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We usually think of pollution as a harmful waste substance that threatens the air and water.But some people have become concerned about another kind of pollution.It can be everywhere,depending on the time of day.And it is not thought of as a substance.It is light.
The idea of light pollution has developed with the increase of lights in cities.In many areas,this light makes it difficult or impossible to observe stars and planets in the night sky.In Nineteen-Eighty-Eight,the International Dark-Sky Association formed.This organization wants to reduce light pollution in the night sky.It also urges the effective use of electric lighting.
There are a number of reasons why light pollution is important.One has become clear at the Mount Wilson Observatory near Los Angeles,California.Mount Wilson Observatory was home to the largest telescopes in the world during the first half of the Nineteen-Hundreds.
During that period,Los Angeles grew to become one of America's biggest cities. Today,light from Los Angeles makes the night sky above Mount Wilson very bright.It is no longer an important research center because of light pollution.
Light pollution threatens to reduce the scientific value of research telescopes in other important observatories.They include Lick Observatory near San Jose,California and Yerkes Observatory near Chicago,Illinois. Light pollution is the result of wasted energy.Bright light that shines into the sky is not being used to provide light where it is needed on Earth.Poorly designed lighting causes a great deal of light pollution.Lights that are brighter than necessary also cause light pollution.
Recently,two Italian astronomers and an American environmental scientist created a world map of the night sky.The map shows that North America,Western Europe and Japan have the greatest amount of light pollution.
Most people in America are surprised to find out that they are able to see our own galaxy,The Milky Way,with their own eyes.But about three-fourths of Americans cannot see the Milky Way because of man-made light.
Objects in the night sky are resources that provide everyone with wonder.But light pollution threatens to prevent those wonderful sights from being seen.。
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一.Scientists: Rising Sea Levels to ContinueScientists say sea levels are rising and will continue to do so into the future. Coastal communities around the world are already experiencing the impact of rising seas. Many cities and towns are taking steps to deal with this new reality.Photographers have taken pictures to document those efforts. Their photos are part of an exhibit called "Sink or Swim: Designing for a Sea Change." It can be seen at the Aquarium of the Pacific, in Long Beach, California. There, experts explain the causes of the rising seas and how people are trying to adapt to the changes.Disastrous storms and floods could be a new reality around the world. That is the opinion of oceanographer Jerry Schubel. He is president of the Aquarium of the Pacific.二.Robots Ready to Work in RestaurantsFor many years, machines have been doing work that people once did, including some difficult jobs. Search and rescue operations in dangerous environments are often seen as the first areas that will employ high technology robots. But there is another area that may soon take jobs traditionally held by human beings: the restaurant industry.Teams from around the world competed in early June at the DARPA Robotic Challenge Finals in California. A team from South Korea and its robot, called DRC-Hubo, won first place in the competition. The second and third place finishers were from the United States.The robots were required to drive a vehicle, climb up steps and do mechanical work. Such activities are easy for humans to perform, but more difficult for machines.Not all of the competitors were successful. The failures showed how difficult it is to design effective walking machines.三.Can Forests Help Feed the World?Experts predict nine billion people will live on our planet by 2050. They say by that time demand for food will be two times what it is now. Officials are worried about that prediction because many people already suffer from a lack of food. More than 800 million people go to bed hungry.A solution to the problem may be as close as our forests. A new report says forests could help reduce hunger and improve nutrition if they are properly managed.四.Experts: Climate Change Is a Medical EmergencyHealth and medical experts gathered in Washington this week for talks on climate change and public health. They met at the White House. The meeting was held a day after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released a report on climate change. The report explores the health and economic reasons for lowering climate changing emissions. The findings are similar to those of an independent research group, the Lancet Commission on Health and Climate.The Lancet Commission report says the effects of climate change could threaten the past 50 years of gains in public health. Commission project leader Nicolas Watts says the changes in Earth’s climate have led to weather extremes. The extremes can create public health risks that he considers very dangerous and unacceptable.五.Jurassic World' Sells $1 Billion Worth of TicketsIn just two weeks, “Jurassic World”has earned more than one billion dollars in ticket sales around the world. It is already the second most popular movie of 2015. The huge hit is part of the dinosaur movie series that began in 1993 with the Academy Award-winning “Jurassic Park.”The latest film opened on June 10.“Jurassic World”is a movie about a dinosaur theme park, like “Jurassic Park." But this one is fully open to the public and successful. Researchers at the park create a bigger and better dinosaur to bring more business to the park. This dinosaur is genetically modified. The researchers use a secret mix of DNA from several other especially vicious dinosaurs and other animals. The result is a really big, really mean animal with no social skills. And, of course, it escapes its cage.。
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VOA 听写原文(1)Harvad researcher David Rans said the most successful behavior proved to be cooperation. The groups that rewarded the most earned about twice as much in the game as the groups that rewarded the least. And the more a group punish themselves the lower it's earnings. The group with the most punishment earned 25 percent less than the group with the least punishment .The study appeared last month in the Journal Science. The other study involved children .It was presentd last month in California at a conference on violence and abuse. Reseachers used intelligent tests given to two groups, More than 800 children were ages 2-4 the first time they were tested. More than 700 children were ages 5 to 9.(2)Many people think the search for cleaner energy leads only to renewable resources like sun, wind and water. But it also leads to a fossil fuel(化石燃料). Natural gas is considered the cleanest of the fossil fuels, the fuels created by plant and animal remains over millions of years. Burning it releases fewer pollutants（污染物质）than oil or coal. The gas is mainly methane（沼气，甲烷）. It produces half the carbon dioxide （二氧化碳）of other fossil fuels. So it may help cut the production of carbongases linked to climate change. Russia is first in what are called "proved reserves" of natural gas. The United States is sixth. Over the years, big oil and gas companies recovered much of the easily reached supplies of gas in America. They drilled straight down into formations where gas collects. As these supplies were used up, big drillers looked for similar formations in other countries.(3)Two recent studies have found that punishment is not the best way to influence behavior. One shows that adults are much more cooperative if they work in a system based on rewards. Researchers at Harward University in the United States and Stockholm school of economics in Sweden did the study. They had about two hundred college students play a version of the game known as the prisoners dilemma. The game is based on the attention between the interests of individual and group. The students play in groups of four. Each player could win points for the group so they would all gain equally. But each player could also reward or punish each of the other three players and cost to the punisher.(4)But now the industry is taking a new look. Companies are developing gas supplies trapped in shale rock two to three thousand meters underground. They drill down to the shale, then go sideways and inject high-pressure water, sand or other material into the rock. This causes therock to break, or fracture, releasing the gas. Huge fields of gas shale are believed to lie under theAppalachian Mountains, Michigan and the south-central states. Gas shale exploration is being done mainly by small to medium sized companies. Eric Potter is a program director in the Bureau of Economic Geology at the University of Texas at Austin.I rememberdo u know that i'm okare there things you wanna saythinking of u night and dayhopping you'll come back and stayi remember when u told mei'll be all rightdon't worryi try and try to understandis all this just a sad goodbyethinking of u night and dayno matter if you'll come and stayi remember when u told mei'll be all rightjust hold mei don't wanna close my eyes tonightmissing u make me cryyour love will give me strengths to carry onyou'll always be my heart and mindso i don't wanna close my eyes tonighti know it's just a miss match in time...why..oh why... miss match in timei try and try to understandis all this just a sad goodbyethinking of u night and dayno matter if you'll come and stayi remember when u told mei'll be all rightjust hold meso i don't wanna close my eyes tonightmissing u make me cryyour love will give me strengths to carry onyou'll always be my heart and mindso i don't wanna close my eyes tonighti know it's just a miss match in time...why..oh why... don't wanna close my eyes tonight.。
