BBC: Genetically Modified Food
BBC英语听力材料
When it comes to genetically modified crops, Europe is looking increasingly isolated. Outside Europe, more GM crops are being grown than ever before, with the U.S, India, China and Brazil all producing GM food. And now research scientists promise a new generation of genetically modified crops nutritionally balanced to feed the world and benefit the environment. If that’s true, could they change the European opposition to GM food?
Try to sell anything with genetically modified ingredients at this north London farmers market and I can guarantee you won’t make much money. The buzz words here are local, organic and natural. People want to know where their food comes from and they’re suspicious of intensive farm ing, let alone GM crops.
It’s horrible, you should never tamper with nature, I don’t like the idea at all. It sounds as if they’re doing experiments and horrible things just make the food go further and it’s not…it’s not natural to have thirty five crops of cauliflowers a year when it’s a winter vegetable, you k now.
Why bother? There is perfectly good food without having it genetically modified. Why take the risk?
No I don’t know anyone that feels it’s a good thing. I mean the part scientist do, you know, there’s a lot of money involved and I’m always suspicious.
They are familiar sentiments and ones you’ll hear right across Europe. I’ve been covering the GM food debate for more than ten years f or the BBC and on the surface at least, the arguments don’t seem to have moved on. But in this week’s One Planet I’ll be hearing ho w European consumers might be persuaded to learn to love GM crops and how the European Union is under pressure to relax its restrictions on GM technology.
So this is our main GM glasshouse, this suite. So each of these rooms contain a population of wheat plants, maybe a few hundred wheat plants each of which have got a different candidate gene; the gene that we’re interested in researching.
To get an idea of the sort of new crops that are being developed, I visited the government funded Rothamsted Research set in Parkland, some thirty kilometers north of London. This is the UK’s largest agricultural research center. Hugh Jones showed me around.
And this is a room that contains wheat engineered with a gene that we hope will prevent pre-harvest sprouting. A problem that occurs in some years where farmers find that in rare summers just before harvest the seeds start to sprout. They start to germinate like they should do when they’re sown again in the ground but they start to do that while they’re still on the ear and that then ruins their bread making qualities.
So really with wheat at the moment, a normal variety of wheat, you know a very wet season, you can get this problem where overgrowing becomes useless.
Yes, yeah and we’ve got a number of candidate genes where we think if we could either over express these or knock them out that we’ll stop this happening.
Did people come here expecting it to look different somehow because it’s a genetically modified wheat as opposed to just whea t.
Yeah that is often a reaction, this doesn’t look like GM wheat because it looks perfectly normal but that very much depends on the genes t hat we have transformed with, so a gene that you might hope changes the pre-harvest sprouting effect isn’t likely to be something you can see. Where as we have candidate genes where we can change the heights of plants for instance and then obviously you could tell the GM variety from the non GM.
Why do you need to genetically modify a wheat plant rather than just breed one conventionally, does it give what it want?
While, because conventional breeding is like taking two packs of cards where you shuffle together the packs of cards and then try to remove all the other cards except the one, the gene you wanted to move. GM is much more precise than that. We can take the one card out of one pack that we want to move, the candidate gene that we’re interested in. And cut that gene out from its genome and then just move that one gene exactly from the start to the end into the new variety so that you know that you don’t have any um, its called linkage drag. Other genes that you’re bringing along with your candidate gene that might have poor qualities.
Now this is just one small greenhouse and you’ve got a long row of them. And in a long ro w just on the other side of the corridor I see more wheat plants. It looks like behind this glass right here there’s even more wheat plants going on and on and on. And these are all for different things, you’ve engineered them to do different things. What sorts of things can you engineer a plant to do?
Well we’ve got a range of projects and we’ve, we are interested in bred making quality so as I mentioned earlier the business of that pre-harvest sprouting. We’ve also investigated the genes that make a str onger or weaker flower. The genes that are involved in making strong flower for bred making. We’ve got a project looking at salt tolerance, we’ve got genes that are involved in disease resistance, I mean what we’re interested in primarily is understanding gene function. GM is a tool that we’re using as research scientist to understand gene function and companies will use the same technology to make new varieties. We aren’t in the business of making both of those steps in one go so we’re really trying to und erstand what genes do and some of those genes will have important implications in making new varieties.
Hugh Jones at Rothamsted Research, one of the few places in Europe you’re likely to find genetically modified crops.
转基因食品
谈到转基因农作物，欧洲似乎越来越被孤立了。在欧洲以外，转基因农作物的培养比以往任何时候都昌盛，美国、印度、中国和巴西都在生产转基因食品。现在科研人员承诺，新一代的转基因农作物营养均衡，有益于环境。如果这是真的，他们可以改变欧洲反对转基因食品的态度吗？
在伦敦北部的农贸市场，若是试图出售任何带有转基因成分的食品，我可以向你保证你赚不了钱。这里的流行语是本地的、有机的、和纯天然的。人们想知道他们食物的来源，他们对密集耕作持怀疑态度，更不用说转基因农作物了。
转基因食品很可怕，你绝不应该违背自然，我一点也不喜欢这种主意。听起来他们好像是在做可怕的实验，目的只是为了得到更多的食品……花椰菜属于冬季蔬菜，所以你可想而知，一年中有三十五次收成是明显违背自然的。
何必呢？无须转基因就有绝好的食品。为什么还要冒险？
我认识的人都不觉得这是一件好事。我是指科学家们改变的那部分农作物基因，你知道的，其中涉及大量金钱，我始终对此持怀疑态度。
以上都是一些常见的情绪，在整个欧洲你能经常从人们口中听到。在英国广播公司，我已经做过十几年关于争论转基因食品的相关报道，至少从表面上看，争论似乎没有进展。但在这个星期的《同一个星球》节目中，我会陆续听到欧洲消费者如何被说服去接受并喜爱转基因作物，以及欧盟如何迫于压力放宽对转基因技术的限制。
这里是我们主要的转基因温室，这一整套都是。每个房间里都培植一定数量的小麦植株，大约有几百株，每株上都有一个不同的实验基因，而这种实验基因就是我们研究的对象。
为了了解目前正在研制中的最新农作物，我参观了帕克兰地区由政府资助的洛桑研究所，距离伦敦北部大约30公里。这里是英国最大的农业研究中心。休·琼斯带我参观了这里。
这个房间里培育的是带有实验基因的小麦，我们希望这种基因能阻止收获期前发芽。收获期前发芽在有些年会出现，出现时的状况是种子在宝贵的夏季收获期到来之前开始发芽。此时
种子在麦穗上，但却像刚种下去的时候一样开始发芽，这会毁坏淀粉积累的质量。
现在正是普通小麦收获的季节，你知道这个季节很潮湿，这种问题有可能会出现，如果问题出现的话，即使小麦长得很茂盛也没有收成了。
是的，我们还有许多候选基因，我们认为如果可以让这些基因特性显现出来，我们就能阻止这种情况发生。
到这里的人们期待着它看起来有点不同吗，因为相对于普通小麦来说它毕竟是转基因小麦。
是啊，这是人们通常的反应，这看起来不像是转基因小麦，因为它外型和普通小麦完全一样，但外型很大程度上取决于我们改变的基因，改变收获期前发芽问题的基因在小麦外型上不大看得出来。而我们的候选基因中有能够改变植物高度的基因，这样你就可以清楚地看到转基因品种和非转基因品种的区别。
为什么要改变小麦的基因，而不用传统方法培育小麦，这能够满足小麦的需要吗？
因为常规育种就像是把两副牌洗在一起，然后把除你想要的那张牌以外的其他所有牌都移走。转基因要精确得多。转基因就像是我们从一副牌中抽出我们想要的那张牌，即我们感兴趣的候选基因。然后将其从染色体上取下来，移到新品种上，这样做就不会产生任何的连锁累赘。即随候选基因一同移入的具有不好特质的其它基因。
这里只是一个小温室，你已经在其中种植了很长一排小麦。我看到更多的小麦种在走廊的另一边。看来玻璃背后还有更多的小麦。这些都是为了达到不同的目的而被转基因的小麦。通过改变基因，你能够让植株有什么作用？
我们现在有一系列的项目，我们对品质培育非常有兴趣，正如我刚才所说的阻止收获期前发芽的品质培育。我们也调查过使花朵更强壮或更虚弱的基因。使花朵更强壮的基因会用来做育种。我们有一个项目研究耐盐性，我们已找到抗病性强的基因，我的意思是我们主要对了解基因功能感兴趣。转基因是供我们科研人员了解基因功能的工具，公司也将使用相同的技术培育新品种。我们不可能同时做成这两件事，所以我们真正做的是了解基因功能，这些基因中有部分将对培育新品种起到重要的启示作用。
感谢洛桑研究所的休·琼斯，这个研究所是欧洲少数几个培育转基因作物的地方之一。
BBC: Hologram
BBC英语听力材料
(SOUND)
Hello, I’m Tim Marlow and this is Culture Shock. First, are you to busy ever to go to that important meeting? You can’t afford the time or the money to fly half way across the world to do business or maybe you’re just concerned about your carbon footprint. Well, how about sending a hol ogram of yourself instead?
