学位英语

Face Masks May Not Protect from Super-Flu

1　If a super-flu strikes, face masks may not protect you. Whether widespread use of masks will help, or harm, during the next worldwide flu outbreak is a question that researchers are studying furiously. No results have come from their mask research yet. However, the government says people should consider wearing them in certain situations anyway, just in case1.

2　But it's a question the public keeps asking while the government are making preparations for the next flu pandemic. So the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) came up with2 preliminary guidelines. "We don't want people wearing them everywhere," said the CDC. "The overall recommendation really is to avoid exposure."

3　When that's not possible3, the guidelines say to consider wearing a simple surgical mask if you are in one of the three following situations. First, you're healthy and can't avoid going to a crowded place. Second, you're sick and think you may have close contact with the healthy, such as a family member checking on you4. Third, you live with someone who's sick and thus might be in the early stages of infection, but still need to go out.

4　Influenza pandemics can strike when the easy-to-mutate flu virus shifts to a strain that people never have experienced. Scientists cannot predict when the next pandemic will arrive, although concern is rising that the Asian bird flu might trigger one if it starts spreading easily from person to person.

5　During the flu pandemic, you should protect yourself. Avoid crowds, and avoid close contact with the sick unless you must care for someone. Why aren't masks added to this self-protection list? Because they can help trap virus-laden droplets flying through the air with a cough or sneeze. Simple surgical masks only filter the larger droplets. Besides, the CDC is afraid masks may create a false sense of security. Perhaps someone who should have stayed home would don an ill-fitting mask and hop on the subway5 instead.

6　Nor does flu only spread through the air6. Say7 someone covers a sneeze with his or her hand, then touches a doorknob or subway pole8. If you touch that spot next and then put germy hands on your nose or mouth, you've been exposed. It's harder to rub your nose while wearing a mask and so your face may get pretty sweaty under masks. You reach under to wipe that sweat, and may transfer germs caught on the outside of the mask straight to the nose. These are the problems face masks may create for their users.

7　Whether people should or should not use face masks still remains a question. The general public has to wait patiently for the results of the mask research scientists are still doing.

词汇：

furiously 强烈地 outbreak (疾病的)暴发

pandemic 全国流行的(疾病);n.大流行，大传染病

mutate 变异 strain 菌株 virus-laden 充满细菌的

sneeze 打喷嚏 don 穿上

doorknob 门把手 germy 带有细菌的

注释：

1.just in case：就是为了预防万一

2.came up with：(针对问题、挑战)提出

3.When that’s not possible：在无法做到的情况下。When从句中的that替代上一段的avoid exposure。

4.such as a family member checking on you：例如你的家庭成员来检查你的病情

5.subway：(美)地铁。英国英语的地铁是underground. subway在英国英语中是“(通过马路的)地下人行通道”。

6.Nor does flu only spread through the air：流感不仅仅通过空气传染。nor用于句首时，句子的谓语动词要倒装。如：He does not speak Russian. Nor do I.他不会说俄语，我也不会。

7.Say：比如说

8.subway pole：地铁车厢竖杆扶手

练习：

1.Paragraph 2 _________.

2.Paragraph 3 _________.

3.Paragraph 5 _________.

4.Paragraph 6 _________.

A　Reasons for Excluding Masks from the Self-protection List

B　Effort to Stop Flu from Spreading

C　When to Use Face Masks

D　Guidelines on Mask Use

E　Warnings from the CDC

F　Danger of Infection through Germy Hands and Masks

5.The scientists are trying to find out if masks may or may not _________.

6.The CDC is afraid that the public may _________.

7.The public will not know the answer about masks until scientists _________.

8.We can infer from the passage that the US authorities _________.

