NPR 2009-07-16

Supreme¹ Court nominee² Sonia Sotomayor held her ground through another day of intense questioning by members of the Senate Judiciary Committee today. President Obama's pick to replace retiring Justice David Souter refused to be drawn³ out on the abortion⁴ matter, saying she could not talk about the issue in the abstract. She's also stuck by her previous statement about a wise Latino woman possibly making a better ruling than a white man without the same life experience. As interpreting the law, the judge said a host of factors go into that, including facts, theory, precedents⁵. "We can’t change law. We’re not lawmakers. But we change our view of how to interpret certain laws." Some senators seemed to be indicating today they would like to hear more specifics from the nominee though. Senator Arlen Specter said while Sotomayor has an exemplary record, he noted⁶ he and other lawmakers had largely failed to elicit⁷ any specifics from the judge.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton held a wide-ranging news conference today where she said she is appalled⁸ by Iran's post-election crackdowns on protesters. Mrs. Clinton sent a strong message, saying Iran has a limited time to accept the administration's offer on engagement. On the country's nuclear program, she also had a clear message for Tehran. "Iran does not have a right to nuclear military capacity. And we’re determined⁹ to prevent that. But it does have a right to civil nuclear power if it reestablishes the confidence of the international community that it will use its programs exclusively for peaceful purposes." In defending the administration's outreach efforts to Iran, Clinton said while an alternative to a national security arsenal-diplomacy is important, the US, in her words, cannot be afraid or unwilling¹⁰ to engage."

The Space Shuttle Endeavor is apparently¹¹ just moments from lifting off after five failed attempts at getting the shuttle and its seven-member crew into orbit. Countdown is now underway. We go to Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Sound suppression water system has been activated¹², protecting Endeavor and the launch pad from acoustic¹³ energy. We’re

 going for main engine start. We have main engine start, 4-3-2-1, booster ignition, and lift-off of Endeavor. Completing Kibo, and fulfilling Japan’s hope for an out-of-this-world space laboratory.

Endeavor and its crew begin a 16-day mission to the International Space Station. It will deliver the final pieces of Japan’s space lab and over the course of the mission perform five scheduled spacewalks. NASA has eight missions remaining to complete construction of the space station, a 100-billion-dollar project that involves 16 nations.

On Wall Street today, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 256 points to end the session at 8,616. That was a gain of more than three percent. The NASDAQ ended the day up 63 points. The S&P climbed 26 points today.

This is NPR.

Communications giant AT&T and the company largest union have reached a tentative agreement on a new contract covering more than 18,000 employees in the Midwest. According to the leaders of the Communications Workers of America, the tentative deal comes after five months of negotiations¹⁴, and is expected to be voted on by the rank and file within the next several days. AT&T is still negotiating in four other districts and is also in discussion with another of its unions in the Midwest. Proposed three-year contract covers workers in Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, Wisconsin and Indiana. It would call for wage increases of three percent for the first two years and 2.75% for the final year of the agreement.

A group of economists¹⁵ and academics issued an open letter today to the Congress and the White House, arguing the Federal Reserve’s decision should be protected from the political process. NPR’s Yuki Noguchi has more.

The petition calling for the Federal Reserve's independence comes at a time when its Chairman Ben Bernanke finds himself defending actions taken during the financial crisis last year. 175 economists, mostly representing universities, said the Central Bank’s first priority should remain focused on monetary¹⁶ policy. It should be allowed to tighten¹⁷ or loosen monetary access without answering to Congress. Interfering¹⁸ with that autonomy, the economists argue in the brief letter would be harmful. Meanwhile, a House bill proposing to give Congress more oversight¹⁹ over the Fed is gaining steam, and at the same time the Obama administration is proposing to give the Fed greater responsibility to oversee²⁰ systemic financial risks. Yuki Noguchi, NPR News, Washington.

Once again, repeating this hour’s top story: the Space Shuttle Endeavor has lifted off after five failed attempts at getting the shuttle into orbit. Its crew will begin a sixteen-day mission to the space station.

1 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

2 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

3 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。

4 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

5 precedents   

引用单元； 范例( precedent的名词复数 )； 先前出现的事例； 前例； 先例

参考例句：

• There is no lack of precedents in this connection. 不乏先例。
• He copied after bad precedents. 他仿效恶例。

6 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

7 elicit   

v.引出,抽出,引起

参考例句：

• It was designed to elicit the best thinking within the government. 机构的设置是为了在政府内部集思广益。
• Don't try to elicit business secrets from me. I won't tell you anything. 你休想从我这里套问出我们的商业机密, 我什么都不会告诉你的。

8 appalled   

v.使惊骇，使充满恐惧( appall的过去式和过去分词)adj.惊骇的；丧胆的

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• They were appalled by the reports of the nuclear war. 他们被核战争的报道吓坏了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

10 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

11 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。

12 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。

13 acoustic   

adj.听觉的，声音的；(乐器)原声的

参考例句：

• The hall has a fine acoustic.这个大厅的传音效果很好。
• Animals use a whole rang of acoustic, visual,and chemical signals in their systems of communication.动物利用各种各样的听觉、视觉和化学信号来进行交流。

14 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

15 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》

16 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

17 tighten   

v.(使)变紧；(使)绷紧

参考例句：

• Turn the screw to the right to tighten it.向右转动螺钉把它拧紧。
• Some countries tighten monetary policy to avoid inflation.一些国家实行紧缩银根的货币政策，以避免通货膨胀。

18 interfering   

adj. 妨碍的 动词interfere的现在分词

参考例句：

• He's an interfering old busybody! 他老爱管闲事！
• I wish my mother would stop interfering and let me make my own decisions. 我希望我母亲不再干预，让我自己拿主意。

19 oversight   

n.勘漏，失察，疏忽

参考例句：

• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。
• Your essay was not marked through an oversight on my part.由于我的疏忽你的文章没有打分。

20 oversee   

vt.监督，管理

参考例句：

• Soldiers oversee the food handouts.士兵们看管着救济食品。
• Use a surveyor or architect to oversee and inspect the different stages of the work.请一位房产检视员或建筑师来监督并检查不同阶段的工作。