Age-related macular degeneration, or AMD, is an eye condition that affects millions of people around the world. In the UK, it is the biggest cause of sight loss. It’s caused by a loss of the nerves at the back of the eye. Even though it affects only a tiny area around the width of a human hair, its impact is life-changing. Patients experience a blurring (模糊) of vision, initially at the center of their gaze, which expands and worsens as time goes on. Recognizing faces or watching television can rapidly become impossible.
“This is why it’s such a difficult disease to deal with for patients: It affects the best bit first,” explains Lyndon Da Cruz, a surgeon at Moorfields Eye Hospital in London, UK. Because nerve cells don’t regenerate (再生), the body cannot heal the condition itself, however scientists at King’s College London and Moorfields are working on a new technique to implant stem cells into the back of the eye.
A trial has already been successfully tested on two patients, both of whom went from being unable to read at all even with glasses, to reading 60 to 80 words per minute with normal reading glasses.
Operating on the eye is always delicate, but the precision involved in inserting the stem cells is right at the edge of the ability of even the most talented surgeons. Therefore the team has been working with the University’s robotics department to create machines that can work with minute accuracy.
“It’s as if you cut the human hair 10 times and then you need to go with one of those tools in between those layers for two or three minutes stably while the patient is awake. And that’s not something that humans just can do. That’s where robots come in,”says Christos Bergeles, a robotics researcher at King’s.
Bergeles’ team has created a working model of an operating room equipped with a robotic arm that can translate the movement of a surgeon. For the moment, they operate only on model but one day they hope to be able to be restoring sight one cell at a time.
1. How does AMD affect people’s health?A.It prevents cells from healing. |
B.It can make people go blind. |
C.It causes nerve problems. |
D.It can damage human hair. |
A.The precision needed in the operation. | B.Lacking the right stem cells. |
C.The stable movement of the surgeon. | D.Cutting hair into very thin layers. |
A.It is a piece of cake for brilliant surgeons. |
B.It can simply be carried out by a professional robot. |
C.It is almost a mission impossible for any surgeons alone. |
D.It can be done by a robotic arm translating a surgeon’s movement. |
A.A working model will be created to make a surgery. |
B.A trial on two patients has successfully been tested. |
C.The cause of sight loss has been found out to restore it. |
D.Robots and stem cells can be combined to restore eyesight. |
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【推荐1】Scared of needles? Then you might be interested in a new injection-free (免注射) way of taking the COVID-19 vaccine. By simply inhaling (吸气), your invisible shield against corona-virus is formed. It’s as simple as sipping your favorite bubble tea!
The new dose is an aerosolized (雾化的) version of the current COVID-19 vaccine. In other words, the only difference between the new vaccine and the current one is the way the drug is delivered. China’s CanSino Biologics, the company that produces the aerosolized vaccine, said on Sept 4 that it has been permitted for emergency use by the country’s top drug regulator (药物监管机构). It is the first aerosolized vaccine to be approved for public use in China. The vaccine will be used as a booster (加强针) only, according to the company.
An aerosolized COVID-19 vaccine is not only easy to administer (给与药物), but it also offers protection in a unique way, said experts. Sunney Xie Xiaoliang, a biophysical chemist at Peking University and academician of the Chinese Academy of Science, said during a recent forum in Beijing that aerosolized vaccine could be an effective way to protect against respiratory (呼吸道的) diseases in the future. Corona-viruses usually enter the human body through the nose and mouth. Delivering vaccine this way can increase immune responses at the location where viruses enter, according to Xie.
A recent study published in August revealed more advantages. It showed that when given as a booster, the aerosolized vaccine stimulate a stronger antibody response than an injection would. It thus claimed that aerosolized vaccine may be a valuable addition to the existing vaccines.
Marty Moore, co-founder of Meissa Vaccines in Califormia, US told Nature that the approval of the aerosolized vaccine in China confirmed the need for vaccines delivered through the mouth and nose. “That’s the direction we need to go globally, and the United States needs to catch up,” Moore said.