For years, holograms, or virtual 3D images have appeared in science fiction books and films. We were promised a future, where rather that having physically to travel, we could just send a hologram to another place or country to communicate for us. And now that technology seems to have arrived making this fantasy a reality. A number of businesses have already started to use holograms as the next level alternative to video conferencing, giving the impression of a human presence on stage or in a room instead of merely linking up by telephone or video screen. And of course, celebrities are getting in on the act too; a virtual David Beckham and Manchester United Manager Alex Ferguson are just a few of those who are now being beamed in for product launches.
It sounds fascinating, doesn’t it? At least I think so. So I decided to go and try and experience this new hologram technology at first hand. I’m in the offices of MUSION, the technology company in Coven Garden, not a million miles from the opera house. But I’m sitting looking at a very d ifferent kind of stage tha t I’d
encounter in the traditional opera house. It’s just a screen, there’s flicking lights, there’s the sound of a fan and a perfo rmance of some kind, or an image of some kind is going to appear before my eyes soon enough. I’m kind of prepared for it, but in a way I’m not, I’m not really sure what I’m going to be experiencing. I’d be joined by one of the directors of MUSION, James Rock, who’s developed the hologram that’s about to play. James just explain what’s going to happen and then let’s have it happe n.
Okay Tim, what’s you’re going to see is an old theatre trick called "The Pepper’s Ghost". But delivered in a modern twist usi ng very bright video projectors, high definition video signals and a reflective medium that means you don’t see how the trick is done. So if we just queue a file then we’ll get your reaction from seeing this first clip which is a dancing girl.
Blimies! Suddenly there’s a girl. She’s scantly clad, I think I’d say. She’s dancing to some very soft music. And I have to s ay, as a tr ick, it’s pretty good. I mean it does look like there is a three dimensional human figure up there.
And actually what you’re looking at is two dimensional video but the projection system creates the illusion that the image is there in space, on the working stage. So we could have the real dancer dancing next to her holographic image and it would be pretty difficult for the audience to d ifferentiate who’s real and who’s not.
What you are saying to me is absolutely compelling and for our listeners, fortun ately they don’t have the distraction of a scantly clad girl in the background dancing. I mean I feel I’m in some kind of gentleman’s club. For reason’s of decorum, but also because I want to see the rang e of what you do, can we see something else?
Yeah, of course we can. Why don’t we see if we can find His Royal Highness Prince Charles who was beamed into a environmental confe rence in Abu Dhabi as a key note speaker. And two and a half thousand eminent world future energy people saw Prince Charles give h is address. And obviously he wasn’t there and I think his last word is "Without so much as a carbon footprint, I’ll leave you to enjoy the rest of the conference".
Well while we await His Royal presence to appear on the screen, I mean that does raise one of the broader issues about the hologram. I mean one of the uses is for business, it’s for conferencing, it’s for conference calling, it’s for meetings and so on and it does have this enviro nmental spin off. Is that one of the motivations for developing it?
It certainly has a huge application and we’re definitely moving down that route in terms of cost savings and environmental savings for business meetings. We’ve done some work with a big telecoms provider where we’ve had a real life hologram sent down an internet signal. And somebody who was in San Hose appeared on a stage in Bangalore and talked to a CEO onstage, was able to look at the audience and take questions and answers from the audience, even though they were fourteen and half thousand miles away, in real time with no delay.
Prince Charles is now here actually. Again that’s pretty life like; I mean I don’t know if you should remain seated at this p articular point.
I believe that we must use the world’s natural resources responsibly and sustai nably.
We really do believe that we’ve got new media here. This is somewhere between live theatre and actual television. Some of the teleconferencing people are talking about video phones in your home where you’ll be able to talk to your family and see t hem there.
James I presume that this technology, as all technology in its early stages, is expensive. Roughly how much would something like this cost if it became a domestic possibility?
I think it’s difficult to give you an exact cost obviously. With economies of scale and business being able to mass market things, prices will come down. This is
a top line product at the moment. There is the vision with the telecoms companies to actually put this into every house that has an internet feed and so it’s g oing
to become a mass market product certainly.
How soon then?
I’m not sure what the time scale is.
Two years? Ten years?
I would have thought within two years to five years yeah.
And inevitably, celebrity culture has to start playing a role in all of this as it seems to be a global obsession. As you and I are talking, I think this is "Girls Aloud" isn’t it? The five strong all girl band, and they’re doing their make up. They’re playing around performing as if we are look ing into their dressing ro om but they’re quite clearly aware that we’re watching them and now they’ve gone into a dance routine.
The girls performed a number in a high street shop window in South London and people were filming thinking that the girl’s we re actually there, missing their bus. It was quite, quite bizarre that job.
全息图
（声音）
大家好，这里是《文化冲击》节目，我是主持人提姆·马罗。首先，你在忙于参加那个重要的会议吗？你没有时间或者没有金钱在飞往世界各地的途中做生意，或者可能你只是关心你走过的足迹。那么送一个你自己的全息图来代替它怎么样？
近几年来，全息图或虚拟的三维图像已经出现在科幻小说的书籍和电影中。我们所承诺的未来，不是身体上的旅行，而是为了我们的沟通和交流送一个全息图到另一个地方或国家。由于科技似乎已经让这个神话变为现实，一些企业已经开始使用全息图作为未来替代视频会议的更高级的选择，全息图给出的是一个出现在舞台或是房间里的印象而不是仅仅通过电话或视频画面连接。当然，名人们也开始在这方面行动起来。虚拟的大卫·贝克汉姆和曼联的主教练阿历克斯·弗格森就是现在为了产品的推出被播送的几个人物。
听起来很有趣，不是吗? 至少我是这样认为的。因此我决定直接去尝试体验一下这个新的全息图技术。我现在是在伦敦科文花园的科技公司MUSION，在离歌剧院不到百万英里处。但是我坐在那看到的是和我以前在传统歌剧院看到的一种很不同的舞台表演。它就是一个屏幕，忽闪忽现的灯光，风扇的声音和某种表演或者某种影像一下子就出现在我的眼前。我做好了准备，但某种程度我又没有，我实际上都不确信我在体验的是什么。我只是被MUSION公司的一位董事詹姆斯·洛克邀请，他研究了全息图这种放映的技术。詹姆斯正在解释现在发生的事情，然后他会让我们知道它是怎样运作的。
好的，提姆，你现在看到的是一个被称为“彼博的幻象”的老戏剧把戏。但是通过使用很明亮的视频投影的现代技术，高清晰度视频信号和反射的媒介手段，意味着你不能明白这个把戏是怎样运作的。因此如果我们只是罗列出一个文件，我们就能得到当你看到一个跳舞女孩的首次剪辑时的反应。
啊呀! 突然出现一个女孩。她仅仅穿着衣服，我认为我想说，她伴随着非常柔和的音乐翩翩起舞。还有我不得不说，作为一个把戏，它是相当不错。我意思是说它看起来像是有一个三维人像出现在那里。
实际上你看到的是两维立体影片，但投影系统造成了错觉，以为在跳舞舞台上空中有影像，所以我们可以有真正的舞者在她的全息图像旁边跳舞，这样让观众很难分辨谁是真的谁是假的。
你所说的对我和我们的听众绝对是有吸引力的，幸运的是他们没有被一个在舞台背景跳舞的女孩分心。我意思是我感觉像在某个绅士的俱乐部一样。由于在礼仪上，也因为我想看到你们想看的范围，我们还能看到别的什么用途吗？
是的，当然能了。如果我们能知道作为关键发言人的查尔斯王子殿下出席在阿布扎比的一个环境会议上。为什么我们没看到呢？而且有25000个世界著名的未来能源人们看到查尔斯王子的发言。很明显他没有去那里，而且我认为他的最后一句话是“没有那么多的碳足迹，我让你们享受这次会议其余的部分。”
当我们等待殿下出现在屏幕上时，我的意思是关于全息图提出了一个更广泛运用的问题。我的意思可以用在商业中、大型会议、电话会议、小型会议等等。所以这就和现实的环境有所分离。这是发展这个技术的动机吗？
它肯定有广泛的应用，我们无疑是按照为商业会议节约成本和节约环境的路线走的。我们已经和一个大的电信供应商有一些业务，我们已经给互联网发送了一个真实生活的全息图的信号。在美国圣荷西小镇的一个人出现在了印度班加罗尔的舞台上同上面的总裁谈话，这个人能看到观众并能和观众互问互答，即使他们相距14500英里，在真实的时间上没有耽误延迟。
事实上查尔斯王子现在出现了，图像仍然是相当逼真。我意思是我不知道是否你仍然坐在这个特别的位置。
我认为我们必须负责任地并可持续地使用世界的自然资源。
我们真的相信我们已经有了新的媒介。这里是介于真实剧场和真实的电视之间，一些参加电信会议的人们正谈论你家乡的视频电话，通过它你能同你的家人说话也能看见他们。
詹姆斯，我推测这个技术，作为它的早期阶段的所有技术花费是昂贵的。如果它在国内的推广使用成功，粗略地估计一下需要花费多少？
我认为很难给你一个准确的花费数额。随着规模经济，它变成大量销售的产品，价格自然就会回落。现在它属于一种高端产品。和电信公司联合是有远见的，把这个产品投放到有因特网的每一户人家，这样它肯定能成为大众消费产品。
那么需要多久呢？
我不确定需要多久。
两年? 还是十年？
我想可能在两年到五年之间。
不可避免地，名人文化效应开始在它的推广中发挥作用，好像这种效应成了一种全球狂热的方式。当你和我谈的同时，我想这是“Girls Aloud”女子乐团，不是吗？由五个辣妹组成的乐团，她们正在化妆。她们要准备节目好像我们在偷窥她们的更衣室，但是她们非常清楚我们在观看她们，现在她们已经进入舞蹈程序。
女孩们在伦敦南部的高街橱窗表演，拍摄的人们会认为女孩们是真的在那里，而错过了他们的班车。这是非常、非常奇异的事情。
BBC: Diet and Human Action
BBC英语听力材料
At dinner time I had chips, bottled milk, packing crisps and these little packet biscuits and a drink of tango, orange drink.
