NPR 2009-10-04

Finance ministers from the US and the rest of the G7 wealthiest nations meeting in Istanbul say the global economy is growing again, but the recovery remains¹ fragile, threatened in part by rising unemployment. Treasury² Secretary Timothy Geithner says it's too soon to back off the stimulus³ measures enacted⁴ in the US. President Obama says healthcare overhaul⁵ legislation being considered in Congress will help boost employment in the US by making small business start-ups more feasible.

"Rising healthcare costs are undermining our businesses, exploding our deficits⁶, and costing our nation more jobs with each passing month. So we know that reforming our health insurance system will be a critical step in rebuilding our economy, so that our entrepreneurs can pursue the American dream again."  
Mr. Obama in his weekly radio and internet address today.

Administration officials say the White House is looking at steps to provide more help for jobless Americans, including a possible further extension of unemployment benefits.

Rescue crews are reaching more remote communities in Indonesia that were covered by landslides⁷ triggered by the powerful earthquake that hit there this week. The quake has been blamed for more than 700 deaths. Ann Dwane Felda reports from Padang.  
   
Rescuers got words Saturday there’s a text message that arrived from a victim trapped in the Padang Hotel, saying there’re survivors⁸ under the flattened⁹ building. More than a dozen international search and rescue teams are trying to reach victims throughout western Sumatra, but there is little fuel for vehicles and heavy machinery¹⁰ that pull people from the wreckage¹¹. The magnitude 7.6 quake leveled hundreds of buildings in the provincial¹² capital of Padang. Power is still out here and there is little running water. At the city’s main hospital, reports are the doctors don't have water to wash their instruments and patients rely on donations of bottled water. Aid efforts are extending at the coastal¹³ villages where as many as 80% of all homes were destroyed. Aid groups are distributing emergency kits¹⁴, including tarps and serum¹⁵. But so many roads are blocked by landslides that access is limited. For NPR News, I’m Ann Dwane Felda in Padang, Indonesia.

Voters in Ireland have overwhelmingly approved the European Union's reform treaty. NPR's Rob Gifford reports.

You can almost hear the sighs of relief in Brussels, as it was announced that Ireland have voted in favor of the Lisbon Treaty, a huge legal document described by some as an EU constitution, designed to strengthen a modernized¹⁶ European Union. The Irish were the last of the EU's 27 nations to ratify¹⁷ the treaty and had stunned¹⁸ Brussels last year by rejecting it, amid fears that the treaty would force neutral Ireland to raise its business taxes, join the European army, and legalize abortion¹⁹. Having received assurances on all these issues, the second vote also came as a relief to the embattled government of Prime Minister Brian Cowen. Observers attributed the turnaround to the unraveling of Ireland's long booming economy. Analysts²⁰ say voters seemed to see the EU as a source of economic stability and support in difficult times.

This is NPR News.

The head of the UN's Nuclear Monitoring Agency has arrived in Iran to arrange an inspection²¹ of that country's newly revealed uranium enrichment facility. President Obama and the leaders of Britain and France have accused Iran of keeping construction of that facility secret for years. But Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad today said Mr. Obama had made, in his words, a big and historic mistake by making that accusation²², which, Ahmadinejad said, was baseless.

Chicago teenager Derrion Albert, whose fatal beating was caught on cell-phone video, was lay to rest today as the Obama administration is preparing to launch an initiative to combat school violence. NPR's Allison Keyes has the story.

The 16-year old was beaten to death by a group of teens. Seen on a cell-phone video kicking and hitting Albert with railroad ties just blocks from a school, four teens have been charged. The video drew national attention and outrage²³. Pamela Bosley, who lost her son Terrell Bosley three years ago, told WBBM Radio the funeral was a tough place to be.

“This was the hardest thing to see another baby lying in a casket. Here we are; here gives a day. It has got to stop. “

President Obama and the first lady are Chicagoans. His administration has dispatched US Attorney General Eric Holder²⁴ and Education Secretary Arne Duncan to the city for meetings about school violence. But Albert’s great aunt, Rose Braxton, has said the spotlight²⁵ on the case isn't giving her family any comfort. Allison Keyes, NPR News.

A fire that began as a controlled burn has got out of hand in Arizona and has nearly doubled in size, thanks to gusty²⁶ winds. Now more than 60 homes in the northern part of the state are threatened by the flames.

