英语听力精选进阶版 7486

In an unprecedented¹ address to both houses of the British parliament, President Obama has said that Europe and the United States remain the "greatest catalysts²" for global action. Speaking to hundreds of politicians and dignitaries in the 1,000-year-old Westminster Hall, Mr Obama said that Britain and America were the nations most willing to stand up for the values of tolerance³ and self-determination, and both countries should promote democracy around the world.

"The time for our leadership is now. It was the United States and the United Kingdom and our democratic allies that shaped a world in which new nations could emerge and individuals could thrive. And even as more nations take on the responsibilities of global leadership, our alliance will remain indispensable to the goal of a century that is more peaceful, more prosperous and more just."

Our political correspondent Rob Watson was listening to President Obama's speech.

In the grand setting of parliament's Westminster Hall, President Obama delivered a speech that above all was defence of the West and its relevance⁴ to the modern world. Despite the rise of China, India and other emerging powers, President Obama said the world still needed the leadership of the US and its European allies because of their enduring and universal values. In a grand sweep of current global challenges from Afghanistan to the stirrings of democracy in the Middle East, the president promised US support and talked of better times ahead after a decade of wars, terrorism and recession.

Diplomats⁵ say there's increasing support for the French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde as head of the International Monetary⁶ Fund. She's attempting to succeed Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who resigned after being charged with sexual assault. Andrew Walker looks at her chances of success.

The French finance minister has the support of her own government and is likely to be the single candidate of the European Union. If she is, that would give her nearly a third of the total in the weighted voting system the IMF's board uses. If the United States can be persuaded to back her, that would bring nearly half the total votes, making her a very difficult candidate to beat. The US administration has not yet publicly backed anybody. The Treasury⁷ Secretary Tim Geithner has described Ms Lagarde as a very capable candidate, but he said the same about the other person who's come forward - the Mexican central bank governor Agustin Carstens.

Reports from Yemen say fighting between the security forces and tribesmen has prompted the closure of the airport serving the capital Sanaa. The clashes, the latest between supporters and opponents of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, are said to have broken out close to the airport. Flights were diverted to Aden in the south of the country. Hundreds of Yemenis have been trying to flee Sanaa after three days of fighting and over 40 killed.

World News from the BBC

A judge in the United States has ruled that a man accused of a shooting rampage in Arizona in which a congresswoman was seriously wounded is not mentally competent to stand trial. The decision means the criminal case against Jared Lee Loughner is now on hold indefinitely. Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was shot in the head in the attack in January. Six other people were killed.

The man challenging Sepp Blatter for the presidency⁸ of Fifa has denied allegations of bribery⁹ in the latest scandal to hit world football's governing body. Mohamed Bin¹⁰ Hammam and three other officials will face a disciplinary hearing on Sunday. Gordon Farquhar reports.

Further details have emerged of the claims made by Chuck Blazer against two of his executive committee colleagues, Jack¹¹ Warner and Mohamed Bin Hammam. Fifa began a formal investigation¹² after receiving a report from Blazer, including a file of information prepared by a firm of lawyers in the United States containing sworn affidavits¹³ from several members of the Caribbean Football Union. They say they were offered cash for development projects at a meeting organised by Bin Hammam and Warner as part of Bin Hammam's presidential election campaign. Bin Hammam denies wrongdoing, describing this as a tactic¹⁴ used by those who want to see Sepp Blatter re-elected as president.

At least 17 inmates¹⁵ have escaped from a jail in northern Mexico near the border with the United States. The guards raised the alarm when the prisoners failed to show up at the morning roll call. Then they discovered a big hole in the wall of the prison laundry. Further investigation revealed a long tunnel.

Demonstrators in Greece have rallied outside parliament in Athens against the government's latest austerity programme. The crowd denounced members of parliament as "thieves". Trade unions have already begun strike action against the government's plans.

A mafia boss has been arrested in Italy after nine years on the run. Police said the man, Giuseppe Dell'Aquila, was a leader of the Camorra syndicate. He was seized at a fortified¹⁶ villa¹⁷ near the city of Naples.

1 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。

2 catalysts   

n.催化剂( catalyst的名词复数 )；触媒；促进因素；有感染力的人

参考例句：

• The first catalytic converters were called conventional oxidation catalysts. 最初的转化器叫做常规氧化催化器。 来自辞典例句
• Many processes that are essential to the chemical industry use heterogeneous catalysts. 很多重要的化学工业过程就是使用多相催化剂的。 来自辞典例句

3 tolerance   

n.宽容；容忍，忍受；耐药力；公差

参考例句：

• Tolerance is one of his strengths.宽容是他的一个优点。
• Human beings have limited tolerance of noise.人类对噪音的忍耐力有限。

4 relevance   

n.中肯，适当，关联，相关性

参考例句：

• Politicians' private lives have no relevance to their public roles.政治家的私生活与他们的公众角色不相关。
• Her ideas have lost all relevance to the modern world.她的想法与现代社会完全脱节。

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 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

7 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。

8 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

9 bribery   

n.贿络行为，行贿，受贿

参考例句：

• FBI found out that the senator committed bribery.美国联邦调查局查明这个参议员有受贿行为。
• He was charged with bribery.他被指控受贿。

10 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

11 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

12 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。

13 affidavits   

n.宣誓书，（经陈述者宣誓在法律上可采作证据的）书面陈述( affidavit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The woman offered written affidavits proving that she was the widow of Pancho Villa. 这女人提供书面证书，证明自己是庞科·比亚的遗孀。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The appeal was adjourned for affidavits to be obtained. 为获得宣誓证明书，上诉被推迟。 来自口语例句

14 tactic   

n.战略，策略；adj.战术的，有策略的

参考例句：

• Reducing prices is a common sales tactic.降价是常用的销售策略。
• She had often used the tactic of threatening to resign.她惯用以辞职相威胁的手法。

15 inmates   

n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• One of the inmates has escaped. 被收容的人中有一个逃跑了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The inmates were moved to an undisclosed location. 监狱里的囚犯被转移到一个秘密处所。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 fortified   

adj. 加强的

参考例句：

• He fortified himself against the cold with a hot drink. 他喝了一杯热饮御寒。
• The enemy drew back into a few fortified points. 敌人收缩到几个据点里。

17 villa   

n.别墅，城郊小屋

参考例句：

• We rented a villa in France for the summer holidays.我们在法国租了一幢别墅消夏。
• We are quartered in a beautiful villa.我们住在一栋漂亮的别墅里。