VOA标准英语2014--Debilitating Disease Gets Windfall Support through Social Media

 

Debilitating¹ Disease Gets Windfall Support through Social Media

WASHINGTON—

A social media stunt² sweeping³ the United States is drawing attention and money to combat the deadly neurological disease, Amyotrophic Lateral⁴ Sclerosis, or ALS. In the U.S. alone, there are roughly 15 new cases of ALS diagnosed each day and the disease is well-known for claiming the life of famed American baseball player, Lou Gehrig, nearly 80 years ago.

To do the Ice Bucket Challenge, one first challenges others to follow suit and the dump ice water on your head. The stunt raises money to research the debilitating disease, Amytrophic Lateral Sclerosis.

“Right now, we are running -- countrywide with both our chapters and the national organization -- at about 15.6 million dollars,” said Barbara Newhouse, president of the ALS Association. 

With help from this viral video campaign, the association has raised millions in just a few weeks, which means it can fund more research and help more families affected⁵ by the disease.

“My father was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's last November. The disease immediately started ripping through his system at a very fast pace where his body deteriorated⁶ very quickly, and on April 27th, he passed away,” said Matt Lewis, the son of an ALS victim.

A few months later, the ice bucket campaign took off.  His friends challenged him, but Lewis wasn’t sure.

“I remember the last couple weeks thinking... I wasn't quite sure how I would feel if I was nominated.  Three of my friends nominated me.  I just thought this would be a great time to advertise everything,” said Lewis.

So he took the Ice Bucket Challenge, and in the first four hours after he posted, Matt's video had raised more than two thousand dollars.

Newhouse said social media have changed the way non-profits do business.

"What we've seen with the Ice Bucket Challenge... it's probably a game-changer for all of us in the fundraising world,” said Newhouse.

Nikki Usher⁷, an assistant professor at George Washington University, agrees.

“If you want to be a player in the fundraising arena⁸ and to reach people that you haven't been able to reach before, you have to reach people who you're not immediately going to be connected to.  And one of the ways you do that is through social media,” said Usher.

Newhouse said the challenge now is to properly distribute the millions of dollars raised so far. That gives hope to people like Matt Lewis.

“[I’m a] big fan of what everyone's been doing with that.  It's raised a ton of awareness⁹ and a ton of money, and hopefully, that will keep staying strong going forward,” said Lewis.

The videos are everywhere, and they feature celebrities¹⁰ calling out everyone from their friends to President Barack Obama.  While some videos are outright¹¹ failures, for most, it's a fun way to raise awareness about a disease. But for some people it means there's hope for the future, and for a cure. 

1 debilitating   

a.使衰弱的

参考例句：

• The debilitating disease made him too weak to work. 这个令他衰弱的病，使他弱到没有办法工作。
• You may soon leave one debilitating condition or relationship forever. 你即将永远地和这段霉运说拜拜了。

2 stunt   

n.惊人表演，绝技，特技；vt.阻碍...发育，妨碍...生长

参考例句：

• Lack of the right food may stunt growth.缺乏适当的食物会阻碍发育。
• Right up there is where the big stunt is taking place.那边将会有惊人的表演。

3 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

4 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。

5 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

6 deteriorated   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Her health deteriorated rapidly, and she died shortly afterwards. 她的健康状况急剧恶化，不久便去世了。
• His condition steadily deteriorated. 他的病情恶化，日甚一日。

7 usher   

n.带位员，招待员；vt.引导，护送；vi.做招待，担任引座员

参考例句：

• The usher seated us in the front row.引座员让我们在前排就座。
• They were quickly ushered away.他们被迅速领开。

8 arena   

n.竞技场，运动场所；竞争场所，舞台

参考例句：

• She entered the political arena at the age of 25. 她25岁进入政界。
• He had not an adequate arena for the exercise of his talents.他没有充分发挥其才能的场所。

9 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。

10 celebrities   

n.（尤指娱乐界的）名人( celebrity的名词复数 )；名流；名声；名誉

参考例句：

• He only invited A-list celebrities to his parties. 他只邀请头等名流参加他的聚会。
• a TV chat show full of B-list celebrities 由众多二流人物参加的电视访谈节目

11 outright   

adv.坦率地；彻底地；立即；adj.无疑的；彻底的

参考例句：

• If you have a complaint you should tell me outright.如果你有不满意的事，你应该直率地对我说。
• You should persuade her to marry you outright.你应该彻底劝服她嫁给你。