美联社新闻一分钟 2007-06-17

1. Hundreds of Fatah supporters are streaming out of the Gaza Strip, heading to the Israeli border in hopes of getting to the West Bank. The move comes after a bloody¹ takeover of Gaza by Hamas militants².

2. Space Shuttle Atlantis has been cleared to land next week. Mission officials determined³ the repaired thermal⁴ blanket should withstand the searing temperatures of re-entry. But the astronauts are still trying to figure out why the computer system on the Russian side of International Space Station crashed.

3. U.S. military has found the ID cards of two missing American soldiers in an al-Qaeda safe house more than
100 miles from where they disappeared. The soldiers vanished back in May in an ambush⁵.

4. Pomp and pageantry are the order of the day in London as Britain celebrates Queen Elizabeth II 81st birthday. The queen's actual birth date is April 21st, but as the queen she gets a second official celebration.

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. searing: adj
extremely hot

2. pomp: [uncountable]
all the impressive clothes, decorations, music etc that are traditional for an important official or public ceremony

3. pageantry: [uncountable]
impressive ceremonies or events, involving many people wearing special clothes

1 bloody   

adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染

参考例句：

• He got a bloody nose in the fight.他在打斗中被打得鼻子流血。
• He is a bloody fool.他是一个十足的笨蛋。

2 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

3 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。

4 thermal   

adj.热的，由热造成的；保暖的

参考例句：

• They will build another thermal power station.他们要另外建一座热能发电站。
• Volcanic activity has created thermal springs and boiling mud pools.火山活动产生了温泉和沸腾的泥浆池。

5 ambush   

n.埋伏(地点)；伏兵；v.埋伏；伏击

参考例句：

• Our soldiers lay in ambush in the jungle for the enemy.我方战士埋伏在丛林中等待敌人。
• Four men led by a sergeant lay in ambush at the crossroads.由一名中士率领的四名士兵埋伏在十字路口。