普特英语每日听力VOA0905文档
普特英语每日听力VOA0905文档From Washington, this is VOA News.Cleaning up after a strong quake in New Zealand, no deaths but a state of emergency in effect; and in Pakistan, burials begin for victims in Friday’s bombings. I’m Marti Johnson reporting from Washington.New Zealand is recovering from a powerful earthquake that cut power and caused significant damage to infrastructure but no deaths. Officials say the 7.1-magnitude quake shook the city of Christchurch on New Zealand’s South Island just before dawn, Saturday. The city’s second largest earthquake on record threw people out of bed and sent frightened residents running into the streets. The quake and its aftershocks ruptured underground lines for natural gas, water and sewage, as well as damaging bridges, power supplies and phone networks.Police in Pakistan’s southwestern city of Quetta have been on high alert as mass burials take place for some victims of a suicide bombing that targeted minority Shiites Friday, killing at least 65 people. Shiite leaders called for a general strike on Saturday to mourn the dead, shuttering schools and businesses and leaving streets deserted. More than 160 others were wounded in Friday’s explosion at a Sh iite rally called to express solidarity with Palestinians. The Pakistani Taliban has claimed responsibility. These attacks take place as Pakistan is still reeling from the worst (con口误) flooding in that country in its history. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees is urging theinternational community not to turn its attention away from the crisis which he says is far from over. Lisa Schlein reports from Geneva.The UN refugee agency says despite the floodwaters in some parts of Pakistan receding, the overall humanitarian situation remains serious. Aid workers report conditions are worsening. UNHCR spokesman, Adrian Edwards, says floods still affect almost two million people in Balochistan province including 600,000 who fled from neighboring Sindh."We’re seeing a persistent threat of waterborne disease, shortages of shelter and very limited quantities of food for children."The agency says it is continuing the distribution of shelter supplies. Aid agencies report more than five million people, still, are in desperate need of shelter. Lisa Schlein for VOA News, Geneva.An explosion in Afghanistan’s northern province of Kunduz has killed four police officers and at least one civilian. Officials say several people were wounded in Saturday’s attack in the provincial capital. Authorities say the explosives were planted in a motorcycle.Meantime, the New York Times reports that the US security contractor, Blackwater, has now created thirty subsidiary companies to seek government contracts in the wake of accusations of misconduct against it in Iraq. In the article, theTimes reports at least three subsidiary businesses had deals with the US military and with the CIA. Blackwater has been under intense security since five of its employees were accused of killing unarmed civilians in Baghdad in September, 2007. There’s more on this story on our website at /doc/0c18122980.html,.A top US military officer in the United States says the US has asked Turkey to allow non-combat equipment to be withdrawn from Iraq through Turkish territory. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Adm. Mike Mullen, speaking in Ankara Saturday, emphasized that there are no plans to transport weapons through Turkey.Three Pakistan cricket players accused of taking part in a betting scandal have been charged by the International Cricket Council under its anti-corruption code. Jennifer Glasse reports from London.The International Cricket Council charged Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir under Article II of its anti-corruption code. The council’s chief executive, Haroon Lorgat, expressed his extreme disappointment and sadness about the situation.“We will do whatever is necessary to ensure that we maintain integrity in the sport.”The players are suspected in a betting scam after a London newspaper showed video of a cricket agent allegedly acceptingmoney in exchange for information of what the players would do at certain points in the game. The head of the ICC’s anti-corruption unit, Ronnie Flanagan, said the charge is related to one game between England and Pakistan. The three players are suspended from playing until the case is concluded. Jennifer Glasse for VOA News, London.US president, Barack Obama, says building a strong middle class is key to helping the country heal its economic problems. In his weekly address on Saturday, Mr. Obama said this weekend’s Labor Day holiday in the US is a chance to reaffirm a commitment to American workers. The president touted some of his administration’s initiatives includ ing tax cuts for working families and investment in construction projects that he says will create jobs. In the weekly Republican Party address, the US Representative, Geoff Davis, called for greater scrutiny of federal rules and regulations that he said burden small business owners.I’m Marti Johnson, VOA News, Washington.。
voa慢速英语听力原文
美国劳动之歌Most of the world observes Labor Day on May 1. Butthe United States has its workers holiday on the firstMonday in September. Steve Ember and BarbaraKlein have a few songs from the history of theAmerican labor movement.Labor songs are traditionally stories of struggle and pride, of timeless demands for respect and the hopefor a better life.Sometimes they represent old songs with new words. One example is "We Shall Not Be Moved."It uses the music and many of the same words of an old religious song.Here is folksinger Pete Seeger with "We Shall Not Be Moved."Many classic American labor songs came from workers in the coal mines of the South. Mineowners bitterly opposed unions. In some cases, there was open war between labor activistsand coal mine operators.Once, in Harlan County, Kentucky, company police searched for union leaders. They went to oneman's home but could not find him there. So they wai ted outsi de for several days.The coal miner's wife, Florence Reece, remained inside with her children. She wrote this song, "Which Side Are Y ou On?"Again, here is Pete Seeger.Probably the most famous labor songwriter in America was Joe Hill. He was born in Sweden andcame to the United States in the early 1900s. H e worked as an unskilled lab orer.Joe Hill joined the Industrial Workers of the World, known as the Wobblies. More than any otherunion, they used music in their campaigns, urgi ng members to "si ng and fi ght."One of Joe Hill's best-known songs is "Casey Jones." It uses the music from a song about atrain engineer. In the old song, Casey Jones is a hero. He bravely keeps his train running in verydifficult conditions.In Joe Hill's version, Casey Jones is no hero. His train is unsafe. Y et he stays on the job afterother workers have called a strike against the railroad company.Pete Seeger and the Song Swappers sing "Casey Jones (The Union Scab)."Another American labor song is called "Bread and Roses." That term was connected with thewomen's labor movement.The song was based on a poem called "Bread and Roses" by James Oppenheim. The poem waspublished in The American Magazine in December of 1911.The following month there was a famous strike by textile workers in Lawrence, Massachusetts.They won higher pay and better working conditions. Oppenheim's poem gainedmore attention.At that time, conditions in factories were already a national issue. In 1911, a fire at a clothingfactory in New Y ork had taken the lives of 146 people. The victims were mostly immigrantwomen.Here is Pat Humphries with "Bread and Roses."Union activists know that labor songs can unite and help people feel strong. This can be trueeven when the music has nothing to do with unions."De Colores" is a popular Spanish folksong. It talks about fields in the spring, little birds,rainbows and the great loves of many colors.This song is popular with supporters of the United Farm Workers union. We listen as BaldemarV elasquez leads the band Aguila Negra in "De Colores."For many years, folksinger Joe Glazer was a union activist with a guitar. He was also a laborhistorian. Labor's Troubadour was the name of a book he about his life. He believed in organized labor and preserving the musical history of the American labor movement. JoeGlazer died in 2006 at the age of 88.Here is Joe Glazer with "Solidarity Forever," written by Ralph Chaplin.From VOA Learning English, this is the Agriculture Report.这里是美国之音慢速英语农业报道。
VOA英语听力材料原文(passage31~40)
Canada was the only (6) non-Asian country in the top five. It rose two percent to fourth place. Almost thirty thousand Canadian students enrolled for the school year that began last (7) autumn.
