学位英语

Calling for Safe Celebrations This Fourth of July

Last Fourth of July, Pete, a 14-year-old boy, was enjoying the lit-up skies and loud booms from the fireworks being set off1 in his neighborhood. Suddenly, the evening took a terrible turn2.A bottle rocket shot into his eye, immediately causing him terrible pain. His family rushed him to the emergency room for treatment. As a result of the injury, Pete developed glaucoma and cataracts. Today, Pete has permanent vision loss in his injured eye because of his bottle rocket injury.

June is Fireworks Eye Safety Awareness Month, and through its Eye Smart campaign the American Academy of Ophthalmology wants to remind consumers to leave fireworks to professionals. "There is nothing worse than a Fourth of July celebration ruined by someone being hit in the eye with a bottle rocket," said Dr. John C. Hagan, clinical correspondent for the Academy and an ophthalmologist at Discover Vision Centers in Kansas City. "A safe celebration means letting trained professionals handle fireworks while you enjoy the show."

According to the U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, more than 9,000 fireworks related injuries happen each year. Of these, nearly half are head-related injuries, with nearly 30 percent of these injuries to the eye. One-fourth of fireworks eye injuries result in3 permanent vision loss or blindness. Children are the most common victims of firework abuse, with those fifteen years old or younger accounting for4 50 percent of fireworks eye injuries in the United States. Dr. Hagan estimates that his practice sees more than 30 injuries each year from fireworks.

Even fireworks that many people consider safe represent a threat to the eyes. For children under the age of five, apparently harmless sparklers account for one-third of all fireworks injuries. Sparklers can bum at nearly 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit.

词汇：

Fireworks n.烟火 professional n.专业人员

Glaucoma 凡.青光眼 abuse n.伤害

Cataract n.白内障 sparkler n.花炮

ophthalmology n.眼科学 Fahrenheit n.华氏

注释：

1.set off：点燃

2.took a terrible turn：发生恶转

3.result in：导致

4.accounting for：(指数量)占 ‘

练习：

1. What happened to Pete last Fourth of July?

A He was burned in a house fire.

B He was caught in a rain.

C He was injured in a fight.

D He was hit in the eye.

2. The American Academy of Ophthalmology calls on consumers to___________.

A celebrate the Fourth of July with fireworks.

B leave fireworks to professionals in their celebrations.

C stop celebrating the Fourth of July altogether.

D set off fireworks together with trained professionals.

3. How many fireworks eye injuries occur in the US each year?

A About 9,000.

B About 4,500.

C About 1,350.

D About 30.

4. Fireworks eye injuries can result in each of the following EXCEPT____________.

A blindness.

B permanent vision loss.

C glaucoma and cataracts.

D head-related injuries.[Page]

5. Which is NOT true of sparklers?

A They are harmless to children.

B They are considered safe by many people.

C They are a threat to the eyes.

D They can burn at very high degrees.

答案与题解：

1.D短文的第一段讲到，去年七月四日，Pete在观看国庆焰火燃放时不幸被击中眼睛。

2.B短文的第二段讲到，美国眼科学会呼吁人们在庆祝国庆时最好让专业人员去放烟火，而自己只作观赏者。

3.C短文的第三段讲到，在美国，每年发生9，000多起有烟火导致的伤害，其中有一半是头部伤，而在这一半头部伤中，又有三分之一是眼伤。

4.D前面三项危害短文都分别提到过，而head—related injuries包含fireworks eye injuries，而不是由其导致的。

5.A短文最后一段说到，sparklers在许多人看来是安全的，但其实对于小于5岁的孩子来说，但其所有烟花造成的伤害的三分之一都是由sparklers导致的。显然，它们不是没有危害的

U.S. to Start $3.2 Billion Child Health Study in January

A study that will cost $3.2 billion and last more than two decades to track the health of 100,000 U. S. children from before birth to age 21 will be launched in January, U. S. health officials said on Friday.

Officials from the U. S. government's National Institutes of Health said they hope the study, to be conducted at I05 locations throughout the United States, can help identify early-life influences that affect later development, with the goal of learning new ways to treat or prevent illness.

The study will examine hereditary and environmental factors such as exposure to certain chemicals that affect health.

Researchers will collect genetic and biological samples from people in the study as well as samples from the homes of the women and their babies including air, water, dust and materials used to construct their residences, the NIH said.

Officials said more than $200 million has been spent already and the study is projected to cost $3.2 billion.

"We anticipat1that in the long term , what we learn from the study will result in a significant savings in the nation's health care costs," Dr. Duane Alexander, who heads the NIH's Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, told reporters.

The study will begin in January when the University of North Carolina and the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York start signing up2 pregnant women whose babies will then be followed to age 21.

Some of the early findings will be about factors behind pre-term birth3, which has become more common in recent years, according to Dr. Peter Scheidt of the NIH, who heads the study.

The people taking part will be from rural, urban and suburban areas, from all income and educational levels and from all racial groups, the NIH said.

词汇：

Hereditary adj.遗传的

注释：

1.in the long term：从长远说来

2.sign up：使报名从事

3.pre-term birth：早产

练习:

1. The aim of the study is to find new ways to___________.

A conduct research.

B track public health.

C prevent or treat illness.

D speed up development.[Page]

2. Researchers will collect all the following EXCEPT_____________.

A genetic samples from people in the study.

B biological samples from people in the study.

C samples from the homes of the women and their babies.

D samples of air and water from hospitals.

3. It is expected that through the study the nation's health care costs_____________.

A will be lowered in the long run.

B will be significantly increased.

C will be more than $200 million.

D will reach $3.2 billion.

4. The babies of the participants will be followed__________.

A　throughout their lives.

B for more than two decades.

C from birth to 21 months.

D until they get married.

5. Which is NOT true of the people in the study?

A They'll be from various areas.

B They'll be from all income levels.

C They'll be from all educational levels.

D They'll be from all age groups.

答案与题解：

1.C短文的第二段提到了此项研究的90al，即aim，这便是learning new ways to treat or prevent illness.

2.D前三项在短文的第四段都有题记，第四项应该是“参加研究的妇女及其婴儿家中的空气与水等物质，”而不是“医院中

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