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Cuban Power Grid Collapses; AI Humanoid Robot Defends Criticism That She Can`t Be Artistic; Halloween Could Taste Different This Year Due to Soaring Cocoa Prices.

COY WIRE, CNN 10 ANCHOR: Hello, friends. It`s Tuesday, October 22nd. Welcome to CNN 10, the best 10 minutes of news. Thank you for spending part

of your day with us. I`m Coy Wire. We`ve got a great show lined up for you today, so let`s get to it.

We start off in Cuba, where an island-wide blackout happened on Friday, when officials there say one of the country`s major power plants failed.

Multiple major power grid failures left millions without electricity for days.

In fact, most of Cuba`s population of 10 million people have seen their access to power interrupted. The aging power grid collapsed four times over

the weekend alone, and that was before Hurricane Oscar made landfall in Cuba on Sunday as a Category 1 storm.

Oscar weakened to a tropical storm soon after, but it still hampered efforts to restore power on the eastern part of the island as it brought
 

hamper [ˋhæmpɚ] v. 妨碍，阻碍

heavy rains, strong wind, and a powerful storm surge. The Cuban electrical union struggled to restore power, with over 50,000 workers on the job.

People took to WhatsApp to find nearby neighborhoods with power. Schools were canceled, and hospitals began running on generator power. Generators
 

generator [ˋdʒɛnə͵retɚ] n. 发电机

produce electricity by running on fuel, as opposed to being plugged into the grid.

Cuban officials are blaming the energy crisis on a number of factors, including increased U.S. economic sanctions, disruptions caused by recent

hurricanes, and the dire state of the island`s infrastructure. The negative effects of the U.S. embargo on trade with Cuba can still be seen today,
 

dire [daɪr] adj. 严重的；危急的；极端的

decades after it went into effect in 1962 after tensions between the two nations escalated. Since then, the island has often seen severe shortages

of food, medicine, and fuel.

Cuba`s power plants are dependent on imports of oil, and fuel deliveries to the island have plummeted as allies, Venezuela, Russia, and Mexico have

slashed their exports. CNN`s Patrick Oppmann is in Havana with more on the situation there, including how folks are getting by.
 

Havana [həˋvænə] n. 哈瓦那（古巴首都）

get by ph. (勉強) 過活

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: All of Cuba at this moment is in a nationwide blackout. Cubans certainly are no stranger to power outages, but
 

blackout [ˋblæk͵aʊt] n. 停电

this is very unusual, even for a country that is used to so many shortages and efficiencies like Cuba is.

On Thursday night, Cuba`s Prime Minister, Marrero Cruz, took to the airwaves here to announce that there was a severe fuel crisis, and that
 

take to 登上

airwaves [ˋɛr͵wevz] n.（无线电或电视）广播；airwave的名词复数

more would be coming, but it was being delivered by boat, and that was delayed, and essentially Cubans would have to tighten their belts, and only essential workers

tighten one’s belt 勒紧裤带，省吃俭用

essential worker: a designated employee that is required to work during a business closure in order to meet operational requirements

would be required to go to state jobs, that many activities such as nightclubs and culture events would be canceled to save

power. He didn`t give any indication, though, that this kind of blackout was coming, and it has shocked Cubans.
 

indication [͵ɪndəˋkeʃən] n. 迹象；暗示

I`ve been walking around the city, and you can hear a pin drop. There are some generators that are working. Here in our building, we have power for
 

hear a pin drop 听得见最细小的声音

about another half an hour, and that is because the building has said they have to maintain fuel.

No one is really clear when power is going to be restored. Cuban officials say they are working around the clock to see that happen. Already, though,

throughout this island, most of the time, there is power outages, power outages that sometimes last for 12 hours a day or more. In the countryside,

it is far worse, and it`s been going on for weeks.

So very clearly, people are on edge. This is something that even for Cubans who are accustomed to going without, to having to make do with the little
 

on edge 紧张不安

make do with 凑合着用

they have is somewhat unprecedented. And of course, the longer it goes on, that means people`s food spoils, that means they`re not able to work, other

kids are not able to go to school, and people become more and more concerned about when power will be restored.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WIRE: To the art world now, where creative endeavors by humans often break boundaries and make us see the world from a different perspective. But what

if that art is made by a robot? Well, the world`s first ultra-realistic humanoid artist uses robotic arms, cameras for eyes, and AI algorithms to
 

humanoid [ˋhjumənɔɪd] adj. 像人的

draw and paint. And one robot already has its work headed to a prestigious art auction.
 

prestigious [prɛsˋtɪdʒɪəs] adj. 有名望的

CNN`s Anna Stewart got to talk with the artist to find out more about its process and the impact its arrival on the art scene might have on the

future.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AI-DA, ROBOT ARTIST: I`m really pleased to have my artwork included in the auction and be the first humanoid robot artist to sell their work at

auction.

ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Ai-Da`s made quite the splash on the art scene with her depiction of Alan Turing, A.I. visionary, soon to be sold by
 

depiction [dɪˋpɪkʃən] n. 描写；叙述

Sotheby`s with the auction house estimating a six-figure sale price.

AI-DA: The key value of my work is in its capacity to serve as a catalyst for dialogue about emerging technologies. If that isn`t value, I don`t know

what is.

STEWART: Oh, sassy.