China has the world's largest number of Internet users. But it also has what is often called the Great Firewall of China. (8) The government restricts political content and blocks some social networking and news Web sites. President Obama said he is a strong supporter of open Internet access.
Japan fell to fifth place. The number of Japanese students in the United States decreased for the fourth year, to just over twenty-nine thousand.
(8) Taiwan also sent fewer students, and the number from Mexico was nearly unchanged.
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In developing countries, attending school can be adaily struggle for some children.They may walk several kilometers to school becausetheir families do not have money to send them on buses or other forms of transportation.With schools far away, and little money to pay for transport costs, parents worry about the safety of their children walking to school.So, a number of parents keep their children at home. Or the child drops out of school: they leave without pleting their studies.These and other barriers to school attendance are the reality for many girls in poor countries.But now, programs in two developing countries are helping to change that. The programs are giving girls “pedal power” -- transportation in the form of bicycles.Power of the pedalRural areas of poor countries often have few secondary schools. So, it is mon for students there to travel great distances to attend classes.Bihar is the poorest state in India. Niy percent of the state’s population lives in rural areas.Until xx, too many teenage girls in Bihar were dropping out of school. For Nahid Farzana, her home was 6 kilometers from school. And, her father did not have money for bus fare, she told the Associated Press.But, that same year, the state government beganoffering bicycles to girls to help them get to school. The program has been so effective that three nearby states are now doing the same.And the results are measurable. A xx study found that giving bicycles to teenage girls in India increased their secondary school enrollment by 30 percent. It also helped many of them stay in school long enough to take their final exams.Western Kenya is experiencing suess with a similar program. Until recently, there was a high risk of localgirls dropping out of school and then being pregnant.Loise Luseno is a 16-year-old girl from Kakamega, Kenya. In the past, she had to walk about 10 kilometers to reach school. Last year, she dropped out temporarily because ofthe distance.Members of her family work as subsistence farmers. They earn just about $30 a month -- not nearly enough for food, school costs and transport.But, a few months ago, Luseno went back to school –this time on a bicycle. Her new form of transportation was provided by World Bicycle Relief, an American-based group.Hurdles for girlsChristina Kwauk is an expert on girls’ education atthe Brookings Institution, a research organization in Washington, D.C.Kwauk recently told VOA that, in many countries, girls face a long list of barriers to school attendance.Sometimes, the issue is that a society has firm ideas about what girls “can and shouldn’t do as they bee young women,” including whether they should receive an education.Luseno experienced this. When girls in her munitywalked to school, motorbike riders would stop them on the road. They would offer the girls rides to school. Then,they would try to persuade the girls to drop out.Kwuak says another reason girls may not attend schoolis their family. Parents might believe that losingchildren’s help at home can cause the family to lose money.For example, a poor farming family grows less food without the help of children. Girls are often expected todo this work. In many cases, those household duties include taking care of younger brothers and sisters.There are also direct financial barriers, says Kwauk, such as school fees, books, and meals. So, in places wherefamilies value boys more than girls, and parents havelittle money, the boys are sent to school.The ups and downsEven with the suess of the bicycles programs, there are still problems.Ainea Ambulwa teaches at the Bukhaywa secondary school in Kakamega, Kenya. He belongs to a bicycle supervisory mittee at the school. He makes sure that the riders are keeping their vehicles in good condition.Ambulwa says defeating poverty remains a difficult issue.He says that some families will put heavy things on the bicycles and then they break down. Because the family lacks the money to have the bike repaired, the girl can no longer get to school.World Bicycle Relief is based in Chicago, Illinois. It provides bicycles through another group: World Vision.In xx, the two groups launched a bicycle production factory in Kisumu, Kenya. The cost of the bicycle is around $180. That is too much money for most families in rural Kenya.But with the help of donors, the program has given away about 7,000 bicycles throughout the country. Most of the people receiving the bikes are girls.Bicycles decrease the safety risks for girls because the girls get to school quicker, Kwauk explains. It also helps parents not to lose work time taking their girls to school.Peter Wechuli, the head of the program in Kenya, says the bikes have improved children's lives. But, he says, the factory was built around 100 kilometers from Kakamega. So, getting the bicycles to needy families can be a problem.Yet Kwauk calls the bicycle programs “very promising” and a low-cost solution. She says many organizations in wealthier countries would be happy to provide this kind of resource.。
英语听力原文
英语听力原文：This is the VOA Special English Health Report.When we think of threats to public health, we often think of communicable diseases. But experts say non-communicable diseases -- those that do not spread from person to person -- are the leading killer today. These are often the result of poor diet, environmental influences including tobacco and alcohol use, or genetics.Now, the World Health Organization has released its first Global Status Report on Non-Communicable Diseases. In two thousand eight, they caused sixty-three percent of all deaths. And eighty percent of those deaths were reported in developing countries.These countries are spending billions to treat conditions like cancer, heart disease and diabetes. The WHO says the costs of treating non-infectious diseases are pushing millions of people into poverty. WHO Director-General Margaret Chan says: "For some countries it is no exaggeration to describe the situation as an impending disaster ... a disaster for health, society and national economies."Conditions that last for years are also known as chronic diseases. Population changes are driving the increase in cases. Populations in many developing countries are growing quickly and living more in cities. Aging populations also play a part. Chronic diseases become more common as people get older.Dr. James Hospedales is a chronic disease expert at the WHO. He says chronic diseases are a major problem in big countries like the United States, India and China and across Latin America and the Mediterranean. And they are expected to become the leading cause of death in many African nations by twenty-twenty.JAMES HOSPEDALES: "We cannot wait until we have dealt with HIV, dealt with malaria. No, it's upon us. As a matter of fact, one of the major contributors to tuberculosis going up in several countries is because diabetes is going up -- and obesity. So there is a link between diabetes and TB."Dr. Hospedales says some middle- and low-income countries are beginning to recognize that their health policies must deal more with prevention.JAMES HOSPEDALES: "We estimate in WHO that over thirty million lives can be saved in the next ten years by simple measures -- reducing the level of salt by fifteen to twenty percent, reducing the amount of tobacco, and increasing the number of people who are at risk of a heart attack and stroke to be on simple preventive treatment."The WHO is the United Nations' health agency. The General Assembly plans to hold its first high-level meeting on the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases. The meeting will take place in New York this September.And that's the VOA Special English [url=/Health_Report_1.html]Health Report[/url]. To read and listen to more health news and for English teaching activities, go to . I'm Steve Ember.