英语听力精选进阶版 7187（在线收听）

Background: 近日，美国的科学家们表示他们发现了导致男士们脱发的原因并希望能早日找到治疗方法。研究表明人体内有缺陷的毛囊干细胞导致生长出来的毛发细得肉眼无法看得到。

For some men, bald is beautiful.

The iconic look may work for a few - especially celebrities - like the rugged Die Hard star Bruce Willis and Star Trek's Patrick Stewart.

For many though hair loss is no laughing matter. But now researchers in America say they've uncovered a cure.

An academic medical centre has found that hair follicles actually shrink, but don't disappear.

Dr George Cotsarelis, dermatology professor at Pennsylvania University, found the discovery hair-raising.

“What we found surprised us. The stem cells were present but they were not doing their job.”

The discovery of invisible hair sounds too good to be true. But what does it mean?

“It really gives us hope that because the stem cells are present it lowers the bar for developing treatments that could activate the stem cells and get them to form a new hair follicle,” said Dr Cotsarelis.

Treating these faulty stem cells means that, rather than just maintaining hair, we could soon regenerate hair.

Glossary 词汇表

rugged 强健而富有魅力的 

no laughing matter 严肃的事儿 

to uncover 发现 

cure 治疗方法 

hair follicle 毛囊 

hair-raising 令人惊讶的 

stem cell 干细胞 

to good to be true 好得令人难以置信 

to lower the bar 消减阻碍 

to regenerate 再生

Questions and Answers

1. What do scientists think is the cause of baldness? 

They say it happens when stem cells do not work as they should.

2. What sort of treatment would they like to develop? 

One that activates the cells and makes them form new hair follicles.

3. True or false? The report says that hair follicles are inactive in bald men. 

False. It says that they are smaller but still produce hair.

4. True or false? The treatment of defective cells could lead to the regeneration of hair. 

True. Instead of creating a treatment to maintain hair, scientists could create one that regenerates hair.