英语听力精选进阶版 8240

An American-born child, who was thought to have been the first to be cured of HIV as a baby, has had the virus detected in her blood once again. The girl's case has raised hopes of a cure. Steve Jackson reports. “The girl was born in Mississippi to a mother with HIV and was given aggressive treatment in the first two days of her life. At 18 months she stopped being given medication to suppress the virus, but remained free of HIV for more than two years afterwards. This was unprecedented¹ and led medical experts to hope that the technique could be used much more widely to cure babies born with HIV. Doctors treating the girl said the reemergence of the virus was a disappointing turn of events, but the treatment may still have limited the development of HIV and the need for anti-retroviral drugs.”

美国第一位被治愈的艾滋病儿童如今病情复发。从现在女孩的情况来看被重新治愈的希望很大。Steve Jackson报道。

该儿童出生在密西西比，通过母婴传染感染艾滋，在她出生后的两天内就进行了及时的治疗。在她18个月大的时候停止了药物治疗，并维持了两年多的正常健康值。出现这种情况也给了科学家极大的希望，科学家称希望有更多的科学技术能应用到治疗婴儿患者的实践中。主治医生说病情复发对他们来说确实让人难受，但事实证明治疗确实对艾滋病毒有一定的控制，抗病毒药物也起到了一定的作用。

American Secretary of State John Kerry has arrived in Afghanistan to try to resolve tensions over the disputed presidential elections that are threatening to destabilize the country. Aleem Maqbool reports. “The fact John Kerry has made his trip at such short notice is an indication of just how concerned the US is of Afghanistan descending² into post-election turmoil³. Preliminary results in the second round of the Presidential poll appeared to show a huge turnaround with Ashraf Ghani, a former World Bank economist⁴, now well ahead of former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah. To many, such a reversal of fortunes as compared to the first round of voting can only have been achieved through widespread election fraud amid renewed fears the country could quite literally⁵ be divided. Secretary Kerry's already threatened a suspension of financial and security support to Afghanistan if anyone seized power illegally.”

美国国务卿John Kerry空降阿富汗试图缓解由选举给国家带来的安全威胁。Aleem Maqbool报道。

事实上John Kerry之所以把行程时间安排如此之短是因为他主要想看一看阿富汗选举之后的动荡对美国波及多大。第二轮选举初步阶段显示，选举在前世界银行经济学家Ashraf Ghani和前外交部长Abdullah Abdullah之间有巨大转变。对大多数人来说，与第一轮选举有如此巨大的转换，只能代表着在第一轮选举中徇私舞弊现象严重，让人们不得不感到这个国家被分裂的威胁。国务卿Kerry已经料想到，无论谁非法掌握了政权都会给阿富汗的财政和安全造成巨大威胁。

President Obama says the United States is prepared to facilitate a cessation of hostilities⁶ in Gaza between Israel and Hamas. More than 80 people are reported of being killed there in the Israeli air attacks launched in response to Palestinian rocket fire across the boarder. Tom Esslemont reports from Washington. “President Obama's offer of America's help to end the escalating⁷ violence is a sign of how unstable⁸ the situation has become, and how much he and other world leaders want it to end. In November 2012 during the last phase of intense hostilities between Hamas and Israel, the United States gained the support of Egypt to broker⁹ a ceasefire, but there is still a great deal of pessimism¹⁰ that an imminent¹¹ solution can be struck. When Benjamin Netanyahu was asked earlier about the prospects¹² of a ceasefire, he said simply that it wasn't even on the agenda.”

奥巴马总统说，美国已经做好了救助一直处于以色列和哈马斯之间备受争议的加沙地带的准备。报道称已经超过80人在以巴战火中丧生。Tom Esslemont在阿富汗报道。

奥巴马援助计划的开始可以告诉我们现在战火局势非常紧张，也表明了世界各国领导人急切希望双方和解的心情。在2012年11月，以色列和哈马斯抗争的随后阶段，美国获得来自埃及的帮助促成停火，但是双方怒火依旧高涨，和解计划仍需继续。在早前Benjamin Netanyahu接受采访问及此问题时，他表示说，解决好以巴之间的矛盾遥遥无期。

The German government has asked the official who represents the US intelligence services in the country to leave. The government spokesman in Berlin said the move had resulted from the current investigation¹³ by the German federal prosecutor¹⁴ into the activities of the US agencies. There has been no immediate¹⁵ comment from Washington; but the White House stressed the importance of its relationship with Berlin.

