NPR 2009-08-25

President Obama has approved the creation of a special interrogation task force that would be dedicated¹ to gathering² intelligence from so-called high-value detainees suspected of terrorist activities. NPR's Dina Temple-Raston reports.

 The new elite³ unit would be led by the FBI and would include interrogators from the FBI, CIA and Department of Defense⁴. While the FBI would run the unit, the White House’s National Security Council would oversee⁵ it. There had been some talk of having the Deputy Attorney General supervise the group, but the White House apparently⁶ wanted to be more hands-on. The unit will be required to follow the guidelines set out in the Army Field Manual, but that will only be the starting point. The unit will also take a look at other strategies that might be effective in the interrogation room. Experts say that the field manual is woefully out of date and doesn’t take into account the research into human behavior that has been done in the last several decades. Dina Temple-Raston, NPR News.

 Attorney General Eric Holder⁷ also announced today he's picking 才 John Durham to investigate the alleged⁸ CIA mistreatment of terror suspects.

 The Associated Press, citing law enforcement officials, has ruled entertainer Michael Jackson’s death a homicide. That report, comes on the same day into the released search warrant affidavit⁹, says Jackson had lethal¹⁰ levels of a powerful anesthetic¹¹ drug in his system at the time of his death. The document, which allowed officials of the LA coroner’s office to raid the Houston offices and a storage facility of Jackson’s doctor last month, showed the singer had the drug propofol in his body.

 Car dealers¹³ will be given a little more time under the "Cash for Clunkers" program. They had to submit their applications for rebates¹⁴ by 8:00 p.m. tonight， although the Department of Transportation has now extended that deadline to noon tomorrow. NPR’s Elizabeth Blair reports.

 The computers are down. That’s what dealers have been reporting to their trade association in DC. John McEleney is the group’s current chair. He’s also a dealer¹² in Clinton, Iowa. He says they‘'ve sold about 145 new cars in the "Cash for Clunkers" program. But he says they’re having trouble submitting all of their applications. "Since about 11 o’clock this morning, we've tried to access it about every two minutes unsuccessfully. So it may be running but it’s overwhelmed. And it’s preventing dealers from, at least in many cases, being able to get in and submit their applications." The Department of Transportation is now giving dealers until noon Tuesday to file applications. The deadline for sales under the "Cash for Clunkers" program is still 8:00 p.m. tonight. Elizabeth Blair, NPR News.

Irish drug maker¹⁵ Warner Chilcott has agreed to buy Procter & Gamble’s pharmaceutical¹⁶ business for just over three billion dollars. With the move, Chilcott is expected to be able to more than triple its revenues and significantly expand its product line.

On Wall Street today, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up three points to end the session at 9,509. The NASDAQ lost two points. The S&P 500 was off a fraction today.

This is NPR News.

An Iraqi official says bombs attached to two minibuses exploded southeast of Baghdad today, killing¹⁷ at least 20 people and wounding at least ten more. The official says the bombings occurred in the Shiite city of Kut with the first bomb exploding around 1:00 p.m. and the second bomb going off a short time later. The bombings are the latest in a series of attacks in Iraq that have claimed the lives of hundreds of people in recent weeks. It comes as US forces have been turning over much of the day-to-day security operations in Iraq to Iraqis.

Forest fires that have burned thousands of acres East of Athens could turn into a political crisis for the Greek government. As John Psaropoulos reports, the already weak ruling Conservatives now face criticism for their handling of the fires, especially one that destroyed dozens of homes.

Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis visited the Fire Service’s operational center three times over the weekend, but his statements were limited to thanking firefighters. Thousands of acres of pine forests were burned over three days. Homes and farms were lost miraculously¹⁸ without loss of human life. This marks the second time in these many years that this government has confronted an ecological¹⁹ catastrophe²⁰ within sight of Athens. A massive fire burned the capital’s only fir forest in 2007. Now as then, the Fire Service is being accused by mayors in the stricken areas for being slow to avert²¹ disaster. The fire began close to a landfill site the government imposed on the reluctant local community. For NPR News, I'm John Psaropoulos in Athens.

Crude oil futures²² prices ended the session higher today. Crude oil futures rose 48 cents a barrel to end the session at $74.37 a barrel on New York Mercantile Exchange.

1 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

2 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

3 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

4 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。

5 oversee   

vt.监督，管理

参考例句：

• Soldiers oversee the food handouts.士兵们看管着救济食品。
• Use a surveyor or architect to oversee and inspect the different stages of the work.请一位房产检视员或建筑师来监督并检查不同阶段的工作。

6 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

7 holder   

n.持有者，占有者；(台，架等)支持物

参考例句：

• The holder of the office of chairman is reponsible for arranging meetings.担任主席职位的人负责安排会议。
• That runner is the holder of the world record for the hundred-yard dash.那位运动员是一百码赛跑世界纪录的保持者。

8 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

9 affidavit   

n.宣誓书

参考例句：

• I gave an affidavit to the judge about the accident I witnessed.我向法官提交了一份关于我目击的事故的证词。
• The affidavit was formally read to the court.书面证词正式向出席法庭的人宣读了。

10 lethal   

adj.致死的；毁灭性的

参考例句：

• A hammer can be a lethal weapon.铁锤可以是致命的武器。
• She took a lethal amount of poison and died.她服了致命剂量的毒药死了。

11 anesthetic   

n.麻醉剂，麻药；adj.麻醉的，失去知觉的

参考例句：

• He was given a general anesthetic.他被全身麻醉。
• He was still under the influence of the anesthetic.他仍处在麻醉状态。

12 dealer   

n.商人，贩子

参考例句：

• The dealer spent hours bargaining for the painting.那个商人为购买那幅画花了几个小时讨价还价。
• The dealer reduced the price for cash down.这家商店对付现金的人减价优惠。

13 dealers   

n.商人( dealer的名词复数 )；贩毒者；毒品贩子；发牌者

参考例句：

• There was fast bidding between private collectors and dealers. 私人收藏家和交易商急速竞相喊价。
• The police were corrupt and were operating in collusion with the drug dealers. 警察腐败，与那伙毒品贩子内外勾结。

14 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

15 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。

16 pharmaceutical   

adj.药学的，药物的；药用的，药剂师的

参考例句：

• She has donated money to establish a pharmaceutical laboratory.她捐款成立了一个药剂实验室。
• We are engaged in a legal tussle with a large pharmaceutical company.我们正同一家大制药公司闹法律纠纷。

17 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。

18 miraculously   

ad.奇迹般地

参考例句：

• He had been miraculously saved from almost certain death. 他奇迹般地从死亡线上获救。
• A schoolboy miraculously survived a 25 000-volt electric shock. 一名男学生在遭受2.5 万伏的电击后奇迹般地活了下来。

19 ecological   

adj.生态的，生态学的

参考例句：

• The region has been declared an ecological disaster zone.这个地区已经宣布为生态灾难区。
• Each animal has its ecological niche.每种动物都有自己的生态位.

20 catastrophe   

n.大灾难，大祸

参考例句：

• I owe it to you that I survived the catastrophe.亏得你我才大难不死。
• This is a catastrophe beyond human control.这是一场人类无法控制的灾难。

21 avert   

v.防止，避免；转移(目光、注意力等)

参考例句：

• He managed to avert suspicion.他设法避嫌。
• I would do what I could to avert it.我会尽力去避免发生这种情况。

22 futures   

n.期货，期货交易

参考例句：

• He continued his operations in cotton futures.他继续进行棉花期货交易。
• Cotton futures are selling at high prices.棉花期货交易的卖价是很高的。