NPR 2010-01-09

From NPR News in Washington, I'm Lakshmi Singh.

 

The man accused of trying to blow up an airliner¹ en route to Detroit on Christmas Day pleaded not guilty in federal court this afternoon. Sarah Hewlett of Michigan Radio reports.

 

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was led into the courtroom, wearing a white T-shirt, khaki pants and shackles² on his ankles. Abdulmutallab spoke³ softly. He said he'd reviewed the charges with his attorney and understood them and the penalties they carry if he is convicted. His attorney asked that a not-guilty plea be entered on his behalf. He also consented to detention⁴. Abdulmutallab faces up to life in prison if he is convicted of the most serious crime, attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction. He is accused of trying to detonate chemical explosive hidden in his underwear as Northwest Airlines Flight 253 began its descent into Detroit on Christmas Day. For NPR News, I’m Sarah Hewlett in Detroit.

 

The unemployment rate hasn't budged⁵. The Labor⁶ Department reports that last month the rate remained at 10% as employers cut 85, 000 more jobs. Allen Levenson, chief economist⁷ at T. Rowe Price in Baltimore says the country should prepare for more disappointing news in the coming months. "The good news this year has been the rate of contraction⁸ was smaller. The news in 2010 will be rising employment and bigger increases as the year goes on. " This hour, President Obama is expected to announce a plan for more than 2 billion dollars in tax credits aimed at creating about 17, 000 green jobs.

 

Arctic air continues to blanket much of the US, snow returned to the Northeast and ice settled into parts of Deep South that are unaccustomed to frigid⁹ weather. The bitter cold and dangerous road conditions are blamed for multiple deaths. Schools in at least ten states were closed and flights disrupted. The US isn’t alone in its weather misery¹⁰. Arctic weather is also bearing down on cities across Europe as Larry Miller¹¹ reports from London.

 

As London’s Gatwick Airport plows¹² shifted 18, 000 tons of snow, while in the Scottish Highlands, the thermometer dropped to minus 8 degrees Fahrenheit¹³. The weather was the talk of the British Cabinet while across the Channel in France, the beaches from Normandy on the Atlantic to Marseilles on the Mediterranean¹⁴ worldwide with snow. In southern France, there were three-foot drift. Schools closed in the UK, Ireland, Spain and Germany. Across the continent, rail and plane schedules have been hit hard. Sweden registered minus 37 degrees. As temperatures crashed Norway, buses stopped running when the engine oil froze. However, the harsh weather has been good news for the Ress Kutschen sled factory in Germany where eight employees are knocking out 100 wooden sleighs a day. All were sold in advance. For NPR News, I’m Larry Miller in London.

 

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average down more than 30 points to 10, 576. The NASDAQ is up 11 at 2, 311.

 

From Washington, this is NPR News.

 

A Swiss court says the country’s financial regulator broke the law when it ordered Swiss banking¹⁵ giant UBS to hand over data of 255 of its clients to US authorities last year. Washington requested the files of the clients who were suspected of tax evasion¹⁶. Lisa Schlein has details from Geneva.

 

In this ruling, the Swiss Federal Administrative¹⁷ Court says the financial regulator overreached its power when it ordered confidential¹⁸ details of the UBS clients to be handed over to Washington investigators¹⁹. The regulator says its decision was aimed at protecting the bank and the Swiss economy from serious damage. Lawyers representing UBS clients welcome the court's ruling. They call it an important step. Court documents show the Swiss financial regulator could lodge²⁰ an appeal within 30 days. For NPR News, I’m Lisa Schlein in Geneva.

 

In the predominantly Roman Catholic nation of Portugal, same-sex marriage is one step closer to becoming law. The socialist²¹ government’s bill won the endorsement²² of all left of senate parties today. Right wing parties remain strongly opposed and have pledged to put the issue up to a national vote. The bill will be sent to the president of Portugal to ratify²³ or veto which the parliament can still overturn.

 

A Pentagon spokesman says Defense²⁴ Secretary Robert Gates, the most prominent Republican in the Obama administration, plans to stay on the job for at least another year. But Geoff Morrell says Gates and the president have agreed to revisit this issue later this year.

 

I’m Lakshmi Singh, NPR News in Washington.
 

