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2005-7-23 13:10 csxdy

美国之音英语新闻标准听力


[RM=400,2,true]http://www.360abc.com/class/voa/standard/040212.mp3[/RM]
Members of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research, a global network of farm improvement centers, met in Nairobi, Kenya, this week to launch a new campaign to solve the worldwide problem of water scarcity.

Scientists at the meeting warned that fewer and fewer people around the globe will have access to clean, safe water unless governments and humanitarian groups take action to address the problem. Mark Rosegrant is an official with the US based International Food Policy Research Institute, one of 16 centers run by the Consultative Group. Mr. Rosegrant says that the water crisis is especially serious in sub-Saharan Africa, where water infrastructure and management systems can’t keep up with household demand.

“The number of people without access to clean water will increase dramatically – from 150-million to 400-millin by 2025. On the food side we are seeing that we are likely to have an increase in the number of malnourished children in sub-Saharan Africa, from 33-million now to 37-million in 2025.

The meeting in Nairobi brought together national and international research institutions under the Challenge Program, an initiative designed to find ways of improving the productivity of water in environmentally sustainable ways.

Research projects will be spread over nine major river basins in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and South America. The river basins will serve as living laboratories, where the impact of the research can be closely monitored.

In October 50 research proposals were approved for funding under the Challenge Program. Close to 60 million dollars has already been committed by donors to the program. The goal is to raise 60 million dollars more during the first six-year research phase.

2005-7-23 13:11 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/class/voa/standard/040205.mp3[/rm]It has been more than 20 years since scientists first identified HIV, the human immuno-deficiency virus that causes AIDS. According to a new report released by the United Nations and the World Health Organization to mark World AIDS Day on December 1st, an estimated 40-million people are living with HIV today, including 2.5 million children under the age of fifteen. The global AIDS epidemic shows no signs of abating. Five million more people became infected with HIV and three million died this year alone, the highest mortality rate yet. It has become impossible to ignore the economic impact of the disease worldwide, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, and increasingly in Asia. Generations are being wiped out, their children left orphaned. Pharmaceutical companies, initially reluctant to give up profits from expensive AIDS-combating drugs to lower-cost generic drug producers, have begun relenting under international pressure. Most big firms are making their drugs available at affordable rates in southern Africa, where the need is greatest. Significant progress has been made in the treatment of those infected with HIV, substantially prolonging their lives. But despite the billions of dollars invested in years of AIDS research, there's still no vaccine and no cure. And as VOA's Jessica Berman reports, scientists still can’t predict when an AIDS vaccine might become available.

2005-7-23 13:13 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/class/voa/standard/040204.mp3[/rm]Global leaders have opened a major conference aimed at providing poor countries with the information and communication technologies they need to boost their development and economic prospects. Representatives from 170 countries are expected to adopt a plan of action giving the developing world greater access to the new technologies. Participants agree that steps must be taken to bridge the so-called digital divide.They have come up with a document, which they believe will move toward achieving this end. But, as Swiss President Pascal Couchepin says, talk is cheap and unless political leaders follow through on their promises, little will be accomplished.He speaks through the interpreter,"It is not enough to simply set forth objectives. We must attain these goals. But if the rich countries do not keep their promises, unfortunately they will plunge poor countries into despair."

2005-7-23 13:14 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/seabow/s030616.mp3[/rm]The International Labor Organization says 246 million children, or one out of six in the world, are involved in child labor. 73 million of these working children are less than 10 years old. The ILO says the vast majority of children work in agriculture, where they may be exposed to dangerous chemicals and equipment. Another hazardous occupation is fishing. One little girl reads a letter sent to the ILO about the situation of a young boy from Cameroon, called Thomas. She says his impoverished family sold him to work for a fisherman. "He was forced to fish in spite of the dangers involved," she said. "Thomas had to fish twice a day, starting as early as 3:00 a.m. until 5:00 a.m., and then had to go fishing again at 5:00 p.m. until 12:00 midnight. Sometimes when they were on the river, he felt like jumping into it and ending it all." The International Labor Organization says three quarters of working children are engaged in what it calls the worst forms of child labor. These include trafficking, armed conflict, slavery, sexual exploitation, and hazardous work. Queen Rania of Jordan is in Geneva to, as she says, shine the spotlight on child trafficking. She calls this one of very worst forms of abuse, a crime that affects millions of children and their families worldwide. She says that every year, tens of thousands of children are lured or abducted from their homes and forced into sweatshop labor or sexual exploitation. This brutal trade in human lives, she notes, is a billion-dollar industry "They are sent to mines, plantations, factories, or into domestic labor," she said. "They are put on the street, to scavenge, sell or beg on behalf of their jailers. In war-torn countries, boys may be forced into battle, or made to clear landmines. Girls as young as 10 have been sold as comfort girls for soldiers. And countless more have been driven into prostitution and pornography."

