美国有线新闻 CNN 2013-10-23

 Today, the partial government shutdown over. The possible US debt ceiling crisis averted¹. For now, late Wednesday night, Congress voted on the deal and approved it. Early Thursday morning, President Obama signed it. As the day moved forward, things in Washington started returning to normal. Federal employees who were furloughed set home without pay were back at work yesterday. The deal says they'll get back pay to cover what they missed while they were furloughed. Most national parks and landmarks², like E. in Florida had been closed since the shutdown started. They are back open now and accepting visitors. Keep in mind, the deal passed this week is temporary. It funds the government until Jan. It raises the debt ceiling until Feb. So, after it was passed, leaders of the House and Senate budget committees got together to start the next run of negotiations³. 

 

When you hear the word of slavery, you might think of it something from history. The US Civil War decided⁴ the issue here and today slavery is illegal in every single country. But right now, worldwide, there are more slaves than any other time in history. Modern day slavery isn't always the same as images you see in textbooks. It includes human trafficking, force labor⁵, child exploitation, forced marriage. A new report used a decade of research to offer the latest information on slavery and its victims.

 

"Sadly, in 2013, that stories are far more prevalent than you expect: 29.8 million. That's staggering estimate of how many people around the world are living as modern day slaves. According to walk free foundation, the number is cited in the foundation's global slavery index which for the first time provides a map country by country of the depth and breadth of the scourge⁶. These 10 countries account for 76% of the world's enslaved people. China, Russia, Nigeria, Pakistan are all in that but India, the world's 2nd most populous⁷ nation has by far the highest number of slaves, estimated up between 13 and 14.5 million people."

 

"A lot of experts would say that's a conservative number. India has a massive problem with forced labor, bonded⁸ labor. There are whole communities that are forced to work on brick ... or forced to work in stone quarries⁹. Kids were working in ch... factory. So, it's a massive problem."  

 

"But the index found that it's the M which is the latest country to outlaw¹⁰ slavery in 1961 where the problem is the most prevalent. With an estimation, one in five citizens bounded to a master. Tradition is pretty hard to break."

 

Teachers, for more information about the fight against the modern day slavery, check out the freedom project link on our home page. Next up today, shooting stars. They are meteors and when they hit the earth atmosphere, they can cause serious problems, like the one exploded over Russia earlier this year. After waiting for months, scientists are getting their hands on what they think is a piece of that one. You'll hear that weighs more than 570 kilograms. For reference, that's more than 1250 pounds.

 

"This was the scene back in Feb as a massive meteors streaked¹¹ across the sky, turning the night into the day, the fireball and shock waves across Russia, shattering windows, injuring some 1200 people and causing millions of dollars in damage. Scientists said fragments of the space rock crashed landing here, beneath the ice of the frozen lake near the city of Ch. Now, 8 months later, the ice is gone and on Wednesday, in an operation covered live on Russian TV, divers¹² entered the murky¹³ water. At the bottom of the lake, they found what is believed to be the largest single fragment of the meteorite¹⁴. The 1.5 meter long bolder was dragged to shore then weighed where it literally¹⁵ tipped than broke the scales."

 

"If it weighs more than 500 kilograms, then the object is unique in itself and it's likely to be one of the biggest meteorites¹⁶ ever found."

 

"This expected space roll crumbled¹⁷ into several chuncks but still weighed more than 570 kilograms. Now, scientists want to confirm this is indeed the meteorite they've been searching for."

 

"The initial visual survey which we are talking about now doesn't give us 100% certainty. We still need to conduct more research, a structural¹⁸ analysis and other tests."           

 

"When it entered the earth atmosphere, scientists estimate, the meteor weighed about 10,000 tons. It`s just a fraction of that size now, but scientists seem confident, they made an out of this world discovery.I., CNN."