德国政府要求美国情报人员离开德国。政府发言人在柏林发表讲话表示要对美国此举动成立由联邦检查官组成的调查小组对美国情报机构进行调查。华盛顿方面拒绝回应此举动，但白宫方面称对其维护柏林联系有重要作用。

World News from the BBC.

A court in the United States has sentenced a Californian businessman to 15 years in prison for economic espionage¹⁶. Walter Liu was also fined ＄28 million for selling trade secrets from the American firm DuPont to a state-owned Chinese company. The judge said Mr. Liu had been motivated by greed when he sold the technology needed to make a white pigment¹⁷ used in a list of everyday products.

利佛尼亚商人因经济犯罪被当地法庭判予15年监狱生活。同时Walter Liu还因向中国一家国有公司出卖商业机密被处以2800万美元惩罚。法官称，Mr. Liu是受利益驱使出卖公司机密的。

And mounting evidence that pro-Russian separatists have abducted¹⁸ hundreds of people during the conflict in eastern Ukraine, the human rights organization says there is what it calls graphic¹⁹ and compelling proof of torture and severe beatings. David Stern reports from Kiev. “Amnesty International said both sides had engaged in kidnapping, but pro-Russian militants²⁰ carried out the bulk of instances. The separatists have targeted political activists²¹, protesters and journalists. Those abducted were often subjected to stomach-churning, beatings and torture, an Amnesty official said. The pro-government forces also committed a smaller number of abuses.”

越来越多的证据表明亲俄分裂势力已经在与乌克兰东部的冲突中绑架了成百上千的人质。人权组织称，有确凿的证据表明他们对人质进行了残忍的暴行。David Stern在基辅报道。

国际特赦组织称，双方都参与了绑架，但是亲俄势力的绑架事实确凿无疑。分裂分子把政治活动分子，反对者和游客当做绑架对象。特设官员说，被绑架的受害者都遭受了虐心残酷的酷刑。亲俄势力还对外表示称只用了一小部分惩罚。

Police in Brazil said that the man at the center of an investigation into the illegal sale of the football World Cup tickets has fled to escape arrest. Ray Whelan, a director of a FIFA partner company arranging World Cup hospitality, and 11 others were indicted²² earlier on Thursday by a Brazilian judge. But when the police tried to apprehend²³ Mr. Whelan at his Cope Havana Hotel, he disappeared. The British businessman was arrested last week, but later released again. He denies the charges.

巴西警方称中间那个人因参与了非法销售世界杯门票正试图逃跑。Ray Whelan是这次世界杯举办方合作伙伴FIFA的经理，另外11个犯罪嫌疑人已经于周四受到巴西法官的指控。当警察试图在他的 Cope Havana酒店进行逮捕时发现Mr. Whelan已经逃跑。英国商人在上周被逮捕，之后又被释放，他否认这些指控。

London with the artifact fetching more than ＄27 million. Egypt's ambassador to Britain has condemned²⁴ the sale of the 4000-year-old Sekhemka statue by the English company of Northampton, saying it's unethical and breaches²⁵ international principles.

伦敦因为手工艺品赚取了高大2700万美元的利益。埃及驻英国大使馆谴责英国北安普顿公司出售4000年历史的谢凯母卡雕像，称其违背道德和国际原则。

BBC News.

