CNN 2009-08-18

Hi there! I'm Brooke Baldwin at the CNN center in Atlanta. And here's a look at what's happening NOW IN THE NEWS.

 A slow-starting Atlantic hurricane season is now rushing in and a few named storms are on our radar¹. Take a look here. Claudette came ashore², as the tropical storm in the Florida Panhandle early this morning now downgraded to a depression. It is the first named storm of the season to actually make US landfall, leaving a lot of rain in her wake. Hurricane Bill, a stronger storm, is churning through the Atlantic right now, and Bill could become a major hurricane a little later this week.

 More than a week after Typhoon Marakot struck the island, more than 30 countries and territories have pledged money, helicopters, medication and other supplies to help the island. The storm killed at least 123 people, and yesterday, US Marine³ Corps⁴ C-130 cargo⁵ plane flew into Taiwan just to unload plastic tarps for shelter. Also, the USS Denver is expected to arrive today with additional humanitarian⁶ aid and water purification capabilities⁷.

 It has been less contentious⁸ this morning, for Senator Allen Spector. He held a town hall meeting earlier today with veterans there in Philadelphia. In fact, many of the recent meetings about health care have seen very angry protests. Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki is joining the Senator today in Philadelphia at Drexel University.

 Hey! If you live in Chicago today, guess what? The city is shutting down to save a little bit of money. Well it's kind of shutting down. Here it's the first of three Reduced-Service days. What does that mean? Well here's what you won't get. No trash pickup⁹. No street sweeping¹⁰. City offices are closed and employees will not be paid. Local media in Chicago is reporting that this could save the city more than 8 million dollars over the course of three days. The other two are later in the year, and police and fire department certainly not shutting down. Those won't be affected¹¹.

 World Wrestling Entertainment CEO Linda Mcmahon is reportedly contemplating¹² a run for Senate in Connecticut next year, and WWE spokesman tells Hartford Courant newspaper that McMahon is considering a run for the Republican nomination¹³ for the seat currently held by Democrat¹⁴ Christopher Dodd. In addition to her WWE work, McMahon also serves on Connecticut's Board of Education.

 And those are some of the headlines this hour. Stay with CNN for more of those stories and other news throughout this Monday.

 Trap: a large heavy cloth or piece of thick plastic that water will not pass through, used to keep rain off things

 Contemplate: to think about something that you might do in the future

1 radar   

n.雷达，无线电探测器

参考例句：

• They are following the flight of an aircraft by radar.他们正在用雷达追踪一架飞机的飞行。
• Enemy ships were detected on the radar.敌舰的影像已显现在雷达上。

2 ashore   

adv.在(向)岸上，上岸

参考例句：

• The children got ashore before the tide came in.涨潮前，孩子们就上岸了。
• He laid hold of the rope and pulled the boat ashore.他抓住绳子拉船靠岸。

3 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

4 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

5 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

6 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

7 capabilities   

n.能力( capability的名词复数 )；可能；容量；[复数]潜在能力

参考例句：

• He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities. 他有点自大，自视甚高。 来自辞典例句
• Some programmers use tabs to break complex product capabilities into smaller chunks. 一些程序员认为，标签可以将复杂的功能分为每个窗格一组简单的功能。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

8 contentious   

adj.好辩的，善争吵的

参考例句：

• She was really not of the contentious fighting sort.她委实不是好吵好闹的人。
• Since then they have tended to steer clear of contentious issues.从那时起，他们总想方设法避开有争议的问题。

9 pickup   

n.拾起，获得

参考例句：

• I would love to trade this car for a pickup truck.我愿意用这辆汽车换一辆小型轻便卡车。||The luck guy is a choice pickup for the girls.那位幸运的男孩是女孩子们想勾搭上的人。

10 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

11 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

12 contemplating   

深思，细想，仔细考虑( contemplate的现在分词 )； 注视，凝视； 考虑接受（发生某事的可能性）； 深思熟虑，沉思，苦思冥想

参考例句：

• You're too young to be contemplating retirement. 你考虑退休还太年轻。
• She stood contemplating the painting. 她站在那儿凝视那幅图画。

13 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

14 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。