Unit Six Health and Diseases
Passage 2 Disease Detectives
Background introduction: college life and personal growth
One way we keep people safe is through the Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP), which trains a global workforce of field epidemiologists or “disease detectives”. Disease detectives are our “boots on the ground,” helping track, contain, and eliminate outbreaks before they become epidemics. When health threats strike, trained disease detectives investigate and use what they’ve learned to prevent people from getting sick. They communicate crucial information quickly about health problems in a community, including infectious and noncommunicable diseases and environmental hazards. FETPs are modeled on CDC’s successful Epidemic Intelligence Service program, but are owned by individual countries and ministries of health. Each FETP is tailored to meet the needs of its country. Today, over 70 countries participate in CDC-supported FETPs. In U.S., FETPs have trained more than 10,000 graduates across the three programs, more than 80% of whom continue to work in their home countries in leadership positions.
Para. 1
Q: How are technological changes making modern medicine a more popular and exciting field?
This change can be separated into three ways. The first one is that new technology is available for scientists to study health and diseases. The second one is the development of genetics. The third one is organ transplants.
detective: It is used as a noun in the passage which means “a police officer who investigates crimes or an investigator engaged or employed in obtaining information not easily available to the public”. A detective story/novel is about a crime, often a murder, and a detective who tries to find out who did it. The verb is detect, meaning to find out some information which is difficult to approach.
clue: 线索An object or piece of information that helps someone solve a crime or mystery. clue to/about, give sb. a clue.
genetics:基因学 genetics science. The branch of biology that studies heredity and variation in organisms.
cure: 治愈provide a cure for, make healthy again.
birth defect:天生缺陷 a defect that is present at birth.
Para. 2
microbiologists: 微生物学家 a specialist in microbiology, which is the branch of biology that studies microorganisms and their effects on humans.
epidemiologists: 流行病专家a medical scientist who studies the transmission and control of epidemic diseases.
examine: In the passage, the word has nothing to do with an examination as a teacher gives to the students. It means “observe, check out, and look over carefully or inspect”.
air-conditioning: a air-conditioning system is a system that keeps air cool and dry .air-conditioner
microscope:望远镜 magnifier of the image of small objects.
cause: 起因In the passage, it is used both as a noun and verb. As a noun, it means “the events that is the origin of something”.
As a verb, it means “lead to, give rise to; cause to happen or occur”; cause an acident.
killer disease: fatal disease, a desease that is extremely difficult to cure so that it causes many deaths.
Q: Who are “disease detectives”? What do they do?
Disease detectives include the doctors and scientists who are trying to find out the causes of sicknesses and solve the mystery of the incurable disease.
Para. 3
DNA( deoxyribonucleic acid): 脱氧核糖核酸(染色体和基因的组成部分)
characteristics: 特征As a noun in the passage, the word is usually used in its plural form. It means “a quality or feature of something or someone that is typical of them and easy to recognize”.
bacteria: 细菌 The single form is bacterium.
viruses: 病菌
inherited:遗传 tending to occur among members of a family usually by heredity; an inherited disease.
sickle-cell anemia: 镰刀形红血球贫血
Huntington’s disease：亨庭顿舞蹈症
cystic fibrosis：囊胞性纤维症
Q: What are the ways of “detecting” that some disease detectives employ to find out the cause for an epidemic in a certain region?
First of all, the disease detectives, including microbiologist, epidemiologist and other scientists, ask the local people some questions concerning their normal diet, and health habit. Then they examine the local living environment, both indoor and outdoor. They check each room of a house and then check the natural elements such as soil, plants, rivers and lakes. After that, they take the information back to the laboratory scientists and they work together with the help of computers and other research facilities to solve the problem.
Para. 4
moreover: in addition, furthermore
in other words: otherwise stated, put differently.
previously: at an earlier time or formerly.
their bodies fought against the new organ：the new organ is not compatible with the patient’s body so that the body resists the new organ.
Q: What progress has been made in organ transplants?
The possibility of successful organ transplants increase nowadays. The doctors can try to match the characteristics of the organ donor and the receiver.