1 airliner   

n.客机，班机

参考例句：

• The pilot landed the airliner safely.驾驶员使客机安全着陆。
• The passengers were shepherded across the tarmac to the airliner.旅客们被引导走过跑道去上飞机。

2 shackles   

手铐( shackle的名词复数 )； 脚镣； 束缚； 羁绊

参考例句：

• a country struggling to free itself from the shackles of colonialism 为摆脱殖民主义的枷锁而斗争的国家
• The cars of the train are coupled together by shackles. 火车的车厢是用钩链连接起来的。

3 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

4 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。

5 budged   

v.（使）稍微移动( budge的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）改变主意，（使）让步

参考例句：

• Old Bosc had never budged an inch--he was totally indifferent. 老包斯克一直连动也没有动，他全然无所谓。 来自辞典例句
• Nobody budged you an inch. 别人一丁点儿都算计不了你。 来自辞典例句

6 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

7 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

8 contraction   

n.缩略词，缩写式，害病

参考例句：

• The contraction of this muscle raises the lower arm.肌肉的收缩使前臂抬起。
• The forces of expansion are balanced by forces of contraction.扩张力和收缩力相互平衡。

9 frigid   

adj.寒冷的，凛冽的；冷淡的；拘禁的

参考例句：

• The water was too frigid to allow him to remain submerged for long.水冰冷彻骨，他在下面呆不了太长时间。
• She returned his smile with a frigid glance.对他的微笑她报以冷冷的一瞥。

10 misery   

n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦

参考例句：

• Business depression usually causes misery among the working class.商业不景气常使工薪阶层受苦。
• He has rescued me from the mire of misery.他把我从苦海里救了出来。

11 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。

12 plows   

n.犁( plow的名词复数 )；犁型铲雪机v.耕( plow的第三人称单数 )；犁耕；费力穿过

参考例句：

• Alex and Tony were turning awkward hands to plows and hoe handles. 亚历克斯和托尼在犁耙等农活方面都几乎变成新手了。
• Plows are still pulled by oxen in some countries. 在一些国家犁头仍由牛拖拉。

13 Fahrenheit   

n./adj.华氏温度；华氏温度计(的)

参考例句：

• He was asked for the boiling point of water in Fahrenheit.他被问到水的沸点是华氏多少度。
• The thermometer reads 80 degrees Fahrenheit.寒暑表指出华氏80度。

14 Mediterranean   

adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的

参考例句：

• The houses are Mediterranean in character.这些房子都属地中海风格。
• Gibraltar is the key to the Mediterranean.直布罗陀是地中海的要冲。

15 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

16 evasion   

n.逃避，偷漏(税)

参考例句：

• The movie star is in prison for tax evasion.那位影星因为逃税而坐牢。
• The act was passed as a safeguard against tax evasion.这项法案旨在防止逃税行为。

17 administrative   

adj.行政的，管理的

参考例句：

• The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
• He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。

18 confidential   

adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的

参考例句：

• He refused to allow his secretary to handle confidential letters.他不让秘书处理机密文件。
• We have a confidential exchange of views.我们推心置腹地交换意见。

19 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》

20 lodge   

v.临时住宿，寄宿，寄存，容纳；n.传达室，小旅馆

参考例句：

• Is there anywhere that I can lodge in the village tonight?村里有我今晚过夜的地方吗？
• I shall lodge at the inn for two nights.我要在这家小店住两个晚上。

21 socialist   

n.社会主义者；adj.社会主义的

参考例句：

• China is a socialist country,and a developing country as well.中国是一个社会主义国家，也是一个发展中国家。
• His father was an ardent socialist.他父亲是一个热情的社会主义者。

22 endorsement   

n.背书；赞成，认可，担保；签(注)，批注

参考例句：

• We are happy to give the product our full endorsement.我们很高兴给予该产品完全的认可。
• His presidential campaign won endorsement from several celebrities.他参加总统竞选得到一些社会名流的支持。

23 ratify   

v.批准，认可，追认

参考例句：

• The heads of two governments met to ratify the peace treaty.两国政府首脑会晤批准和平条约。
• The agreement have to be ratify by the board.该协议必须由董事会批准。

24 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。