NPR 2011-12-20

 Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is hoping that the change in North Korea’s leadership will lead to improved US relations with the communist nation. She spoke¹ to reporters after a meeting in Washington with Japan’s foreign minister. 

 

“We reiterate² our hope for improved relations with the people of North Korea and remain deeply concerned about their well-being³.”

 

She says the US and Japan share a common interest in a stable transition. 

 

House Speaker John Boehner says the House will vote this evening to reject the Senate-passed two-month extension of the payroll⁴ tax cut. NPR’s Craig Windham tells us Boehner rejects administration’s suggestions that he cave in to his membership. 

 

The White House says Boehner was supportive of the two-month extension until Tea Party conservatives revolted. Boehner denies that. 

 

“No, it’s not. That’s not true.”

 

Boehner insisted differences over the tax cut extension can be worked out by House-Senate Conference Committee.

 

“I don’t believe the differences between the House and Senate are that great. It’s time for us to do our work.”

 

But the Senate has already recessed⁵ for the holidays. The No. 3 Democrat⁶ in the Senate, Charles Schumer of New York says House Republicans have two choices: either pass the Senate’s bipartisan compromise, or, he says, they alone will be responsible for letting taxes rise on the middle class when the current payroll tax cut expires. Craig Windham, NPR News, Washington. 

 

European Union finance ministers appear to have fallen short of a target to provide a 200 billion euro crisis firewall fund to the International Monetary⁷ Fund. The chairman of the euro group says eurozone states would provide an extra 150 billion euros. The French government is ramping⁸ up efforts to soften⁹ the blow of an imminent¹⁰ credit downgrade. NPR’s Eleanor Beardsley has more. 

 

Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s put 15 eurozone nations on negative watch a little over a week ago. Since then President Nicolas Sarkozy and his government have been bracing¹¹ for the bad news. Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet, another government official spoke about it publicly. 

 

"Of course it’s better to have a high rating," the ecology minister told French Radio, "but it doesn’t mean it’s the end of the world. The US lost its AAA and that hasn’t been a catastrophe¹²." Analysts¹³ say the markets have already taken into account France losing its AAA status as French bond bills are higher than German—the eurozone’s safest. Being booted from the top financial tier will be a blow to Sarkozy, who is running for re-election in just four months. And he’s long made France’s AAA status a badge of honor. Eleanor Beardsley, NPR News, Paris. 

 

A philanthropist is donating several million dollars to the National Zoo’s panda breeding project. The zoo located in Washington D.C. has announced the gift is from philanthropist David M. Rubenstein. It will allow the zoo to proceed with a five-year plan to try to produce another cub¹⁴. 

 

On Wall Street, the Dow was down 50 points at 11, 815. 

 

This is NPR.

 

The Florida A&M University Board of Trustees has rejected Governor Rick Scott’s request to suspend the university’s president. Florida Public Radio’s Lynn Hatter reports the decision comes as law enforcement officials have ruled the hazing¹⁵ death of one of the school bands’ drum majors a homicide. 

 

The governor’s requested to suspend FAMU President James Ammons from the university’s student’s alumni and several prominent black legislators. In its meeting Monday, Board Chairman Solomon Badger¹⁶ says the board stands by Ammons.

 

“We will stand firm against outside influence regardless of how well intended that leads to detrimental¹⁷ consequences that threaten the viability¹⁸ of the university.”

 

A letter sent Friday by the university’s accrediting¹⁹ board warned that a vote endorsing²⁰ the governor’s advice could put the university at risk of losing its accreditation²¹. Scott says he still believes Ammons should step aside, but will abide²² by the trustees’ decision. For NPR News, I’m Lynn Hatter in Tallahassee. 

 

A poll of members of the Associated Press finds that top sports story of the year is the ouster of legendary²³ Penn State football coach Joe Paterno. Paterno lost his job after child sex abuse charges against his former assistant. 

 

A battery cable problem has led Nissan Motor Company to recall nearly 43,000 Sentra compact cars. The problem affects certain 2010, 2011 Sentras. Government documents say a zinc²⁴ coating on the cable bolts could be too thick, potentially causing a voltage drop, leading the car to stall. 

 

I’m Louise Schiavone, NPR News, Washington.

1 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

2 reiterate   

v.重申，反复地说

参考例句：

• Let me reiterate that we have absolutely no plans to increase taxation.让我再一次重申我们绝对没有增税的计划。
• I must reiterate that our position on this issue is very clear.我必须重申我们对这一项议题的立场很清楚。

3 well-being   

n.安康，安乐，幸福

参考例句：

• He always has the well-being of the masses at heart.他总是把群众的疾苦挂在心上。
• My concern for their well-being was misunderstood as interference.我关心他们的幸福，却被误解为多管闲事。

4 payroll   

n.工资表，在职人员名单，工薪总额

参考例句：

• His yearly payroll is $1.2 million.他的年薪是120万美元。
• I can't wait to get my payroll check.我真等不及拿到我的工资单了。

