时间:2018-12-17 作者:英语课 分类:2009年NPR美国国家公共电台3月


英语课

The White House appears to be sharing the outrage 1 of many average citizens over how insurance giant American International Group has apparently 2 used some of the billions in federal bailout money it received. Amid reports that AIG, which has received roughly 170 billion dollars in government money, is paying 165 million dollars in executive bonuses, there's been a firestorm of public outrage. The president vowed 3 he will use every legal avenue to try to prevent the company from paying out bonuses. AIG, which also revealed that it has paid banks and other firms some 90 billion dollars, has said it's contractually obligated to pay bonuses to its executives and includes those who are part of the division where the company's financial crisis originated.


The White House has rejected South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford's request to use part of his state's share of stimulus 4 money to pay down South Carolina's debt. NPR's Brian Naylor reports.


Sanford, a Republican, has frequently criticized the stimulus, saying it will lead to higher taxes and debt. He's spoken out against the part of the stimulus package that aims to expand state unemployment benefits. And last week he requested an exemption 6 to use some 700 million dollars slated 7 for schools and other government services to pay down the state's debt. But White House Budget Director Peter Orszag said in a letter to Sanford that the federal stimulus law does not allow for such an exemption. The governor has said he would reject some of the stimulus money if he can't get flexibility 8 in how to spend it. The South Carolina Legislature could vote to overrule Sanford's decision. Brian Naylor, NPR News, Washington.


US military is reporting today that an American jet shot down an unmanned Iranian surveillance aircraft last month over Iraqi territory. According to a statement released today, the incident took place last month some 60 miles northeast of Baghdad. US officials say they tracked the unmanned plane for more than an hour before it was shot down.


Defense 10 Secretary Robert Gates will skip a NATO summit next month in order to stay in Washington and work on the defense budget. NPR's Mary Louise Kelly reports.


The NATO summit is planned for early April in Strasbourg, France and Kehl, Germany. It's time to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the alliance. The gathering 11 is also expected to provide a forum 12 for President Obama to lay out his new strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan and try to win the backing of NATO allies for his plans there. Secretary Gates was expected to go, instead he'll stay put in Washington in order to focus on what Pentagon Spokesman Brian Whitman calls "one of the most challenging budget reviews in years." Whitman denied any other reason for the change of plans and noted 13 the US will be well represented at the summit with both President Obama and National Security Advisor 14 James Jones planning to attend. Mary Louise Kelly, NPR News, Washington.


On Wall Street today, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 7 points to close at 7,216. The NASDAQ dropped 27 points. The S&P 500 closed down 2 points today.


This is NPR.


Mexico says it plans to boost tariffs 15 on roughly 90 US-made products. That follows the announcement last week from the US it will cancel a pilot program that allows some Mexican trucks to transport goods within the US. The Mexican Economy Department in announcing the sanction cited the fact US decision violates a provision of the North American Free Trade Agreement that was supposed to have opened the cross-border trucking years ago. Mexican government did not name the products that will be affected 16 or specify 17 how much such tariffs will go up.


The world's biggest oil exporting nation Saudi Arabia says crude oil prices are too low. A Saudi energy minister spoke 5 at a conference in Switzerland. From Geneva, Alex Helmick reports.


Less than a year ago, crude oil prices soared to more than $140 a barrel. Now in the midst of an economic crisis the prices have plummeted 18 to around $40 a barrel. And ministers from oil producing nations say the future of their economies and the global economy depends on higher prices. Ali al-Naimi is Saudi Arabia's Petroleum 19 Minister. "You need between $60 and $70 or $60 and $75 to allow marginal producers to continue producing ethanols, tar 9 sands, heavy oils what alike." Al-Naimi says his country will continue to keep oil production below the international quota 20 because, he says, there is not enough global demand. For NPR News, I'm Alex Helmick in Geneva.


Output from the nation's mines and factories tumbled for the forth 21 straight month in February. The government says factories were running at just 67.4 percent of capacity. That's their lowest level on records going back to 1948.