These kinds of industrial foods is very common now because it’s easier to buy and just give the babies the food instead o f preparing everything, uh, everyday.
I like the normal food but I will like to have some junk food at sometimes, twice a week.
The industrialization of food has lead us to make unprecedented changes to human diet and unfortunately in doing so, we have made unprecedented changes to the brain’s function and environment. Because basically, what we eat is going to go directly into the blood supply.
Over the last twenty thirty years, scientists have become more and more convinced about the link between our diets and the way we behave, feel and think. At the same time, the industrialization of food has preceded a pace with little apparent consideration given to its possible impact on our brains. Previously research has suspected that the ingredients in highly processed foods, such as chemical additives were implicated in antisocial behavior for example. Now, increasingly a deficiency in the diet is seen as the bigger culprit. In this edition of the BBC Discovery program, we’ll be looking at som e of the latest evidence. Now critics argue that scientist are still foraging in the dark, the research has not yet made a convincing cast iron case linking specific individual nutrients to adverse affects on behavior and mood. And neither, is their agreement on the need for wide scale prescription of supplements, even so there is no shortage of people testifying to dramatic changes in behavior brought about by altering our diets. Bernert Gesh, from the University of Oxford is an expert in the field; he’s worked in the UK’s criminal justice system where the perpetrators of some crimes receive sentences that include a dietary prescription. Dr. Gesh recalls the remarkable case of a repeat offender who benefited from this enlightened system.
All they ever use to do was steal trucks in the early hours of the morning, the call became some what exasperated with him because on the three occasions he was released from prison, he chose to steal a truck to return home. Now we assessed him and we actually found that he had a condition known as flat curve hypoglycemia and indeed if you looked at his diet, his behavior it began to make a great deal of sense, because he was absolutely shoveling in stimulants such as coffee, sugar etc. and by the end of the day, which is when he was stealing the trucks, he, by his own admission was as high as a kite. And what was found was by giving him some supplements to improve his sugar control, he stopped offending.
But, it not just about sugar intake, there’s another major group of components of our diets which dominates the very fabric of the brain and it’s functioning. The psychiatrist, Joseph Hibbeln of the U.S National Institutes of Health has been intrigued by them since his early days at medical school.
When I was a medical student in the anthropotomy lab and a brain cut, and I held a brain, and I was looking at it and I said, what’s these stuff made of? It’s no t protein, it’s not bone, it’s not muscle, this brain is made, almost entirely of fats and lipids. So, it was not to my mind a great jump to say, well if there was a biochemical abnormality regulating the composition of the lipids in the brain the brain might not function well. And as a psychiatrist, I look at emotion and cognition and those human brain functions as a sign that the br ain’s not functioning well.
So, lipids and fats are important components of the brain. And in recent years the attention of researchers have been drawn to the essential fatty acids, essential because we can’t make them ourselves we have to have them in t he food we eat. There are two main varieties the omega-3 fatty acids, are found in fish and other kinds of seafood and green leafy vegetables. Another type the omega-6’s, are found in vegetables oils, nuts and grains, we need both of them but the balance between the two is crucial.
饮食与人类行为
晚饭时，我吃了炸薯条，瓶装牛奶，袋装薯片，还有这些小包装的饼干，喝了点tango牌饮料，还有橙汁。
这些工业食品目前非常流行，因为它们买起来更方便，直接递给孩子们吃就可以了，不必每天大费周章的准备饭菜。
我喜欢吃家常饭，但是有时我也想吃点垃圾食品，大概一周两次吧。
食品工业化已经给人类的饮食带来了空前的变革，但不幸的是，这样做让我们大脑的功能和它所处的环境也发生了空前的改变。因为，从根本上说，我们所吃的食物会直接进入我们的血液。
在过去的二三十年里，科学家们越来越确信，我们的饮食与我们的行为，感觉和思想有所联系。同时，食品工业化的过快发展让我们在考虑这种饮食变化可能对人脑产生的影响上慢了一个节拍。以往的研究者已经开始怀疑，高度加工的食品成分，比如化学添加剂，可能与个体的孤僻行为之间存在联系。现在，人们越来越相信，饮食量的不足是导致这些问题的更主要原因。在本期的BBC《探索发现》节目中，我们带您了解一些最新证据。目前评论家认为，科学家们仍然在黑暗中摸索的阶段，现有的研究并没有找到一个令人信服的铁证案例，能够证明具体哪种营养成分会对人类行为和情绪造成负面影响。他们还否定了科学家们关于人体需要全面补充各种食物的说法。即便如此，还是有很多人正在努力证实，改变饮食习惯会给我们的行为带来巨大变化。牛津大学的伯尔尼特·盖什是该领域的专家，他在英国刑事审判系统工作。在该系统中，某些刑事案件的凶手接受的审判结果中专门有一项是规定犯人必须食用指定食物。盖什博士指出，在某个重要案件中，一位多次违法的罪犯正是由于受到这一开明系统的帮助，行为得到了很大改变。
他们过去所做的是在凌晨偷卡车，鸣笛声在某种程度上把他激怒了，因为在他三次从监狱获释后，他仍然选择偷一辆卡车回家。现在，经过评估，我们发现他有一种平缓曲线低血糖症。如果你观察他的饮食和行为规律，你就会发现它们确实存在联系。因为他在咖啡，糖等食物的刺激下，一定会产生异常情绪，尤其是在一天结束的时候，也就是他偷卡车的时候，连他自己都承认，他那时精神极度高亢。通过给他补充特定的饮食，提高其对糖分的控制，他果然停止了犯罪行为。
但是，这不仅仅是糖分摄入的问题，我们的饮食中还有很多其他成分可以控制我们大脑的结构和功能。美国国家健康研究所精神病学专家，约瑟夫·希波尔恩自从早年在医疗学院学习时就对它们产生了浓厚的兴趣。
当我还是一名医疗学院的学生时，有一次在人体解剖实验室里，我拿着一个被切开的头颅。我看着它，不禁问道，它到底是由什么成分构成的呢？不是蛋白质，不是骨头，也不是肌肉，整个人脑几乎大部分结构都是脂肪和脂类化合物。于是我的脑海里灵光一闪，想到假如因为某些生物化学异常导致大脑中脂类化合物成分发生改变，那么人脑功能可能就无法正常运行。作为一名精神病学医师，我开始观察人们的情绪和认知状态，因为这些可以作为人脑功能是否正常的信号。
这样看来，脂类化合物和脂肪是大脑的重要组成成分。在最近几年里，研究人员们主要把注意力集中在最基本的脂肪酸上。说它基本是因为我们人体无法自己制造这些脂肪酸，只能通过食物来摄取。脂肪酸主要有2种形式：omega-3脂肪酸主要存在于鱼类，其他海鲜食物，以及绿色蔬菜中；另一种脂肪酸omega-6主要存在于植物油，坚果和谷类食物中。这两种脂肪酸都是人体必需的，但两者之间的平衡也是至关重要的。
BBC英语听力材料之一
BBC world news, I'm Michael Poles. The man chosen by President Bush to be his new Defense Secretary Robert Gates has told the Senate Committee that the United States is not winning in Iraq. The Senate Armed Forces Committee has unanimously approved Mr. Gates in his new post. And the full Senate is expected to endorse this later in the week. From Washington, our correspondent Justin Web.
Only weeks ago, President Bush said America was winning the war in Iraq. Asked whether he believed the US was winning, Mr. Gates responded without hesitation, "No, sir". America's course over the next two years would, he said, determine whether there could be a slow improvement or a regional conflagration. There were no rhetorical flourishes in this performance but Mr. Gates was hugely assertive. He said he didn't want the job. He was doing it because he loved his country. Once he was confirmed, all options would be on the table. Mr. Gates also distanced himself from those who might be considering military action against Iran. That would be an absolute last resort, he said. After this confident performance, Mr. Gates is certain to be confirmed in office probably this week.
American commanders in Iraq say they expect the entire country to be under Iraqi provincial control within less than a year. The senior US military spokesman Major General William Caldwell said that the command of all Iraqi army divisions should have passed from American to Iraqi control even sooner by late spring or early summer next year.
A British company says it has convincing evidence that stem cells taken from human fetuses could help stroke patients recover from brain damage. The company ReNeuron says it's preparing to apply to the United States authorities for permission to extract stem cells from the brain area of a 12 week aborted fetus and inject them into stroke victims. ReNeuron wants to produce unlimited quantities of stem cells from just one fetal tissue sample, making the process commercially viable and it believes ethically more acceptable. Joe Conner from the Stroke Association in the United Kingdom says it's an exciting prospect for sufferers.
A Third of the people have a stroke who are left with disability. And they may recover very slowly, rehabilitation may help, but they will be left with those permanent disabilityies. So for them the potential of a treatment which could really restore their mobility ,restore their ability to speak is quite amazing. You are listening to the world news from the BBC.
