SCIENCE IN THE NEWS - World Conference on Disaster Reduction

SCIENCE IN THE NEWS - World Conference on Disaster Reduction / The Fight Against Polio / Prostate Cancer
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Broadcast: Tuesday, January 18, 2005

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VOICE ONE:

This is SCIENCE IN THE NEWS, in VOA Special English. I'm Sarah Long.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Bob Doughty¹. On our program this week: a progress report on efforts to stop the disease polio and we answer a listener's question about a common kind of cancer.

VOICE ONE:

But first, scientists are examining ways of improving their ability to estimate the effects of underwater earthquakes. Today, we look one system already in use.

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VOICE ONE:

 
Graphic² Image
Scientists did not expect the powerful earthquake that caused huge, destructive waves in the Indian Ocean last month. This is because technology for measuring motion has never been placed on the floor of Indian Ocean.

Yet, experts have been watching for earthquakes in the Pacific Ocean for more than fifty years. An international warning system was established there in nineteen sixty-five. The system has its headquarters in the American state of Hawaii.

Scientists there listen to sound waves directed at the ocean floor for possible earthquakes and underwater motion. They also watch water levels at more than one hundred water stations across the Pacific Ocean. If destructive waves are discovered, warning information is sent to more than one hundred places across the Pacific. Experts believe that establishment of similar warning systems in other areas could help to save many lives.

VOICE TWO:

Last month, an earthquake in the Indian Ocean caused a series of events that killed more than one hundred sixty thousand people. The earthquake struck in waters near the Indonesian island of Sumatra on December twenty-sixth. The earthquake was one of the strongest earthquakes ever measured. It had a rating of nine on the Richter scale, the leading measure for earthquake strength.

 
AP Photo
The Indian Ocean earthquake created huge shock waves, or tsunami³. The tsunami struck Sumatra and two groups of Indian islands in less than an hour. A short time later, the deadly waves reached Sri Lanka and Thailand. Several hours later, the waves reached coastal⁴ areas of eastern Africa. Officials say this was enough time to warn countries of possible danger.

VOICE ONE:

Scientists usually know within minutes after an underwater earthquake if it was large enough to create tsunami waves. Yet, warnings are worthless without a local civil defense⁵ system to receive and act on them. Affected⁶ areas may lack the communications systems needed to warn people quickly.

A tsunami warning system for South Asia is one subject to be discussed this week at the World Conference on Disaster Reduction in Kobe, Japan. Germany, Japan and the United States have each offered to create a tsunami warning system in the Indian Ocean.

The Bush Administration will present a plan to deploy⁷ scientific equipment throughout the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic Oceans and the Caribbean Sea. The equipment would send messages from the ocean floor to devices floating on top of the water. The information would then be sent by satellite to scientists.

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VOICE TWO:

 
Child who has polio holds baby brother in arms (WHO photo)
The World Health Organization says the number of people infected with polio rose almost thirty percent last year. W.H.O. officials say there were one thousand one hundred seventy polio cases worldwide in two thousand four. That compares with seven hundred eighty-four infections in two thousand three.

Ninety percent of the people infected last year live in three countries -- Nigeria, India, and Pakistan. In fact, Nigeria had sixty-five percent of all polio cases.

Anti-polio campaigns were halted in northern Nigeria after Islamic leaders expressed concern about the safety of polio vaccines⁸. Vaccines help the body's natural defenses recognize and fight disease.

VOICE ONE:

Polio is a disease that can make people unable to move their arms or legs. It also can kill people. The virus spreads very quickly among people who have not been given vaccines.

Recently, a polio vaccination⁹ campaign re-started in Nigeria. However, there are already new cases of polio, both in and out of the country. W.H.O. officials say the virus has spread to nearby countries, including Benin, Chad, Ghana and Togo. W.H.O. officials say conflicts in Ivory Coast and Sudan also affected efforts to stop the disease.

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VOICE TWO:

The American performer Jerry Orbach died last month. He was sixty-nine years old. The cause of death was prostate cancer. A listener in Viet Nam wrote to ask us for information about prostate cancer. Than Nguyen wants to know what causes the disease and how it is treated.

Only males have prostate glands¹¹ so only males get prostate cancer. The gland¹⁰ is a part of the reproductive system. It is involved in the production and storage of semen, the male reproductive fluid. Semen is used to fertilize¹² a female's egg.

A normal prostate is about the size of a small ball or walnut¹³. A cancer can make the prostate larger. This can cause pressure on the bladder and restrict the release of liquid wastes. An enlarged prostate can affect a man's ability to have sex. It also can cause pain in the lower back, hips¹⁴ and upper part of the legs.

VOICE ONE:

The American Cancer Society estimates that about one in six men in the United States will get prostate cancer. But, the group says only one man in thirty-two will die from it. Prostate cancer is common in older men.

The National Cancer Institute says more than seventy percent of men with the disease are sixty-five years of age or older. However, most prostate cancer grows slowly. So, many patients die of other causes instead of the disease.

Scientists do not know the exact cause of prostate cancer. But they have found things that can influence its development. The World Health Organization says the foods a man eats may affect his chances of developing the disease. Prostate cancer appears more common in communities where animal fat, red meats, and high-fat milk products are a major part of the diet.

VOICE TWO:

W-H-O officials say about two hundred fifty thousand people die each year from prostate cancer. They say the death rate is about ten times higher in Europe and North America than in Asia.

The Prostate Cancer Foundation says prostate cancer is the most common cancer in the United States. The group also says it is the second leading cause of cancer deaths among American men.

