CNN 2009-08-26

Good morning I’m Melissa Long here at the CNN Center in Atlanta. It’s a Tuesday, August 25th, and here is a look at some of the stories that happening NOW IN THE NEWS.

The LA county coroner has now ruled Michael Jackson’s death a homicide. That’s according to the CNN TV, quoting  the Associated Press. This information comes from a single law enforcement official. The coroner’s office has no comment for CNN. Now a court document showed the coroner preliminarily concluded Jackson died of propofol overdose and that he was given three other powerful drugs before that.

Some grim projections¹ on the swine flu, experts tell President Obama that a third to half of Americans could come down with it this fall and winter. A vaccine² is expected in mid-October. But experts are warning this virus could kill up to ninety thousand people more than twice  as many as the seasonal³ flu.

Lightning earlier this morning near the Kennedy Space Center in Florida forced NASA to scrub the launch of the Space Shuttle Discovery. The next attempt will likely be early tomorrow morning. The shuttle is carrying among other things a new space treadmill⁴ for the International Space Station. It has been named Colbert in honour of Comedy Central’s Stephen Colbert. His fans won the naming rights in an online poll.

It was a perfect lift-off, but South Korea’s first rocket failed to put the satellite into orbit. The country’s Science Minister says the satellite exceeded its planned orbit. South Korea has used foreign built rockets to launch its satellites up until now.

And President Obama this morning tapping the Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke for a second term. The Republican has received mostly positive marks for his handling of the financial crisis and nation’s worst recession since the Great Depression. The senate will now only to confirm Bernanke for his second four-year term.

Those are the headlines for you this hour. Do stay with CNN and CNN.Com for more on these stories or other news that develops today.

1 projections   

预测( projection的名词复数 )； 投影； 投掷； 突起物

参考例句：

• Their sales projections are a total thumbsuck. 他们的销售量预测纯属估计。
• The council has revised its projections of funding requirements upwards. 地方议会调高了对资金需求的预测。

2 vaccine   

n.牛痘苗，疫苗；adj.牛痘的，疫苗的

参考例句：

• The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives.脊髓灰质炎疫苗挽救了数以百万计的生命。
• She takes a vaccine against influenza every fall.她每年秋季接种流感疫苗。

3 seasonal   

adj.季节的，季节性的

参考例句：

• The town relies on the seasonal tourist industry for jobs.这个城镇依靠季节性旅游业提供就业机会。
• The hors d'oeuvre is seasonal vegetables.餐前小吃是应时蔬菜。

4 treadmill   

n.踏车；单调的工作

参考例句：

• The treadmill has a heart rate monitor.跑步机上有个脉搏监视器。
• Drugs remove man from the treadmill of routine.药物可以使人摆脱日常单调的工作带来的疲劳。