There has been a furious reaction by right-wing and religious groups in Israel after the Education Minister said new school textbooks should show the country's borders from before the 1967 war. Maps in Israeli textbook show territories conquered in the war including the West Bank on the Golan Heights has been part of Israel. The opposition Likud party said the decision was outrageous, it's now proposed to motion of no confidence in the government. From Jerusalem, Cachar Adler reports.
For years successive Israeli governments have criticized Palestinian authority school textbooks for speaking solely a Palestine, ignoring Israel's existence in the Middle East. Now Israel's left-wing Education Minister Yuli Tamir says it is time to reeducate Israeli children. Mr. Tamir's call to change Israeli school books is seen as a challenge to the Jewish Settling Movements, a powerful interest group here.
In Thailand the last unidentified victims of the tsunami two years ago will be buried in a few hours' time in a cemetery in one of the worst affected areas, the Andaman coast. 125 corpses which could not be identified through DNA testing or dental records are being implanted with microchips so they could be disinterred later if needed. A BBC correspondent in the region says most are thought to be illegal workers from Burma whose families would have been unable to come to Thailand to find them.
The health authorities in New York City have voted to ban a controversial food ingredient known as Trans Fats from the city's restaurants and food shops. It'll be the first American city to ban the product which can clog arteries and cause serious health problems. Restaurants will have until next July in next year to stop using the ingredient as a cooking oil. And by July 2008, they must be phased out altogether. These New Yorkers were asked for their reactions.
I think the fact that Trans Fats have been banned in New York is really the first step for New York to become a more healthy city, I really do. Well I think it's a good thing because it's healthier, I think you can get the same flavor in the same amount of cooking by not using Trans Fat oils. OK, It might even taste better. In 1970, this gotta kill you, I smoke I drink. And these things will kill you too, so two difference.
A black dress worn by the actress Audrey Hepburn in the film "Breakfast at Tiffany's" was sold at auction for over 900,000 dollars, that's 6 times the expected price. The dress made by the French designer Givenchy was part of an auction of film memorabilia in London. The proceeds will go to a charity working with the poor in India. And that's the latest news from us here at BBC world news.
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BBC世界新闻，我是Michael Poles。被布什总统新任命为国防部长的罗伯特盖茨在参议院委员会上说美国在伊拉克并没有取得胜利。参议院武装部队委员会一致同意盖茨接受部长职位。预计参议院会在本周对该决定签字生效。记者Justin Web于华盛顿报道。
仅仅在数周前，总统布什还说美国正在取得伊拉克战争的胜利，当被问到是否会相信美国正取得胜利时，盖茨毫不犹豫地回答"不，先生。"他说，美国在今后这两年里的行动将会决定是否在伊拉克会有缓慢的进步或者地区冲突。盖茨在演讲过程中并没有用到华丽的词藻相反有的是满腔的自信。他说他并不需要这份工作，他之所以接受了这个职位因为他爱这个国家。一旦自己得到认可他就会把政策公开化。盖茨还拉开了自己与那些考虑对伊朗实行军事行动的人的距离。那绝对是最后一种解决办法，他说。在这次自信的表现之后，盖茨在本周会极有可能获得这一职位。
驻伊美军指挥官说他们希望在不到一年的时间里能把伊拉克各个地区置于各个省的管理之下。美国军队高级发言人William Caldwell少将说所有伊拉克军队的指挥权应该在明年春季末或者夏季初以前甚至更早地完成从美国到伊拉克的移交过渡。
一家英国公司指出它有确凿的证据证明从人类胎儿处获得的干细胞能帮助中风病人从脑损伤中恢复过来。ReNeuron公司指出他们正在准备争取美国当局的同意以从12周大的流产的胎儿的脑部提取干细胞并把它们注射到中风患者身上。ReNeuron公司希望能通过一个胎儿组织标本培养出无限数目的干细胞，从而使该项目能在商业上有可行性，而且它在伦理方面也更容易接受。来自英国中风协会的Joe Conner说对于病人来讲这是一个让人激动的方面。
有三分之一的中风患者会且留下残疾。或许他们恢复地很慢，但即使能复原他们也许会落下永久性残疾。所以对他们来说能够恢复他们的灵活性以及说话能力的治疗潜力是很另人惊奇的。你现在收听的是BBC世界新闻。
教育部长指出新的学校教科书应标出自1967年战争以前开始的边界线。这一论断立即引起以色列右翼以及宗教组织的严重抗议。以色列教科书中的地图标示了战争中占领的区域。包括戈兰高地西岸也成了以色列的一部分。反对党利库德集团说此决定是让人无法容忍的。政府没有信心采取行动。Cachar Adler耶路撒冷报道。
数年来各届以色列政府一直批评巴勒斯坦当局在学校教科书里单独宣称只有一个巴勒斯坦而忽略了以色列在中东地区的存在。以色列的左翼教育部长Yuli Tamir说现在是重新教育以色列儿童的时候了。Tamir关于改写以色列学校教科书的呼吁对强大的利益集团-犹太复国运动来说是一个很大的挑战。
在泰国，受两年前海啸影响最大的地区安达曼海岸，最后一个尚未经过确认的受害者将会在几小时以后在一个公墓下葬。125具不能通过DNA检测或者牙齿记录得到确认的尸体都被植入了微型芯片，这样以后若有需要他们还能被挖出来。该地区的一名BBC记者说其中大多数人都是从缅甸来的非法打工者，而他们的家人是没有能力来泰国寻找他们的。
纽约卫生局经过投票决定禁止本市的宾馆和食物商店使用一种被称做是反式脂肪酸的食物成分。这将是第一个规定禁止使用能造成动脉堵塞和严重健康问题的产品的美国城市。宾馆必须在明年7月以前停止使用这类烹饪油类产品。到2008年7月以前他们必须一律淘汰该产品。就此情况还会听取纽约人的反映。
我认为纽约发布禁止使用反式脂肪酸的规定是让纽约变成一个健康城市的第一步。我就是这么认为。我认为这是一件好事，因为这更健康。你可以不使用反式脂肪酸而利用同样多的烹饪食品做出同样美味的东西。而且那可能尝起来更好吃呢。在1970年这可能会杀了你，我不仅吸烟还喝酒。这些东西也可能致你于死地，这两件事没什么区别。
女演员奥黛丽赫本在电影《第凡内早餐》中穿过的一件黑色服装以超过90万美元的价格被拍卖，是预期价格的6倍。由法国设计师Givenchy设计的这件服装是伦敦电影大事记拍卖会的一部分。所得款项将会捐给救助印度穷人的慈善机构。以上是BBC最新世界新闻。
BBC英语听力材料之二
President Bush has warned Iran and Syria to stop helping extremists and support the Iraqi government if they want to be involved in any talks on the future of Iraq. He was speaking at the White House following discussions with the British Prime Minister Tony Blair on possible changes of strategy in Iraq. Mr. Bush's statement appeared to be at odds with the recommendations of the Iraq Study Group which said on Wednesday that America should talk directly to Iran and Syria without preconditions. From Washington, our correspondent Justin Webb.
Mr. Blair offered a warm endorsement of the Iraq Study Group's report. 'It offered', he said, 'a strong way forward'. The prime minister said he'd be traveling soon to the Middle East where he will try to unlock the door to renew talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Mr. Bush endorsed that mission and also spoke positively about the Iraq Study Group, but then appeared to rule out one of its central recommendations. The Study Group calls for talks on Iraq with Iran without preconditions. Only weeks ago, a State Department official seemed to suggest that might be a possibility. But today Mr. Bush said he would not talk to Iran unless its nuclear ambitions were put on hold.
The funeral is taking place in London of the former Russian intelligence agent Alexander Litvinenko who died two weeks ago from suspected radiation poisoning. About 50 close relatives and friends of Mr. Litvinenko attended a grave site ceremony at Highgate Cemetery in London. Speaking outside the memorial service, Litvinenko's friend and a critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Vladimir Bukovsky said the murder was a challenge to the authority of the British government.
'He was murdered by Russian agents, which is in a sense unprecedented in the history of this country. A British citizen was brutally and cowardly murdered on British soil by agents of foreign power. I wonder what the government is going to do now.
The leader of the militant Hezbollah group in Lebanon has vowed to continue mass protests calling for the resignation of the western-backed government led by Fouad Seniora. Large crowds are still camped out on a square in central Beirut and the Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah addressed them on local television relayed by huge screens. Hezbollah which is backed by Syria and Iran withdrew its ministers from the cabinet last month. Kim Ghattas reports from Beirut.
It was a fiery speech, one of Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's toughest against the government. He openly accused it of supporting the Israeli war against Hezbollah this summer. Although he said he would still accept a cabinet led by the current Prime Minister Fouad Seniora, he also said time for dialogue was running out. The Hezbollah chief insisted he and his allies wanted a truly independent government that did not follow the agenda of foreign powers. And he vowed the demonstrations would continue. Hassan Nasrallah also accused members of the western-backed ruling majority of asking the US administration to push Israel to launch the war against Hezboallh and crush the guerrilla movement.
The Interior Ministry in Saudi Arabia says gunmen have killed two members of the security forces in the city of Jiddah. Officials said the gunmen had opened fire on guards at a prison. The security forces besieged the building where the gunmen had taken cover for several hours. But an Interior Ministry spokesman said they found no suspects when they stormed the building. You are listening to the world news from the BBC.
