NPR美国国家公共电台 NPR 2014-03-29

 Rescuers searching for scores of people still missing five days after a massive mudslide in Washington state appear to be preparing the public for a steep rise in the death toll¹. Officially 16 bodies have been recovered and examined, but officials said they found the bodies of at least nine others taking the death toll to 25. Ninety others are listed as missing or unaccounted for. At a news briefing these past hours, Snohomish County Emergency Management Director John Pennington said he’d like to make those names public.

 

“Why can we not release the names of the 90 unaccounted for, missing individuals? I think that that’s a question we should ask, and if we are able to release that, then my call as the director would be that we begin the process of looking at the sensitivities and maybe doing that and helping² to solve the puzzles of where some of those individuals may be.”

 

Authorities admit there’s little chance of finding any survivors³ beneath the one-square-mile wall of mud that came down on a neighborhood near the town of Oso, Washington Saturday morning. 

 

Top air force officials have fired most of the Command at the Montana airbase that was at the center of a cheating scandal by nuclear missile launch officers. As NPR’s Tom Bowman reports, dozens of launch officers will face punishment ranging from reprimands to courts-martial.

 

Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James said nine commanders were fired for failures of leadership in a scandal that lasted several years.

 

“None of these leaders were directly involved in a test compromise, but the commander-directed investigation⁴ indicated that they failed to provide adequate oversight⁵ of their crew force.”

 

Seventy-nine missile launch officers had some role in the cheating, James said, the test answers were spread through Malmstrom Air Force Base by cell phone messages. James said there’s a cultural problem within the entire Missile Command that includes pressure to come up with perfect test scores. But investigators⁶ found no evidence of cheating at other bases. Tom Bowman, NPR News, Washington.

 

The Obama administration is calling on Congress to enact⁷ new rules for the US regarding data about telephone calls in terrorism investigations⁸. As NPR’s Tamara Keith reports, the president wants the government to stop collecting that data.

 

The administration is out with new details of what the president wants the program to look like. The government would no longer collect telephone records in bulk. Those records would stay with the phone companies until government investigators had a target in mind. Then the government would get permission from a judge before asking the companies to share their records. There’ll be an exception for emergency situations. Either way the companies would be required to hand the records over in a usable format⁹ and in a timely manner. The query¹⁰ of those numbers would be ongoing¹¹, but for a limited period of time. How limited? That is one of many questions senior administration officials said would have to be worked out with Congress. Tamara Keith, NPR News, Washington.

 

Upward revision to the government’s main economic barometer¹² for the final three months of last year. The Commerce Department says the gross domestic product was up 2.6 percent. 

 

Stocks closed lower today. The Dow was down four points; the NASDAQ dropped 22 points. This is NPR.

 

Now some senators standing¹³ together in terms of Russia’s annexation¹⁴ of Crimea and their opposition¹⁵ to it, Senate today by a voice vote approving a measure to provide help to Ukraine and impose sanctions against Russia. The House by a 399-19 vote passed its own measure. The vote is seen as support for President Obama, who’s already announced sanctions against Russian President Vladimir Putin and others. 

 

Former Cabinet Secretary and CIA chief James Schlesinger has died at the age of 85 of complications from pneumonia¹⁶. NPR’s Craig Windham reports Schlesinger was known for being outspoken¹⁷ and for implementing¹⁸ unpopular policies as he served both Republican and Democratic administrations. 

 

Schlesinger was defense¹⁹ secretary under Presidents Nixon and Ford²⁰ and was the nation’s first energy secretary under President Carter. As CIA director for Nixon, he forced out 10% of the agency staff. In an interview last year well before the crisis in Ukraine, Schlesinger expressed concern about how likely NATO allies in western Europe seem to be taking Russia in the post-Cold War era. He said eastern European nations see things differently. 

 

“The Baltic states and others continue understandably they’ll be terrified of Russia”.

 

After leaving government Schlesinger was a business executive and consultant²¹ with presidents and lawmakers on a range of national security issues. Craig Windham, NPR News, Washington. 

 

John and Christine McVie have announced a 33-city North America tour that will also include other members of the popular 1970s band Fleetwood Mac. It’s the first set of shows since performances were canceled last year while bassist John McVie was being treated for cancer, while it’s Christine McVie’s first return to the band since a tour in 1998. Other bandmates include Mick Fleetwood, Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham. 

 

I’m Jack²² Speer, NPR News in Washington.

1 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

2 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

3 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

4 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

5 oversight   

n.勘漏，失察，疏忽

参考例句：

• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。
• Your essay was not marked through an oversight on my part.由于我的疏忽你的文章没有打分。

6 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》

7 enact   

vt.制定(法律)；上演，扮演

参考例句：

• The U.S. Congress has exclusive authority to enact federal legislation.美国国会是唯一有权颁布联邦法律的。
• For example,a country can enact laws and economic policies to attract foreign investment fairly quickly.例如一个国家可以很快颁布吸引外资的法令和经济政策。

8 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

9 format   

n.设计，版式；[计算机]格式，DOS命令:格式化(磁盘)，用于空盘或使用过的磁盘建立新空盘来存储数据；v.使格式化，设计，安排

参考例句：

• Please format this floppy disc.请将这张软盘格式化。
• The format of the figure is very tasteful.该图表的格式很雅致。

10 query   

n.疑问，问号，质问；vt.询问，表示怀疑

参考例句：

• I query very much whether it is wise to act so hastily.我真怀疑如此操之过急地行动是否明智。
• They raised a query on his sincerity.他们对他是否真诚提出质疑。

11 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

12 barometer   

n.气压表，睛雨表，反应指标

参考例句：

• The barometer marked a continuing fall in atmospheric pressure.气压表表明气压在继续下降。
• The arrow on the barometer was pointing to"stormy".气压计上的箭头指向“有暴风雨”。

13 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

14 annexation   

n.吞并，合并

参考例句：

• He mentioned the Japanese annexation of Korea in 1910 .他提及1910年日本对朝鲜的吞并。
• I regard the question of annexation as belonging exclusively to the United States and Texas.我认为合并的问题，完全属于德克萨斯和美国之间的事。

15 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

16 pneumonia   

n.肺炎

参考例句：

• Cage was struck with pneumonia in her youth.凯奇年轻时得过肺炎。
• Pneumonia carried him off last week.肺炎上星期夺去了他的生命。

17 outspoken   

adj.直言无讳的，坦率的，坦白无隐的

参考例句：

• He was outspoken in his criticism.他在批评中直言不讳。
• She is an outspoken critic of the school system in this city.她是这座城市里学校制度的坦率的批评者。

18 implementing   

v.实现( implement的现在分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• -- Implementing a comprehensive drug control strategy. ――实行综合治理的禁毒战略。 来自汉英非文学 - 白皮书
• He was in no hurry about implementing his unshakable principle. 他并不急于实行他那不可动摇的原则。 来自辞典例句

19 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。

20 Ford   

n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过

参考例句：

• They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
• If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。

21 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

22 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。