The American Cancer Society reports that prostate cancer is more common among African-Americans than among white Americans. Also, African Americans are two times as likely as whites to die from it. The group says exercise might help reduce the risk of prostate cancer. Also, men with fathers or brothers who have had the disease are more likely to get it than those without such a family history.

VOICE ONE:

There are many things to consider when choosing a treatment for prostate cancer. Some cancers grow so slowly they never cause any major problems in a lifetime. In these cases, a man's doctor might suggest simply watching for changes in the growth.

More rarely, a doctor may perform an operation to remove the prostate. This is a complex surgery that can last as long as four hours.

A third kind of treatment is radiation. High energy x-rays can be used to kill cancer cells in the prostate. A doctor also may place small radioactive seeds in the prostate to kill the cancer. Doctors have greater control with this method so there is less risk of damage to healthy tissue.

VOICE TWO:

Cancer that has spread beyond the prostate gland may require a more aggressive treatment known as hormonal¹⁵ therapy. A doctor may operate to remove the man's sex organs, or testicles. The testicles are the main producer of male hormones¹⁶ called androgens. The doctor may advise the patient to use drugs that can cut off the body's androgen supply.

Doctors say one of the most important ways for men to reduce their risk of death from prostate cancer is to find the disease early. There are two ways to discover the disease before any signs of it appear. A doctor will examine the prostate grand using his fingers. He will feel for any hardness or growth.

A doctor also may test a man's blood to measure levels of a protein called prostate-specific antigen. An injured or disease prostate often expels P.S.A. The higher the P.S.A. level, the greater the chance that the patient has prostate cancer.

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VOICE ONE:

This program was written by Karen Leggett, Jill Moss¹⁷ and Caty Weaver¹⁸. Cynthia Kirk was our producer. And, our engineer was Dwayne Collins. I'm Sarah Long.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Bob Doughty. Join us again next week for SCIENCE IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

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1 doughty   

adj.勇猛的，坚强的

参考例句：

• Most of successful men have the characteristics of contumacy and doughty.绝大多数成功人士都有共同的特质：脾气倔强，性格刚强。
• The doughty old man battled his illness with fierce determination.坚强的老人用巨大毅力与疾病作斗争。

2 graphic   

adj.生动的，形象的，绘画的，文字的，图表的

参考例句：

• The book gave a graphic description of the war.这本书生动地描述了战争的情况。
• Distinguish important text items in lists with graphic icons.用图标来区分重要的文本项。

3 tsunami   

n.海啸

参考例句：

• Powerful quake sparks tsunami warning in Japan.大地震触发了日本的海啸预警。
• Coastlines all around the Indian Ocean inundated by a huge tsunami.大海啸把印度洋沿岸地区都淹没了。

4 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

5 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

6 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

7 deploy   

v.（军）散开成战斗队形，布置，展开

参考例句：

• The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
• The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。

8 vaccines   

疫苗，痘苗( vaccine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His team are at the forefront of scientific research into vaccines. 他的小组处于疫苗科研的最前沿。
• The vaccines were kept cool in refrigerators. 疫苗放在冰箱中冷藏。

9 vaccination   

n.接种疫苗，种痘

参考例句：

• Vaccination is a preventive against smallpox.种痘是预防天花的方法。
• Doctors suggest getting a tetanus vaccination every ten years.医生建议每十年注射一次破伤风疫苗。

10 gland   

n.腺体，(机)密封压盖，填料盖

参考例句：

• This is a snake's poison gland.这就是蛇的毒腺。
• Her mother has an underactive adrenal gland.她的母亲肾上腺机能不全。

11 glands   

n.腺( gland的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a snake's poison glands 蛇的毒腺
• the sebaceous glands in the skin 皮脂腺

12 fertilize   

v.使受精，施肥于，使肥沃

参考例句：

• Fertilizer is a substance put on land to fertilize it.肥料是施在地里使之肥沃的物质。
• Reading will fertilize his vocabulary.阅读会丰富他的词汇。

13 walnut   

n.胡桃，胡桃木，胡桃色，茶色

参考例句：

• Walnut is a local specialty here.核桃是此地的土特产。
• The stool comes in several sizes in walnut or mahogany.凳子有几种尺寸，材质分胡桃木和红木两种。

14 hips   

abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯，耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 )；[建筑学]屋脊；臀围（尺寸）；臀部…的

参考例句：

• She stood with her hands on her hips. 她双手叉腰站着。
• They wiggled their hips to the sound of pop music. 他们随着流行音乐的声音摇晃着臀部。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 hormonal   

adj.激素的

参考例句：

• Some viral diseases are more severe during pregnancy, probably tecause of hormonal changes. 有些病毒病在妊娠期间比较严重，可能是由于激素变化引起的。
• She underwent surgical intervention and a subsequent short period of hormonal therapy. 他接受外科手术及随后短暂荷尔蒙治疗。

16 hormones   

n. 荷尔蒙，激素 名词hormone的复数形式

参考例句：

• This hormone interacts closely with other hormones in the body. 这种荷尔蒙与体內其他荷尔蒙紧密地相互作用。
• The adrenals produce a large per cent of a man's sex hormones. 肾上腺分泌人体的大部分性激素。

17 moss   

n.苔，藓，地衣

参考例句：

• Moss grows on a rock.苔藓生在石头上。
• He was found asleep on a pillow of leaves and moss.有人看见他枕着树叶和苔藓睡着了。

18 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。