音声プラットフォーム「Voicy」で平日毎朝7時に更新中の英語ニュースチャンネル「Voicy News Brief with articles from New York Times」。このチャンネルでは、The New York Timesの記事をバイリンガルのパーソナリティが英語で読み上げ、記事と英単語を日本語で解説しています。英語のニュースを毎朝聴いて、リスニング力の向上と英語学習にお役立てください。

このVoicy Journalでは、毎週金曜日に1週間分のスクリプトをまとめて紹介しています。PCページやアプリから無料でいつでもご視聴いただけます。

5/22(土)の放送の英文記事と英単語：南極、氷山、慣習

Iceberg Splits From Antarctica, Becoming World’s Largest

iceberg 氷山
Antarctica 南極（大陸）
convention しきたり、慣習、慣例
calving　 氷山分離、カービング
square kilometer 平方キロメートル *square〔数を〕2乗する
例）Five squared is twenty five. 　5の2乗は25です。
Three cubed is twenty seven. 3の3乗は27です。
sever　 (人や物を全体から) 分ける、離す　　　　　
displace (〜の) 排水量を持つ
glaciologist 　氷河学者

著者：Claire Fahy
(c) 2021 The New York Times Company

An iceberg nearly half the size of Puerto Rico has broken off the edge of Antarctica, becoming what researchers said was the world’s largest iceberg.

The iceberg, known as A76, following a naming convention established by the National Ice Center, naturally split from Antarctica’s Ronne Ice Shelf into the Weddell Sea last week through a process known as calving, the center said.

It measures about 1,668 square miles (4,320 square kilometers).

Researchers sought to put the formation of A76 in context, saying that the forces that severed it from the Ronne Ice Shelf were part of the shelf’s normal life span and may not be directly related to climate change.

The iceberg will not add to sea level rise; as floating ice, it is already displacing the same volume of water it will add as it melts.

Christopher A. Shuman, a research professor at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, likened the Ronne Ice Shelf’s calving process to a manicure: If it’s the white part of your fingernail that gets clipped off, it’s not a problem.

“There is really essentially no sign that this is an unusual event with climate significance,” Shuman said.

The formation of the iceberg does, however, bring renewed attention to the broader issue of ice loss in both the Antarctic and Greenland, said M Jackson, a glaciologist and an explorer with the National Geographic Society. Although the Weddell Sea is not warming as quickly as other parts of the Antarctic, she said, the impact of climate change in the region cannot be discounted, and it is hard to disconnect what happened with the Ronne Ice Shelf from the larger problem.

“I am concerned with any ice loss today, because any ice loss is part of our greater global ice loss, and to me it’s terrifying,” Jackson said. “Globally, we’ve got a glacier problem; we’re losing a lot of ice.”

According to Shuman, the last significant calving event on the Ronne shelf was in May 2000.

By studying the new iceberg, researchers hope to better understand the overall state of Antarctica’s ice shelves, said David Long, who runs the Antarctic Iceberg Tracking Database at Brigham Young University.

音声はこちら

5/23(日)の放送の英文記事と英単語：動揺して、株主、再確認

Sale of Tribune Newspapers to Hedge Fund Is Approved by Shareholders

Hedge Fund ヘッジファンド
Poised 動揺して、中に浮いて
Slashing costs コストをカットする
Shareholder 株主
Plead 弁解、頼み込む
Glimmer of hope かすかな望み
Reaffirm 再確認
Abstain 控える
Eke out 食い延ばす

著者：Katie Robertson
(c) 2021 The New York Times Company

Tribune Publishing, owner of some of the biggest metropolitan newspapers in the United States, is poised to be acquired by a hedge fund with a reputation for slashing costs and cutting jobs, after the company’s shareholders voted to approve the deal.

Shareholders of Tribune, whose titles include The Chicago Tribune, The Baltimore Sun and The New York Daily News, on Friday voted to approve the company’s sale to Alden Global Capital.

The bid by Alden, which already owns about 200 local newspapers, had faced resistance: Journalists at Tribune’s papers protested the sale and publicly pleaded for another buyer to step in. Stewart Bainum, a Maryland hotel executive who had planned to buy the The Baltimore Sun, offered a glimmer of hope when he emerged with a last-minute offer for the entire company. He was backed for a brief time by a Swiss billionaire.

But the rival bid never fully came together, so the choice facing Tribune’s shareholders was to approve or reject Alden’s offer. Tribune’s board had recommended that they vote for the sale.

“The purchase of Tribune reaffirms our commitment to the newspaper industry and our focus on getting publications to a place where they can operate sustainably over the long term,” Heath Freeman, the president of Alden, said in a statement Friday after the shareholder meeting. Tribune did not immediately reply to requests for comment.

The vote Friday had required approval by two-thirds of the shares held by investors other than Alden, which holds a 32% stake in Tribune, to pass.

The company’s second-largest shareholder, Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, who owns a 24% stake in Tribune, abstained from voting, his spokeswoman said Friday. Soon-Shiong was seen as the last hope by Tribune employees who opposed the sale to Alden, because a “no” vote from him would have blocked the deal.Alden began buying up news outlets more than a decade ago and owns MediaNews Group, the second-largest newspaper group in the country, with titles including The Denver Post and The Boston Herald. In an era of shrinking print circulation and advertising, Alden has found a way to eke out a profit by laying off workers, cutting costs and selling off real estate.

Tribune agreed in February to sell to Alden, which had pursued ownership for years, in a deal that valued Tribune at roughly $630 million.

音声はこちら

5/24(月)の放送の英文記事と英単語：変異種、伝染する、妨害する

Germany Suspends Most Travel From U.K. Amid Concerns of Variant’s Spread

variant 変異種
classify 分類する
mutation 変化、突然変異
transmissible 伝染する、感染力が強い
an area of concern 懸念される地域
a variant of concern 懸念される変異株
① それは懸念すべき事柄だ。 It’s a matter of concern.
② お客様と乗組員の安全を第一に考えています。
The safety of our passengers and crew is our concern.
③ それは私には関係ない。 That’s no concern of mine.
thwart 　妨害する、邪魔をする (≒stop, prevent)

著者：Elian Peltier
(c) 2021 The New York Times Company

Germany is banning most travel from Britain starting Sunday amid concerns about the spread of a coronavirus variant first discovered in India, German authorities said Friday.

German citizens and residents of Germany will still be allowed to enter the country from Britain but will be required to quarantine for two weeks upon arrival, Germany’s public health institution said as it classified Britain as an area of concern because of the variant.

The move came just days after Britain reopened its museums and cinemas and resumed allowing indoor service in pubs and restaurants. Many people in Britain have been looking forward to traveling abroad in the coming months, and Spain is set to welcome visitors arriving from Britain without a coronavirus test starting Monday.

The spread in Britain of the variant first detected in India, known as B.1.617, could serve as an early warning for other European countries that have relaxed restrictions. This month, the World Health Organization declared the mutation a “variant of concern,” and it is believed to be more transmissible than the virus’s initial form.

Brazil, India and South Africa are among the dozen or so other countries that Germany considers areas of concern because of variants. As of Thursday, Britain has reported 3,424 cases of the variant first discovered in India, according to government data, up from 1,313 cases the previous week.

The Office for National Statistics in the United Kingdom said Friday that the percentage of people testing positive for the coronavirus in Britain had showed “early signs of a potential increase” in the week ended May 15, although it said rates remained low compared with earlier this year. At its peak in late December, Britain recorded more than 81,000 cases, compared with about 2,000 this month.

The country’s inoculation campaign is continuing with an increased focus on second doses in an effort to thwart the sort of spikes that led to restrictions earlier this year.

More than 37 million people, or 56% of Britain’s population, have received a first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Yet most people under age 30 have yet to receive a dose, and less than a third of the population has been fully vaccinated.

音声はこちら

5/25(火)の放送の英文記事と英単語：減退する、義務化する、議会

The Pandemic Is Ebbing, but What About Governors’ Emergency Powers?

ebb　減退する、潮が引く
executive　行政上の
☝️「実行力のある」という意味も
　CEO = Chief Executive Officer
mandate　義務化する
[語源: man-(手)+dare(与える)
→誰かの手に与える]
sweeping　広範囲に及ぶ
☝️sweep(掃く)
Legislature　議会
☝️legislator(立法者、議員)
spar　口論する
☝️スパーリング
roll back　引き下げる
☝️「後ろに転がす」
rebuke　非難
[語源: re(~返す)+buke(木を切る)]
curtail　縮小する
directives　指令

著者：Adeel Hassan
(c) 2021 The New York Times Company

As the threat from the coronavirus pandemic grew in early 2020, so did many governors’ executive powers. Without a federal plan, it fell to the states to issue lockdown and stay-at-home orders, mandate masks and close schools and businesses.

With states moving to reopen amid a drop in new cases, legislators have been asking about the need for restrictions and how much sweeping authority governors need to have during a public health emergency.

Voters in Pennsylvania this week became the first in the United States to help check an executive’s authority during an emergency period. The state’s Democratic governor, Tom Wolf, and its Republican-controlled Legislature sparred over Wolf’s emergency actions during the pandemic.

Two measures passed Tuesday in Pennsylvania, both with about 54% approval. The state’s Constitution will be amended to end a governor’s emergency disaster declaration after 21 days. And lawmakers will be given the only authority to extend or end the emergency disaster declaration, by a simple majority.

In New Jersey, a Democrat-led Legislature took the initial step this week to roll back dozens of COVID-related orders issued by Gov. Phil Murphy, also a Democrat. But the bill that was introduced also leaves the governor with expansive powers to apply new measures in an emergency. Murphy is one of two governors to keep an indoor mask mandate, even for vaccinated people; the other is Hawaii’s.

New executive orders related to the pandemic are still being announced. Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, said Tuesday that counties, cities, public health authorities and local government officials in Texas would be prohibited from requiring people to wear masks.

Democratic lawmakers in Connecticut, though, supported an extension this week of Gov. Ned Lamont’s expanded pandemic powers through mid-July. Lawmakers argued that executive orders were still needed to manage the vaccine rollout and federal relief funds.

Perhaps no governor has faced a bigger rebuke of his use of emergency powers than Democrat Andrew Cuomo. In February, New York’s Democrat-controlled legislature curtailed Cuomo’s emergency powers, and in late April, it suspended some of his pandemic directives, including a rule that required New Yorkers to order food with their alcohol orders at bars and restaurants.

音声はこちら

5/26(水)の放送の英文記事と英単語：素晴らしい、度胸、準優勝

Phil Mickelson, at 50, Wins PGA Championship

riveting　素晴らしい、心を奪われるような
nerve　ずぶとさ、度胸
runner-up　準優勝、2位の人
in the hunt　追い求める
achievement　功績
rack up　獲得する、蓄積する
misfortune　不運
break through　打ち破る

著者：Bill Pennington
(c) 2021 The New York Times Company

KIAWAH ISLAND, S.C. — Weathering a riveting, roller-coaster test of nerve over five hours, Phil Mickelson, who turns 51 next month, won the PGA Championship on Sunday to become the oldest golfer to win a major championship. The record was previously held by Julius Boros, who was 48 when he won the 1968 PGA Championship.

Mickelson shot 6 under par for the tournament, finishing two strokes ahead of the runners-up, Brooks Koepka and Louis Oosthuizen.

Mickelson becomes the latest in a growing group of sports stars who have defied traditional retirement ages for athletes and proved that championships can still be won in careers that last into middle age. Mickelson has followed the lead of Tom Brady, who won his seventh Super Bowl three months ago at 43. Serena Williams has remained consistently in the hunt for elite titles at 39, an age that historically has seen tennis players recede to a senior circuit. Tiger Woods, although seriously injured in a February car crash, won his fifth Masters tournament two years ago at 43.

Mickelson’s achievement, his sixth major title, could prove to be a bookend to three decades in golf’s spotlight. A four-time college All-American, he won his first professional tournament while still an amateur and was unable to cash the hefty check for his accomplishment. After turning pro, he racked up victories on the PGA Tour, but soon became better known for his failure to win his first major championship.

Mickelson has also had the misfortune of playing most of his career in the shadow of the superstar Woods, who won six major championships before he was 26. But Mickelson did not break through until he was 33, when he claimed the 2004 Masters during his 13th year on tour. Two other Masters championships followed, in 2006 and 2010, as well as a victory at the 2005 PGA Championship, but there were also frequent, dispiriting setbacks, including six second-place finishes at the U.S. Open, American golf’s national championship. Before Sunday’s victory at the treacherous Ocean Course at Kiawah Island, Mickelson had not won a major since the 2013 British Open.

音声はこちら

5/27(木)の放送の英文記事と英単語：擬人化の、難解な、評決

Apple’s ‘Fortnite’ Trial Ends With Pointed Questions and a Toast to Popeyes

take the stand 証人台に立つ
anthropomorphic 擬人化の
antitrust trial 独占禁止法訴訟
esoteric 難解な、秘伝の
oddball 奇人、変わり者
verdict 評決
parse 解剖する、構文解析する
legal precedent 判例
appellate review 再審理
appeal 上訴する

著者：Jack Nicas
(c) 2021 The New York Times Company

Tim Cook took the stand for the first time as Apple’s CEO. The billionaire creator of one of the world’s most popular video games walked a federal judge through a tour of the so-called metaverse. And lawyers in masks debated whether an anthropomorphic banana without pants was appropriate to show in federal court.

For the past three weeks, Apple has defended itself in a federal courtroom in Oakland, California, against claims that it abused its power over the iPhone App Store, in one of the biggest antitrust trials in Silicon Valley’s history. Epic Games, the maker of the popular game “Fortnite,” sued Apple last year seeking to allow apps to avoid the 30% commission that the iPhone maker takes on many app sales.

On Monday, the trial — which covered esoteric definitions of markets as well as oddball video game characters — concluded with Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California pressing the companies on what should change in Apple’s business, if anything. The decision over the case, as well as the future of the $100 billion market for iPhone apps, now rests in her hands. Gonzalez Rogers has said she hopes to issue a verdict by mid-August.

Throughout the trial, lawyers, investors and journalists parsed Gonzalez Rogers’ comments and questions for hints of her thinking. When Epic brought its witnesses to the stand, she appeared at points to be sympathetic to Apple’s arguments. But the angle of her questions shifted when Apple presented its witnesses, including Cook.

On Monday, Gonzalez Rogers’ comments suggested that she believed Apple deserved to profit from its innovations. But she also questioned some of the ways it sought to do so.

At other times Monday, she appeared reluctant to force Apple to change its business.

Gonzalez Rogers also suggested that Epic’s requested outcome in the case would require a significant change in Apple’s business and questioned whether there was legal precedent for that. “Give me some example that survived appellate review where the court has engaged in such a way to limit or fundamentally change the economic model of a monopolistic company?” she asked Epic’s lawyers.

The judge has said she expects her ruling to be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit. If appealed, a three-judge panel in that court could review her decision.

音声はこちら

5/28(金)の放送の英文記事と英単語：終わらせる、解決させる

Immunity to the Coronavirus May Persist for Years, Scientists Find

put to rest　　終わらせる／解決させる
lingering　　なかなかなくならない／残っている
booster　　補助注射／効能促進剤
　　☝️ booster shotとも言います
robust　　強健な／たくましい
bone marrow　　骨髄
churn out　　大量に次々と作る／乱造する
antibody　　抗体
so-called　　いわゆる
memory B cells　　メモリーB細胞
literature　　文献
elicit　　引き出す／惹起する
potent　　　効能のある／強力な

著者：Apoorva Mandavilli
(c) 2021 The New York Times Company

Immunity to the coronavirus lasts at least a year, possibly a lifetime, improving over time especially after vaccination, according to two new studies. The findings may help put to rest lingering fears that protection against the virus will be short-lived.

Together, the studies suggest that most people who have recovered from COVID-19 and who were later immunized will not need boosters. Vaccinated people who were never infected most likely will need the shots, however, as will a minority who were infected but did not produce a robust immune response.

Both reports looked at people who had been exposed to the coronavirus about a year earlier. Cells that retain a memory of the virus persist in the bone marrow and may churn out antibodies whenever needed, according to one of the studies, published Monday in the journal Nature.

The other study, which is also under review for publication in Nature, found that these so-called memory B cells continue to mature and strengthen for at least 12 months after the initial infection.

“The papers are consistent with the growing body of literature that suggests that immunity elicited by infection and vaccination for SARS-CoV-2 appears to be long-lived,” said Scott Hensley, an immunologist at the University of Pennsylvania who was not involved in the research.

The studies may soothe fears that immunity to the virus is transient, as is the case with coronaviruses that cause common colds.

In fact, memory B cells produced in response to infection with SARS-CoV-2 and enhanced with vaccination are so potent that they thwart even variants of the virus, negating the need for boosters, according to Michel Nussenzweig, an immunologist at Rockefeller University in New York who led the study on memory maturation.

The result may not apply to protection derived from vaccines alone, because immune memory is likely to be organized differently after immunization, compared with that following natural infection. That means people who have not had COVID-19 and have been immunized may eventually need a booster shot, Nussenzweig said. “That’s the kind of thing that we will know very, very soon,” he said.

音声はこちら

「Voicy News Brief with articles from New York Times」は平日毎朝7時にVoicyで更新中！いつでも無料で聴けるVoicyの英語チャンネルを活用して、英語力向上にお役立てください。