VOA标准英语2011--Super Bowl XLV Host North Texas Promotes

The southern city of Dallas, Texas, has transformed from an oil and cotton town into an international city that is now home to several large businesses. This weekend, Dallas, along with neighboring Arlington and Fort Worth, will host hundreds of thousands of football fans for the biggest event in American sports - the Super Bowl. The North Texas host committee, which is promoting the region, is competing with inclement¹ weather that is dominating the news.
There is a saying that everything is bigger in Texas. And ahead of Super Bowl XLV on February 6, 2011, that includes the weather.
A bitter cold front dropped rain and snow on an area that usually experiences moderate temperatures in February. The storm created a layer of ice that made walking, and driving to and from Super Bowl venues³ treacherous⁴.
Sports radio host Corby Davidson is concerned about how the weather will shape first impressions of visitors to the first Super Bowl hosted in North Texas.
"I don't know if it is a great place to visit," said Davidson. "It's not like you're going to Miami or New Orleans or San Francisco, where there are tangible⁵ things to do. But the weather here, obviously, is killing⁶ it. It's going to be three days of the coldest weather this city has seen in 45 years. It's worst-case scenario⁷ here."
"This only happens about every 30 years or so," said Jim Oberwetter, President of the Dallas Regional Chamber⁸ of Commerce. His organization hopes that despite the weather, hundreds of thousands of football fans and media from around the world will get to know modern Dallas.
"We've gone through several evolutions here," said Oberwetter. "At first, we were very western. Then it became very cotton-oriented. Then oil came to Dallas, and we became a very oil-friendly place. Then that industry tended to move to Houston, and now we are a very diverse industrial area - commercial more than heavy industry."
Nearby Arlington, Texas, also is trying to make the most of the Super Bowl experience, but without help from the weather.
Jay Burress is the President of the Arlington Convention and Visitors Bureau, which helps promote the city of Arlington, and he said, "This is the storm of modern weather history, and there is not a lot you can do about it."
Arlington is the home of Cowboys Stadium - the newly constructed, $1.3 billion venue² where the Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers will face off during the Super Bowl on Sunday.
And as one of the biggest, most expensive sporting venues in the United States, the stadium lives up to Texas' reputation. With 105,000 people expected to attend Super Bowl XLV at Cowboy Stadium, this year's event will host the largest Super Bowl crowd on record.
"This is the world stage right now so we can show that we can host the biggest events," said Burress.
Arlington, along with its neighboring Fort Worth and Dallas, also host the biggest companies, according to North Texas Host Committee Vice⁹ President Tony Fay.
"But outside the New York-New Jersey¹⁰ area, no place in America has more corporate¹¹ home offices than this area," said Fay. "We have an enormous number of Fortune 500 companies that now call this area home."
In addition to hosting multinational¹² companies and the Super Bowl, the region also is home to notable figures. Former U.S. President George W. Bush is building his Presidential Center on the grounds of Southern Methodist University in Dallas.
Cities planning to host future Super Bowls likely will face cold weather, as well. Indianapolis, Indiana, is up next, with New York and New Jersey hosting the event in 2013. That venue, the New Meadowlands Stadium, is outdoors, and offers no protection from the elements.
But rain or shine, ice or snow - the game will go on in North Texas this Sunday. Cowboys Stadium has a retractable¹³ roof.

1 inclement   

adj.严酷的，严厉的，恶劣的

参考例句：

• The inclement weather brought forth a host of diseases.恶劣的天气引起了种种疾病。
• They kept on going,even through the inclement weather.即使天气恶劣，他们还是执意要去。

2 venue   

n.犯罪地点，审判地，管辖地，发生地点，集合地点

参考例句：

• The hall provided a venue for weddings and other functions.大厅给婚礼和其他社会活动提供了场所。
• The chosen venue caused great controversy among the people.人们就审判地点的问题产生了极大的争议。

3 venues   

n.聚集地点( venue的名词复数 )；会场；（尤指）体育比赛场所；犯罪地点

参考例句：

• The band will be playing at 20 different venues on their UK tour. 这个乐队在英国巡回演出期间将在20个不同的地点演出。
• Farmers market corner, 800 meters long, 60 meters wide livestock trading venues. 农牧市场东北角，有长800米，宽60米的牲畜交易场地。 来自互联网

4 treacherous   

adj.不可靠的，有暗藏的危险的；adj.背叛的，背信弃义的

参考例句：

• The surface water made the road treacherous for drivers.路面的积水对驾车者构成危险。
• The frozen snow was treacherous to walk on.在冻雪上行走有潜在危险。

5 tangible   

adj.有形的，可触摸的，确凿的，实际的

参考例句：

• The policy has not yet brought any tangible benefits.这项政策还没有带来任何实质性的好处。
• There is no tangible proof.没有确凿的证据。

6 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

7 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。

8 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

9 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。

10 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

11 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

12 multinational   

adj.多国的，多种国籍的；n.多国籍公司，跨国公司

参考例句：

• The firm was taken over by a multinational consulting firm.这家公司被一个跨国咨询公司收购。
• He analyzed the relationship between multinational corporations and under-developed countries.他分析了跨国公司和不发达国家之间的关系。

13 retractable   

adj.可收回的；可撤消的；可缩回的；可缩进的

参考例句：

• a knife with a retractable blade 弹簧刀
• So, any thoughts of what you want for the retractable bed kid? 那么想为那个睡折叠床的小子做什么？ 来自电影对白