Turkey has offered to open a port and an airport to traffic from Cyprus in an attempt to keep its membership talks with the European Union on track. EU diplomats have been discussing the offer which they say is unconditional, although Turkish officials say the proposal they have outlined does have concrete expectations attached to it. Sarah Rainsford reports from Istanbul.
New research by scientists in the United States and Africa suggests there is a link between HIV infection and the spread of malaria. The research published in the journal Science says the way the two diseases interact makes it earlier for both to spread more rapidly. The research says when people with HIV are attacked by the malaria parasite, the amount of HIV virus in their body increases, increasing the risk they could pass on HIV.
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总统布什警告伊朗和叙利亚不要帮助极端主义分子，如果他们想在伊拉克的未来中获得发言权就必须支持伊拉克政府。在与英国首相托尼布莱尔就伊拉克政策需要变更等问题做过讨论之后布什在白宫发表了这一言论。布什的声明似乎并不与伊拉克研究小组在周三所建议的美国应无条件地直接与伊朗和叙利亚展开会谈一事一致。华盛顿记者Justin Webb报道。
布莱尔对伊拉克研究小组的建议表示积极认可。他说"这给我们提供了一条前进的大路。"首相说他很快就会出访中东以试图打开以色列和巴勒斯坦重新和谈的大门。布什签署了该议案并肯定了伊拉克研究小组的提议，但似乎划去了其中最重要的一条。研究小组呼吁就伊拉克问题与伊朗展开无条件谈判。仅在数周前一位国务院官员还在暗示此事的可能性，但是今天布什却说除非伊朗的核野心得到遏止否则不会与其举行和谈。
两周前被怀疑死于毒性辐射的前俄罗斯特工Alexander Litvinenko的葬礼在伦敦举行。Litvinenko的大约50名近亲与好友在伦敦海格特公墓出席了葬礼仪式。一位Litvinenko的朋友同时也是俄罗斯总统Vladimir Putin的批判者Vladimir Bukovsky在纪念仪式后说该暗杀事件对英国政府的权威是一个挑战。
"他是被俄罗斯特工杀害的，从某种意义上讲这在这个国家是史无前例的。一个英国公民在英国国土上被国外势力残酷而胆怯地杀害，我想知道这个政府的下一步行动是什么。"
黎巴嫩军事组织真主党领导人决议继续开展大规模抗议以要求Fouad Seniora领导的亲西方的政府辞职。大批人都在贝鲁特中心的广场上扎营，真主党领导人Hassan Nasrallah通过大屏幕在当地电视上给他们发表了演讲。叙利亚和伊朗支持的真主党上个月从内阁中撤出了自己的部长。Kim Ghattas贝鲁特报道。
这真是激动人心的演讲，Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah又一次针对政府的强硬表白。他公开地抨击政府支持了今年夏天发生的以色列针对真主党的战争。他说他会接受现任总理Fouad Seniora领导的内阁的一个职位，但是同时也指出已经失去了对话的机会。真主党领导人坚称他和他的盟友需要一个真正独立，并非听从外来势力支配的政府。他承诺游行还将继续。Hassan Nasrallah还谴责亲西方的多数派成员说是他们让美国政府敦促以色列发动了针对真主党的战争和打击游击队的行动。
沙特阿拉伯内政部门称持枪歹徒杀害了Jiddah市安全武装的两名成员。有官员称歹徒在狱中与警卫发生了交火。安全武装包围了歹徒用来做掩护的大楼数小时。但是一内政部门发言人说他们袭击大楼时并没有发现嫌疑犯。你现在收听的是BBC世界新闻。
土耳其为了保证塞普鲁斯的交通畅通决定开放一个港口和飞机场，确保它与欧盟的成员地位谈判顺利进行。虽然土耳其官员称对他们列出的提议抱有很大期望但是欧盟外交官正在讨论所谓的无条件加入。Sarah Rainsford伊斯坦布尔报道。
美国与非洲的科学家的一项新研究表明HIV病毒的传染与疟疾的传播之间存在联系。这项发表在《科学》杂志上的研究指出两种疾病间的相互影响的方式使它们的传播更提前、更迅速。研究还表明当HIV病人被疟疾寄生虫感染时，他们体内的HIV病毒数量会增多，增大了他们因病毒死亡的风险。
BBC英语听力材料之三
BBC world news, I'm Julie Candler. The White House has confirmed that President Bush is considering an increase in the size of the United States' armed forces because of the scale of their commitments in Iraq and Afghanistan. A presidential spokesman in Washington said it was something that was being explored. In an interview with the Washington Post, Mr. Bush said he had not yet made a decision about a new US strategy for Iraq. Nick Miles reports from Washington.
President Bush told the Washington Post that the US military were stressed and needed to be reset. He said he'd instructed his new Defense Secretary Robert Gates to report back to him with a plan to increase ground forces. He gave no indication about how many troops may be added or where they would be deployed but he said they were needed in the struggle against terrorists around the world. In recent months there has been a growing concern from senior military officers about the ability of the US military to cope with the violence in Iraq and Afghanistan.
After days of violence between their supporters, the two main Palestinian factions, Hamas and Fatah have agreed another truce in the Gaza Strip. The last ceasefire collapsed within 24 hours. From Gaza city. Nick Thorpe reports.
This ceasefire agreement brokered by Egyptian mediators looks a lot more serious than the last one. This time there are signatures on a document. Last time there was just a verbal agreement. This time there is also a mechanism to try to enforce the peace. In Romallah, President Abbas said he gave the agreement his blessing. In Gaza the Hamas interior minister Sa'id Siyam said the agreement meant that all armed men would be called off the streets.
The outgoing United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan has used his last official news conference to defend his legacy and push for an end to the conflict in the Sudanese region of Darfur. Mr. Annan stressed that if a planned UN force was sent to Sudan, their role will be to protect the people of Darfur and not to arrest Sudanese leaders. And he questioned whether more pressure could be brought to bear on the Sudanese government.
Have we done all that we could to pressure the government of Sudan, eh, to do what it has to do. There are measures, short of force that could be used: political pressure, economic sanctions, isolation and of course in the last resort there is the use of force.
Workers began on the construction of a new tower to stand at ground zero in New York where the World Trade Centre stood before the September 11th attacks. Two ten-meter-high steel columns were put into the ground at a ceremony at the site. They are going to be known as the Freedom Tower.
The American space shuttle Discovery has undocked from the international spatial station to begin its journey back to earth. Shuttle is returning after a visit to rewire the power system. World news from the BBC.
A report by a pressure group says marijuana has become the biggest cash crop growing in the United States, exceeding traditional harvests such as wheat and corn. The study by the group https://www.doczj.com/doc/6f2093282.html,, which favours soft regulation of marijuana, is based on US government figures that indicates there has been 10-fold increasing production over the last 25 years. The report's author is John Gettman. It's growing in every state in the country. There is a considerable portion of the domestic crops growing in California, also in states Tennessee, in Kentucky, Oregon and Washington. But it's growing in every state. It's growing in small plots along fence lines and national parks and it's a considerable part of the market, it's now growing indoors under lights in attics and basements and closets and even in warehouses, in trailers.
Officials of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development say they have grave concerns about the British government's decision to drop a corruption investigation concerning Saudi Arabia. An OECD official Mark Peace told the BBC that other governments would want to ask questions about why an enquiry into a major arms deal between the British firm BAE System and Saudi Arabia had been dropped.
Britain can organize itself the way it wants, but it has to meet the requirements of the…its international obligations and we felt there was a risk of political influence by the senior law officers and that's why we were asking very straightforward, very serious explanations by the British government.
The United States Vice President Dick Cheney is to be called as a defense witness of the trial of one of former aides who's accused of perjury of the leaking the name of an undercover CIA agent. The former aide, Louis Scoot Libby, is accused of lying to investigators over the revealing the identity of the agent Vallere Plien. BBC World news.
