VOA慢速英语20060114a

IN THE NEWS - Bird Flu: Hoping for the Best, but Preparing for the WorstBy Nancy Steinbach

Broadcast: Saturday, January 14, 2006

I'm Steve Ember with IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

There are more warnings about the need to prepare for the possibility of a worldwide outbreak of bird flu.

VOA's Steve Herman in Tokyo reported Friday on the results of a two-day meeting held by Japan and the World Health Organization. Delegates¹ from more than twenty countries discussed a plan they hope might contain the early spread of any influenza² pandemic.

W.H.O. Western Pacific director Shigeru Omi says containment³ alone is not enough. He says all the possible options must be used. That includes doing more to watch for the risk of person-to-person infection.


Shigeru Omi, Western Pacific director for the World Health Organiztion

Doctor Omi also says some countries need to be more open about reporting infections in animals and people. He did not say which countries.

The W.H.O. says about one and one-half thousand million dollars will be needed over three years to prepare for a pandemic. A meeting next week in Beijing will deal with how to pay for it. The World Bank has just offered five hundred million dollars.

The current outbreak of bird flu began in Southeast Asia in December of two thousand three, leading to about eighty deaths. Health officials say the victims have been mostly young people who had close contact with infected birds or sick people. China and Turkey have reported the most recent human infections.

The W.H.O. says the h-five-n-one virus already has met two of the three conditions for a pandemic. It is new, so there is no natural protection. And it can make people very sick. The third condition is that a virus must change into a form that can pass easily from person to person.

W.H.O. officials say tests on two people who died in Turkey found a small genetic⁴ change in the virus. But they say it is too soon to know how this might affect the spread of the virus. They say similar changes appeared in two thousand three in Hong Kong and last year in Vietnam.

Experts continue to learn more about the virus. New research may show it to be more widespread but not as deadly as people have thought. This week, the Archives of Internal⁵ Medicine published a study by Swedish and Vietnamese scientists. Their findings⁶ suggest that sick or dead birds can spread mild avian influenza to humans. They say doctors may be seeing only the most severe cases.

The W.H.O. is taking no chances. It wants every country to develop a plan.

France, for example, has announced plans to gather enough facemasks and medicines for all its people. European Union countries have until February seventh to propose⁷ how they will keep watch for bird flu. E.U. officials this week extended⁸ a testing program for poultry⁹ and wild birds.

In the United States, efforts include new public guidelines¹⁰ about how to prepare for a pandemic. The government has a Web site, www.pandemicflu.gov. More information about avian influenza can also be found at www.who.int and at www.voanews.com.

IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English was written by Nancy Steinbach. I'm Steve Ember

1 delegates   

代表，代表团成员( delegate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The conference was attended by delegates from 56 countries. 此次会议有来自56个国家的代表出席。
• Delegates expressed strong opposition to the plans. 代表强烈反对这些计划。

2 influenza   

n.流行性感冒，流感

参考例句：

• They took steps to prevent the spread of influenza.他们采取措施
• Influenza is an infectious disease.流感是一种传染病。

3 containment   

n.阻止，遏制；容量

参考例句：

• Your list might include such things as cost containment,quality,or customer satisfaction.你的清单上应列有诸如成本控制、产品质量、客户满意程度等内容。
• Insularity and self-containment,it is argued,go hand in hand.他们争论说，心胸狭窄和自我封闭是并存的。

4 genetic   

adj.遗传的，遗传学的

参考例句：

• It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
• Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。

5 internal   

adj.内的，内部的；国内的，内政的

参考例句：

• He is talking to Tom on the internal telephone.他正在内线电话上与汤姆交谈。
• We do not intend to be drawn into the internal strife.我们不想卷入内乱之中。

6 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。

7 propose   

v.提出，建议；提名，推荐

参考例句：

• Did he propose marriage to you?他向你求婚了吗？
• I propose resting for an hour.我建议休息一小时。

8 extended   

adj.延伸的；伸展的；延长的；扩大的v.延伸(extend的过去式和过去分词)；伸展；延长

参考例句：

• an extended lunch hour 延长了的午餐时间
• France has greatly extended its influence in world affairs. 在世界事务中，法国的影响已大大地扩大了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 poultry   

n.家禽，禽肉

参考例句：

• There is not much poultry in the shops. 商店里禽肉不太多。
• What do you feed the poultry on? 你们用什么饲料喂养家禽?

10 guidelines   

n.指导方针，准则

参考例句：

• The government has drawn up guidelines on the treatment of the mentally ill. 政府制订了对待精神病人的指导方针。
• Planners seem a little uncomfortable with the current government guidelines. 规划师似乎不太接受现行的政府指道方针。