NPR 2010-09-15

An American woman held for more than a year in Iran has arrived in Oman. Sarah Shourd was released today. She was arrested along with two American men while hiking in July last year along the Iran-Iraq border. As NPR's Jackie Northam reports, there are few details about the terms of Shourd's release.

The US does not have diplomatic ties with Iran, so Shourd's release on bail¹ was handled primarily by Swiss and Omani diplomats². The Iranian government had asked for half-a-million-dollar bail, a sum Shourd's parents said they could not meet. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley says the US was not privy³ to what transpired⁴, but he was adamant⁵ that the US government did not post bail.

"You're asking if money has changed hands. And the short answer is: We don't know. If the question is: Did the United States government pay anything for this release? The answer is: No."

Some analysts⁷ say Switzerland, which formally represents US interests in Iran, may have posted bail. Other analysts believe Iran may have simply waived⁸ the requirement, so Shourd could have returned home to deal with medical issues. Jackie Northam, NPR News, Washington.

Tens of thousands of people in and around the Eiffel Tower in Paris have been evacuated⁹. Authorities are investigating a phoned-in bomb threat.

The French Senate has joined the House in overwhelmingly approving a ban on full-face veils. The legislation still needs to be vetted¹⁰ by France's highest constitutional authority. From Paris, Eleanor Beardsley reports critics accuse the French government of trampling¹¹ on the rights of Muslim women.

The measure will outlaw¹² face-covering veils in all public places including the street. No exception will be made for tourists from Saudi Arabia and elsewhere in the Middle East. Backers insisted it's not anti-Muslim. They say it is aimed at getting Muslim immigrants to integrate fully¹³ into society and protect women's rights. Critics say it will drive some Muslims underground. France has Western Europe's largest Muslim population. But fewer than 2,000 women are thought to wear the full veil, also referred to as a burka. For NPR News, I'm Eleanor Beardsley in Paris.

People in several states and the District of Columbia are voting on the final major day of primaries. As Joel Rose reports, one of the big races to watch is in Delaware, where Republican voters are picking a candidate for the seat once held by Vice¹⁴ President Joe Biden.

Mike Castle is one of the most visible politicians in Delaware. But despite two terms as governor and nine terms in the House of Representatives, the moderate Republican has his hands full with the challenge from Tea Party favorite Christine O'Donnell, a social conservative in the Sarah Palin mold. O'Donnell has her endorsements¹⁵ from the former Alaska governor and South Carolina Senator Jim DeMint among others, as she waged an aggressive campaign, depicting¹⁶ Castle as a liberal who's lost touch with ordinary voters. Castle punched back, portraying¹⁷ O'Donnell as an inexperienced and incompetent¹⁸ candidate, who would make it an easier target for Democrats¹⁹ in the general election. For NPR News, I'm Joel Rose.

Dow's down 18. This is NPR.

Retail²⁰ sales are up for August by the largest amount in five months. NPR's Paul Brown reports the figures could point to lower risk of a double-dip recession, although there's still room for concern.

August retail sales are up double what economists²¹ predicted, if you take out falling automobile²³ sales. Still, gains in many other areas outpaced the auto²² sales drop. Analyst⁶ Roy Blumberg of the Philadelphia Group says the Commerce Department numbers are good news. But he says consumers still have a lot of debt to work off and they're concerned about jobs.

"You shouldn't be too optimistic that this is a sign that the numbers are gonna be a lot better off than every month going forward."

Blumberg says he thinks one reason for the increased buying in August is sale prices on back-to-school items that retailers²⁴ haven't been able to move. Paul Brown, NPR News, Washington.

President Obama's small business legislation is a step closer to getting through the Senate. Democrats want a crucial procedural vote today to sidestep a GOP filibuster²⁵. The legislation creates a 30-billion-dollar government fund to increase lending access to small businesses.

More than 600 firefighters are responding to a 4,000-acre blaze near California's Kern River. They've contained about ten percent of it. Even though the fire grew today, nobody's been evacuated. Firefighters are also struggling to contain a growing blaze in the northern Colorado foothills. They've surrounded about 20 percent of the nearly 1,000-acre blaze just west of Loveland. The fire has destroyed two homes. Meanwhile, residents near Boulder²⁶ are trying to recover from one of the state's most devastating²⁷ fires in which at least 160 homes were destroyed. That fire has been fully contained.
 

