NPR 2011-05-09

From President Obama's national security advisor¹, a benign² evaluation³ of how much Pakistan knew about bin⁴ Laden⁵'s hideout in Abbottabad.

"We don't have evidence at this point that the political, military and intelligence leadership of Pakistan knew about the bin Laden operation in Abbottabad, Pakistan."

Tom Donilon spoke⁶ on Fox News Sunday. NPR's David Folkenflik says the national security advisor today stressed the importance of the US-Pakistan relationship.

National Security Advisor Thomas Donilon made his remarks during multiple television appearances. These comments came from ABC's "This Week" with Christiane Amanpour.

"They have been an essential partner of ours in the war against al-Qaeda and in our efforts against terrorism. And that really can't be dismissed."

Donilon said the White House decision not to tell Pakistan of the raid until after the fact reflected operational security, not a lack of trust in Pakistani officials, but he said the administration is relying on cooperation to get intelligence from several of bin Laden's wives, whom Pakistan now has in custody⁷. David Folkenflik, NPR News.

In Syria, security forces stormed neighborhoods in the city of Homs overnight, while more than 200 people were taken into custody in the coastal⁸ town of Baniyas. The BBC's John Yore reports it's all part of a government crackdown on protesters.

Syrian state television confirmed that troops and security forces moved into the central city of Homs during the night. It said a number of what it called "armed saboteurs" had been killed or wounded, arrests made and quantities of arms and ammunition⁹ seized. Homs, a city of about a million, has been a hotbed of protest. On Friday, around 15 demonstrators were reportedly shot dead there after Friday prayers. The authorities say 11 soldiers and police were also shot dead on Friday by what they called "armed terrorist groups."

The BBC's John Yore.

The rising Mississippi forcing hundreds of evacuations, we get more on this story from NPR's David Schaper.

Authorities have been going door-to-door, urging residents in low-lying areas in and around Memphis to evacuate¹⁰, and hundreds have heeded¹¹ the calls, staying in Red Cross shelters or with relatives on higher ground. Some waited too long and had to be evacuated¹² by boat. Lauren Dearing of West Memphis, Arkansas says floodwaters aren't too close to her home yet, but she's worried.

"I'm honestly scared I'm gonna lose my home, and I don't, I don't like change. I don't like the fact that I might not be able to see my home in a few days. That really scares me."

Upriver in Kentucky, some residents have been able to return to their homes as the worst of the flooding might be over there, but the Mississippi still hasn't crested¹³ yet here in Memphis, and dangerous flooding is also predicted downriver in the Mississippi Delta¹⁴ in Louisiana. David Schaper, NPR News, Memphis.

From Washington, you're listening to NPR News.

Heavy weather in the winter and early spring has led parks officials to delay the opening of the Yosemite National Park in central California. Bob Hensley of Capital Public Radio reports Yosemite may not open until after the Memorial Day weekend.

Deep drifts left from record snowfalls are delaying installation of the cables on the famous Half Dome¹⁵ hiking route. Trail crews will have to wait until they can safely access the Granite¹⁶ Peak. Half Dome has become so popular that park rangers¹⁷ now issue permits to those wanting to make the climb. The serious snowpack is also keeping many high-altitude roads and trails closed in the park. Road crews are doing their best to clear the snow, but some areas are hard to reach. The upside of the snowpack is that the famous Yosemite Valley waterfalls will last well into the summer. Meanwhile, officials are warning water enthusiasts¹⁸ in the region to be careful as rivers and streams are going to be filled with fast-moving currents due to the melting snowpack. This includes a river that runs through Yosemite. For NPR News, I'm Bob Hensley in Modesto, California.

Thoroughbred Animal Kingdom was at 20-to-1 shot before the Kentucky Derby. Now, he's headed to Baltimore for the Preakness Stakes. Trainer Graham Motion:

"This is a very special horse. I was so impressed with how he handled everything."

The Preakness is the second jewel in horse racing's Triple Crown.

