美联社新闻一分钟 2006-02-20

1. Power crews are working to restore electricity for hundreds of thousands of people in the northeast. A brutal¹ winter storm caused hurricane-force winds and temperatures to drop below zero. At least four deaths are being blamed on the storm.

2. Hundreds of Muslim protestors in Jakarta attack the U.S. embassy with rocks, tomatoes and eggs. The protestors claim the U.S. is behind the recent publication of cartoons depicting² the Prophet Muhammad.

3. There is a winning Powerball lottery³ ticket sold in the Nebraska worth 365,000,000 dollars. Saturday's jackpot was the largest in the country's history thus far. The winner has not yet been named.

4. The carnival⁴ season came early in Brazil this year. The Rolling Stones put on a free concert at Copacabana Beach in Rio. Millions of people took over the beach to stake out a good spot to watch the show.

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. thus far :
as far as this or until now:
e.g. We haven't had any problems thus far.

2. carnival : noun [C or U]
(a special occasion or period of) public enjoyment⁵ and entertainment involving wearing unusual clothes, dancing, and eating and drinking, usually held in the roads of a city:
e.g. There's a real carnival atmosphere in the streets.

3. stake out : phrasal verb [M]
to show other people that you claim ownership, control or use of a particular area in a physical way
e.g. They arrived several hours early for the concert and staked out a place at the front of the queue.

1 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

2 depicting   

描绘，描画( depict的现在分词 )； 描述

参考例句：

• a painting depicting the Virgin and Child 一幅描绘童贞马利亚和圣子耶稣的画
• The movie depicting the battles and bloodshed is bound to strike home. 这部描写战斗和流血牺牲的影片一定会取得预期效果。

3 lottery   

n.抽彩；碰运气的事，难于算计的事

参考例句：

• He won no less than ￡5000 in the lottery.他居然中了5000英镑的奖券。
• They thought themselves lucky in the lottery of life.他们认为自己是变幻莫测的人生中的幸运者。

4 carnival   

n.嘉年华会，狂欢，狂欢节，巡回表演

参考例句：

• I got some good shots of the carnival.我有几个狂欢节的精彩镜头。
• Our street puts on a carnival every year.我们街的居民每年举行一次嘉年华会。

5 enjoyment   

n.乐趣；享有；享用

参考例句：

• Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同，我们这次访问更加愉快了。
• After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话，这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。