NPR 2008-12-19

Speaking as he unveiled his choice to head the Security and Exchange Commission today, President-elect Barack Obama said not just regulators but his administration needs to push for more transparency in the financial markets. Obama made his remarks as he announced his chosen veteran regulator Mary Schapiro to head the SEC. The President-elect also said this needed to modernize¹ the aging regulatory system. “We are going to have to greatly strengthen our regulatory apparatus², and update it from what worked for a 20th century financial system, so that it works in a 21st century financial system." Along with Schapiro's announcement, Mr. Obama also named Gary Gensler to head the Commodity Futures³ Trading Commission and Daniel Tarullo into a Federal Reserve seat.

NPR has learned a marine⁴ scientist is said to be named the head of National Oceanic and Atmospheric⁵ Administration. NPR's Christopher Joyce has more.

Jane Lubchenco is a professor of Zoology⁶ and Marine Ecology in Oregon State University. Sources close to Lubchenco confirm she is President-elect Barack Obama's choice to lead the scientific agency. Lubchenco has focused much of her research on the mysterious occurrence of dead zones along the coast of Oregon where low oxygen levels have been killing⁷ marine lives. She has also been an advocate/ for research how climate changes affect the oceans. Lubchenco is former president of the American Associations for the Advancement⁸ of Science, the largest scientific membership organization in the country. As head of NOAA, Lubchenco will be in charge of the government’s oceans research as well as a large array of weather satellites that monitor the global environment. Christopher Joyce, NPR News.

Defense⁹ Secretary Robert Gates has asked a plan to be drawn¹⁰ up on how the military will shut down prisons in Guantanamo Bay Cuba. NPR’s JJ Sutherland reports.

President-elect Barack Obama during the campaign called repeatedly for the prison to be closed and now it seems the Pentagon is preparing to make his wishes reality. Pentagon's Spokesman Geoff Morrell says Secretary Gates wants to be ready with the plan when Mr. Obama takes office. “So when the president-elect takes over, this is one of those first orders of business he wants us to be prepared to be able to help them fashion a solution.” In the past Gates has said that he thinks closing the facility will take an act of Congress to deal with most dangerous prisoners being held there. JJ Sutherland NPR's News.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has swiftly rejected an 18-billion-dollar package of cuts in tax increases pushed through by the California legislature today, saying the proposal to reduce the states burgeoning¹¹ budget deficit¹² will do nothing but "punish/ the people of California". Republican Governor said lawmakers sent him a terrible budget that did not make deep enough cuts. Democrats¹³ and Republicans have been unable to compromise a way to address the deficit that is expected to hit 42 billion dollars in the next 18 months.

On Wall Street today, the Down Jones Industrial Average fell 219 points, ending the session today at 8,604. The NASDAQ was down 27 points today. The S&P 500 fell 19 points. This is NPR.

Consumer confidence continues to wane¹⁴ with the key measure of consumer sentiment falling last month. The non-profit business research group, the Conference Board, says its index of leading economic indicators¹⁵ fell 0.4% in November, that follows even bigger 0.9% drop previous month. Conference Board economists¹⁶ Ken¹⁷ Goldstein says the latest numbers show an economy that has been in recession for a year, with little sign things will be improving in the near term.

Beer Company MillerCoors is taking the caffeine out of its popular Sparks alcoholic¹⁸ drinks. The move came / after complains of attorneys general in 13 states. NPR's Robert Smith reports.

It's an age-old problem for partiers. How do you drink massive amount of alcohol and not get sleepy. The Sparks beverage¹⁹ had that problem lift. It added caffeine, taurine and ginseng to the can, but consumer group started complaining the mixing alcohol and stimulants²⁰ could reduce a drinker's sense of intoxication²¹ and actually increase dangerous behaviors like drinking and driving. A group of attorneys general also claim the beverage was marketed to underage drinkers. Now MillerCoors will change their advertising²² and take out the caffeine. They also agree to never try the combo again. Earlier this year, Anheuser-Busch reformulated its Bud Extra and Tilt²³ alcoholic drinks to take out stimulants, Robert Smith, NPR News, New York.

To find mortgage interest rates to the level as low as they are right now you'd have to go all the way back to 1971. Mortgage giant Freddie Mac says the average rate in the 30-year fixed²⁴ rate mortgage fell to 5. 19% this week, the rates were even lower one point with rates briefly²⁵ dipping below five percent in some cases. Mortgage rates’ve been following response action by the Federal Reserve to try to restart the moribund²⁶ housing market. November the federal launched effort/ to boost housing by buying 600 billion in mortgage securities.

