NPR 2010-05-14

Federal agents investigating the Times Square attempted bombing have custody¹ of three people. They were detained on alleged² immigration violations³. Attorney General Eric Holder⁴ says they were picked up during searches in parts of the northeastern US this morning.

"These searches are the product of evidence that has been gathered in the investigation⁵ since the attempted Times Square bombing and do not relate to any known immediate⁶ threat to the public or active plot against the United States."

Holder testified before the House Judiciary Committee today.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai is wrapping up a four-day visit to Washington today that included more meetings with senior administration officials and a tour of a national landmark⁷. NPR's Jackie Northam reports.

President Karzai made a morning visit to Arlington National Cemetery⁸. On a cool and overcast⁹ day, he walked amongst the graves of US service personnel who had lost their lives in Afghanistan. Earlier this week, he visited with US troops at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, some who had lost multiple limbs during fighting in his country. How to end that war and deal with the insurgency¹⁰ there was the focus of his four-day visit to Washington. Despite months of simmering tensions between the Karzai and Obama administrations, the Afghan leader was given a very warm reception during his time in D.C., meeting with senior officials and being hosted to a number of dinners and lunches. One of his last events was a televised give-and-take with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Jackie Northam, NPR News, Washington.

Mayhem in central Bangkok where a senior anti-government leader suffered a head injury today. Thousands of anti-government protesters have been camped out in the Thai capital for months, demanding new elections. Today, the government expanded a state of emergency to cover 15 more provinces in a bid to keep more people from heading to Bangkok.

Oil giant BP says it has spent $450 million so far to fight the oil spill in the Gulf¹¹ of Mexico. Now, the company that owns the sunken oil rig at the source of the leak wants to cap what it can be sued for. NPR's Debbie Elliott reports.

Drilling contractor¹² Transocean is asking a federal court in Houston to limit its overall liability to less than $27 million which is the value of the company's interest in the Deepwater Horizon and its cargo¹³. Transocean expects to get $560 million in insurance money. In its petition, Transocean denied any fault, negligence¹⁴, unseaworthiness or lack of care that resulted in loss of life, injury or environmental damage. Under the 1851 Shipowner's Liability Act, if a vessel¹⁵'s owner can show no negligence, liability can be capped to the value of the vessel and its freight. Transocean faces more than 100 lawsuits¹⁶ stemming from the rig explosion. The company says the primary goal of the court filing is to consolidate¹⁷ those cases into a single court. Debbie Elliott, NPR News.

Dow's down. This is NPR News.

Supreme¹⁸ Court nominee¹⁹ Elena Kagan made the rounds on Capitol Hill today to shore up congressional support for a confirmation²⁰. Kagan met with Senator Arlen Specter, the Republican-turned-Democrat who faces a tough primary next week. As a Republican, Specter voted against confirming Kagan to her current post as solicitor²¹ general. He said Kagan was not open enough about how she could approach cases. Now, Specter describes the Supreme Court nominee as "very forthcoming".

Scientists say they have learned how to create a type of cell that's lost when people go deaf. NPR's Jon Hamilton explains.

Hearing depends on special cells in the ear that detect vibrations²² in the air. When these hair cells are damaged or lost, hearing becomes less sensitive and the cells don't regenerate²³ on their own. So a team of researchers at Stanford has spent the past decade trying to create new hair cells in the lab. They've succeeded, using cells from mice. The team started with stem cells and was able to mimic²⁴ the developmental steps that usually occur in the womb. The result was cells with the same structure as mouse hair cells. This should make it easier to do research and if a similar approach works on people, it could lead to new treatments for deafness. The study appears in the journal, Cell. Jon Hamilton, NPR News.

New unemployment claims dropped for a fourth week in a row. Today, the Labor²⁵ Department said the number of people filed for the first time dropped by 4,000 last week to a seasonally²⁶ adjusted 444,000. That was just about in line with what analysts²⁷ were expecting.

The Dow was down 114 points before the close at 10,783, NASDAQ down more than 30 at 2,394.

This is NPR.
 