2005-7-23 13:15 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/seabow/s030609.mp3[/rm]International aid donors meeting in Tokyo have so far offered more than two billion dollars to help rebuild Sri Lanka after two decades of civil war. The money is being pledged even though the peace process has been thrown into question after the Tamil Tiger rebels pulled out of on-going negotiations. Host nation Japan opened the two-day gathering on reconstructing war-torn Sri Lanka by pledging $1 billion over the next three years. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi stressed this money needs to be spent wisely. He says the international community must devise detailed plans to support the reconstruction effort. He adds that this will provide a model for resolving ethnic conflicts and terrorism elsewhere in the world and provide hope to suffering people everywhere.

2005-7-23 13:16 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/seabow/s030602.mp3[/rm]French President Jacques Chirac, host of this year's Group of Eight summit, says his country will triple its contribution to a global fund to fight AIDS to nearly $180-million a year, and he is calling a U.S. initiative to grant $15-billion over five years to combat the disease "historic." Mr. Chirac and President Bush, who clashed over the U.S.-led war in Iraq, are being polite to each other, although tensions left over from the war still linger. The two presidents smiled and shook hands, as they met for the first time since the Iraq war ended. And, when asked at a news conference if their relationship had been hurt by their differences, Mr. Chirac admonished reporters not to believe everything they have heard. He said his brief exchange with Mr. Bush was very positive. But diplomats in Evian say the rift over Iraq can be glossed over at the summit, but will not be healed anytime soon. They say neither government will acknowledge the validity of the other's position on the war.

2005-7-23 13:17 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/seabow/s030531.mp3[/rm]China's president, Hu Jintao, is scheduled to attend a conference Saturday connected to the G8 meeting in Evian, France. The visit is an important step for China. The stop in Evian is part of the new Chinese president's first overseas outing, and it is the first-ever direct involvement by a Chinese president in events surrounding the G8. China has turned down past invitations to attend G8 events, but this year's invitation from France comes at a time when both countries have expressed strong support for a multi-polar power structure in the world. China will not be part of the G8 summit itself, but will attend a pre-summit meeting on Saturday, along with leaders from Brazil, India, Mexico, and South Africa. Jean-Pierre Cabestan is the director of the French Center for Research on Contemporary China. He calls China's inclusion a "diplomatic nicety." "The whole issue would be about China's participation in the real G8 meeting, and the transformation of the G8 into a G9," he said. The G8 is not a formal institution and it does not enforce policies. Its members, however, exert control over most international capital via the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. China is the only permanent member of the United Nations' security council that is not part of the G8. Yet, it was recently admitted to the World Trade Organization, and exports about $325 billion worth of goods per year.

2005-7-23 13:18 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/seabow/s030527.mp3[/rm]Chinese President Hu Jintao has arrived in Russia on his first foreign trip since he became president in March. Mr. Hu will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin and other top officials at the start of an extended trip. After arriving in Moscow, Hu Jintao said he chose Russia as his first foreign destination to underscore the importance of bilateral ties between Russia and China. Mr. Hu spoke to reporters at the official residence of President Putin outside Moscow. The two leaders are to hold formal talks beginning tomorrow. One of the key issues is a long-discussed plan to construct a major new pipeline to bring crude oil from Siberia to China. The two leaders are also expected to talk about the spread of SARS, or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, which has mostly affected China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

