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How a distant war is hurting Finland's reindeer herds   December 11, 2025

 

Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, wherever you are in this world. I'm Coy Wire here with your news for this Thursday, December 11th, Random Thought Thursday.

 

Is cereal a type of soup? Take a minestrone, think about it, then snap, crackle, and pop your opinion on my Instagram.

 

cereal [ˋsɪrɪəl] n. 谷类加工食品；玉蜀黍薄片；麦片

minestrone [͵mɪnɪˋstronɪ] n. 意大利蔬菜浓汤（有通心粉、干豆及蔬菜的一种汤）

 

Now let's get you your news.We start with some weather news and a concerning situation at the National Weather Service, which is responsible for forecasting severe weather events in order to help keep us safe, right?

 

The agency is currently struggling to hire back hundreds of critical positions ahead of this year's winter storm season. In April, nearly 550 jobs were cut by President Donald Trump's administration as part of Elon Musk's now disbanded DOGE initiative, or Department of Government Efficiency.

 

We're talking hundreds of meteorologists, hydrologists, and other specialized staff who forecast weather and essentially protect the public from hurricanes, floods, blizzards, tornadoes, etc.

 

hydrologist [haɪˋdrɑlədʒɪst] n. 水文学者

 

By July of this year, the agency received permission to add about 450 of those jobs back after lawmakers expressed concern over public safety. But five months later, they have only been able to fill about 80 of those positions.

 

That means more than a dozen key forecast offices remain severely understaffed, potentially undermining the accuracy of forecasts and severe weather warnings.

 

understaffed [͵ʌndɚˋstæft] adj. 人手不足的；人员配备不足的

 

Current and former agency officials say some stations are missing as many as eight of the 13 meteorologists needed to run those offices around the clock.

 

They've also expressed concerns that even if all 450 openings are filled, replacing the centuries of experience held by the former employees could take years.

 

10-second trivia. Which of the following is true about reindeer?

 

Only male reindeer grow antlers. Reindeer cannot swim. Reindeer can see ultraviolet light. Reindeer hibernate during the winter.

 

antler [ˋæntlɚ] n. 鹿角

ultraviolet [͵ʌltrəˋvaɪəlɪt] adj. 紫外的；紫外线的

 

If you said ultraviolet light, you are bright. Arctic environments contain lots of UV.

 

Reindeer eyes change seasonally to adapt. In winter, their eye structure boosts their ability to detect very faint and high contrast wavelengths including UV.

 

faint [fent] adj. 微弱的，暗淡的，模糊的

 

In Finland, some locals are blaming their dwindling reindeer populations on Russia's war in Ukraine.

 

Reindeer have a significant economic impact in Finland, booming tourism, leather and meat sales, creating loads of jobs. But some Finnish reindeer herders say an influx of wolves from Russia in recent years are attacking and decimating their herds, ergo their livelihoods.

 

ergo [ˋɝgo] adv.【拉】因此

 

Finland and Russia share an 800-mile border, and herders say that the young Russians who typically hunt and control the wolf population are now off fighting in their war.

 

Our Isabelle Young met with a herder and rode along with some troops in Finland for a first-hand look at this growing crisis.

 

Reindeer herding is at the heart of Finland's culture and economy. Juha Kujala's family have been herding reindeer for over 400 years. But all that is now under threat.

 

Oh, poor reindeer. From a surge in the number of predators.

 

surge [sɝdʒ] n. 激增

 

What is it that's killing the reindeer? Wolf is the worst. And they just kill, kill, kill, kill.

 

It's awful. This area wolves, most of them come for the east. The Russian side.

 

How do you know that? You see the tracks, they come for the Russian side. Why do you think there are more Russian wolves? That's the Putin who changed the world. Putin? Yeah.

 

The soldiers and the young hunters, they hunt the wolves. But now they're hunting people in Ukraine. There's nobody anymore there left who's hunting wolves.

 

So do you blame Vladimir Putin for thesedead reindeer?

 

Who could I blame? I could blame the whole world, why this shit happened. It's getting worse after the Ukraine war.

 

Russian men are paid bounties by the state for every wolf they hunt. But recruitment drives into the war in Ukraine have been intense, leaving fewer people to hunt the wolves. Now, reports in Russian media say wolves are increasingly entering villages and towns.

 

bounty [ˋbaʊntɪ] n. 奖金；赏金；补助金

 

And it seems they're crossing the border into Finland. Extensive wolf DNA testing supports that theory.

 

In Finland, there's been a dramatic rise in wolves, which are killing reindeer in record numbers.

 

Sightings like these are increasingly common all along eastern Finland. And that's something that will be difficult to stop. As tensions along this over 800-mile border are at their highest point in decades.

 

So right now we are with some Finnish conscripts in the northernmost part of the European Union.

 

conscript [ˋkɑnskrɪpt] n. 应征入伍者

 

Finland has increased its defence spending and is carrying out large-scale military training.

 

We're about 25 miles or so away from the Russian border right now.

 

And we know that the Russians have been building up military bases just on the other side of the border. Finland seems like a very optimistic but also very prepared country.

 

It's smart to prepare.

 

As Finland preps for the worst, Kujala is hoping for the best.

