英语听力

[Homework]SENEWS 2011-03-18
本帖最后由 RUCRosa 于 2011-3-18 10:24 编辑

It is 15:30 universal time. I'm Steve Ember
in Washington.
1. The Japanese military is using high pressure fire hoses to direct water on nuclear reactors damaged in the earthquake last week. The move is an effort to cool dangerously hot fuel rods. Earlier Thursday, the Japanese government used helicopters to drop water into the reactors. That method was halted one day earlier because of radiation danger to the helicopter pilots. Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa said the government had decided it could not deny the operation any further. But television pictures showed much of the water being blown away from the target, and the water drop was suspended after four attempts. Workers are only able to stay at the power center for a few minutes at a time because of high radiation levels. Early radiation readings suggested the first helicopter water drops had little effect.
2. Cold weather and a lack of fuel and power have slowed effects to help earthquake and tsunami victims in Japan. Rescuers are making their way into communities that have been cut off for almost a week because of damaged roads and ports. Thursday, the national police reported that the earthquake and tsunami killed more than 5,300 people. More than 9,300 others are still missing. Japanese media said more than 2,000 people are known to be trapped and waiting to be rescued.
3. Forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar el-Qaddafi have moved closer to the rebel-held city of Benghazi. Libyan state television reported Thursday that government forces captured the eastern port of Zuwaytinina. It said the forces were nearing Benghazi. Libyan rebels say they have fought back government attempt to bomb the city. Witnesses also reported government air strikes on the nearby town of Ajdabiya which the rebels also control. At the United Nations, the Security Council is to vote Thursday on the resolution to establish a no-fly area over Libya. The Arab League supports the resolution. The measure is meant to protect Libyan civilians from air raids.
4. Yemeni government supporters have attacked opposition activists in the capital Sana’a. At least eight people were wounded. Witnesses say the activists were attacked earlier Thursday by a group, they described as pro-government thugs. They say the attackers fired weapons and carried knives.
Yemeni police fired tear gas during the attack. Thousands of Yemeni protesters have been camping in Sana’a for weeks. They are demanding an immediate end to the 32-year rule of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
5. Opposition lawmakers in India say the government should resign following reports that the ruling party made secret payments to lawmakers. The ruling party is accused of paying the lawmakers for their support of a vote in 2008. The opposition called for the resignation Thursday after an Indian newspaper published an American diplomatic cable. The cable came from the wikile

aks website. The document reported details of discussing between an American diplomat and a congress party aid. It said the party paid more than two million dollars each to four lawmakers to support Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in a vote against the government.
You’re listening to the news in VOA Special English.
6. China says it will go forward with execution of three Philippine nationals jailed on drug trafficking charges. China’s ambassador to the Philippines said Thursday the idea of pardoning the two women and one man has been rejected. The ambassador said no date is set for execution. China’s top court agreed last month to deny the execution after Philippine vice president Jejormar Binay went to Beijing to speak in support of the three nationals. Philippine officials have said the three should be given long prison sentences.
7. Pakistani officials say an American missile strike has killed 38 suspected militants in the northwest tribal area, along the Afghan border. Intelligence officials said four missiles struck the Datta Khel area of North Waziristan on Thursday. Some officials said the target was a house where militants were meeting. Others said the missiles struck a tribal meeting that included some Taliban members. Taliban commander Hafiz Gul Bahadur is said to control the area. Militants often enter Afghanistan from Pakistan to fight international forces. Officials said Taliban commander Sharabat Khan was at the meeting, but it is not clear if he was killed in the area strike.
8. The North Atlantic Treat Organization says its forces have killed more than 40 militants during separate operations in southern and eastern Afghanistan. The coalition announced Thursday that at least 30 militants have been killed in the Helmand province in the past two days. NATO said the aim of the offensive is to break up drug and weapons trafficking and to destroy roadside bombs. On Wednesday, coalition forces killed more than ten suspected militants in the eastern Afghan province of Kunar. The coalition said there had been no reports of civilian death from either operation.
9. And Iran has launched a rocket that is designed to carry living creature into space. Iran’s IRNA news agency reported Thursday that the Kavoshgar-4 rocket was test launched on Tuesday. The rocket is designed to carry monkeys into space in future launches. IRNA said the space agency aimed to test the performance of the launch pad, the engine and the electronics system. Iran tested an earlier version of the rocket last year. Some western countries have expressed concerns about Iran’s space program, they fear the technology used to launch satellites could be used to launch nuclear weapons.
And now briefly here again is the major news of the hour in Special English.
The Japanese military is using high pressure fire hoses to direct water on nuclear reactors damaged in the earthquake last week. The move is an effort to cool dangerously hot fuel robs. Forces loyal to

Libyan leader Muammar el-Qaddafi have moved closer to the rebel-held city of Benghazi. And opposition lawmakers in India say the government should resign following reports that the ruling party made secret payments to lawmakers.
That’s the news in VOA Special English, from Washington, this has been Steve Ember.




























Homework
This is the VOA special english education report.
in Giles county virginia, the school board has removed displays of the ten commandments from its schools.the county thought that posting the ten commandments along with the first part of US constitution might help increase moral values.There had been few complains since the comments were posted almost twelve years ago. But recently, civil libertis groups has threaten to take the county to court if it did not remove them, the US supreme court permits the ten comments to be a public property so long as the goal of displaying them is not to gain support for religion.but in 1980, the court ruled that the ten commandments can not be shown in public school because displaying them shows support of religion by the government.Jewish and Christian holy books say the ten commandments were law given to the prophet Moses by god. Many americans believe the country was found on Judeo-Christian believes. Many of their belieives are expressed in the ten commandments. there are a set of rules against murder, stealing, cheating aduiltery and profanity.Doglas L is a professional of constitutional law at the University of Vegenia school of law in Charlottesville.he says the supreme court has ruled the government must be neutral about the religious teachng.
putting up the ten commandmments is a way to premotes the Jewish and christian scription is violation of the constitution. especially if they do it in public school.parents are entitled to send their children to school without having to proselytized somebody having somebody else religion
officials in Giles County , say they may put the ten commandments back on the walls of schools. but will add other historical documents.Pro Lacark says, It is possible that might satisfy a court.
whether or not they can keep the ten commandments on the wall that depends on how serious and plausible the things they put it around are. whether it looks like a gennine secular display that happens to include the ten commandments, or whether it looks like just an excuse that putting this riligious documents on the wall
since the supreme court ruling in 1980.more conservative justices have been appointed to the court. Pro says, some of conservative believe this new more consevative court might be willing to once again permit the ten commandments to display in public school.
and that is the VOA.