非洲沙尘暴正威胁人类生存环境

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51 非洲沙尘暴正威胁人类生存环境

DATE=8-3-01
TITLE=ENVIRONMENT REPORT - African Dust Storms
BYLINE=Cynthia Kirk

（Start at 59" ）This is the VOA Special English ENVIRONMENT REPORT.
Researchers in the United States say (1)dust clouds from dry African (2)deserts may be a threat to the environment and human health. They say the dust may (3)contain many small (4)organisms¹ that could be dangerous to some people.
Each year, huge dust storms form in the Sahara and the Sahel deserts of northern Africa.  Winds carry the dust across the Atlantic Ocean. The movement of dust across the Atlantic Ocean has been increasing in recent years because of longer periods without rain in Africa. 
From February to April, the dust settles in South America. From June to October, the winds change and (5)transport the dust to North America, Central America and the Caribbean. The dust clouds travel several thousand meters above sea level.  It takes five to seven days for the dust to cross the Atlantic Ocean.
Researchers have long known that the dust clouds could travel long distances. But they thought few microorganisms could (6)survive the trip because of damaging (7)ultraviolet (8)radiation from the sun.  Researchers now believe that the dust clouds block enough of the light to protect viruses, (9)bacteria and (10)fungi² in the dust. 
Researchers say these microorganisms may be a health risk to some people. About half of the bacteria and fungi that survive the trip from Africa are known to cause disease³ in people, animals or plants.
More than half of the dust that reaches the United States settles in the state of Florida. For many years, it has caused the skies there to turn red. Now researchers say there may be a link between the dust storms and increased health risks in Florida. They believe the dust causes higher rates of (11)asthma, (12)allergies and other breathing problems in people there. The dust also has been linked to a large increase in (13)lung problems in at least one Caribbean nation. 
Last year, American scientists published a study showing that the African dust is causing (14)coral (15)reef damage in the Caribbean. They identified organisms in the dust particles⁴ that cause coral diseases⁵.
Scientists at the United States Geological⁶ Survey reported the latest findings⁷. They used satellites from NASA, the United States space agency⁸, to carry out their work.
This VOA Special English ENVIRONMENT REPORT was written by Cynthia Kirk.

(1)  dust [ dQst ]n.灰尘, 尘土, 尘埃vt.掸掉...上的灰尘, 撒糖于糕上
(2)  desert [ di5zE:t ]n.沙漠, 应得的赏罚, 功过adj.沙漠的, 不毛的, 荒凉的vt.放弃, 遗弃, 逃跑vi.逃掉, 逃亡, 开小差
(3) contain [ kEn5tein ]vt.包含, 容纳, 容忍vi.自制v.[军]牵制(敌军)v.[数]可被...除尽
(4) organism [ 5C:^EnizEm ]n.生物体, 有机体
(5) transport [ trAns5pC:t ]n.传送器, 运输, 运输机, 激动, 流放犯, 狂喜vt.传送, 运输, 流放, 放逐
(6) survive [ sE5vaiv ]v.幸免于, 幸存, 生还
(7) ultraviolet [ 5QltrE5vaiElit ]adj.紫外线的, 紫外的n.紫外线辐射
(8) radiation [ 7reidi5eiFEn ]n.发散, 发光, 发热, 辐射, 放射, 放射线, 放射物
(9) bacteria [ bAk5tiEriE ]n.细菌
(10) fungi [‘fQn^ai] n. 真菌类(包括霉菌,食用伞菌,酵母菌等),似真菌的,由真菌引起的
(11) asthma [ 5AsmE ]n.[医]哮喘
(12) allergy [ 5AlEdVi ]n.[医]敏感症, <口>反感
(13) lung [ lQN ]n.肺, 呼吸器, 肺脏
(14) coral [ 5kCrEl ]n.珊瑚, 珊瑚虫
(15) reef [ ri:f ]n.暗礁, 收帆v.收(帆)

1 organisms   

n.有机物( organism的名词复数 )；有机体；生物；有机体系

参考例句：

• The organisms can be divided into discrete categories. 有机体可分为许多互不相联的种类。
• The cell is the unit of which all living organisms are composed. 细胞是构成一切生物的单位。

2 fungi   

n.真菌，霉菌

参考例句：

• Students practice to apply the study of genetics to multicellular plants and fungi.学生们练习把基因学应用到多细胞植物和真菌中。
• The lawn was covered with fungi.草地上到处都是蘑菇。

3 disease   

n.疾病，弊端

参考例句：

• The doctors are trying to stamp out the disease.医生正在尽力消灭这种疾病。
• He fought against the disease for a long time.他同疾病做了长时间的斗争。

4 particles   

微粒( particle的名词复数 )； 颗粒； 极少量； 小品词

参考例句：

• These small particles agglomerate together to form larger clusters. 这些颗粒聚结形成较大的团。
• The nucleus of an atom consists of neutrons, protons and other particles. 原子核由中子、质子和其他粒子构成。

5 diseases   

n.疾病( disease的名词复数 )；弊端；恶疾；痼疾

参考例句：

• Smoking is a causative factor in several major diseases. 抽烟是引起几种严重疾病的病因。
• The illness frequently coexists with other chronic diseases. 这种病往往与其他慢性病同时存在。

6 geological   

adj.地质（学）的

参考例句：

• aeons of geological history 数以亿万年计的地质史
• The workers skirted the edge of the cliff on a geological survey. 工人们沿着崖壁作了一次地质勘察。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 findings   

n.发现物( finding的名词复数 )；调查（或研究）的结果；（陪审团的）裁决

参考例句：

• It behoves us to study these findings carefully. 我们理应认真研究这些发现。
• Their findings have been widely disseminated . 他们的研究成果已经广为传播。

8 agency   

n.经办；代理；代理处

参考例句：

• This disease is spread through the agency of insects.这种疾病是通过昆虫媒介传播的。
• He spoke in the person of Xinhua News Agency.他代表新华社讲话。