⁴ of the outbreak appears to be waning⁵ with the trend towards a decrease in the number of cases being reported. A total of 1,200 people have gotten sick since the outbreak began in mid-April. And more than 200 have been hospitalized. Allison Aubrey, NPR News, Washington.

 Mourners today buried the second of two Israeli soldiers whose bodies were returned in a  prisoner exchange with Lebanon. The casket of the soldier was draped with a blue and white Israeli flag in a military cemetery⁶ at Haifa. Meanwhile, Israel, in exchange for the soldiers, returned the remains⁷ of some 200 captured Arab fighters. NPR's Ivan Watson has more from Beirut.

 Thousands of people are lining⁸ the streets here at the gateway⁹ to Beirut, throwing rice and flowers at passing trucks loaded with scores of flag-draped coffins¹⁰. These contain the bodies of Lebanese and Palestinian fighters, uh, who were handed over by Israel as part of a prisoner exchange this week. The bodies are receiving a hero's welcome, the crowd here are waving the flags of Lebanon and of, uh, the Palestinian flag and of numerous Palestinian parties which were once much stronger in the 1970s and 80s, which now have a fraction of the strength that they had in earlier days. NPR's Ivan Watson in Beirut, Lebanon.

Former Attorney General John Ashcroft testifying before members of  Congress today disavowed the now-defunct legal reasoning used to justify¹¹ interrogation techniques of terrorism suspects critics have described as harsh. However, in his first testimony¹² under oath since leaving office three years ago, he defended the White House. Ashcroft told members of the House Judiciary Committee he also does not consider waterboarding, at least as described by intelligence officials, to be torture. “As described by the CIA's interrogation methods that waterboarding did not constitute torture, I think those are valid¹³ conclusions. I don’t think I could under oath say that I've never had a second thought about it.” Ashcroft also told lawmakers he believes interrogators who follow the Justice Department’s guidelines in good faith can not be prosecuted¹⁴.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 207 points, closing at 11,446. The S&P 500 was up.

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Officials in Texas today have signed off on what will be the nation's largest wind power project. Government officials in the Lone¹⁵ Star State giving the preliminary nod to a plan that would call for the construction of billions of dollars worth of new transmission lines that would transport wind-generated electricity from West Texas to urban areas of the state. Electric customers in the state are expected to bear much of the cost of the 4.9-billion-dollar project, paying about four billion dollars or four dollars more a month on their electric bills. Texas already generates around 5,000 mega-watts of electricity using wind power, that's more than any other state.

 The pilots union for US Airways¹⁶ has filed complaints with the Federal Aviation Administration, accusing the airline of pressuring pilots to use less fuel than they feel is safe in order to save money. Arizona Public Radio's Gillian Ferris Kohl reports.

 Eight pilots who requested an extra 10 to 15 minutes’ worth of fuel were sent to training sessions. Some pilots say this was a punitive¹⁷ action that could put their licenses¹⁸ in jeopardy¹⁹. US Airways has been trying to cut expenses because of the rising cost of jet fuel. But pilots and their union say carrying less fuel is not the answer. FAA regulations require aircraft to carry enough fuel to reach their destination and an alternate destination plus an extra 45 minutes’ worth of fuel. An FAA spokeswoman says the agency has been monitoring reports of minimum fuel loads, but so far sees no violation²⁰ of regulations by US Airways. The US Airways pilots union took out a full page ad this week in USA Today. It accuses the airline of, what it calls, “a program of intimidation²¹ to pressure pilots to reduce fuel loads”. For NPR New, I'm Gillian Ferris Kohl in Flagstaff.

