在线英语听力室

VOA慢速英语2009年-SCIENCE IN THE NEWS - Seeking Answers to t

时间:2009-08-05 05:58:32

搜索关注在线英语听力室公众号:tingroom,领取免费英语资料大礼包。

(单词翻译)

VOICE ONE:

This is SCIENCE IN THE NEWS, in VOA Special English. I'm Faith Lapidus.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Bob Doughty1. This week, we will tell about a call to limit a widely used pain medicine. We will also tell about obesity2 -- a growing health problem in the United States. And, we will tell about plans for an unusual laboratory in the state of South Dakota.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

The United States government might order new restrictions3 on a commonly used painkiller4. Taking too much acetaminophen can cause liver damage and even death.

Recently, a group of experts advised the Food and Drug Administration that the drug needs more controls and better directions for use. Acetaminophen, also called paracetamol, is found in Tylenol, Excedrin and other products that do not require a doctor's order or prescription5. These products are used for pain, high body temperature, colds and sleeplessness6.

Their easy availability is part of the problem. People can accidentally take too much acetaminophen if they take several medicines that all contain it.

VOICE TWO:
 
Tylenol is a product containing acetaminophen

The group proposed reducing the largest non-prescription dose of acetaminophen from one thousand milligrams. The experts said that is too much. They said adults should not take more than six hundred fifty milligrams at a time. They also said people should take less than four thousand milligrams of acetaminophen in a single day.

Acetaminophen overdose is a leading cause of liver damage in the United States. Researchers say it resulted in fifty-six thousand hospital emergency room visits a year during the nineteen nineties. There were almost four hundred sixty deaths a year from liver failure.

The group was especially concerned about prescription drugs that combine acetaminophen with stronger painkillers7. The experts proposed banning combination drugs like Percocet and Vicodin. Still, the experts were divided in their votes. The Food and Drug Administration is not required to follow the advice of its committees, but generally does.

VOICE ONE:

Acetaminophen is used as a pain and fever reducer for adults and children. It does not cause stomach problems or bleeding like aspirin8, ibuprofen and some other drugs can.

But experts say taking even small amounts over the suggested dose can cause liver damage. Some people suffer harm from smaller amounts than others. Mixing alcoholic9 drinks with acetaminophen is especially bad for the liver.

People should ask a health expert about drug combinations that could be harmful. And they should make sure they know what is in the medicines they take and how much of each one is safe to take.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

The United States is facing a growing concern: rising obesity rates.

A new report says adult obesity rates rose last year in twenty-three of the fifty states. No states showed a rate decrease. And, the percentage of obese10 or overweight children was at or above thirty percent in thirty states.

Two groups -- the Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation -- released the report earlier this month. They used a system of measurement called the Body Mass Index to define words like obese and overweight.

To find your B-M-I, divide your weight in kilograms by height in meters squared. A normal B-M-I is between eighteen point five and twenty-four point nine. The B-M-I of someone overweight is between twenty-five and twenty-nine point five. And, an obese person has a B-M-I above thirty.

VOICE ONE:
 
Students in Montville, New Jersey11, do exercises as part of a program to fight obesity

The new report says widespread obesity is increasing the rates of chronic12, or long-lasting, disease. It says obesity is responsible for an increasing part of health care costs in the United States.

Doctor Jeff Levi is head of the Trust for America's Health. He says health care costs have grown while many Americans are getting fatter.

Obesity has been linked to health problems like heart disease, stroke and type-two diabetes13. The report says the current recession could worsen obesity rates by increasing food prices. It says this would make healthy foods cost more. The report blames the recession for rising rates of depression, anxiety and stress. It says the three conditions have been linked to obesity in many individuals.

VOICE TWO:

Mississippi had the highest rate of adult obesity in the new study. Thirty-two point five percent of the state's adults were obese. In fact, Mississippi has had the highest rate of obese adults in each of the past five years. Three other states have rates above thirty percent last year. They were West Virginia, Alabama and Tennessee. Colorado was the only state with an adult obesity rate below twenty percent.

