NPR 2009-08-20

At least 95 people were killed in a series of bomb blasts in Baghdad today, hundreds were wounded. It was Iraq's bloodiest¹ day of the year so far. In Washington, the Obama administration condemned² the violence. NPR's Brian Naylor reports.

The blasts were caused by truck bombs, set off near the Foreign and Finance Ministries³ in Baghdad. White House spokesman Robert Gibbs says the attacks show, in his words, how far extremists will go to wreak⁴ havoc⁵. Still Gibbs says the number of attacks is at or near an all-time low, adding there are always those who believe in violence. US troops have withdrawn⁶ from Iraq's cities and turned over security to the Iraqi army June 30th. Gibbs says the US will continue to assist Iraqis defending their country until all US forces have withdrawn from Iraq,  scheduled to be completed in 2011. Brian Naylor, NPR News, the White House.

The White House is denying suggestions that President Obama has given up on seeking bipartisan support for a health system overhaul⁷. The New York Times quoted White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, saying the Republican leadership was more interested in political goals than in fixing the country's health insurance system. Spokesman Robert Gibbs today said that doesn't mean the president is no longer seeking Republican input⁸ and support.

Meanwhile, Illinois Congressman⁹ Jesse Jackson, representing Chicago's far South Side and suburbs, hosted a forum¹⁰ on health care last night and encountered an audience that strongly supports a public health care option. NPR's Cheryl Corley has more from Chicago.

This town hall meeting was decidedly different than others. Instead of an outburst and disruptions, the audience during Congressman Jackson's gathering¹¹ Tuesday night was exceedingly polite. Some in the crowd came forward to talk about their struggles with diseases and their battles with insurance companies for payments. Congressman Jackson said he wanted to debunk¹² what he called the myths surrounding health reform legislation. Then he asked this question-Why don't we all with a round of applause express our support for public option as a necessary requirement, as a necessary requirement of meaningful health care reform for all Americans? It was a standing¹³ ovation¹⁴ from most in the room who said that health care public option should not be eliminated. Cheryl Corley, NPR News, Chicago.

The mayor of Milwaukee held a news conference today, his first since being beaten at the Wisconsin State Fair Saturday night with a large gash¹⁵ on his face and a shattered hand in a cast. Tom Barrett said he had attempted to help a woman and her one-year-old granddaughter before realizing the presence of what he said was a very agitated¹⁶ young man. Police have arrested a 20-year-old suspect.

On Wall Street today, the Dow gained 61 points to close at 9,279. The NASDAQ picked up 13 points to close at 1,996.

This is NPR News.

The federal government is calling for businesses to be ready for the expected return of the H1N1 swine flu virus this fall. NPR's Joanne Silberner has details.

At a press conference today, Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said the employers need to let workers know that they should stay home if they have chills, coughs or other flu symptoms. In America, we love to praise the Puritan work ethic¹⁷, and with reason. But this fall, it would serve the country better to praise common sense and responsibility. Companies should not require notes from doctors after sick leave that would overburden the health care system, Locke said. Businesses should stay in touch with local health departments. And right now they should review or establish plans for recognizing and limning¹⁸ flu spread and let their employees know what the plan is. Joanne Silberner, NPR News, Washington.

A federal judge has given the US army the go-ahead to incinerate aging and leaking chemical weapons. The Kentucky-based chemical weapons working group had filed a lawsuit¹⁹, arguing the incineration of explosives filled with deadly chemical agents would spread toxic²⁰ emissions²¹. Today the judge ruled the group had failed to prove the capability²² of alternative methods.

Life expectancy²³ has reached an all-time high in the US. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says based on data from 2007, men on average are living to 75.3 years, women to 80.4 years. The CDC credits drops in mortality rates for several leading causes of death, including flu, heart disease and cancer.

I'm Barbara Klein, NPR News in Washington.

