NPR 2008-09-11

Federal regulators in Denver and Washington who were supposed to be watchdogs over oil and gas companies allegedly partied and have sex with industry employees. A report says they also improperly¹ accepted gifts and arranged lucrative³ contracts for themselves. NPR's Jeff Brady reports.

Inspector⁴ General Earl Devaney says 13 Minerals Management Service employees created a culture of substance abuse and promiscuity⁵. He says one supervisor⁶ used illegal drugs and had sex with subordinates. Others allegedly rigged contracts to benefit themselves and friends. The employees were supposed to keep a close eye on oil and gas companies to make sure they paid all the royalties⁷ owed for drilling on public land and off the nation's coast. But they allegedly accepted industry-paid trips and other gifts. Devaney says the gifts weren't that valuable but employees accepted them with " prodigious⁸ frequency". One person Jimmy Mayberry already has pleaded guilty to a criminal charge. Others could face administrative⁹ sanctions but some will not be penalized¹⁰ at all because they've already left their jobs. Jeff Brady, NPR News.

A federal judge today refused to dismiss corruption¹¹ charges against Alaska's Republican Senator Ted² Stevens. NPR's Nina Totenberg has that story.

Stevens is charged with seven counts of filing false financial disclosure forms in the Senate, specifically leaving out a quarter of a million dollars in gifts he received from an Alaska oil services company and its chief executive officer. In seeking to have the charges dismissed, Stevens contended that only the Senate could discipline him for any ethical¹² lapse¹³ involving the disclosure forms. But after a hearing today federal judge Emmet Sullivan rejected that argument, clearing the way for the Stevens' trial to begin in less than two weeks. The 84-year-old Stevens, the longest-serving Republican in the US Senate, easily won re-nomination in the primary last month but faces a tough reelection bid in the general election this November. Nina Totenberg, NPR News, Washington.

Emergency crews investigating a building collapse¹⁴ near Richmond, Virginia now say the body of one worker has been found beneath the rubble¹⁵. Rescuers say it's unclear if the body is that of a worker who had not been accounted for. Initial reports said as many as a dozen workers inside when a 60-foot section of the building gave way. Crews say they've not ruled out the possibility there could be additional victims. It's not clear what caused the collapse.

Troubled investment bank Lehman Brothers says it plans to sell a majority stake in its investment management business and spin off its commercial real estate holdings as it struggles to remain afloat. And the fourth largest US investment bank says the sale of the entire company is also a possibility. Shares of the more than 150-year-old firm plunged¹⁶ yesterday after reports surfaced the negotiations¹⁷ with a South Korean bank to invest capital in Lehman Brothers were foundering¹⁸.

On Wall Street today the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 38 points to end the session at 11, 268. The NASDAQ added 18 points today. The S&P500 was up 7 points.

This is NPR News.

The Defense¹⁹ Department has decided²⁰ to end for now a 35-billion-dollar bidding contest for the Air Force's next generation air refueling tanker²¹. Defense Secretary Robert Gates telling Congress the Pentagon could not meet its goal of picking between revised tanker proposals from Boeing and Northrop Grumman by the time President Bush leaves office. The Air Force back in February initially²² awarded the contract for new refueling tankers²³ to Northrop's partner European airplane builder Airbus. However it reopened the contract after it was determined²⁴ there were significant errors in the bidding.

Nominations²⁵ for the annual Latin Grammys were announced today in Los Angeles. The Mexican Rock group Cafe Tacuba got the most nods. NPR's Mandalit del Barco reports.

Cafe Tacuba picked up six nominations for the album Sino including Album and Record of the Year and Best Alternative Album. Also nominated for Album and Record of the Year was Columbian singer Juanes. He got five nominations for his album La Vida Es Un Ratico. Both Juanes and Caf Tacvba have Argentinean musician Gustavo Santaolalla to thank for producing their music. The Oscar-winning producer also was nominated for five Latin Grammys. Other nominees²⁶ included Puerto Rican pop singer Kany Garcia, Peruvian folk group Peru Negro, and Washington. D. C. -based Latin Jazz group Afro Bop Alliance. Mandalit del Barco, NPR News.

