NPR 2010-08-04

Workers are grieving the deaths of eight colleagues killed in a mass shooting at a beer distribution company in Manchester, Connecticut this morning. Police say the gunman, also an employee of Hartford Distributors, opened fire before he killed himself. He attacked after he was called in for a disciplinary hearing.

This afternoon, BP pumped oil into its blown-out well in the Gulf¹ in a test. This effort was delayed for a day because of a minor² technical glitch³. NPR's Richard Harris reports the company's preparing to fill it with heavy fluid and then plug it with cement.

In the oil industry, they call this procedure 'killing⁴ the well'. Right now, oil inside the well is under pressure, so it's pressing hard on the cap on the top of the well. But once BP has filled the 2.5-mile-long well with heavy mud, the pressure inside it should subside⁵. All that heavy material is supposed to push the oil and gas back into the rock from which it came. After that's been accomplished⁶, BP will plug the well with cement. The head of the federal efforts says that will ultimately be accomplished through the main relief well, which has very nearly drilled into the bottom of the blown-out well. Cementing procedures could take a couple of weeks or longer if a major storm blows into the Gulf. Richard Harris, NPR News.

The State Department says it is extremely concerned about violence along the Israel-Lebanon border. NPR's Jackie Northam reports at least two Lebanese soldiers and a senior Israeli military officer were killed in a cross-border skirmish.

State Department spokesman PJ Crowley says that the US is in touch with both governments of Lebanon and Israel to try to determine what happened during Tuesday's skirmish. The two sides gave differing accounts of what was the most serious clash since the war in 2006. Crowley said the US is urging both sides to exercise 'maximum restraint', and that the greatest concern is that whatever did happen not be repeated.

"The region has enough tension as it is. The last thing that we want to see is, you know, this incident expand into something more significant."

Crowley says there might be a formal meeting supervised by the United Nations on Wednesday in the region in an effort to keep the situation calm. Jackie Northam, NPR News, Washington.

Floodwaters rushing against the top of a bridge in northwest Pakistan, site of some of the deadliest flooding the country's ever seen. The Red Cross estimates some 1,400 people have been killed since a monsoon⁷ hit about a week ago.

From deadly rains to deadly fires, out of control fires, as broadcast by Russian broadcaster RTR, still burning across western Russia, and authorities are worried they may not have enough firefighters to battle the flames. Tens of thousands of troops and volunteers are on the scene.

US stocks continue to slide today amid mixed economic reports out today. Last check, Dow was down 38 points at 10,636, NASDAQ down 12 at 2,284.

This is NPR.

Two families are mourning the deaths of six teenagers in Louisiana who drowned in the Red River yesterday while they were trying to save each other. Shreveport Fire Chief Brian Crawford said none of the teens could swim, and the adults nearby were also helpless.

"In addition to the children not being able to swim, they themselves could not swim. And so, you can imagine watching your child drowned and not..."

The victims included three brothers from one family and a sister and two brothers from another.

Only about half of doctors are strongly recommending that 11 and 12-year-olds get vaccinated⁸ against the sexually transmitted disease known as the human papillomavirus (HPV). NPR's Brenda Wilson has more details.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that girls get the HPV vaccine⁹ at age 11 or 12 ideally before they become sexually active. The vaccine protects against most of the HPV strains that can cause cervical cancer. But in a recent study, just 57% of the pediatricians and half of the family physicians strongly recommend it to patients at that age. Most wait until their patients are between 13 and 15 years old because they want to discuss sexuality with the patients and concerns that parents have about the vaccine. More than 800 US pediatricians and family physicians were surveyed by researchers from the University of Colorado School of Medicine. They say nearly all the doctors have administered the HPV vaccine, and few think it encourages riskier¹⁰ sexual behavior. Brenda Wilson, NPR News.
 

1 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

2 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

3 glitch   

n.干扰；误操作，小故障

参考例句：

• There is a glitch in the computer program somewhere.这个计算机程序中的某个部分有点小问题。
• It could just be a random glitch that can be solved by restarting the machine.可能只是一个小故障，重新启动主机就能解决了。

4 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

5 subside   

vi.平静，平息；下沉，塌陷，沉降

参考例句：

• The emotional reaction which results from a serious accident takes time to subside.严重事故所引起的情绪化的反应需要时间来平息。
• The controversies surrounding population growth are unlikely to subside soon.围绕着人口增长问题的争论看来不会很快平息。

6 accomplished   

adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的

参考例句：

• Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。
• Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。

7 monsoon   

n.季雨，季风，大雨

参考例句：

• The monsoon rains started early this year.今年季雨降雨开始得早。
• The main climate type in that region is monsoon.那个地区主要以季风气候为主要气候类型。

8 vaccinated   

[医]已接种的，种痘的，接种过疫菌的

参考例句：

• I was vaccinated against tetanus. 我接种了破伤风疫苗。
• Were you vaccinated against smallpox as a child? 你小时候打过天花疫苗吗？

9 vaccine   

n.牛痘苗，疫苗；adj.牛痘的，疫苗的

参考例句：

• The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives.脊髓灰质炎疫苗挽救了数以百万计的生命。
• She takes a vaccine against influenza every fall.她每年秋季接种流感疫苗。

10 riskier   

冒险的，危险的( risky的比较级 )

参考例句：

• Now they are starting to demand higher returns on riskier assets. 而今他们开始在风险更高的资产上要求更高的回报。
• The problem with that: RIM's business is getting riskier every quarter. 不过问题也随之而来：RIM面临的业务风险正逐季增大。