NPR 2009-02-14

The economic stimulus¹ package is moving toward  final passage. The House voted 246 to 187 today to pass the 787-billion-dollar bill. NPR's Audie Cornish reports from the Capitol.

The House passed the stimulus plan a little more than three weeks after President Obama called for such action in his inaugural² address. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi praised Mr. Obama for his leadership on the issue. "It is a day for us to feel some sense of satisfaction that，working together under our new president, we were able to pass legislation today that is transformational for what it will do to our economy." The bill includes the president's signature measure, providing a payroll³ tax credit of 400 dollars per person. Despite President Obama's pleas for bipartisanship, not one Republican supported the bill. Audie Cornish, NPR News, the Capitol.

Senate lawmakers are exited to begin voting on the measure tonight. It then  goes to President Barack Obama for his signature.

Federal investigators⁵ looking into last night's crash of a commuter⁶ plane near Buffalo⁷ now say the black box recorders recovered from the wreckage⁸ showed violent pitching almost immediately after the aircraft's flaps were put down for  landing. Steve Chealander is an investigator⁴ with the National Transportation Safety Board. "They saw icing on the windshield and the leading edge of the wings, because you can look out the window, look back at your wings. That's how they saw that. And right after that, significant pitch and roll, severe pitch and roll is what, is words that were ever used." The plane crashed into a house and exploded into flames, killing⁹ all 49 people aboard plus another person on the ground. The investigators have been focusing on what role weather played in the crash since there was light snow and fog at the time the plane was making its approach. The aircraft was a relatively¹⁰ new Bombardier Air Dash 8. It was only registered last April.

As investigators continue to try to determine what caused flight 3407 to crash last night, representatives from Continental¹¹ Airline will be meeting today with families of those aboard the airplane. NPR's Robert Smith has more on that story.

Throughout the night, families and friends of those who were killed arrived at the Buffalo Niagara Airport. They were taken to a senior citizens center nearby where counselors¹² were on hand. There is no list yet of the victims but details have been released about the four-person crew. Captain Marvin Renslow had been with the operator of the flight Colgan Air for three years. The first officer Rebecca Shaw had logged more than 2, 000 hours of flight time with the carrier. There were two flight attendants and an off-duty pilot also on the plane. One confirmed person on the plane was Beverly Eckert, a 911 widow and activist¹³. Last week she met with President Obama about handling terrorist suspects. Robert Smith, NPR News, New York.

Peanut Corp. of America, the company linked to a nationwide salmonella scare that has claimed at least nine lives and left more than 600 others sickened has filed for Federal bankruptcy¹⁴ protection. Nationwide outbreak was traced to one of the company's plants in Georgia. Second plant in Texas was shut down this week.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial Average fell 82 points today.

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Witnesses in Baghdad say it was a scene of panic fear and grief after a suicide bomber¹⁵ detonated an explosive device inside a tent filled with women and children on a pilgrimage to a Shiite city south of Baghdad. According to Iraqi officials, at least 40 people were killed and more than 60 others were wounded. The attack by a female suicide bomber is the deadliest to occur in Iraq so far this year. And the third straight day of bombings targeted at Shiite pilgrims came despite what's described as heavy security along the pilgrimage route.

Supreme¹⁶ Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was released from a hospital today, eight days after undergoing surgery for pancreatic cancer. NPR's Nina Totenberg has more on Ginsburg's prognosis.

The justice returned home today with good news, her cancer was diagnosed as stage one with the most favorable prognosis. According to the court, doctors found no cancer in any lymph nodes and no metastasis. Amazingly, the tiny one centimeter tumor¹⁷ originally found in a routine screening earlier this month turned out to be benign¹⁸. But surgeon Murray Brennan in an exploring of pancreas did find an even tinier lesion that was cancer. As a result, doctors removed part of Justice Ginsburg's pancreas and her spleen. She was released from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Hospital today in New York and is now recuperating¹⁹ at her Washington DC apartment. She said she plans to be back on the bench when court reconvenes for arguments February 23. Nina Totenberg, NPR News, Washington.

Satellite radio company Sirius XM said today it has been able to refinance some of its outstanding debt. But it said unless it can also get additional refinancing, it may have to file for bankruptcy protection as early as next week. Sirius says it was able to exchange around 172.5 million worth of senior notes.

1 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。

2 inaugural   

adj.就职的；n.就职典礼

参考例句：

• We listened to the President's inaugural speech on the radio yesterday.昨天我们通过无线电听了总统的就职演说。
• Professor Pearson gave the inaugural lecture in the new lecture theatre.皮尔逊教授在新的阶梯讲堂发表了启用演说。

3 payroll   

n.工资表，在职人员名单，工薪总额

参考例句：

• His yearly payroll is $1.2 million.他的年薪是120万美元。
• I can't wait to get my payroll check.我真等不及拿到我的工资单了。

4 investigator   

n.研究者，调查者，审查者

参考例句：

• He was a special investigator for the FBI.他是联邦调查局的特别调查员。
• The investigator was able to deduce the crime and find the criminal.调查者能够推出犯罪过程并锁定罪犯。

5 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 commuter   

n.(尤指市郊之间)乘公交车辆上下班者

参考例句：

• Police cordoned off the road and diverted commuter traffic. 警察封锁了道路并分流交通。
• She accidentally stepped on his foot on a crowded commuter train. 她在拥挤的通勤列车上不小心踩到了他的脚。

7 buffalo   

n.(北美)野牛；(亚洲)水牛

参考例句：

• Asian buffalo isn't as wild as that of America's. 亚洲水牛比美洲水牛温顺些。
• The boots are made of buffalo hide. 这双靴子是由水牛皮制成的。

8 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。

9 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

10 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

11 continental   

adj.大陆的，大陆性的，欧洲大陆的

参考例句：

• A continental climate is different from an insular one.大陆性气候不同于岛屿气候。
• The most ancient parts of the continental crust are 4000 million years old.大陆地壳最古老的部分有40亿年历史。

12 counselors   

n.顾问( counselor的名词复数 )；律师；（使馆等的）参赞；（协助学生解决问题的）指导老师

参考例句：

• Counselors began an inquiry into industrial needs. 顾问们开始调查工业方面的需要。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• We have experienced counselors available day and night. ) 这里有经验的法律顾问全天候值班。） 来自超越目标英语 第4册

13 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

14 bankruptcy   

n.破产；无偿付能力

参考例句：

• You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy.如果你想避免破产，就必须节省开支。
• His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy.他的商号正面临破产的危险。

15 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

16 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

17 tumor   

n.（肿）瘤，肿块(英)tumour

参考例句：

• He was died of a malignant tumor.他死于恶性肿瘤。
• The surgeons irradiated the tumor.外科医生用X射线照射那个肿瘤。

18 benign   

adj.善良的，慈祥的；良性的，无危险的

参考例句：

• The benign weather brought North America a bumper crop.温和的气候给北美带来大丰收。
• Martha is a benign old lady.玛莎是个仁慈的老妇人。

19 recuperating   

v.恢复（健康、体力等），复原( recuperate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He's still recuperating from his operation. 他动了手术，还在恢复。
• He is recuperating from a serious back injury. 他背部受了重伤，目前正在康复中。 来自辞典例句