2005-7-23 13:19 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/seabow/s030509.mp3[/rm]Secretary of State Colin Powell is preparing to leave Washington late Friday for his first talks with Israeli and Palestinian leaders in the region in more than a year. Mr. Powell will press for action on the international "road map" that aims for a settlement of the Middle East conflict within three years. The Powell mission comes against a background of optimism in Washington that changed circumstances, including the seating of a reform-minded Palestinian cabinet headed by new Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, have enhanced prospects for a settlement. That was reflected in comments by President Bush Thursday at a White House meeting with the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa al-Thani. "Of course we're going to make progress. Yes, we'll make progress. Absolutely. And the reason why we'll make progress is that the Palestinian Authority has now got a leader, in the Prime Minister, who has renounced violence. And he's said he wants to work with us to make the area more secure," he said. "He understands what we know, that a peace process will proceed if and when there is a concerted effort to fight violence."

2005-7-23 13:21 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/seabow/s030429.mp3[/rm]U.S. securities regulators have approved a settlement forcing 10 of Wall Street's biggest investment firms to pay $1.4 billion to settle allegations that they issued biased stock ratings to attract investment-banking business. The final settlement, one of the largest penalties ever imposed by securities regulators, is based on a tentative agreement reached in December 2002 between regulators and some of the nation's most prominent investment firms, including Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and Merrill Lynch. The investigation of the firms was spearheaded by New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, who says e-mail evidence demonstrates that the firms knowingly supplied investors with fraudulent market analyses. "Analysts, back and forth, derided their own research," he said. "Brokers knew the research was worthless. We have seen how, in the lower levels of these investment houses, it was clearly understood that this research should not have been relied upon."

2005-7-23 13:22 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/seabow/s030426.mp3[/rm]Regarding Saddam Hussein, President Bush has told a U.S. television network that there is some evidence to suggest the Iraqi leader is dead, perhaps killed in an airstrike in one of his command bunkers on the opening night of the war. Mr. Bush told NBC's Tom Brokaw that an Iraqi informant told U.S. intelligence officials that Saddam may have been killed or seriously wounded in that initial attack.
BUSH: "He felt like we got Saddam."
BROKAW: "He did?"
BUSH: "He felt like that, yes."
As for the coalition's failure so far to confirm the existence of weapons of mass destruction inside Iraq, the president says there is a lot more searching to be done. "Time and investigation will prove a couple of points," said Mr. Bush. "One, that he did have terrorist connections. And secondly, we also know that there are hundreds and hundreds of sites available for hiding the weapons, and that we have only looked at about 90 of those sites, so far."

2005-7-23 13:24 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/seabow/s030423.mp3[/rm]The number of SARS cases in Asia continues to climb as new cases arise in both China and Hong Kong. Officials say that measures to protect healthcare workers have not been adequate. Under the new spirit of openness, China on Tuesday reported more than 150 new cases of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome. The death toll also rose by at least five, to hit 97. In total China reports more than 2,100 SARS cases, about half the global total, of least 4,000 patients. There have been at least 230 SARS deaths worldwide. Liu Jianchao, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman calls Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome "a catastrophe new to mankind." Despite the rise in cases, Chinese authorities have backed away from an earlier decision to cancel most of the seven day holiday to mark Labor Day on May 1. Workers will have five days off. The government, however, is discouraging people from traveling over the holiday, to avoid spreading the disease to impoverished rural areas, where health care facilities are limited.

2005-7-23 13:25 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/seabow/s030417.mp3[/rm]Ten new countries signed a treaty in Athens Wednesday paving the way for their entry into the European Union. Europe's leaders gathered in Athens promising to heal the rift that long separated the continent's western nations from the countries of the former Soviet Union. Seven of the 10 new members have emerged from behind what used to be the Iron Curtain and many delegates at the ceremony spoke of bridging at last a historic east-west divide that had split Europe since World War II. But for most observers, it is more recent divisions over the war on Iraq that are the greatest preoccupation for participating nations. And the 15 current EU members plus the 10 entrants acknowledged as much in a statement declaring their collective commitment to facing up to our global responsibilities in the wake of the war in Iraq.