1 outrage
n.暴行,侮辱,愤怒;vt.凌辱,激怒
  • When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
  • We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。
2 apparently
adv.显然地;表面上,似乎
  • An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽,豁然开朗。
  • He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。
3 vowed
起誓,发誓(vow的过去式与过去分词形式)
  • He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
  • I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。
4 stimulus
n.刺激,刺激物,促进因素,引起兴奋的事物
  • Regard each failure as a stimulus to further efforts.把每次失利看成对进一步努力的激励。
  • Light is a stimulus to growth in plants.光是促进植物生长的一个因素。
5 spoke
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
6 exemption
n.豁免,免税额,免除
  • You may be able to apply for exemption from local taxes.你可能符合资格申请免除地方税。
  • These goods are subject to exemption from tax.这些货物可以免税。
7 slated
用石板瓦盖( slate的过去式和过去分词 )
  • Yuki is working up an in-home phonics program slated for Thursdays, and I'm drilling her on English conversation at dinnertime. Yuki每周四还有一次家庭语音课。我在晚餐时训练她的英语口语。
  • Bromfield was slated to become U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. 布罗姆菲尔德被提名为美国农业部长。
8 flexibility
n.柔韧性,弹性,(光的)折射性,灵活性
  • Her great strength lies in her flexibility.她的优势在于她灵活变通。
  • The flexibility of a man's muscles will lessen as he becomes old.人老了肌肉的柔韧性将降低。
9 tar
n.柏油,焦油;vt.涂或浇柏油/焦油于
  • The roof was covered with tar.屋顶涂抹了一层沥青。
  • We use tar to make roads.我们用沥青铺路。
10 defense
n.防御,保卫;[pl.]防务工事;辩护,答辩
  • 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。
11 gathering
n.集会,聚会,聚集
  • He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
  • He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。
12 forum
n.论坛,讨论会
  • They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
  • The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。
13 noted
adj.著名的,知名的
  • The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
  • Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。
14 advisor
n.顾问,指导老师,劝告者
  • They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
  • The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。
15 tariffs
关税制度; 关税( tariff的名词复数 ); 关税表; (旅馆或饭店等的)收费表; 量刑标准
  • British industry was sheltered from foreign competition by protective tariffs. 保护性关税使英国工业免受国际竞争影响。
  • The new tariffs have put a stranglehold on trade. 新的关税制对开展贸易极为不利。
16 affected
adj.不自然的,假装的
  • 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。
17 specify
vt.指定,详细说明
  • We should specify a time and a place for the meeting.我们应指定会议的时间和地点。
  • Please specify what you will do.请你详述一下你将做什么。
18 plummeted
v.垂直落下,骤然跌落( plummet的过去式和过去分词 )
  • Share prices plummeted to an all-time low. 股票价格暴跌到历史最低点。
  • A plane plummeted to earth. 一架飞机一头栽向地面。 来自《简明英汉词典》
19 petroleum
n.原油,石油
  • The Government of Iran advanced the price of petroleum last week.上星期伊朗政府提高了石油价格。
  • The purpose of oil refinery is to refine crude petroleum.炼油厂的主要工作是提炼原油。
20 quota
n.(生产、进出口等的)配额,(移民的)限额
  • A restricted import quota was set for meat products.肉类产品设定了进口配额。
  • He overfulfilled his production quota for two months running.他一连两个月超额完成生产指标。
21 forth
adv.向前;向外,往外
  • The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
  • He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。
学英语单词
a saucy miss
AC track circuit
air compressor bracket
anthracenes
arteria auricularis
arteria segmenti medialis
atmospheric ionizer
aulographium euryae sydow
auto-exciting
backtag
Bundesliga
Byrdstown
cast iron furniture
chart lines
cosmic-scale
creflo
cylindrical dewar
deep gully
do a message
early adulthood
eckle
epispastica
film actor
fire eaters
flame stabilizor
float upward
fly-switching
genus rajas
glad for
gradualness
gurami
habyrgen
hallions
Hanamaula
head fork weldment
headstripes
hedge thorns
hemaglobinuria
his bundle
holergasia
Humboldt River
in bonis habere
in the press
index forest
intimacy
jrgensen
kanius
laser fracturing
Lensahn
loss of flow accident
macrogonite
magnetoresistive recording head
mantically
message-driven processing
Michelia angustioblonga
military regulations
Modigliani, Franco
musculus depressor labii superioris
naked cells
navigational planets
no-stress
non-sparking metal
notate
Panicum Texanum
phenylphenalenone
philanthropine
pilot regulator
polymorphoonuclear cell
producer's price
progression jet plug
pterostyrax leveillei chun
pulmonary osteoarthropathy
puseys
ramjet missile
reflexive locally convex space
rhyme with
rock mass classification
sale in gross
Scenedesmus arcuatus
sea-sick
senft
Seriphidium schrenkianum
sixlings
sobrerol
souplike
stitchen
stricke
supplementary series
tergosternal
thanatomimesis
Thierville-sur-Meuse
this vale of misery
tin discharge
transmissioncontrol character
transrepression
tuning downward
underwater defence
unilateral heating
unrelating
vice-gerents
water-front structure
wearing floor