新奇事件簿 冰桶挑战有利于慈善事业

You have probably seen videos on social media of your family and friends pouring a bucket of ice-cold water on their heads for charity. They have taken part in the Ice Bucket Challenge, the latest viral campaign to emerge on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and other networking sites. The challenge involves dumping icy water on top of your head or donating $100 to various ALS charities. Amyotrophic lateral¹ sclerosis (ALS) - also known as motor neurone disease (MND) – destroys muscle, making it difficult to speak, swallow and breathe. Ice Bucket Challenge participants post a video online and invite friends to follow suit. More than 1.1 million donors² in the USA have donated over $53 million since July the 29th.

你或许在大众媒体的视频中看到过自己的家人和朋友将一桶冰冷的水倒在自己的头上。他们是在参加冰桶挑战，而且这一活动最近在Facebook, YouTube, Twitter等其他社交网站上疯狂传播。这一挑战包括在自己头部倾倒冰冷的水，或者向多家ALS 慈善机构捐款100美元。肌萎缩性脊髓侧索硬化症（ALS），也称作运动神经元疾病（MND），这一疾病将会毁坏肌肉，致使病患难以讲话，吞咽困难，甚至无法呼吸。冰桶挑战的参与者会在线发布视频，并邀请朋友参加。自7月29日以来，美国多达110万的捐款人，已经捐献了5300万美元。

The viral campaign is giving ALS and MND charities valuable global exposure to raise awareness³ of the disease and raise funds. It exploits people's willingness and desire to post selfies or videos of themselves online, while feeling good about helping⁴ a charity. Communication and Media Studies professor Mark Glantz said: "You get the message directly from friends and acquaintances. It kind of appeals to the same side of people that wants to post a selfie." The challenge has even reached the President of the USA. Barack Obama decided⁵ against the dousing⁶ but said he would donate instead. Most people with ALS die from respiratory failure within three to five years from the onset⁷ of symptoms.

这一疯狂的活动为ALS和MND的慈善机构做了有价值的全球性宣传，并且提高了人们对这一疾病的关注度，募捐了更多基金。这一活动利用人们的意愿和希望来在线发布自己的自拍照或视频，而且人们还会因为能够帮助慈善机构而感觉良好。通讯和传媒研究教授马可表示，人们可以从朋友和熟人那里直接获得信息。这是吸引具有相同立场的人发布自拍照的一种方式。美国总统奥巴马拒绝了这一挑战。但是奥巴马表示他会捐款。大多数患有ALS疾病的人，在症状出现3到5年之后，会死于呼吸衰竭。

1 lateral   

adj.侧面的，旁边的

参考例句：

• An airfoil that controls lateral motion.能够控制横向飞行的机翼。
• Mr.Dawson walked into the court from a lateral door.道森先生从一个侧面的门走进法庭。

2 donors   

n.捐赠者( donor的名词复数 )；献血者；捐血者；器官捐献者

参考例句：

• Please email us to be removed from our active list of blood donors. 假如你想把自己的名字从献血联系人名单中删去，请给我们发电子邮件。
• About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

4 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

5 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

6 dousing   

v.浇水在…上( douse的现在分词 )；熄灯[火]

参考例句：

• The other spider took a second dousing before it emerged, still alive. 另外一个蜘蛛在冲刷第二遍时才被发现，是个活蜘蛛。 来自互联网
• At this point, the specimen can be shattered by dousing it with sterilized warm saline. 此时，可以用浸入温暖的消毒盐水的方法粉碎标本。 来自互联网

7 onset   

n.进攻，袭击，开始，突然开始

参考例句：

• The drug must be taken from the onset of the infection.这种药必须在感染的最初期就开始服用。
• Our troops withstood the onset of the enemy.我们的部队抵挡住了敌人的进攻。