___Contributing: Vidushi Sinha英语听力原文：This is the VOA Special English Health Report.For people infected with HIV, the earlier they start treatment, the better -- and better not just for them. A new study shows that early treatment greatly reduces the risk that the partner of an infected person will also get infected. HIV is the virus that causes AIDS.Dr. Anthony Fauci is with the United States National Institutes of Health which paid for the study.ANTHONY FAUCI: "Many studies have been showing that the earlier you start, the better it is for the person who is infected. This study shows that not only is it better for the person who is infected, but it helps that person from transmitting to the person that's their sexual partner, heterosexual partner."Researchers cannot say if the results would be the same in men who have sex with men. Most of the couples in the study were heterosexual.The study took place in Botswana, Brazil, India, Kenya, Malawi, South Africa, Thailand, the United States and Zimbabwe. It involved almost two thousand couples divided into two groups.In one group, the infected man or woman began to take a combination of three antiretroviral drugs immediately after being found to have HIV. In the other group, the infected partners began drug treatment only when they started to show signs of getting AIDS.The researchers say both groups received equal amounts of HIV-related care and counseling. That included information about safe sex practices, free condoms and regular HIV testing.The study began in two thousand five. It was supposed to last until twenty-fifteen. But researchers stopped it early because the results were so clear. Only one case of infection was reported in couples where the infected partner began immediate treatment.Dr. Fauci says earlier treatment led to a ninety-six percent reduction in the spread of HIV to uninfected partners.ANTHONY FAUCI: "This is a powerful bit of evidence that will go into the thinking and formulation of guidelines and of global policy, policy by WHO, by UNAIDS, by the international organizations that help to provide drugs in the developing world."The study shows the value in testing and treating HIV before a person even feels sick enough to see a doctor. But in many countries, public health budgets are already stretched thin. In sub-Saharan Africa, the area hardest hit by AIDS, for every person who gets treated, two others go untreated.Antiretroviral drugs suppress the virus. Once people start treatment, they have to continue it daily for the rest of their life.And that's the VOA Special English [url=/Health_Report_1.html]Health Report[/url]. To read and listen to our reports, go to . I'm Jim Tedder.___Contributing: Carol Pearson英语听力原文：This is the VOA Special English Health Report.Today we answer a question. Vu Quang Hien from Vietnam wants to know more about hepatitis B. Hepatitis is the name for a group of viral infections that attack the liver. These are called A, B, C and so on.An estimated two billion people are infected with hepatitis B. The rates are highest in China and other parts of Asia. The World Health Organization says most of these infections happen during childhood.Hepatitis B is spread through contact with infected blood or other body fluids. Mothers can infect babies at birth. Unsafe injections and sexual contact can also spread the virus. Experts say it can survive outside the body for at least a week.There are two forms of hepatitis B -- acute and chronic. Acute cases last for several weeks, although recovery can take months. Chronic cases can lead to death from cirrhosis or scarring of the liver and liver cancer.Yet people with long-term liver infections can live for years and not even know they are infected. The ones most likely to develop chronic hepatitis B are young children.In the United States, experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urge medical providers to test Asian-American patients.DR. JOHN WARD: "The bottom line -- since most people of Asian heritage came to the US from endemic countries or were born to parents from these countries, they should be screened for chronic hepatitis B."For acute hepatitis B, patients may receive care to replace lost fluids, but there are no treatments. Doctors can treat chronic cases with interferon and antiviral drugs. But these medicines cost too much for most of the world's poor.A vaccine to prevent hepatitis B has been available for thirty years. The researcher who discovered this vaccine -- and hepatitis B itself -- was an American named Baruch Blumberg. Dr. Blumberg also showed that the virus could cause liver cancer.NASADr. Baruch BlumbergHe and another researcher at the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, Irving Millman, invented the vaccine in nineteen sixty-nine. But Dr. Blumberg said it took some time to find a drug company willing to produce it.He first became interested in studying infectious disease when he volunteered in Surinam during his medical training.His discoveries with hepatitis B saved many lives and earned him a Nobel Prize in medicine. But he also had other interests -- including the search for life in outer space.In the late nineties, he helped launch the Astrobiology Institute at NASA. He was at a space agency conference in California in April when he died, apparently of a heart attack. Baruch Blumberg was eighty-five years old.And that's the VOA Special English Health Report, written by Caty Weaver. I'm Steve Ember.英语听力原文：This is the VOA Special English Health Report.Rob Summers of Portland, Oregon, is twenty-five years old and a former college athlete. In July of two thousand six he was hit by a car. Doctors told him he would never walk again.ROB SUMMERS: "I turned to the doctor and said 'Obviously, you don't know me very well. I am going to walk again.'"Mr. Summers learned about experimental research at the University of Louisville in Kentucky. Doctors placed small electrodes in his lower back. These send electrical signals to his damaged spinal cord to move his hips, legs and feet. The signals act like the signals that the brain normally sends to produce movement.ROB SUMMERS: "I was unable to move a toe or anything for four years, and on the third day of turning the simulator on, I was able to stand independently."Video from the university shows him even taking steps on a treadmill while supported by a harness. The work is described in a study in the Lancet medical journal. The lead author, Susan Harkema, is a professor in the Department of Neurosurgery at the university.SUSAN HARKEMA: "Within that week with support, of the body weight support, we were able to get him to stand without any help at the legs so he was generating enough force to bear his body weight."Mr. Summers can stand for up to four minutes at a time, or up to an hour with assistance. He received extensive physical training. His spinal cord had to be retrained to produce the muscle movements needed to stand and take assisted steps on the treadmill.The treatment has also helped him regain some control over his bladder.Researchers are calling his progress a medical breakthrough. Professor Harkema says there could be a day when Rob Summers and other paraplegics like him will be able to walk again.But there is still a lot more work to do to reach that day.Mr. Summers was completely paralyzed below the chest, but he did still have some feeling. The scientists say they do not know how the treatment would work with patients who have no sensation at all below the injury.Also, the researchers point out that they have studied only one person so far. And Mr. Summers was in extraordinary physical condition before his injury.Money for the research came from the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation and the National Institutes of Health. Professor Harkema is director of the Reeve Foundation's NeuroRecovery Network.The eleven-member team also included scientists from the University of California, Los Angeles, and the California Institute of Technology.And that's the VOA Special English [url=/Health_Report_1.html]Health Report[/url]. You can watch a video report about Rob Summers and his treatment at . I'm Steve Ember.