参考译文：
BBC世界新闻，我是Julie Candler。白宫已经确认鉴于美国在伊拉克和阿富汗承担的义务，总统布什正在考虑扩大美国武装部队的规模。华盛顿一位总统发言人说事情正在进行进一步研究中。在华盛顿邮报的采访中布什说他尚未决定制定新的伊拉克计划，Nick Miles华盛顿报道。
布什总统在接受华盛顿邮报采访时说美国军队正面临需要重新整备的压力。他说他会指示新任国防部长罗伯特盖茨向他汇报关于增加地面部队的方案。他并没有暗示会增加多少士兵或者对哪一部分进行改编，但是他说在同世界恐怖分子斗争的过程中需要他们。在最近几个月里，军队高级指挥官老是担心美国军队应付伊拉克和阿富汗暴力冲突问题的能力等方面。
双方支持者经过数天的暴力冲突，巴勒斯坦两个主要的政治派别哈马斯和法塔赫在加沙地带达成停战协议。上一次停火协定在24小时内就破坏了。Nick Thorpe从加沙报道。
由埃及从中调停达成的停战协议比上次更正式，这次双方都在协议上署了名。而上次达成的只是一个口头协定。另外这次还成立了一个努力促进和平的机构。在Romallah，总统Abbas 说他祈祷停战能成功。在加沙，哈马斯内政部长Sa'id Siyam说该协议意味着所有武装人员都将被从街道上召回。
即将离职的联合国秘书长安南通过他的最后一次正式的记者招待会来为自己的遗留问题和为争取结束苏丹的达尔福尔地区冲突方面而做的努力进行辩护。安南强调说如果联合国军队按计划开进苏丹，那么他们的任务在于保护达尔福尔的人民而不是逮捕苏丹领导人。他还质问说是否还需要给苏丹政府带来更大的压力。
我们所做的一切只不过是给苏丹政府制造压力，让他去做必须做的事。这样的措施包括可使用军力不足、政治压力、经济制裁、隔离当然最后还要使用武力。
工人们又开始在纽约的这片废墟地带动工修建另一高楼了，在911事件之前世贸中心坐落在这里。两个十米高的钢架在奠基仪式上直扎地下。这就是我们将要谈到的自由之塔。
美国太空飞船发现号驶离了国际空间站开始了它的返回地球之旅。飞船会在修复电力系统之后返航。BBC世界新闻。
一份由压力研究集团公布的报告指出大麻已经超过了小麦和玉米等传统作物的种植量，成为美国种植最大的经济作物。支持软规制大麻的https://www.doczj.com/doc/6f2093282.html,网站集团在美国政府的调查的基础上发表了这一研究。美国政府指出在过去的25年里大麻产量有了10倍的增长。该报告的作者是John Gettman。大麻在这个国家任何一个州的产量都有增长。国内大部分农作物都生长在加州、田纳西州、肯塔基州、俄勒冈州和华盛顿州。但是大麻每个州都有。在很小的有栅栏的地方、国家公园它都可以生长。它成为了市场的重要组成部分。现在它还可以生长在户内阁楼里的灯光下、地下室和储藏室中甚至还包括仓库和房车等等。
经济合作与发展组织官员说他们对英国政府决定开展关于沙特阿拉伯的腐败调查一事表示密切关注。一位经合组织官员Mark Peace告诉BBC说其他的政府会想要知道为什么取消了对英国英国航宇系统公司与沙特阿拉伯进行武器交易一事的质询。
英国可以按照自己的意图做事，但是也应与它的国际义务相一致。而且我们感觉到有一种通过高级检察官而带来政治影响的危机。所以我们才需要英国做出坦率严肃的解释。
美国副总统切尼将会被做为辩方证人被传唤。在此案件中，一名前美国副官被控告在泄露一位中央情报局秘密特工名字的案件中做了伪证。这名叫Louis Scoot Libby的副官被指控在调查特工Vallere Plien身份时向调查员撒谎。BBC世界新闻。
BBC英语听力材料之四
BBC world news, I am Roy Lam. The Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has acknowledged for the first time that his troops are fighting Islamist forces in neighbouring Somalia. Mr. Meles said his country was forced to go to war to defend its sovereignty against what he called terrorists and anti-Ethiopian elements.
Our patience was considered as weakness and we were forced to go to war and the alternative left to us is to speedily bring the war to success.
Mr. Meles was speaking as Ethiopian ground forces and planes attacked the Islamist militias in at least four centres in southern Somalia. There are no confirmed casualty figures. But The Red Cross described the fighting as the worst in years. Ethiopia backs the weak transitional government in Somalia.
As Palestinian Christians celebrated Christmas at the birthplace of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem, the leading Roman Catholic clergyman in the holy land has appealed for an end to conflict there. Hundreds of worshippers packed into Saint Catherine's Church in Manger Square, from where Nick Kwela reports.
Christmas day arrived clear and cold, but peaceful in Bethlehem. Hundreds of Christian pilgrims packed into the Saint Catherine's church on Manger square to celebrate midnight Mass. The services were attended by various dignitaries including the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. For one night at least the hotels here are full. The guests are not tourists though, most are Palestinian Christians here to celebrate Christmas at Christ's birthplace. But despite the economic hardship caused by the drop in tourism, Bethlehem's mayor Dr. Victor Batarsheh remains optimistic. "We're defying these obstacles", he said, "Joy to the citizens of Bethlehem. "
Pope Benedict has been celebrating Christmas midnight Mass at Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome. The service was broadcasted to more than forty countries around the world. Although it was conducted in Latin, the worldwide reach of the Roman Catholic Church was represented by readings and prayers in Italian, English, French, German, Spanish, Polish, Portuguese, Arabic and Tagalog spoken in the Philippines.
The Cuban authorities are reported to have flown in a leading Spanish surgeon for consultations on the health of President Fidel Castro. A Spanish newspaper reported that the head of the surgery at the Madrid hospital, Hose Luis Garcia Sabrido, had arrived in Havana several days ago. Stephen Gibbs reports from Havana.
The Barcelona-based newspaper says the Doctor Garcia flew to Havana last Thursday on a jet chartered by the Cuban government. It says he came to give his professional advice on whether President Castro should undergo further surgery. There has been no confirmation from the Cuban government of any aspect of the report. Doctor Garcia is however understood to have been in Havana just last month, on that occasion to take part in an international conference on surgery. This is BBC world news.
Georgia says it has agreed to buy eight hundred million cubic meters of gas from Turkey next year almost half of its needs. The price has not been disclosed, but the announcement follows Georgia agreeing last week to buy slightly larger amount from the Russian state-controlled Gazprom at double its previous price.
The Iranian parliament has described the United Nation Security Council decision to impose sanctions on Iran because of its nuclear programme as unjust and illegal. The big majority of Iranian deputies have approved a bill, instructing the government to review cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency.
The former Chilean military ruler General Augusto Pinochet who died earlier this month has left a posthumous letter. The letter was published by a group of his supporters who said it had been received in 2004. Simon Watts reports.
General Pinochet saw himself as a warrior hero, but he was pursued to the last by investigations into alleged human rights abuses. Trying to salvage his reputation from beyond the grave, the general says he was proud of stopping a Marxist dictatorship. Referring to the estimated three thousand deaths during his rule, he says tough measures were needed but he was more flexible than generally realized. The letter reveals how unappreciated General Pinochet felt in his final days. He says there was a kind of banishment and unimagined loneliness.
A contact of a former Russian agent who died in British after contracting radiation poisoning has been arrested in Naples. The man Mario Scaramella met the Russian Alexander Litvenenko on the day he became ill. Mr. Scaramella who has also been affected by radiation was arrested on his return from London. The BBC correspondent in Italy says the arrest is connected with the long-running investigation into arms trafficking and is not related to the death of Mr. Litvenenko. BBC world news.
参考译文：
BBC世界新闻，我是Roy Lam。埃塞俄比亚总理Meles Zenawi首次承认他的军队正在临国索马里同伊斯兰武装作战。Meles说他的国家不得不参加战争以保护主权不受他所称的恐怖分子以及反埃塞俄比亚力量的威胁。
他们把我们的耐心当成是软弱，我们必须参加战争，而接下来我们要做的就是尽快取得战争的胜利。
在埃塞俄比亚地面部队和飞机在索马里南部的至少4个中心攻击伊斯兰势力时，Meles发表了这个讲话。我们尚无具体的死伤报告，但是红十字会描述说此战争是近年来最惨的一次。埃塞俄比亚支持的是摇摇欲坠的索马里过渡政府。
当巴勒斯坦的基督信徒在耶稣基督的出生地柏利桓庆祝圣诞节时，圣地的罗马天主教的上层牧师们呼吁结束此地的冲突。数百名礼拜者聚集在位于马槽广场的圣凯瑟琳教堂。Nick Kwela在本地报道。
柏利桓的圣诞节纯净冷清而祥和。数百名基督教朝圣者聚集在马槽广场的圣凯瑟琳教堂庆祝午夜弥撒。参加该仪式的包括了各方显要人物其中还包括巴勒斯坦总统Mahmoud Abbas。至少在这一天晚上本地的旅馆都会客满。并非所有来的人都是游客，大多数都是巴勒斯坦基督徒来耶酥诞生地庆祝圣诞节的。虽然旅游业下滑造成经济困境，柏利桓市长Victor Batarsheh仍然很乐观："我们不怕这些困难，"他说"祝柏利桓市民节日快乐！"
教皇Benedict正在罗马的圣彼得教堂的会堂举行庆祝基督教午夜弥撒仪式。该节目会向世界四十多个国家播出。虽然语言是拉丁文，罗马天主教堂的全世界转播会以朗诵和祈祷的形式翻译成意大利语、英语、法语、德语、西班牙语、波兰语、葡萄牙语、阿拉伯语以及菲律宾人使用的塔加路语。
据报道古巴当局已经派专机特邀西班牙一名一流的外科医生给总统Fidel Castro会诊。一家西班牙报纸报道说马德里医院的外科手术专家Hose Luis Garcia Sabrido已于几日前到达了哈瓦那。Stephen Gibbs从哈瓦那报道。
这家位于巴塞罗那的报纸说Garcia医生在上周四乘一架古巴政府特批的喷气飞机飞往哈瓦那。他此行的目的在于就卡斯特罗总统是否需要进一步手术而提出专业性建议。古巴政府并没有就这一报道做出评论。但据悉Garcia医生早在上个月就已经达到哈瓦那了，其目的在于参加一次国际外科手术会议。BBC世界新闻。
乔治亚宣称已经同意明年从土耳其购买８亿立方米的天然气，这相当于它需求量的一半。具体价格并未透露。乔治亚在上周同意从俄罗斯的国家控制的Gazprom公司以先前价格的两倍购买更多天然气之后宣告了这一决定。
伊朗议会指出联合国安全理事会因为其核项目而对伊朗强加制裁的决定是不公平和非法的。伊朗的大多数代表已经通过了一项法案指示政府恢复与国际原子能机构的合作。
于本月早些时候逝世的前智利军事领导人Augusto Pinochet将军留下一纸遗嘱。他的支持者们公布了他的遗嘱并声称该遗嘱在2004年就有了。Simon Watts报道。
Pinochet将军认为自己是战争英雄，但是始终因所谓的人权滥用案而被调查缠身。为了拯救生前的名誉，将军说他对阻止了马克思主义专政而感到自豪。当提到在他统治时期死去的大约三千人时，他说强硬措施是必须的，但是他比大家所看到的更灵活多变。这封信透露出Pinochet将军在生命的最后几天被人冷落的感觉。他说他体验到了放逐般的冷清与难以想象的孤独。
因感染毒性辐射而死于英国的前俄罗斯特工在生前联系过的一个线人在那不勒斯被捕。这个叫Mario Scaramella的人在俄罗斯人Alexander Litvenenko生病当天与他见过面。Scaramella也受到辐射感染，并且在从伦敦回程的路上被捕。BBC驻意大利记者说这次追捕行动与长期调查的武器走私有关，并不涉及Mr. Litvenenko的死亡事件。BBC世界新闻。
BBC英语听力材料之五
BBC World News. The newly appointed Democratic leaders of the US Congress have urged President Bush not to send more troops to Iraq, going directly against the policy which the president is expected to announce next week. In a letter to Mr. Bush, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi said that increasing troop levels would stretch the US military to breaking point. From Washington, Justin Webb reports.