Turmoil.混乱   graphic 形象的；表图的；绘画的   compelling   引人注目的；激发兴趣的；强制的

Sekhemka statue  谢凯母卡雕像灰岩质地的谢凯姆卡(SekhemKa)雕像，其完成时间约在公元前2400年，两个坐姿人物的形象清晰、庄严、优雅，无一不显现出古埃及艺术的强大。

An American-born child, who was thought to have been the first to be cured of HIV as a baby, has had the virus detected in her blood once again. The girl's case has raised hopes of a cure. Steve Jackson reports. “The girl was born in Mississippi to a mother with HIV and was given aggressive treatment in the first two days of her life. At 18 months she stopped being given medication to suppress the virus, but remained free of HIV for more than two years afterwards. This was unprecedented and led medical experts to hope that the technique could be used much more widely to cure babies born with HIV. Doctors treating the girl said the reemergence of the virus was a disappointing turn of events, but the treatment may still have limited the development of HIV and the need for anti-retroviral drugs.”

American Secretary of State John Kerry has arrived in Afghanistan to try to resolve tensions over the disputed presidential elections that are threatening to destabilize the country. Aleem Maqbool reports. “The fact John Kerry has made his trip at such short notice is an indication of just how concerned the US is of Afghanistan descending into post-election turmoil. Preliminary results in the second round of the Presidential poll appeared to show a huge turnaround with Ashraf Ghani, a former World Bank economist, now well ahead of former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah. To many, such a reversal of fortunes as compared to the first round of voting can only have been achieved through widespread election fraud amid renewed fears the country could quite literally be divided. Secretary Kerry's already threatened a suspension of financial and security support to Afghanistan if anyone seized power illegally.”

President Obama says the United States is prepared to facilitate a cessation of hostilities in Gaza between Israel and Hamas. More than 80 people are reported of being killed there in the Israeli air attacks launched in response to Palestinian rocket fire across the boarder. Tom Esslemont reports from Washington. “President Obama's offer of America's help to end the escalating violence is a sign of how unstable the situation has become, and how much he and other world leaders want it to end. In November 2012 during the last phase of intense hostilities between Hamas and Israel, the United States gained the support of Egypt to broker a ceasefire, but there is still a great deal of pessimism that an imminent solution can be struck. When Benjamin Netanyahu was asked earlier about the prospects of a ceasefire, he said simply that it wasn't even on the agenda.”

The German government has asked the official who represents the US intelligence services in the country to leave. The government spokesman in Berlin said the move had resulted from the current investigation by the German federal prosecutor into the activities of the US agencies. There has been no immediate comment from Washington; but the White House stressed the importance of its relationship with Berlin.

World News from the BBC.

A court in the United States has sentenced a Californian businessman to 15 years in prison for economic espionage. Walter Liu was also fined ＄28 million for selling trade secrets from the American firm DuPont to a state-owned Chinese company. The judge said Mr. Liu had been motivated by greed when he sold the technology needed to make a white pigment used in a list of everyday products.

And mounting evidence that pro-Russian separatists have abducted hundreds of people during the conflict in eastern Ukraine, the human rights organization says there is what it calls graphic and compelling proof of torture and severe beatings. David Stern reports from Kiev. “Amnesty International said both sides had engaged in kidnapping, but pro-Russian militants carried out the bulk of instances. The separatists have targeted political activists, protesters and journalists. Those abducted were often subjected to stomach-churning, beatings and torture, an Amnesty official said. The pro-government forces also committed a smaller number of abuses.”

Police in Brazil said that the man at the center of an investigation into the illegal sale of the football World Cup tickets has fled to escape arrest. Ray Whelan, a director of a FIFA partner company arranging World Cup hospitality, and 11 others were indicted earlier on Thursday by a Brazilian judge. But when the police tried to apprehend Mr. Whelan at his Cope Havana Hotel, he disappeared. The British businessman was arrested last week, but later released again. He denies the charges.

And the controversial auction²⁶ of an ancient Egyptian statue has taken place in London with the artifact fetching more than ＄27 million. Egypt's ambassador to Britain has condemned the sale of the 4000-year-old Sekhemka statue by the English company of Northampton, saying it's unethical and breaches international principles.

