NPR 2008-06-09

There has been no let-up in the surge in gasoline prices over the past three weeks. Prices at the pump were up 20 cents a gallon to a new high of four dollars a gallon nationally for self-service regular. Fuel price analyst¹ Jeff Sundstrom with AAA says that organization is urging gas stations not to jack² up prices this week. “In view of the fact that the oil prices have been so erratic³, we are calling on gasoline stations to exercise restraint in their pricing at the pump until the markets give a clear indication of the actual trend.” Sundstrom says gas prices are a dollar a gallon higher now than they were at this time last year.

 At least three deaths are being blamed on the storms that had been drenching⁴ parts of the Midwest this weekend. Although the rain has stopped across most of Indiana, some rivers have still not crested⁶. Stan Jastrzebski of member station WFIU in Bloomington has the story.

The town of Spencer borders the White River, which has not been this swollen⁷ since a statewide flood in 1913. The river is forecast to crest⁵ at the level of more than 28 feet some time in the next 24 hours. It takes just 14 feet of water to signal a flood. Stephen Cradick is the deputy director of the Owen County Emergency Management Office. He says relief may be slow in arriving because so few agencies are able to provide any. “We are trying to get more help, as much as we can right now. That’s a situations causing the problem because the whole southern part of Indiana hit just as hard as we are. So, getting resources, it’s gonna be tough for the ne(xt), next 48 hours.”  The news is even worse to the northeast in the small town of Princess Lake, where a dam breach⁸ has left that town's 1, 500 residents all but cut off from surrounding communities. For NPR News, I m Stan Jastrzebski in Bloomington, Indiana.

 Opposition⁹ leaders in Zimbabwe say they have won a court challenge reversing a police ban on campaign rallies in the run-up to the country's presidential run-off election. NPR's Ofeibea Quist-Arcton has the story.

A lawyer for Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change said the court ruling allowed them to hold rallies without police interference. On Friday, the police announced a ban on several planned opposition rallies, saying they could not guarantee the security of party leaders. Opposition candidate Morgan Tsvangirai won the first round of the presidential vote in March and is scheduled to face off in the run-off against veteran Robert Mugabe on June 27th. Meanwhile, the government's decision to suspend indefinitely the field work of independent aid agencies in Zimbabwe is beginning to bite. Humanitarian¹⁰ groups have denied government charges that they are meddling¹¹ in politics and taking sides with the opposition. Ofeibea Quist-Arcton, NPR News, Johannesburg.

A man drove a truck into a crowd of people in a busy shopping area of Tokyo today. He ran over three people and then, took out a hunting knife and began randomly¹² stabbing shoppers. Seven people were killed and eleven others injured before the man was apprehended¹³ by police. When asked the reason for the rampage, he told investigators¹⁴ that he was tired of life.

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 Investigators now suspect arson¹⁵ in the early morning fire that badly damaged the Texas Governor's Mansion¹⁶ in Austin. The historic building was unoccupied at the time. From member station KUT, Merrick Agula reports.

 Texas State Fire Marshal Paul Maldonado called the fire “a terrible tragedy” that could be the work of one person. “We have some evidence that indicates that we do have an intentionally¹⁷ set fire, and so we believe we may be looking at a criminal act here.” The agency is reviewing videotape from security cameras and interviewing security guards and nearby neighbors to find out how and who might have set the blaze. Because the mansion was undergoing a ten-million-dollar renovation¹⁸, no one or anything was in the building. Former chief architect for the Texas Historical Commission Peter Maxon says it could be years before another governor calls the mansion “home” again. “If one could send a get-well card to a building, this would have many thousands, if not million, get-well cards.” Damage estimates have not been determined¹⁹. Federal investigators will join state and local agencies to launch a search for the suspect. For NPR News, I'm Merrick Agula in Austin.

 First Lady Laura Bush made a quick visit to Afghanistan today to highlight progress there as she traveled to a US-European Union summit. At one point, her convoy²⁰ passed a man who had a donkey loaded with crops. A guide assured Mrs. Bush that the crops were not opium²¹ poppies. Afghanistan is the world's largest producer and exporter of opium and heroin²². But Mrs. Bush said she believes that is changing. “I think, still, it’s more lucrative²³, er, to grow poppies, but not near as lucrative as it was, er, compared to wheat because of the rising food prices, the rising commodity prices worldwide.” Mrs. Bush also spoke²⁴ to American troops near Kabul.

