NPR 2008-05-17

President Bush's request to Saudi Arabia to increase oil production has been rebuffed. Mr. Bush spent the day out of public view meeting with Saudi's King Abdullah about soaring gas prices and other issues. NPR's Jackie Northam reports from the Saudi capital of Riyadh.

 Saudi leaders told President Bush that there was not enough demand from customers at the moment to increase oil production. This is the second time since January the desert kingdom has turned down Mr. Bush's personal request to open the oil spigots. Saudi officials say the high cost of oil is due ,in large part, to international political turmoil¹ and a weak dollar. Saudi Foreign Minister, Prince Saud al-Faisal, said President Bush seemed satisfied with Saudi reasoning. "The discussion was carried out in a friendly fashion, he didn't punch any table or shout at anybody." Saudi officials say the kingdom already raised production last week by 300, 000 barrels at the request of customers. The president and King Abdullah discussed other issues during their meetings, including Iran and terrorism. Mr. Bush heads to Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt on Saturday. Jackie Northam, NPR News, Riyadh.

 The Energy Department confirmed today that effective July 1, it will halt petroleum² shipments to the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve for six months. The announcement comes just days after Congress approved legislation calling for moratorium³ on shipments as means of trying to bring down gas prices. The Energy Department decision means the 76, 000 barrels of oil a day that had been going into the SPS won't be added to the nation's stockpiles. US has around 700 million barrels of oil stockpiled in four underground storage sites in Texas and Louisiana.

 The Border Patrol says in the event of a hurricane evacuation(s音为误读） in South Texas, it will screen people for legal status. The admission this week has provoked concern among rights groups and some state officials. NPR's Jennifer Ludden reports.

 Hurricane season starts June 1st. And in a mock evacuation this week, a Texas photographer noticed border agents checking participants' IDs, that's how the policy came to light. A Border Patrol spokesman says people would be screened before getting on evacuation buses, those without legal status would be taken to detention⁴ facilities built to withstand hurricane-level winds and from there, deported⁵. Rights groups call the policy ridiculous. They warn tens of thousands would likely ignore evacuation orders to avoid the screening, and they say the checks would dangerously slow down the process. Even Texas state officials have long said they prefer the Border Patrol suspend checks during such an emergency. But a Border Patrol spokesman says agents are capable of doing both rescue and enforcement work efficiently⁶. Jennifer Ludden, NPR News.

 As millions of people prepare for the Memorial Day holiday later this month, Americans are paying a national average of $3. 79 a gallon for regular unleaded gas. That is the highest amount on record.

 On Wall Street, the Dow fell five points today, closing at 12, 986. The S&P was up more than a point.

 This is NPR.

 In China, rescue officials say they are still finding survivors⁷ from this week's massive 7. 9-magnitude earthquake, with some people being pulled from the rubble⁸ after four days. Teams from Japan, Russia, Singapore and South Korea have now joined in rescue efforts after the Chinese government dropped some of its initial reluctance⁹ to allow foreign help. Meanwhile, an aftershock today brought new fears that some structures already weakened by the quake might come down. Latest aftershock measured 5. 9 and hit an area near the quake's epicenter. Chinese state-run media has upped the death toll¹⁰ from the earthquake that hit Monday to nearly 22, 000.

 Olympic sprinter¹¹ Tim Montgomery has been sentenced to four years in prison for his part in a fake-check scheme. NPR's Robert Smith has more.

 Ever since Montgomery won a gold medal in the 2000 Games, his life has headed downhill. He was banned from track and field in 2005 for his connection to the BALCO doping scandal. His child's mother, Marion Jones, is in prison for lying about using performance-enhancing drugs. And now, Montgomery himself will see jail time. He pled(美式用法） guilty last year to bank fraud and depositing bogus checks worth 1. 7 million dollars. He told the court he once had everything he wanted in life, he was known as the world's fastest man. Now, he said, "it's all gone". Montgomery still faces charges in Virginia for dealing¹² heroin¹³. He's pleaded not guilty. Robert Smith, NPR News, New York.

 General Electric made it official today after published reports surfaced this week the Fairfield, Connecticut-based company might be putting its appliance division on the block. GE confirmed it is looking at options for the more than 100-year-old unit. General Electric said it plans to launch a strategic review with a possible sale of its more than 100-year-old appliance division.

1 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。

2 petroleum   

n.原油，石油

参考例句：

• The Government of Iran advanced the price of petroleum last week.上星期伊朗政府提高了石油价格。
• The purpose of oil refinery is to refine crude petroleum.炼油厂的主要工作是提炼原油。

3 moratorium   

n.(行动、活动的)暂停(期)，延期偿付

参考例句：

• The government has called for a moratorium on weapons testing.政府已要求暂停武器试验。
• We recommended a moratorium on two particular kinds of experiments.我们建议暂禁两种特殊的实验。

4 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。

5 deported   

v.将…驱逐出境( deport的过去式和过去分词 )；举止

参考例句：

• They stripped me of my citizenship and deported me. 他们剥夺我的公民资格，将我驱逐出境。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The convicts were deported to a deserted island. 罪犯们被流放到一个荒岛。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 efficiently   

adv.高效率地，有能力地

参考例句：

• The worker oils the machine to operate it more efficiently.工人给机器上油以使机器运转更有效。
• Local authorities have to learn to allocate resources efficiently.地方政府必须学会有效地分配资源。

7 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

8 rubble   

n.（一堆）碎石，瓦砾

参考例句：

• After the earthquake,it took months to clean up the rubble.地震后，花了数月才清理完瓦砾。
• After the war many cities were full of rubble.战后许多城市到处可见颓垣残壁。

9 reluctance   

n.厌恶，讨厌，勉强，不情愿

参考例句：

• The police released Andrew with reluctance.警方勉强把安德鲁放走了。
• He showed the greatest reluctance to make a reply.他表示很不愿意答复。

10 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

11 sprinter   

n.短跑运动员，短距离全速奔跑者

参考例句：

• He is more a sprinter than a swimmer. 他是短跑健将，而不是游泳选手。 来自辞典例句
• The sprinter himself thinks he can run the race at 9.4 seconds. 这位短跑运动员自认为可以用9.4秒跑完比赛。 来自互联网

12 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

13 heroin   

n.海洛因

参考例句：

• Customs have made their biggest ever seizure of heroin.海关查获了有史以来最大的一批海洛因。
• Heroin has been smuggled out by sea.海洛因已从海上偷运出境。