英语听力：澳洲新闻 (ABC新闻快递) 2013-10-17

 Six Australians have died in a plane crash in Laos. All 49 people on board the plane perished when it plunged¹ into the Mekong River as it was trying to land at an airport in the country’s south. It’s believed bad weather may have been a contributing factor.

 

The United Sates congress is preparing to vote on a deal to avoid a debt default. The agreement extends the federal borrowing limit until February and funds the government until, until the middle of January. World markets have surged on news of the deal. 

 

Former attorney general Nicola Roxon has delivered a scathing² character assessment³ of Kevin Rudd during a speech in Melbourne. Mr. Roxon described the former prime minister as a bastard⁴ who had a vicious tongue and temper. And she’s called on Mr. Rudd to quit parliament. 

 

An Australian man has died in an avalanche⁵ on Mount Everest. Dean Higgins and his wife spent six hours trapped beneath the snow. The 60-year-old managed to dig them out, but it took another eight hours to reach the bottom of the mountain where Mr. Higgins died. Three Tibetans were killed in that avalanche. 

 

And Tasmania’s bid to legalize voluntary euthanasia looks set to fail. Lower House MPs spent a marathon six hours debating the private members' bill late yesterday. All 10 Liberals and at least three Labor⁶ MPs will vote against the bill ensuring it won’t be passed.

1 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。

2 scathing   

adj.（言词、文章）严厉的，尖刻的；不留情的adv.严厉地，尖刻地v.伤害，损害（尤指使之枯萎）( scathe的现在分词)

参考例句：

• a scathing attack on the new management 针对新的管理层的猛烈抨击
• Her speech was a scathing indictment of the government's record on crime. 她的演讲强烈指责了政府在犯罪问题上的表现。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

4 bastard   

n.坏蛋，混蛋；私生子

参考例句：

• He was never concerned about being born a bastard.他从不介意自己是私生子。
• There was supposed to be no way to get at the bastard.据说没有办法买通那个混蛋。

5 avalanche   

n.雪崩，大量涌来

参考例句：

• They were killed by an avalanche in the Swiss Alps.他们在瑞士阿尔卑斯山的一次雪崩中罹难。
• Higher still the snow was ready to avalanche.在更高处积雪随时都会崩塌。

6 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。