NPR 2009-12-31

From NPR News in Washington, I’m Carol Van Dam.

Eight Americans have been killed in an attack on a US military base in southeastern Afghanistan. The State Department confirmed the deaths, but is withholding¹ details until next of kin² are notified. NPR's Jackie Northam has more.

The attack happened at a military base in the province of Khost near the Pakistan border. Initial reports suggested a suicide bomber³ was able to infiltrate⁴ the area. The two-line notice by the State Department did not say if those killed were military or civilian⁵ personnel. But this particular military base houses a large provincial⁶ reconstruction⁷ team made up of many civilians⁸ including those working for the US Department of Agriculture, the State Department and US/AID, the aid agency. The PRTs are considered critical to the long-term plans for rebuilding Afghanistan. And there's been a push to get hundreds of civilians into the country along with the deployment⁹ of thousands of additional US soldiers. One State Department official said this incident will be terrible for morale¹⁰. Jackie Northam, NPR News, Washington.

The Netherlands will immediately start using full-body scanners for all flights in or out of the US, saying that action could’ve prevented the attempted bombing over Detroit on Christmas Day. The US had resisted using such scanners in the past because of travelers' privacy concerns. Body scanners can provide amazing clarity of a naked body on a computer screen. But now, the Dutch Interior Minister says the Obama administration has agreed all possible measures will be used on flights coming to the US.

The government is advising Americans not to travel to part of southern India unless it's essential. The area’s been disrupted by violent protests and strikes over the last several weeks. NPR's Philip Reeves reports.

The State of Andhra Pradesh in South India is in turmoil¹¹. Its capital is Hyderabad, home to corporate¹² giants including Microsoft, Dell and Google and the showbiz for India's economic rise. That city was again paralyzed Wednesday because of the general strike. At issue was whether a separate state called Telangana should be carved out of northwestern Andhra Pradesh. Earlier this month, India’s federal government seemed to agree to the idea that led other separatist movements seeking statehood around India to step up their demands. And now there are suspicions that the government’s changed its mind. Pro- and anti- statehood groups in Andhra Pradesh have mobilized in the last few weeks. Strikes have shut down schools and businesses. Protestors have torched trains and buses. Hundreds have been arrested and the government's sending many thousands of extra security forces. Philip Reeves, NPR News, New Delhi.

Hundreds of thousands of government supporters took to the streets today across Iran, swearing allegiance to the clerical establishment and accusing opposition¹⁴ leaders of fomenting¹⁵ unrest in their country. Iran’s police chief warned supporters of an opposition leader to expect harsh treatment if they take any more anti-¹³government rallies to the streets. Eight protesters were killed in demonstrations¹⁶ three days ago.

On Wall Street, the Dow Industrial closed up three points to 10,548.

This is NPR News.

The government is giving GMAC Financial Services another big cash infusion¹⁷ to help stabilize¹⁸ the struggling auto¹⁹ finance company. The Treasury²⁰ Department says that the 3.8 billion dollars in additional aid is less than the estimated six billion dollars the government thought GMAC would need to keep the company afloat. The money which comes from a taxpayer-financed bailout fund is on top of the 12.5 billion dollars GMAC has already taken from the government. The new aid means the federal government will own more than half of the Detroit-based auto financing company.

Texas Tech has fired its head football coach Mike Leach²¹ three days before the team is to play in a bowl game. NPR’s Mike Pesca has the story.

Mike Leach is regarded as one of finest offensive minds in college football. But his judgment²² was called into question, when reports surfaced that he had mistreated a player suffering from concussion²³ symptoms. Leach reportedly confined wide receiver Adam James in an equipment garage and ordered stools and chairs removed, so he cannot sit. James is the son of ESPN analyst²⁴ and former NFL star running back Craig James. Leach had been suspended by the school on Monday. His firing came Wednesday minutes before a scheduled hearing in which Leach hoped to be reinstated as head football coach in time for the Alamo bowl. Texas Tech plays Michigan State on Saturday. Mike Pesca, NPR News.

The head of Russia’s Space Agency is weighing the option of a space mission to knock out an approaching 880-foot asteroid²⁵. When it was discovered five years ago, astronomers²⁶ gave it a 1 in 37 chances of hitting the Earth in 2020. Scientists since then have been lowering their estimates. The Russian space chief says he’s heard the asteroid could make an impact in about 22 years.

I'm Carol Van Dam, NPR News, Washington.

1 withholding   

扣缴税款

参考例句：

• She was accused of withholding information from the police. 她被指控对警方知情不报。
• The judge suspected the witness was withholding information. 法官怀疑见证人在隐瞒情况。

2 kin   

n.家族，亲属，血缘关系；adj.亲属关系的，同类的

参考例句：

• He comes of good kin.他出身好。
• She has gone to live with her husband's kin.她住到丈夫的亲戚家里去了。

3 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

4 infiltrate   

vt./vi.渗入，透过；浸润

参考例句：

• The teacher tried to infiltrate her ideas into the children's minds.老师设法把她的思想渗透到孩子们的心中。
• It can infiltrate as much as 100 kilometers into enemy territory at night.可以在夜间深入敌领土100千米。

5 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

6 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。

7 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。

8 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

9 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

10 morale   

n.道德准则，士气，斗志

参考例句：

• The morale of the enemy troops is sinking lower every day.敌军的士气日益低落。
• He tried to bolster up their morale.他尽力鼓舞他们的士气。

11 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。

12 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

13 anti-   

pref.[前缀]表示反抗，排斥

参考例句：

• The car has many safety features,including anti - skid braking.这车配有许多特别安全装置，包括防滑制动器。
• The anti-aircraft units opened fire and hit two of the enemy planes.防空部队开炮，击中了两架敌机。

14 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。

15 fomenting   

v.激起，煽动（麻烦等）( foment的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• They accused him of fomenting political unrest. 他们指控他煽动政治动乱。
• Three sailors were fomenting a mutiny on the ship. 三个水手正在船上煽动叛变。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

16 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

17 infusion   

n.灌输

参考例句：

• Old families need an infusion of new blood from time to time.古老的家族需要不时地注入新鲜血液。
• Careful observation of the infusion site is necessary.必须仔细观察输液部位。

18 stabilize   

vt.（使）稳定，使稳固，使稳定平衡；vi.稳定

参考例句：

• They are eager to stabilize currencies.他们急于稳定货币。
• His blood pressure tended to stabilize.他的血压趋向稳定。

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 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。

21 leach   

v.分离，过滤掉；n.过滤；过滤器

参考例句：

• Liquid water can leach soluble materials from the interface.液态水能够从界面溶解出可溶性物质。
• They believe that the humic materials are leached from decaying plant materials.他们认为腐植物料是从腐烂的植物体浸沥而来。

22 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

23 concussion   

n.脑震荡；震动

参考例句：

• He was carried off the field with slight concussion.他因轻微脑震荡给抬离了现场。
• She suffers from brain concussion.她得了脑震荡。

24 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。

25 asteroid   

n.小行星；海盘车(动物)

参考例句：

• Astronomers have yet to witness an asteroid impact with another planet.天文学家还没有目击过小行星撞击其它行星。
• It's very unlikely that an asteroid will crash into Earth but the danger exists.小行星撞地球的可能性很小，但这样的危险还是存在的。

26 astronomers   

n.天文学者，天文学家( astronomer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Astronomers can accurately foretell the date,time,and length of future eclipses. 天文学家能精确地预告未来日食月食的日期、时刻和时长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Astronomers used to ask why only Saturn has rings. 天文学家们过去一直感到奇怪，为什么只有土星有光环。 来自《简明英汉词典》