 

Hopefully Mr Trump, if you hear me, will do everything to try to stop this war. If we cannot fix this wolf situation quickly, some part of the area is going to be without reindeer.

 

And what would that mean to you?

 

Like somebody took my life away.

 

The Nobel Prizes were awardedyesterday in Oslo and Stockholm, Sweden, marking one of their biggest celebrations of global science, literature and humanitarian work. This year's Nobel Peace Prize went to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Karina Machado.

 

The Norwegian Nobel Committee honoured her for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.

 

just [dʒʌst] adj. 正义的；正直的

 

And while the spotlight was on yesterday's ceremony, the Nobel Prize Museum in Stockholm is offering another way to experience the impact of past laureates.

 

laureate [ˋlɔrɪɪt] n. 得奖者

 

The exhibit, called These Things Changed the World, features more than 250 artifacts donated by Nobel laureates, from pieces of graphite used in physics research to paper cranes that became a global symbol for peace.

 

graphite [ˋgræfaɪt] n.【矿】石墨

 

According to the tradition, if you fold a thousand paper cranes, you can have a wish come true. A little girl who survived the atomic bomb in 1945 learned about this tradition.

 

And she got leukemia starting in the school years, so she folded over a thousand paper cranes to get rid of the disease.

 

leukemia [luˋkimɪə] n.【医】白血病（俗称血癌）

 

I'm sad to say it didn't work against the leukemia, but the paper crane became the symbol for the fight against nuclear weapons.

 

From a single folded crane to global campaigns, it's a reminder of how ideas and actions can grow into real-world change.

 

What would you put in an airport to make it more family-friendly? Well, the US Department of Transportation just launched a new campaign called Make Travel Family-Friendly Again.

 

They aim to divvy out parts of a $1 billion pot to airports that apply and submit eligible projects. Some examples. More children's play areas or exercise areas.

 

divvy [ˋdɪvɪ] v. 分，分摊；分享；分配；瓜分

pot [pɑt] n. (奖金)总额

 

More moms' rooms or nursing pods. Family screening lanes at security. Sensory rooms for children with special needs.

 

pod [pɑd] n.（飞机的）吊舱；（宇宙飞船的）分离舱

screening [ˋskrinɪŋ] n.（用筛子）筛过；审查; 检查

sensory room 感官室

 

They're also incentivizing airports to provide healthier food options.

 

incentivize [ɪnˈsentɪvaɪz] v. 激励

 

The Department of Transportation's website says the funding is from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act's Airport Terminal Program, which supports modernization at US airports and air traffic control facilities.

 

Wintertime chills are sweeping parts of the globe, but firefighters are heating things up ahead of Christmas.

 

chill [tʃɪl] n. 寒冷，寒气；风寒，寒颤

 

Look at Santa coming in hot. Firefighters in Athens, Greece got dressed up as jolly old Saint Nick and his elves this week, and they rappelled down a children's cancer hospital. Mrs. Claus made an appearance too.

 

jolly [ˋdʒɑlɪ] adj. 快活的，高兴的

elf [ɛlf] n.（神话中）淘气的小鬼，小精灵

rappel [ræˋpɛl] v. 用绳索（垂直）下降

 

Look at everyone waving. Santa went inside, delivered some presents, spent some time with the kiddos as well.

 

kiddo [ˋkɪdo] n.【俚】老兄；老姐（一种亲昵的称呼）

 

And in Florida, a team of tactical elves from local fire and rescue teams took elf on a shelf to a whole new level.

 

They were rappelling on Golisano Children's Hospital, bringing smiles, waves, and Christmas magic to kids who have to spend the holiday in the hospital.

 

What a way to spread some Christmas cheer.

 

Today's story, getting a 10 out of 10,a dedicated team of students honing their skills to breathe new life into an iconic hot rod.

 

hot rod【口】汽车，改装高速汽车

 

Back in 2017, local car enthusiast David Miller donated his 1955 Chevy Bel Air to the automotive program at his alma mater, Western Iowa Tech Community College.

 

alma mater 母校

 

He hoped students would be able to restore it and use the proceeds to help fund their program. Now, after eight years of painstaking work, the tired Bel Air is a masterpiece on wheels.

 

proceeds [ˋprosidz] n. 收益，收入

 

Students came in early, stayed late, even pitched in on their off days to help restore the car to its former glory.

 

pitch in 使劲做；协力, 做出贡献

 

Certain students that'll focus on, hey, you take care of the brakes. They rebuilt the engine. Certain group did the transmission.

 

Some even got the chance to show off their work at the SEMA auto show at Las Vegas, one of their biggest car shows in the country.

 

It's like the cherry on top because like, I don't think any other college is going to like send you out to Las Vegas and build a car and then yeah, just get to show it off at Las Vegas.

 

cherry on top 锦上添花

 

Miller passed away in 2022, but not before he had the chance to see the result of all their hard work and his wish came true.

 

The car is now up for auction and the proceeds will fund scholarships for the next generation of car lovers. Vroom, vroom, here we go.

 

We've got a shout out today going to Mrs. Palma at Marco Antonio Fireball High School in Linwood, California. Let's aim to be a little better today than we were yesterday. It's almost Friday, y'all.

 

Happy Friday Eve. I'm Coy Wire and we are CNN 10.