NPR 2010-12-23

The Senate has passed two major pieces of legislation this afternoon that had been caught in the grips of political stalemate. By a vote of 71-26, the Senate has ratified¹ a new nuclear arms treaty with Russia. And Andrew Seabrook of NPR tells us that within the last hour, senators approved a bill that provides health care benefits for 9/11 first responders sickened after working amidst the toxic² debris³ of the World Trade Center ruins.

After months of delay on this bill, the Senate came in and lightening fast, voice voted it on the Senate floor. That means that they didn't even take a roll call vote. They asked for unanimous consent and it was given. The bill passed in a matter of seconds. The bill authorizes⁴ more than four billion dollars to help pay for the health care of survivors⁵ of the 2001 9/11 attacks and to the responders who cleaned up in the months after that. Many of whom are having serious health problems, especially lung problems and throat problems after having breathed the dust.

NPR's Andrew Seabrook on Capitol Hill.

With the holiday travel season cranking up, the government is offering assurances that it's doing all it can to prevent terror attacks. NPR's Giles Snyder reports.

It's nearly been a year since the failed Christmas Day attack on a Detroit-bound airliner⁶ and White House homeland security adviser⁷ John Brennan says we're in a better position today than we were then.

"There is a fair amount of volume that's going through the different transportation sectors⁸, whether it be aviation or rail and other areas. So what we want to do is to make sure that we're able to provide the security to the traveling public."

Brennan was speaking at a White House press briefing. He says there's been no credible⁹ threat, but that authorities are on the lookout¹⁰ for both large and small terror plots. Brennan also defended Director of National Intelligence James Clapper. Clapper appeared not to know of terror arrests in Britain this week, when the two appeared together on ABC News Tuesday night. Giles Snyder, NPR News, Washington.

Some slightly positive economic news today from the Commerce Department. Gross domestic product in the third quarter grew slightly faster than earlier estimates indicated. During the summer months, the economy grew at an annualized rate of 2.6 rather than 2.5 percent. Gus Faucher of Moody's Analytic¹¹ says while the growth rate is moderate, business inventories¹² are up, so companies are poised¹³ to start hiring again.

"I would expect that we will see businesses start to hire rapidly pretty soon with the cash they've saved up, and they're gonna find more and more difficult to get more from their existing workers, and they're going to need to hire in order to keep up with stronger demand."

The better-than-expected showing of the GDP is fueling some gains on Wall Street at this hour. The Dow is up 23 points; the NASDAQ is up three; the S&P up two.

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Sales of previously¹⁴ owned homes rose slightly in November. The National Association of Realtors says sales were 5.6 percent higher than they were in October. The organization's chief economist¹⁵ says home buyers are responding to more affordable¹⁶ prices, and he predicts the housing market is steadily¹⁷ recovering

Heavy storms continue to pour over Southern California. And as NPR's Karen Grigsby Bates reports, officials are taking preventive measures as even stronger storms head to the region.

Storm waters have loosened land in several Southern California canyons¹⁹, causing rock and boulder²⁰ slides and closing several roadways. As a precaution, firefighters in Irvine are evacuating²¹ people whose homes may be in the path of sliding boulders²² and debris. Those evacuations are mandatory²³. Residents are being removed on a street by street basis to a local shelter. Silverado Canyon¹⁸ is one of those in Orange County at the edge of the Cleveland National Forest. It sustained heavy burn damage during a 2007 wildfire and has been at risk of mudslides during intense rainfalls ever since. Emergency personnel are bracing²⁴ for more evacuations when another heavy rainfall hits later on Wednesday. Karen Grigsby Bates, NPR News.

The World Bank has frozen loans to Ivory Coast amid a political standoff. Ivory Coast's controversial president, Laurent Gbagbo, is refusing to step aside, even though his rival in last month's election has been certified²⁵ the winner. The US has imposed travel sanctions on Gbagbo and regional leaders are calling on him to yield power. Meanwhile, the French government is urging its citizens to leave its former West African colony amid concerns of an outbreak of another civil war.