Mississippi also had the highest rate of obese and overweight children. Forty-four point four percent of all children between the ages of ten and seventeen years were obese or overweight. Minnesota and Utah had the lowest rate -- twenty-three point one percent.

The report offers some ideas for dealing14 with obesity within government health care reforms. They include making sure that every adult and child has a right to preventive medical services. The report also calls for creation of a national program to fight obesity.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Finally, a former gold mine seems like an unlikely place to study the universe. But that is just what scientists are planning to do deep below the Black Hills in South Dakota. That is where the Homestake Gold Mine is being prepared to become the world's deepest underground science laboratory.

Scientists say the old mine is the perfect place to study dark matter. Scientists have wondered about mysterious dark matter particles for more than seventy years. The idea is that the matter we see does not have enough gravitational pull to keep galaxies15 together. Dark matter is believed to represent nearly one fourth of the universe's total mass. Scientists can observe what they believe to be dark matter only through its gravity.

VOICE TWO:
 
Workers at the Homestake Gold Mine during a dedication16 ceremony last month

The Homestake Gold Mine was chosen to study dark matter because it is largely protected from the radiation that could interfere17 with the project. The deepest part of the mine is nearly two thousand five hundred meters below ground. Some experiments are already taking place in the mine at a depth of about one thousand five hundred meters.

Homestake operated as a gold mine for one hundred twenty-five years before closing about nine years ago. However, this is not the first time the mine has been used for science. In the nineteen sixties, Ray Davis Junior used the mine for his work showing the existence of solar neutrinos. He and another scientist, John Bahcall, received the Nobel Prize for physics for their work.

Pumps that were used to keep the mine dry have not been in operation since its closure. So today, before the new research can begin, water must be removed from the mine. Workers must also build new structural18 supports in the mine to ensure its safety.

VOICE ONE:

Two experiments are already planned for the mine. The first is the Large Underground Xenon detector19 experiment, or LUX. It will include a three hundred kilogram tank of liquid xenon. That container will be inside an even larger one filled with extremely pure water. If dark matter particles exist, scientists say, they should be able to observe a small amount of light given off when they hit the nucleus20 of a xenon atom.

The United States Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation approved more than one million dollars to pay for the experiment. The scientists plan to begin work on the project later this year. They are hoping to learn more about dark matter in an effort to better understand how the universe expands and shrinks.

VOICE TWO:

The second planned experiment is called Majorana. In this project, scientists hope to prove that neutrinos have mass. They hope to begin this experiment later this year.

Researchers are awaiting approval of additional money from Congress so that two deeper laboratories can be built. The researchers want to begin building those laboratories by two thousand twelve. They hope to have them open by two thousand sixteen. The projects are expected to cost five hundred fifty million dollars.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

This SCIENCE IN THE NEWS was written by Mario Ritter, Marisel Salazar and Brianna Blake, who was also our producer. I'm Faith Lapidus.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Bob Doughty. Read and listen to our programs at voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for more news about science in Special English on the Voice of America.


分享到:


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 doughty Jk5zg     
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 obesity Dv1ya     
n.肥胖,肥大
参考例句:
  • One effect of overeating may be obesity.吃得过多能导致肥胖。
  • Sugar and fat can more easily lead to obesity than some other foods.糖和脂肪比其他食物更容易导致肥胖。
3 restrictions 81e12dac658cfd4c590486dd6f7523cf     
约束( restriction的名词复数 ); 管制; 制约因素; 带限制性的条件(或规则)
参考例句:
  • I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
  • a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制
4 painkiller eKMx4     
n.止痛药
参考例句:
  • I shall persuade him to take the painkiller.我将说服他把药吃下去。
  • The painkiller only provides him a short respite from his pain.止痛药仅仅让他在疼痛中有短暂的疏解。
5 prescription u1vzA     
n.处方,开药;指示,规定
参考例句:
  • The physician made a prescription against sea- sickness for him.医生给他开了个治晕船的药方。
  • The drug is available on prescription only.这种药只能凭处方购买。
6 sleeplessness niXzGe     
n.失眠,警觉
参考例句:
  • Modern pharmacy has solved the problem of sleeplessness. 现代制药学已经解决了失眠问题。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The doctors were puzzled by this strange continuous sleeplessness. 医生们对他的奇异的不眠感到疑惑。 来自英语晨读30分(高三)
7 painkillers 1a67b54ddb73ea8c08a4e55aa1847a55     
n.止痛药( painkiller的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The doctor gave him some painkillers to ease the pain. 医生给了他一些止疼片以减缓疼痛。 来自辞典例句
  • The primary painkillers - opiates, like OxyContin - are widely feared, misunderstood and underused. 人们对主要的镇痛药——如鸦片剂奥施康定——存在广泛的恐惧、误解,因此没有充分利用。 来自时文部分
8 aspirin 4yszpM     
n.阿司匹林
参考例句:
  • The aspirin seems to quiet the headache.阿司匹林似乎使头痛减轻了。
  • She went into a chemist's and bought some aspirin.她进了一家药店,买了些阿司匹林。
9 alcoholic rx7zC     
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。
10 obese uvIya     
adj.过度肥胖的,肥大的
参考例句:
  • The old man is really obese,it can't be healthy.那位老人确实过于肥胖了,不能算是健康。
  • Being obese and lazy is dangerous to health.又胖又懒危害健康。
11 jersey Lp5zzo     
n.运动衫
参考例句:
  • He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
  • They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致,都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。
12 chronic BO9zl     
adj.(疾病)长期未愈的,慢性的;极坏的
参考例句:
  • Famine differs from chronic malnutrition.饥荒不同于慢性营养不良。
  • Chronic poisoning may lead to death from inanition.慢性中毒也可能由虚弱导致死亡。
13 diabetes uPnzu     
n.糖尿病
参考例句:
  • In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者,医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
  • Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。
14 dealing NvjzWP     
n.经商方法,待人态度
参考例句:
  • This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
  • His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。
15 galaxies fa8833b92b82bcb88ee3b3d7644caf77     
星系( galaxy的名词复数 ); 银河系; 一群(杰出或著名的人物)
参考例句:
  • Quasars are the highly energetic cores of distant galaxies. 类星体是遥远星系的极为活跃的核心体。
  • We still don't know how many galaxies there are in the universe. 我们还不知道宇宙中有多少个星系。
16 dedication pxMx9     
n.奉献,献身,致力,题献,献辞
参考例句:
  • We admire her courage,compassion and dedication.我们钦佩她的勇气、爱心和奉献精神。
  • Her dedication to her work was admirable.她对工作的奉献精神可钦可佩。
17 interfere b5lx0     
v.(in)干涉,干预;(with)妨碍,打扰
参考例句:
  • If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话,可能弊多利少。
  • When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件,棘手的事情就来了。
18 structural itXw5     
adj.构造的,组织的,建筑(用)的
参考例句:
  • The storm caused no structural damage.风暴没有造成建筑结构方面的破坏。
  • The North American continent is made up of three great structural entities.北美大陆是由三个构造单元组成的。
19 detector svnxk     
n.发觉者,探测器
参考例句:
  • The detector is housed in a streamlined cylindrical container.探测器安装在流线型圆柱形容器内。
  • Please walk through the metal detector.请走过金属检测器。
20 nucleus avSyg     
n.核,核心,原子核
参考例句:
  • These young people formed the nucleus of the club.这些年轻人成了俱乐部的核心。
  • These councils would form the nucleus of a future regime.这些委员会将成为一个未来政权的核心。

本文本内容来源于互联网抓取和网友提交,仅供参考,部分栏目没有内容,如果您有更合适的内容,欢迎 点击提交 分享给大家。