NPR 2009-05-31

From NPR News in Washington, I'm Craig Windham.

The deadline has now passed for General Motors' bondholders to accept or reject an offer to exchange their unsecured debt for stock, giving them a small ownership stake in the troubled automaker. Michigan Radio's Tracy Samilton reports.

Bondholders were offered a 10% stake in GM with warrants to buy more stock later at a reduced price. At least one of GM's largest bondholder groups took the deal on Friday. GM said a satisfactory number must accept the exchange. Analysts¹ say the more bondholders GM gets in line before a bankruptcy² filing, the more likely it is that the Judge will impose that same deal on the holdouts. On Monday, GM CEO Fritz Henderson will hold a press conference in New York, where the company is expected to file for bankruptcy protection. Also on Monday, Chrysler will learn if it has won the court's permission to sell its valuable assets to a new company led by Fiat³, if it has, Chrysler could be out of bankruptcy within weeks. The government hopes that GM bankruptcy would last less than 90 days. For NPR news, I'm Tracy Samilton, in Ann Arbor⁴.

Defense⁵ Secretary Robert Gates says while North Korea's nuclear program does not yet pose a direct threat to the United States, it is, in his words "a harbinger of a dark future". Gates said the US will not stand idly by as North Korea bolsters⁶ its nuclear capability⁷. He added that the North has some clear choices to make.

"At the end of the day, the choice to continue as a destitute⁸ international pariah⁹ or chart a new course is North Korea's alone to make."

Gates was speaking at a conference of defense officials in Singapore. South Korea says it has indications that North may be preparing to test launch another long-range missile.

Pakistan's army says it has regained¹⁰ control of the largest town in the Swat Valley from Taliban militants¹¹. The BBC's Humphrey Hawksley says the next step is for the civilian¹² administration there to restore local services, so displaced residents can return.

Pakistani troops have been keeping watch on the almost deserted¹³ city, center of Mingora and have been carrying out street by street patrols, securing neighborhoods and checking houses for booby traps. Some fighting continued in the suburbs and the army spokesman Athar Abbas emphasized that the capturing of the city from the Taliban should be seen as part of a long process of rebuilding. Some two and a half million people have fled their homes since the military operations began in the Swat Valley more than a month ago. The BBC's Humphrey Hawksley reporting.

President Obama is urging the Senate to expedite the confirmation¹⁴ process for his Supreme¹⁵ Court nominee¹⁶ Judge Sonia Sotomayor. "I hope the confirmation process will begin without delay. No nominee should be seated without rigorous evaluation¹⁷ and hearing. I expect nothing less. But what I hope is that we can avoid the political posturing¹⁸ and ideological¹⁹ brinksmanship that has bogged²⁰ down this process, and Congress, in the past." Mr. Obama in his weekly radio and internet address today.

This is NPR News.

Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi was given a hero's welcome as she returned to her home state of North Dakota today. Students from her alma mater Concordia College and the state's governor were among those on hand at the airport in Fargo to greet her.  Saberi was released after being imprisoned²¹ for several weeks in Iran on charges of spying for the United States.

Scottish singer and YouTube sensation Susan Boyle has just learned the outcome of her Cinderella quest to win Britain’s top television talent show. Larry Miller²² has the story from London.

“I dreamed a dream in time gone by.” With more than a hundred million hits on YouTube, the vocal²³ makers²⁴' odds²⁵ were on 48-year-old Scot Susan Boyle to win the “Britain's Got Talent” TV competition. From the start, the matronly Boyle surprised the judges, an amateur singer with learning disabilities who said she’s never been kissed and was bullied²⁶ much of her life. The pressure almost became too much for her and she nearly pulled out before the final. And after the final, it came down to Boyle and Diversity, a multi-cultural male synchronized²⁷ dance group.

"The winner of Britain's Got Talent 2009 is Diversity."

Boyle may have lost the big prize, 150,000 dollars and a chance to perform for the Queen, but she already has a record deal lined up. For NPR News, I'm Larry Miller in London.

Britain's Prince Harry²⁸ followed in his mother's footsteps today as he raised money for a charity that supports AIDS orphans²⁹ in Africa. The 24-year-old prince played in a charity polo match on Governor's Island in New York and his team won, thanks to his assist on a last second goal. Harry is wrapping up his first official trip to the United States.

I'm Craig Windham, NPR News in Washington.

 Glossary:

stand idly by 袖手旁观
booby trap n.A concealed³⁰, often explosive device that is triggered by an unsuspecting victim when a harmless-looking object is touched.诡雷, A situation that catches one off guard; a pitfall³¹.陷阱
alma mater  n.母校
talent show n.A show that features amateur performers whose talents may win them recognition or awards.新秀发掘演出：由业余的表演者进行的演出，在该演出中，他们的表演才能可能会为他们赢得人们的承认或奖励;业余歌手演唱会
Governor's Island 总督岛

harbinger  n.先驱，先兆
destitute  a.贫困的
pariah  n.贱民，被社会遗弃者
brinkmanship    n. 紧急致策,边缘政策

