10月15日午间双语新闻：我国刑责年龄拟降至12周岁

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Cristiano Ronaldo has become the latest international soccer star to test positive for the coronavirus. The Portuguese soccer federation said Tuesday that Ronaldo was doing well and had no symptoms after he tested positive while with his country's national team. 
克里斯蒂亚诺•罗纳尔多成为最新一位新冠病毒检测结果呈阳性的国际足球明星。葡萄牙足协10月13日表示，C罗在国家队期间新冠病毒检测呈阳性，但他感觉良好，没有出现任何症状。

He was in isolation and was dropped from the country's Nations League match against Sweden on Wednesday in Lisbon. The Portuguese soccer federation said Ronaldo's result prompted another round of tests for the rest of the national squad. It said everyone else in the team tested negative.
目前C罗正在接受隔离，他将缺席10月14日在里斯本举行的葡萄牙对瑞典的比赛。葡萄牙足协表示，C罗检测结果出来后，葡萄牙国家队其他队员再次接受了新冠检测，结果均为阴性。

重点词汇
1、symptom
英 /ˈsɪmptəm/  美 /ˈsɪmptəm/ 
n. [临床] 症状；征兆

2、squad
英 /skwɒd/  美 /skwɑːd/ 
n. 班；小队；五人组（篮球队的非正式说法）
vt. 把…编成班；把…编入班

Transparent wood as clear as glass
科学家研发出透明木材

Scientists have designed "transparent wood" that could replace conventional glass in windows. The innovation was developed using wood from the balsa tree, which is native to South and Central America, and claims to be five times more thermally efficient than glass. The team treated balsa wood in an oxidizing bath that bleaches it of nearly all visibility and then penetrated it with a synthetic polymer called polyvinyl alcohol,  creating a product that is virtually transparent. 
科学家研发出了可以替代传统窗玻璃的"透明木材"。这一发明采用了原生于南美和中美的巴尔沙树的木材，据称热效率比玻璃高出五倍。研究团队把木材泡在氧化剂里，褪去几乎所有可见的颜色，然后注入一种名为聚乙烯醇的合成聚合物，开发出几乎完全透明的一种产品。

Unlike traditional glass, the transparent wood can withstand much stronger impacts and will bend or splinter when damaged, instead of shattering. The transparent wood was created by teams at the University of Maryland and University of Colorado, which set out to find a greener alternative to conventional glass – a production that creates 25,000 tons in emissions each year. 
和传统玻璃不同，这种透明木材可以承受更强烈的冲击，在受损时会弯曲或裂开，而不会粉碎。这种透明木材是由美国马里兰大学和科罗拉多大学的研究团队开发的，他们的初衷是找到可以替代传统玻璃的更环保的材料。玻璃产品每年都会产生2.5万吨的排放物。

Along with contributing to greenhouse gases, glass contributes to a loss of energy. "Residential building windows in particular account for 10–25 percent of heat loss due to their poor thermal management capability," the team wrote in the study.
除了制造温室气体外，玻璃还会导致能量的流失。研究团队在报告中写道："居民楼的玻璃窗户由于锁热能力不强，能量流失尤其严重，损失的热能占到了10%到25%。"

重点词汇
1、balsa
英 /ˈbɔːlsə/  美 /ˈbɔːlsə/ 
n. 热带美洲轻木（尤用于制作模型）；轻木

2、splinter 
英 /ˈsplɪntə(r)/  美 /ˈsplɪntər/ 
n. 碎片；微小的东西；极瘦的人
vi. 分裂；裂成碎片
vt. 使分裂；使裂成碎片

3、conventional
英 /kənˈvenʃənl/  美 /kənˈvenʃənl/ 
adj. 符合习俗的，传统的；常见的；惯例的

Law to prevent juvenile crimes
刑责年龄拟降至12周岁

Chinese lawmakers are mulling over lowering the minimum age at which a minor can be convicted to 12, in individual cases under specific circumstances. The proposal was made in a draft amendment to the Criminal Law, which was submitted Tuesday to the ongoing session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress. 
我国立法机构考虑在特定情形下将最低刑事责任年龄下调至12岁。这项关于刑法修正案（十一）草案于10月14日提交给正在举行的第十三届全国人大常委会第二十二次会议进行审议。

