美联社新闻一分钟 2005-11-22

1. General Motors is to eliminate thirty thousand jobs and close nine North American assembly, stamping and powertrain plants by 2008.

2. President Bush facing unrelenting criticism at home over the war salute¹s Mongolia for aiding the US-led effort in Iraq.

3. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon pushes for a quick March election just hours after leaving his hardliner Likud party to form a new centrist party.

4. US forces mistakenly fire on a civilian³ vehicle outside an American base in Iraq, killing⁴ three people , including a child.

5. And it gives off an odor like rotting meat, the famous and rare Titan Arum flower draws a huge crowd after blooming in Washington DC

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. powertrain: in the automobile⁵ world, consist of all the components⁶ of a vehicle's drive system. This includes the engine, the transmission, and any separate driveshafts, differential etc. Sometimes, "powertrain" is used to refer to simply the engine and transmission, including the other components only if they are integral to the transmission.

2. unrelenting: 1 an unpleasant situation hat is unrelenting continues for a long time without stopping. e.g. the unrelenting pressures of the job. 2 continuing to do something in a determined⁷ way without thinking anyone else's feeling. unrelenting opponent.

3. salute: formal: to praise someone for the things they have achieved, especially publicly. // if you salute someone, you greet them or show your respect with a formal sign. Soldiers usually salute officers by raising their right hand so that their fingers touch their forehead. //an occasion when guns are fired into the air in order to show respect for someone important. e.g. a 21-gun salute.

4. hardliner: 强硬路线者(a politician who wants political problems to be dealt with in a strong and extreme way)

5. Likud: 利库德集团(以色列右翼党派的政治联盟,长期为以色列执政党) one of the main political parties in Israel. It is a right wing party.

6. give off: 发出(蒸汽、光等)

1 salute   

vi.行礼，致意，问候，放礼炮；vt.向…致意，迎接，赞扬；n.招呼，敬礼，礼炮

参考例句：

• Merchant ships salute each other by dipping the flag.商船互相点旗致敬。
• The Japanese women salute the people with formal bows in welcome.这些日本妇女以正式的鞠躬向人们施礼以示欢迎。

2 salutes   

n.致敬，欢迎，敬礼( salute的名词复数 )v.欢迎，致敬( salute的第三人称单数 )；赞扬，赞颂

参考例句：

• Poulengey salutes, and stands at the door awaiting orders. 波仑日行礼，站在门口听侯命令。 来自辞典例句
• A giant of the world salutes you. 一位世界的伟人向你敬礼呢。 来自辞典例句

3 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

4 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。

5 automobile   

n.汽车，机动车

参考例句：

• He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
• The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。

6 components   

（机器、设备等的）构成要素，零件，成分； 成分( component的名词复数 )； [物理化学]组分； [数学]分量； （混合物的）组成部分

参考例句：

• the components of a machine 机器部件
• Our chemistry teacher often reduces a compound to its components in lab. 在实验室中化学老师常把化合物分解为各种成分。

7 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。