___Contributing: Carol Pearson英语听力原文：This is the VOA Special English Health Report.Thirty years ago this week, public health officials in the United States reported on the first cases of what came to be known as AIDS. There is growing progress against the epidemic of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.But today an estimated sixteen and a half million children have lost one or both parents to AIDS. Most of them live in sub-Saharan Africa. Millions more live with adults who are sick from AIDS.Lucie Cluver from Oxford University in England has studied AIDS orphans and children living with sick adults in South Africa. She says children can be deeply affected by their experiences.LUCIE CLUVER: "And one of the biggest impacts we see is mental health, their psychological health. So, for example, we see that AIDS orphaned children have very much higher levels of depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder than children who have a live parent or children whose parents have died of other causes, including homicide or suicide."Lucie Cluver has just written about this problem in the journal Nature. She says children have to live with the stigma, the sense of shame connected to AIDS. Many are bullied at school or excluded from the community.At home, children living with a sick adult are more likely to live in poverty and face physical and emotional abuse. Also, Lucie Cluver says the children often become the caregivers.LUCIE CLUVER: "They're missing school to go and get medication. They're washing the sick person. They're often taking them to the toilet, cleaning their wounds or washing their bedclothes. So these kids find it very stressful and upsetting. They're very worried about the health and feel responsible for the health of the sick person."Close contact with sick adults can sometimes spread tuberculosis or other diseases. And, as Lucie Cluver told reporter Art Chimes, even when the children are in school, paying attention can be difficult.LUCIE CLUVER: "It's constantly on their minds and really making it difficult for them to do well at school."REPORTER: "And the children are telling you this?"LUCIE CLUVER: "Absolutely, it's one of the things that they tell us first. It's one of their greatest concerns."Her research suggests that psychological problems increase as AIDS orphans get older.Writing in Nature, she calls for testing more children for tuberculosis. She also calls for giving more parents the drugs needed to keep them healthy longer with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.There are programs to help children, but Lucie Cluver says there is "far more to be done." She says interventions such as cognitive behavioral therapy and support groups are "urgently needed" for those orphaned by AIDS or living with sick adults. But the evidence for which interventions are effective "is still thin," she says.And that's the VOA Special English Health Report, written by Caty Weaver. I'm Barbara Klein.英语听力原文：This is the VOA Special English Health Report.International donors have promised more than four billion dollars to the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization. That group, known as the GAVI Alliance, held a pledging conference Monday in London.GA VI raised six hundred million dollars more than its target goal. Britain led the donations with 1.3 billion dollars in new pledges through twenty-fifteen. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation also promised one billion more over the next five years.Norway promised more than six hundred seventy million dollars. The United States made four hundred fifty million dollars in new pledges.GAVI says a record fifty countries requested money for vaccines during its latest application st week, the group announced an agreement by vaccine makers to cut prices for developing countries. These lower prices, combined with the money raised this week, could protect an extra two hundred fifty million children.Jeffrey Rowland is a GAVI spokesman.JEFFREY ROWLAND: "GA VI's goal over the next five years, by twenty-fifteen, is to immunize millions more children and save an additional four million children's lives, purely by providing basic vaccines against diseases that are basically almost non-existent in rich countries, as well as providing new vaccines against pneumonia, diarrheal diseases and then hopefully HPV and some other vaccine-preventable diseases."HPV is the human papillomavirus, which can lead to cervical cancer. The disease kills two hundred thousand women a year, mostly in developing countries. The Merck company has agreed to offer GA VI the HPV vaccine at five dollars a dose. This is two-thirds less than the current price.Other companies including GlaxoSmithKline and Merck will lower prices for rotavirus vaccines. That virus causes diarrhea that kills about half a million children a year.JEFFREY ROWLAND: "Almost all children in the world get rotavirus. The thing is that in the United States or in Europe children usually have good access to medical care -- so rehydration, antibiotics, hospitalization. Children in poor countries, on the other hand, usually do not. So, by the time a mother brings her child to a clinic after having diarrhea, that child is near death. And oftentimes the antibiotics and the services are not available to save the child's life."A rotavirus vaccine in the United States can cost as much as fifty dollars. Under the new plan, this same vaccine could cost about two and a half dollars in a developing country.The GA VI Alliance says almost two million children a year die from diseases that vaccines can prevent.And that's the VOA Special English [url=/Health_Report_1.html]Health Report[/url]. You can read, listen and learn with our programs, and share them with others, at . I'm Jim Tedder.___Contributing: Vidushi Sinha and Lisa Schlein英语听力原文：This is the VOA Special English Health Report.Americans spend more on health care than most other people. Yet a new study shows that life expectancy in the United States is falling behind other developed countries.In two thousand seven an American man could expect to live about seventy-five and a half years. That was less than in thirty-six other countries. Life expectancy for American women was almost eighty-one years. They were also in thirty-seventh place among almost two hundred countries and territories.The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington studied the numbers. Professor Ali Mokdad says increases in life expectancy have slowed in the United States compared to other countries.ALI MOKDAD: "We've seen an improvement almost everywhere in the world. And in countries that are developed, we're seeing a higher improvement, a faster improvement rate, than we are seeing in the United States."Professor Mokdad says the reason is Americans have made less progress in reducing problems like obesity and high blood pressure.The report also identifies wide differences in life expectancy rates within the United States. The researchers created maps of life expectancy in each of the more than three thousand counties.Areas with the shortest expected life spans are largely in the South. Ali Mokdad says researchers know some of the reasons.ALI MOKDAD: "Less education, less income in some of these rural counties, more likely to be smokers, more likely to be obese. They don't have health insurance, or they don't have adequate access to health care, and the quality of medical care is not as good as well."In the United States, many public health matters are local responsibilities. Restrictions on