1 ratified   

v.批准，签认（合约等）( ratify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The treaty was declared invalid because it had not been ratified. 条约没有得到批准，因此被宣布无效。
• The treaty was ratified by all the member states. 这个条约得到了所有成员国的批准。

2 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

3 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

4 authorizes   

授权，批准，委托( authorize的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The dictionary authorizes the two spellings 'traveler' and 'traveller'. 字典裁定traveler和traveller两种拼法都对。
• The dictionary authorizes the two spellings "honor" and "honour.". 字典裁定 honor 及 honour 两种拼法均可。

5 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

6 airliner   

n.客机，班机

参考例句：

• The pilot landed the airliner safely.驾驶员使客机安全着陆。
• The passengers were shepherded across the tarmac to the airliner.旅客们被引导走过跑道去上飞机。

7 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

8 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 credible   

adj.可信任的，可靠的

参考例句：

• The news report is hardly credible.这则新闻报道令人难以置信。
• Is there a credible alternative to the nuclear deterrent?是否有可以取代核威慑力量的可靠办法？

10 lookout   

n.注意，前途，瞭望台

参考例句：

• You can see everything around from the lookout.从了望台上你可以看清周围的一切。
• It's a bad lookout for the company if interest rates don't come down.如果利率降不下来，公司的前景可就不妙了。

11 analytic   

adj.分析的，用分析方法的

参考例句：

• The boy has an analytic mind. 这男孩有分析的头脑。
• Latin is a synthetic language,while English is analytic.拉丁文是一种综合性语言，而英语是一种分析性语言。

12 inventories   

n.总结( inventory的名词复数 )；细账；存货清单（或财产目录）的编制

参考例句：

• In other cases, such as inventories, inputs and outputs are both continuous. 在另一些情况下，比如存货，其投入和产出都是持续不断的。
• The store must clear its winter inventories by April 1st. 该店必须在4月1日前售清冬季存货。

13 poised   

a.摆好姿势不动的

参考例句：

• The hawk poised in mid-air ready to swoop. 老鹰在半空中盘旋，准备俯冲。
• Tina was tense, her hand poised over the telephone. 蒂娜心情紧张，手悬在电话机上。

14 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。

15 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

16 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

17 steadily   

adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地

参考例句：

• The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
• Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。

18 canyon   

n.峡谷，溪谷

参考例句：

• The Grand Canyon in the USA is 1900 metres deep.美国的大峡谷1900米深。
• The canyon is famous for producing echoes.这个峡谷以回声而闻名。

19 canyons   

n.峡谷( canyon的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This mountain range has many high peaks and deep canyons. 这条山脉有许多高峰和深谷。 来自辞典例句
• Do you use canyons or do we preserve them all? 是使用峡谷呢还是全封闭保存？ 来自互联网

20 boulder   

n.巨砾；卵石，圆石

参考例句：

• We all heaved together and removed the boulder.大家一齐用劲，把大石头搬开了。
• He stepped clear of the boulder.他从大石头后面走了出来。

21 evacuating   

撤离，疏散( evacuate的现在分词 )； 排空（胃肠），排泄（粪便）； （从危险的地方）撤出，搬出，撤空

参考例句：

• The solution is degassed by alternately freezing, evacuating and thawing. 通过交替的冻结、抽空和溶化来使溶液除气。
• Are we evacuating these potential targets? 能够在这些目标地域内进行疏散吗？

22 boulders   

n.卵石( boulder的名词复数 )；巨砾；（受水或天气侵蚀而成的）巨石；漂砾

参考例句：

• Seals basked on boulders in a flat calm. 海面风平浪静，海豹在巨石上晒太阳。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The river takes a headlong plunge into a maelstrom of rocks and boulders. 河水急流而下，入一个漂砾的漩涡中。 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 mandatory   

adj.命令的；强制的；义务的；n.受托者

参考例句：

• It's mandatory to pay taxes.缴税是义务性的。
• There is no mandatory paid annual leave in the U.S.美国没有强制带薪年假。

24 bracing   

adj.令人振奋的

参考例句：

• The country is bracing itself for the threatened enemy invasion. 这个国家正准备奋起抵抗敌人的入侵威胁。
• The atmosphere in the new government was bracing. 新政府的气氛是令人振奋的。

25 certified   

a.经证明合格的；具有证明文件的

参考例句：

• Doctors certified him as insane. 医生证明他精神失常。
• The planes were certified airworthy. 飞机被证明适于航行。