2005-7-23 13:26 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/seabow/s030415.mp3[/rm]"This was the Titanic that lies in its grave at the bottom of the North Atlantic. You approach it with incredible reverence" The narrator is actor Bill Paxton who he gets to experience what he only pretended to do as the treasure-hunting salvage diver in the blockbuster Titanic. He joins director James Cameron on the unprecedented voyage to film the sunken ocean liner more than four kilometers below the surface: "There is no script. We don't know what we're going to see. We don't know what we're going to encounter" The expedition is based aboard the Russian ship Akademik Mistislav Keldysh the world's largest research vessel; and diving in its twin deep-sea submersibles [Mir I and II], they used specially designed three-dimensional cameras to tour around and inside what's left of the fabled ocean liner that sank on its maiden voyage after striking an iceberg on April 14, 1912. There were not enough lifeboats for everyone onboard and more than 1,500 people died in what is arguably the most famous shipwreck in world history.

2005-7-23 13:28 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/seabow/s030410.mp3[/rm]The International Monetary Fund has trimmed down its earlier forecast for global economic growth. The IMF foresees sluggish economic growth hampered by war and mysterious disease. The IMF said this year the world economy has been unsettled by uncertainty surrounding the conflict with Iraq. IMF chief economist Kenneth Rogoff says the uncertainty affected oil prices, stock markets, and consumer and business confidence. "As near-term uncertainties surrounding the war recede, the question of the hour is whether present sputtering global growth will suddenly lunge ahead into an immediate strong recovery. "Perhaps," he said. "But our base line here is for subnormal growth of 3.2 percent in 2003 rising to 4.1 percent in 2004."

2005-7-23 13:30 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/seabow/s030408.mp3[/rm]New outbreaks of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome in Hong Kong and Vietnam in recent days are dashing hopes the spread of the disease is slowing in Asia. A new outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome emerged in Vietnam after 10 days in which no new cases were reported. The World Health Organization says that, at first, the outbreak was limited to a hospital in Hanoi. "There is a new cluster in Vietnam," said Peter Cordingley, the Asia Pacific WHO spokesman. "A guy who was in Ninh Binh province, he visited his daughter at the French hospital. A female doctor in Ninh Binh has also fallen ill." So far, there have been at least 60 cases in Vietnam's capital, including four deaths.

2005-7-23 13:32 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/seabow/s030407.mp3[/rm]North Korea is warning the United Nations Security Council not to consider sanctions against it and says it will not recognize any resolutions on its nuclear program that the world body might approve. Four days before the U.N. Security Council is scheduled to discuss North Korea's nuclear program, Pyongyang is clarifying its views on the matter. A North Korean foreign ministry spokesman, quoted by the state-run Korean Central News Agency, says just bringing up the issue is "a prelude to war." The statement adds that the U.S. led war on Iraq has proven to Pyongyang that only a "tremendous military deterrent force" can help it avert war with the United States. The North Korean government has repeatedly accused the United States of preparing to attack the country once it finishes the war in Iraq.

2005-7-23 13:33 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/seabow/s030404.mp3[/rm]The WHO points to smoking and obesity as the two major preventable causes of tumors.Ten million new cancer cases were diagnosed around the world in 2000, and six million people died of the disease. A new World Health Organization report says the caseload could grow to at least 15 million by 2020, with nine million deaths. And that's a conservative estimate. WHO cancer research director Paul Kleihues says last year's International Cancer Congress is Oslo heard more dire predictions of a doubling of cancer incidence by 2020. "It is not unrealistic. However, we prefer a conservative estimate because we do not want to scare people," he said. "Even with a conservative number, it's scary enough."

2005-7-23 13:34 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/svoa030211.rm[/rm]Russia will soon get a chance to look at the closely-guarded source code for Microsoft's Windows computer operating system. This comes as part of the computer company's policy to allow governments to improve the security of the software they use. Russia has reached an agreement with Microsoft which will allow it access most of the blueprints to the Windows source code. Officials say this will help them to decide whether to fully adopt the operating system.

2005-7-23 13:35 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/sbbc030126.rm[/rm]The United States has begun a mass smallpox vaccination programme for almost half a million medical staff. Among the first being vaccinated were healthy workers who will treat anyone affected by exposure to smallpox in the bio-terrorism attack. The start of the vaccination programme came as the new Department of Homeland Security and its head, Tom Ridge, formally began work.