public smoking, for example, differ from community to community. Some communities have more bicycle paths and other chances for physical activity, or more places to buy fresh fruits and vegetables.ALI MOKDAD: "A long-term investment in their community to increase physical activity and improve diet are needed in this country."The study appears in the journal Population Health Metrics. Journal editor Chris Murray says at least one finding was unexpected.CHRIS MURRAY: "It's a real surprise to us in the study that women are faring so much worse than men."Around the country, American women still live longer than men by five to eight years. But their international ranking has been falling since the nineteen nineties. Dr. Murray says women are increasingly taking risks with their health.CHRIS MURRAY: "Women are now smoking more. The obesity epidemic in women is greater than in men. Progress in tackling blood pressure is much worse in women."In other news, the first report on the number of American births in twenty-ten shows another decrease. Births have been decreasing since an all-time high of more than 4.3 million in two thousand seven. Federal officials say state health departments reported just over four million births last year.And that's the VOA Special English [url=/Health_Report_1.html]Health Report[/url], written by Caty Weaver. I'm Steve Ember.___Contributing: Art Chimes and Carol Pearson英语听力原文：This is the VOA Special English Health Report.Everyone knows life for refugees and migrant workers can be difficult, dangerous and even deadly. But what happens when they return home? One of the biggest problems for migrants is getting health care as they travel and live in a new place. As a result, they often bring their medical problems home with them.A new report looks at this situation. The report is from specialists at the International Organization for Migration in Geneva, Switzerland.One of those authors was Haley West. She says migrant workers who get injured on the job may not be able to get treatment in the country where they are working. That lack of access to medical care means they have to deal with medical problems when they rejoin their family.HALEY WEST: "So when they return back home, they've got an occupational health issue that wasn't addressed in the country where they were working. And now, the diagnosis has probably been delayed. So that delay in diagnosis oftentimes leads to worse health issues that could have potentially been preventable if they had been given the access in the country in which they were working."Not all migrants travel for economic reasons. Many are forced from home by natural disaster, war or civil unrest. And not all health care needs are physical. Another author of the report, Rosilyne Borland, says people who have lived through that kind of situation may have psychological injuries.ROSILYNE BORLAND: "There's been some very interesting studies done on people who have been granted refugee status and the sorts of mental health challenges they face years down the road. So someone returning from mass displacement, even though I'm sure [they] are thrilled to be going home, they bring with them all sorts of challenges upon their return."Another problem for returning migrants is that they may not have much to return to.ROSILYNE BORLAND: "If the community was destroyed by the natural disaster or the war, then the health system has also been damaged, and the ability of that community to continue to keep people healthy is also challenged when they get back."Rosilyne Borland, Haley West and the other authors of the article have some suggestions. They call for policies to consider the needs of returning migrants and to make sure they can receive health testing.The report appeared in a six-part series on migration and health in the Public Library of Science journal PLoS Medicine. The journal editors say, "If internal and international migrants comprised a nation, it would be the third most populous country in the world, just after China and India."The editors say population mobility is among the leading policy issues of the twenty-first century. They say officials have not given enough attention to policies to protect migrants and global health. And the efforts have been made more difficult by a lack of coordination between countries.And that's the VOA Special English [url=/Health_Report_1.html]Health Report[/url]. For more health news, visit our website, . I'm Christopher Cruise.___Contributing: Art Chimes英语听力原文：This is the VOA Special English Health Report.A study says more people are killing themselves in Greece and other countries affected by economic troubles in Europe. David Stuckler, a sociologist at Britain's University of Cambridge, co-wrote the report.DA VID STUCKLER: "For the most part, the countries that have been more severely affected have experienced greater rises in suicides -- Ireland, Spain, the Baltics -- reaching up to sixteen percent in some of the worst affected countries, like Greece."Suicide rates in Europe had been decreasing. But then the international banking crisis hit in two thousand eight.The study looked at reports from ten European countries from two thousand seven and two thousand nine. Nine of the ten countries had a five percent increase in suicide rates between two thousand seven and two thousand nine. In Ireland the increase was thirteen percent.The study found that suicide rates have not increased in countries where governments have helped get people back to work. Examples include Sweden and Finland.DAVUD STUCKLER: "We found that just giving money to people who have lost jobs to replace their income did not appear to help. Instead, giving people a reason to get out of bed in the morning, a hope in terms of searching for a good, meaningful job seemed to be the most beneficial to helping people cope."The findings appeared last week in the Lancet medical journal.Greece is suffering the costs of a huge public deficit. For over a year, the government has cut spending and increased taxes in an effort to improve its finances.Pavlos Tsimas is a journalist based in Greece. He recently made a documentary about the increase in suicides.PAVLOS TSIMAS: "We investigated the case of a small businessman from Herakleion in Crete, who took his car, loaded it with tins of petrol, and first shot himself and then put fire to the whole car."Pavlos Tsimas says some people commit suicide in a public way, like the businessman in Crete.PA VLOS TSIMAS: "We found out that people killed themselves in a very dramatic and sometimes a very violent way, which maybe means that they are trying to make their suicide a statement, want the whole world to understand how badly they feel, how hopeless they have felt."He says Greeks who kill themselves are mostly men. And he says the number has gone up most on the island of Crete.PAVLOS TSIMAS: " ... where social and family life is more traditional, more patriarchic. The father of the family has to be respected as a figure of great strength. And when the economic problems arise, when jobs are lost and businesses are closed down, it is this despair because of the loss of respect, the loss of self-esteem, and the fact that the person feels that his life no longer has meaning, that drives them to this kind of act."And that's the VOA Special English [url=/Health_Report_1.html]Health Report[/url]. For more health news, go to . I'm Jim Tedder.