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 descending   

n. 下行 adj. 下降的

参考例句：

• The results are expressed in descending numerical order . 结果按数字降序列出。
• The climbers stopped to orient themselves before descending the mountain. 登山者先停下来确定所在的位置，然后再下山。

3 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。

4 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

5 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

6 hostilities   

n.战争；敌意(hostility的复数)；敌对状态；战事

参考例句：

• Mexico called for an immediate cessation of hostilities. 墨西哥要求立即停止敌对行动。
• All the old hostilities resurfaced when they met again. 他们再次碰面时，过去的种种敌意又都冒了出来。

7 escalating   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的现在分词 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• The cost of living is escalating. 生活费用在迅速上涨。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The cost of living is escalating in the country. 这个国家的生活费用在上涨。 来自辞典例句

8 unstable   

adj.不稳定的，易变的

参考例句：

• This bookcase is too unstable to hold so many books.这书橱很不结实，装不了这么多书。
• The patient's condition was unstable.那患者的病情不稳定。

9 broker   

n.中间人，经纪人；v.作为中间人来安排

参考例句：

• He baited the broker by promises of higher commissions.他答应给更高的佣金来引诱那位经纪人。
• I'm a real estate broker.我是不动产经纪人。

10 pessimism   

n.悲观者，悲观主义者，厌世者

参考例句：

• He displayed his usual pessimism.他流露出惯有的悲观。
• There is the note of pessimism in his writings.他的著作带有悲观色彩。

11 imminent   

adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的

参考例句：

• The black clounds show that a storm is imminent.乌云预示暴风雨即将来临。
• The country is in imminent danger.国难当头。

12 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

13 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。

14 prosecutor   

n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人

参考例句：

• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。
• The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

15 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

16 espionage   

n.间谍行为，谍报活动

参考例句：

• The authorities have arrested several people suspected of espionage.官方已经逮捕了几个涉嫌从事间谍活动的人。
• Neither was there any hint of espionage in Hanley's early life.汉利的早期生活也毫无进行间谍活动的迹象。

17 pigment   

n.天然色素，干粉颜料

参考例句：

• The Romans used natural pigments on their fabrics and walls.古罗马人在织物和墙壁上使用天然颜料。
• Who thought he might know what the skin pigment phenomenon meant.他自认为可能知道皮肤色素出现这种现象到底是怎么回事。

18 abducted   

劫持，诱拐( abduct的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（肢体等）外展

参考例句：

• Detectives have not ruled out the possibility that she was abducted. 侦探尚未排除她被绑架的可能性。
• The kid was abducted at the gate of kindergarten. 那小孩在幼儿园大门口被绑架走了。

19 graphic   

adj.生动的，形象的，绘画的，文字的，图表的

参考例句：

• The book gave a graphic description of the war.这本书生动地描述了战争的情况。
• Distinguish important text items in lists with graphic icons.用图标来区分重要的文本项。

20 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

21 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》

22 indicted   

控告，起诉( indict的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The senator was indicted for murder. 那位参议员被控犯谋杀罪。
• He was indicted by a grand jury on two counts of murder. 他被大陪审团以两项谋杀罪名起诉。

23 apprehend   

vt.理解，领悟，逮捕，拘捕，忧虑

参考例句：

• I apprehend no worsening of the situation.我不担心局势会恶化。
• Police have not apprehended her killer.警察还未抓获谋杀她的凶手。

24 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

25 breaches   

破坏( breach的名词复数 )； 破裂； 缺口； 违背

参考例句：

• He imposed heavy penalties for breaches of oath or pledges. 他对违反誓言和保证的行为给予严厉的惩罚。
• This renders all breaches of morality before marriage very uncommon. 这样一来，婚前败坏道德的事就少见了。

26 auction   

n.拍卖；拍卖会；vt.拍卖

参考例句：

• They've put the contents of their house up for auction.他们把房子里的东西全都拿去拍卖了。
• They bought a new minibus with the proceeds from the auction.他们用拍卖得来的钱买了一辆新面包车。