NPR 2009-09-25

A Colorado man charged with being involved in an alleged¹ bomb plot in the US was in a Denver courtroom this morning. His father was released from federal detention² but Najibullah Zazi remains³ in custody⁴. NPR's Jeff Brady has more.

Both men were initially⁵ charged with lying to federal investigators⁶. A judge released Zazi's father on $50,000 unsecured bail⁷. Now a grand jury has charged Zazi with conspiracy⁸ to use weapons of mass destruction. A motion to permanently⁹ detain Zazai says he learned how to make a bomb in Pakistan, then he allegedly purchased the components¹⁰ from beauty supply stores in the Denver area. Investigators said they believed Zazi remained committed to detonating an explosive device until he was arrested last week in Colorado. On Thursday, in a Denver courtroom, Zazai was in handcuffs. He said nothing and showed no reaction when his father was released. Federal Magistrate¹¹ Judge Craig Shaffer agreed to put off a detention hearing for Zazi until Friday morning. Jeff Brady, NPR News, Denver.

Various world leaders including President Obama are in Pittsburgh for the two-day G20 Economic Summit with discussions  largely expected to center on how to best keep a global recovery on track, while at the same time, putting in place tighter restrictions¹² aimed at preventing a repeat of last year's economic meltdown. It's the third meeting of G20 leaders since the start of what economists¹³ have labeled the worst recession since the Great Depression.

Police and demonstrators meanwhile are already clashing ahead of the planned kick-off dinner at the G20 tonight. Police threw canisters, spewing smoke and pepper spray after a group of several hundred opposition¹⁴ demonstrators began moving toward the site of the summit. The march dubbed¹⁵ “people's uprising” has already been declared an unlawful assembly by the police since the group apparently¹⁶ lacked a city permit. The G20 meetings are scheduled for tomorrow.

United Nations General Security Council approved a resolution today that commits nations to work toward a nuclear-free world. President Obama presided over the meeting, the first time a US president has done so. More from NPR's Michele Kelemen.

President Obama says the resolution that passed 15 to 0 will strengthen the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. And though it did not mention Iran and North Korea by name, it did raise concerns about their nuclear programs.

"This is not about singling out individual nations. It is about standing¹⁷ up for the rights of all nations who do live up to their responsibilities. The world must stand together, and we must demonstrate that international law is not an empty promise, and the treaties will be enforced."

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown told the council that it should consider far tougher sanctions against Iran if it continues to flout¹⁸ UN resolutions. Michele Kelemen, NPR News, the United Nations.

Government says first time jobless claims fell by 21,000 last week to a seasonally-adjusted 530,000 down from 551,000 the previous week.

On Wall Street today, the Dow Jones Industry Average fell 41 points, closing at 9,707, the NASDAQ lost 23 points today.

This is NPR.

Officials in northwest Pakistan say a suspected US missile strike has claimed the lives of at least four people. The strike has been described as the latest in a series of attacks aimed at putting increased pressure on al-Qaeda and the Taliban. Intelligence officials say the strike took place near the town of Mir Ali in the North Waziristan region, not far from the Afghan border. Even there were some protests from Pakistan, Washington has continued missile attacks in the mountainous border region that has provided a safe haven¹⁹ for some Islamist militants²⁰.

In Georgia, Metro²¹ Atlanta residents are in cleanup mode after a widespread flooding this week. From Georgia Public Broadcasting, Edgar Treiguts reports.

Several shelters around the region have now closed as residents returned to their homes to begin the costly²² process of cleanup and repair. Complicating²³ mop-up efforts are areas where raw sewage spilled down to some roads from swath of water treatment plants. Northwest of Atlanta, cleanup will have to wait for hundreds of residents of one metro county who are still homeless. Cobb County officials say up to 600 homes and dozens of businesses may have suffered extensive damage from rain and flooding. State officials have pegged²⁴ initial general damage estimates from the week's flooding at 250 million dollars.  Meanwhile, residents in central Georgia are bracing²⁵ for flooding problems of their own today. A major river running through Macon is already at flood stage and rising, threatening a levee. For NPR News, I'm Edgar Treiguts in Atlanta.

According to NASA officials in Pasadena, a spacecraft orbiting Mars has spotted²⁶ water in several craters²⁷ on the planet's surface. Officials say the instruments on the space agency's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter are estimating the newly discovered ice is 99% pure.

1 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

2 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。

3 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

4 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

5 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

6 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 bail   

v.舀（水），保释；n.保证金，保释，保释人

参考例句：

• One of the prisoner's friends offered to bail him out.犯人的一个朋友答应保释他出来。
• She has been granted conditional bail.她被准予有条件保释。

8 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

9 permanently   

adv.永恒地，永久地，固定不变地

参考例句：

• The accident left him permanently scarred.那次事故给他留下了永久的伤疤。
• The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London.该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。

10 components   

（机器、设备等的）构成要素，零件，成分； 成分( component的名词复数 )； [物理化学]组分； [数学]分量； （混合物的）组成部分

参考例句：

• the components of a machine 机器部件
• Our chemistry teacher often reduces a compound to its components in lab. 在实验室中化学老师常把化合物分解为各种成分。

11 magistrate   

n.地方行政官，地方法官，治安官

参考例句：

• The magistrate committed him to prison for a month.法官判处他一个月监禁。
• John was fined 1000 dollars by the magistrate.约翰被地方法官罚款1000美元。

12 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

13 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》

14 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

15 dubbed   

v.给…起绰号( dub的过去式和过去分词 )；把…称为；配音；复制

参考例句：

• Mathematics was once dubbed the handmaiden of the sciences. 数学曾一度被视为各门科学的基础。
• Is the movie dubbed or does it have subtitles? 这部电影是配音的还是打字幕的？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 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。

17 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。

18 flout   

v./n.嘲弄，愚弄，轻视

参考例句：

• Parents who flout Family Court orders may be named in the media in Australia.在澳洲父母亲若是藐视家庭法庭的裁定可能在媒体上被公布姓名。
• The foolish boy flouted his mother's advice.这个愚蠢的孩子轻视他母亲的劝告。

19 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。

20 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

21 metro   

n.地铁；adj.大都市的；(METRO)麦德隆(财富500强公司之一总部所在地德国，主要经营零售)

参考例句：

• Can you reach the park by metro?你可以乘地铁到达那个公园吗？
• The metro flood gate system is a disaster prevention equipment.地铁防淹门系统是一种防灾设备。

22 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

23 complicating   

使复杂化( complicate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• High spiking fever with chills is suggestive of a complicating pylephlebitis. 伴有寒战的高热，暗示合并门静脉炎。
• In America these actions become executive puberty rites, complicating relationships that are already complicated enough. 在美国，这些行动成了行政青春期的惯例，使本来已经够复杂的关系变得更复杂了。

24 pegged   

v.用夹子或钉子固定( peg的过去式和过去分词 )；使固定在某水平

参考例句：

• They pegged their tent down. 他们钉好了账篷。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She pegged down the stairs. 她急忙下楼。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

25 bracing   

adj.令人振奋的

参考例句：

• The country is bracing itself for the threatened enemy invasion. 这个国家正准备奋起抵抗敌人的入侵威胁。
• The atmosphere in the new government was bracing. 新政府的气氛是令人振奋的。

26 spotted   

adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的

参考例句：

• The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
• Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。

27 craters   

n.火山口( crater的名词复数 )；弹坑等

参考例句：

• Small meteorites have left impact craters all over the planet's surface. 这个行星的表面布满了小块陨石留下的撞击坑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The battlefield was full of craters made by exploding shells. 战场上布满弹坑。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》