美联社新闻一分钟 2007-03-12

1. President Bush is asking Congress for money for another troop surge. He wants to send more than 8,000 more troops to Iraq and Afghanistan. The request comes as Congress is trying to figure out ways to get the U.S. out of Iraq.

2. Meanwhile, representatives from the U.S. and Iran traded harsh words Saturday and blamed each other for the crisis in Iraq. They met at a one-day international conference in Baghdad designed to find a way to control the violence.

3. Singer James Brown has been laid to rest. He died back in December and on Saturday his body was placed in a crypt at the South Carolina home of one of his daughters. However, a public mausoleum is being planned and his remains¹ could be moved again.

4. Authorities in New York are searching for a man they say has been attacking older women. Surveillance cameras caught him hitting and robbing this 101-year-old last week and authorities say he also robbed an 85-year-old woman.

 

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. surge: n-count
A surge is a sudden large increase in something that has previously² been steady.

2. crypt: n-count (做墓穴用的) 教堂地下室
A crypt is an underground room underneath³ a church or cathedral.

3. mausoleum: n-count 陵墓
A mausoleum is a building which contains the grave of a famous person or the graves of a rich family.

1 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

2 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

3 underneath   

adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面

参考例句：

• Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。
• She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣，里面套着一条连衣裙。