6月30日午间英语新闻：英国成首选留学目的地

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1 / New high-speed railway opens

商合杭高铁已全线贯通

A new high-speed railway route connecting east and central China started operation on Sunday. 

6月28日，一条连接我国东部和中部的新高铁线路开通运营。

With a designed speed of 350 kph, the route connects the city of Shangqiu in central China's Henan province, and Hefei and Hangzhou, the capital cities of East China's Anhui and Zhejiang provinces. The northern section of the railway, from Shangqiu to Hefei, went into operation in December 2019, according to the China Railway Shanghai Group. 

该线路设计时速350公里，连接河南省商丘、安徽省省会合肥，以及浙江省省会杭州。据国铁集团介绍，该线路北段，即商丘至合肥段，于去年12月正式开通运营。

Covering a distance of 794.55 km, the Shangqiu-Hefei-Hangzhou high-speed railway is expected to spur the rise of the central region and boost the integrated regional development of the Yangtze River Delta.

商合杭高铁全长794.55公里，该线路的贯通将促进我国中部地区崛起，推动长三角地区一体化发展。

重点词汇：

spur

英 /spɜː(r)/ 美 /spɜːr/

n. 马刺；鞭策；山嘴；（公路或铁路的）支线；骨刺

n. (Spur) （美）斯普尔（人名）

v. 用踢马刺驱马前进；激励；促进；紧贴主干剪短（副梢）

2 / UK top destination for study

英国成首选留学目的地

For the first time, the UK has overtaken the US as the preferred overseas study destination for Chinese students, a report released Sunday showed. 

6月28日发布的一份报告显示，英国首次超越美国成为中国留学人群的首选目的国。

In the survey for the annual Report on Chinese Students' Overseas Study, the UK was preferred by 42% of respondents, up by 1 percentage point from last year. 

在这份关于中国留学生海外学习的年度报告中，42%的受访者更青睐英国，占比较去年上升1个百分点；

Study in the US was preferred by 37% of respondents, down by 6 percentage points. Australia and Canada, both at 16%, tied as the third most popular destinations for overseas study, followed by Japan, Germany and Singapore. 

37%的受访者更青睐赴美国留学，占比下降了6个百分点。澳大利亚、加拿大在最受青睐的海外留学目的地排行中并列第三，16%的受访人群选择了这两个国家。日本、德国和新加坡紧随其后。

The report attributed the shift in students' preferences from the US to the UK to tense Sino-US relations in the past two years and the UK's advantages, such as the reopening of the Post Study Work Visa and quicker graduation requirements.

报告认为，留学首选目的地从美国变为英国，原因在于过去两年里紧张的中美关系，以及英国再度放开毕业生工作签证、更快的毕业要求等优势。

重点词汇：

Sino-US

adj. 中美的；中美之间的

3 / Flies won't transmit COVID-19

专家:蚊蝇不会传播新冠

With the arrival of summer, many people are worried about contracting COVID-19 through mosquitoes or flies. 

随着夏天的到来，许多人都担心会通过蚊虫、苍蝇感染新冠肺炎。

In response to the concern, Wang Liping, a researcher from the Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said there is not yet evidence of people getting infected with the novel coronavirus through a mosquito or fly. She made her remarks at a news conference on Saturday. She said the virus is mainly spread through respiratory droplets and physical contact. 

中国疾病预防控制中心研究员王丽萍对此作出了回应，她在6月27日召开的一场新闻发布会上表示，目前未发现蚊虫或苍蝇导致人感染新冠病毒的证据。新冠病毒主要通过呼吸道飞沫和物理接触进行传播。

However, Wang said mosquitoes and flies could transmit other contagious diseases, such as malaria and dengue fever. She reminded people to guard against mosquito bites and keep food from flies in summer.

不过，王丽萍表示，蚊虫和苍蝇具备传播其他传染病的风险，如疟疾、登革热等。她提醒人们夏天做好防蚊虫叮咬的保护措施，防止苍蝇叮爬食物。

重点词汇：

contract

英 /ˈkɒntrækt/ 美 /ˈkɑːntrækt/

n. 合同，契约；婚约；（非正式）暗杀协议；（桥牌）定约

v. 收缩，缩短；感染；订约；订（婚）；负（债）；结交

4/ A degree in Ninja studies

日本首位忍者硕士毕业

The first master's degree in Ninja studies was awarded in Japan's Mie University when Genichi Mitsuhashi, 45, completed the degree from the university, which is located in the area considered to be the place of origin of Ninjutsu. 

现年45岁的三桥源一获得了日本三重大学颁发的首个忍者专业硕士学位证书，三重大学所在地被认为是忍术发源地。

Mitsuhashi spent two years examining historical documents on the true nature of the stealth fighters while perfecting his martial arts skills. Mitsuhashi started learning kung fu, horinji kempo and other martial arts in high school. He previously studied rural development in Kyoto University.

三桥花了两年时间研究忍者的真实历史文件，同时完善他的武术技能。他从高中开始学习功夫，法林寺拳法以及其他类型的武术，此前曾在日本京都大学学习农村发展。

Ninjas are famous for being black-clad assassins who are incredibly secretive and stealthy, meaning they also had "comprehensive survival skills", he said. 

三桥表示，忍者是著名的黑衣刺客，以神秘和隐身著称，这意味着他们还具有"全面的生存技能"。

重点词汇：

stealth

英 /stelθ/ 美 /stelθ/

n. 秘密；秘密行动；鬼祟

assassin

英 /əˈsæsɪn/ 美 /əˈsæsn/

n. 刺客，暗杀者

重点单词怎么读？

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

No.1 spur

Covering a distance of 794.55 km, the Shangqiu-Hefei-Hangzhou high-speed railway is expected to spur the rise of the central region and boost the integrated regional development of the Yangtze River Delta.

No.2 Sino-US

The report attributed the shift in students' preferences from the US to the UK to tense Sino-US relations in the past two years and the UK's advantages, such as the reopening of the Post Study Work Visa and quicker graduation requirements.

No.3 contract

With the arrival of summer, many people are worried about contracting COVID-19 through mosquitoes or flies. 

No.4 stealth

Mitsuhashi spent two years examining historical documents on the true nature of the stealth fighters while perfecting his martial arts skills. 

No.5 assassin

Ninjas are famous for being black-clad assassins who are incredibly secretive and stealthy, meaning they also had "comprehensive survival skills", he said. 

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