VOA标准英语2012--Security Breaches in London Focus Attention on Olympic Security

Security Breaches² in London Focus Attention on Olympic Security

72 floors up with London laid out before them. A breathtaking, terrifying view from the top of the Shard³, the highest building in Europe.

The group who took this video call themselves the Urban Explorers. They say they do not set out to break the law - but their latest stunt⁴ has exposed an embarrassing security breach¹ a few months before the Olympic Games open in London.

David Rubens runs a security consulting firm, specializing in the Olympics.

“The security managers, that’s the sort of thing they should be managing. The Olympics is a wild problem. It’s a wicked problem. It’s out of control. But looking after your own building is something that security managers should be able to do nowadays,” said Rubens.

Several similar groups are now claiming they also illegally scaled the Shard in recent months. The revelation comes just a week after a major sporting event in London was disrupted.

For the first time since the world wars, a protestor halted the rowing race along the River Thames between Oxford⁵ and Cambridge universities.

Trenton Oldfield appeared suddenly in front of Oxford’s boat, forcing the race to be restarted. Oldfield said it was a protest against what he called ‘elitist society.’

Olympic Gold Medalist Sir Matthew Pinsent was one of the race umpires.

"I think any race official, your first priority is safety, both for the competitors and the public at large. And as soon as it was obvious to us that there was a guy swimming in the water then it's, you know, no choice; you stop the race,” said Pinsent.

The stunt prompted the chief of the British Olympic Association to warn that it would take ‘just one idiot’ - in his words - to ruin this summer’s Olympics.

"First of all, it’s very hard to guard against, as we saw with the boat race. Secondly⁶, we have a history of what’s called protest by banner-waving in the UK, where very low-key, low-tech, low-cost groups such as Animal Liberation Front, people for the ethical⁷ treatment of animals, Greenpeace, and especially ‘Fathers For Justice,’ gain massive international coverage⁸ through very low-tech and low-cost operations,” said security consultant⁹ Rubens.

Security rehearsals¹⁰ have focused on potential large-scale terror attacks. The cost of security alone has doubled since the original estimate, to $882 million.

But as authorities make their final preparations for Britain’s biggest peacetime security operation, there’s a growing fear that just one determined¹¹ individual could cause widespread disruption. 

1 breach   

n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破

参考例句：

• We won't have any breach of discipline.我们不允许任何破坏纪律的现象。
• He was sued for breach of contract.他因不履行合同而被起诉。

2 breaches   

破坏( breach的名词复数 )； 破裂； 缺口； 违背

参考例句：

• He imposed heavy penalties for breaches of oath or pledges. 他对违反誓言和保证的行为给予严厉的惩罚。
• This renders all breaches of morality before marriage very uncommon. 这样一来，婚前败坏道德的事就少见了。

3 shard   

n.（陶瓷器、瓦等的）破片，碎片

参考例句：

• Eyewitnesses spoke of rocks and shards of glass flying in the air.目击者称空中石块和玻璃碎片四溅。
• That's the same stuff we found in the shard.那与我们发现的碎片在材质上一样。

4 stunt   

n.惊人表演，绝技，特技；vt.阻碍...发育，妨碍...生长

参考例句：

• Lack of the right food may stunt growth.缺乏适当的食物会阻碍发育。
• Right up there is where the big stunt is taking place.那边将会有惊人的表演。

5 Oxford   

n.牛津（英国城市）

参考例句：

• At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
• This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。

6 secondly   

adv.第二，其次

参考例句：

• Secondly,use your own head and present your point of view.第二，动脑筋提出自己的见解。
• Secondly it is necessary to define the applied load.其次，需要确定所作用的载荷。

7 ethical   

adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
• It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。

8 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

9 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

10 rehearsals   

n.练习( rehearsal的名词复数 )；排练；复述；重复

参考例句：

• The earlier protests had just been dress rehearsals for full-scale revolution. 早期的抗议仅仅是大革命开始前的预演。
• She worked like a demon all through rehearsals. 她每次排演时始终精力过人。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。