VOA慢速英语 2008 1112a

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

Bethesda, Maryland, near Washington, D.C., is home to the National Institutes of Health. N.I.H. calls itself "the Nation's Medical Research Agency." But it supports research worldwide with its budget of almost twenty-nine billion dollars.
　
Elias Zerhouni

Federal agencies will get new leaders when Barack Obama is president. But the head of N.I.H. resigned early. Elias Zerhouni left at the end of October after six and a half years as director.

For now, the acting¹ director is Raynard Kington. Doctor Kington has been deputy director for the past five years. Directors are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate.

The National Institutes of Health had strong financial support during Doctor Zerhouni's first two years. But Congress did not increase the budget very much after that.

Albert Reece is dean of the University of Maryland medical school. He says that since two thousand four, N.I.H.'s budget has been reduced by more than thirteen percent after considering inflation.

Doctor Reece, writing in the Baltimore Sun, urged President-elect Obama to increase the funding. It would not only improve the nation's health, he says, but also help restart the economy. Medical centers funded by N.I.H., he said, support more than three million full-time² jobs.

Right now, the Obama team is looking at executive orders signed by President Bush. Those that conflict with Mister Obama's positions could be canceled or amended³. One area being looked at is stem cell research. Stem cells can grow into any kind of tissue in the body.

President Bush has restricted federal support for research on embryonic⁴ stem cells because of his beliefs about protecting life. Others say the embryos⁵ would be destroyed anyway because they are unused embryos from fertility clinics.

Mister Obama says the research may lead to improved treatments for Alzheimer's disease and other conditions. He says other treatments being studied are not substitutes for research on embryonic stem cells. He has called for expanded federal support.

Doctor Zerhouni told Congress last year that he thought the limits were interfering⁶ with research.

Political appointees have to resign when the administration changes in January. But Elias Zerhouni says he left before the election so the next president would have to start thinking early about N.I.H. He says he wants to work on writing projects and explore other professional opportunities.

And that's the VOA Special English Health Report. I'm Steve Ember.

 

1 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

2 full-time   

adj.满工作日的或工作周的，全时间的

参考例句：

• A full-time job may be too much for her.全天工作她恐怕吃不消。
• I don't know how she copes with looking after her family and doing a full-time job.既要照顾家庭又要全天工作，我不知道她是如何对付的。

3 Amended   

adj. 修正的 动词amend的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He asked to see the amended version. 他要求看修订本。
• He amended his speech by making some additions and deletions. 他对讲稿作了些增删修改。

4 embryonic   

adj.胚胎的

参考例句：

• It is still in an embryonic stage.它还处于萌芽阶段。
• The plan,as yet,only exists in embryonic form.这个计划迄今为止还只是在酝酿之中。

5 embryos   

n.晶胚；胚，胚胎( embryo的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Somatic cells of angiosperms enter a regenerative phase and behave like embryos. 被子植物体细胞进入一个生殖阶段，而且其行为象胚。 来自辞典例句
• Evolution can explain why human embryos look like gilled fishes. 进化论能够解释为什么人类的胚胎看起来象除去了内脏的鱼一样。 来自辞典例句

6 interfering   

adj. 妨碍的 动词interfere的现在分词

参考例句：

• He's an interfering old busybody! 他老爱管闲事！
• I wish my mother would stop interfering and let me make my own decisions. 我希望我母亲不再干预，让我自己拿主意。