Marvel¹⁹ Comics hero 'Thor' crushed the box office competition this weekend.

"You're big. Fought bigger."

Ticket receipts for the 3D action picture from Paramount²⁰ rang up at 66 million dollars. Behind it 'Fast Five' and 'Jumping The Broom.'

I'm Louise Schiavone, NPR News, Washington.

1 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

2 benign   

adj.善良的，慈祥的；良性的，无危险的

参考例句：

• The benign weather brought North America a bumper crop.温和的气候给北美带来大丰收。
• Martha is a benign old lady.玛莎是个仁慈的老妇人。

3 evaluation   

n.估价，评价；赋值

参考例句：

• I attempted an honest evaluation of my own life.我试图如实地评价我自己的一生。
• The new scheme is still under evaluation.新方案还在评估阶段。

4 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

5 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

6 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

7 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

8 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

9 ammunition   

n.军火，弹药

参考例句：

• A few of the jeeps had run out of ammunition.几辆吉普车上的弹药已经用光了。
• They have expended all their ammunition.他们把弹药用光。

10 evacuate   

v.遣送；搬空；抽出；排泄；大(小)便

参考例句：

• We must evacuate those soldiers at once!我们必须立即撤出这些士兵！
• They were planning to evacuate the seventy American officials still in the country.他们正计划转移仍滞留在该国的70名美国官员。

11 heeded   

v.听某人的劝告，听从( heed的过去式和过去分词 )；变平，使（某物）变平( flatten的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She countered that her advice had not been heeded. 她反驳说她的建议未被重视。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I heeded my doctor's advice and stopped smoking. 我听从医生的劝告，把烟戒了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 evacuated   

撤退者的

参考例句：

• Police evacuated nearby buildings. 警方已将附近大楼的居民疏散。
• The fireman evacuated the guests from the burning hotel. 消防队员把客人们从燃烧着的旅馆中撤出来。

13 crested   

adj.有顶饰的，有纹章的，有冠毛的v.到达山顶（或浪峰）( crest的过去式和过去分词 )；到达洪峰，达到顶点

参考例句：

• a great crested grebe 凤头䴙䴘
• The stately mansion crested the hill. 庄严的大厦位于山顶。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

14 delta   

n.（流的）角洲

参考例句：

• He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
• The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔，形成了一个三角洲。

15 dome   

n.圆屋顶，拱顶

参考例句：

• The dome was supported by white marble columns.圆顶由白色大理石柱支撑着。
• They formed the dome with the tree's branches.他们用树枝搭成圆屋顶。

16 granite   

adj.花岗岩，花岗石

参考例句：

• They squared a block of granite.他们把一块花岗岩加工成四方形。
• The granite overlies the older rocks.花岗岩躺在磨损的岩石上面。

17 rangers   

护林者( ranger的名词复数 )； 突击队员

参考例句：

• Do you know where the Rangers Stadium is? 你知道Rangers体育场在哪吗？ 来自超越目标英语 第3册
• Now I'm a Rangers' fan, so I like to be near the stadium. 现在我是Rangers的爱好者，所以我想离体育场近一点。 来自超越目标英语 第3册

18 enthusiasts   

n.热心人，热衷者( enthusiast的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A group of enthusiasts have undertaken the reconstruction of a steam locomotive. 一群火车迷已担负起重造蒸汽机车的任务。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Now a group of enthusiasts are going to have the plane restored. 一群热心人计划修复这架飞机。 来自新概念英语第二册

19 marvel   

vi.(at)惊叹vt.感到惊异；n.令人惊异的事

参考例句：

• The robot is a marvel of modern engineering.机器人是现代工程技术的奇迹。
• The operation was a marvel of medical skill.这次手术是医术上的一个奇迹。

20 paramount   

a.最重要的，最高权力的

参考例句：

• My paramount object is to save the Union and destroy slavery.我的最高目标是拯救美国，摧毁奴隶制度。
• Nitrogen is of paramount importance to life on earth.氮对地球上的生命至关重要。