NPR 2011-09-05

 From NPR News in Washington, I'm Nancy Lyons.

 

President Obama is touring New Jersey¹ today, seeing the effects of Hurricane Irene. He comforted a Wayne resident whose home was damaged by last weekend's storm.

 

"Are you OK?"

 

"I'm so sorry. We will be here to help." 

 

Mr. Obama says the government will work to rebuild the towns recovering from Irene. He told residents the entire country is behind them. 

 

Tropical storm Lee is taking its time, moving over the south central Louisiana coast. Forecasters say it is now inland and moving at a crawl, dumping as much as 20 inches of rain in isolated² spots. That means there's still a threat of flash flooding in a wide section of the Southeastern US, as far east as the Florida Panhandle, and as far north as the Tennessee Valley. 

 

Day-long negotiations³ are over in the Libyan city of Bani Walid, one of Muammar Gaddafi's strongholds. Hardcore loyalists refused to surrender, even though a rebel deadline has passed. Opposition⁴ fighters are now standing⁵ by for the green light to launch an attack on the town. NPR's Corey Flintoff spoke⁶ with a negotiator for the revolutionary group outside Bani Walid. 

 

At this point he says as negotiations are done and it's up to the military commanders on the rebel side as to whether they are gonna try to enter the city or take any military action. But he did emphasize over and over again that the rebels do not want bloodshed here in Bani Walid. 

 

NPR's Corey Flintoff reporting from just outside the town.

 

Tribal⁷ leaders, elders rather in Pakistan's northwest tribal area are attempting to negotiate the release of 27 Pakistani young men taken by hostage by militants⁸ in Afghanistan. A Pakistan official says the group crossed into the Afghan province of Kunar after losing their way during a picnic along the border area on Thursday. From Islamabad, NPR's Julie McCarthy reports the kidnapping reflects an increasing assertiveness⁹ by the Taliban in the border area.

 

The army spokesman said the kidnap victims are from the Pashto tribal area of Bajaur and are between the ages of 20 and 25. The outlawed¹⁰ Tehrik-i-Taliban or Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the abduction. A faction¹¹ of the group fled to Afghanistan last year, according to Pakistani authorities. The militants reportedly set free the youngest of their captives. A Taliban spokesman told news agencies that those who remain with the militants are not kids and claimed they belong to areas where tribesmen raised militias¹² to fight the militants. Anti-Taliban elders in Bajaur have paid with their lives, assassinated¹³ by the Taliban. In recent weeks, large numbers of militants have also staged a brazen¹⁴ cross-border raids on Pakistani security posts. Julie McCarthy, NPR News, Islamabad.

 

The head of the International Red Cross is in Syria to address issues concerning the care of those who've been wounded during the government's crackdown on a five-month-old uprising. 

 

This is NPR News from Washington.

 

Utah's experiment with a four-day workweek is over. Beginning Tuesday, state workers will be back on the job five days a week. Lawmakers scratched the experiment, saying it wasn't saving as much money as hoped, and residents were complaining about not having access to services on Friday. The experiment started in 2008, when then Governor Jon Huntsman implemented¹⁵ it to reduce overhead costs and conserve¹⁶ energy. Some employees are not totally on board. Some say they've been using their Fridays to work second jobs or volunteer. 

 

The government is tinkering with food labels again. NPR's Jim Hock reports federal officials want to revise the labels in an effort to combat obesity¹⁷. 

 

The Food and Drug Administration proposal is aimed at putting more emphasis on the calorie count which people rely on for weight control. The FDA also wants manufacturers to be more accurate about serving sizes. The new food labels would put less emphasis on nutrition facts like salt and fat content and how much protein and carbon hydrates a particular food has. The attempt to redesign the labels on every box, can and carton has been in the works for nearly eight years. The long-standing food pyramid has already been replaced with the image of a plate that gives a picture of what a healthy diet should look like. Jim Hock, NPR News, Washington.

 

Customers at about 1,200 McDonald's restaurants in the UK will soon be able to check the calorie count of their fast-food order. The chain says this week it will start displaying the calorie information for each food and drink item on wall-mounted menu boards. McDonald's

 

says it's the first time the figures will be displayed prominently in its restaurants outside the US. 

 

I'm Nancy Lyons, NPR News in Washington.

1 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

2 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

3 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

4 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。

5 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

6 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

7 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

8 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。

9 assertiveness   

n.过分自信

参考例句：

• Her assertiveness was starting to be seen as arrogance. 她的自信已开始被认为是自负了。
• Role playing is an important element in assertiveness training. 在果敢自信训练班上，角色扮演是个重要内容。

10 outlawed   

宣布…为不合法（outlaw的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• Most states have outlawed the use of marijuana. 大多数州都宣布使用大麻为非法行为。
• I hope the sale of tobacco will be outlawed someday. 我希望有朝一日烟草制品会禁止销售。

11 faction   

n.宗派，小集团；派别；派系斗争

参考例句：

• Faction and self-interest appear to be the norm.派系之争和自私自利看来非常普遍。
• I now understood clearly that I was caught between the king and the Bunam's faction.我现在完全明白自己已陷入困境，在国王与布纳姆集团之间左右为难。

12 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

13 assassinated   

v.暗杀( assassinate的过去式和过去分词 )；中伤；诋毁；破坏

参考例句：

• The prime minister was assassinated by extremists. 首相遭极端分子暗杀。
• Then, just two days later, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. 跟着在两天以后，肯尼迪总统在达拉斯被人暗杀。 来自辞典例句

14 brazen   

adj.厚脸皮的，无耻的，坚硬的

参考例句：

• The brazen woman laughed loudly at the judge who sentenced her.那无耻的女子冲着给她判刑的法官高声大笑。
• Some people prefer to brazen a thing out rather than admit defeat.有的人不愿承认失败，而是宁肯厚着脸皮干下去。

15 implemented   

v.实现( implement的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• This agreement, if not implemented, is a mere scrap of paper. 这个协定如不执行只不过是一纸空文。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The economy is in danger of collapse unless far-reaching reforms are implemented. 如果不实施影响深远的改革，经济就面临崩溃的危险。 来自辞典例句

16 conserve   

vt.保存，保护，节约，节省，守恒，不灭

参考例句：

• He writes on both sides of the sheet to conserve paper.他在纸张的两面都写字以节省用纸。
• Conserve your energy,you'll need it!保存你的精力，你会用得着的！

17 obesity   

n.肥胖，肥大

参考例句：

• One effect of overeating may be obesity.吃得过多能导致肥胖。
• Sugar and fat can more easily lead to obesity than some other foods.糖和脂肪比其他食物更容易导致肥胖。