1 bloodiest   

adj.血污的( bloody的最高级 )；流血的；屠杀的；残忍的

参考例句：

• The Russians were going to suffer their bloodiest defeat of all before Berlin. 俄国人在柏林城下要遭到他们的最惨重的失败。 来自辞典例句
• It was perhaps the bloodiest hour in the history of warfare. 这也许是战争史上血腥味最浓的1个小时。 来自互联网

2 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

3 ministries   

（政府的）部( ministry的名词复数 )； 神职； 牧师职位； 神职任期

参考例句：

• Local authorities must refer everything to the central ministries. 地方管理机构应请示中央主管部门。
• The number of Ministries has been pared down by a third. 部委的数量已经减少了1/3。

4 wreak   

v.发泄；报复

参考例句：

• She had a burning desire to wreak revenge.她复仇心切。
• Timid people always wreak their peevishness on the gentle.怯懦的人总是把满腹牢骚向温和的人发泄。

5 havoc   

n.大破坏，浩劫，大混乱，大杂乱

参考例句：

• The earthquake wreaked havoc on the city.地震对这个城市造成了大破坏。
• This concentration of airborne firepower wrought havoc with the enemy forces.这次机载火力的集中攻击给敌军造成很大破坏。

6 withdrawn   

vt.收回；使退出；vi.撤退，退出

参考例句：

• Our force has been withdrawn from the danger area.我们的军队已从危险地区撤出。
• All foreign troops should be withdrawn to their own countries.一切外国军队都应撤回本国去。

7 overhaul   

v./n.大修，仔细检查

参考例句：

• Master Worker Wang is responsible for the overhaul of this grinder.王师傅主修这台磨床。
• It is generally appreciated that the rail network needs a complete overhaul.众所周知，铁路系统需要大检修。

8 input   

n.输入(物)；投入；vt.把(数据等)输入计算机

参考例句：

• I will forever be grateful for his considerable input.我将永远感激他的大量投入。
• All this information had to be input onto the computer.所有这些信息都必须输入计算机。

9 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。

10 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

11 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

12 debunk   

v.揭穿真相，暴露

参考例句：

• let's debunk some of the most common falsehoods.让我们来揭穿一些最常见的谬误吧。
• Sequences of maps can also debunk misconceptions.一系列的地图，也有助于厘清错误概念。

13 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

14 ovation   

n.欢呼，热烈欢迎，热烈鼓掌

参考例句：

• The hero received a great ovation from the crowd. 那位英雄受到人群的热烈欢迎。
• The show won a standing ovation. 这场演出赢得全场起立鼓掌。

15 gash   

v.深切，划开；n.(深长的)切(伤)口；裂缝

参考例句：

• The deep gash in his arm would take weeks to heal over.他胳膊上的割伤很深，需要几个星期的时间才能痊愈。
• After the collision,the body of the ship had a big gash.船被撞后，船身裂开了一个大口子。

16 agitated   

adj.被鼓动的，不安的

参考例句：

• His answers were all mixed up,so agitated was he.他是那样心神不定，回答全乱了。
• She was agitated because her train was an hour late.她乘坐的火车晚点一个小时，她十分焦虑。

17 ethic   

n.道德标准，行为准则

参考例句：

• They instilled the work ethic into their children.他们在孩子们的心中注入了职业道德的理念。
• The connotation of education ethic is rooted in human nature's mobility.教育伦理的内涵根源于人本性的变动性。

18 limning   

v.画( limn的现在分词 )；勾画；描写；描述

参考例句：

• Evaluating the system, the traditional method is limning it's five accuracy index. \" 对测量系统的评价，传统的方法只是使用五个精度指标来描述，这不符合国际规范。 来自互联网

19 lawsuit   

n.诉讼，控诉

参考例句：

• They threatened him with a lawsuit.他们以诉讼威逼他。
• He was perpetually involving himself in this long lawsuit.他使自己无休止地卷入这场长时间的诉讼。

20 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

21 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

22 capability   

n.能力；才能；(pl)可发展的能力或特性等

参考例句：

• She has the capability to become a very fine actress.她有潜力成为杰出演员。
• Organizing a whole department is beyond his capability.组织整个部门是他能力以外的事。

23 expectancy   

n.期望，预期，（根据概率统计求得）预期数额

参考例句：

• Japanese people have a very high life expectancy.日本人的平均寿命非常长。
• The atomosphere of tense expectancy sobered everyone.这种期望的紧张气氛使每个人变得严肃起来。