NPR 2010-01-10

From NPR News in Washington, I'm Lakshmi Singh.

 

A purported¹ videotape of the Jordanian man who killed seven CIA employees in a suicide attack has been released. Today Al-Jazeera Television broadcast the tape, in which the double agent called for attacks on U. S. targets. Dale Gavlak reports.

 

In the video Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi said he was sending a message to the enemies of Islam, who he named as Jordan's Intelligence Service and the CIA. Balawi said he was avenging² the death of Pakistani Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud and urged for more attacks on the US. Mehsud was killed by a CIA missile strike in August. Balawi's father in Oman confirmed the man pictured was his son. He said his zealous³ son was very opposed to what was happening in Iraq, the occupation of Palestinian territory and the killings⁴ of Muslims in Afghanistan. Balawi's suicide bombing killed seven CIA agents and a Jordanian intelligence officer, a distant relative of King Abdullah. It was the deadliest attack against the CIA in decades. For NPR News, I'm Dale Gavlak in Oman.

 

A New York City man has pleaded not guilty to charges that he received military training by terrorism organization. Adis Medunjanin, a Bosnian  American was arraigned⁵ in federal court today. He was one of two men arrested early yesterday for alleged⁶ ties to a terror suspect in a bomb plot against New York City.

 

Europe is iced over from Edinburgh to the Mediterranean⁷ coast, making transportation dangerous across the region. Frank Browning has details from Paris.

 

A foot of snow has blanketed Arles, the normally sunny town where Van Gogh painted his sunflowers, while the bucolic⁸ pasture lands in Normandy are so icy that the normally ultra-efficient train system is hardly budging⁹. Germans, no strangers to snow in cold, were advised to stock up on food and water and stay home, while governments in London, Berlin, Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam warned people to stay off the roads in all but extreme emergencies. The Europa Auto¹⁰ Club said monthly that much of Germany could be paralyzed all weekend. High-speed Eurostar service between the Continent and London has promised at best 50% of its trains. Companies are being told to shut down or cut their hours to conserve¹¹ gas. Major airports are expecting heavy delays, even on international flights. For NPR News, I'm Frank Browning in Paris.

 

Police in Hong Kong are investigating an acid attack on a crowd today that injured at least 15 people including several tourists and a child. Local media report that bottled acid was dropped from a building on a busy street lined with shops and many snack venders. So far no arrest has been made. This is just the latest in a series of acid attacks in Hong Kong since December of 2008.

 

This is NPR.

 

After a devastating¹² attack in Angola yesterday, Togo's national soccer team reportedly has pulled out of the African Nations Cup. Newswires report the team's in shock after two members of the soccer delegation¹³ were killed when their bus was ambushed¹⁴ in Cabinda. The Angolan bus driver was also killed.

 

A former researcher at UCLA School of Medicine has pleaded guilty to illegally accessing confidential¹⁵ medical records of celebrities¹⁶, high-profile patients and co-workers. NPR's Carrie Kahn reports.

 

The UCLA employee, 38-year-old Huping Zhou, was a cardiothoracic surgeon from China who was doing research at the university medical system. On Friday he pleaded guilty in U. S. court to four counts of violating federal privacy laws. Zhou could face up to four years in federal prison. According to the U. S. Attorney's Office, Zhou accessed patient records, mostly of celebrities, more than 300 times after he had been warned that he would be fired. A UCLA spokeswoman says the university has cooperated fully¹⁷ with the investigators¹⁸ and is committed to continually improving patient confidentiality¹⁹ policies. UCLA has disciplined dozens of employees since it was revealed that its personnel peeked²⁰ into the medical records of celebrities including Farrah Fawcett, Britney Spears and California's First Lady Maria Shriver. Carrie Kahn, NPR News.

 

The creator of the pop culture phenomenon Gumby died yesterday. Art Clokey was 88 years old. Clokey's Gumby actually started as a student project at the University of Southern California in the early 1950s. Gumby made it to the Howdy Doody Show and the bendable figure eventually became a hot item in the toy industry.

 

This is NPR.
 

1 purported   

adj.传说的，谣传的v.声称是…，（装得）像是…的样子( purport的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• the scene of the purported crime 传闻中的罪案发生地点
• The film purported to represent the lives of ordinary people. 这部影片声称旨在表现普通人的生活。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 avenging   

adj.报仇的，复仇的v.为…复仇，报…之仇( avenge的现在分词 )；为…报复

参考例句：

• He has devoted the past five years to avenging his daughter's death. 他过去5年一心报丧女之仇。 来自辞典例句
• His disfigured face was like some avenging nemesis of gargoyle design. 他那张破了相的脸，活象面目狰狞的复仇之神。 来自辞典例句

3 zealous   

adj.狂热的，热心的

参考例句：

• She made zealous efforts to clean up the classroom.她非常热心地努力清扫教室。
• She is a zealous supporter of our cause.她是我们事业的热心支持者。

4 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

5 arraigned   

v.告发( arraign的过去式和过去分词 )；控告；传讯；指责

参考例句：

• He was arraigned for murder. 他因谋杀罪而被提讯。
• She was arraigned for high treason. 她被控叛国罪。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

6 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

7 Mediterranean   

adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的

参考例句：

• The houses are Mediterranean in character.这些房子都属地中海风格。
• Gibraltar is the key to the Mediterranean.直布罗陀是地中海的要冲。

8 bucolic   

adj.乡村的；牧羊的

参考例句：

• It is a bucolic refuge in the midst of a great bustling city.它是处在繁华的大城市之中的世外桃源。
• She turns into a sweet country girl surrounded by family,chickens and a bucolic landscape.她变成了被家人、鸡与乡村景象所围绕的甜美乡村姑娘。

9 budging   

v.（使）稍微移动( budge的现在分词 )；（使）改变主意，（使）让步

参考例句：

• Give it up, plumber. She's not budging. 别费劲了，水管工。她不会改变主意的。 来自互联网
• I wondered how Albert who showed no intention of budging, felt about Leopold's desertion. 对于从未有迁徙打算的艾伯特来说，我不知道它会怎样看待利奥波德这样弃它而去呢。 来自互联网

10 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。

11 conserve   

vt.保存，保护，节约，节省，守恒，不灭

参考例句：

• He writes on both sides of the sheet to conserve paper.他在纸张的两面都写字以节省用纸。
• Conserve your energy,you'll need it!保存你的精力，你会用得着的！

12 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

13 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

14 ambushed   

v.埋伏( ambush的过去式和过去分词 )；埋伏着

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The military vehicles were ambushed. 军车遭到伏击。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 confidential   

adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的

参考例句：

• He refused to allow his secretary to handle confidential letters.他不让秘书处理机密文件。
• We have a confidential exchange of views.我们推心置腹地交换意见。

16 celebrities   

n.（尤指娱乐界的）名人( celebrity的名词复数 )；名流；名声；名誉

参考例句：

• He only invited A-list celebrities to his parties. 他只邀请头等名流参加他的聚会。
• a TV chat show full of B-list celebrities 由众多二流人物参加的电视访谈节目

17 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

18 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 confidentiality   

n.秘而不宣，保密

参考例句：

• They signed a confidentiality agreement. 他们签署了一份保守机密的协议。
• Cryptography is the foundation of supporting authentication, integrality and confidentiality. 而密码学是支持认证、完整性和机密性机制的基础。

20 peeked   

v.很快地看( peek的过去式和过去分词 )；偷看；窥视；微露出

参考例句：

• She peeked over the top of her menu. 她从菜单上往外偷看。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• On two occasions she had peeked at him through a crack in the wall. 她曾两次透过墙缝窥视他。 来自辞典例句