美联社新闻一分钟 2005-12-22

（单词翻译）

1. Vice¹ President Dick Cheney breaks a Senate tie and the Republican-controlled body passes a measure, cutting federal deficits² by nearly $ 40 billion.

2. A witness testifies Saddam Hussein's regime killed and tortured people with electric shocks and ripped off their skin after pouring molten plastic on it.

3. The NTSB says the wing of that seaplane that crashed off Miami had cracks in the main support beam that probably went unseen for a long time.

4. Millions of New Yorkers trudge³ to work in another bone-chilling commute⁴ as (the) transit⁵ strike enters its second day , leaving the city without subways and buses.

5. And Santa's gone fishy⁶ in Japan. A diver dressed in a festive⁷ white and red suit feeds all kinds of aquatic⁸ life at a Tokyo aquarium⁹.

WORDS IN THE NEWS:

1. rip off
1. 撕掉
2. rip off
rip off rips off; ripping off; ripped off
If someone rips you off, they cheat you by charging you too much money for something or by selling you something that is broken or damaged. (INFORMAL)
The Consumer Federation¹⁰ claims banks are ripping you off by not passing along savings¹¹ on interest rates.
Ticket touts¹² ripped off soccer fans to the tune¹³ of s138,000 in the FA Cup Final.

2. NTSB
=National Transportation Safety Board 全国运输安全委员会[美]

3. trudge
v.跋涉
to walk with slow heavy steps, especially because you are tired or it is difficult to walk
　--We trudged¹⁴ home through the snow.
-- trudge n [singular]
　--the long trudge back up the hill

4. bone-chilling
刺骨的

5. commute
a commute is the journey that you make when you commute (used mainly in America)

6. aquatic
1 living or growing in water: --an aquatic plant
2 involving or happening in water: --aquatic sports

7. aquarium
养鱼池, 玻璃缸, 水族馆
n plural aquariums or aquaria
1 a clear glass or plastic container for fish and other water animals:
2 a building where people go to look at fish and other water animals: