Extensive Reading Lesson 30

《唐山大地震》今日公映

美国《好莱坞报道》的消息称，由冯小刚执导的中国首部中文巨幕电影《唐山大地震》今天将在3500多家影院上映，这一数字超过了历史上在中国上映的任何一部电影。《唐山大地震》讲述了一位因地震失去丈夫的母亲，面对她的两个被地震废墟掩埋的孩子，却只能挽救其中的一个。最后她选择了儿子，而女儿听到了母亲的抉择。

影评：《唐山大地震》说到底是一个小的家庭情节剧，围绕着爱、原谅、成年这些永恒主题展开。冯小刚导演摈弃了自己惯用的尖酸刻薄的幽默以及贫嘴的角色，而是用传统而流畅的叙事技巧来刺激观众的泪腺。

湘机场大巴纵火案告破

据中新社报道，一辆满载乘客的机场大巴昨日下午4点在长沙黄花国际机场通往长沙市区的高速公路上起火，造成2人死亡﹑10人受伤。36岁的纵火嫌疑人谌海涛于事故发生八小时后被抓获归案。警方透露，事发前，坐在后排的谌海涛将装有爆炸物的帆布包引燃，导致车辆起火爆炸。

奥巴马签署金融改革法律

据路透社报道，美国总统巴拉克•奥巴马于周三签署了自大萧条以来最全面的金融管理改革法律，保证要叫停华尔街致使美国经济遭殃的冒险行径。

新法律着眼于华尔街的冒险做法，因为其引发了2007—2009年的金融危机，同时也着眼加强对消费者的保护。奥巴马表示：“有了这部法律，美国人民将不用再为华尔街的错误买单。”一些有影响力的商业组织都纷纷谴责新法。然而华尔街上的一些人士却对此法的清晰条款表示欢迎。金融管理改革是奥巴马一项重要的政绩。

英科学家发现迄今最大恒星

一颗名为R136a1的天体是目前发现的最大的恒星，质量大约是太阳的265倍，不过英国谢菲尔德大学最近的研究表明，在它初步形成的时候，质量也许达到太阳的320倍，半径是太阳的30倍。在R136a所在的区域，巨大的恒星经历短暂而明亮的生命周期，爆炸成为超新星，同时增加了宇宙中重物质的成分。

少生孩子易患子宫癌

据英国《每日邮报》报道，子宫癌发病率在过去的30年间增长了近50%，主要原因之一就是女性选择少生或者不生孩子，以致影响了激素分泌而导致患癌风险增加。专家表示：当血液内的雌激素较多时，女性患子宫癌的可能性较大；而怀孕期间女性体内的雌激素较少，这就意味着那些较少生育的女性将长期处于大量雌激素的作用下，患病几率便相应提高。肥胖率攀升是子宫癌发病率增长的另一原因。由于脂肪组织会将其它激素转化成雌激素，肥胖女性罹患子宫癌的风险也因此相对较高。

台风“灿都”登陆广东

据新华社今天报道，今年第3号台风“灿都”于今天13时45分在广东省吴川市沿海登陆。 

阿穆隆获刑三年半

《京华时报》报道，昨天，一杭州市法院对快男阿穆隆酒后超速驾驶致人死亡一案作出判决：阿穆隆被判处有期徒刑三年六个月。3月3日凌晨，阿穆隆酒后驾驶宝马汽车，与骑电动自行车的李荣珍发生碰撞。阿穆隆此后驾车逃逸，致使李荣珍于3月24日死亡。

美国扩大对朝鲜制裁

美国昨日宣布扩大对朝鲜制裁，意味展现在天安舰今年3月被击沉问题上，与韩国团结的最新姿态。美国国务卿希拉里•克林顿在首尔发表讲话时表示，华盛顿方面已对新的制裁目标进行了“密集研究”，并警告，若平壤方面发动任何新的攻击，将会产生严重后果。

iPad登陆香港

苹果iPad将于7月23日正式登陆香港。根据官网消息，iPad最低售价3888元港币，配置为16GWi-Fi版，而32G、64G的Wi-Fi版售价分别为4688元港币和5488元港币。大陆水货市场的iPad价格将因此降低。目前iPad在大陆的售价为4000-6000元。

“裸体牛仔”起诉竞争对手

时代广场上的“裸体牛仔”近日发飙，把竞争对手“裸体女牛仔”告上法庭，一场“决斗”即将展开。据路透社报道，罗伯特•伯克于周三以侵犯其商标为由把珊迪•凯恩告上了曼哈顿联邦法庭。伯克穿一条白色三角裤，戴一顶牛仔帽，登一双牛仔靴在曼哈顿中心以弹吉它及摆姿势照相为生。他表示其造型已注册商标，凯恩却照搬过来，抢他的生意。凯恩的律师质疑“裸体牛仔”商标的合法性，并表示凯恩从没侵犯任何权益。

浪漫电影有碍两性关系

英国《每日邮报》报道，研究发现，浪漫喜剧片让很多人困惑，为什么自己和伴侣的关系不能像荧幕上那样无忧无虑、永恒持久。一份1000人参加的调查显示，大约一半的人认为浪漫喜剧扰乱了他们对于完美伴侣关系的认知。发起这项研究的顾问加布里埃尔•莫里斯说，在电影院看90分钟的浪漫喜剧，可能会毁掉一个人数周，数月甚至数年的生活。

Aftershock hits the screen today 
 

Aftershock, China's first non-English Imax film directed by Feng Xiaogang, is due to shake more movie theaters across China than any film in history, opening Thursday on more than 3,500 screens, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Aftershock follows a mother widowed by the Tangshan quake to the place where her two children are buried alive. She can only save one and chooses her son, but her daughter overhears her decision through the rubble.

Review: Aftershock is ultimately a small family melodrama revolving around perennial themes of love, forgiveness and coming-of-age. Feng ditches his usual sharp-tongued humor and feisty characters to concentrate on stimulating the tear ducts through traditional but polished storytelling technique.

Airport shuttle bus catches fire

Chinanews.com.cn reported today that an airport shuttle bus fully loaded with passengers caught fire at about 4 p.m. Wednesday in Hunan's Changsha, killing at least two and injuring 10 other passengers. The accident happened at an expressway linking Changsha's Huanghua International Airport to the city. Suspected arsonist Chen Haitao, 36, had been detained by the local police eight hours later. Police said, Chen, sitting in the rear of the vehicle, set fire to a canvas bag filled with explosives and caused the explosion.

Obama signs sweeping Wall Street overhaul into law

Vowing to stop the risky behavior on Wall Street that imperiled the U.S. economy, President Obama signed into law on Wednesday the most comprehensive financial regulatory overhaul since the Great Depression, Reuters reports.

The new law targets the kind of Wall Street risk-taking that helped trigger a global financial meltdown in 2007-2009 and also aims to strengthen consumer protections. "Because of this law, the American people will never again be asked to foot the bill for Wall Street's mistakes," Obama said. Influential business groups lined up to criticize the new law, however, some on Wall Street welcomed the clarity offered by the law. The financial regulatory reforms are a major achievement for Obama.

Astronomers detect 'monster star'

A star known simply as R136a1 is the most massive ever found. The star is seen to have a mass of about 265 times that of the sun, but the latest research of Sheffield University suggests at birth it could have been bigger, perhaps as much as 320 times that of the sun, and its radius is also found to be 30 times that of the sun. In the region where R136 sits, huge stars ignite and burn brief but brilliant lives before exploding as supernovas to seed the universe with heavy elements.

Womb cancer rises as women have fewer children

Rates of womb cancer have risen by almost 50 percent in the past 30 years, according to the Daily Mail. Doctors say women choosing to have fewer children or having none, is one of the main causes. The effect of this on their hormones puts them at greater risk. Experts say women are more at risk from developing it when there are higher amounts of estrogen in their blood. Levels of the hormone are lower during pregnancy, so women who have fewer children are exposed to the chemical for a longer period of time. Doctors also attribute the rise to increasing rates of obesity. Those who are overweight or obese also have much higher levels of developing womb cancer because fatty tissue converts other hormones into estrogen.

Typhoon Chanthu lands on south China

Chanthu, the third typhoon of the season, has made a landfall at the coastal area of Wuchuan City, southern China's Guangdong Province, at around 1:45 p.m. Thursday, Xinhua reported today.

'Happy Boy' jailed
 

The singer "Happy boy" Amguulan was sentenced to prison for three and a half years on July 21 by a Hangzhou court for speeding and drunk driving that caused the death of a pedestrian, the Beijing Times reported. On March 3, Amguulan drove a BMW after drinking and struck Li Rongzhen, who was riding an electric bicycle. Amguulan fled the scene, and Li died on March 24.

U.S. widens N. Korea sanctions

The U.S. announced yesterday it would widen sanctions on North Korea in its latest gesture of solidarity with South Korea over the sinking of the Cheonan in March. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in Seoul that Washington had done "intensive research" on the new targets for sanctions and warned of serious consequences if there were any new attacks by Pyongyang.

iPad hits HK market iPad

Apple's hottest iPad will hit stores in Hong Kong on July 23. The 16 GB Wi-Fi version will sell at HK$3888, while the 32 GB Wi-Fi and 64 GB Wi-Fi models cost HK$4,688 and HK$5,488 respectively, according to Apple's website. This will bring down the iPad price sold on the mainland's black market, where it usually goes for 4,000 to 6,000 yuan.

'Naked Cowboy' sues 'Naked Cowgirl'

Guitars set at 20 paces as New York street musician "The Naked Cowboy" lassoed his Times Square rival "The Naked Cowgirl" with a lawsuit. Reuters reports that Robert Burck, who earns money playing his guitar and posing for photos in midtown Manhattan wearing just white briefs, a cowboy hat and cowboy boots, sued Sandy Kane in Manhattan federal court on Wednesday for trademark violation. Burck says Kane has copied his look, which is trademarked, and has cut his profits. Kane's lawyer questioned the validity of the "Naked Cowboy" trademark said Kane never committed any infringement.

Poisonous romantic movies

According to the Daily Mail, research concludes that romantic comedies cause couples to wonder why their relationships don't match the light-hearted fun and happiness they see on screen. Of 1,000 polled, almost half said rom-coms have ruined their view of an ideal relationship. Counselor Gabrielle Morrissey, who conducted the study, said that 90 minutes of fun in the cinema can ruin life for weeks, months or even years afterward.