NPR 2011-02-27

Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi appears to have lost control of Libya, according to its major European ally, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. NPR's Sylvia Poggioli reports from Rome Italy has come under intense pressure from the US and Europe to distance itself from the Libyan regime.

Addressing supporters, Berlusconi said that he had just received news that Gaddafi no longer controls the situation. Last weekend, Berlusconi earned widespread scorn when he said he preferred not to bother his friend Gaddafi to find out what was going on in Libya. In his latest comments, the prime minister said popular revolts in North Africa could bring democracy and freedom, but also lead to dangerous centers of Islamic fundamentalism as well as massive blocks of refugees. Libya has close ties with Italy, supplying 30% of its energy needs. Separately, Defense¹ Minister Ignazio La Russa said the controversial Italy-Libya friendship treaty has been de facto suspended. The treaty established that Italy could not allow any of its bases, including naval² bases, to be used for actions against Libya. Sylvia Poggioli, NPR News, Rome.

The United Nations Security Council is meeting today to consider imposing³ international sanctions against Libya, but NPR's Allison Keyes tells us Turkish leaders warn such a move could hurt the Libyan people.

The meeting comes just one day after President Obama issued an executive order freezing the American-held assets of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, his family and senior members of the Libyan government. The sanctions the UN Security Council is considering include an arms embargo⁴, along with an asset freeze and travel ban against Libya's leader, his relatives and key members of his regime. Some diplomats⁵, including those from the US, France and Germany, have been circulating a draft resolution that would refer the violent crackdown in Libya to the International Criminal Court for investigation⁶ of possible crimes against humanity, but Associated Press is reporting that Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Erdogan warns that sanctions would force the Libyan people into a more desperate situation. Allison Keyes, NPR News.

President Obama today urged Republicans and Democrats⁷ in Congress to find common ground to prevent a government shutdown next week. Congress must approve a federal budget by March 4th. Republicans are calling for major spending cuts. In his weekly address, the president said both sides must compromise.

"We need a balanced approach to deficit⁸ reduction. We all need to be willing to sacrifice, but we can't sacrifice our future."

In the Republican address, freshman⁹ Senator Rob Portman said his party's goal is not to shut down the government, but to make sensible reductions in spending.

The president will invite governors from both political parties to the White House for a dinner tomorrow night. The governors are in town for their annual winter meeting, although some are skipping the event this year to attend to financial crises at home.

This is NPR News from Washington.

Space shuttle Discovery arrived at the International Space Station a short while ago to deliver supplies, including the first humanoid robot in space. This is its 13th and final visit to the orbiting space lab. After it returns to Earth in about a week, Discovery will be retired¹⁰ and exhibited in museum.

The death toll¹¹ from Tuesday's earthquake in the New Zealand city of Christchurch is now 145 as rescuers pull more bodies from the rubble¹². Stuart Cohen reports from Sydney officials are now starting to come to grips with the huge financial cost of the disaster.

Officials say a third of the buildings in Christchurch will have be demolished¹³, and the city's downtown will be closed for months. One of the tallest buildings, the 26-story hotel Grand Chancellor¹⁴, remains¹⁵ precariously¹⁶ close to collapsing¹⁷. Aftershocks continue to shake the city and are making the search for more survivors¹⁸ difficult. Nobody has been rescued since Wednesday. Yet, Prime Minister John Key says a glimmer¹⁹ of hope still remains.

"This is very much still a rescue effort, not a recovery. As every man passes, obviously it becomes more challenging, but people can survive after considerable periods of time without water and food."

The prime minister has promised a massive economic package to help pay for what's being called the country's most costly²⁰ disaster. For NPR News, I'm Stuart Cohen in Sydney.

Gamers are lined up in Japan today to buy the latest gadget²¹ from Nintendo. It's a portable 3D game machine that doesn't require 3D glasses. Analysts²² say it promises to be the world's first 3D mass-market product. It goes on sale next month in Europe and in the US. It will sell for about $250.

1 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。

2 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

3 imposing   

adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的

参考例句：

• The fortress is an imposing building.这座城堡是一座宏伟的建筑。
• He has lost his imposing appearance.他已失去堂堂仪表。

4 embargo   

n.禁运（令）；vt.对...实行禁运，禁止（通商）

参考例句：

• This country put an oil embargo on an enemy country.该国对敌国实行石油禁运。
• During the war,they laid an embargo on commerce with enemy countries.在战争期间，他们禁止与敌国通商。

5 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》

6 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

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 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

9 freshman   

n.大学一年级学生(可兼指男女)

参考例句：

• Jack decided to live in during his freshman year at college.杰克决定大一时住校。
• He is a freshman in the show business.他在演艺界是一名新手。

10 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

11 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

12 rubble   

n.（一堆）碎石，瓦砾

参考例句：

• After the earthquake,it took months to clean up the rubble.地震后，花了数月才清理完瓦砾。
• After the war many cities were full of rubble.战后许多城市到处可见颓垣残壁。

13 demolished   

v.摧毁( demolish的过去式和过去分词 )；推翻；拆毁（尤指大建筑物）；吃光

参考例句：

• The factory is due to be demolished next year. 这个工厂定于明年拆除。
• They have been fighting a rearguard action for two years to stop their house being demolished. 两年来，为了不让拆除他们的房子，他们一直在进行最后的努力。

14 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

15 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

16 precariously   

adv.不安全地；危险地；碰机会地；不稳定地

参考例句：

• The hotel was perched precariously on a steep hillside. 旅馆危险地坐落在陡峭的山坡上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The phone was perched precariously on the window ledge. 电话放在窗台上，摇摇欲坠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 collapsing   

压扁[平]，毁坏，断裂

参考例句：

• Rescuers used props to stop the roof of the tunnel collapsing. 救援人员用支柱防止隧道顶塌陷。
• The rocks were folded by collapsing into the center of the trough. 岩石由于坍陷进入凹槽的中心而发生褶皱。

18 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

19 glimmer   

v.发出闪烁的微光；n.微光，微弱的闪光

参考例句：

• I looked at her and felt a glimmer of hope.我注视她，感到了一线希望。
• A glimmer of amusement showed in her eyes.她的眼中露出一丝笑意。

20 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

21 gadget   

n.小巧的机械，精巧的装置，小玩意儿

参考例句：

• This gadget isn't much good.这小机械没什么用处。
• She has invented a nifty little gadget for undoing stubborn nuts and bolts.她发明了一种灵巧的小工具用来松开紧固的螺母和螺栓。

22 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。