VOA标准英语2012--S. Korean Activists Resume Protests Against US Beef

 S. Korean Activists¹ Resume Protests Against US Beef

Organizers are hoping to revive the street activism of four years ago when South Korea decided² to resume U.S. beef imports. That movement turned into the largest anti-government protests this country had seen in 20 years.

The catalyst³ for this candlelight rally is the first case of Bovine⁴ Spongiform Encephalopathy, or mad cow disease, since 2006 in the United States.

The case involved a 10-year-old dairy cow in the state of California.

Those who want to re-impose the beef ban say they do not trust either the United States or South Korea's government to properly screen cattle for the neurological disorder⁵.

Humans eating meat from affected⁶ animals are at risk to acquire a variant⁷ of the rare, but fatal, brain-wasting disease. Nearly all of the approximately 200 cases in the past six years have been in Europe. There has never been a human case in South Korea.

But that has not kept South Korean consumers like these from shunning⁸ American beef in recent years. The main buyers of U.S. beef in South Korea are schools, the military and some restaurants.

A larger target for the thousands of protesters who have turned out tonight is a recently activated⁹ trade agreement between Seoul and Washington. The political left hopes to turn the trade pact¹⁰ into an election issue during this year's South Korean presidential campaign.

South Korea is the fourth-largest importer of American beef.

1 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》

2 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

3 catalyst   

n.催化剂，造成变化的人或事

参考例句：

• A catalyst is a substance which speeds up a chemical reaction.催化剂是一种能加速化学反应的物质。
• The workers'demand for better conditions was a catalyst for social change.工人们要求改善工作条件促进了社会变革。

4 bovine   

adj.牛的；n.牛

参考例句：

• He threw off his pack and went into the rush-grass andand munching,like some bovine creature.他丢开包袱，爬到灯心草丛里，像牛似的大咬大嚼起来。
• He was a gentle,rather bovine man.他是一位文雅而反应迟钝的人。

5 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

6 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

7 variant   

adj.不同的，变异的；n.变体，异体

参考例句：

• We give professional suggestions according to variant tanning stages for each customer.我们针对每位顾客不同的日晒阶段，提供强度适合的晒黑建议。
• In a variant of this approach,the tests are data- driven.这个方法的一个变种，是数据驱动的测试。

8 shunning   

v.避开，回避，避免( shun的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• My flight was more a shunning of external and internal dangers. 我的出走是要避开各种外在的和内在的威胁。 来自辞典例句
• That book Yeh-yeh gave me-"On Filial Piety and the Shunning of Lewdness"-was still on the table. 我坐下来，祖父给我的那本《刘芷唐先生教孝戒淫浅训》还在桌子上。 来自汉英文学 - 家（1-26） - 家（1-26）

9 activated   

adj. 激活的 动词activate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The canister is filled with activated charcoal.蒸气回收罐中充满了活性炭。

10 pact   

n.合同，条约，公约，协定

参考例句：

• The two opposition parties made an electoral pact.那两个反对党订了一个有关选举的协定。
• The trade pact between those two countries came to an end.那两国的通商协定宣告结束。