NPR美国国家公共电台 2013-05-26

　　From NPR News in Washington, I’m Nora Raum.

 

　　Defense¹ Secretary Chuck Hagel delivered a commencement address today to the US Military Academy at West Point. He says the volunteer army faces many challenges from within, including suicide, alcoholism and sexual abuse.

 

　　“You’ll need to not just deal with these debilitating², insidious³ and destructive forces, but rather you must be the generation of leaders that stop it.”

 

　　He says sexual harassment⁴ and sexual assault in the military are profound betrayal. A Pentagon report released this month estimated as many as 26,000 military service members may have been sexually assaulted last year.

 

　　Fighting continues in Syria as government forces try to recapture the strategic town of Qusair near the Lebanese border. Activists⁵ say rebel-held parts of the town have been heavily bombarded by army units and fighters from Hezbollah. The BBC’s Jim Muir has more.

 

　　Activists said that from early morning the town was hit by very heavy bombardments, including two ground-to-ground missiles and an air strike as well as artillery⁶ and rocket fire. They said Hezbollah fighters, who were widely reported to have played a major role in the attack on Sunday, were trying to advance again. Syrian state media said the army launched a three-pronged offensive in the north, center and south of the town and was making big advances, killing⁷ many rebel fighters.

 

　　The BBC’s Jim Muir reporting.

 

　　After two days of intense questioning from French judges, International Monetary⁸ Fund chief Christine Lagarde has avoided criminal charges related to a controversial state payout to a businessman while she was finance minister. NPR’s Eleanor Beardsley reports the court simply made Lagarde a key witness.

 

　　Under French law, that status means Lagarde could still be charged later on in the case, but can have legal representation and access to court files as the probe continues, a process that could take months or even years. At issue is whether Bernard Tapie, a flamboyant⁹ tycoon¹⁰ and ally of President Nicolas Sarkozy, received preferential treatment in a case overseen¹¹ by a private arbitration¹² panel headed by Lagarde in 2007. Tapie received a $520 million state payout to settle a dispute with state-owned bank Credit Lyonnais over the botched sale of Adidas sportswear in the early 90s. Lagarde said she always acted in the best public interests. The deal is seen by many as an example of the cozy¹³ relationship between big money and power in France. Eleanor Beardsley, NPR News, Paris.

 

　　French officials say a soldier was stabbed in the neck while on patrol in Paris today. They say he will survive. On Wednesday, a British soldier was publicly hacked¹⁴ to death with a knife and a meat cleaver¹⁵ on a street in London. In a video of the killing, one suspect said he did it because Muslims are dying every day. Officials say they don’t know if the two attacks are related.

 

　　This is NPR News.

 

　　Two free trains collided in southeastern Missouri this morning. The Scott County Sheriff’s Department said one train t-boned the other. That caused the second train to derail, which in turn triggered the collapse¹⁶ of a highway overpass¹⁷. Five people in cars were injured as well as two train conductors.

 

　　Officials in Washington state are looking for a pre-fabricated bridge to take the place of a bridge that collapsed¹⁸ Thursday night. A truck’s payload hit the bridge. The span gave way. Two vehicles fell into a river. Three people were injured.

 

　　US automakers continue taking steps towards increasing fuel economy. This week General Motors began selling its first diesel²⁰ car in more than 25 years. NPR’s Sam Sanders reports the automaker is also pushing to make electric cars more available.

 

　　GM started selling a diesel version of its Chevy Cruze compact sedan this week. It will get an average 46 miles per gallon on the highway. The company also says it will sell its newest electric car--the compact Spark--for just under $20,000. That’s after tax rebates²¹. The Spark will lease for just $199 a month. Michelle Krebs, an auto¹⁹ analyst²² at Edmunds.com, says this news might make consumers happier than GM.

 

　　“This is good for consumers because they get more choice. It’s gonna be difficult for automakers to make money on it.”

 

　　So why would GM make a car that might not make a profit? New fuel economy standards, they require automakers’ fleets to average nearly 55 miles a gallon by 2025. Sam Sanders, NPR News.

