CNN 2011-11-01

 Monday's awesome,especially when we get to talk about not one,but two amendments² to the American Constitution.

I'm C.A,and you're watching CNN student news.

First up,a good day for the stock market not just the US one,markets in Japan,China,Britain,Germany and France did well.When stocks go up,it usually means investors³ are feeling positive.Experts think a big reason for yesterday's positivity was a deal over Europe's debt crisis.

After a Marathon of talks,European Union leaders came to an agreement on how to tackle 3 related problems.First,Greece's debt will be reduced.Second,they've found ways to increase the power of a bailout fund.And third,they will make new rules to help make Europe's banks stronger.So why are other markets reacting XX of this deal?Remember what we said yesterday.Different economies are connected.So if the crisis in Europe has got worse,it could have an impact worldwide.This deal hopefully indicates that won't happen.

Next up,we're heading to southeastern Asia,to the country of Thailand.Its capital city,Bangkok,homes to millions of people.And many of them are dealing⁴ with this,massive flooding.Thai officials say this is the worst to hit their country in half a century.Homes flooded,people's belongings⁵ destroyed.We're talking about billions of dollars in damages.Experts thought most of Bangkok could end up under flood waters yesterday.And it might take for more than a month before those waters go back down in some areas.Thailand's government declared 5 holidays starting yesterday.A lot of people used that as a reason to get out of Bangkok.But CNN's XX is there.She has more in the evacuation efforts.

We're in North Bangkok.And what you're seeing right now is a road,a road to the north.That's now a river.What's happening here is that the army is going and helping⁶ to get people to safety.And you're seeing truck loads of people coming from areas that's been inundated⁷ with water.And what's also happening here is that people are trying to figure out just how far this water's gonna go into the town.So far, 9.5 million people in Thailand have been affected⁸ by these floods.And there've been hundreds of people killed so far.This water is supposed to crest⁹ in the next few days.There's a great concern that it will make all the way in to the business district which will further hurt the economy here.

On this day in histroy,back in 1636,Harvard College was founded in Massachusetts.That means the school is 375 years old today.

In 1886,the Statue of Liberty was dedicated¹⁰ in New York Harbor.The famous landmark¹¹ was a gift of friendship of France to the US.

In 1919,the US Congress passed the Volstead Act.This enforced the 18th amendment¹ which made it illegal to make or sell alcohol.

And in 1962,the Cuban Missile crisis came to an end.It was a tense stand-off between the US and the Soviet¹² Union that could have cost a nuclear conflict.

XX has reported on another historic event,hasn't happened yet,but is coming in just a few days.According to estimates from the United Nations,this coming Monday,the world population will hit 7 billion.But with more and more people ,there're some concerns about whether there're enough resources to go around.Watch this report.

October 31st,2011.That's the day the UN says that the 7 billionth person will be born on earth.7 billionth.That's a crowded planet.

It took only 12 years to go from 6 billion to 7 billion.And it's expected to take,maybe ,another 14 years to go to 8 billion.So the trajectory¹³ is still rising quickly.

Sachs says all those people mean more demand for food,more stresses on the land and more loss of water.But that's not the biggest problem.

The big problem is that in the poorest countries,families are still having 6,7 or 8 children.That's what's putting the tremendous growth of population continuing,because in the high-income countries,fertility rates have come down to 2 children on average,or even less.

This map shows you birth rates across the world.Multiple births above 5 are centered in Africa.Most lower birth rates are in developed countries.Doctor Sachs says rapid population growth in poor countries often creates conflicts and political stress at borders.And on top of that,cultural values and available medical health care in developing countries creates a barrier to proper birth control.

XX ,CNN from Atlanta.

1 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

2 amendments   

（法律、文件的）改动( amendment的名词复数 )； 修正案； 修改； （美国宪法的）修正案

参考例句：

• The committee does not adequately consult others when drafting amendments. 委员会在起草修正案时没有充分征求他人的意见。
• Please propose amendments and addenda to the first draft of the document. 请对这个文件的初稿提出修改和补充意见。

3 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

4 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

5 belongings   

n.私人物品，私人财物

参考例句：

• I put a few personal belongings in a bag.我把几件私人物品装进包中。
• Your personal belongings are not dutiable.个人物品不用纳税。

6 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

7 inundated   

v.淹没( inundate的过去式和过去分词 )；（洪水般地）涌来；充满；给予或交予（太多事物）使难以应付

参考例句：

• We have been inundated with offers of help. 主动援助多得使我们应接不暇。
• We have been inundated with every bit of information imaginable. 凡是想得到的各种各样的信息潮水般地向我们涌来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

9 crest   

n.顶点；饰章；羽冠；vt.达到顶点；vi.形成浪尖

参考例句：

• The rooster bristled his crest.公鸡竖起了鸡冠。
• He reached the crest of the hill before dawn.他于黎明前到达山顶。

10 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

11 landmark   

n.陆标，划时代的事，地界标

参考例句：

• The Russian Revolution represents a landmark in world history.俄国革命是世界历史上的一个里程碑。
• The tower was once a landmark for ships.这座塔曾是船只的陆标。

12 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

13 trajectory   

n.弹道，轨道

参考例句：

• It is not difficult to sketch the subsequent trajectory.很容易描绘出它们最终的轨迹。
• The path followed by a projectile is called its trajectory.抛物体所循的路径称为它的轨道。