2005-7-23 13:36 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/svoa030121.rm[/rm]The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries holds an emergency meeting in Vienna Sunday to discuss an increase in the production of crude oil. Delegates from the 11 member nations of OPEC gather for the second time in a month at their Vienna headquarters. The cartel is expected to increase its official output quota, some officials speculate, by one million, or 1.5 million barrels per day, to make up the shortfall caused by a six-week-old strike in Venezuela, a major supplier to the United States. Saudi Arabia wants a bigger increase, but Algeria and Libya are pressing for a million barrel per day increase, which would represent about a four percent rise over the current output of 23 million barrels per day.

2005-7-23 13:38 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/sbbc030110.rm[/rm]Lawmakers have proposed a bipartisan plan to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, which scientists believe cause global warming. But the proposal faces opposition from the Bush administration. Senator John McCain, an Arizona Republican, and Senator Joe Lieberman, a Connecticut Democrat, are sponsoring the plan, which would require U.S. power plants and industries to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. Mr. McCain unveiled the proposal at a hearing of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, which he chairs. "The United States is responsible for 25 percent of the worldwide greenhouse gas emissions. It is time for the United States to do its part to address this global problem,"

2005-7-23 13:39 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/svoa030104.rm[/rm]In his first public appearance of the year, President Bush leveled criticism at North Korea's leaders, but said he still believes that the dispute of Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons program can be resolved peacefully. VOA`s Paulo Watson reports Mr. Bush talked to reporters invited to tour his Texas ranch.

2005-7-23 13:40 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/sbbc021227.rm[/rm]Iraq says that after a month of inspections,the United Nations has found nothing to support American and British allegations that the country has any weapons of mass destruction.The Iraqi army officer in charge of the liaising with the U.N. inspectors says 188 sites are now being inspected and nothing have been found.

2005-7-23 13:41 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/svoa021221.rm[/rm]The United States says Iraq has failed to comply with the United Nations resolution calling on it to disarm or face serious consequences. U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said Tuesday the Iraqi weapons declaration constitutes "material breach" of the U.N. resolution.

2005-7-23 13:42 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/sbbc021215.rm[/rm]The White House has described as “regrettable” the announcement by North Korea that it’s reactivating nuclear power facilities. The White House spokesman says the decision flew in the face of North Korea’s commitment to dismantle its nuclear programme. Japan and South Korea have also voiced strong misgivings. In a statement Seoul said it was concerned the lifting of the nuclear freeze would increase tension on the Korean Peninsula. The North Korean news agency said the move was needed to generate power after United States, Japan, South Korea decided last month to suspend oil shipments.

2005-7-23 13:43 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/svoa021207.rm[/rm]U.N. officals say it may take several weeks to examine Iraq’s declarations of its weapons programs, which Baghdad says it will hand over Saturday. Iraqi U.N.ambassador says the report will contain thousands of pages,some of which will require translation from Arabic. Iraq plans to hand over the document one day ahead of the U.N. imposed deadline.

2005-7-23 13:44 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/sbbc021121.rm[/rm]The Anglican Church in Canada and the government have agreed that they’ll jointly compensate indigenous people who were mistreated in boarding schools during the last century. The government will meet most of the cost but the church will still find about 16(60?) million U.S. dollars. The lawsuits alleged that aboriginal children were deprived of their language and culture at the schools and often sexually abused. From Montreal Mike Fox reports. Most native American communities are blighted by social problems that, many people there now argue, result from the suffering caused by the schools.

2005-7-23 13:45 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/svoa021129.rm[/rm]US immigration authorities are holding a thirteen-year-old Cuban boy rescued from a boat off the Florida coast after an apparent failed attempt to smuggle him into the United States. At least five others including the alleged smuggler, the boy's father, jumped over board and swam ashore, leaving the boy behind. All of them were arrested.

2005-7-23 13:47 csxdy

[rm=400,2,0]http://www.360abc.com/2003/seabow/wish/sbbc021127.rm[/rm]Senior United Nations’ officials in Bosnia are warning of a dramatic increase in the trafficking of women through the Balkans and into Western Europe. The UN mission, which has responsibility for dealing with the issue, is due to hand over the role to the European Union at the end of the year. But the head of the UN’s anti-trafficking unit in Bosnia says the EU was not taking the issue seriously enough.

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