5 recessed   

v.把某物放在墙壁的凹处( recess的过去式和过去分词 )；将（墙）做成凹形，在（墙）上做壁龛；休息，休会，休庭

参考例句：

• My rooms were large, with deeply recessed windows and painted, eighteenth-century panellin. 我住的房间很宽敞，有向里凹陷很深的窗户，油漆过的十八世纪的镶花地板。 来自辞典例句
• The Geneva meeting recessed while Kennety and Khrushchev met in Vienna. 肯尼迪同赫鲁晓夫在维也纳会晤时，日内瓦会议已经休会。 来自辞典例句

6 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

7 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

8 ramping   

土堤斜坡( ramp的现在分词 )； 斜道； 斜路； （装车或上下飞机的）活动梯

参考例句：

• The children love ramping about in the garden. 孩子们喜欢在花园里追逐嬉戏，闹着玩。
• Have you ever seen a lion ramping around? 你看到过狮子暴跳吗？

9 soften   

v.(使)变柔软；(使)变柔和

参考例句：

• Plastics will soften when exposed to heat.塑料适当加热就可以软化。
• This special cream will help to soften up our skin.这种特殊的护肤霜有助于使皮肤变得柔软。

10 imminent   

adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的

参考例句：

• The black clounds show that a storm is imminent.乌云预示暴风雨即将来临。
• The country is in imminent danger.国难当头。

11 bracing   

adj.令人振奋的

参考例句：

• The country is bracing itself for the threatened enemy invasion. 这个国家正准备奋起抵抗敌人的入侵威胁。
• The atmosphere in the new government was bracing. 新政府的气氛是令人振奋的。

12 catastrophe   

n.大灾难，大祸

参考例句：

• I owe it to you that I survived the catastrophe.亏得你我才大难不死。
• This is a catastrophe beyond human control.这是一场人类无法控制的灾难。

13 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

14 cub   

n.幼兽，年轻无经验的人

参考例句：

• The lion cub's mother was hunting for what she needs. 这只幼师的母亲正在捕猎。
• The cub licked the milk from its mother's breast. 这头幼兽吸吮着它妈妈的奶水。

15 hazing   

n.受辱，被欺侮v.（使）笼罩在薄雾中( haze的现在分词 )；戏弄，欺凌（新生等，有时作为加入美国大学生联谊会的条件）

参考例句：

• With labor, the hazing period ends. 费了好大力气，痛苦的时期终于过了。 来自互联网
• A high-gloss paint surface is one that directly reflects light with minimum hazing or diffusion. 高度光洁的漆表面可以直接反射光源。 来自互联网

16 badger   

v.一再烦扰，一再要求，纠缠

参考例句：

• Now that our debts are squared.Don't badger me with them any more.我们的债务两清了。从此以后不要再纠缠我了。
• If you badger him long enough,I'm sure he'll agree.只要你天天纠缠他，我相信他会同意。

17 detrimental   

adj.损害的，造成伤害的

参考例句：

• We know that heat treatment is detrimental to milk.我们知道加热对牛奶是不利的。
• He wouldn't accept that smoking was detrimental to health.他不相信吸烟有害健康。

18 viability   

n.存活(能力)

参考例句：

• What is required to achieve or maintain such viability? 要达到或维持这种生存能力需要什么？
• Scientists are experimenting to find ways to ensure the viability of seeds for even longer periods of time. 正如我们所说，科学家正在试验努力寻找让种子的生命力更加延长的方法。

19 accrediting   

v.相信( accredit的现在分词 )；委托；委任；把…归结于

参考例句：

• One accrediting agency is the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. 有一个资信鉴定机构是为了高等教育的。 来自互联网
• One accrediting agency is Council for Higher Education Accreditation. 高等教育授权委员会就是这样一个授权机构。 来自互联网

20 endorsing   

v.赞同( endorse的现在分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• Yet Communist leaders are also publicly endorsing religion in an unprecedented way. 不过，共产党领导层对宗教信仰的公开认可也是以前不曾有过的。 来自互联网
• Connecticut Independent Senator Joseph Lieberman is endorsing Republican Senator John McCain. 康涅狄格州独立派参议员约瑟夫。列波曼将会票选共和议员约翰。麦凯恩。 来自互联网

21 accreditation   

n.委派，信赖，鉴定合格

参考例句：

• a letter of accreditation 一份合格证明书
• This paper gives an overview of the Verification, Validation and Accreditation (VV&A) in High Level Architecture(HLA). 对基于高层体系结构(High Level Architecture,简称HLA)的仿真系统的校核、验证与确认(Verification, Validation and Accreditation,简称VV&A)问题进行了详细的介绍及分析。 来自互联网

22 abide   

vi.遵守；坚持；vt.忍受

参考例句：

• You must abide by the results of your mistakes.你必须承担你的错误所造成的后果。
• If you join the club,you have to abide by its rules.如果你参加俱乐部，你就得遵守它的规章。

23 legendary   

adj.传奇（中）的，闻名遐迩的；n.传奇（文学）

参考例句：

• Legendary stories are passed down from parents to children.传奇故事是由父母传给孩子们的。
• Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero.奥狄修斯是传说中的希腊英雄。

24 zinc   

n.锌；vt.在...上镀锌

参考例句：

• Brass is formed by the fusion of copper and zinc.黄铜是通过铜和锌的熔合而成的。
• Zinc is used to protect other metals from corrosion.锌被用来保护其他金属不受腐蚀。