英国新闻听力 132

California’s Supreme¹ Court has upheld a ban on marriages between couples of the same sex. However, it’s also ruled for the ban shouldn't apply retrospectively to the 18,000 couples who were married after June, 2008 when gay marriage was legal. Peter Bowes reports from Los Angeles.

Last November, California voters passed an amendment² to the state's constitution defining marriage as being between a man and a woman. Gay rights campaigners argue that the ban on same-sex marriage was put on the ballot³ paper improperly⁴ and change the law to such a dramatic degree that it needed the approval of state legislators. The Supreme Court rejected that premise⁵ and ruled that the decision of the electorates⁶ should stay in force. A large crowd of demonstrators outside the court house in San Francisco voiced their anger at hearing the news.

The United States is working to build the unified⁷ response to what's being seen as North Korean defiance⁸ over its nuclear program. The American Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been speaking to her counterparts in Russia, China, Japan and Australia after North Korea tested a powerful nuclear device and fired several missiles from its territory. Our state department correspondent Kim Ghattas reports.

Washington is pushing for a strong UN Security Council response that will make clear to North Korea there are actual consequences to its actions. US officials again repeated Pyongyang would have to pay a price if it continued on the path it was on. The Obama administration said it was pleased so far with the very swift and decisive response from the international community, including from Russia and China. But it's still unclear what sort of measures might be taken now, whether North Korea respond to them and how far China is willing to go in pressuring North Korea with which it shares a border.

Researchers have predicted the significant increase in a number of young people with diabetes⁹, particularly in China and India over the next 15 years. Electron Neil Smith has more on the findings published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The study says trends of diabetes in Asia are influenced by everything from genetic¹⁰ and cultural differences to smoking and rates of urbanization. But its most startling findings relate to age and weight while in the west type 2 diabetes are often seen as a consequence of diet, age and obesity¹¹. Researchers say those affected¹² in Asia are relatively¹³ young and less likely to be struggling with weight gain. Citing figures from the International Diabetes Federation¹⁴, researchers say while people from Japan to Pakistan generally have lower rates of fat. They can have similar or even higher prevalence of diabetes than in the west.

The UN Security Council has voted unanimously to extend the mandate¹⁵ to the African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia for 8 months and to provide more stable financing. The British Ambassador to the UN said this would cost between 200 and 300 million dollars. The Council also urged member states to fund and provide training for the Somali military and police so that they can play a greater role in providing security.

World News from the BBC.

An investigation¹⁶ by the Human Rights Commission in Afghanistan into an American air strike earlier this month says 97 civilians¹⁷, many of them children were killed. These figures contradict the figures supplied by the American military who said 20 to 30 civilians may have been among up to 90 people killed during a battle in the southwestern province of Farah.

President Obama has officially nominated the Appeals Court Judge Sonia Sotomayor to fill the vacancy¹⁸ on the US Supreme Court. If confirmed by the Senate, she will be the first Hispanic person to serve. Mr. Obama described Judge Sotomayor as an inspiring woman who possessed¹⁹ a wealth of experience. She will be the second female judge in the current Supreme Court and only the third woman judge in the court's history. Correspondents say Judge Sotomayor has been a judge for longer than any other justice confirmed to the Supreme Court in the past 70 years.

A survey of consumers in the United States suggests that people are beginning to feel more confident about the state of the economy. The monthly consumer confidence index jumped to its highest levels for 8 months. From New York, Greg Walt reports.

The figures indicate that people are feeling a bit better about their personal financial prospects²⁰. And they triggered a big rise in share prices on Wall Street. But it doesn't mean that US shoppers have suddenly returned to their free spending ways. Unemployment continues to rise and other figures out today showed that house prices remain a depressed²¹ levels.

The Governor General of Canada Michaelle Jean has helped to butcher and eat a seal in what's being perceived as a demonstration²² of solidarity²³ with seal hunters. Ms. Jean who is touring the Canadian Arctic used a traditional Inuit knife to help get the animal then ate a raw slice of its heart which she said was delicious. She refused to say whether her actions have been a direct response to a proposed European Union ban on the import of most Canadian seal products. A spokesperson for the EU’s Environment Commissioner²⁴ refused to comment on the Jean's actions saying they were too bizarre to acknowledge.

1 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

2 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

3 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

4 improperly   

不正确地，不适当地

参考例句：

• Of course it was acting improperly. 这样做就是不对嘛！
• He is trying to improperly influence a witness. 他在试图误导证人。

5 premise   

n.前提；v.提论，预述

参考例句：

• Let me premise my argument with a bit of history.让我引述一些史实作为我立论的前提。
• We can deduce a conclusion from the premise.我们可以从这个前提推出结论。

6 electorates   

全体选民( electorate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The assembly's 15 seats have electorates as small as 190. 大会的15个议席只有很少的190选民参加。
• Restricting hedge funds is something they can sell to their electorates. 限制对冲基金是他们能够向选民兜售的东西。

7 unified   

(unify 的过去式和过去分词)； 统一的； 统一标准的； 一元化的

参考例句：

• The teacher unified the answer of her pupil with hers. 老师核对了学生的答案。
• The First Emperor of Qin unified China in 221 B.C. 秦始皇于公元前221年统一中国。

8 defiance   

n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗

参考例句：

• He climbed the ladder in defiance of the warning.他无视警告爬上了那架梯子。
• He slammed the door in a spirit of defiance.他以挑衅性的态度把门砰地一下关上。

9 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。

10 genetic   

adj.遗传的，遗传学的

参考例句：

• It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
• Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。

11 obesity   

n.肥胖，肥大

参考例句：

• One effect of overeating may be obesity.吃得过多能导致肥胖。
• Sugar and fat can more easily lead to obesity than some other foods.糖和脂肪比其他食物更容易导致肥胖。

12 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

13 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

14 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

15 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

16 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。

17 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

18 vacancy   

n.（旅馆的）空位，空房，（职务的）空缺

参考例句：

• Her going on maternity leave will create a temporary vacancy.她休产假时将会有一个临时空缺。
• The vacancy of her expression made me doubt if she was listening.她茫然的神情让我怀疑她是否在听。

19 possessed   

adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的

参考例句：

• He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
• He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。

20 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。

21 depressed   

adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的

参考例句：

• When he was depressed,he felt utterly divorced from reality.他心情沮丧时就感到完全脱离了现实。
• His mother was depressed by the sad news.这个坏消息使他的母亲意志消沉。

22 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

23 solidarity   

n.团结；休戚相关

参考例句：

• They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
• The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。

24 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。