1 modernize   

vt.使现代化，使适应现代的需要

参考例句：

• It was their manifest failure to modernize the country's industries.他们使国家进行工业现代化，明显失败了。
• There is a pressing need to modernise our electoral system.我们的选举制度迫切需要现代化。

2 apparatus   

n.装置，器械；器具，设备

参考例句：

• The school's audio apparatus includes films and records.学校的视听设备包括放映机和录音机。
• They had a very refined apparatus.他们有一套非常精良的设备。

3 futures   

n.期货，期货交易

参考例句：

• He continued his operations in cotton futures.他继续进行棉花期货交易。
• Cotton futures are selling at high prices.棉花期货交易的卖价是很高的。

4 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

5 atmospheric   

adj.大气的，空气的；大气层的；大气所引起的

参考例句：

• Sea surface temperatures and atmospheric circulation are strongly coupled.海洋表面温度与大气环流是密切相关的。
• Clouds return radiant energy to the surface primarily via the atmospheric window.云主要通过大气窗区向地表辐射能量。

6 zoology   

n.动物学，生态

参考例句：

• I would like to brush up my zoology.我想重新温习一下动物学。
• The library didn't stock zoology textbooks.这家图书馆没有动物学教科书。

7 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

8 advancement   

n.前进，促进，提升

参考例句：

• His new contribution to the advancement of physiology was well appreciated.他对生理学发展的新贡献获得高度赞赏。
• The aim of a university should be the advancement of learning.大学的目标应是促进学术。

9 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

10 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

11 burgeoning   

adj.迅速成长的，迅速发展的v.发芽，抽枝( burgeon的现在分词 )；迅速发展；发（芽），抽（枝）

参考例句：

• Our company's business is burgeoning now. 我们公司的业务现在发展很迅速。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• These efforts were insufficient to contain the burgeoning crisis. 这些努力不足以抑制迅速扩散的危机。 来自辞典例句

12 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

13 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 wane   

n.衰微，亏缺，变弱；v.变小，亏缺，呈下弦

参考例句：

• The moon is on the wane.月亮渐亏。
• Her enthusiasm for him was beginning to wane.她对他的热情在开始减退。

15 indicators   

（仪器上显示温度、压力、耗油量等的）指针( indicator的名词复数 )； 指示物； （车辆上的）转弯指示灯； 指示信号

参考例句：

• The economic indicators are better than expected. 经济指标比预期的好。
• It is still difficult to develop indicators for many concepts used in social science. 为社会科学领域的许多概念确立一个指标仍然很难。

16 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 ken   

n.视野，知识领域

参考例句：

• Such things are beyond my ken.我可不懂这些事。
• Abstract words are beyond the ken of children.抽象的言辞超出小孩所理解的范围.

18 alcoholic   

adj.（含）酒精的，由酒精引起的；n.酗酒者

参考例句：

• The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
• Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。

19 beverage   

n.(水，酒等之外的)饮料

参考例句：

• The beverage is often colored with caramel.这种饮料常用焦糖染色。
• Beer is a beverage of the remotest time.啤酒是一种最古老的饮料。

20 stimulants   

n.兴奋剂( stimulant的名词复数 )；含兴奋剂的饮料；刺激物；激励物

参考例句：

• Coffee and tea are mild stimulants. 咖啡和茶是轻度兴奋剂。
• At lower concentrations they may even be stimulants of cell division. 在浓度较低时，它们甚至能促进细胞分裂。 来自辞典例句

21 intoxication   

n.wild excitement;drunkenness；poisoning

参考例句：

• He began to drink, drank himself to intoxication, till he slept obliterated. 他一直喝，喝到他快要迷糊地睡着了。
• Predator: Intoxication-Damage over time effect will now stack with other allies. Predator:Intoxication,持续性伤害的效果将会与队友相加。

22 advertising   

n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的

参考例句：

• Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
• The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。

23 tilt   

v.(使)倾侧；(使)倾斜；n.倾侧；倾斜

参考例句：

• She wore her hat at a tilt over her left eye.她歪戴着帽子遮住左眼。
• The table is at a slight tilt.这张桌子没放平，有点儿歪.

24 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

25 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

26 moribund   

adj.即将结束的，垂死的

参考例句：

• The moribund Post Office Advisory Board was replaced.这个不起作用的邮局顾问委员会已被替换。
• Imperialism is monopolistic,parasitic and moribund capitalism.帝国主义是垄断的、寄生的、垂死的资本主义。