NPR 2009-03-19

From NPR News in Washington, I'm Jack¹ Speer.

The head of insurance giant AIG told Congress today, he has heard the public outrage² of the company's bonus payments to executives while taxpayers³ are bailing⁴ out the firm. NPR's Paul Brown has more.

Edward Liddy took the job as AIG's chief executive as part of the government's bailout plan. He told a House subcommittee he finds the bonuses distasteful, but he said AIG is legally obligated to pay them and doing so was considered necessary to keep the talent needed to successfully unwind the company's vast web of affairs. "This is the only way to improve AIG's ability to pay taxpayers back quickly and completely and the only way to avoid a systemic shock to the economy that the U. S. government help was meant to relieve." Liddy said he's asked employees receiving more than 100, 000 dollars in bonuses to give half of them back and that some have already given them back entirely⁵. Paul Brown, NPR News, Washington.

The Obama administration has already put forth⁶ a plan of its own to recover the AIG bonus payments. The administration said today it wants to deduct⁷ the money from the 30-billion-dollar cash infusion⁸ AIG is slated⁹ to receive from the government. The president also called for legislation that will give the federal government more power over failed financial institutions. The White House meanwhile announced today Mr. Obama will hold a nationally televised news conference next Tuesday evening.

Yemeni security officials say a suicide bomber¹⁰ that killed four South Korean tourists in Yemen last Sunday was trained in Somalia amid concern Somalia is becoming a new haven¹¹ for terrorist training. NPR's Dina Temple-Raston Reports.

The suicide bombing happened in Shibam, a tourism site known as the Manhattan of the desert, because of its 16th century tower houses. The four Korean tourists were visiting there when a suicide bomber approached them and blew them up. Today Yemeni officials have identified the bomber as a Yemeni who left the country two months ago and trained in Somalia. Counterterrorism officials worry that Somalia's fast becoming a new training ground for terrorists. Closed at home, the FBI's been investigating the disappearances¹² of some two dozen young Somalia-Americans from Minneapolis. They say the young men have gone to train in terrorist camps in Somalia. The concern is that the young men might come back to the US and attack here. Dina Temple-Raston, NPR News.

The interest rate setting arm--the Federal Reserve wrapped up a two-day meeting in Washington without taking any action on short term interest rates. That's because since December rates have essentially¹³ been at zero. However, federal policymakers in the end of meeting statement announced plans to buy up 300-billion in long-term treasuries¹⁴, something, Standard & Poor's economist¹⁵ David Wyss says should make borrowing less expensive ”Lower long-term interest rates means things like mortgage rates will probably become somewhat cheaper. You want a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, eh, now is your shot.”

On Wall Street today, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 90 points. The NASDAQ was up 29 points today.

This is NPR.

The army announced today it will substantially reduce an unpopular procedure known as Stop-Loss which essentially has allowed the US military to hold troops beyond their enlistment¹⁶ dates on the grounds of extraordinary circumstances. In addition, under terms of the new procedures being outlined, the military will have to pay out 500 dollars to those who were forced to remain in the service. Some critics have termed the Stop-Loss rule “a backdoor draft” because it allows for troops to remain in the military beyond their retirement¹⁷ or reenlistment dates.

There is conflicting evidence from two studies of a widely used blood test for prostate cancer called PSA. The finding has been published online by the New England Journal of Medicine. NPR's Richard Knox reports.

The studies involve nearly 240, 000 men in the United States and Europe. Men who got the test were much more likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer than those who didn't. But in the US study, positive test results didn't lead to a reduction in prostate cancer deaths over a 7 to 10-year period. The larger European study found a 20% lower death rate among men had PSA tests. That's a more modest benefit than many have expected. The results are sure to touch off new debate about the benefits of getting a PSA test versus¹⁸ the risk of a biopsy and treatment that might not be needed. Other studies have shown that many prostate tumors do not require treatment. Richard Knox, NPR News.

It appears US is in the midst of another baby boom or at least a baby boomlet. Researchers within the agency within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say more babies were born in the US in 2007 than any year in the country's history. The growth even tops the peak during the so-called “baby boom” of more than 50 years ago. Among states, Utah has the highest birthrate, Vermont has the lowest.

1 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

2 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

3 taxpayers   

纳税人，纳税的机构( taxpayer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Finance for education comes from taxpayers. 教育经费来自纳税人。
• She was declaiming against the waste of the taxpayers' money. 她慷慨陈词猛烈抨击对纳税人金钱的浪费。

4 bailing   

（凿井时用吊桶）排水

参考例句：

• Both fountains were going furiously and both pumps bailing with might and main. 两个人的口水只管喷泉似地朝外涌，两个抽水机全力以赴往外抽水。
• The mechanical sand-bailing technology makes sand-washing operation more efficient. 介绍了机械捞砂的结构装置及工作原理，提出了现场操作注意事项。

5 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

6 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

7 deduct   

vt.扣除，减去

参考例句：

• You can deduct the twenty - five cents out of my allowance.你可在我的零用钱里扣去二角五分钱。
• On condition of your signing this contract,I will deduct a percentage.如果你在这份合同上签字，我就会给你减免一个百分比。

8 infusion   

n.灌输

参考例句：

• Old families need an infusion of new blood from time to time.古老的家族需要不时地注入新鲜血液。
• Careful observation of the infusion site is necessary.必须仔细观察输液部位。

9 slated   

用石板瓦盖( slate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Yuki is working up an in-home phonics program slated for Thursdays, and I'm drilling her on English conversation at dinnertime. Yuki每周四还有一次家庭语音课。我在晚餐时训练她的英语口语。
• Bromfield was slated to become U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. 布罗姆菲尔德被提名为美国农业部长。

10 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

11 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

12 disappearances   

n.消失( disappearance的名词复数 )；丢失；失踪；失踪案

参考例句：

• Most disappearances are the result of the terrorist activity. 大多数的失踪案都是恐怖分子造成的。 来自辞典例句
• The espionage, the betrayals, the arrests, the tortures, the executions, the disappearances will never cease. 间谍活动、叛党卖国、逮捕拷打、处决灭迹，这种事情永远不会完。 来自英汉文学

13 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

14 treasuries   

n.（政府的）财政部( treasury的名词复数 )；国库，金库

参考例句：

• Yields on Treasuries, Bunds and gilts can remain at historically low levels. 美国国债、德国国债和英国国债的收益率仍然可以维持在历史低位。 来自互联网
• Treasuries and gold rose in response but the dollar fell sharply. 接着，国债和黄金的价格上涨，而美元价格则猛跌。 来自互联网

15 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

16 enlistment   

n.应征入伍，获得，取得

参考例句：

• Illness as a disqualification for enlistment in the army. 疾病是取消参军入伍资格的一个原因。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• One obstacle to the enlistment of able professors was that they had to take holy orders. 征聘有才能的教授的障碍是他们必须成为牧师。 来自辞典例句

17 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

18 versus   

prep.以…为对手，对；与…相比之下

参考例句：

• The big match tonight is England versus Spain.今晚的大赛是英格兰对西班牙。
• The most exciting game was Harvard versus Yale.最富紧张刺激的球赛是哈佛队对耶鲁队。