___Contributing: Selah Hennessy英语听力原文：This is the VOA Special English Health Report.Scientists say a study in Africa shows that AIDS drugs can increase life expectancy in patients to nearly normal levels.One of the authors was Dr. Jean Nachega of South Africa's Stellenbosch University and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, Maryland.JEAN NACHEGA: The overall key finding of our study is that the patient in Africa receiving antiretroviral therapy for HIV can expect to live a near-normal lifespan."The study was released in Rome this week at a conference of the International AIDS Society. The findings appear in the Annals of Internal Medicine.Over the last thirty years, the HIV/AIDS epidemic cut fifteen to twenty years or more from life expectancy rates in Africa. Dr. Nachega says in many countries these rates had risen sharply.JEAN NACHEGA: "All what we've been able to gain in the past with the access to clean water, expanded immunization programs were totally reversed with the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Africa. So now we are seeing some good news that investing in antiretroviral programs, those investments are now paying off."The study took place in Uganda. There, life expectancy at birth is an average of about fifty-five years.The study involved twenty-two thousand patients being treated for HIV. The results were promising but were different for men and women.At age twenty, life expectancy for men was another nineteen years. Women could expect to live thirty more years. At age thirty-five, men could expect to live to fifty-seven. Women could expect to live to sixty-seven.Dr. Nachega says men generally start treatment later than women. By then the disease is less treatable.JEAN NACHEGA: "Men spend more time looking for a job and spending more time away from their family to try to find a way to survive, I think may be one of the [reasons]. The second reason is obviously the issue about stigma, which is still quite affecting a majority of people in the community."Also, programs for pregnant women mean that women have more chances to get tested for HIV and to receive treatment.Dr. Nachega says health officials need to deal with this "gender imbalance." He supports the idea of considering treatment for HIV/AIDS as a form of prevention.JEAN NACHEGA: "We should no longer see treatment and prevention totally separately. Treatment, by itself, it is also part of prevention. Because by treating people, and hopefully treating them earlier, they are less likely to transmit the virus to their sexual partner."Studies also show that giving antiretroviral drugs to uninfected people can help protect them from HIV. Two studies released last week found that taking medication daily reduced the risk of infection in heterosexuals. An earlier study showed that it reduced the risk among gay men.And that's the VOA Special English [url=/Health_Report_1.html]Health Report[/url]. I'm Steve Ember.___Contributing: Joe de Capua。
VOA听力原稿翻译
This is the VOA Special English Health Report.现在是VOA特别英语——健康报道The World Health Organization says it has reached a limit in its fight against diseases and disasters.世界卫生组织表示该组织在与疾病和灾难抗争方面已经达到了承受极限。
Director-General Margaret Chan says the agency is "overextended" and faces "serious funding shortfalls."首席执行干事陈女士表示该组织应经超负荷运行，面临严重的资金短缺。
Dr. Chan says the WHO is no longer operating "at the level of top performance that is increasingly needed, and expected.陈女士说WHO不能再以日益期望不断增长的模式进行高负荷运作了。
" She told the agency's Executive Board on Monday that the level of action should not be governed by the size of a problem.她对董事会说，这种行动大小的程度不能再由问题的大小所决定了。
Instead, it should be governed by the extent to which the WHO can have an effect on the problem.相反，应该有WHO在这个问题上所能产生的影响决定。
Dr. Chan said one of the most exciting developments recently is a new vaccine that could end Africa's deadly meningitis epidemics.陈女士最近感到最激动的发展是一种能结束非洲致命传染病的疫苗的生产。
VOA的慢速英语听力文摘 Mystery at The Ice Castle Inn
VOA的慢速英语听力文摘 Mystery at The Ice Castle Inn VOA的慢速英语听力文摘：Mystery at The Ice Castle Inn VOA慢速是公认的比较适合大部分英语学习者的英语听力材料。
下面是一篇VOA的慢速英语听力文摘，供大家练习。
Now, the VOA Learning English program Words and Their Stories.On this program we explain how to use mon words and expressions in American English. Today, we are going to celebrate the ing of winter with expressions related tocold and ice. And we will do that with a story … a mystery story.This is part one of a three-part series.Our story begins on a distant mountain-top. It is the dead of winter. Outside the wind is howling.Snow mixed with freezing rain has made the roads unsafe for travel. Even walking outside is dangerous. So, the four characters of our story are stuck indoors at The Ice Castle Inn. Like the name suggests, the inn is an old castle thatis now a vacation spot for bird-watchers.These four people are strangers. The only thing they have in mon is a shared interest in snow birds. But for now, they all have put their bird watching plans on ice. That is to say, they must postpone their plans until the winter storm passes.What they don’t know is the violent storm outside is just the tip of the iceberg. In other words, more danger exists, but they cannot see it.Let’s meet the c haractersBut now, let’s get in out of the cold. As we enter the Ice Castle Inn we meet our group of travelers. They are all having a hot drink as they gather by the fireplace.The TeacherFirst there is the teacher, Madeline. She is in herlate 20s and teaches skiing and cold weather survivalskills at a private school for girls.Her neat, dark hair frames her round, healthy face. Her appearance is plain but she is in great physical shape. She is a quiet woman. When she speaks, her voice is low and uncertain.You may think she is shy. But think again.Underneath her shy exterior, she is calm, cool and collected. If she stares at you with her clear green eyes, you can sense her powerful, extreme calm. Her ability to control her reactions makes people feel afraid: it sends shivers down their spines.The AthleteThen there is the athlete, Vincent. He is in his early 30s. Handsome and active, he talks to anyone and everyone. He has an easy manner and people like him instantly. He’sthe type of man who could sell ice to an Eskimo, meaning he could talk you into anything.At first, he seems to be a very cool, easy-going sportsman. But talk to him more and you realize that something is missing: namely, feelings. Those who know him best say he has ice water running through his veins. Nothing seems to upset or emotionally move him.The ActressNext is the actress, Sylvia. She is in her mid-40s and is extremely attractive. With her ice-blue eyes, pale white skin and fine clothing, she do esn’t seem like the outdoorsy, bird-watching type.Her personality runs hot and cold -- friendly one minute, unfriendly the next. You never know what to expect. The one thing that is constant about her is the gold locket she wears around her long, thin neck. She never takes itoff and often holds it tightly to her chest.The MajorFinally, there is Major Jack, an ex-military man. His age is hard to guess -- perhaps 50-something? He has a strong jaw and thick black hair. The lines on his face make him look older but even more handsome.Some men are just lucky that way. He seems like most military men; strong and silent. William Shakespeare might even call him a cold fish -- unfeeling and unfriendly. Butat the same time every day, as the sun goes down, he stares out the window into the storm with great sadness in his eyes. It is at these times, he seems like a man left out in the cold, ignored and alone.That is our small group of traveling bird-watchers. As the days pass, the snow only falls harder on The Ice Castle Inn. The land line phones no longer work. Neither do cell phones. No rescue vehicles have e to clear the roads.They are truly snowed in.With each passing day, they each bee more and more suspicious of each other. They all wonder the same thing –why are the others really here?Answers will have to wait.I’m Anna Matteo.Join us next week for part 2 of The Mystery at The Ice Castle Inn.Anna Matteo wrote this story for VOA Learning English. Kelly Jean Kelly was the editor.。
VOA慢速英语听力：热可能是自然界的头号杀手
