美国国家电台 NPR 2012-09-11

 Chicago school buildings opened a few hours today, so children who needed breakfast and lunch could get the meals. But there is no instruction. Chicago teachers began a strike today as talks between their union and the city failed to reach new contract. New talks are underway today. Chicago was the third largest city in the nation with some 400,000 students. Some of the disputed contract issues include teach evaluations¹ and health care. 

 

The mayor of Trenton, New Jersey² has been arrested by federal authorities. Tom MacDonald of member station WHYY reports the mayor and others are accused of taking bribes³.

 

Mayor Tony Mack is accused of being part of conspiracy⁴ and taking bribes in connection with the building of a parking garage in New Jersey's capital city. Mack, his brother and a supporter are accused of taking 54,000 dollars and accepting another 65,000 from a cooperating witness who told them he was developing a parking lot in Trenton . Lee Ingram came to the courthouse to see the mayor in handcuffs.

 

From the beginning, you can see the corruption⁵ in his administration and when you bring it to his attention, he would turn a blind eye to it, he would do nothing about it. So that gave me the impression he was OK with it. 

 

Mack isn't the first New Jersey mayor charged with corruption. Mayor Sharpe James of Newark and Milton Milan of Camden also were charged and convicted of corruption.  For NPR News, I'm Tom MacDonald, Trenton, New Jersey.

 

Just days after the European Central Bank eased fears of a eurozone implosion⁶. The single currency faces a week of crucial decisions. NPR's Sylvia Poggioli reports German judges Dutch voters and international inspectors⁷ could further prolong a crisis weighing on the global economy. 

 

The day to watch is Wednesday. The German Constitutional Court will rule on the legality of eurozone financial rescue funds. The European commission will unveil a plan for a eurozone banking⁸ union and voters in the Netherlands could opt⁹ for extremist anti-Eurozone bailout parties. If the German court rules against the rescue funds, the effect could be devastating¹⁰, making all Eurozone bond-buying plans now irrelevant¹¹. However, most analysts¹² believe the court will rule in favour but impose tough conditions that would restrict the Berlin government's manoeuvring room. In debte-burdened Greece, international inspectors are scrutinising accounts to determine whether to release the next bailout installment¹³ that would avert¹⁴ the country's bankruptcy¹⁵.Sylvia Poggioli, NPR News.

 

Lawmakers in Somalia have elected a new president. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was chosen by delegates in Mogadishu who picked him over incumbent¹⁶ Somalian President,  Sheikh Sharif Ahmed. Somalia has not had an effective central government since it fell into war in 1991 and the country broke up into factions¹⁷. 

 

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is down about 13 points, at 13,293; the NASDAQ Composite is down 24 points at 3,112.

 

This is NPR.

 

Crews are trying to contain wildfires all across Washington state. From member station KUOW, Sara Lerner reports.

 

Bryan Flint is with Washington's Department of Natural Resources.

 

Take your pick where you want to go in eastern Washington. There is probably a wildfire. 

 

Flint says all available resources are on the fires, wind and dry conditions are contributors, but also lightning. Flint says lightning sparked more than 60 small fires in the last few days all over the state. Right now he says he is most concerned about the wildfires near the city of Wenatchee in the heart of Washington's apple country. Buildings are threatened there. Residents of nearly 200 homes are under orders to evacuate¹⁸. The Wenatchee area fires are spread over about 2,500 acres.  Last month,  Taylor Bridge fire near the city of Cle Elum burned over 23,000 acres.

 

For NPR News, I'm Sara Lerner in Seattle.

 

It's back to work for congress which has had a five-week recess¹⁹. Members have at least one big deadline in front of them, making sure the Federal government has enough money to operate after the end of fiscal²⁰ year that's on September 30th. 

 

House speaker John Boehner hopes to present legislation this week, that will keep the government running for six more months. Another issue includes a new farm bill that includes the national food stampt program. And of course the exploration of the Bush-era tax cuts is looming²¹ at the end of December. 

 

Saudi Arabia's foreign minister is recovering from abdominal²² surgery in Los Angeles. The Saudi Royal Court released a statement, saying that Prince Saud al-Faisal will spend several weeks at his home in Los Angeles recuperating²³. The prince is nephew of Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah. 

