美国有线新闻 CNN 2012-09-09

 　　U.S. national debt has hit a new milestone¹, and it’s not a good one. The government now owes more than $16 trillion. That’s 16 with 12 zeroes after it, and still counting. We can put it this way, if you spend a million dollars a day, it would take you almost 44,000 years to spend 16 trillion. For this debt many Republicans² blame Democrats³ and President Barack Obama. Many Democrats blame Republicans and former president George W. Bush. Two things we can say for sure. One, the government is spending a lot of money, and two, it’s taking in a lot less tax revenue⁴ because of the struggling economy, so you can count on this number increasing in the months ahead.

　　It’s time for The Shout out. Which of this object is closest in size to the international space station? If you think you know it, then shout it out. Is it 747 airliners⁵, football field, spaces shuttle Discovery or Lake Erie? You’ve got three seconds, go? The length and width of the ISS is about the size of a football field, according to NASA. That’s your answer and that’s your Shout out.

　　Of course, that includes its solar panels⁶ and everything else. The actual living space of the ISS is little smaller, it’s about the size of a five-bedroom house. It didn’t matter much yesterday for two of the six folks who are living there. A NASA astronaut and a Japanese space flyer stepped outside the ISS to fix one of its power units. Though the space station is the single most expensive object ever built, and one of the most technologically⁷ advanced, part of yesterday’s repair job was done using a spare toothbrush. It’s not the only walk we are showing you today. Nor is it the most dangerous. Before we go, why did the ducks crossed the highway? Because they had no fear. Now, don’t duck out on us here, nothing bad is going to happen, although with all these cars racing⁸ by, there are a couple of closed calls, including this one, right here . The mother and her babies got blown around a lot, but when they all waddled⁹ safely across, which eventually they did, the video went viral. Hard to say if there is some sort of lesson in this. It’s not look both ways before crossing the street, because they didn’t. It’s definitely not mama know best, because she doesn’t. If it was a lesson in safety, it certainly ruffled¹⁰ some feathers. A lesson in bravery doesn’t really fit the bill, and if it’s a lesson in sound judgment¹¹, there are definitely quacks¹² in her armor. We’ll see you Friday, and wish you safe travels wherever you go.

1 milestone   

n.里程碑；划时代的事件

参考例句：

• The film proved to be a milestone in the history of cinema.事实证明这部影片是电影史上的一个里程碑。
• I think this is a very important milestone in the relations between our two countries.我认为这是我们两国关系中一个十分重要的里程碑。

2 republicans   

拥护共和政体者，共和主义者( republican的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Republicans got shellacked in the elections. 共和党在选举中一败涂地。
• The latest poll gives the Republicans a 5％ lead. 最近的民意调查结果表明共和党领先了五个百分点。

3 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 revenue   

n.总收入，财政收入，税收；税务局

参考例句：

• The country diminished the revenue by reducing tax.这个国家通过减税而使税收减少了。
• A government's revenue and expenditure should be balanced.政府的财政收入和支出要平衡。

5 airliners   

n.客机，班机( airliner的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The fog grounded the airliners. 大雾迫使班机停飞。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They placed very stable and accurate atomic clocks on regularly scheduled jet airliners. 他们将非常稳定、准确的原子钟装在定期飞行的喷气式班机上。 来自辞典例句

6 panels   

镶板( panel的名词复数 )； 面； （门、墙等上面的）嵌板； 控制板

参考例句：

• One of the glass panels in the front door was cracked. 前门的一块方玻璃破裂了。
• Make sure the panels are treated with a wood preservative. 确保镶板用木材防腐剂处理过。

7 technologically   

ad.技术上地

参考例句：

• Shanghai is a technologically advanced city. 上海是中国的一个技术先进的城市。
• Many senior managers are technologically illiterate. 许多高级经理都对技术知之甚少。

8 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

9 waddled   

v.（像鸭子一样）摇摇摆摆地走( waddle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• A family of ducks waddled along the river bank. 一群鸭子沿河岸摇摇摆摆地走。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The stout old man waddled across the road. 那肥胖的老人一跩一跩地穿过马路。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 ruffled   

adj. 有褶饰边的, 起皱的 动词ruffle的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• She ruffled his hair affectionately. 她情意绵绵地拨弄着他的头发。
• All this talk of a strike has clearly ruffled the management's feathers. 所有这些关于罢工的闲言碎语显然让管理层很不高兴。

11 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

12 quacks   

abbr.quacksalvers 庸医，骗子(16世纪习惯用水银或汞治疗梅毒的人)n.江湖医生( quack的名词复数 )；江湖郎中；（鸭子的）呱呱声v.（鸭子）发出嘎嘎声( quack的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• I went everywhere for treatment, tried all sorts of quacks. 我四处求医，看过了各种各样的江湖郎中。 来自辞典例句
• Hard-working medical men may come to be almost as mischievous as quacks. 辛勤工作的医生可能变成江湖郎中那样的骗子。 来自辞典例句