 

　　World War II photographer Wayne Miller²³ has died, who was perhaps best-known for his portraits of African Americans, who had moved to Chicago from the South. He was 94.

 

　　I’m Nora Raum, NPR News in Washington.

1 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

2 debilitating   

a.使衰弱的

参考例句：

• The debilitating disease made him too weak to work. 这个令他衰弱的病，使他弱到没有办法工作。
• You may soon leave one debilitating condition or relationship forever. 你即将永远地和这段霉运说拜拜了。

3 insidious   

adj.阴险的，隐匿的，暗中为害的，（疾病）不知不觉之间加剧

参考例句：

• That insidious man bad-mouthed me to almost everyone else.那个阴险的家伙几乎见人便说我的坏话。
• Organized crime has an insidious influence on all who come into contact with it.所有和集团犯罪有关的人都会不知不觉地受坏影响。

4 harassment   

n.骚扰，扰乱，烦恼，烦乱

参考例句：

• She often got telephone harassment at night these days.这些天她经常在夜晚受到电话骚扰。
• The company prohibits any form of harassment.公司禁止任何形式的骚扰行为。

5 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 artillery   

n.(军)火炮，大炮；炮兵(部队)

参考例句：

• This is a heavy artillery piece.这是一门重炮。
• The artillery has more firepower than the infantry.炮兵火力比步兵大。

7 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。

8 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。

9 flamboyant   

adj.火焰般的，华丽的，炫耀的

参考例句：

• His clothes were rather flamboyant for such a serious occasion.他的衣着在这种严肃场合太浮夸了。
• The King's flamboyant lifestyle is well known.国王的奢华生活方式是人尽皆知的。

10 tycoon   

n.有钱有势的企业家，大亨

参考例句：

• The tycoon is on the verge of bankruptcy.那名大亨濒临破产的边缘。
• The tycoon has many servants to minister to his needs.那位大亨有很多人服侍他。

11 overseen   

v.监督，监视( oversee的过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was overseen stealing the letters. 他被人撞见在偷信件。 来自辞典例句
• It will be overseen by ThomasLi, director of IBM China Research Laboratory. 该实验室由IBM中国研究院院长李实恭(ThomasLi)引导。 来自互联网

12 arbitration   

n.调停，仲裁

参考例句：

• The wage disagreement is under arbitration.工资纠纷正在仲裁中。
• Both sides have agreed that the arbitration will be binding.双方都赞同仲裁具有约束力。

13 cozy   

adj.亲如手足的，密切的，暖和舒服的

参考例句：

• I like blankets because they are cozy.我喜欢毛毯，因为他们是舒适的。
• We spent a cozy evening chatting by the fire.我们在炉火旁聊天度过了一个舒适的晚上。

14 hacked   

生气

参考例句：

• I hacked the dead branches off. 我把枯树枝砍掉了。
• I'm really hacked off. 我真是很恼火。

15 cleaver   

n.切肉刀

参考例句：

• In fact,a cleaver is a class of ax.实际上，切肉刀也是斧子的一种。
• The cleaver is ground to a very sharp edge.刀磨得飞快。

16 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

17 overpass   

n.天桥，立交桥

参考例句：

• I walked through an overpass over the road.我步行穿过那条公路上面的立交桥。
• We should take the overpass when crossing the road.我们过马路应走天桥。

18 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

19 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。

20 diesel   

n.柴油发动机，内燃机

参考例句：

• We experimented with diesel engines to drive the pumps.我们试着用柴油机来带动水泵。
• My tractor operates on diesel oil.我的那台拖拉机用柴油开动。

21 rebates   

n.退还款( rebate的名词复数 )；回扣；返还（退还的部份货价）；折扣

参考例句：

• The VAT system offers advantages, such as rebates on exports. 增值税有其优点，如对出口商品实行回扣。 来自辞典例句
• In more recent years rate rebates have been introduced for households. 近年地方税的减免已适用于家庭。 来自辞典例句

22 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

23 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。