NPR 2009-4-24

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

President Barack Obama met today with the heads of some of the country's biggest credit card companies. The president made it clear his administration wants the industry to cut out the fine print and sudden interest rate hikes that cause problems for so many customers.

"We believe that it is important to require firms to make all their contract terms easily accessible online in a fashion that allows people to shop for the best deal for their needs."

With industry representatives seated at his side, Mr. Obama called on the card industry to act responsibly in what he termed a constructive² fashion. President also said he realizes the importance of credit cards with almost 80% of US households having at least one.

It's not just the White House that is calling for credit card reform. Lawmakers in Congress are also looking to move their own bill on the issue through the House over the next week. NPR's Audie Cornish has more.

Congressman³ Luis Gutierrez of Illinois heads the subcommittee working on the legislation, known as the Credit Cardholders Bill of Rights.

"Many consumers have seen actions which they feel simply benefit banks, simply benefit the lenders. We are going to make sure that consumers know that we are on their side and the Congress is going to act."

The bill would ban the marketing⁴ of credit cards to minors⁵, bar arbitrary increases on interest rates and require that companies let consumers set their own credit limit. Banks and credit card companies argue that legislation would hurt their ability to manage risky⁶ borrowers through fees and bring an end to low rate promotional offers. Audie Cornish, NPR News, the Capitol.

General Motors announced plans today to temporarily close 13 of its US factories this summer. Some will shut down for as long as two months. The automaker says the move is aimed at aligning⁷ production with market demand. From member station WKYU in Bowling⁸ Green, Kentucky, Lisa Autry reports.

Robert Warwick assembles the Corvette at GM's Bowling Green plant. Having been with the company since 1980, He's been through several shutdowns. But Warwick says it never gets easier.

"You know, it’s very stressful on the families, especially those who have young kids and are having to make house payments and they, you know, they don't have a job security, thinking the job is gonna be there like it used to be."

Warwick was laid off from the Bowling Green plant for six weeks last December as GM slashed⁹ production amid plummeting¹⁰ sales on the car lot. The Corvette assembly plants will get off easier this time around, compared to other GM factories closing for one additional week in July. A two-week shutdown was already scheduled for the month. For NPR News, I’m Lisa Autry in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

The number of people filing first time jobless claims took another big bump-up last week. According to the Labor¹¹ Department, initial claims for unemployment benefits rose to a seasonally¹² adjusted 640,000. That's up 27,000 from the previous week.

On Wall Street today, the Dow Jones Industrial average gained 70 points to close at 7957. The NASDAQ was up six points. The S&P 500 rose eight points today.

This is NPR.

US Airways¹³ has reported higher quarterly losses at the time the weak economy has cut into both business and leisure travel. However, the Airline says it was actually able to reduce its pool of running slightly by taking some of the airplanes out of service. The airline says for the January through March quarter it lost 103 million dollars—roughly 90 cents a share, though was better than the 237 million dollars the airline loss compared to same period a year ago.

A pioneer in the field of cinematography has died. Jack Cardiff died yesterday at the age of 94. He won an Oscar for his work on the film “Black Narcissus” and received wide admiration¹⁴ for the classic ballet film “The Red Shoes”. NPR's Neda Ulaby reports.

Jack Cardiff was a sort of cinematographer who could make the color white, voluptuous¹⁵, be it the milky¹⁶ folds to nun’s spotless wimple or the ethereal flounce of a dancer’s tutu. Jack Cardiff was known for his sumptuous¹⁷ palette in saturated¹⁸ hues¹⁹ that gave his movies the visual feel of fairy tales. Director Martin Scorsese said he could paint with a camera. His co-workers called him Jack O'Lantern because of his knack²⁰ for lighting²¹. Cardiff worked in various capacities on movies ranging from "The Barefoot Contessa" to ”The African Queen”. He won a Lifetime Achievement Oscar in 2001. The British-born cinematographer died at his home in southeast England after a short illness. Neda Ulaby, NPR News.

Now it appears a mistake made by a Florida pharmacy²² may have led to the deaths of 21 polo ponies²³ at US Open Polo Championship last weekend. Horses became sick and died just before the match. They apparently²⁴ got a supplement prepared that was too strong.

