美联社新闻一分钟 2007-01-06

1. Democrats¹ are blasting proposals to boost US troop strength in Iraq. In a letter to President Bush, Senate Majority Leader Harry² Reid and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi urged him to begin pulling troops out of Iraq in four to six months. Bush plans to unveil a new Iraqi strategy next week.

2. Folks are picking up the pieces after powerful storms ripped through the South. At least two people were killed. The most extensive damage was in Louisiana's Iberia Parish where a tornado³ reportedly touched down.

3. More than 20,000 kids in Rhode Island got a second day off from school. That's because health officials are trying to determine if a suspected case of meningitis and the death of a second-grader from encephalitis are linked.

4. Lindsay Lohan is said to be resting comfortably after surgery to remove her appendix. The actress reportedly went under the knife yesterday after tests confirmed she was suffering from appendicitis⁴.

 

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. blast: verb
To blast someone means to criticize them strongly. (JOURNALISM)

2. unveil: verb
If you unveil a plan, new product, or something that has been kept secret, you introduce to the public.

3. meningitis: n-uncount 【医】脑膜炎
Meningitis is a serious infectious illness which affects your brain and spinal⁵ cord.

4. -grader: n-count
-grader combines with words such as 'first' and 'second' to form nouns which refer to a child or young person who is in a particular grade in the American education system.

5. encephalitis: n-uncount 【医】脑炎
Encephalitis is the inflammation of the brain.

6. appendix: n-count 【解剖学】 阑尾，盲肠
Your appendix is a small closed tube inside your body which is attached to your digestive system.

7. appendicitis: n-count 【医】阑尾炎
Appendicitis is an illness in which a person's appendix is infected and painful.

1 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 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。

3 tornado   

n.飓风，龙卷风

参考例句：

• A tornado whirled into the town last week.龙卷风上周袭击了这座城市。
• The approaching tornado struck awe in our hearts.正在逼近的龙卷风使我们惊恐万分。

4 appendicitis   

n.阑尾炎，盲肠炎

参考例句：

• He came down with appendicitis.他得了阑尾炎。
• Acute appendicitis usually develops without relation to the ingestion of food.急性阑尾炎的发生通常与饮食无关。

5 spinal   

adj.针的，尖刺的，尖刺状突起的；adj.脊骨的，脊髓的

参考例句：

• After three days in Japan,the spinal column becomes extraordinarily flexible.在日本三天，就已经使脊椎骨变得富有弹性了。
• Your spinal column is made up of 24 movable vertebrae.你的脊柱由24个活动的脊椎骨构成。