News in Brief
News Item 1:
1. General Comprehension. Fill in the blanks according to what you have heard.
(1) There was against today.
(2) A man at Gandhi and other Indian leaders.
(3) Gandhi and other Indian leaders were when the man opened fire.
(4) After the incident those in charge of Gandhi's security and an is .
2. True or False Questions.
(1) Gandhi and six people received minor wounds.
(2) The man hid himself in the brushes when security guards surrounded him.
News Item 2:
1. General Comprehension. Fill in the blanks to complete the following statements.
(1) Jess Moore's was in charge of when Challenger exploded.
(2) Moore announced today that he will be as and will take year's leave.
(3) He will be reassigned to .
(4) The failure of caused the explosion of Challenger.
(5) The statement early made by Moore was that
.
2. Spot Dictation. Listen to the tape again and fill in the following blanks.
One top who met with Moore recently says the since Challenger . He says Moore doesn't have . He is inside, just like who worked on .
News in Detail
1. Focusing on Details. Fill in the blanks with detailed information according to what you have heard.
(1) Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi an assassination attempt in today.
(2) The assailant fired at Gandhi, who was with and .
(3) Official have called the incident .
(4) say Gandhi told two times ; the security forces reportedly the noise as .
(5) It was over that police finally and the gunman.
2. Fill in the blanks with information from the Home Ministry.
(1) Those police officials who were for the for Mr. Gandhi have been .
(2) A investigation is under way to why the around the Prime Minister, who is meant to be one government leaders in the world, and how a gunman armed with broke through to get within of the Prime Minister.
3. Choose the best answer (a, b, c, or d) to complete each of the following statements.
(1) The gunman may have fired at ___________ when they first arrived at the area.
a. Mr. Gandhi and his party
b. Indian President and his wife
c. Mr. Gandhi and his wife
d. security men
(2) Immediately afterwards, the area was searched ____________.
a. and the security men caught the assailant
b. but security men failed to spot the gunman
c. and the gunman surrendered himself
d. but the gunman escaped undetected
(3) Mr. Gandhi's mother, Indira, was murdered _____________.
a. by the same gunman
b. by the Sikh movement
c. by one of the international terrorist organizations
d. by one of her security men
4. Fill in the blanks with information from the Police.
(1) The gunman is in his .
(2) He hid himself on top of among .
5. True or False Questions.
(1) The man opened fire again when Mr. Gandhi was leaving half an hour later.
(2) When the man was spotted, he quickly threw up his arms and surrendered.
(3) He was found to be connected with the Sikh movement.
Special Report
1. Fill in the blanks according to what you have heard on the tape.
(1) A number of factors contribute to the increasing difficulties in farming; they include
a. ,
b. of growing food, and
c. of selling food.
(2) A new organization called " " is trying to help in New York by with . This scheme seems to .
2. True or False Questions.
(1) The group of people who worked on a farm last week included two actors, a housewife, a tour guide, a dog walker, an unemployed social worker and two four-year-old kids.
(2) They were all from New York City.
(3) They spent a few days working on Hall Gibson's fruit and vegetable farm.
(4) Gibson gave an introduction of his 125-acre farm with aerial photographs.
3. Fill in the blanks to complete the following statements.
(1) The reporter thought that Gibson's talk for introduction of his farm was too .
(2) Gibson described the area in which his farm was located as .
(3) One of the big incentives to producing milk in his area, Gibson believed, was .
4. Choose the best answer (a, b, c, or d) to complete each of the following statements.
(1) After the talk given by Gibson, the group was led to a five-acre field that was lined with _____________.
a. tomatoes, raspberries, eggplants and turnips
b. tomatoes, turnips, raspberries and cabbage
c. tomatoes, eggplants, cabbage and turnips
d. tomatoes, fruits and eggplants
(2) Laura Moore, ____________, has made four trips to area farms.
a. an actress and housewife
b. a tour guide and dog walker
c. an unemployed social worker
d. a housewife and part-time teacher
(3) In addition to one-day farm outings, Farm Hands also places individuals on farms for periods ranging _____________.
a. from a week to several months
b. from a week to a month
c. from a month to several months
d. from a month to a year
(4) In exchange for their labor, participants receive ______________.
a. a minimum wage, room and board, and produce
b. a regular wage and produce to take back with them to the city
c. a minimum wage, room and board or produce
d. a regular wage or produce to take back with them to the city
(5) The new organization, Farm Hands, has been in existence for ______________.
a. half a year
b. one year
c. a year and a half
d. two years
(6) Since the beginning of its operation, Farm Hands has placed more that ____________ on the one-day field trips.
a. twenty people
b. a hundred and twenty people
c. two hundred people
d. two hundred and twenty people
5. Fill in the blanks to complete the following statements.
(1) Hall Gibson has had long term farm-hands this summer.
