VOA慢速英语2009年-IN THE NEWS - China Delays Plan for Web-Bl

This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

This week, China delayed an order to require Internet-filtering software in all new personal computers. News of the delay turned a planned Internet boycott¹ into an all-day celebration at a restaurant in Beijing.

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Artist and activist² Ai Weiwei organized the event. He had proposed a twenty-four hour Internet boycott on Wednesday -- the day the plan was supposed to go into effect. He used online tools such as Twitter to invite people to the restaurant.

AI WEIWEI: "It's just to let people know what our attitude is towards this kind of censorship."

Last month, the government said all new computers sold in China would have to have Internet-blocking software installed. It said the program, called Green Dam Youth Escort, would protect young Internet users from pornography.
　
Young people at an Internet cafe in Beijing. China has nearly 300 million Internet users.

But many critics say it could also block access to sites containing politically sensitive information or follow users on the Web.

For weeks, foreign officials and industry groups expressed opposition³ to the order. They objected for political, commercial and technical reasons. Trade groups appealed to Premier⁴ Wen Jiabao. Computer makers⁵ Dell and Hewlett-Packard said they might go to the World Trade Organization.

But many of those who celebrated⁶ the delay do not believe it will be permanent.

China has nearly three hundred million Internet users, more than any other country. It also has some of the strongest Internet controls in the world.

But cybersecurity involves more than just issues of free speech.

For example, American Defense⁷ Secretary Robert Gates ordered the Defense Department last week to establish a Cyber Command. Officials say a Cybercom is needed to defend the military's computer networks. One successful attack last year infected thousands of computers.

The department also says it wants to unify⁸ cyber defense, so that offense⁹, defense and intelligence all work together.

Charles Palmer is chairman and director of research for the Institute for Information Infrastructure¹⁰ Protection at Dartmouth College. He says cyberspace¹¹ defense will become increasingly necessary for countries. If someone can bring down a nation's computers, he says, then there is no reason to attack its military.

In May, President Obama announced a new cybersecurity office for the White House. He said the nation's computer networks will now be treated as a "strategic national asset."

BARACK OBAMA: "Indeed, in today's world, acts of terror could come not only from a few extremists in suicide vests, but from a few keystrokes on the computer, a weapon of mass disruption."

He said the United States does not do enough to protect its computer networks. Hackers¹² even got into the computer system of his presidential campaign last year. But he also promised that his plan will not include monitoring privately¹³ owned networks or Internet traffic. He said it will protect personal privacy and civil liberties of Americans.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake, with reporting from Beijing by Alison Klayman. I'm Steve Ember.

1 boycott   

n./v.(联合)抵制，拒绝参与

参考例句：

• We put the production under a boycott.我们联合抵制该商品。
• The boycott lasts a year until the Victoria board permitsreturn.这个抗争持续了一年直到维多利亚教育局妥协为止。

2 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

3 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

4 premier   

adj.首要的；n.总理，首相

参考例句：

• The Irish Premier is paying an official visit to Britain.爱尔兰总理正在对英国进行正式访问。
• He requested that the premier grant him an internview.他要求那位总理接见他一次。

5 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

7 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。

8 unify   

vt.使联合，统一；使相同，使一致

参考例句：

• How can we unify such scattered islands into a nation?我们怎么才能把如此分散的岛屿统一成一个国家呢？
• It is difficult to imagine how the North and South could ever agree on a formula to unify the divided peninsula.很难想象南北双方在统一半岛的方案上究竟怎样才能达成一致。

9 offense   

n.犯规，违法行为；冒犯，得罪

参考例句：

• I hope you will not take any offense at my words. 对我讲的话请别见怪。
• His words gave great offense to everybody present.他的发言冲犯了在场的所有人。

10 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

11 cyberspace   

n.虚拟信息空间，网络空间，计算机化世界

参考例句：

• She travels in cyberspace by sending messages to friends around the world.她利用电子空间给世界各地的朋友们发送信件。
• The teens spend more time in cyberspace than in the real world of friends and family.青少年花费在电脑上的时间比他们和真正的朋友及家人在一起的时间要多。

12 hackers   

n.计算机迷( hacker的名词复数 )；私自存取或篡改电脑资料者，电脑“黑客”

参考例句：

• They think of viruses that infect an organization from the outside.They envision hackers breaking into their information vaults. 他们考虑来自外部的感染公司的病毒，他们设想黑客侵入到信息宝库中。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Arranging a meeting with the hackers took weeks againoff-again email exchanges. 通过几星期电子邮件往来安排见面，他们最终同意了。 来自互联网

13 privately   

adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地

参考例句：

• Some ministers admit privately that unemployment could continue to rise.一些部长私下承认失业率可能继续升高。
• The man privately admits that his motive is profits.那人私下承认他的动机是为了牟利。