1 averted   

防止，避免( avert的过去式和过去分词 )； 转移

参考例句：

• A disaster was narrowly averted. 及时防止了一场灾难。
• Thanks to her skilful handling of the affair, the problem was averted. 多亏她对事情处理得巧妙，才避免了麻烦。

2 landmarks   

n.陆标( landmark的名词复数 )；目标；（标志重要阶段的）里程碑 ~ (in sth)；有历史意义的建筑物（或遗址）

参考例句：

• The book stands out as one of the notable landmarks in the progress of modern science. 这部著作是现代科学发展史上著名的里程碑之一。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The baby was one of the big landmarks in our relationship. 孩子的出世是我们俩关系中的一个重要转折点。 来自辞典例句

3 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

6 scourge   

n.灾难，祸害；v.蹂躏

参考例句：

• Smallpox was once the scourge of the world.天花曾是世界的大患。
• The new boss was the scourge of the inefficient.新老板来了以后，不称职的人就遭殃了。

7 populous   

adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的

参考例句：

• London is the most populous area of Britain.伦敦是英国人口最稠密的地区。
• China is the most populous developing country in the world.中国是世界上人口最多的发展中国家。

8 bonded   

n.有担保的，保税的，粘合的

参考例句：

• The whisky was taken to bonded warehouses at Port Dundee.威士忌酒已送到邓迪港的保稅仓库。
• This adhesive must be applied to both surfaces which are to be bonded together.要粘接的两个面都必须涂上这种黏合剂。

9 quarries   

n.（采）石场( quarry的名词复数 )；猎物（指鸟，兽等）；方形石；（格窗等的）方形玻璃v.从采石场采得( quarry的第三人称单数 )；从（书本等中）努力发掘（资料等）；在采石场采石

参考例句：

• This window was filled with old painted glass in quarries. 这窗户是由旧日的彩色菱形玻璃装配的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They hewed out the stones for the building from nearby quarries. 他们从邻近的采石场开凿出石头供建造那栋房子用。 来自辞典例句

10 outlaw   

n.歹徒，亡命之徒；vt.宣布…为不合法

参考例句：

• The outlaw hid out in the hills for several months.逃犯在山里隐藏了几个月。
• The outlaw has been caught.歹徒已被抓住了。

11 streaked   

adj.有条斑纹的，不安的v.快速移动( streak的过去式和过去分词 )；使布满条纹

参考例句：

• The children streaked off as fast as they could. 孩子们拔脚飞跑 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• His face was pale and streaked with dirt. 他脸色苍白，脸上有一道道的污痕。 来自辞典例句

12 divers   

adj.不同的；种种的

参考例句：

• He chose divers of them,who were asked to accompany him.他选择他们当中的几个人，要他们和他作伴。
• Two divers work together while a standby diver remains on the surface.两名潜水员协同工作，同时有一名候补潜水员留在水面上。

13 murky   

adj.黑暗的，朦胧的；adv.阴暗地，混浊地；n.阴暗；昏暗

参考例句：

• She threw it into the river's murky depths.她把它扔进了混浊的河水深处。
• She had a decidedly murky past.她的历史背景令人捉摸不透。

14 meteorite   

n.陨石；流星

参考例句：

• The meteorite in Jilin Exhibition Hall is believed to be the largest in the world.吉林展览馆的陨石被认为是世界上最大的。
• The famous Murchison meteorite smashed into the Australian ground in 1969.1969年著名的默奇森陨石轰然坠落在澳大利亚。

15 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

16 meteorites   

n.陨星( meteorite的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Small meteorites have left impact craters all over the planet's surface. 这个行星的表面布满了小块陨石留下的撞击坑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• One theory about the existence of extraterrestrial life rests on the presence of carbon compounds in meteorites. 地球外存在生命的理论是基于陨星上存在碳化合物质这一事实的。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 crumbled   

（把…）弄碎， （使）碎成细屑( crumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 衰落； 坍塌； 损坏

参考例句：

• He crumbled the bread in his fingers. 他用手指把面包捻碎。
• Our hopes crumbled when the business went bankrupt. 商行破产了，我们的希望也破灭了。

18 structural   

adj.构造的，组织的，建筑（用）的

参考例句：

• The storm caused no structural damage.风暴没有造成建筑结构方面的破坏。
• The North American continent is made up of three great structural entities.北美大陆是由三个构造单元组成的。