英国新闻听力 英国发现1.4亿年古老蜘蛛网

The American Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been holding a day of separate talks with Israeli and Palestinian leaders, but there's been no sign of any progress on resuming Middle East peace negotiations¹. Both sides refused to give any ground on the contentious² issue of Israeli settlement building in the occupied territories. Our State Department correspondent Kim Ghattas is traveling with Mrs. Clinton.

A flying visit for Hillary Clinton to the Middle East but an essential one. She held talks first with the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Abu Dhabi, and then came to Jerusalem to meet Israeli official here. Her visit comes after several weeks of political turmoil³. Mrs. Clinton was probably not looking for a breakthrough, but she did want to make sure that the progress keeps moving forward even at a snail's pace instead of sliding backwards⁴. But there is no sign for now that either the Palestinians or the Israelis are ready to compromise on their position.

President Hamid Karzai's challenger in the Afghan presidential elections Doctor Abdullah Abdullah is expected to announce on Sunday whether he will take part in a run-off vote. There's been persistent⁵ speculation⁶ that Doctor Abdullah is planning to pull out of the contest next weekend because of a row over electoral fraud. President Karzai has rejected Doctor Abdullah's demand that a number of election officials who presided over the first round be dismissed following widespread allegations of corruption⁷.

Three of the politicians who played key roles in the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 and the transformation⁸ of Europe two decades ago have met at a ceremony in Berlin to mark the occasion. The former American President George Bush Senior, now 85, praised his former Soviet⁹ counterpart Mikhail Gorbachev for what he called his steadfastness¹⁰ in the face of immense challenges.

"Today we have a fuller appreciation¹¹ of tremendous pressure Mikhail faced in that pivotal time. And through it all he stood firm which is why he'll also stand tall when the history of our time in office is finally written."

The Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has addressed his ruling National Democratic Party as speculation grows that his son Gamal is being groomed¹² to succeed him, but the president gave no hint about any plans he may have for the succession. Yolande Knell¹³ reports from Cairo.

"Just for you" is the slogan of this year's NDP conference. And President Mubarak laid out his party's plans for much needed improvements to health care, education and transportation, hoping to please ordinary Egyptians. His party is sensitive to opposition¹⁴ claims it is elitist and that the success of its recent economic reforms have failed to help the poor. Still though this hour-long speech contained no clue to the answer of the biggest question dominating the Egyptian political scene, who will succeed Mr. Mubarak in office.

Yolande Knell reporting.

The diplomat¹⁵ who will lead a United Nations inquiry¹⁶ into last month's violence in Guinea says he hopes to turn over a new page in the country's history. In a BBC interview Mohamed Bedjaoui, an Algerian former judge of the International Court of Justice, said he hoped to shed light on a shooting of protesters in the capital Conakry and ensured that those responsible were brought to justice. Human rights groups say that more than 150 people were killed when troops fired on the anti-government demonstration¹⁷. Guinea's military government says only 57 people died.

Scientists in Britain say one of the oldest known examples of a spider web has been discovered in amber¹⁸ deposits found on the southern coast of England. Writing in the Journal of the Geological Society, the researchers say the amber dates back 140 million years. Jason Caffrey reports.

The amber containing the ancient spider's web was unearthed¹⁹ near Britain's southcoast by 2 enthusiasts²⁰ hunting for dinosaur²¹ fossils. Scientists from Oxford²² University say it's the earliest known example of a spider's silk web. The spider that spun²³ the preserved threads which are just 1 millimeter long was closely related to the modern garden spider. Researchers say it left small sticky droplets²⁴ along the thread to catch pray, but it was the droplets themselves which became trapped inside amber resin²⁵ which oozed²⁶ out of a prehistoric²⁷ tree along with insect droppings and microbes which date from the age of dinosaurs²⁸.

Dozens of police officers are being deployed²⁹ in the American city of Boulder³⁰, Colorado, to stop an unusual Halloween party. The annual event, which is known as the Naked Pumpkin³¹ Run, involves people stripping off, putting a hollowed pumpkin over their heads and running naked through the city centre. Last time some 150 people turned out. However this year the police have vowed³² to arrest them for indecent exposure. Civil rights groups say many of those arrested could end up on the register of sexual predators³³, normally reserved for convicted child molesters and rapists.