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 constructive   

adj.建设的，建设性的

参考例句：

• We welcome constructive criticism.我们乐意接受有建设性的批评。
• He is beginning to deal with his anger in a constructive way.他开始用建设性的方法处理自己的怒气。

3 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

4 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

5 minors   

n.未成年人( minor的名词复数 )；副修科目；小公司；[逻辑学]小前提v.[主美国英语]副修，选修，兼修( minor的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The law forbids shops to sell alcohol to minors. 法律禁止商店向未成年者出售含酒精的饮料。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He had three minors this semester. 这学期他有三门副修科目。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

7 aligning   

n. (直线)对准 动词align的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• There are signs that the prime minister is aligning himself with the liberals. 有迹象表明首相正在与自由党人结盟。
• ToolTips provide textual hints that assist in drawing lines and aligning objects. 工具提示提供了协助画线和对象对齐的文本提示。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

8 bowling   

n.保龄球运动

参考例句：

• Bowling is a popular sport with young and old.保龄球是老少都爱的运动。
• Which sport do you 1ike most,golf or bowling?你最喜欢什么运动，高尔夫还是保龄球？

9 slashed   

v.挥砍( slash的过去式和过去分词 )；鞭打；割破；削减

参考例句：

• Someone had slashed the tyres on my car. 有人把我的汽车轮胎割破了。
• He slashed the bark off the tree with his knife. 他用刀把树皮从树上砍下。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 plummeting   

v.垂直落下，骤然跌落( plummet的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Prices are rising, falling, going up, going down, shooting up, plummeting, etc. 物价在上涨、下跌、上升、下落、猛然上涨、骤然下跌等。 来自辞典例句
• The enemy plane went plummeting into the sea. 敌机直直掉进海里。 来自辞典例句

11 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

12 seasonally   

参考例句：

• The price of vegetables fluctuates seasonally. 蔬菜的价格随季节变动。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They moved seasonally among various vegetation types to feed on plants that were flourishing. 它们还随着季节的变化而在各种类型植物之间迁移，以便吃那些茂盛的植物。 来自辞典例句

13 AIRWAYS   

航空公司

参考例句：

• The giant jets that increasingly dominate the world's airways. 越来越称雄于世界航线的巨型喷气机。
• At one point the company bought from Nippon Airways a 727 jet. 有一次公司从日本航空公司买了一架727型喷气机。

14 admiration   

n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕

参考例句：

• He was lost in admiration of the beauty of the scene.他对风景之美赞不绝口。
• We have a great admiration for the gold medalists.我们对金牌获得者极为敬佩。

15 voluptuous   

adj.肉欲的，骄奢淫逸的

参考例句：

• The nobility led voluptuous lives.贵族阶层过着骄奢淫逸的生活。
• The dancer's movements were slow and voluptuous.舞女的动作缓慢而富挑逗性。

16 milky   

adj.牛奶的，多奶的；乳白色的

参考例句：

• Alexander always has milky coffee at lunchtime.亚历山大总是在午餐时喝掺奶的咖啡。
• I like a hot milky drink at bedtime.我喜欢睡前喝杯热奶饮料。

17 sumptuous   

adj.豪华的，奢侈的，华丽的

参考例句：

• The guests turned up dressed in sumptuous evening gowns.客人们身着华丽的夜礼服出现了。
• We were ushered into a sumptuous dining hall.我们被领进一个豪华的餐厅。

18 saturated   

a.饱和的，充满的

参考例句：

• The continuous rain had saturated the soil. 连绵不断的雨把土地淋了个透。
• a saturated solution of sodium chloride 氯化钠饱和溶液

19 hues   

色彩( hue的名词复数 )； 色调； 信仰； 观点

参考例句：

• When the sun rose a hundred prismatic hues were reflected from it. 太阳一出，更把它映得千变万化、异彩缤纷。
• Where maple trees grow, the leaves are often several brilliant hues of red. 在枫树生长的地方，枫叶常常呈现出数种光彩夺目的红色。

20 knack   

n.诀窍，做事情的灵巧的，便利的方法

参考例句：

• He has a knack of teaching arithmetic.他教算术有诀窍。
• Making omelettes isn't difficult,but there's a knack to it.做煎蛋饼并不难，但有窍门。

21 lighting   

n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光

参考例句：

• The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
• The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。

22 pharmacy   

n.药房，药剂学，制药业，配药业，一批备用药品

参考例句：

• She works at the pharmacy.她在药房工作。
• Modern pharmacy has solved the problem of sleeplessness.现代制药学已经解决了失眠问题。

23 ponies   

矮种马，小型马( pony的名词复数 )； ￡25 25 英镑

参考例句：

• They drove the ponies into a corral. 他们把矮种马赶进了畜栏。
• She has a mania for ponies. 她特别喜欢小马。

24 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。