NPR 2009-01-19

"This land is your land. This land is my land. From California to the New York Island." The sound of tens of thousands of people singing along with Pete Seeger and Bruce Springsteen at a concert this afternoon at the Lincoln Memorial. The concert featuring music and inspirational speeches, a dramatic prelude¹ to the inauguration² of President-elect Barack Obama. Mr. Obama told the crowd that the nation faces daunting³ challenges, and dealing⁴ with them will take more than a month or a year, and will likely take many years. "Along the way there will be setbacks and false starts and days that test our resolve as a nation. But despite all of this， despite the enormity of the task that lies ahead, I stand here today as hopeful as ever that the United States of America will endure that it will prevail, that the dream of our founders⁵ will live on in our time." Many in the crowd of the concert had waited for hours in the cold after standing⁶ patiently in long lines at security check points. Earlier today, Mr. Obama traveled to Arlington National Cemetery⁷, where he placed a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns and stood solemnly as a bugler⁸ sounded taps. Mr. Obama and his family also attended services at the Baptist Church in the nation's capital this morning.

Hamas has agreed to join a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, but only for a week unless Israel withdraws its military forces from the territory. The announcement came after Israel declared a unilateral ceasefire, ending an offensive that has left hundreds of Palestinians dead. Ten Israeli soldiers and three Israeli civilians⁹ were also killed. NPR's Anne Garrels has more from Jerusalem.

This morning, militants¹⁰ in Gaza launched several rockets into southern Israel in defiance¹¹ as Israel's announcement it would cease fire. There were no injuries. Israeli officials had anticipated there would be some attacks with Hamas wanting to have the last word on the ground. Israeli officials say the next few days will be critical in determining whether the ceasefire holds or not. While Hamas is demanding Israeli troops leave within a week, Israel has given no timetable for withdrawal¹². Israeli officials have said much depends on what the international community does to stop arms smuggling¹³ into Gaza through Egypt. And there is another issue which remains¹⁴ in dispute, when and how much Israel will open its border crossings into Gaza. Anne Garrels, NPR News, Jerusalem.

Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown is set to announce new steps to help banks in that country survive the credit crisis after a massive bailout last fall failed to jump-start lending in Britain. Banks receiving financial help will reportedly be required to pass the money on to borrowers.

This is NPR News from Washington.

The National Transportation Safety Board says an analysis of the flight data recorder from the US Airways¹⁵ jetliner that made an emergency landing in New York's Hudson River shows that both of the plane's engines lost power at the same time. The data and voice recorders were retrieved¹⁶ after the plane was hoisted¹⁷ out of the river late last night. Searchers are still looking for the plane's missing left jet engine.

Russia and Ukraine have reached an agreement to end their dispute over natural gas, a dispute that has left hundreds of thousands of Europeans enduring freezing temperatures without heat for almost two weeks now. NPR's Moscow correspondent Gregory Feifer reports.

Under intense pressure from the European Union, suffering its worst energy crisis, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin emerged from late-night negotiations¹⁸ with his Ukrainian counterpart Yulia Tymoshenko to say they'd settled the bitter price dispute disrupting gas deliveries to Europe. Putin said Ukraine had agreed to pay more than double what it paid for Russian gas last year, and would pay what European countries are charged next year. Tymoshenko said the two sides would draw up a contract for signing by Monday. Europe relies on Russian gas crossing Ukraine and was held hostage by what many saw as a political struggle between energy-rich Russia and pro-Western Ukraine. Gregory Feifer, NPR News, Moscow.

In the first of today's National Football League conference championship games, the Arizona Cardinals¹⁹ lead the Philadelphia Eagles 24-6. The winner goes to the Super Bowl to face either the Pittsburgh Steelers or the Baltimore Ravens²⁰ who play later today.

1 prelude   

n.序言，前兆，序曲

参考例句：

• The prelude to the musical composition is very long.这首乐曲的序曲很长。
• The German invasion of Poland was a prelude to World War II.德国入侵波兰是第二次世界大战的序幕。

2 inauguration   

n.开幕、就职典礼

参考例句：

• The inauguration of a President of the United States takes place on January 20.美国总统的就职典礼于一月二十日举行。
• Three celebrated tenors sang at the president's inauguration.3位著名的男高音歌手在总统就职仪式上演唱。

3 daunting   

adj.使人畏缩的

参考例句：

• They were faced with the daunting task of restoring the house.他们面临着修复房子的艰巨任务。
• Starting a new job can be a daunting prospect.开始一项新工作有时会让人望而却步。

4 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

5 founders   

n.创始人( founder的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He was one of the founders of the university's medical faculty. 他是该大学医学院的创建人之一。 来自辞典例句
• The founders of our religion made this a cornerstone of morality. 我们宗教的创始人把这看作是道德的基石。 来自辞典例句

6 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

7 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。

8 bugler   

喇叭手； 号兵； 吹鼓手； 司号员

参考例句：

• The general ordered the bugler to sound the retreat. 将军命令号手吹号收兵。
• There was nothing faded about the bugler under the cap. 帽子下面那个号手可一点也不是褪色的。

9 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

10 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

11 defiance   

n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗

参考例句：

• He climbed the ladder in defiance of the warning.他无视警告爬上了那架梯子。
• He slammed the door in a spirit of defiance.他以挑衅性的态度把门砰地一下关上。

12 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

13 smuggling   

n.走私

参考例句：

• Some claimed that the docker's union fronted for the smuggling ring.某些人声称码头工人工会是走私集团的掩护所。
• The evidence pointed to the existence of an international smuggling network.证据表明很可能有一个国际走私网络存在。

14 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。

15 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。

16 retrieved   

v.取回( retrieve的过去式和过去分词 )；恢复；寻回；检索（储存的信息）

参考例句：

• Yesterday I retrieved the bag I left in the train. 昨天我取回了遗留在火车上的包。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He reached over and retrieved his jacket from the back seat. 他伸手从后座上取回了自己的夹克。 来自辞典例句

17 hoisted   

把…吊起，升起( hoist的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He hoisted himself onto a high stool. 他抬身坐上了一张高凳子。
• The sailors hoisted the cargo onto the deck. 水手们把货物吊到甲板上。

18 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

19 cardinals   

红衣主教( cardinal的名词复数 )； 红衣凤头鸟（见于北美，雄鸟为鲜红色）； 基数

参考例句：

• cardinals in scarlet robes 身披红袍的枢机主教
• A conclave of cardinals was held to elect the new Pope. 红衣主教团举行了秘密会议来选举新教皇。

20 ravens   

n.低质煤；渡鸦( raven的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Wheresoever the carcase is,there will the ravens be gathered together. 哪里有死尸，哪里就有乌鸦麇集。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A couple of ravens croaked above our boat. 两只乌鸦在我们小船的上空嘎嘎叫着。 来自辞典例句