If a juvenile who has reached the age of 12, but is under 14, commits intentional homicide or inflicts an injury that leads to death under flagrant circumstances, he or she shall bear criminal responsibility upon attestation and approval of the Supreme People's Procuratorate, according to the draft. Currently, minors under the age of 14 do not bear any criminal responsibility in China. However, some high-profile cases involving violent crimes committed by underage youths in recent years have sparked a heated debate on the minimum age of criminal liability.
10月13日提请十三届全国人大常委会审议的刑法修正案(十一)草案二审稿拟规定，已满12周岁不满14周岁的人，犯故意杀人、故意伤害罪，致人死亡，情节恶劣的，经最高人民检察院核准，应当负刑事责任。目前，我国14岁以下的未成年人不承担任何刑事责任。但是近年来一些备受关注的未成年人暴力犯罪案件引发人们对有关最低刑事责任年龄问题的激烈讨论。

重点词汇
1、mull over
仔细考虑

2、convict
英 /kən'vɪkt/  美 /kənˈvɪkt; ˈkɑnvɪkt/ 
vt. 证明…有罪；宣告…有罪
n. 罪犯

3、amendment
英 /əˈmendmənt/  美 /əˈmendmənt/ 
n. 修正案；改善；改正

4、National People's Congress
全国人民代表大会

5、juvenile
英 /ˈdʒuːvənaɪl/ 美 /ˈdʒuːvənl/
adj. 青少年的；幼稚的
n. 青少年；少年读物

6、homicide
英 /ˈhɒmɪsaɪd/ 美 /ˈhɑːmɪsaɪd/ 
n. 过失杀人；杀人犯

7、inflict
英 /ɪnˈflɪkt/ 美 /ɪnˈflɪkt/ 
vt. 造成；使遭受（损伤、痛苦等）；给予（打击等）

8、flagrant
英 /ˈfleɪɡrənt/ 美 /ˈfleɪɡrənt/ 
adj. 明目张胆的；公然的； 骇人听闻的；不能容忍的；非常的；臭名远扬的；恶名昭著的

9、procuratorate
英 /'prɒkjʊə,reɪtərɪt/
n. [法] 检察院

10、high-profile
英 /ˌhaɪ ˈprəʊfaɪl/  美 /ˌhaɪ ˈproʊfaɪl/ 
adj. 高调的；备受瞩目的；知名度高的

11、criminal liability
/ˈkrɪmɪnl ˌlaɪəˈbɪləti/
[法] 刑事责任

China's economy to grow 1.9 percent
IMF预计中国经济增1.9%

China's economy is expected to grow 1.9 percent this year, almost twice as much as previously forecast, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Tuesday, tagging the country as the only major nation likely to expand in the face of the coronavirus. China, which saw a strong early reopening and rebound from the pandemic, will reach 8.2 percent growth in 2021, its highest rate in nearly a decade, the IMF said in its latest World Economic Outlook. 
国际货币基金组织(IMF)10月13日表示，预计今年中国经济将增长1.9%，较此前的预测值几乎翻倍，IMF称，中国将是新冠疫情影响下全球唯一可能实现正增长的主要经济体。IMF在最新版《世界经济展望报告》中称，中国迅速控制住疫情，重启了经济并实现强劲反弹，明年中国经济增速将达8.2%，为近10年来的最高水平。

It forecast a 2020 global contraction of 4.4 percent, an improvement over a 5.2 percent contraction predicted in June. It is still the worst economic crisis since the 1930s Great Depression, the Fund said. The global economy will return to growth of 5.2 percent in 2021, the IMF said, but the rebound will be slightly weaker than forecast in June.
IMF预计今年全球经济将萎缩4.4%，好于今年6月预计的5.2%的收缩幅度，但仍是自上世纪30年代大萧条以来全球遭遇的最严重的经济危机。IMF预计2021年全球经济将恢复正增长，增幅为5.2%，反弹幅度略弱于6月的预期。

重点词汇
1、contraction
英 /kənˈtrækʃn/  美 /kənˈtrækʃn/ 
n. 收缩，紧缩；缩写式；害病

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Hi everyone, here are words you should know from today's news.

No.1 balsa
The team treated balsa wood in an oxidizing bath that bleaches it of nearly all visibility and then penetrated it with a synthetic polymer called polyvinyl alcohol,  creating a product that is virtually transparent. 

No.2 conventional
Scientists have designed "transparent wood" that could replace conventional glass in windows. 

No.3 amendment
The proposal was made in a draft amendment to the Criminal Law, which was submitted Tuesday to the ongoing session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress. 

No.4 criminal liability
However, some high-profile cases involving violent crimes committed by underage youths in recent years have sparked a heated debate on the minimum age of criminal liability.

No.5 contraction
It forecast a 2020 global contraction of 4.4 percent, an improvement over a 5.2 percent contraction predicted in June. It is still the worst economic crisis since the 1930s Great Depression, the Fund said. 

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