2007年VOA标准英语-US Nuclear Agency Faulted for Security Gaps

By Deborah Tate
Capitol Hill
12 July 2007

U.S. congressional investigators¹ working undercover say they have obtained a license² to buy enough radioactive material for a radiological bomb, without much scrutiny³ from federal regulators. The investigators presented a Senate panel Thursday with a report concluding that U.S. security measures remain inadequate⁴ despite new government efforts aimed at preventing radioactive material from falling into the hands of terrorists. VOA's Deborah Tate reports from Capitol Hill.

Senator Norm Coleman (file photo)

Senator Norm Coleman, a Minnesota Republican and member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, has long been concerned about the danger of terrorists acquiring radioactive material for a bomb that could be set off in an American city.

"The impact of such an attack, even a simple and small dirty bomb could be a nightmare scenario," he said. "The issue here is not the amount of lives that would be lost in the explosion itself, or even the amount of radiological material. It is the psychological and the economic impact of having radiological material thrown about, perhaps in a place like Wall Street or in the halls of Congress."

Investigators for the Government Accountability Office, Congress' investigative arm, say they had little trouble obtaining a license to buy radioactive material.

"Using a bogus business and documents, along with a little social engineering, we were able to obtain a genuine NRC radioactive materials' license," said Gregory Kutz, a managing director at the GAO.

Kutz says the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which oversees⁵ the nuclear industry and nuclear material safety issues, issued a license to the fake company set up by investigators 28 days after a request was made, without trying to visit the firm or interviewing anyone from the company in person. The NRC mailed the license to the bogus company's headquarters, which was a West Virginia post office box.

The undercover agents made counterfeit⁶ copies of the license, removing restrictions⁷ on how much they were allowed to buy and then ordered enough radiological materials to build a dirty bomb. They ordered dozens of portable moisture density⁸ gauges⁹, which are used to assess soil and pavement in building highways - and which contain radioactive materials.

It was at that point that investigators concluded they had enough evidence, and they called off the ruse¹⁰ before the equipment was shipped.

Edward McGaffigan, an NRC commissioner¹¹, says the GAO investigation¹² prompted his agency to improve its safeguards.

"The GAO did find a flaw in our system, and as soon as we understood it, we dealt with it," he said.

Among the improvements, the agency now requires members of its staff to visit any company that it is not familiar with before approving a license application.

The GAO's Kutz welcomes the changes, but says more needs to be done to prevent counterfeiting¹³ of documents.

"Even if you do the site visit, suppliers who receive a faxed copy of an NRC license that is counterfeited¹⁴ still today could possibly end up shipping¹⁵ someone with malicious¹⁶ intent," he said. "So the counterfeiting element needs to be dealt with."

The NRC hopes to establish an Internet-based licensing¹⁷ system by 2009 that would help eliminate counterfeiting of documents.

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 license   

n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许

参考例句：

• The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
• The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。

3 scrutiny   

n.详细检查，仔细观察

参考例句：

• His work looks all right,but it will not bear scrutiny.他的工作似乎很好，但是经不起仔细检查。
• Few wives in their forties can weather such a scrutiny.很少年过四十的妻子经得起这么仔细的观察。

4 inadequate   

adj.(for,to)不充足的，不适当的

参考例句：

• The supply is inadequate to meet the demand.供不应求。
• She was inadequate to the demands that were made on her.她还无力满足对她提出的各项要求。

5 oversees   

v.监督，监视( oversee的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• She oversees both the research and the manufacturing departments. 她既监督研究部门又监督生产部门。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Department of Education oversees the federal programs dealing with education. 教育部监管处理教育的联邦程序。 来自互联网

6 counterfeit   

vt.伪造，仿造；adj.伪造的，假冒的

参考例句：

• It is a crime to counterfeit money.伪造货币是犯罪行为。
• The painting looked old but was a recent counterfeit.这幅画看上去年代久远，实际是最近的一幅赝品。

7 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

8 density   

n.密集，密度，浓度

参考例句：

• The population density of that country is 685 per square mile.那个国家的人口密度为每平方英里685人。
• The region has a very high population density.该地区的人口密度很高。

9 gauges   

n.规格( gauge的名词复数 )；厚度；宽度；标准尺寸v.（用仪器）测量( gauge的第三人称单数 )；估计；计量；划分

参考例句：

• A thermometer gauges the temperature. 温度计可测量温度。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The fuel gauges dropped swiftly. 燃料表指针迅速下降。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 ruse   

n.诡计，计策；诡计

参考例句：

• The children thought of a clever ruse to get their mother to leave the house so they could get ready for her surprise.孩子们想出一个聪明的办法使妈妈离家，以便他们能准备给她一个惊喜。It is now clear that this was a ruse to divide them.现在已清楚这是一个离间他们的诡计。

11 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

12 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

13 counterfeiting   

n.伪造v.仿制，造假( counterfeit的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He was sent to prison for counterfeiting five-dollar bills. 他因伪造5美元的钞票被捕入狱。 来自辞典例句
• National bureau released securities, certificates with security anti-counterfeiting paper technical standards. 国家质量技术监督局发布了证券、证件用安全性防伪纸张技术标准。 来自互联网

14 counterfeited   

v.仿制，造假( counterfeit的过去分词 )

参考例句：

• How did you spot those fifties were counterfeited? 你怎样察觉出那些50元面值的纸币是伪造的？ 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The old miser's widow counterfeited a grief she did not feel. 这个老守财奴的寡妇伪装出她并没有的哀伤。 来自辞典例句

15 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

16 malicious   

adj.有恶意的，心怀恶意的

参考例句：

• You ought to kick back at such malicious slander. 你应当反击这种恶毒的污蔑。
• Their talk was slightly malicious.他们的谈话有点儿心怀不轨。

17 licensing   

v.批准，许可，颁发执照( license的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• A large part of state regulation consists of occupational licensing. 大部分州的管理涉及行业的特许批准。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法
• That licensing procedures for projects would move faster. 这样的工程批准程序一定会加快。 来自辞典例句