美联社新闻一分钟 2006-02-02

（单词翻译）

1. The governor of West Virginia wants to shut down the state's coal mines, following the deaths of two more mineworkers Wednesday. Joe Manchin says the voluntary stoppage would allow the state to inspect all 544 mines as soon as possible.

2. President Bush is defending Exxon Mobile's huge quarterly profits as just the result of the current marketplace. Tuesday he called for Americans to break their dependency on foreign oil, now says consumers shouldn’t expect any price breaks.

3. Federal authorities say Colombian drug dealers¹ are using puppies to smuggle² in heroin³. They say they are surgically⁴ implanting the dogs with packets of the drugs, then fly them to the US.

4. And eating champion known as the Black Widow has claimed another title. Sonya Thomas devoured⁵ 26 grilled⁶ cheese sandwiches in ten minutes to claim the 8,000-dollar prize. However, she says she could have done better

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. stoppage : noun
when something stops moving or happening:
e.g. We had five minutes of stoppage time at the end of the first half.

2. quarterly : adj
produced or happening four times a year:
e.g. The rent is payable⁷ quarterly.

3. marketplace : noun
the part of business activity that is concerned with buying and selling goods in competition with other companies:
e.g. Some retailers⁸ worry that new regulations will hurt their ability to compete in the marketplace.

4. puppy : noun [C]
a young dog:
e.g. Our dog has just had four puppies.