1. What does the article tell us about the aerosolized vaccine?A.It will only be used as a booster. |
B.It will replace injection in the future. |
C.It will be widely used in hospitals after Sept. 4. |
D.It is the first approved aerosolized vaccine in China. |
A.It offers effective and long-lasting protection. |
B.It is easy and simple for the human body to absorb. |
C.It makes the entire human body react to the virus quickly. |
D.It could block the spread of viruses where they enter the body. |
A.The limits of the aerosolized vaccine. |
B.Another benefit of the aerosolized vaccine. |
C.The unique characteristics of the aerosolized vaccine. |
D.Difference between the aerosolized vaccine and injection. |
A.Doubtful | B.Critical | C.Positive | D.Opposed |
【推荐2】The clock always seems to be ticking rather too fast in the doctor’s office and the queue of patients outside the door seems to be pressing rather too hard. Some say it’s high time for the model of short, sharp one-to-one appointments to give way to shared medical appointments (SMAs).
SMAs are doctor-patient visits in which a group of patients receive patient education and counseling (咨询), physical examination and medical support in a group setting. Typically, SMAs are designed to have one or more doctors attend to a group of patients who share a common illness or medical condition. In contrast to one-to-one visits, SMAs provide a longer appointment time-frame as well as the opportunity for patients to have improved access to their physicians and meanwhile pick up additional information and support from peers.
However, doctors who have pioneered the shared appointment approach report that there are significant challenges involved. Dr. Sumego, director of shared medical appointments, Cleveland Clinic, identifies culture change as the most significant challenge. Physicians and nurses are trained in a model of personal service and privacy; the SMA approach is a fundamental challenge to those fixed ideas. They need shared goals and a way of testing the innovation against agreed standards. Dr. Sumego says, “The physicians may be worried about the possible chaos and efficiencies that are marketed. They also have to make the patients understand what their appointment is, and what the expectation is.”
“So, if an organization was looking to start shared medical appointments, I would advise them to start the buy-in from a few champion physicians, develop the work-flow and develop some experience. Provide some support behind what that best practice should look like. Create some standards so that, as the concept spreads, you can employ that experience to start the next shared medical appointments and the next.”
1. What is the purpose of the SMA approach?A.To conduct medical research. |
B.To promote doctor’s reputation. |
C.To improve medical service. |
D.To meet patients’ expectation. |
A.Personal service. |
B.Fixed ideas. |
C.Inadequate equipment. |
D.Shared goals. |
A.It is currently being questioned. |
B.It is impractical in some areas. |
C.It will enjoy wide popularity soon. |
D.It should be carried out step by step. |
【推荐3】Growing up in a small village in Ghana, Osei Boateng watched many of his family members and neighbors struggle to access basic health care. In many regions of the country, it can take hours to get to the nearest hospital. “My grandmother was a very big part of my life,” said Boateng. “It was very hard when we lost her, and it was due to something that could have been easily prevented. That is the painful part of it.”
Feeling an urgent call to help, Boateng decided he would make it his life’s mission to bring health care to remote communities in Ghana. He started his nonprofit, OKB Hope Foundation, and in 2021, he converted a van into a mobile doctor’s office called the Hope Health Van and started bringing health care directly to those in need. A few times a week, the mobile clinic and medical team travel long distances to remote communities in Ghana and provide routine medical care for free. On each trip, Boateng’s team consists of a nurse, a physician’s assistant, a doctor, and an operation assistant. In the van, they can run basic labs like bloodwork and urinalysis as well as prescribe and provide medications.
Since its launch, Boateng says the Hope Health Van has served more than 4,000Ghanaians across more than 45 rural communities who otherwise don’t have easily accessible medical care.
Boateng has big plans for the future. He hopes to expand to provide more consistent and high-quality medical care not only to those living in remote areas of Ghana but in other countries as well. He has gone all in on his OKB Hope Foundation, recently quitting his job to dedicate his time to bringing health care to his home country. But for him, the sacrifices are well worth the reward.
1. Why is Boateng’s grandmother mentioned?A.To show his deep love. | B.To highlight the poor health care. |
C.To call for equality. | D.To blame the government. |
A.Routine medical checks. | B.Prescribed medicine. |
C.Minor operations. | D.Mental therapy. |
A.Conservative and cautious. | B.Selfless and risky. |
C.Caring and tolerant. | D.Devoted and ambitious. |
A.Hopeless health care in Ghana | B.Nonprofit organizations booming in Ghana |
C.Doctor’s office on wheels | D.Empowering medical schools |
【推荐1】On August 21, a cargo ship traveling from Singapore to Brazil became the first to try out a new kind of sail. The sail is expected to save fuel and cut pollution. If it works well, similar sails could become common on cargo ships over the next few years.
