NPR 2009-06-03

Brazilian officials are confirming that floating debris¹ spotted² earlier today in the water including what they say appears to be an airplane seat and an orange buoy³ are from missing Air France jetliner. Brazil's defense⁴ minister says a search plane today found a three-mile-long band of wreckage⁵ floating in the Atlantic. The plane with 228 people aboard including two Americans went missing Sunday. It's believed the aircraft ran into a wall of thunderstorms. US military was joining in the search for signs of the plane which disappeared off the coast of Brazil on Sunday. According to the US Southern Command, a navy reconnaissance plane is taking off to help Brazilian military pilots in their search.

Supreme⁶ Court nominee⁷ Sonia Sotomayor sped through a series of private meetings today on Capitol Hill with key Democratic and Republican senators. One issue the senators are still debating is how soon to begin formal confirmation⁸ hearings. More from NPR's David Welna.

President Obama wants the Senate's consideration of Judge Sotomayor finished by early August. But after meeting with her, Jeff Sessions, the Judiciary Committee's top Republican asked why the rush.

"I am not prepared to say that we can get it done before August, and so I will be meeting with Senator Leahy tomorrow. He's been, er, very open about talking about it, now I look forward to talking with him. But there is quite a record here." 

Sessions pointed⁹ to the need to review more than 3,600 court cases Sotomayor's taken part in during 17 years on the federal bench as well as an unknown number of her unpublished opinions. Senate majority leader Harry¹⁰ Reid who also met with the judge said he too thought setting arbitrary deadlines for her confirmation could end up causing problems. David Welna, NPR News, the Capitol.

President Obama leaves tonight on a trip he hopes to use to redefine the US relationship with the Muslim world. NPR's Michele Kelemen has details.

President Obama begins this trip in Saudi Arabia where he is to meet King Abdullah to talk about energy, the Arabic-Israeli conflict and Iran, but the highlight is likely to be the second stop, Egypt, where he will make a much anticipated speech. White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said it will be about resetting¹¹ relations with the Muslim world.

“We don't expect that everything will change after one speech. I think it will take a sustained effort, and that's what the president is in for.”

President Obama has been promising¹² the speech ever since the campaign and expectations are high that he'll offer some concrete ways to promote Middle East peace. Analysts¹³ say his choice of Cairo also puts pressure on the president to address concerns about human rights and democracy. Michele Kelemen, NPR News, Washington.

A closely watched pending¹⁴ home sales number for the month of April took a big bump-up, giving some reason for optimism: perhaps things in the housing market are turning around.  Index from the National Association of Realtors was up 6.7%, the biggest rise in almost eight years.

On Wall Street today, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 19 points. The NASDAQ was up eight points.

This is NPR.

A man who has been identified as a Muslim convert has pleaded guilty in the shooting death of an army private at an Arkansas military recruiting center. Official say Abdul Hakim Muhammad has been ordered held without bail¹⁵ after he entered the plea in connection with the shooting death of Private William Long and the wounding of a second man. The incident took place yesterday at a military recruiting center in Little Rock. Law enforcement officials say an FBI-led terrorism task force had been investigating Muhammad since his return to the US from Yemen. No decision has yet been made on whether to file federal charges in the case.

South Korean media are reporting that North Korea is pushing ahead to test fire  more missiles while its leader reportedly anointed his youngest son as heir to the country's 24 million people. From Seoul, Doualy Xaykaotha has more.

The Yonhap news agency and two major South Korean newspapers are reporting that North Korea's leader has chosen Kim Jong Un as the country's next leader. Scott Snyder with the Center for US-Korea Policy said the third son is designated.

"But at the same time, there is a structure that has been affirmed in the National Defense Commission that appears to be really playing a leading role and maybe what could be called a kind of collective leadership.”

He was speaking at a forum¹⁶ in Seoul on US and South Korean relations. Reportedly, Pyongyang is already calling the son "Commander Kim" in a new song lauding¹⁷ the 26-year-old. For NPR News, I'm Doualy Xaykaotha in Seoul.

Crude oil futures¹⁸ prices, after a recent strong run-up, settle back down somewhat today. Crude oil futures for July delivery closed down three cents a barrel to end the session at 68.55 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

I'm Jack¹⁹ Speer, NPR News in Washington.

 

1 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

2 spotted   

adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的

参考例句：

• The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
• Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。

3 buoy   

n.浮标；救生圈；v.支持，鼓励

参考例句：

• The party did little to buoy up her spirits.这次聚会并没有让她振作多少。
• The buoy floated back and forth in the shallow water.这个浮标在浅水里漂来漂去。

4 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

5 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。

6 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。

7 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

8 confirmation   

n.证实，确认，批准

参考例句：

• We are waiting for confirmation of the news.我们正在等待证实那个消息。
• We need confirmation in writing before we can send your order out.给你们发送订购的货物之前，我们需要书面确认。

9 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

10 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。

11 resetting   

v.重新安放或安置( reset的现在分词 )；重拨（测量仪器指针）；为（考试、测试等）出一套新题；重新安置，将…恢复原位

参考例句：

• Range represents the maximum strain which can be recorded without resetting or replacing the strain gage. 量程表示无需重调或重装应变计就能记录到的最大应变。 来自辞典例句
• Adding weight to the puddle jumper by resetting its inertial dampeners. 通过调节飞船的惯性装置来增加重量。 来自电影对白

12 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

13 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。

14 pending   

prep.直到，等待…期间；adj.待定的；迫近的

参考例句：

• The lawsuit is still pending in the state court.这案子仍在州法庭等待定夺。
• He knew my examination was pending.他知道我就要考试了。

15 bail   

v.舀（水），保释；n.保证金，保释，保释人

参考例句：

• One of the prisoner's friends offered to bail him out.犯人的一个朋友答应保释他出来。
• She has been granted conditional bail.她被准予有条件保释。

16 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

17 lauding   

v.称赞，赞美( laud的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Let sing out our own song lauding life, lauding world. 让我们以我们自己的歌来咏赞生命，咏赞世界吧！ 来自互联网
• Vice President-elect Joe Biden also spoke, lauding the value of work and the dignity it brings. 副总统当选人乔·拜登经常说，要赞颂工作的价值及其带来的高贵。 来自互联网

18 futures   

n.期货，期货交易

参考例句：

• He continued his operations in cotton futures.他继续进行棉花期货交易。
• Cotton futures are selling at high prices.棉花期货交易的卖价是很高的。

19 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。