美国国务卿希拉里·克林顿与以色列和巴勒斯坦领袖举行了一天的单独会谈，但是没有迹象表明恢复中东和平谈判取得任何进展。在有争议的以色列定居点建设问题上，双方均拒绝做出让步。我们的国务院记者Kim Ghattas与希拉里同行。

希拉里·克林顿飞往中东进行访问是必须的。她首先在阿布扎比与巴勒斯坦总统阿巴斯进行了会谈，随后前往耶路撒冷会见以色列官员。她的出访发生在政治混乱几周之后。希拉里可能没有寻求获得任何突破性进展，但是她确实希望保证能够继续取得即使是非常缓慢的进展，而不是停滞不前。但是现在没有任何迹象表明巴勒斯坦或者以色列准备对其立场作出妥协。

预期阿富汗总统卡尔扎伊的竞争对手阿卜杜拉将在周日宣布是否参加二次角逐的投票。关于阿卜杜拉是否会因为选举欺诈而退出下周末举行的选举一直存在猜测。阿卜杜拉曾要求解雇第一次选举中导致大规模欺诈的选举官员，而现任总统卡尔扎伊拒绝了该要求。

在1989年柏林墙的倒塌和20年前的欧洲变革中起到关键作用的三位政治家在柏林参加了纪念仪式。现年85岁的前美国总统布什称赞前苏联领袖戈尔巴乔夫面临巨大挑战时的坚定不移。

“今天我们更加充分地认识到了戈尔巴乔夫在那个关键时期所面临的巨大压力。在经历所有这些压力时，他一直顽强屹立，这就是为什么在书写我们这一代的历史时他一直巍然屹立的原因。”

埃及有人猜疑总统之子Gamal将继任总统之位，随着这种猜疑不断滋长，总统穆巴拉克向执政党民族民主党发表讲话。但是他没有透漏任何关于继任的计划。Yolande Knell在开罗报道。

“只是为了你”是今年民族民主党会议的标语。总统穆巴拉克宣布了其党派对亟需改进的医疗教育和交通方面的计划，希望取悦埃及普通民众。反对派声称自己才是精英，最近经济改革的成功并没有帮助穷人。民族民主党对这种说法非常敏感。然而，长达一小时的总统讲话并没有回答埃及政界最为关心的问题，谁将接任穆巴拉克成为总统。Yolande Knell报道。

领导联合国小组对上月几内亚发生的暴力事件进行调查的外交官表示，他希望该国历史能够翻开新的一页。在BBC的采访中，前国际正义法庭阿尔及利亚法官Mohamed Bedjaoui表示，他希望能够弄清上月几内亚首都科纳克里安全力量向抗议者开枪事件，确保相关责任人被绳之以法。人权组织称，军队向反政府示威人群开枪导致150多人死亡。而几内亚军事政府则表示死亡人数只有57人。

英国科学家称在英格兰南部海岸的一枚琥珀中发现最古老的蜘蛛网。在地质学社会期刊中，研究人员称，该蛛网有1.4亿年的历史。Jason Caffrey报道。

这枚包含古老蜘蛛网的琥珀由两位寻找恐龙化石的热心人在英国南部海岸附近发现。牛津大学科学家称，这是最古老的蜘蛛网样本。该蛛网只有1mm长，这种蜘蛛与现代的花园蜘蛛没有太大差异。研究人员称，蜘蛛在蛛网上留下黏膜，用于捕获猎物，但是正是由于黏膜才使得这个蛛网被困在史前树木分泌的松香中，与昆虫和微生物一起形成琥珀。这个琥珀可以追溯到恐龙时代。

数十名警察被派往科罗拉多州波尔德地区，制止一场异常的万圣节派对。这个一年一度的盛事为“南瓜裸奔”，人们脱去衣服，头上顶着挖空的南瓜在市中心裸奔。上次有150多人参加。然而，今年警方宣誓以不恰当暴露罪逮捕他们。民权组织称，许多被逮捕者可能被控性犯罪，这种罪名通常是留给虐童者和强奸犯的。

1 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

2 contentious   

adj.好辩的，善争吵的

参考例句：

• She was really not of the contentious fighting sort.她委实不是好吵好闹的人。
• Since then they have tended to steer clear of contentious issues.从那时起，他们总想方设法避开有争议的问题。

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 backwards   

adv.往回地，向原处，倒，相反，前后倒置地

参考例句：

• He turned on the light and began to pace backwards and forwards.他打开电灯并开始走来走去。
• All the girls fell over backwards to get the party ready.姑娘们迫不及待地为聚会做准备。

5 persistent   

adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的

参考例句：

• Albert had a persistent headache that lasted for three days.艾伯特连续头痛了三天。
• She felt embarrassed by his persistent attentions.他不时地向她大献殷勤，使她很难为情。

6 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

7 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

8 transformation   

n.变化；改造；转变

参考例句：

• Going to college brought about a dramatic transformation in her outlook.上大学使她的观念发生了巨大的变化。
• He was struggling to make the transformation from single man to responsible husband.他正在努力使自己由单身汉变为可靠的丈夫。

