VOA慢速英语2015 误发活性炭疽菌事件持续增加

AS IT IS 2015-06-05 Anthrax Shipments Incident Continues to Grow 误发活性炭疽菌事件持续增加

The United States military now says it might have sent live anthrax to 52 laboratories in the United States and three other countries. On Wednesday, a Pentagon official also said that number could rise.

Deputy Defense¹ Secretary Bob Work said a wide investigation² is continuing. The U.S. National Centers for Disease Control and the Pentagon are carrying out the investigation.

Two of the labs, one in Canada and one in Maryland, have confirmed the presence of live spores³ in the anthrax they received. The shipments went to 18 U.S. states and to Washington, D.C. South Korea and Australia also received shipments, along with Canada.

The U.S. military provides anthrax samples to labs for research purposes. But, normally a process called irradiation kills the bacterial⁵ product. Investigators⁶ are trying to learn what went wrong in the military’s irradiation of some of the samples.

The Department of Defense first announced the problem shipments a week ago. At that time officials thought just nine labs were involved.

A serious disease

Anthrax is a bacterial disease that can cause several kinds of sickness depending on the method of infection. For example, breathing anthrax spores can cause severe lung problems. The disease can be deadly, but treatments can prevent infection and cure an infected person.

Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work told reporters that “as of this point we see absolutely no danger to the broader American public.”

Officials said the only people they consider at possible risk are those who packaged the shipments and those who received them. But the officials say they consider even that possible risk extremely low.

The bacteria were irradiated at the Dugway army testing center in the western state of Utah. But later testing showed the process failed, and at least some anthrax spores remained alive.

Mr. Work said so far there is no evidence that suggests sending live anthrax spores was a deliberate act.

Anthrax as biological warfare⁷

Some see anthrax as a desirable weapon of biological warfare because the bacteria create their own spores. The spores serve as strong, protective containers for the bacteria. Also, the anthrax vaccine⁸ is not widely available.

Another major anthrax incident happened in 2001, just a week after the September 11 terrorist attacks in America. Members of the U.S. Congress and several other organizations received letters containing the bacteria. Five people died of the disease. Seventeen others were infected but survived.

A federal investigation blamed a high-level bioscientist who worked for the U.S. military. Bruce Ivins died of an apparent suicide before he was charged with any crime.

No confirmations⁹ of anthrax infections connected to the recent problem shipments have been confirmed. However, several people involved are being treated with preventative medicines. The Pentagon has suspended all transport of the bacteria.

Last year, the Centers for Disease Control failed to kill an anthrax supply. The live bacteria were moved to an area where people were working without protective equipment. No one was infected in that incident.

Several U.S. lawmakers have expressed concern about the anthrax shipments. North Korea has sharply criticized the United States military for the incident.

Words in This Story

spore⁴ – n. a cell made by some plants that is like a seed and can produce a new plant

sample – n. a small amount of something that gives you information about the thing it was taken from

package – v. to put something in a container in order to sell it or send it somewhere

deliberate – adj. done or said in a way that is planned or intended; done or said on purpose

1 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

2 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

3 spores   

n.（细菌、苔藓、蕨类植物）孢子( spore的名词复数 )v.（细菌、苔藓、蕨类植物）孢子( spore的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Ferns, mosses and fungi spread by means of spores. 蕨类植物、苔藓和真菌通过孢子传播蔓生。
• Spores form a lipid membrane during the process of reproducing. 孢于在生殖过程中形成类脂膜。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 预防生物武器

4 spore   

n.(无花植物借以繁殖的)孢子，芽胞

参考例句：

• A spore can quickly spread and form a mould.一个孢子能迅速蔓延并形成霉。
• The cation penetrates the spore.这种阳离子能透入孢子。

5 bacterial   

a.细菌的

参考例句：

• Bacterial reproduction is accelerated in weightless space. 在失重的空间，细菌繁殖加快了。
• Brain lesions can be caused by bacterial infections. 大脑损伤可能由细菌感染引起。

6 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 warfare   

n.战争(状态)；斗争；冲突

参考例句：

• He addressed the audience on the subject of atomic warfare.他向听众演讲有关原子战争的问题。
• Their struggle consists mainly in peasant guerrilla warfare.他们的斗争主要是农民游击战。

8 vaccine   

n.牛痘苗，疫苗；adj.牛痘的，疫苗的

参考例句：

• The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives.脊髓灰质炎疫苗挽救了数以百万计的生命。
• She takes a vaccine against influenza every fall.她每年秋季接种流感疫苗。

9 confirmations   

证实( confirmation的名词复数 )； 证据； 确认； （基督教中的）坚信礼

参考例句：

• Never use transitory dialogs as error messages or confirmations. 绝不要用临时对话框作为错误信息框或确认信息框。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Dismissing confirmations thus becomes as routine as issuing them. 因此关闭确认对话框和发起确认对话框一样成为例行公事。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