美联社新闻一分钟 2006-02-18

1. Harry¹ Whittington says accidents do and will happen. The 78-year-old lawyer was released from a hospital Friday, 6 days after Vice² President Dick Cheney accidentally shot him during a quail³ hunting trip in Texas.

2. As many as 1,500 people are missing after a landslide⁴ wiped out an entire village on the Philippine island of Leyte. Initial estimates suggest at least 200 people are dead. The Pentagon is offering to help in the rescue and relief effort.

3. Women on the birth control patch are being urged to talk to their doctors. That's because a new study by the maker⁵ of the Ortho Evra found the patch doubles a woman's risk of blood clots⁶ in the legs and lungs. An estimated four million women have used the once-a-week patch.

4. it’s a first of its kind. The world's largest panda breeding center in southwest China just opened a kindergarten for 16 young pandas. The center hopes this will help the pandas find their mates more easily

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. a first :
an event that is described as a first has never happend before and is important and exciting.
e.g. This new surgical⁷ technique is a first for (= has never been done before in) Britain.

1 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。

2 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

3 quail   

n.鹌鹑；vi.畏惧，颤抖

参考例句：

• Cowards always quail before the enemy.在敌人面前，胆小鬼们总是畏缩不前的。
• Quail eggs are very high in cholesterol.鹌鹑蛋胆固醇含量高。

4 landslide   

n.(竞选中)压倒多数的选票；一面倒的胜利

参考例句：

• Our candidate is predicated to win by a landslide.我们的候选人被预言将以绝对优势取胜。
• An electoral landslide put the Labour Party into power in 1945.1945年工党以压倒多数的胜利当选执政。

5 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。

6 clots   

n.凝块( clot的名词复数 )；血块；蠢人；傻瓜v.凝固( clot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• When you cut yourself, blood clots and forms a scab. 你割破了，血会凝固、结痂。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Milk clots when it turns sour. 奶变酸就凝块。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

7 surgical   

adj.外科的，外科医生的，手术上的

参考例句：

• He performs the surgical operations at the Red Cross Hospital.他在红十字会医院做外科手术。
• All surgical instruments must be sterilised before use.所有的外科手术器械在使用之前，必须消毒。