NPR 2012-02-06

 This weekend in Syria, more than 200 people have been killed in clashes with government troops. At the same time, Arab states, European nations and the US are condemning¹ China and Russia for their vetoes of the UN Security Council resolution calling for the end of the Syrian crackdown.

 

At an international conference on security in Munich, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had this to say about those vetoes.

 

"It is difficult, however, to imagine that after the bloodiest² day yet in Syria, there are those who would prevent the world community from condemning this violence."

 

The UN Security Council resolution reflected an Arab plan, calling for Syria's President Assad to step aside.

 

And on the streets of Cairo, clashes continued between protesters and youths in the aftermath of a deadly soccer riot last week. Police fired rubber bullets and fired volleys of tear gas.

 

The son of an Obama administration cabinet member is one of dozens of pro-democracy volunteers who've been ordered to trial in Egypt. As NPR's Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson tells us, they are accused of taking illegally provided funds.

 

Egyptian state TV and the state-funded Al-Ahram newspaper report that investigators³ ordered Egyptian and American activists⁴ to Cairo Criminal Court for prosecution⁵. Those being referred for trial are also banned from traveling. None of the defendants⁶ were officially notified, and government offices were closing in Cairo when the announcement was made. At least six Americans, including the son of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, have been prevented from leaving Egypt since late January. Some of the Americans are being sheltered at the US embassy in Cairo. Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Amr rebuffed complaints by US officials about the crackdown, saying the executive branch has nothing to do with the investigation⁷. Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson, NPR News, Cairo.

 

Mitt⁸ Romney was the big Republican winner this weekend in Nevada. His strong first-place finish delivered at least ten delegates in around 48% of the caucus⁹ vote. Twenty-three percent of the Nevada caucus vote went to Newt Gingrich, who says he's in the race till the convention in Tampa. Gingirch spoke¹⁰ on NBC's “Meet the Press.”

 

"We want to get to Georgia, to Alabama, to Tennessee. We want to get to states, Texas. We believe by the time Texas is over, we'll be very, very competitive in delegate count."

 

Both Ron Paul and Rick Santorum, who finished behind Gingrich in Nevada, also say they are staying in the race.

 

A heavy winter cold front in Europe has now taken more than 200 lives. In the mountains of Bosnia, snow is over six feet high. Helicopters are being used to reach thousands cut off in isolated¹¹ towns.

 

This is NPR News in Washington.

 

Off the coast of Italy, the seas have calmed enough to permit rescue crews to resume their preparations for pumping fuel from the wreck¹² of the Costa Concordia, but the search for 15 people missing remains¹³ suspended. At least 17 died after the cruise ship slammed into a reef on January 13th. The impact flipped¹⁴ the ship on its side.

 

With an audience of well over a million viewers this evening, Super Bowl advertisers are looking at prices of 3.5 million dollars for a 30-second commercial. Are the astronomical¹⁵ costs worth the investment? Sean Bueter of member station WBOI tells us there's no simple answer.

 

Super Bowl ads like this Volkswagen spot from last year, you know, the one with a kid dressed as Darth Vader, go for big money. For some, the ads are better than the game itself. But Purdue University consumer psychologist Richard Feinberg says splashy Super Bowl ads make the great status symbols for companies that can afford them, but there's a problem.

 

"That doesn't translate into impact. That doesn't translate into intent. That doesn't translate into sales."

 

Feinberg says repetition is a key to effective advertising¹⁶, so companies' money might be better spent on more ads that are cheaper and better targeted. For NPR News, I'm Sean Bueter in Indianapolis.

 

The News England Patriots¹⁷ and New York Giants are preparing to relive the 2008 Super Bowl, which the Giants won. Meanwhile, Madonna has been preparing for her much-hyped halftime show. She says she has been rehearsing since October.

 

I'm Louise Schiavone, NPR News, Washington.

1 condemning   

v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的现在分词 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地

参考例句：

• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。
• I concur with the speaker in condemning what has been done. 我同意发言者对所做的事加以谴责。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

2 bloodiest   

adj.血污的( bloody的最高级 )；流血的；屠杀的；残忍的

参考例句：

• The Russians were going to suffer their bloodiest defeat of all before Berlin. 俄国人在柏林城下要遭到他们的最惨重的失败。 来自辞典例句
• It was perhaps the bloodiest hour in the history of warfare. 这也许是战争史上血腥味最浓的1个小时。 来自互联网

3 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

6 defendants   

被告( defendant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The courts heard that the six defendants had been coerced into making a confession. 法官审判时发现6位被告人曾被迫承认罪行。
• As in courts, the defendants are represented by legal counsel. 与法院相同，被告有辩护律师作为代表。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件

7 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。

8 mitt   

n.棒球手套，拳击手套，无指手套；vt.铐住，握手

参考例句：

• I gave him a baseball mitt for his birthday.为祝贺他的生日，我送给他一只棒球手套。
• Tom squeezed a mitt and a glove into the bag.汤姆把棒球手套和手套都塞进袋子里。

9 caucus   

n.秘密会议；干部会议；v.（参加）干部开会议

参考例句：

• This multi-staged caucus takes several months.这个多级会议常常历时好几个月。
• It kept the Democratic caucus from fragmenting.它也使得民主党的核心小组避免了土崩瓦解的危险。

10 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。

11 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。

12 wreck   

n.失事，遇难；沉船；vt.(船等)失事，遇难

参考例句：

• Weather may have been a factor in the wreck.天气可能是造成这次失事的原因之一。
• No one can wreck the friendship between us.没有人能够破坏我们之间的友谊。

13 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

14 flipped   

轻弹( flip的过去式和过去分词 )； 按（开关）； 快速翻转； 急挥

参考例句：

• The plane flipped and crashed. 飞机猛地翻转，撞毁了。
• The carter flipped at the horse with his whip. 赶大车的人扬鞭朝着马轻轻地抽打。

15 astronomical   

adj.天文学的，（数字）极大的

参考例句：

• He was an expert on ancient Chinese astronomical literature.他是研究中国古代天文学文献的专家。
• Houses in the village are selling for astronomical prices.乡村的房价正在飙升。

16 advertising   

n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的

参考例句：

• Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
• The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。

17 patriots   

爱国者，爱国主义者( patriot的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Abraham Lincoln was a fine type of the American patriots. 亚伯拉罕·林肯是美国爱国者的优秀典型。
• These patriots would fight to death before they surrendered. 这些爱国者宁愿战斗到死，也不愿投降。