1 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。

2 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 privy   

adj.私用的；隐密的

参考例句：

• Only three people,including a policeman,will be privy to the facts.只会允许3个人，其中包括一名警察，了解这些内情。
• Very few of them were privy to the details of the conspiracy.他们中很少有人知道这一阴谋的详情。

4 transpired   

（事实，秘密等）被人知道( transpire的过去式和过去分词 )； 泄露； 显露； 发生

参考例句：

• It transpired that the gang had had a contact inside the bank. 据报这伙歹徒在银行里有内应。
• It later transpired that he hadn't been telling the truth. 他当时没说真话，这在后来显露出来了。

5 adamant   

adj.坚硬的，固执的

参考例句：

• We are adamant on the building of a well-off society.在建设小康社会这一点上，我们是坚定不移的。
• Veronica was quite adamant that they should stay on.维罗妮卡坚信他们必须继续留下去。

6 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

7 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

8 waived   

v.宣布放弃( waive的过去式和过去分词 )；搁置；推迟；放弃（权利、要求等）

参考例句：

• He has waived all claim to the money. 他放弃了索取这笔钱的权利。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I waived the discourse, and began to talk of my business. 我撇开了这个话题，开始讲我的事情。 来自辞典例句

9 evacuated   

撤退者的

参考例句：

• Police evacuated nearby buildings. 警方已将附近大楼的居民疏散。
• The fireman evacuated the guests from the burning hotel. 消防队员把客人们从燃烧着的旅馆中撤出来。

10 vetted   

v.审查（某人过去的记录、资格等）( vet的过去式和过去分词 )；调查；检查；诊疗

参考例句：

• The recruits were thoroughly vetted before they were allowed into the secret service. 情报机关招募的新成员要经过严格的审查。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All staff are vetted for links with extremist groups before being employed. 所有职员录用前均须审查是否与极端分子团体有关。 来自辞典例句

11 trampling   

踩( trample的现在分词 )； 践踏； 无视； 侵犯

参考例句：

• Diplomats denounced the leaders for trampling their citizens' civil rights. 外交官谴责这些领导人践踏其公民的公民权。
• They don't want people trampling the grass, pitching tents or building fires. 他们不希望人们踩踏草坪、支帐篷或生火。

12 outlaw   

n.歹徒，亡命之徒；vt.宣布…为不合法

参考例句：

• The outlaw hid out in the hills for several months.逃犯在山里隐藏了几个月。
• The outlaw has been caught.歹徒已被抓住了。

13 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

14 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

15 endorsements   

n.背书( endorsement的名词复数 )；（驾驶执照上的）违章记录；（公开的）赞同；（通常为名人在广告中对某一产品的）宣传

参考例句：

• He must make much money on those tennis shoe endorsements he does. 他替那些网球鞋珍重广告，就赚了不少钱。 来自互联网
• But celebrity endorsements remain an important promotional tool for marketers. 尽管如此，邀明星助阵仍是营销人员重要的推广手段之一。 来自互联网

16 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。

17 portraying   

v.画像( portray的现在分词 )；描述；描绘；描画

参考例句：

• The artist has succeeded in portraying my father to the life. 那位画家把我的父亲画得惟妙惟肖。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Ding Ling was good at portraying figures through careful and refined description of human psychology. 《莎菲女士的日记》是丁玲的成名作，曾引起强烈的社会反响。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

18 incompetent   

adj.无能力的，不能胜任的

参考例句：

• He is utterly incompetent at his job.他完全不能胜任他的工作。
• He is incompetent at working with his hands.他动手能力不行。

19 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》

20 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

21 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》

22 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。

23 automobile   

n.汽车，机动车

参考例句：

• He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
• The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。

24 retailers   

零售商，零售店( retailer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
• Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。

25 filibuster   

n.妨碍议事，阻挠；v.阻挠

参考例句：

• A senator dragged the subject in as a filibuster.一个参议员硬把这个题目拉扯进来，作为一种阻碍议事的手法。
• The democrats organized a filibuster in the senate.民主党党员在参议院上组织了阻挠议事。

26 boulder   

n.巨砾；卵石，圆石

参考例句：

• We all heaved together and removed the boulder.大家一齐用劲，把大石头搬开了。
• He stepped clear of the boulder.他从大石头后面走了出来。

27 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。