They were only about a quarter mile up the beach when they heard an explosion -- loud, as if it were close, and the shockwave made them stumble. Mother fell.

他们刚刚往海滩走了四分之一英里，便听见震耳欲聋的爆炸声，仿佛就在附近，冲击波弄的他们站不稳，母亲摔了一跤，比恩和尼古拉回头看时父亲已经把她扶起来了。

youdao

Citizens aged 65 and over make up close to one-quarter of Japan's population; by 2050, that figure will rise to almost 40 PCT.

在日本，65岁及其以上的公民几乎占了总人口的25%。预计到2050年，这个数字将会攀升至总人口的40%。

youdao

And inflation has gone up by more than the quarter-point rise in Japanese interest rates, leaving real rates close to zero and even lower than last year.

通货膨胀率早已高出了日本四分之一点的利率增长，将实际的比率拉回0点附近或者甚至比去年还要低。

youdao

Qualcomm Inc. ( QCOM) is scheduled to step up after the after the close of trading this afternoon and release its fourth-quarter earnings figures.

FORBES: Qualcomm Earnings: Using Collars as Portfolio Protection

The number of new households is no longer close to the 100, 000-plus pay-TV subscribers it used to sign up per quarter, but the group said that average customer spend had increased as cable subscribers added new services.

BBC: BSkyB revenues rise as customers choose extra services