NPR 2011-12-02

 Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is wrapping up a visit to the long-isolated South East Asian nation of Myanmar by meeting with its main opposition¹ leader. NPR's Michele Kelemen is traveling with the secretary in the country also known as Burma.

 

Clinton has been consulting closely with Aung San Suu Kyi as the US looks for ways to support reforms in the country. Though they’ve spoken on phone, their dinner in Yangon was the first time the two women met face to face. The secretary and her entourage also visited for the first time the new president's massive palace in the surreal looking capital Naypyidaw. Clinton says President Thein Sein outlined a detailed² reform plan that includes efforts to resolve the country's long-standing ethnic³ conflicts and assurances that Myanmar won't buy illicit⁴ weapons from North Korea. The US is also encouraging the country to release more political prisoners. Michele Kelemen, NPR News, Yangon.

 

Vice⁵ President Joe Biden says the US is not claiming victory in Iraq, but he says the Iraqi government can't take care of itself. Biden is in Iraq as American troops prepare to leave the country by the end of the month. Speaking on NBC this morning, Biden said that the Obama administration has done what it said it would do, mainly to end a war that it did not start and to do so in a responsible way. Biden acknowledges that security concerns remain, but he says that violence is at an all-time low.

 

The new president of the European Central Bank warns the risks to the eurozone economies have grown, and constraints⁶ on the banking⁷ sector⁸ means the crisis is not about to fade. Larry Miller⁹ reports there’s a similar warning from the head of Bank of England.

 

European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi says time is running out for eurozone political leaders to resolve the sovereign debt crisis and to restore confidence.

 

“A credible¹⁰ signal is needed to give ultimate assurance over the short term.”

 

Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England, warns banks to prepare for a potential eurozone collapse¹¹.

 

“No one who looks at the current position could surely deny that it is extraordinarily¹² serious and threatening, and therefore those with responsibilities to deal with it really do need to take action.”

 

King says he wants banks to build up reserves to protect themselves from a financial storm. For NPR News, I'm Larry Miller in London.

 

Ford¹³, Chrysler, GM and Volkswagen are all reporting increases in US vehicle sales from this time last year. Sales of Chrysler are up 45% from a year ago. Volkswagen's reporting a 41% gain. Ford says its sales have risen by 13%, and GM says the sales of new vehicles is up by 7% in 2011. Meanwhile, more Americans applied¹⁴ for unemployment benefits for the second week in a row. The Labor¹⁵ Department says that number is up by 6,000 weekly applications to a seasonally¹⁶ adjusted average of 402,000.

 

On Wall Street, trading is mixed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 10 points at 12,035. The NASDAQ Composite Index is up eight points to 2,628.

 

This is NPR News.

 

Just one day before the UN is set to hold an emergency meeting on the crisis in Syria, the High Commissioner¹⁷ for Human Rights Navi Pillay says evidence of abuse coming out of Syria shows that the country's leader should be tried on charges of crimes against humanity. She also says her office now estimates that well more than 4,000 people are dead in the nine-month-long uprising against President Bashar al-Assad. 

 

Egyptians will not learn until at least tomorrow the results of two days with the voting in parliamentary elections. The head of Egypt's election commission says the announcement of the results will be delayed by a day. A report in the state news agency says high voter turnout has slowed the counting process. 

 

Kanye West tops the list of Grammy nominations¹⁸ announced last night with seven. NPR's Trina Williams reports none of those nominations were for Album or Record of The Year.

 

“All of the lights.”

 

West is nominated for Song of the Year for “All Of The Lights.” The rap artist has passed up for the other two top awards. Adele, on the other hand, gets six nods, including Best Album for 2011 as well as Record and Song Of The Year for “Rolling in the Deep.”

 

“Baby I have no story to be told.”

 

Adele's album already is the best-selling of the year with 4.7 million copies purchased. Bruno Mars also got six nominations. He will compete with Adele on the top three categories.

 

“Yes I would die for ya, baby. But you won't do the same.”

 

Foo Fighters are being considered for half a dozen nominations as well. Other multiple nominees¹⁹ are Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj, Lil Wayne and Radiohead. The awards air live in February. Trina Williams, NPR News.

 

In Switzerland, the traditional start of the ski season this weekend is being threatened by unusually warm, dry conditions.

 

I'm Jim Howard, NPR News in Washington.

1 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

2 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

3 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

4 illicit   

adj.非法的，禁止的，不正当的

参考例句：

• He had an illicit association with Jane.他和简曾有过不正当关系。
• Seizures of illicit drugs have increased by 30% this year.今年违禁药品的扣押增长了30%。

5 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

6 constraints   

强制( constraint的名词复数 )； 限制； 约束

参考例句：

• Data and constraints can easily be changed to test theories. 信息库中的数据和限制条件可以轻易地改变以检验假设。 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史
• What are the constraints that each of these imply for any design? 这每种产品的要求和约束对于设计意味着什么？ 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

7 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

8 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

9 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。

10 credible   

adj.可信任的，可靠的

参考例句：

• The news report is hardly credible.这则新闻报道令人难以置信。
• Is there a credible alternative to the nuclear deterrent?是否有可以取代核威慑力量的可靠办法？

11 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

12 extraordinarily   

adv.格外地；极端地

参考例句：

• She is an extraordinarily beautiful girl.她是个美丽非凡的姑娘。
• The sea was extraordinarily calm that morning.那天清晨，大海出奇地宁静。

13 Ford   

n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过

参考例句：

• They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
• If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。

14 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

15 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。

16 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

17 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

18 nominations   

n.提名，任命( nomination的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Nominations are invited for the post of party chairman. 为党主席职位征集候选人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Much coverage surrounded his abortive bids for the 1960,1964, and 1968 Republican Presidential nominations. 许多消息报道都围绕着1960年、1964年和1968年他为争取提名为共和党总统候选人所做努力的失败。 来自辞典例句

19 nominees   

n.被提名者，被任命者( nominee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She's one of the nominees. 她是被提名者之一。 来自超越目标英语 第2册
• A startling number of his nominees for senior positions have imploded. 他所提名的高级官员被否决的数目令人震惊。 来自互联网