A　overuse face masks

B　deal with the mask problem seriously

C　rub their faces and noses in the subway

D　protest against the mask guidelines

E　help protect people from being attacked by a flu

F　announce the results of their mask research

答案与题解：

1.D　第二段说美国疾病控制和预防中心出台口罩使用原则，防止公众过度使用口罩。选项D是答案。

2.C　第三段是对第二段的口罩使用原则作细节描述，谈及三种情况下可以使用口罩。选项C的“When to use masks”概括了本段的大意，因此是答案。

3.A　第五段列举了流感期间自我保护的几条意见，最重要两条是不要到人多的地方去和远离流感病人。使用口罩并没有列入自我保护的几条意见中。后半段解释说，如果列人可能会产生弊病。选项A的“Reasons for excluding masks from the self-protection list”概括了本段的大意，所以是答案。

4.F　第六段的中心思想是说流感不仅仅是通过空气传染，触摸也是传染的一个途径。带有流感病毒的手和口罩也是传染病毒的中介源。选项F概括了本段的大意，所以是答案。

5.E　第一段和第七段都谈到科学家正在进行有关口罩能否保护个人免受流感感染的研究。很明显，E是答案。

6.A　第二段说CDC出台了指导原则，其中一个重要目的是防止公众过度使用口罩。原句是：“We don’t want people wearing them everywhere”。选项A是答案。

7.F　与题干有关的内容在第七段能够找到。根据该段所表达的意思，F是答案。

8.B　authorities是“政府部门”。美国有关部门出台了一份包括口罩使用在内的指导原则，又有科学家对口罩的使用问题进行专项研究，应该说工作是严肃认真的。题干接上选项B的“deal with the mask problem seriously”就表达了这层意思。B是答案。

译文：口罩也许无法预防感冒

如果一场超级流感暴发，口罩也许不能保护你。在下一次世界性的流感暴发期间，广泛使用口罩是否有用还是个问题，科学家正认真研究该题，但至今还没有任何结果。然而，为了以防万一，政府建议在某些情况下还是应当考虑佩戴口罩。

但当政府为下一次流感流行做准备时，公众仍心存疑问。所以美国疾病控制欲预防中心提出了一些初步指导原则，“我们不希望人们到处戴着口罩，”他们说，“总体上是建议要避免到有流感病毒的场合去。”

在无法避免的情况下，指导原则提出，在以下三种情况 下应考虑佩戴一个简易的外科手术口罩：第一，你很健康但要到一个人群拥挤的地方;第二，你已经生病了但仍要与健康的人接触，如家庭成员要来看你的病情;第三，与你居住在一起的人已经感冒了，也许你已经处在传染的早期阶段，但你仍需外出。

当易变异的感冒病毒出现人们从未遇到过的新种类时，全国性的流行性感冒就会暴发。如果亚洲的禽流感开始轻易地在人与人之间传播，就可能会引起一场这样的 大流行性疾病，虽然人们的忧虑不断升级，但科学家仍 无法预测这样的大暴发什么时候会出现。

在流感期间，你应该学会自我保护。避免到人多的地方去，远离流感病人，除非你必须照顾病人。为什么不把口罩放入自我保护的措施中呢?口罩能把咳嗽或打喷嚏飞出的含有病毒的飞沫拦截住。但简易的外科手术口罩只能过滤大的飞沫。此外，美国疾病控制欲预防中心担心口罩可能会制造一种虚假的安全感。也许原本会待在家里的人会戴上一个不合适的口罩跑去坐地铁。

流感不仅仅是通过空气传染。有些人打喷嚏时会用手遮挡，带有病毒的手会接触到门把手或是地铁里的扶手。如果你碰到这些东西，然后把带有流感病毒的手接触到嘴或者鼻子，你就有可能被传染。戴口罩时你很难去擦鼻子，于是脸在口罩下就变得汗津津的，当你去擦汗时，病毒就直接 被带到了鼻子里。这些问题就是口罩带给他们的使用者的。

人们是否应该使用口罩仍然是个问题。公众还要耐心地等待科学家的研究结果。

相关推荐：2017年职称英语报名时间及入口

报考条件：综合类，理工类，卫生类考试原则上没有严格的界限。职称英语考试报名可在单位报，评职称与户口无关，主要看你的工作单位，所以你可以直接咨询单位的人事部门，如果他们说可以就行，每个省规定不大一样。【查看详情】

报考选择：职称英语报考科目|级别选择|报名条件及相关问题解答

免考规定：取得外语(从事翻译工作人员及外语教师第二外语)专业专科及以上学历的人员申报中、高级职称评审……。【查看详情】

（责任编辑：hbz）