英语听力文摘 English Digest 475、打针一定会痛吗？

Microneedles

微针疗法

Female: From fluvaccines to tetanus boosters, injections are a must in modern medicine. But do they always have to make you say Ouch?

Male: Eh,no?

F: No,indeed.If new microneedle technology is successful, we may soon have needles that inject medicine without your even knowing it. How does this work, you ask?

M: How does it work?

F: You feel things because of the nerves that are embedded in your skin. However, the entire surface of your skin is not covered. From a microscopic viewpoint, there is plenty of space between nerves where a super-tiny needle wouldn’t be felt.

M: No way!

F: Way! Researcher Mark Prausnitz and his coworkers at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta have already built micro-injection devices. Imagine a platform the size of your thumbnail, made

of silicon¹, metal or glass. The surface is covered with a thousand needles, each no bigger than a period at the end of a typewritten sentence.

       When this chip is placed on your skin its like rolling in a briar patch–you are pierced again and again. But so small are the briars, you feel nothing. Because they cause no discomfort²,

microneedles may soon allow doctors to administer controlled amounts of medication over long periods of time. That would be a big step toward the precision medicine of tomorrow–and away from the

big Ouch of yesterday.

男：从流感疫苗到破伤风针，注射（的方式）在现代医学中是不可或缺的。但是它们是否就一定会让你尖叫呢？

女：嗯,不会吗？

男：真的不会！如果新的显微针技术成功了的话，我们将很快享受甚至你都不能意识到的药物注射。你快问（我）它是如何办到的？

女：它是如何办到的？

男：你有感觉是因为你皮肤里镶嵌的有神经。然而，它却没有完全覆盖你的皮肤。在显微镜下可以看到，神经之间有很多空间，而在这里人们便感受不到微型针。

女：不可能！

男：可能！亚特兰大乔治亚理工学院的研究人员Mark Prausnitz和他的同伴们已经研制出了微型注射器具。试想它就如拇指指甲盖大小，材料是硅、金属或是玻璃。表面被一千个微型针所覆盖，每一个都还没一个句子中的句号那么大。

       当这个芯片被植入到你的皮肤就仿佛是卷入到了荆棘区一样，它会一次又一次的刺你。但它是如此的小，以至于你什么都感觉不到。因为它们不会带来不适感。微型针很快就能让医生在很长时间内掌管在量上有控制的药物治疗。这对于告别以前的疼痛时代、对于将来药物治疗的精准性来说都是迈出了一大步。

 

1 silicon   

n.硅(旧名矽)

参考例句：

• This company pioneered the use of silicon chip.这家公司开创了使用硅片的方法。
• A chip is a piece of silicon about the size of a postage stamp.芯片就是一枚邮票大小的硅片。

2 discomfort   

n.不舒服，不安，难过，困难，不方便

参考例句：

• One has to bear a little discomfort while travelling.旅行中总要忍受一点不便。
• She turned red with discomfort when the teacher spoke.老师讲话时她不好意思地红着脸。