Crude oil prices continued to fall today. Light sweet crude was down 68 cents a barrel settling at $102. 58 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

1 improperly   

不正确地，不适当地

参考例句：

• Of course it was acting improperly. 这样做就是不对嘛！
• He is trying to improperly influence a witness. 他在试图误导证人。

2 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

3 lucrative   

adj.赚钱的，可获利的

参考例句：

• He decided to turn his hobby into a lucrative sideline.他决定把自己的爱好变成赚钱的副业。
• It was not a lucrative profession.那是一个没有多少油水的职业。

4 inspector   

n.检查员，监察员，视察员

参考例句：

• The inspector was interested in everything pertaining to the school.视察员对有关学校的一切都感兴趣。
• The inspector was shining a flashlight onto the tickets.查票员打着手电筒查看车票。

5 promiscuity   

n.混杂，混乱；（男女的）乱交

参考例句：

• Promiscuity went unpunished, divorce was permitted. 乱交挨不着惩罚，离婚办得成手续。 来自英汉文学
• There is also no doubt that she falls into promiscuity at last. 同时无疑她最后也堕入性乱。 来自互联网

6 supervisor   

n.监督人，管理人，检查员，督学，主管，导师

参考例句：

• Between you and me I think that new supervisor is a twit.我们私下说，我认为新来的主管人是一个傻瓜。
• He said I was too flighty to be a good supervisor.他说我太轻浮不能成为一名好的管理员。

7 royalties   

特许权使用费

参考例句：

• I lived on about £3,000 a year from the royalties on my book. 我靠着写书得来的每年约3，000英镑的版税生活。 来自辞典例句
• Payments shall generally be made in the form of royalties. 一般应采取提成方式支付。 来自经济法规部分

8 prodigious   

adj.惊人的，奇妙的；异常的；巨大的；庞大的

参考例句：

• This business generates cash in prodigious amounts.这种业务收益丰厚。
• He impressed all who met him with his prodigious memory.他惊人的记忆力让所有见过他的人都印象深刻。

9 administrative   

adj.行政的，管理的

参考例句：

• The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
• He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。

10 penalized   

对…予以惩罚( penalize的过去式和过去分词 )； 使处于不利地位

参考例句：

• You will be penalized for poor spelling. 你拼写不好将会受到处罚。
• Team members will be penalized for lateness. 队员迟到要受处罚。

11 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

12 ethical   

adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
• It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。

13 lapse   

n.过失，流逝，失效，抛弃信仰，间隔；vi.堕落，停止，失效，流逝；vt.使失效

参考例句：

• The incident was being seen as a serious security lapse.这一事故被看作是一次严重的安全疏忽。
• I had a lapse of memory.我记错了。

14 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

15 rubble   

n.（一堆）碎石，瓦砾

参考例句：

• After the earthquake,it took months to clean up the rubble.地震后，花了数月才清理完瓦砾。
• After the war many cities were full of rubble.战后许多城市到处可见颓垣残壁。

16 plunged   

v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降

参考例句：

• The train derailed and plunged into the river. 火车脱轨栽进了河里。
• She lost her balance and plunged 100 feet to her death. 她没有站稳，从100英尺的高处跌下摔死了。

17 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

18 foundering   

v.创始人( founder的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The lifeboat soon got abreast of the foundering ship. 救生艇很快就赶到了那艘正在下沉的船旁。 来自互联网
• With global climate-change negotiations foundering, the prospects of raising cash for REDD that way look poor. 由于就全球气候变化的谈判破裂，通过这种方式来为REDD集资前景堪忧。 来自互联网

19 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。

20 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

21 tanker   

n.油轮

参考例句：

• The tanker took on 200,000 barrels of crude oil.油轮装载了二十万桶原油。
• Heavy seas had pounded the tanker into three parts.汹涌的巨浪把油轮撞成三载。

22 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

23 tankers   

运送大量液体或气体的轮船[卡车]( tanker的名词复数 )； 油轮； 罐车； 油槽车

参考例句：

• They should stop offloading waste from oil tankers into the sea. 他们应当停止从油轮上往海里倾倒废弃物。
• The harbour admits large tankers and freighters. 这个港口容得下巨型油船和货轮。

24 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

25 nominations   

n.提名，任命( nomination的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Nominations are invited for the post of party chairman. 为党主席职位征集候选人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Much coverage surrounded his abortive bids for the 1960,1964, and 1968 Republican Presidential nominations. 许多消息报道都围绕着1960年、1964年和1968年他为争取提名为共和党总统候选人所做努力的失败。 来自辞典例句

26 nominees   

n.被提名者，被任命者( nominee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She's one of the nominees. 她是被提名者之一。 来自超越目标英语 第2册
• A startling number of his nominees for senior positions have imploded. 他所提名的高级官员被否决的数目令人震惊。 来自互联网