9 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

10 steadfastness   

n.坚定，稳当

参考例句：

• But he was attacked with increasing boldness and steadfastness. 但他却受到日益大胆和坚决的攻击。 来自辞典例句
• There was an unceremonious directness, a searching, decided steadfastness in his gaze now. 现在他的凝视中有一种不礼貌的直率，一种锐利、断然的坚定。 来自辞典例句

11 appreciation   

n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨

参考例句：

• I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
• I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。

12 groomed   

v.照料或梳洗（马等）( groom的过去式和过去分词 )；使做好准备；训练；（给动物）擦洗

参考例句：

• She is always perfectly groomed. 她总是打扮得干净利落。
• Duff is being groomed for the job of manager. 达夫正接受训练，准备当经理。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 knell   

n.丧钟声；v.敲丧钟

参考例句：

• That is the death knell of the British Empire.这是不列颠帝国的丧钟。
• At first he thought it was a death knell.起初，他以为是死亡的丧钟敲响了。

14 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

15 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

16 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

17 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。

18 amber   

n.琥珀；琥珀色；adj.琥珀制的

参考例句：

• Would you like an amber necklace for your birthday?你过生日想要一条琥珀项链吗？
• This is a piece of little amber stones.这是一块小小的琥珀化石。

19 unearthed   

出土的（考古）

参考例句：

• Many unearthed cultural relics are set forth in the exhibition hall. 展览馆里陈列着许多出土文物。
• Some utensils were in a state of decay when they were unearthed. 有些器皿在出土时已经残破。

20 enthusiasts   

n.热心人，热衷者( enthusiast的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A group of enthusiasts have undertaken the reconstruction of a steam locomotive. 一群火车迷已担负起重造蒸汽机车的任务。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Now a group of enthusiasts are going to have the plane restored. 一群热心人计划修复这架飞机。 来自新概念英语第二册

21 dinosaur   

n.恐龙

参考例句：

• Are you trying to tell me that David was attacked by a dinosaur?你是想要告诉我大卫被一支恐龙所攻击？
• He stared at the faithful miniature of the dinosaur.他凝视著精确的恐龙缩小模型。

22 Oxford   

n.牛津（英国城市）

参考例句：

• At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
• This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。

23 spun   

v.纺，杜撰，急转身

参考例句：

• His grandmother spun him a yarn at the fire.他奶奶在火炉边给他讲故事。
• Her skilful fingers spun the wool out to a fine thread.她那灵巧的手指把羊毛纺成了细毛线。

24 droplets   

n.小滴( droplet的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Droplets of sweat were welling up on his forehead. 他额头上冒出了滴滴汗珠。 来自辞典例句
• In constrast, exhaled smoke contains relatively large water droplets and appears white. 相反，从人嘴里呼出的烟则包含相当大的水滴，所以呈白色。 来自辞典例句

25 resin   

n.树脂，松香，树脂制品；vt.涂树脂

参考例句：

• This allyl type resin is a highly transparent, colourless material.这种烯丙基型的树脂是一种高度透明的、无色材料。
• This is referred to as a thixotropic property of the resin.这种特性叫做树脂的触变性。

26 oozed   

v.（浓液等）慢慢地冒出，渗出( ooze的过去式和过去分词 )；使（液体）缓缓流出；（浓液）渗出，慢慢流出

参考例句：

• Blood oozed out of the wound. 血从伤口慢慢流出来。
• Mud oozed from underground. 泥浆从地下冒出来。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

27 prehistoric   

adj.（有记载的）历史以前的，史前的，古老的

参考例句：

• They have found prehistoric remains.他们发现了史前遗迹。
• It was rather like an exhibition of prehistoric electronic equipment.这儿倒像是在展览古老的电子设备。

28 dinosaurs   

n.恐龙( dinosaur的名词复数 )；守旧落伍的人，过时落后的东西

参考例句：

• The brontosaurus was one of the largest of all dinosaurs. 雷龙是所有恐龙中最大的一种。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Dinosaurs have been extinct for millions of years. 恐龙绝种已有几百万年了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

29 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。

30 boulder   

n.巨砾；卵石，圆石

参考例句：

• We all heaved together and removed the boulder.大家一齐用劲，把大石头搬开了。
• He stepped clear of the boulder.他从大石头后面走了出来。

31 pumpkin   

n.南瓜

参考例句：

• They ate turkey and pumpkin pie.他们吃了火鸡和南瓜馅饼。
• It looks like there is a person looking out of the pumpkin!看起来就像南瓜里有人在看着你！

32 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

33 predators   

n.食肉动物( predator的名词复数 )；奴役他人者（尤指在财务或性关系方面）

参考例句：

• birds and their earthbound predators 鸟和地面上捕食它们的动物
• The eyes of predators are highly sensitive to the slightest movement. 捕食性动物的眼睛能感觉到最细小的动静。 来自《简明英汉词典》