The new sail is called the “WindWings”. Cargill, a huge American food company, bad the ides to create the sail. Because it depends on ships to transport its food, Cargill was interested in finding ways to reduce pollution from its shipping operations.
Cargill asked the British company BAR Technologies to design a sail for cargo ships. BAR was started by Ben Ainslie, a champion sailor. BAR designed a massive wing. It stands 37.5 meters tall and is made of a strong material similar to that used for wind turbines (涡轮). The center section of the sail is 10 meters across. On either side of that is a moving wing that’s 5 meters wide. Not only can the WindWings be raised and lowered, but each section can be turned in many different ways to catch the wind in the best and safest way.
A company called Yara Marine built the WindWings. which were then put on the Pyxis Ocean—a cargo ship owned by Mitsubishi. In tests, the Pyxis Ocean was able to reach speeds of up to 10 kph using just the WindWings, and no fuel at all. Normally, the Pyxis Ocean will use fuel, but it aims to use far less by letting the wind help out. Cargill says computer studies show that each WindWing can save 1.65 tons of fuel every day. The Pyxis Ocean has two WindWings. Cargill says these should cut the ship’s pollution by about 30%.
The exciting thing about WindWings is that, if they work well, they can be made to fit many cargo ships that are currently running on fossil fuels. John Cooper, who runs BAR, says that by 2025, he expects half of new cargo ships to come with some sort of wind power.
1. Why did Cargill want to create WindWings?A.To change its operating way. | B.To cut shipping pollution. |
C.To have more food transported. | D.To defeat other companies. |
A.the ship can get enough power | B.fuel can be stored up |
C.the ship can reach the highest speed | D.it will stop the wind |
A.Opposed. | B.Skeptical. | C.Uncaring. | D.Optimistic. |
A.Wind Powers Cargo Ships in Brazil |
B.A New Kind of Sail Shocks the Public |
C.High-Tech Sails for Modern Cargo Ships |
D.New Methods of Carrying Food Are Popular |
【推荐2】Cars could soon be communicating with each other using 5G to make drivers aware of upcoming dangers, scientists claim. The ultra-fast mobile Internet would allow for rapid information transmission and could make drivers aware of black ice, pot holes or other dangers up ahead.
Several car manufacturers are already integrating 5G into their vehicles, including as a tool to welcome the coming of self-driving vehicles. Experts believe the high-speed connection will also improve the reliability and capability of automated vehicles to the point where they will be safer than the manual cars being driven today. They predict the number of road traffic accidents—which according to the World Health Organization (WHO) account for more than 1.3 million deaths and up to 50 million people injured worldwide every year—will drop thoroughly as a result.
Dr Dimitrios Liarokapis, a member of the research group, said: "With the help of 5G, an early warning system that alerts (给……报警)drivers is possible within the next few years. Cars that are close enough to the danger area will send warning messages to other cars around them using short-range communication technologies, but also to cars further away using 5G, fast and reliably. Then those cars will transmit the same information to cars near them and so on, forming a joined-up, multi-vehicle communication chain that stretches far and wide."
Automotive giant Ford is already working on connected cars. Earlier this year it revealed its intention to fit 80 percent of its 2020 vehicles with technology that warns drivers about upcoming road accidents, bad weather and traffic jams. The system pools data from other connected road users, emergency services and the authorities and sends it from the cloud directly to the car. Alerts are shown on the car's dashboard display warning the driver about what lies around the corner.
1. How can 5G help reduce road accidents?A.By offering the fast mobile Internet. |
B.By helping drivers overcome dangers. |
C.By offering practical safety programs. |
D.By helping WHO calculate traffic accidents. |
A.To track other drivers. |
B.To send warning messages. |
C.To collect drivers' information. |
D.To send the traffic situation to the police. |
A.They will be safer. |
B.They may be bigger. |
C.They may replace other vehicles. |
D.They will be more personalized. |
A.Cars of Ford are the most intelligent. |
B.Warning messages are shown on phones. |
C.Ford is the first producer to use 5G. |
D.Connected cars are equipped with 5G. |
【推荐3】Scientists have recently developed a method to 3D-print greener buildings using local soil that they say has the possibility to be in the lead in the construction industry.
