NPR美国国家公共电台 NPR 2013-09-19

 The FBI now says the gunman in the shootings at Washington Navy Yard acted alone. Authorities are no longer seeking any other suspects. NPR's Craig Windham reports investigators¹ say Aaron Alexis had a shotgun with him when he entered the facility.

FBI official Valerie Parlave would not say how Alexis managed to get the gun into the building, only that he had legitimate² access to the Navy Yard because he was working for a defense³ contractor⁴. 揂nd he utilized⁵ a valid⁶ pass to gain entry to the building.?Parlave said in addition to the shotgun, 搘e also believe Mr. Alexis may have gained access to a handgun once inside the facility.?Parlave says the FBI has received hundreds of tips so far, and she is again urging the public to contract authorities with any information they may have about the gunman. Craig Windham, NPR News, Washington.

A US appeals court in Ohio has ruled that a private firm owned by a Roman Catholic family must comply with a portion of the federal health law requiring it to offer contraceptive coverage⁷ to its female workers. As NPR's Julie Rovner reports, it抯 the second appeals court to rule that private firms cannot used their religious beliefs to decline to provide such insurance coverage.

The case filed by the owners of an auto⁸ and medical parts manufacturing firm is one of more than 70 filed around the country. All contend that the requirement that their health insurance cover all forms of FDA-approved contraceptives violates their religious freedoms. But a three-judge penal⁹ for the Sixth Circuit like judges for the Third Circuit earlier found no right for profit-making entities¹⁰ to sue under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Judges in the Tenth Circuit, however, did find that the craft firm Hobby Lobby has standing¹¹ to sue, so the disagreement will almost certainly have to be resolved by the Supreme¹² Court. Julie Rovner, NPR News.

The first state visit of President Obama's second term has been called off. NPR's Ari Shapiro reports Brazil's president won抰 be visiting the White House next month as scheduled over concerns about American spying practices.

Brazilians have been outraged¹³ over disclosures that the US eavesdropped¹⁴ on Brazilian President Dilma Russeff, her aides and Brazil抯 state-run oil company. Russeff spoke¹⁵ by phone with President Obama Monday night, and White House spokesman Jay Carney says that抯 when they decided¹⁶ to call off the visit.

揟his is an important relationship. We understand, the president understands, the concerns raised by these disclosures, and we抮e working with the Brazilians on this matter, and we抣l continue to do that.?

This is a blow to Obama, who has invested a lot of energy in improving the US relationship with Brazil. The two leaders were scheduled to talk about oil, trade and other issues during the meeting. The White House insists the visit has not been canceled, just postponed¹⁷. Ari Shapiro, NPR News, the White House.

In world stocks, Asian stocks--the Nikkei in Japan is up 1.4% at the open--just opened a little while ago. On Wall Street today, the Dow was up 34 points to close at 15,529; the NASDAQ gained 27; the S&P 500 up seven. This is NPR.

Investigators say the fire that destroyed the boardwalk in New Jersey¹⁸ was an accident caused by a failure of the electrical wiring under the boardwalk. A report out today says the fire apparently¹⁹ started under the structure housing a candy store and a frozen custard shop, and the damage from Hurricane Sandy may have contributed to the electrical problems. One of the 50 businesses were destroyed, but no one was seriously injured. Governor Chris Christie is pledging to use 15 million dollars in Sandy relief funds to help businesses rebuild.

Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky is arguing that his child sexual abuse conviction should be overturned. NPR's Jeff Brady reports Sandusky did not attend the hearing today before a Pennsylvania appeals court.

A lawyer for Jerry Sandusky is arguing that the former assistant coach's defense team did not have enough time to prepare for the trial. The lawyer also says that the prosecutor²⁰ should not have made a statement during the trial that pointed²¹ out that Sandusky did not testify on his own behalf. The lawyer also is arguing that the judge should have mentioned that Sandusky抯 victims in some cases awaited years to report the abuse. Last year Sandusky was convicted of 45 counts of child sexual abuse, and he抯 serving at least 30 years in a Pennsylvania prison. Jeff Brady, NPR News.

Rescue crews in Colorado say the number of emergency calls in the wake of the floods is falling, now that hundreds more people stranded²² by floodwaters have been rescued. State officials say at least eight people died, hundreds more are missing. The death toll²³ is expected to rise, but officials say it could be months before all the areas are surged. Around 19,000 houses were destroyed.

Crude oil prices higher at last check up six cents at 105 dollars 49 cents. This is NPR News from Washington.

1 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》

2 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

3 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

4 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。

5 utilized   

v.利用，使用( utilize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• In the19th century waterpower was widely utilized to generate electricity. 在19世纪人们大规模使用水力来发电。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The empty building can be utilized for city storage. 可以利用那栋空建筑物作城市的仓库。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 valid   

adj.有确实根据的；有效的；正当的，合法的

参考例句：

• His claim to own the house is valid.他主张对此屋的所有权有效。
• Do you have valid reasons for your absence?你的缺席有正当理由吗？

7 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

8 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。

9 penal   

adj.刑罚的；刑法上的

参考例句：

• I hope you're familiar with penal code.我希望你们熟悉本州法律规则。
• He underwent nineteen years of penal servitude for theft.他因犯了大窃案受过十九年的苦刑。

10 entities   

实体对像； 实体，独立存在体，实际存在物( entity的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Our newspaper and our printing business form separate corporate entities. 我们的报纸和印刷业形成相对独立的企业实体。
• The North American continent is made up of three great structural entities. 北美大陆是由三个构造单元组成的。

11 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。

12 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。

13 outraged   

a.震惊的，义愤填膺的

参考例句：

• Members of Parliament were outraged by the news of the assassination. 议会议员们被这暗杀的消息激怒了。
• He was outraged by their behavior. 他们的行为使他感到愤慨。

14 eavesdropped   

偷听（别人的谈话）( eavesdrop的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He eavesdropped on our conversation. 他偷听了我们的谈话。
• He has just eavesdropped two sweethearts. 他刚刚偷听了两个情人的谈话。

15 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。

16 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

17 postponed   

vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发）

参考例句：

• The trial was postponed indefinitely. 审讯无限期延迟。
• The game has already been postponed three times. 这场比赛已经三度延期了。

18 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。

19 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

20 prosecutor   

n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人

参考例句：

• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。
• The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

21 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

22 stranded   

a.搁浅的，进退两难的

参考例句：

• He was stranded in a strange city without money. 他流落在一个陌生的城市里， 身无分文，一筹莫展。
• I was stranded in the strange town without money or friends. 我困在那陌生的城市，既没有钱，又没有朋友。

23 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。