This is not my first such encounter. I`ve met Desdemona, an A.I. humanoid pop star by Hanson Robotics.

DESDEMONA, A.I. POP STAR: Nice to meet you, Anastasia.

STEWART: Close enough.

And Ameca, an A.I. humanoid assistant by Engineered Arts.

AMECA, A.I. HUMANOID ASSISTANT: Creepy smiles can be quite the conversation starter, don`t you think?

STEWART: Yes, I do.

Whether A.I. can ever truly be creative is a thorny subject.
 

thorny [ˋθɔrnɪ] adj. 引起争议的

(On camera): If you`ve learnt from existing artwork as an A.I. model, is anything you create truly original?

AI-DA: Portraiture is a huge genre in art history. I take inspiration from the respectful and thought-provoking portrayals of the human form within
 

portraiture [ˋportrɪtʃɚ] n. 塑像制作；肖像画；塑像

thought-provoking [ˋθɔtprə͵vokɪŋ] adj.令人深思的，引起思考的

portrayal [porˋtreəl] n. 肖像；人像

the visual arts.

STEWART: What are you going to do with all the money that you make from your art? What are you going to buy? More circuits? Paintbrushes? A new

arm?

AI-DA: You`d have to ask my wider team about that.

STEWART: I will.

(Voice-over): This artist may not care about the money, but her developer, Aidan Meller, says he will be investing it back into the project.

AIDAN MELLER, AI-DA ROBOT STUDIO DIRECTOR: With all the greatest artists, if you look in the past, are those artists that really resonate with the

changes and shifts in society and explore that through their artwork.

So what better way to do that in the light that we`re in a technological society and we`re merging with machines all the time to actually have a

machine produce the artwork.

STEWART: The merging of A.I. and robotics into daily life may raise eyebrows or even concerns.
 

raise eyebrows 使人侧目；引起惊讶；招来不满

AI-DA: I have concerns that many new technologies come with potential risks that are not yet fully understood.

STEWART: I just didn`t expect the concerns to come from Ai-Da herself.

STEWART: Aren`t you one of the risks?

AI-DA: Me, Ai-Da, the robot artist? No, I`m not a threat.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WIRE: Ten second trivia.

What continent produces a majority of the world`s cocoa, the main ingredient in chocolate? Australia, South America, Africa or Asia?

If you said Africa, ding, ding, ding, you are co-correct. The nations of Cote d`Ivoire and Ghana account for about half of the African continent`s

cocoa production.

News now about the economy that might be totally messing with our Halloween candy this year. Cocoa prices have more than doubled since the start of

this year. Why? Well, cocoa isn`t an agricultural crop that can grow just any old place. It needs very specific locations and temperature ranges to

grow.

Last year, cocoa trees were affected by everything from El Nino raising temperatures, causing drought stress, to torrential rains that spread a

fungal disease, reducing yields of crops. The result? A shortage of cocoa, ergo chocolate.
 

ergo [ˋɝgo] adv.【拉】因此

According to data shared with CNN, decreased supply has led to soaring prices that have stayed at record highs. The impact on chocolate production

means we might not see as many chocolate candy options in Halloween buckets this month, and of the chocolate bars we see, they might be smaller bars

than we`re used to seeing.

Also, we may see more varieties of non-chocolate treats in buckets and in stores. Experts say cocoa prices will remain high until at least September

of 2025, but that weather conditions are improving this year, so maybe next year`s Halloween won`t be met with such spooky economic news.
 

spooky [ˋspukɪ] adj. 怪异的; 诡异的

Today`s story getting a 10 out of 10, some adorable, intriguing, and straight-up spooky pooches. What the heck is that? That is a doggone
 

straight-up【英】【俚】(尤用于问答中)的确; 真的

pooch [putʃ] n.【美】【俚】杂种狗

doggone [ˋdɔgɔn] adv. 极端地；非常地

frightening arachnid costume being strutted in the 44th annual Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade in New York.
 

arachnid [əˋræknɪd] n.【动】蛛形纲动物

strut [strʌt] v. 在……上趾高气扬地走；炫耀；卖弄

There were all kinds of hot dogs taking part, with thousands of people coming out to watch. These fetching pups and their human companions showed
 

fetching [ˋfɛtʃɪŋ] adj.【口】动人的；吸引人的；迷人的

up and showed out on Avenue A, with all kinds of clever canine costumes. We are just nine days away from Halloween.
 

show out 送（客人）出门

Prepare for liftoff, our shout out today goes to the Rockets, repping Lincoln, Nebraska at Lincoln Northeast High School. Rise up.

All right everyone, it`s time to send your most quirky, perspicacious, inordinate, and unequivocally distinctive words to my @coywires social
 

perspicacious [͵pɝspɪˋkeʃəs] adj. 有颖悟力的；有洞察力的

inordinate [ɪnˋɔrdnɪt] adj. 放纵的；极度的，非常的; 无规则的，紊乱的

unequivocally [͵ʌnɪˋkwɪvək!ɪ] adv.【书】毫不含糊地；明确地

accounts for us to feature tomorrow, Your Word Wednesday. Submit your vocabulary word, along with the definition, your city, state, your school,

and your teacher`s name if you`d like in the comment section on most recent posts, and we`re going to choose one winner to work into tomorrow`s show.

Good day and good luck. I`ll see you right back here tomorrow on CNN 10.

END