1 evaluations   

估价( evaluation的名词复数 )； 赋值； 估计价值； [医学]诊断

参考例句：

• In fact, our moral evaluations are merely expressions of our desires. 事实上，我们的道德评价只是我们欲望的表达形式。 来自哲学部分
• Properly speaking, however, these evaluations and insights are not within the concept of official notice. 但准确地讲，这些评估和深远见识并未包括在官方通知概念里。

2 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

3 bribes   

n.贿赂( bribe的名词复数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂v.贿赂( bribe的第三人称单数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• corrupt officials accepting bribes 接受贿赂的贪官污吏

4 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

5 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

6 implosion   

n.向内破裂，内爆

参考例句：

• The population explosion is accompanied by a population implosion.人口爆炸还伴随着人口爆聚。

7 inspectors   

n.检查员( inspector的名词复数 )；（英国公共汽车或火车上的）查票员；（警察）巡官；检阅官

参考例句：

• They got into the school in the guise of inspectors. 他们假装成视察员进了学校。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Inspectors checked that there was adequate ventilation. 检查员已检查过，通风良好。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

9 opt   

vi.选择，决定做某事

参考例句：

• They opt for more holiday instead of more pay.他们选择了延长假期而不是增加工资。
• Will individual schools be given the right to opt out of the local school authority?各个学校可能有权选择退出地方教育局吗？

10 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

11 irrelevant   

adj.不恰当的，无关系的，不相干的

参考例句：

• That is completely irrelevant to the subject under discussion.这跟讨论的主题完全不相关。
• A question about arithmetic is irrelevant in a music lesson.在音乐课上，一个数学的问题是风马牛不相及的。

12 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

13 installment   

n.(instalment)分期付款；(连载的)一期

参考例句：

• I shall soon pay the last installment of my debt.不久我将偿付我的最后一期债款。
• He likes to buy things on the installment plan.他喜欢用分期付款法购买货物。

14 avert   

v.防止，避免；转移(目光、注意力等)

参考例句：

• He managed to avert suspicion.他设法避嫌。
• I would do what I could to avert it.我会尽力去避免发生这种情况。

15 bankruptcy   

n.破产；无偿付能力

参考例句：

• You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy.如果你想避免破产，就必须节省开支。
• His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy.他的商号正面临破产的危险。

16 incumbent   

adj.成为责任的，有义务的；现任的，在职的

参考例句：

• He defeated the incumbent governor by a large plurality.他以压倒多数票击败了现任州长。
• It is incumbent upon you to warn them.你有责任警告他们。

17 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

18 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。

19 recess   

n.短期休息，壁凹（墙上装架子，柜子等凹处）

参考例句：

• The chairman of the meeting announced a ten-minute recess.会议主席宣布休会10分钟。
• Parliament was hastily recalled from recess.休会的议员被匆匆召回开会。

20 fiscal   

adj.财政的，会计的，国库的，国库岁入的

参考例句：

• The increase of taxation is an important fiscal policy.增税是一项重要的财政政策。
• The government has two basic strategies of fiscal policy available.政府有两个可行的财政政策基本战略。

21 looming   

n.上现蜃景（光通过低层大气发生异常折射形成的一种海市蜃楼）v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的现在分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近

参考例句：

• The foothills were looming ahead through the haze. 丘陵地带透过薄雾朦胧地出现在眼前。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Then they looked up. Looming above them was Mount Proteome. 接着他们往上看，在其上隐约看到的是蛋白质组山。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 回顾与展望

22 abdominal   

adj.腹（部）的，下腹的；n.腹肌

参考例句：

• The abdominal aorta is normally smaller than the thoracic aorta.腹主动脉一般比胸主动脉小。
• Abdominal tissues sometimes adhere after an operation.手术之后腹部有时会出现粘连。

23 recuperating   

v.恢复（健康、体力等），复原( recuperate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He's still recuperating from his operation. 他动了手术，还在恢复。
• He is recuperating from a serious back injury. 他背部受了重伤，目前正在康复中。 来自辞典例句