NPR 2011-06-24

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

Stinging losses in the US market today triggered by fears over multiple concerns around the globe. For one—a combination of disappointing data over the pace of economic growth in the US. Another—Greece's financial meltdown and the possible impact on other nations if it defaults. Then there stalled talks in Washington over deficit¹ reduction from which House Republican Leader Eric Cantor pulled out over an impasse² on taxes. NPR's Jim Zarroli highlights one more contributing factor for us. And that's the International Energy Agency's decision today to release 16 million barrels of crude oil from global reserves.

The agency said the release of oil was necessary because unrest in Libya has reduced world oil production. And it said the production in the North African country will remain off-line throughout the rest of the year at least. Over the next 30 days, the IEA will release two million barrels of oil every day. About half of that will come from the US Strategic Petroleum³ Reserve. The Unites States has about 727 million barrels of oil in underground caverns⁴ along the Gulf⁵ Coast. The announcement about the release comes at a time when economic growth is slowing. And Federal Reserve officials have reduced their growth projections⁶ for this year. They say higher energy prices are one of the factors cutting into growth. Jim Zarroli, NPR News.

President Obama reaches out to troops at Fort Drum in upstate New York today, home of the 10th Mountain Division that has been among those most frequently deployed⁷ to Afghanistan. He reiterated⁸ the plans to withdraw 33000 troops by September of 2012. Later tonight, President Obama's due to attend his first-ever fundraiser for gay and lesbian donors⁹ as New York lawmakers move toward an unprecedented¹⁰ vote on legalizing same-sex marriage. Earlier today, proponents¹¹ of gay marriage rallied at the state Capitol where opponents also gathered.

Republican presidential candidate Jon Huntsman is in Florida to open his national campaign office. More from NPR's Greg Allen.

Huntsman's national campaign office is in Orlando, an area where his wife grew up and where she still has family. He began the day in Miami, appearing at some of the same stops visited by Senator John McCain in his successful bid through Republican presidential nomination¹² four years ago. Huntsman says his "early state strategy" for winning the nomination will put a lot of resources into New Hampshire, South Carolina and Florida.

"We're gonna work it very very aggressively. We're gonna put an excellent ground team together. We're already putting those pieces together. We're gonna raise a lot of money here. It's an expensive state from a campaigning standpoint. Everyone knows that."

Huntsman is a former Utah governor, and until recently part of the Obama administration as ambassador to China. He says the main focus of his campaign will be getting businesses and the economy moving through tax and regulatory reform. Greg Allen, NPR News, Miami.

This is NPR.

Syrian troops are gathering¹³ near a village on the Turkey's border where thousands of Syrians have fled earlier government crackdowns. NPR's Peter Kenyon reports from Istanbul that more people are trying to get into Turkey.

The valley surrounding the village of Khirbet al-Jous has become an ad hoc encampment for thousands of Syrians who fled violence into northern villages and towns. After cutting off villagers on the road to Khirbet al-Jous, snipers and troops have been seen on a hilltop above the village. Unconfirmed reports from activists¹⁴ say tanks and troops are in the village itself. The military advance is increasing tensions with Turkey, which has a significant military presence on its side of the border. More than 10000 Syrians have already crossed into Turkey, and that flow is expected to accelerate now. Peter Kenyon, NPR News.

Southwestern Baghdad's been hit by a string of bomb blasts today. They went off in quick succession through Shiite neighborhoods, claiming at least 21 lives and wounding more than 40 other people.

The British drugmaker, GlaxoSmithKline, has agreed to pay more than 40 million dollars to 37 states and the District of Columbia to settle executions that had made and sold faulty drugs. They include certain brands of anti-nausea, antidepressant, diabetes¹⁵ and antibiotic¹⁶ medications, manufactured in a former plant in Puerto Rico. The state complaints surface after Glaxo agreed last year to pay three quarters of a billion dollars to settle similar complaints by the Justice Department.

Before the close on Wall Street, we see a cut to losses today. The Dow was down 60 points at 12050, with the Nasdaq gaining 18 points; it's was at 2687.

1 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。

2 impasse   

n.僵局；死路

参考例句：

• The government had reached an impasse.政府陷入绝境。
• Negotiations seemed to have reached an impasse.谈判似乎已经陷入僵局。

3 petroleum   

n.原油，石油

参考例句：

• The Government of Iran advanced the price of petroleum last week.上星期伊朗政府提高了石油价格。
• The purpose of oil refinery is to refine crude petroleum.炼油厂的主要工作是提炼原油。

4 caverns   

大山洞，大洞穴( cavern的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Within were dark caverns; what was inside them, no one could see. 里面是一个黑洞，这里面有什么东西，谁也望不见。 来自汉英文学 - 家（1-26） - 家（1-26）
• UNDERGROUND Under water grottos, caverns Filled with apes That eat figs. 在水帘洞里，挤满了猿争吃无花果。

5 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。

6 projections   

预测( projection的名词复数 )； 投影； 投掷； 突起物

参考例句：

• Their sales projections are a total thumbsuck. 他们的销售量预测纯属估计。
• The council has revised its projections of funding requirements upwards. 地方议会调高了对资金需求的预测。

7 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

8 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

9 donors   

n.捐赠者( donor的名词复数 )；献血者；捐血者；器官捐献者

参考例句：

• Please email us to be removed from our active list of blood donors. 假如你想把自己的名字从献血联系人名单中删去，请给我们发电子邮件。
• About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

11 proponents   

n.（某事业、理论等的）支持者，拥护者( proponent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Reviewing courts were among the most active proponents of hybrid rulemaking procedures. 复审法院是最积极的混合型规则制定程序的建议者。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法
• Proponents of such opinions were arrested as 'traitors. ' 提倡这种主张的人马上作为“卖国贼”逮捕起来。 来自辞典例句

12 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

13 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

14 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

16 antibiotic   

adj.抗菌的；n.抗生素

参考例句：

• The doctor said that I should take some antibiotic.医生说我应该服些用抗生素。
• Antibiotic can be used against infection.抗菌素可以用来防止感染。