1 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

2 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

3 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

4 intensity   

n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度

参考例句：

• I didn't realize the intensity of people's feelings on this issue.我没有意识到这一问题能引起群情激奋。
• The strike is growing in intensity.罢工日益加剧。

5 waning   

adj.（月亮）渐亏的，逐渐减弱或变小的n.月亏v.衰落( wane的现在分词 )；（月）亏；变小；变暗淡

参考例句：

• Her enthusiasm for the whole idea was waning rapidly. 她对整个想法的热情迅速冷淡了下来。
• The day is waning and the road is ending. 日暮途穷。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

6 cemetery   

n.坟墓，墓地，坟场

参考例句：

• He was buried in the cemetery.他被葬在公墓。
• His remains were interred in the cemetery.他的遗体葬在墓地。

7 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

8 lining   

n.衬里，衬料

参考例句：

• The lining of my coat is torn.我的外套衬里破了。
• Moss makes an attractive lining to wire baskets.用苔藓垫在铁丝篮里很漂亮。

9 gateway   

n.大门口，出入口，途径，方法

参考例句：

• Hard work is the gateway to success.努力工作是通往成功之路。
• A man collected tolls at the gateway.一个人在大门口收通行费。

10 coffins   

n.棺材( coffin的名词复数 )；使某人早亡[死，完蛋，垮台等]之物

参考例句：

• The shop was close and hot, and the atmosphere seemed tainted with the smell of coffins. 店堂里相当闷热，空气仿佛被棺木的味儿污染了。 来自辞典例句
• Donate some coffins to the temple, equal to the number of deaths. 到寺庙里，捐赠棺材盒给这些死者吧。 来自电影对白

11 justify   

vt.证明…正当(或有理)，为…辩护

参考例句：

• He tried to justify his absence with lame excuses.他想用站不住脚的借口为自己的缺席辩解。
• Can you justify your rude behavior to me?你能向我证明你的粗野行为是有道理的吗？

12 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

13 valid   

adj.有确实根据的；有效的；正当的，合法的

参考例句：

• His claim to own the house is valid.他主张对此屋的所有权有效。
• Do you have valid reasons for your absence?你的缺席有正当理由吗？

14 prosecuted   

a.被起诉的

参考例句：

• The editors are being prosecuted for obscenity. 编辑因刊载污秽文字而被起诉。
• The company was prosecuted for breaching the Health and Safety Act. 这家公司被控违反《卫生安全条例》。

15 lone   

adj.孤寂的，单独的；唯一的

参考例句：

• A lone sea gull flew across the sky.一只孤独的海鸥在空中飞过。
• She could see a lone figure on the deserted beach.她在空旷的海滩上能看到一个孤独的身影。

16 AIRWAYS   

航空公司

参考例句：

• The giant jets that increasingly dominate the world's airways. 越来越称雄于世界航线的巨型喷气机。
• At one point the company bought from Nippon Airways a 727 jet. 有一次公司从日本航空公司买了一架727型喷气机。

17 punitive   

adj.惩罚的，刑罚的

参考例句：

• They took punitive measures against the whole gang.他们对整帮人采取惩罚性措施。
• The punitive tariff was imposed to discourage tire imports from China.该惩罚性关税的征收是用以限制中国轮胎进口的措施。

18 licenses   

n.执照( license的名词复数 )v.批准，许可，颁发执照( license的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Drivers have ten days' grace to renew their licenses. 驾驶员更换执照有10天的宽限期。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Jewish firms couldn't get import or export licenses or raw materials. 犹太人的企业得不到进出口许可证或原料。 来自辞典例句

19 jeopardy   

n.危险；危难

参考例句：

• His foolish behaviour may put his whole future in jeopardy.他愚蠢的行为可能毁了他一生的前程。
• It is precisely at this juncture that the boss finds himself in double jeopardy.恰恰在这个关键时刻，上司发现自己处于进退两难的境地。

20 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。

21 intimidation   

n.恐吓，威胁

参考例句：

• The Opposition alleged voter intimidation by the army.反对党声称投票者受到军方的恐吓。
• The gang silenced witnesses by intimidation.恶帮用恐吓的手段使得证人不敢说话。