SCIENCE REPORT - Drug Use ReportSCIENCE REPORT - Drug Use Re

SCIENCE REPORT
–
February 27, 2002: Drug Use Report

By George Grow

This is the VOA Special English SCIENCE REPORT.
A new study examines drug use by young people in the United States.
The study found that cigarette smoking among American teenagers dropped during the past year. The drop

continues a general decrease in teenage smoking rates that started in Nineteen-Ninety-Six.

 

American health officials praised the decrease as good news in the nation’s battle
against smoking. They note that smoking remains¹ the leading cause of preventable
death and disease². Smoking rates among American teenagers increased in the first

half of the Nineteen-Nineties. However, teenage smoking rates have been
decreasing in recent years.

The University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research supervised³ the latest

study. The Department of Health and Human Services reported the findings⁴.

The study involved more than forty-four-thousand students in more than four-hundred schools across the United
States. They were asked about past and daily use of tobacco, alcohol⁵ and illegal drugs.

The youngest students questioned were thirteen years old. The study also involved fifteen-year-old students and
seventeen-year-olds.

The most notable⁶ change in the study was a continuation of the decrease in cigarette use among thirteen and
fifteen-year-olds.

For example, about twelve percent of thirteen-year-old students questioned reported smoking at least one
cigarette during the past month. Six years ago, the rate was twenty-one percent. Among fifteen-year-olds, the rate
dropped from thirty percent in Nineteen-Ninety-Six to twenty-one percent last year.

Tommy Thompson is the secretary of Health and Human Services. He praised the findings. He said more
teenagers are making correct choices that will help them avoid health problems caused by tobacco.

The study found that use of alcoholic⁷ drinks and illegal drugs among American teenagers remained the same or
dropped during the past year. However, the use of one illegal drug known as Ecstasy⁸ continued to increase. Yet
the rate of increase was not as great as in recent years.

American health officials said they will continue to give teenagers scientific information about the serious health
risks of Ecstasy and other illegal drugs. The goal is to further reduce the use of these drugs.

This VOA Special English SCIENCE REPORT was written by George Grow.

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1 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

2 disease   

n.疾病，弊端

参考例句：

• The doctors are trying to stamp out the disease.医生正在尽力消灭这种疾病。
• He fought against the disease for a long time.他同疾病做了长时间的斗争。

3 supervised   

v.监督，管理( supervise的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The architect supervised the building of the house. 建筑工程师监督房子的施工。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He supervised and trained more than 400 volunteers. 他指导和培训了400多名志愿者。 来自辞典例句

4 findings   

n.发现物( finding的名词复数 )；调查（或研究）的结果；（陪审团的）裁决

参考例句：

• It behoves us to study these findings carefully. 我们理应认真研究这些发现。
• Their findings have been widely disseminated . 他们的研究成果已经广为传播。

5 alcohol   

n.酒精，乙醇；含酒精的饮料

参考例句：

• The law forbids shops to sell alcohol to minors.法律禁止商店向未成年者出售含酒精的饮料。
• The alcohol is industrial.这些酒精是供工业用的。

6 notable   

adj.值得注意的，著名的；n.名人，要人

参考例句：

• His achievement is very notable.他的成就是非常显著的。
• He wrote and published the essay under notable's name.他假托名人写文章发表。

7 alcoholic   

adj.（含）酒精的，由酒精引起的；n.酗酒者

参考例句：

• The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
• Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。

8 ecstasy   

n.狂喜，心醉神怡，入迷

参考例句：

• He listened to the music with ecstasy.他听音乐听得入了神。
• Speechless with ecstasy,the little boys gazed at the toys.小孩注视着那些玩具，高兴得说不出话来。