自考新闻英语解说

来源：武汉大学自考发布时间：2011-08-13 14:54 点击数：232

1.脑轻松：brain candy。
　　糖，因为那甜甜的味道能够让人觉得很美好，连心情也会变得好起来。所以，在英语中，candy这个词常常用来指代那些能够让人感到愉悦的人或事物。
　　Brain candy
　　describes an experience that is enjoyable because it stimulates the mind pleasantly, but doesn't actually make it work, usually in reference to light and fluffy books, movies, TV shows, and other entertainment。
　　Brain candy(脑轻松)指让大脑轻松愉快的体验。这种体验能够刺激大脑、让其感到愉悦，同时又不会让大脑处于工作状态，多指轻松简单的书籍、电影、电视节目以及其他的娱乐形式。
　　For example:
　　No one ever called Star Trek great drama, but it makes pretty good brain candy。
　　从来没有人说过《星际迷航》是一部伟大的作品，但它作为一部轻松娱乐的片子还是很好的。
　　2.最后通牒 ultimatumhttp
　　近日网上热传，铁道部对“7.23”事故遇难旅客家属下达7月30日前如不签署赔偿协议就停止协商的最后通牒。铁道部回应，这些“纯属谣言”。
　　请看《中国日报》报道
　　Chinese authorities said on Sunday that it is baseless speculation to say that an "ultimatum" had been given to force relatives of those who died in a fatal high-speed train crash in east China to agree to accept government compensation。
　　周日中国政府表示，铁道部向动车事故遇难者家属下达“最后通牒”、强迫其接受政府赔偿一事纯属子虚乌有。
　　文中的ultimatum一词即为“最后通牒”的意思，源于拉丁语，指谈判破裂前“最后的话”。在diplomatic negotiation(外交谈判)破裂前，一般一国会就某个问题用书面通知对方，限定在一定时间内接受其条件，否则就采取某种coercive measures(强制措施)，比如threat of force(武力威胁)，economic blockade(经济封锁)，sever diplomatic relations(断绝邦交)等等。
　　Ultimatum如今已不限于外交领域，日常生活和商务往来中也时常会用到这个词，而且一般都以dispatch/deliver/give an ultimatum to…的形式出现。例如：He gave his daughter an ultimatum: unless she stopped taking drugs he would throw her out of the house。(他给女儿下了最后通牒：她要是不戒毒，就把她从家里赶出去。)
　　3.捉人政治：Gotcha!http
　　Some US newspapers are accusing Republicans and Democrats of playing “gotcha politics” when they should be paying serious attention to the country’s enormous debts. Here’s what a Rochester, Minnesota newspaper, wrote: “We’re sick of gotcha politics, which consists of one side saying "What's your plan to rein in entitlement spending?" then sending emails to senior citizens saying, "The other guys want to cut your Medicare benefits!"
　　美国某些报纸指责共和党和民主党本应严肃对待当前巨额赤字，却玩起了“捉人政治”。明尼苏达州的一家报纸写道：我们厌倦了“捉人政治”，一方说“你有什么计划来限制福利支出？”然后另一方就发电邮给老年人告状：“那些家伙想要削减您的医疗福利！”
　　Gotcha is slang for another slang term “got you。” It means I caught you doing something wrong, and I’m gloating (happy) about it. That’s why gotcha usually has an exclamation point after it. If you catch your boyfriend cheating on you, you can walk up and declare, Gotcha! “Gotcha politics” means one side will embarrass someone by catching them make a mistake, or just make it look like the other side made a mistake. Then the other side will make a “Gotcha” statement。
　　Gotcha是“抓住你了”这个俚语的另一种说法，意思是说你在做坏事的时候被我逮个正着，我在一旁沾沾自喜。所以通常gotcha后要加上感叹号。如果你发现男朋友对你不忠，你可以走过去向他宣告：Gotcha！Gotcha politics意思是说一方抓住另一方犯错，令其难堪，或者看上去像另一方犯了错误。随后另一方就会发一份“Gotcha”声明。
　　In China, netizens like to play “gotcha,” too. They will expose some politician for spending too much money on cigarettes by taking a picture and then posting it all over the Internet. Gotcha also can mean I understood. Someone will ask, Understand me? You can say I get it, or I got it, which is another way of saying I understand. Get it? Gotcha!
　　在中国，网民们也很爱玩“捉人”。他们将某些官员吸“天价烟”的照片发到网上曝光。Gotcha还可以指“我明白了”。有人会问，明白了吗？你可以说I get it或I got it，这是I understand的另一种说法。Get it？Gotcha!