美联社新闻一分钟 2006-05-09

1. Two Australian men trapped for two weeks underground were rescued Monday. The men were trapped after a minor¹ earthquake on April 25th, but able to walk out of the mine on their own.

2. Convicted Al-Qaeda conspirator² Zacarias Moussaoui says he lied about being involved in the September 11th attacks. Moussaoui now says he wants to withdraw his guilty plea because he now believes he can get a fair trial because a jury spared him from death.

3. President Bush nominated Air Force General Michael Hayden to be the new head of CIA. Critics say an active military official should not be the head of a civilian³ spy agency.

4. Scott Jeter took matters into his own hands after a thief broke into his home in Ohio five times. He set up a webcam to try to catch the burglar. Police have charged Joseph Dier with five counts of felony burglary

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. minor : adj
You use minor when you want to describe something that is less important, serious, or significant than other things in a group or situation.
e.g. Western officials say the problem is minor, and should be quickly overcome.

2. plea : n-count
In a court of law, a person's plea is the answer that they give when they have been charged with a crime, saying whether or not they are guilty of that crime.
e.g. The judge questioned him about his guilty plea.

3. spare : verb
If you spare someone an unpleasant experience, you prevent them from suffering it.
e.g. I'll spare you from having to apologize formally.

4. take matters into own hands : idiom
To deal with a problem yourself because the people who should have dealt with it have failed to do so.
e.g. The police haven't done anything about the vandalism, so local residents have taken matters into their own hands.

5. break into : phrasal verb
If someone breaks into a building, they get into it by force.
e.g. There was no one nearby who might see him trying to break into the house.

6. set up : phrasal verb
If you set up a device or piece of machinery⁴, you do the things that are necessary for it to be able to start working.
e.g. I set up the computer so that they could work from home.

7. webcam : n-count, usu sing, also Webcam
A webcam is a video camera that takes pictures which can be viewed on a website. The pictures are often of something that is happening while you watch. (COMPUTING)

8. burglar : n-count
A burglar is a thief who enters a house or other building by force.
e.g. Burglars broke into their home.
burglary : n-var
If someone commits a burglary, they enter a building by force and steal things. Burglary is the act of doing this.
e.g. He's been arrested for burglary.

9. felony : n-count
In countries where the legal system distinguishes between very serious crimes and less serious ones, a felony is a very serious crime such as armed robbery. (LEGAL)
e.g. He pleaded guilty to six felonies

1 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

2 conspirator   

n.阴谋者，谋叛者

参考例句：

• We started abusing him,one conspirator after another adding his bitter words.我们这几个预谋者一个接一个地咒骂他，恶狠狠地骂个不停。
• A conspirator is not of the stuff to bear surprises.谋反者是经不起惊吓的。

3 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。

4 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。