LAPIDUS: This is SCIENCE IN THE NEWS, in VOA Special English. I'm Faith Lapidus.BOB DOUGHTY: And I'm Bob Doughty. This week, we tell about health problems linked to extreme heat. We tell what experts suggest to prevent and treat these problems.(MUSIC)FAITH LAPIDUS: Extremely hot weather is common in many parts of the world. Although hot weather just makes most people feel hot, it can cause serious medical problems -- even death.Indian villagers sleep in the shade of a tree on a hot summer day in Allahabad, IndiaFloods, storms and other natural events kill thousands of people every year. So does extreme heat. Experts say heat may be nature's deadliest killer.Last month, for example, intense heat was blamed for about eighty deaths in India. About one-fourth of those deaths were said to be in the eastern state of Odisha. One day, temperatures in the Odisha town of Titlagarh reached forty-five degrees Celsius.BOB DOUGHTY: Several hot days that follow each other are considered a heat wave. Experts say heat waves often become dangerous when the nighttime temperature does not drop much from the highest daytime temperature. This causes great stress on the human body.Doctors say people can do many things to protect themselves from the dangers of extreme heat. Stay out of the sun, if possible.Drink lots of cool water. Wear light colored clothing made of natural materials. Make sure the clothing is loose, permitting freedom of movement. Also, learn the danger signs of the medical problems linked to heat.(MUSIC)FAITH LAPIDUS: The most common health problem linked to hot weather is heat stress. Usually, it is also the least severe. The causes of heat stress include wearing heavy clothing, physical work or exercise, hot weather and high humidity. Humidity is the amount of water in the air.If several of these conditions are present at the same time, a person's body temperature may rise above safe levels. The person loses large amounts of body water and salt in perspiration. Perspiration is one of the body's defenses against heat. It is how the body releases water to cool the skin.Most people suffer only muscle pain because of heat stress. The pain is a warning that the body is becoming too hot. Doctors say those suffering muscle pain should stop all activity and rest in a cool place. They should also drink cool liquids. Doctors say not to return to physical activity for a few hours because serious conditions could develop.BOB DOUGHTY: Some people face an increased danger from heat stress. They may have a weak or damaged heart, high blood pressure or other problems of the blood system. Severe heat increases problems for small children, older adults and those who have the disease diabetes.It is also dangerous for people who weigh too much and have too much body fat, and for people who drink alcohol. Hot weather also increases dangers for people who must take medicine for high blood pressure, poor blood flow, nervousness or depression.FAITH LAPIDUS: Untreated heat stress can lead to a more serious problem called heat exhaustion. A person suffering from heat exhaustion loses too much water through perspiration. The person becomes dehydrated.A person suffering heat exhaustion feels weak and extremely tired. He or she may have trouble walking normally. Heat exhaustion may also produce a feeling of sickness, a fast heartbeat, breathing problems and pain in the head, chest or stomach. Doctors say people with such problems should rest quietly in a cool place and drink plenty of water. They also say it may help to wash with cool water.BOB DOUGHTY: Heat exhaustion can develop quickly. It also can develop slowly, over a period of days. Doctors call this dehydration exhaustion. Each day, the body loses only a little more water than is taken in. The person may not even know this problem is developing. If the problem continues for several days, the effects will be the same as the usual kind of heatexhaustion.Experts say even a two percent drop in the body's water supply can cause signs of dehydration. These signs include problems with memory and even simple mathematics.FAITH LAPIDUS: Dehydration limits a person's ability to work and think. Experts say a reduction of only four or five percent in body water leads to a drop of twenty to thirty percent in work ability. The loss of salt through perspiration also reduces the amount of work that muscles can do.The treatment for dehydration exhaustion is the same as for heat exhaustion. Drink plenty of water and rest in a cool place. Even better, doctors say, drink about two liters of water a day so problems with dehydration will not have a chance to develop.(MUSIC)BOB DOUGHTY: Heat exhaustion can lead to heat stroke if it is not treated. Heat stroke is the most serious disorder linked to hot weather. It results when the body is not able to control its temperature. The body's temperature increases and perspiration fails.Generally, the body temperature rises to more than forty degrees Celsius. The body stops perspiring. The skin becomes dry and very hot. A person may become unconscious, not knowing what is happening.Doctors say tissues and organs begin to cook when the body's temperature is higher than forty-two degrees Celsius. Permanent brain damage and death may result. Someone suffering heat stroke requires immediate medical attention. Doctors say such treatment is necessary or the person could die before help arrives.FAITH LAPIDUS: The purpose of immediate treatment is to cool the victim as quickly as possible to stop the body temperature from increasing. Begin by moving the victim out of the sun. Raise the person's feet up about thirty centimeters. Take off the victim's clothing. Put cool water on the body. Place pieces of ice in areas where blood passageways are close to the skin. These include the back of the neck and under the arms.Experts say it is important to know the danger signs of the medical disorders linked to hot weather. It is also important to know what to do if the signs appear...in yourself or in someone else.(MUSIC)BOB DOUGHTY: Experts say water is important for many reasons. Between fifty-five and seventy-five percent of the body is water.Water in blood carries hormones and antibodies through the body. Water in urine carries away waste materials. Water is needed for cooling the body on hot days, and when we are working or exercising. Water carries body heat to the surface of the skin. There, the heat is lost through perspiration.Health experts say adults should drink about two liters of water a day to replace all the water lost in liquid wastes and perspiration.They say people should drink more than that in hot weather.Experts say it is important to drink before, during and after exercise. They say we should drink water even before we start to feel like we need something to drink. During hot weather, cool liquids are best. Also, avoid sweet drinks and alcohol.FAITH LAPIDUS: We need to add that doctors also say it is possible to drink too much water. Some people, for example, do this if they exercise hard during a heat wave. Experts with the Mayo Clinic say drinking too much water can cause hyponatremia. In this condition, the level of sodium in the blood falls too low.The result is that the amount of water in the body increases. This causes cells to become larger. Mayo Clinic experts say the enlarged cells can cause a person to become sick or restless. They also can interfere with mental ability, make muscles weak and cause pain in the head. In a mild case, simply reducing fluids may be all that the person needs. But medical help is necessary if the condition is more severe.Experts have suggestions for runners and others exercising or working hard in hot weather. They say drinking a sports drink with sodium in it can help prevent the condition.BOB DOUGHTY: Doctors say actions other than drinking water can protect against the health dangers of heat. Stay out of thesun, if possible. Wear loose, lightweight and light colored clothes. Wear a hat or other head covering when in the sun. Eat fewer hot and heavy foods. If possible, cook foods during cooler times of the day. Also, rest more often. Physical activity produces body heat.Experts say these simple steps can prevent the health problems linked to heat. They will prevent sickness, help you feel better and may even save your life.(MUSIC)FAITH LAPIDUS: This SCIENCE IN THE NEWS was written by Jerilyn Watson. Our producer was June Simms. I'm Faith Lapidus.BOB DOUGHTY: And I'm Bob Doughty. Join us again next week for more news about science in Special English.。