CNN 2008-08-20_在线英语听力室_免费在线英语听力学习网站

(单词翻译:双击或拖选)

Hope you're having a great day. I am Nicole Lapin at the CNN Center in Atlanta. Here is a look at what's happening NOW IN THE NEWS.

Tropical Storm Fay is battering¹ South Florida with heavy wind and rain right after making landfall this morning. It was downed trees, flooding streets, power outages all in its wake. Now the latest forecast predicts possible tornadoes² over the eastern half of the Florida Peninsula.

In Arizona, meanwhile, authorities say they have accounted for those several hikers who had been considered missing after flooding hit a remote part of the Grand Canyon³. A sheriff's department spokesman says that 11 people who were the subject of the search were located.

Well, suspense⁴ is rising over who Barack Obama and John McCain will actually pick as their running mates. Both candidates are sharing their plans only with a small selected group of advisors⁵. There are some indications that Barack Obama may make his running mate announcement as early as tomorrow.

NATO's foreign ministers watching the crisis in the Caucasus are now calling on Russia to honor a peace plan. They met in a special session in Brussels today. The NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop⁶ Scheffer is now saying that NATO's relationship with Russia now hinges on Moscow's ability to follow through on the cease-fire. Moscow immediately reacted to the NATO assessment⁷ and called it "biased⁸". Also Russia says it's holding up its end of the cease-fire deal. Its Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is now saying that the withdrawal⁹ of forces has already started and that Georgia needs to reposition its troops as well.

One day after getting rid of the man they despise, Pakistan's ruling coalition¹⁰ party is wrangling¹¹ over who is going to replace former President Pervez Musharraf. He resigned yesterday rather than face a probable impeachment¹² trial. Musharraf is expected to leave the country. The new government says there is no immunity¹³ deal though. The US weighed in today saying that he's a close ally in President Bush's war on terror and has the right to live wherever he wants.

The budget axe¹⁴ will soon fall on yet another airline. This time it is Continental¹⁵ Airlines. The troubled airline plans to furlough between 140 and 180 pilots. The furloughs are part of a roughly 3, 000 job cut that Continental expects to make this upcoming fall. Now the pilot furloughs will start after Labor¹⁶ Day. Continental says the cuts will help it deal with the fuel costs.

And those are the headlines at this hour. For more on those stories and other news of the day. CNN is always your source online, on TV or on your cellphone. Take care.

点击

收听单词发音

1 battering
n.用坏，损坏v.连续猛击( batter的现在分词 )
参考例句：
The film took a battering from critics in the US. 该影片在美国遭遇到批评家的猛烈抨击。 He kept battering away at the door. 他接连不断地砸门。来自《简明英汉词典》

2 tornadoes
n.龙卷风，旋风( tornado的名词复数 )
参考例句：
Tornadoes, severe earthquakes, and plagues create wide spread havoc. 龙卷风、大地震和瘟疫成普遍的毁坏。来自互联网 Meteorologists are at odds over the working of tornadoes. 气象学者对龙卷风的运动方式看法不一。来自互联网

3 canyon
n.峡谷，溪谷
参考例句：
The Grand Canyon in the USA is 1900 metres deep.美国的大峡谷1900米深。 The canyon is famous for producing echoes.这个峡谷以回声而闻名。

4 suspense
n.（对可能发生的事）紧张感，担心，挂虑
参考例句：
The suspense was unbearable.这样提心吊胆的状况实在叫人受不了。 The director used ingenious devices to keep the audience in suspense.导演用巧妙手法引起观众的悬念。

5 advisors
n.顾问，劝告者( advisor的名词复数 )；（指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授
参考例句：
The governors felt that they were being strung along by their advisors. 地方长官感到他们一直在受顾问们的愚弄。来自《现代汉英综合大词典》 We will consult together with advisors about her education. 我们将一起和专家商议她的教育事宜。来自互联网

6 hoop
n.（篮球）篮圈，篮
参考例句：
The child was rolling a hoop.那个孩子在滚铁环。 The wooden tub is fitted with the iron hoop.木盆都用铁箍箍紧。

7 assessment
n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额
参考例句：
This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。 What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

8 biased
a.有偏见的
参考例句：
a school biased towards music and art 一所偏重音乐和艺术的学校 The Methods: They employed were heavily biased in the gentry's favour. 他们采用的方法严重偏袒中上阶级。

9 withdrawal
n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销
参考例句：
The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。 They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

10 coalition
n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合
参考例句：
The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。 Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

11 wrangling
v.争吵，争论，口角( wrangle的现在分词 )
参考例句：
The two sides have spent most of their time wrangling over procedural problems. 双方大部分时间都在围绕程序问题争论不休。来自辞典例句 The children were wrangling (with each other) over the new toy. 孩子为新玩具（互相）争吵。来自辞典例句

12 impeachment
n.弹劾；控告；怀疑
参考例句：
Impeachment is considered a drastic measure in the United States.在美国，弹劾被视为一种非常激烈的措施。 The verdict resulting from his impeachment destroyed his political career.他遭弹劾后得到的判决毁了他的政治生涯。

13 immunity
n.优惠；免除；豁免，豁免权
参考例句：
The law gives public schools immunity from taxation.法律免除公立学校的纳税义务。 He claims diplomatic immunity to avoid being arrested.他要求外交豁免以便避免被捕。

14 axe
n.斧子；v.用斧头砍，削减
参考例句：
Be careful with that sharp axe.那把斧子很锋利，你要当心。 The edge of this axe has turned.这把斧子卷了刃了。

15 continental
adj.大陆的，大陆性的，欧洲大陆的
参考例句：
A continental climate is different from an insular one.大陆性气候不同于岛屿气候。 The most ancient parts of the continental crust are 4000 million years old.大陆地壳最古老的部分有40亿年历史。

16 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。