1 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。

2 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。

3 erratic   

adj.古怪的，反复无常的，不稳定的

参考例句：

• The old man had always been cranky and erratic.那老头儿性情古怪,反复无常。
• The erratic fluctuation of market prices is in consequence of unstable economy.经济波动致使市场物价忽起忽落。

4 drenching   

n.湿透v.使湿透( drench的现在分词 )；在某人（某物）上大量使用（某液体）

参考例句：

• A black cloudburst was drenching Siena at midday. 中午，一场天昏地暗的暴风雨在锡耶纳上空倒下来。 来自辞典例句
• A drenching rain poured down and the rising hurricane drove it in sheets along the ground. 一阵倾盆大雨泼下来了，越来越大的狂风把它顺着地面刮成了一片一片的雨幕。 来自辞典例句

5 crest   

n.顶点；饰章；羽冠；vt.达到顶点；vi.形成浪尖

参考例句：

• The rooster bristled his crest.公鸡竖起了鸡冠。
• He reached the crest of the hill before dawn.他于黎明前到达山顶。

6 crested   

adj.有顶饰的，有纹章的，有冠毛的v.到达山顶（或浪峰）( crest的过去式和过去分词 )；到达洪峰，达到顶点

参考例句：

• a great crested grebe 凤头䴙䴘
• The stately mansion crested the hill. 庄严的大厦位于山顶。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

7 swollen   

adj.肿大的，水涨的；v.使变大，肿胀

参考例句：

• Her legs had got swollen from standing up all day.因为整天站着，她的双腿已经肿了。
• A mosquito had bitten her and her arm had swollen up.蚊子叮了她，她的手臂肿起来了。

8 breach   

n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破

参考例句：

• We won't have any breach of discipline.我们不允许任何破坏纪律的现象。
• He was sued for breach of contract.他因不履行合同而被起诉。

9 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。

10 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

11 meddling   

v.干涉，干预（他人事务）( meddle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He denounced all "meddling" attempts to promote a negotiation. 他斥责了一切“干预”促成谈判的企图。 来自辞典例句
• They liked this field because it was never visited by meddling strangers. 她们喜欢这块田野，因为好事的陌生人从来不到那里去。 来自辞典例句

12 randomly   

adv.随便地，未加计划地

参考例句：

• Within the hot gas chamber, molecules are moving randomly in all directions. 在灼热的气体燃烧室内，分子在各个方向上作无规运动。 来自辞典例句
• Transformed cells are loosely attached, rounded and randomly oriented. 转化细胞则不大贴壁、圆缩并呈杂乱分布。 来自辞典例句

13 apprehended   

逮捕，拘押( apprehend的过去式和过去分词 )； 理解

参考例句：

• She apprehended the complicated law very quickly. 她很快理解了复杂的法律。
• The police apprehended the criminal. 警察逮捕了罪犯。

14 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》

15 arson   

n.纵火，放火

参考例句：

• He was serving a ten spot for arson.他因纵火罪在服十年徒刑。
• He was arraigned on a charge of arson.他因被指控犯纵火罪而被传讯。

16 mansion   

n.大厦，大楼；宅第

参考例句：

• The old mansion was built in 1850.这座古宅建于1850年。
• The mansion has extensive grounds.这大厦四周的庭园广阔。

17 intentionally   

ad.故意地，有意地

参考例句：

• I didn't say it intentionally. 我是无心说的。
• The local authority ruled that he had made himself intentionally homeless and was therefore not entitled to be rehoused. 当地政府裁定他是有意居无定所，因此没有资格再获得提供住房。

18 renovation   

n.革新，整修

参考例句：

• The cinema will reopen next week after the renovation.电影院修缮后，将于下星期开业。
• The building has undergone major renovation.这座大楼已进行大整修。

19 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

20 convoy   

vt.护送，护卫，护航；n.护送；护送队

参考例句：

• The convoy was snowed up on the main road.护送队被大雪困在干路上了。
• Warships will accompany the convoy across the Atlantic.战舰将护送该船队过大西洋。

21 opium   

n.鸦片；adj.鸦片的

参考例句：

• That man gave her a dose of opium.那男人给了她一剂鸦片。
• Opium is classed under the head of narcotic.鸦片是归入麻醉剂一类的东西。

22 heroin   

n.海洛因

参考例句：

• Customs have made their biggest ever seizure of heroin.海关查获了有史以来最大的一批海洛因。
• Heroin has been smuggled out by sea.海洛因已从海上偷运出境。

23 lucrative   

adj.赚钱的，可获利的

参考例句：

• He decided to turn his hobby into a lucrative sideline.他决定把自己的爱好变成赚钱的副业。
• It was not a lucrative profession.那是一个没有多少油水的职业。

24 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。