This is an aggressive move from the Democrats coming only hours after they took control of Congress, setting the stage for a huge political battle here. "We are well past the point of more troops for Iraq. " The Democratic Party leaders write. Instead they call for a withdrawal of US forces beginning in 4 to 6 months. Mr. Bush cannot be prevented from sending more troops to Iraq if that is what he has decided to do. But the political costs of the move could be greatly increased if he's forced to do it in the teeth of congressional opposition. Mr. Bush has been reshuffling part of his intelligence and military team trying in part to give the impression of a man seizing the initiative. But nothing can disguise the fact that this White House is in deep trouble.
The newly appointed Archbishop of Warsaw has admitted that he worked with the Polish secret police during the Communist-era. Archbishop Stanislaw Wielgus said he became involved with the secret service as a young man because he wanted to further his academic career. He insisted that he'd not informed on anyone.
A government investigator, Zbigniew Nosowski, told the BBC that the archbishop's reputation had been damaged by his initial refusal to admit the truth.
"The issue of now in the Polish public opinion is not so much about the level of his willingness and the collaboration with the secret police, but much more the level of his inability to acknowledge this fact now at the moment when he's going to become Archbishop of Warsaw. "
A former Development Minister in Colombia, Fernando Araujo, has escaped from captivity after 6 years as a hostage of the left-wing rebel group, the FARC. Mr. Araujo managed to flee from the guerrilla camp where he was being held when it was attacked by troops sent to secure his release. He then walked for five days through jungle-covered mountains before being rescued by the army. The Colombian Vice President Francisco Santros hailed his escape as a great victory for his country.
"It's great news for us, for the Colombian army, for the Colombian society. Ah, after more than six years of being kidnapped and a lot of unsuccessful, and one of them dramatically unsuccessful tries to get those kidnapped victims freed, we finally get one. It shows that it can be done. "
A British Muslim who called for the bombing of Denmark in the United States during a protest against controversial cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad has been convicted of soliciting murder. Umran Javed was filmed chanting 'bomb Denmark' outside the Danish embassy in London last February.
The new United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has named a Tanzanian official as his deputy. She is Asha-Rose Migiro, the current Tanzanian Foreign Minister. Mr. Ban described her as a highly respected leader who'd championed the course of developing countries over the years. The appointment fulfils his pledge to choose a woman to fill the post of Deputy Secretary-General.
A high-level international meeting in Kenya has appealed for funds for a peacekeeping mission to Somalia where Ethiopian-led troops supporting the transitional government have ousted Islamist forces. The Kenyan Foreign Minister, Raphael Tuju, is to lead a mission around Africa to raise a peacekeeping force. He warned that failure to act would allow extremists and warlords to fill the power vacuum.
Canadian police are investigating the case of a child who claims he was a victim of sexual abuse after his e-mail plea for help was answered by Child Support Agency across the world in Australia. The boy in the province of New Brunswick sent a message to what turned out to be the Australian office of kids help line after finding the link through a generic internet search. While the child gave no name or address, Australian police traced the e-mail and contacted to the Canadian police. Corporal Lana Prosper of the royal Canadian Mounted police praised the boy's ingenuity.
A child doesn't have the same capabilities as an adult. If an adult had something being done to them they can report to the police. Now that some children don't have that ability, and this child didn't have that and just said well maybe I can get help this way.
The Food and Drug Administration in the United States has approved the world's first weight-loss drug for dogs manufactured by the pharmaceutical giant Pfizer. The product called Slentrol is intended to reduce both appetite and the amount of fat a dog can absorb. The FDA's head of Veterinary Medicine said the drug was a welcome addition to animal therapies because of an apparent increase in dog obesity in the US. And that's the latest BBC world news.
参考译文：
BBC世界新闻。美国国会新当选的民主党领导人敦促总统布什不要再向伊拉克增兵。这就把矛头直接指向了总统所宣称的下周要执行的计划。在一封给布什的信中Harry Reid和Nancy Pelosi指出不断增多的驻军数量会给美国军队带来压力。Justin Webb在华盛顿报道。
民主党刚刚控制国会几个小时就开始做出如此挑衅的行为。他们把国会变成了政治斗争的战场。"我们现在不适合再向伊拉克增兵"民主党领导人写道。相反他们要求在4到6个月内开始撤出美国军力。如果布什已经决定那样做，国会是无法阻止他向伊拉克增兵的。但如果他在国会反对的情况下执意这么做，其行动的政治代价将是相当高昂。布什已经改组了他的部分智囊和军事机构，以试图部分地抓住主动权。但这并不能掩盖白宫深陷困境的事实。
华沙新任命的大主教已经承认曾与当时仍处于共产主义阶段的波兰秘密警察勾结在一起。Stanislaw Wielgus大主教说当他年轻时因为想让自己的学业得到深造便和秘密警察合作。他坚称自己没有告发任何人。一位政府调查员Zbigniew Nosowski对BBC说一开始大主教拒绝承认这一点从而使他的名声受损。
"现在在华沙民众心中想的不是他有多大的意愿与秘密警察合作，更多的是当他在即将成为华沙大主教那一刻没有承认这个事实的勇气"。
哥伦比亚前发展部长Fernando Araujo在做为左翼反抗组织哥伦比亚革命武装力量的人质6年后终于逃脱关押。Araujo试图从他被控制的游击队营地逃离。此时该营地受到来拯救他的军队的攻击。后来他在密林覆盖的深山里走了5天终于被军队发现救起。哥伦比亚副总统Francisco Santros把他的成功逃脱看成是国家的一次伟大胜利。
"这对我们、对军队以及整个哥伦比亚来说是一个非常好的消息。经过6年多的监管与多次失败的救援行动，我们终于取得一次成功，这说明我们能做到。"
一位因为抗议漫画里对先知穆罕默德的描述，而在美国叫嚣轰炸丹麦的英国穆斯林被控犯有协同谋杀罪。去年二月Umran Javed在伦敦的丹麦大使馆外叫嚣"轰炸丹麦"而被录了下来。
联合国新任秘书长潘基文任命了一名新官员Asha-Rose Migiro做为他的副手。她是现任坦桑尼亚外交部长。潘基文把她看成是数年来备受尊敬的拥护发展中国家路线的领导人。这次任命达成了他选择一名女性来做副秘书长的承诺。
在肯尼亚召开的一次高级别的国际会议呼吁把资金投入到索马里的维和行动中来。在索马里，埃塞俄比亚领导的支持过渡政府的军队已经驱逐了伊斯兰势力。肯尼亚外交部长Raphael Tuju将会担负起围绕非洲组建一支维和部队的使命。他警告说行动的失败将可导致激进分子与军阀来填补权利真空。
一名儿童称他是一个性虐待案的受害者，之前他曾发出的一封向澳大利亚儿童维护政署求助的电子邮件也得到答复。加拿大警方已对此展开了调查。这名住在新伯朗士威省的男孩通过一般网络搜索而链接到澳大利亚儿童署救助热线然后向他们发送了一封邮件，但是他没有写名字和地址。澳大利亚警方追踪电子邮件并联系到了加拿大警方。加拿大皇家骑警的Lana Prosper下士表扬了这个男孩子的机智。
儿童没有和成年人一样的能力，如果成人遇到什么不测他们可以向警察报案，而有些儿童却不会这样做。那个孩子没有这样的能力却能表达地很好，我们应该能从中得到一些帮助。
美国食物与药品管理局批准了世界上首次由制药巨人辉瑞生产的以狗为对象的减肥药物。这种名叫Slentrol的药物能减小狗的胃口和降低他们能吸收的脂肪的数量。食物与药品管理局兽医医学部门领导人说在目前狗类肥胖日益严重的美国这是一种很受欢迎的动物治疗的辅助药物。以上是BBC最新的世界新闻。
BBC英语听力材料之六
BBC World News The Democrats in the United States are keeping up the pressure on President Bush, warning that any plans to send more troops to Iraq will face strict scrutiny in Congress which they now control. The warning comes as the president prepares to announce major changes to his Iraq policy which is expected to include the deployment of thousands of extra soldiers to Baghdad. But speaking on US television, the new speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, made clear he will have to convince Congress.