Sarbajit Banerjee, a professor of chemistry and materials science and engineering at Texas A&M University, said 3D printing enabled them to print the entire front of a building, although getting such structures to meet existing building rules was still a significant challenge.
Concrete (混凝土) is still the important material used in many construction projects but it cannot be recycled and requires a lot of energy to mix and transport. The research team’s aim is to print structures using the type of soil that can be found in any garden.
“While concrete is widely used in housing and has enabled the growth of cities, this has come at a considerable environmental cost,” said Banerjee.
“The move to 3D-print concrete threatens to exacerbate this problem. However, we try to make a new example of construction that uses naturally sourced materials. Using such materials will further pave the way for building designs that are specifically adapted to the needs of the local climate.
What’s more, the use of local materials would reduce the need to transport concrete long distances, further reducing the environmental impact of the buildings.
The research team’s plan to replace concrete with the earth beneath our feet depends on their ability to improve the soil’s capability to stand the weight of the whole house, towards which Banerjee said they “are making excellent progress”.
Once they have a clearer idea of the limits of the technology, Banerjee and his team plan to further investigate how it might allow for building on other planets. For instance, they have worked on addressing the problem of building all-weather roads near the arctic area. They hope the technology could one day be used beyond Earth, to create settlements on the moon or even Mars.
1. What’s the latest development in construction?A.Recycling concrete. | B.Reducing the construction cost. |
C.3D-printing buildings from local soil. | D.Changing the construction rules. |
A.solve. | B.simplify. | C.relieve. | D.worsen. |
A.The local climate. | B.The soil’s weight-bearing capability. |
C.The environmental footprint. | D.The cost of transportation. |
A.The outlook for further studies. | B.The explorations of the arctic area. |
C.The limits of the new technology. | D.The barrier to building on other planets. |
【推荐1】We say that technology is a double-edged sword -while it brings convenience, it also brings new problems. The sword of “social media” even has a gender preference in its damage: It cuts deeper into girls than boys.
Earlier studies have shown that spending too much time on social media is bad for teenagers’ mental health. Constantly watching their friends show off “perfect” lives can hurt their own self-esteem (自尊). That’s not to mention the problems caused by online shaming and bullying (霸凌).
Jean Twenge, a professor at San Diego State University in the US, recently discovered an alarming trend: Since 2010, the number of teenage girls who suffer from major depression – showing signs like self-harm and suicide (自杀) - has increased much faster than that of boys. In an article she wrote at The Conversation, Twenge said social media, again, was to blame.
For starters, girls use social media more than boys. Boys tend to spend their screen time on games, where they talk to their teammates through headphones. This counts as real human contact. Girls, however, simply type and browse through posts, which is a much more isolated (孤立的) experience. “They’re not having a real-time conversation with someone,” Mary Fristad, psychologist at The Ohio State University, told NPR.
And when it comes to online shaming, girls are also more vulnerable than boys. “Girls face more pressure about their appearance, which could be exacerbated (加重) by social media,” wrote Twenge.
Shannon McLaughlin, for example, is an 18-year-old from Blackburn College in the US. She shared with the Guardian how social media made her feel depressed. “I was constantly confronted (面对) by women with skinny bodies who were praised for the way they looked. This was only made worse by the diet fixes and skinny culture,” she said. But McLaughlin found a solution. She started volunteering with the National Citizen Service, where she made face-to-face contact with people. “It’s so easy to forget the importance of real connections when we have hundreds of people that we’re trying to impress at our fingertips,” she told the Guardian. And she hopes that others “look up from their phones and focus more on the world around them”.