(2) Debby Fisher is a -year-old New York City and now is currently working on as a .
(3) Gibson appreciates Debby Fisher that she works like a , and she is a .
(4) The founder of the Farm Hands program is -year-old .
6. Spot Dictation. Listen to the tape again and fill in the following blanks.
It is not just that helps those farmers; it's the . They suddenly realize after an hour of and on the brambles, they understand and , and may become and customers for those farmers.
7. Choose from the following list the states that are currently on the Farm Hands program and place them in Column I and those that will probably enter the program in Column II.
Column I
a. Connecticut b. Maryland c. Massachusetts
d. New Jersey e. New Mexico f. New York
g. Ohio h. Pennsylvania i. Vermont
j. Wyoming
Column II
a. Connecticut b. Maryland c. Massachusetts
d. New Jersey e. New Mexico f. New York
g. Ohio h. Pennsylvania i. Vermont
j. Wyoming
1. NASA
NASA stands for National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the central civilian agency for direction of the US space exploration program established in 1958 by an act of Congress. Its activities are conducted by industry under contract and by its field establishments. Its staff includes over 15,000 scientists, engineers, technicians, and administrators. Its development program is divided into two main branches: launch vehicles and spacecraft.
2. Johnson Space Center
An installation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in Houston, Texas, serving as the operations and research center for all US manned space projects. Originally called the Manned Spacecraft Center when completed in 1964, it was renamed the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in 1964.
1. Rajiv Gandhi
Rajiv Gandhi (1944??1991) was the first son of Indira Gandhi. He studied engineering at Cambridge University in Britain. There he met an Italian girl Sonia who later became his wife. After returning to India, he was a pilot for the Indian Airlines from 1968 to 1981. The death of his brother led him into politics. After the assassination of his mother, he became Prime Minister of India. He once proposed to "lead India into the twenty-first century with computer." Under his leadership, the Indian economy has seen fast development. On May 21, 1991, he was assassinated while attending an election assembly.
2. Hindu
The Hindus are a group of people whose basic theological beliefs are the transmigration of souls and karma. The practice of Hinduism, the religion, is a complex of rites and ceremonies performed within the framework of the caste systems under the supervision of the Brahman priests and teachers. In India and the rest of Asia there are over 475 million Hindus.
3. Sikh
The Sikhs??the word means disciple??refer to some 10 million Indians who profess the religion of Sikhism, living for the most part in the Punjab. The religion was founded by Nanak (1469??1539). Its basis is the Unity of God and the Brotherhood of Man, and in it caste plays a comparatively small part. On Nanak's death he was followed as Guru??chief priest??by a succession of rulers who converted the Sikhs into a military confraternity which established itself as a political power.
4. Indira Gandhi
Indira Gandhi (1917??1984), the daughter of Nehru, studied at Oxford and was imprisoned during the struggle for independence. In 1942 she married Feroze Gandhi, not related to the Mahatma, and acted as hostess for her father from 1947. In 1966 she succeeded Shastri as Prime Minister and leader of the Congress Parliamentary Party. On October 31, 1984, she was assassinated by two of her Sikh bodyguards.
5. Mohandas Gandhi
Mohandas Gandhi (1869??1948) was Indian nationalist and leader of reform within Hinduism, often called Mahatma ("great soul"). Trained as a lawyer, he went to South Africa in 1893, and fought for legal rights for Indians. Returning to India in 1915, he joined in the campaign for independence, for which he was frequently imprisoned. He was president of the Indian National Congress in 1924. He participated in the independence negotiations with Britain between 1931 and 1946, and was regarded as "the architect of India's freedom." He is remembered for his advocacy of noncooperation, his use of hunger strikes, his opposition to caste barriers, in particular for his championing of the untouchables, and his work for unity between Hindus, Moslems and Sikhs. He was assassinated in 1948.
1. minimum wage
The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and subsequent amendments provide for minimum wage coverage applicable to specified non-supervisory employment categories. Exempt from coverage are executives and administrators or professionals. In 1981, the minimum wage was $3.35 per hour.
2. Upstate New York
Upstate New York refers to the northern part of the state of New York.
3. organic farming
Organic farming refers to farming without the use of chemical sprays or fertilizers. Crop yields may be a third less, but whereas the conventional system uses up fertility, so that chemical fertilizers must be perpetually used, the organic system builds it up.