"The president wants to add to this mission. He's going to have to justify it. And this is new for him, because up until now the Republican Congress has given him a blank check with no oversight, no standards, no conditions. And we've gone into this situation, which is a war without end, which the American people have rejected.
The Iraqi government has insisted that two senior associates of the hanged former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein will be executed within the next few days despite appeals for the sentences not to be carried out. A government spokesman said the orders had been signed and there was no way back.
Gunmen in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, have launched an attack on a camp housing Ethiopian troops, who helped Somalia's interim government oust Islamist forces from the city. Residents spoke of a brief but intense exchange of fire in which a teenage girl bystander was killed. A senior United States official Jendayi Frazer is currently in Kenya for talks on Somalia's political future. After discussions with the speaker of Somalia's transitional government, Mrs. Frazer urged the interim government and its national and its transitional federal institutions or TFIs to open a dialogue with all factions that renounced violence.
"We've made clear that we see a role in the future of Somalia for all who renounce violence and extremism. Over the course of the last few days, I've encouraged the leadership of the TFIS to make clear through statements and actions, their commitment to an inclusive process of dialogue and reconciliation. They should start with reconciliation amongst themselves. "
During the conflict in Somalia, thousands of refugees have fled across the Gulf of Aden to neighbouring Yemen. In an interview with the BBC, the Foreign Minister of Yemen Abu Bakr al-Kurbi said that his country would have light the Somali factions to reach a negotiated settlement.
"Yemen was hoping that the Islamist Courts and the interim government would have settled their differences through the negotiating table. Unfortunately this did not happen. Now we have to deal with the situation as it is, and we will have to work on getting everybody concerned in Somalia to negotiate the future management of Somalia, to restore peace and security, and to put the interests of Somalia above the interests of clans or political parties or ideologies. "
The Vatican says the recently appointed Archbishop of Warsaw who resigned shortly before his planned inauguration earlier today was right to do so because revelations about his cooperation with the Polish Secret Police, under communist rule, had compromised his authority. Archbishop Stanislaw Wielgus confirmed his resignation in a tearful announcement in front of the congregation which had gathered to witness his installation. This is the world news from the BBC.
Researchers in the United States say they've discovered a new source of stem cells which does not involve the controversial use of human embryos. Scientists believe that stem cells could one day repair human organs. The researchers say that the cells recovered from amniotic fluid appear to have many of the qualities of embryonic stem cells and that their versatility and ability to renew themselves offers great hope. Matt McGrath reports.
Scientists believe that stem cells offer a real hope of treating illnesses like diabetes, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. Stem cells act like master cells and can grow into the types of tissue that are destroyed by the progression of these diseases. Scientists say the most useful types are derived from specially-grown human embryos. Opponents say that because these embryos are destroyed in the process, this is tantamount to cannibalism. Now scientists in the United States, after a 7-year research effort, say they've found a ready source of useful stem cells in amniotic fluid, the liquid that surrounds a growing baby. The team have managed to turn them into functioning muscle, fat, blood vessel, nerve and liver cells.
Tens of thousands of supporters of the Fatah Party of the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have attended a rally in the Gaza Strip. In a speech to cheering crowds, a senior Fatah official in Gaza, Mohammed Dahlan, denounced the rival Hamas Party and its paramilitary force. Witnesses said the rally was Fatah's biggest in Gaza for years. It came a day after President Abbas demanded that the Hamas force would be integrated into the regular Palestinian security forces and Hamas responded by saying it would double the size of it. And that's the latest from BBC world news.
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BBC世界新闻。美国民主党人继续对总统布什施压，警告他任何向伊拉克增兵的提议都会受到民主党控制的国会的严格审查。就在总统准备宣称伊拉克政策的重大改动包括在巴格达重新部署另外数千名士兵时民主党提出了这一警告。但在美国电视台上，新任众议院发言人Nancy Pelosi已明确指出总统必须要说服国会。
"如果总统需要有新的行动那他必须让人信服，这对他来说是个新的环境，因为到现在为止共和党控制的国会给他的是一个没有失察、标准和条件的空白支票。现在我们涉及到了这一切，这是一场不会结束的战争，美国人必须反对这一切。"
虽然对判决的上诉还没有结果，但是伊拉克政府坚称被绞死的前总统萨达姆的两个主要副手在未来的几天内会被处死。一位政府发言人说命令已经签署再无回头路可走了。
索马里首都摩加迪沙的武装人员袭击了帮助索马里临时政府驱逐本市伊斯兰势力的埃塞俄比亚军队的一处营地。短暂而强烈的交火造成居民中有一名十几岁的女孩死亡。美国一名高级官员Jendayi Frazer当时正在肯尼亚商讨索马里的政治未来。经过与索马里过渡政府发言人的讨论之后，Jendayi Frazer敦促临时政府和国家以及其"联邦过渡机构"与各个派别展开对话以杜绝武装冲突。
"我们可以清楚地认识到结束暴力与极端主义在索马里的未来中会起到很重要的作用。经过数天的议程，我呼吁TFIS的领导层通过切实的声明与行动以及通过对话程序达成和解。他们首先应该解决内部矛盾问题"。
在索马里的冲突中，数千名难民逃越亚丁湾来到临国也门。在BBC的采访中，也门外交部长Abu Bakr al-Kurbi说他希望索马里各派能通过谈判解决问题。
"也门希望伊斯兰法庭和临时政府能在谈判桌上解决彼此之间的各种分歧。但很不幸这样的事情没有发生。现在我们必须着手处理眼前这件事，必须让涉及到索马里事件的每个人都来商讨将来如何管理索马里，让它恢复和平与安全，要把索马里的利益放在部落、党派和意识形态的利益之上。"
梵蒂冈（罗马教廷）说最近新任命的华沙大主教在今天早些时候就职典礼开始之前辞职是他本人的意愿。因为波兰共产主义时期他与秘密警察合作，这威胁到了他的威信。Stanislaw WielgusStanislaw Wielgus大主教在他声泪俱下的声明中确认了他辞职一事，而前来的听众正是目睹他就职典礼的人。以上是BBC世界新闻。
美国研究人员指出他们已经发现一种新的不会损害到胚胎使用的干细胞来源。科学家相信干细胞终有一天会被用来修复人体器官。研究者说来自羊水的细胞具备很多胚胎干细胞所具有的性质，而且它们的多功能性与自我修复的特性给我们带来很大希望。Matt McGrath报道。
科学家认为干细胞在治疗比如糖尿病、帕金森症、阿滋海默症等疾病方面给人类带来很大希望。干细胞功能像主细胞，而且能长成由于疾病而被损害的那一类型的组织。科学家们说用处最大的组织来自于特别培养的人类胚胎。反对者称因为在这个过程中胚胎被毁掉了，这与破坏的性质一样。经过7年的努力研究，现在美国科学家指出他们已经找到了羊水中高价值干细胞的备用资源。羊水是胚胎中围绕并保护成长中的胎儿的液体。该团队已经在试图把它们转换成功能性肌肉细胞、脂肪细胞、血管细胞、血管细胞以及肝脏细胞等等。
数千名巴勒斯坦总统Mahmoud Abbas的政党法塔赫的支持者参加了加沙地带的一次集会。在向欢呼的群众致辞时，加沙一法塔赫高级官员Mohammed Dahlan抨击对手哈马斯以及他们的准军事化力量。目击者说这是近年来法塔赫在加沙地带举行的最大规模的集会。一天以前总统Abbas要求哈马斯力量将被合并到正规的巴勒斯坦安全力量中来。而哈马斯回应说他们会把安全力量的规模扩大一倍。以上是最新BBC世界新闻。
BBC英语听力材料之七
BBC World News. The United Nations and the European Union have strongly condemned the executions in Iraq of two of Saddam Hussein's main allies. Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti and Awad Hamed al-Bandar were hanged at dawn on Monday for crimes against humanity. The UN Human Rights Chief Louise Arbour said the executions could make it harder to bring others to account in Iraq for similar crimes. The EU said it was opposed to capital punishment under any circumstances, while the US and Britain have expressed disappointment that the executions were not conducted with greater dignity.
The American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is currently in the Middle East and gave this reaction.
"The decisions concerning the execution of Saddam Hussein and the two defendants obviously were made according to Iraqi processes and Iraqi law. I will be the first to say that we were disappointed that there was not greater dignity given to the accused under the circumstances."
The Fatah Party of the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has accused the governing Hamas movement of plotting to kill its leaders. Fatah says it's uncovered a network of tunnels in the Gaza Strip dug by militants and filled with explosives. Alan Johnston reports from Gaza.
The Fatah faction called a press conference to announce that about five tunnels had been unearthed. A spokesman said that the party was convinced that they were dug by Hamas forces. Fatah says it believes that the aim was to target some of its key figures. The spokesman didn't talk of any specific plot but he said that one of the tunnels ran under the home of a senior Fatah man in the Jabalia refugee camp.