NPR 2010-06-19

The administrator¹ of the 20-billion-dollar escrow fund being established to help victims of the BP oil spill in the Gulf² says he plans to pay legitimate³ claims quickly. In an interview of NPR's "All Things Considered", Ken⁴ Feinberg says he hopes to pay claims within 30 to 60 days.

"People can't wait for compensation. They can't wait for some sort of discretionary decision. These decisions have got to be made in a matter of weeks. People are in desperate straits down here. And that's why I'm down here today and not in Washington. I just can't wait."

Meanwhile, the House Judiciary Committee says BP has paid only $71 million in claims out of an estimated $600 million since the start of the disaster.

President Obama is using the groundbreaking of an Ohio road project to draw attention to his economic stimulus⁵ plan. Today's event marks though what the White House says is the 10,000th road project funded by the stimulus dollars.

"Rebuilding our infrastructure⁶ is one of the keys to our future prosperity. If we're going to rebuild America's economy, then we've got to rebuild America, period."

Other jobs funded by the stimulus this summer include improvements at national parks and upgrades to community drinking water facilities. Mr. Obama says that while the economy is showing signs of recovery, the country still has a way to go, and more people still need good jobs.

The Senate has belatedly voted to spare doctors who treat Medicare patients a 21% pay cut, but as NPR's Julie Rovner reports, the move comes too late to prevent the cut from taking effect at least temporarily.

The pay cut, which neither Democrats⁷ nor Republicans in Congress support, technically⁸ took effect June 1st. Medicare officials have been holding doctors' bills ever since in anticipation⁹ of Congress passing legislation to cancel the cut. Lawmakers have already done that three times in the past six months, but while the House canceled the cut as part of a broader tax and spending bill in late May, the Senate has so far failed to reach agreement on the measure. Now, the Senate has passed a stand-alone bill that would give doctors a 2% raise for the next six months. But the House has gone home for the weekend, so final action can't take place until next week. Meanwhile, Medicare officials say they are starting to process doctors' bills they've been holding with the 21% cut. Julie Rovner, NPR News.

Russia's news agency is reporting that the country's defense¹⁰ minister is considering sending troops into Kyrgyzstan to protect what it calls "strategic facilities". UN officials say more than one million people have been affected¹¹ by recent violence in the country and need food and other aid supplies. More than 400,000 people have been left homeless in the recent ethnic¹² clashes there.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 20 points to 10,454 in four billion dollars of trading. The NASDAQ Composite Index is up two points at 2,309, and the S&P 500 is up one point at 1,117.

This is NPR News.

Crews continue to assess the damage from a series of violent storms and tornadoes¹³ that tore across parts of Minnesota yesterday. Three people are dead, and nearly 60 farms have been damaged. Mayor Wayne Wolden of Wadena, Minnesota says the damage at his community is unimaginable.

"I'm seeing residential¹⁴ areas that are just devastated¹⁵. There are areas that are just flat. The trees are down. The garages are gone, sucked up. Rooftops gone."

Officials in Minnesota say up to nine tornadoes cut a nearly 20-mile path through rural Freeborn County.

In the World Cup, the United States has survived a draw against Slovenia. That means that the US still is eligible¹⁶ to advance past the group stage. From South Africa, NPR's Mike Pesca reports.

Down two to nothing in the first half, the United States' future in this World Cup seemed bleak¹⁷. Slovenia came into the game, having early collected a win against Algeria. They enjoyed a reputation as a tough, defensive¹⁸ team, so a two-goal lead seemed daunting¹⁹. But Landon Donovan, probably the best player the United States has ever produced, scored early in the second half. Then at the 82nd minute, Michael Bradley, the coach's son, received a fine pass off the head of Jozy Altidore and popped the ball over the Slovene goalkeeper. The score was tied at two. It appeared as if the US pulled ahead, but a late goal was disallowed²⁰ by a questionable²¹ call from the referee²². The final game in group plays against Algeria on Wednesday. Mike Pesca, NPR News, Johannesburg, South Africa.

Thousands of people are waiting in line in Florida, many of them for hours to get a first look at Universal Orlando's new theme park. Harry Potter fans were greeted by Daniel Radcliffe and other stars from the series of movies

1 administrator   

n.经营管理者，行政官员

参考例句：

• The role of administrator absorbed much of Ben's energy.行政职务耗掉本很多精力。
• He has proved himself capable as administrator.他表现出管理才能。

2 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

3 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

4 ken   

n.视野，知识领域

参考例句：

• Such things are beyond my ken.我可不懂这些事。
• Abstract words are beyond the ken of children.抽象的言辞超出小孩所理解的范围.

5 stimulus   

n.刺激，刺激物，促进因素，引起兴奋的事物

参考例句：

• Regard each failure as a stimulus to further efforts.把每次失利看成对进一步努力的激励。
• Light is a stimulus to growth in plants.光是促进植物生长的一个因素。

6 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

7 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 technically   

adv.专门地，技术上地

参考例句：

• Technically it is the most advanced equipment ever.从技术上说，这是最先进的设备。
• The tomato is technically a fruit,although it is eaten as a vegetable.严格地说，西红柿是一种水果，尽管它是当作蔬菜吃的。

9 anticipation   

n.预期，预料，期望

参考例句：

• We waited at the station in anticipation of her arrival.我们在车站等着，期待她的到来。
• The animals grew restless as if in anticipation of an earthquake.各种动物都变得焦躁不安，像是感到了地震即将发生。

10 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。

11 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

12 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

13 tornadoes   

n.龙卷风，旋风( tornado的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Tornadoes, severe earthquakes, and plagues create wide spread havoc. 龙卷风、大地震和瘟疫成普遍的毁坏。 来自互联网
• Meteorologists are at odds over the working of tornadoes. 气象学者对龙卷风的运动方式看法不一。 来自互联网

14 residential   

adj.提供住宿的；居住的；住宅的

参考例句：

• The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
• The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。

15 devastated   

v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的

参考例句：

• The bomb devastated much of the old part of the city. 这颗炸弹炸毁了旧城的一大片地方。
• His family is absolutely devastated. 他的一家感到极为震惊。

16 eligible   

adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的

参考例句：

• He is an eligible young man.他是一个合格的年轻人。
• Helen married an eligible bachelor.海伦嫁给了一个中意的单身汉。

17 bleak   

adj.(天气)阴冷的；凄凉的；暗淡的

参考例句：

• They showed me into a bleak waiting room.他们引我来到一间阴冷的会客室。
• The company's prospects look pretty bleak.这家公司的前景异常暗淡。

18 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

19 daunting   

adj.使人畏缩的

参考例句：

• They were faced with the daunting task of restoring the house.他们面临着修复房子的艰巨任务。
• Starting a new job can be a daunting prospect.开始一项新工作有时会让人望而却步。

20 disallowed   

v.不承认（某事物）有效( disallow的过去式和过去分词 )；不接受；不准；驳回

参考例句：

• The judge disallowed that evidence. 法官驳回那项证据。 来自辞典例句
• Her claim was disallowed on the ground(s) that she had not paid her premium. 她要求赔款遭到拒绝，原因是她事先没有交纳保险费。 来自辞典例句

21 questionable   

adj.可疑的，有问题的

参考例句：

• There are still a few questionable points in the case.这个案件还有几个疑点。
• Your argument is based on a set of questionable assumptions.你的论证建立在一套有问题的假设上。

22 referee   

n.裁判员．仲裁人，代表人，鉴定人

参考例句：

• The team was left raging at the referee's decision.队员们对裁判员的裁决感到非常气愤。
• The referee blew a whistle at the end of the game.裁判在比赛结束时吹响了哨子。