1 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

2 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

3 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

4 holder   

n.持有者，占有者；(台，架等)支持物

参考例句：

• The holder of the office of chairman is reponsible for arranging meetings.担任主席职位的人负责安排会议。
• That runner is the holder of the world record for the hundred-yard dash.那位运动员是一百码赛跑世界纪录的保持者。

5 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

6 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

7 landmark   

n.陆标，划时代的事，地界标

参考例句：

• The Russian Revolution represents a landmark in world history.俄国革命是世界历史上的一个里程碑。
• The tower was once a landmark for ships.这座塔曾是船只的陆标。

8 cemetery   

n.坟墓，墓地，坟场

参考例句：

• He was buried in the cemetery.他被葬在公墓。
• His remains were interred in the cemetery.他的遗体葬在墓地。

9 overcast   

adj.阴天的，阴暗的，愁闷的；v.遮盖，（使）变暗，包边缝；n.覆盖，阴天

参考例句：

• The overcast and rainy weather found out his arthritis.阴雨天使他的关节炎发作了。
• The sky is overcast with dark clouds.乌云满天。

10 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

11 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

12 contractor   

n.订约人，承包人，收缩肌

参考例句：

• The Tokyo contractor was asked to kick $ 6000 back as commission.那个东京的承包商被要求退还6000美元作为佣金。
• The style of house the contractor builds depends partly on the lay of the land.承包商所建房屋的式样，有几分要看地势而定。

13 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。

14 negligence   

n.疏忽，玩忽，粗心大意

参考例句：

• They charged him with negligence of duty.他们指责他玩忽职守。
• The traffic accident was allegedly due to negligence.这次车祸据说是由于疏忽造成的。

15 vessel   

n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管

参考例句：

• The vessel is fully loaded with cargo for Shanghai.这艘船满载货物驶往上海。
• You should put the water into a vessel.你应该把水装入容器中。

16 lawsuits   

n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Lawsuits involving property rights and farming and grazing rights increased markedly. 涉及财产权，耕作与放牧权的诉讼案件显著地增加。 来自辞典例句
• I've lost and won more lawsuits than any man in England. 全英国的人算我官司打得最多，赢的也多，输的也多。 来自辞典例句

17 consolidate   

v.使加固，使加强；(把...)联为一体，合并

参考例句：

• The two banks will consolidate in July next year. 这两家银行明年7月将合并。
• The government hoped to consolidate ten states to form three new ones.政府希望把十个州合并成三个新的州。

18 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

19 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

20 confirmation   

n.证实，确认，批准

参考例句：

• We are waiting for confirmation of the news.我们正在等待证实那个消息。
• We need confirmation in writing before we can send your order out.给你们发送订购的货物之前，我们需要书面确认。

21 solicitor   

n.初级律师，事务律师

参考例句：

• The solicitor's advice gave me food for thought.律师的指点值得我深思。
• The solicitor moved for an adjournment of the case.律师请求将这个案件的诉讼延期。

22 vibrations   

n.摆动( vibration的名词复数 )；震动；感受；（偏离平衡位置的）一次性往复振动

参考例句：

• We could feel the vibrations from the trucks passing outside. 我们可以感到外面卡车经过时的颤动。
• I am drawn to that girl; I get good vibrations from her. 我被那女孩吸引住了，她使我产生良好的感觉。 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 regenerate   

vt.使恢复，使新生；vi.恢复，再生；adj.恢复的

参考例句：

• Their aim is to regenerate British industry.他们的目的是复兴英国的工业。
• Although it is not easy,you have the power to regenerate your life.尽管这不容易，但你有使生活重获新生的能力。

24 mimic   

v.模仿，戏弄；n.模仿他人言行的人

参考例句：

• A parrot can mimic a person's voice.鹦鹉能学人的声音。
• He used to mimic speech peculiarities of another.他过去总是模仿别人讲话的特点。

25 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

26 seasonally   

参考例句：

• The price of vegetables fluctuates seasonally. 蔬菜的价格随季节变动。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They moved seasonally among various vegetation types to feed on plants that were flourishing. 它们还随着季节的变化而在各种类型植物之间迁移，以便吃那些茂盛的植物。 来自辞典例句

27 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。