NPR美国国家公共电台 2013-06-01

　　From NPR News in Washington, I'm Korva Coleman.

 

　　The government today reported some improvement in the health of of the medicare program and no significant change in the outlook for social security. As NPR's John Ydstie reports the anual trustees' evaluation¹ of the two programs shows the solvency² of the Medicare Trust Fund has been extended for two years.

 

　　The trustees now project that Medicare Trust Fund will not be exhausted³ until 2026, social security is expected to remain solvent⁴ until 2033. At a news conference, Trustee Robert Reischauer said the somewhat brighter outlook for medicare is partly due to implementation⁵ of the affordable⁶ care act also known as Obamacare. But he said under current law, neither medicare nor social security is on a sustainable path.

 

　　The sooner the policy makers⁷ address these challenges that lie ahead, the less disruptive, the unavoidable adjustments will be both for individuals and for the economy.

 

　　If lawmakers did not nothing, social security would be able to pay only 77% of promised benefits in 2033. John Ydstie, NPR News, Washington.

 

　　President Obama is urging Congress to stop student loan rate from doubling on July 1st. Stafford loans will go from 3.4% to 6.8% unless Congress acts. Many lawmakers say they want to stop the increase. But they are divided over how to accomplish it.

 

　　Activists⁹ in the embattled town of Qusair say nine people were killed trying to evacuate¹⁰ to safer ground.  NPR's Kelly McEvers reports that as Syrian government forces advanced the humanitarian¹¹ situation grows down.

 

　　Syrian government forces and their backers from the Shiite militant¹² group Hezbollah have gained control of much of the Qusair area in recent days after nearly two weeks of deadly fighting. Situated¹³ along the Lebanese-Syrian border, the town is a key trends point for fighters and weapons. This activist⁸ who goes by the name Hadi Abdalla tourists what he says is a room for those killed trying to escape today. There was no hope, he says, what used to be get from your meetings and conferences, apparently¹⁴  referring to meetings at Istanbul where the Syrian opposition¹⁵ held drawn-out talks but reached few conclusions. Residents who recently fled Qusair told NPR there are thousands of people trapped inside the town. Attention now turns to those civilians¹⁶ and whether they will be granted safe passage or not. Kelly McEvers, NPR News, Beiruit.

 

　　The European Union is asking member countries to start testing wheat bought from the United States. Genetically¹⁷ modified grains turned up on an organ wheat farm last month, an experimental type that was never approved for sale. Japan has already halted imports of some types of American wheat. The U.S. Agriculture Department says the wheat poses no threat to human health and there is no evidence the genetically modified version ever reached the market.

 

　　On Wall Street at the close, the Dow Jones Industrials were up 133 points at 15,191.

 

　　This is NPR.

 

　　There could be more nasty weather and storm in the Midwest today. The National Weather Service says parts of  Oklahoma, Arkansas and Missouri could say tornadoes¹⁸. All areas from Texas, north to the Great Lakes could get severe storms and large hail. Several suspected tornadoes touched down in Arkansas yesterday, leaving one man dead. Another man died in an area of heavy flooding.

 

　　An astroid, the size of nine ocean liners will pass close to earth today. But as NPR's Joe Palca reports close is a relative term when it comes to astronomical¹⁹ distances.

 

　　When you consider the size of our galaxy²⁰, or even the size of hour solar system, 3.6 million miles does amount to much. But in our somewhat selfish, earth centric view of the universe, 3.6 million miles is plenty of distance. So there is no need to worry about the astroid 1998 QE2 striking our planet. Despite the ocean liner analogy, the astroid was not named after the Queen Elizabeth II passenger ship, instead the name was generated automatically based on the time and date it was discovered. The moment of closest approach will be at 4:59 pm eastern time. Joe Palca, NPR News, Washington.

 

　　The Taliban is denying it had any role in the attack on a compound of the International Committee of the Red Cross. This week's attack in eastern Afghanistan left a guard dead. The Taliban issued a statement saying it does not target those who truly serve the people.

 

　　The world oil cartel says it will keep official production rate at 30 million barrels every day. Some countries produce more than they are supposed to. That bombs up the target. Currently, the average barrel of oil cost is about $100.

 

　　I'm Korva Coleman, NPR News, in Washington.

1 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。

2 solvency   

n.偿付能力，溶解力

参考例句：

• Fears about the solvency of the banks precipitated the great economic crash.对银行偿付能力出现恐慌更加速了经济的崩溃。
• Their targets,including profitability ratios,solvency ratios,asset management ratios.其指标包括盈利比率、偿债能力比率、资产管理比率。

3 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

4 solvent   

n.溶剂；adj.有偿付能力的

参考例句：

• Gasoline is a solvent liquid which removes grease spots.汽油是一种能去掉油污的有溶解力的液体。
• A bankrupt company is not solvent.一个破产的公司是没有偿还债务的能力的。

5 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。

6 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。

7 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

9 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

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 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

12 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

13 situated   

adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的

参考例句：

• The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。
• She is awkwardly situated.她的处境困难。

14 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

15 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

16 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

17 genetically   

adv.遗传上

参考例句：

• All the bees in the colony are genetically related. 同一群体的蜜蜂都有亲缘关系。
• Genetically modified foods have already arrived on American dinner tables. 经基因改造加工过的食物已端上了美国人的餐桌。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 基因与食物

18 tornadoes   

n.龙卷风，旋风( tornado的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Tornadoes, severe earthquakes, and plagues create wide spread havoc. 龙卷风、大地震和瘟疫成普遍的毁坏。 来自互联网
• Meteorologists are at odds over the working of tornadoes. 气象学者对龙卷风的运动方式看法不一。 来自互联网

19 astronomical   

adj.天文学的，（数字）极大的

参考例句：

• He was an expert on ancient Chinese astronomical literature.他是研究中国古代天文学文献的专家。
• Houses in the village are selling for astronomical prices.乡村的房价正在飙升。

20 galaxy   

n.星系；银河系；一群(杰出或著名的人物)

参考例句：

• The earth is one of the planets in the Galaxy.地球是银河系中的星球之一。
• The company has a galaxy of talent.该公司拥有一批优秀的人才。