1 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。

2 bankruptcy   

n.破产；无偿付能力

参考例句：

• You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy.如果你想避免破产，就必须节省开支。
• His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy.他的商号正面临破产的危险。

3 fiat   

n.命令，法令，批准；vt.批准，颁布

参考例句：

• The opening of a market stall is governed by municipal fiat.开设市场摊位受市政法令管制。
• He has tried to impose solutions to the country's problems by fiat.他试图下令强行解决该国的问题。

4 arbor   

n.凉亭；树木

参考例句：

• They sat in the arbor and chatted over tea.他们坐在凉亭里，边喝茶边聊天。
• You may have heard of Arbor Day at school.你可能在学校里听过植树节。

5 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。

6 bolsters   

n.长枕( bolster的名词复数 )；垫子；衬垫；支持物v.支持( bolster的第三人称单数 )；支撑；给予必要的支持；援助

参考例句：

• He used a couple of bolsters to elevate his head. 他用两个垫枕垫头。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The double-row piles with both inclined and horizontal bolsters also analyzed in consideration of staged excavation. 本文亦分析了考虑开挖过程的安置斜撑与带支撑的双排桩支护结构。 来自互联网

7 capability   

n.能力；才能；(pl)可发展的能力或特性等

参考例句：

• She has the capability to become a very fine actress.她有潜力成为杰出演员。
• Organizing a whole department is beyond his capability.组织整个部门是他能力以外的事。

8 destitute   

adj.缺乏的；穷困的

参考例句：

• They were destitute of necessaries of life.他们缺少生活必需品。
• They are destitute of common sense.他们缺乏常识。

9 pariah   

n.被社会抛弃者

参考例句：

• Shortly Tom came upon the juvenile pariah of the village.不一会儿，汤姆碰上了村里的少年弃儿。
• His landlady had treated him like a dangerous criminal,a pariah.房东太太对待他就像对待危险的罪犯、对待社会弃儿一样。

10 regained   

复得( regain的过去式和过去分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地

参考例句：

• The majority of the people in the world have regained their liberty. 世界上大多数人已重获自由。
• She hesitated briefly but quickly regained her poise. 她犹豫片刻，但很快恢复了镇静。

11 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

12 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。

13 deserted   

adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的

参考例句：

• The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
• The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。

14 confirmation   

n.证实，确认，批准

参考例句：

• We are waiting for confirmation of the news.我们正在等待证实那个消息。
• We need confirmation in writing before we can send your order out.给你们发送订购的货物之前，我们需要书面确认。

15 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

16 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

17 evaluation   

n.估价，评价；赋值

参考例句：

• I attempted an honest evaluation of my own life.我试图如实地评价我自己的一生。
• The new scheme is still under evaluation.新方案还在评估阶段。

18 posturing   

做出某种姿势( posture的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• She was posturing a model. 她正在摆模特儿的姿势。
• She says the President may just be posturing. 她说总统也许只是在做样子而已。

19 ideological   

a.意识形态的

参考例句：

• He always tries to link his study with his ideological problems. 他总是把学习和自己的思想问题联系起来。
• He helped me enormously with advice on how to do ideological work. 他告诉我怎样做思想工作，对我有很大帮助。

20 bogged   

adj.陷于泥沼的v.（使）陷入泥沼， （使）陷入困境( bog的过去式和过去分词 )；妨碍，阻碍

参考例句：

• The professor bogged down in the middle of his speech. 教授的演讲只说了一半便讲不下去了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The tractor is bogged down in the mud. 拖拉机陷入了泥沼。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 imprisoned   

下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was imprisoned for two concurrent terms of 30 months and 18 months. 他被判处30个月和18个月的监禁，合并执行。
• They were imprisoned for possession of drugs. 他们因拥有毒品而被监禁。

22 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。

23 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

24 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

25 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

26 bullied   

adj.被欺负了v.恐吓，威逼( bully的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• My son is being bullied at school. 我儿子在学校里受欺负。
• The boy bullied the small girl into giving him all her money. 那男孩威逼那个小女孩把所有的钱都给他。 来自《简明英汉词典》

27 synchronized   

同步的

参考例句：

• Do not use the synchronized keyword in Managed Objects. 不要在管理对象上使用synchronized关键字。 来自互联网
• The timing of the gun was precisely synchronized with the turning of the plane's propeller. 风门的调速与飞机螺旋桨的转动精确同步。 来自辞典例句

28 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

29 orphans   

孤儿( orphan的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The poor orphans were kept on short commons. 贫苦的孤儿们吃不饱饭。
• Their uncle was declared guardian to the orphans. 这些孤儿的叔父成为他们的监护人。

30 concealed   

a.隐藏的，隐蔽的

参考例句：

• The paintings were concealed beneath a thick layer of plaster. 那些画被隐藏在厚厚的灰泥层下面。
• I think he had a gun concealed about his person. 我认为他当时身上藏有一支枪。

31 pitfall   

n.隐患，易犯的错误；陷阱，圈套

参考例句：

• The wolf was caught in a pitfall.那只狼是利用陷阱捉到的。
• The biggest potential pitfall may not be technical but budgetary.最大的潜在陷阱可能不是技术问题，而是预算。