1. What did Twenge find in her recent study?A.Overuse of social media harms teenagers’ mental health. |
B.Social media does more harm to girls than boys. |
C.Girls suffered more from bullying than boys. |
D.Online shaming and bullying are to blame for teenagers’ depression. |
A.Girls have less real-time interaction with people. |
B.Playing games allows boys to have more fun than girls. |
C.Girls suffer more pressure on social media. |
D.Girls usually desire more contact with others. |
A.adjusting oneself well | B.fighting back bravely |
C.being unconcerned about something | D.being likely to be at risk of something |
A.Ignore social media and stop following a diet. |
B.Connect more with the real world. |
C.Constantly take part in volunteer work. |
D.Make better use of phones for socializing. |
【推荐2】Urban sprawl (无序扩张) means a pattern of poorly-planned development stretching away from an urban center. This trend of outward growth became common in the United States after World War II when people started leaving heavily-populated cities for new suburbs.
The rise of the suburbs led to small communities connected by roads and dependent on cars. This trend generally comes with unfavorable environmental and social impacts, including traffic jams, air pollution, loss of forest and agricultural land and communities that are more segregated (隔离的) by race and class.
As suburban neighborhoods multiplied, public transportation failed to keep up. Instead, transportation in the suburbs centered around road construction for the use of cars rather than connecting neighborhoods with bus and rail systems or providing alternative options like cycling lanes and pedestrian paths.
Not everyone had an equal shot at the American suburban dream. Suburban communities were generally whiter and wealthier, while people of color were often stuck in urban centers.
As more land is taken up by housing, roads, and shopping centers, critical wildlife habitat is destroyed. This change can lead to a decrease in biodiversity. In addition, loss of open space contributes to declining air and water quality.
In the 1950s people became aware of negative impacts of urban sprawl. Over time, citizens and local governments sought to address those concerns. In the 1970s. Portland, Oregon became one of the first cities to apply smart growth strategies. The city concentrated on population growth in the urban center rather than expanding suburbs. Today, it reflects many smart growth principles; diverse housing options, plentiful greenspace, mixed-use developments, preservation of ecologically important areas, and multiple transportation options.
Today, cities around the world are adopting these principles to deal with pollution and climate change, conserve open space, energy and other natural resources, and generally improve the well-being of citizens.
1. What does urban sprawl lead to?A.Economic growth. | B.Rise of population in the suburbs. |
C.Environmental improvements. | D.Better connected neighborhoods. |
A.Buses. | B.Cars. | C.Rail systems. | D.Bicycles. |
A.Supportive. | B.Skeptical. | C.Indifferent. | D.Disapproving. |
A.To explain one of the smart growth principles. |
B.To show the importance of preserving natural resources. |
C.To give an example of how people’s concerns are addressed. |
D.To provide evidence of negative impacts of losing biodiversity. |
【推荐3】You may think you couldn’t live through summer without air conditioning. But in ancient China, hand fans were almost the only way to drive the heat away.
Chinese people started to use hand fans over 2, 000 years ago. The fans came in different shapes and were made from all kinds of materials. Palm leaf fans were cheap and easy to make. Feather fans marked the owner’s high status. Sandalwood fans could send out a sweet smell. Later, hand fans became far more than just something that could cool you down. They developed into works of art, in which Tuanshan-round fans, and Zheshan-folded fans, were the most common. In the shape of a fullmoon, Tuanshan were usually made of silk. They had beautiful embroidery (刺绣) featuring birds and flowers on them. Women, especially those in the royal palace, liked to use them. Poets in ancient China often compared an abandoned (被抛弃的) woman to Tuanshan. A poet in the Qing Dynasty, Nalan Xingde was a typical example. He wrote, “If only life were as beautiful as when we first met, why should the autumn wind bother to pity deserted painted fans?”
Meanwhile, men, especially the literati (文人), used Zheshan. The literati liked them because Zheshan were usually made of paper and they could paint and write poems on them. It was a way for them to show off their skills in literature, painting and calligraphy (书法). Many things were painted on Zheshan, but the most popular choice was usually beautiful scenery.
Today, Chinese people still use these fans, though not many people write or paint on them any more. This summer, why not paint one of your own?
1. Which fans could show a person’s social position?A.Hand fans. | B.Palm leaf fans. | C.Feather fans. | D.Sandalwood fans. |
A.An abandoned woman. | B.A woman with a Tuanshan. |
C.A woman with a Zheshan. | D.A woman in the royal palace. |
A.They were folded fans. | B.They came in different shapes. |
C.They had birds and flowers on them. | D.They gave them chances to show the talent. |
A.A diary. | B.A dictionary. | C.A fairy tale. | D.A magazine. |