 

1 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。

2 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。

3 stimulus   

n.刺激，刺激物，促进因素，引起兴奋的事物

参考例句：

• Regard each failure as a stimulus to further efforts.把每次失利看成对进一步努力的激励。
• Light is a stimulus to growth in plants.光是促进植物生长的一个因素。

4 enacted   

制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• legislation enacted by parliament 由议会通过的法律
• Outside in the little lobby another scene was begin enacted. 外面的小休息室里又是另一番景象。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

5 overhaul   

v./n.大修，仔细检查

参考例句：

• Master Worker Wang is responsible for the overhaul of this grinder.王师傅主修这台磨床。
• It is generally appreciated that the rail network needs a complete overhaul.众所周知，铁路系统需要大检修。

6 deficits   

n.不足额( deficit的名词复数 )；赤字；亏空；亏损

参考例句：

• The Ministry of Finance consistently overestimated its budget deficits. 财政部一贯高估预算赤字。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Many of the world's farmers are also incurring economic deficits. 世界上许多农民还在遭受经济上的亏损。 来自辞典例句

7 landslides   

山崩( landslide的名词复数 )； （山坡、悬崖等的）崩塌； 滑坡； （竞选中）一方选票占压倒性多数

参考例句：

• Landslides have cut off many villages in remote areas. 滑坡使边远地区的许多村庄与外界隔绝。
• The storm caused landslides and flooding in Savona. 风暴致使萨沃纳发生塌方和洪灾。

8 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

9 flattened   

[医]（水）平扁的，弄平的

参考例句：

• She flattened her nose and lips against the window. 她把鼻子和嘴唇紧贴着窗户。
• I flattened myself against the wall to let them pass. 我身体紧靠着墙让他们通过。

10 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。

11 wreckage   

n.（失事飞机等的）残骸，破坏，毁坏

参考例句：

• They hauled him clear of the wreckage.他们把他从形骸中拖出来。
• New states were born out of the wreckage of old colonial empires.新生国家从老殖民帝国的废墟中诞生。

12 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。

13 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

14 kits   

衣物和装备( kit的名词复数 )； 成套用品； 配套元件

参考例句：

• Keep your kits closed and locked when not in use. 不用的话把你的装备都锁好放好。
• Gifts Articles, Toy and Games, Wooden Toys, Puzzles, Craft Kits. 采购产品礼品，玩具和游戏，木制的玩具，智力玩具，手艺装备。

15 serum   

n.浆液，血清，乳浆

参考例句：

• The serum is available to the general public.一般公众均可获得血清。
• Untreated serum contains a set of 11 proteins called complement.未经处理的血清含有一组蛋白质，共11种，称为补体。

16 modernized   

使现代化，使适应现代需要( modernize的过去式和过去分词 )； 现代化，使用现代方法

参考例句：

• By 1985 the entire railway network will have been modernized. 等到1985年整个铁路网就实现现代化了。
• He set about rebuilding France, and made it into a brilliant-looking modernized imperialism. 他试图重建法国，使它成为一项表面华丽的现代化帝业。

17 ratify   

v.批准，认可，追认

参考例句：

• The heads of two governments met to ratify the peace treaty.两国政府首脑会晤批准和平条约。
• The agreement have to be ratify by the board.该协议必须由董事会批准。

18 stunned   

adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The fall stunned me for a moment. 那一下摔得我昏迷了片刻。
• The leaders of the Kopper Company were then stunned speechless. 科伯公司的领导们当时被惊得目瞪口呆。

19 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

20 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。

21 inspection   

n.检查，审查，检阅

参考例句：

• On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。
• The soldiers lined up for their daily inspection by their officers.士兵们列队接受军官的日常检阅。

22 accusation   

n.控告，指责，谴责

参考例句：

• I was furious at his making such an accusation.我对他的这种责备非常气愤。
• She knew that no one would believe her accusation.她知道没人会相信她的指控。

23 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

24 holder   

n.持有者，占有者；(台，架等)支持物

参考例句：

• The holder of the office of chairman is reponsible for arranging meetings.担任主席职位的人负责安排会议。
• That runner is the holder of the world record for the hundred-yard dash.那位运动员是一百码赛跑世界纪录的保持者。

25 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

26 gusty   

adj.起大风的

参考例句：

• Weather forecasts predict more hot weather,gusty winds and lightning strikes.天气预报预测高温、大风和雷电天气将继续。
• Why was Candlestick Park so windy and gusty? 埃德尔斯蒂克公园里为什么会有那么多的强劲阵风？