美联社新闻一分钟 2006-07-03

1. For the second time, NASA was forced to scrub the launch of the space shuttle Discovery because of weather. NASA says they'll try again on the 4th of July.

2. The CIA says the recently released audiotape of Osama bin¹ Laden² is real. The al-Qaida leader is heard endorsing³ the new terror leader in Iraq, and warning Shiites against working with the US. This is bin Laden's 5th message this year.

3. It's Election Day in Mexico, and analysts⁴ say it's too close to call. The race is essentially⁵ between two candidates: conservative Felipe Calderon and former Mexico City Mayor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

4. Inspired by the 1965 movie The Great Race, more than 100 teams are competing in a cross-country journey. The race started in Philadelphia and will end 4,200 miles later in California. The winner will drive off with 100, 000 dollars.

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. scrub : verb
(informal) to cancel sth that you have arranged to do

2. endorse⁶ : verb
If you endorse someone or something, you say publicly that you support or approve of them.

3. too close to call : phrase
If something such as a competition or an election is too close to call, it is not possible to predict who will win because it seems likely to be won by only a very small margin⁷. (JOURNALISM)

4. drive off : phrasal verb
(of a driver, car, etc.) to leave
e.g. The robbers drove off in a stolen vehicle.

1 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

2 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

3 endorsing   

v.赞同( endorse的现在分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• Yet Communist leaders are also publicly endorsing religion in an unprecedented way. 不过，共产党领导层对宗教信仰的公开认可也是以前不曾有过的。 来自互联网
• Connecticut Independent Senator Joseph Lieberman is endorsing Republican Senator John McCain. 康涅狄格州独立派参议员约瑟夫。列波曼将会票选共和议员约翰。麦凯恩。 来自互联网

4 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。

5 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

6 endorse   

vt.(支票、汇票等)背书，背署；批注；同意

参考例句：

• No one is foolish enough to endorse it.没有哪个人会傻得赞成它。
• I fully endorse your opinions on this subject.我完全拥护你对此课题的主张。

7 margin   

n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘

参考例句：

• We allowed a margin of 20 minutes in catching the train.我们有20分钟的余地赶火车。
• The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。