Unlocking Word Meanings
Read the following words/expressions found in today’s article.
1. circulate (v.) – to distribute or transfer from one place to another
Read the following words/expressions found in today’s article.
1. circulate (v.) – to distribute or transfer from one place to another
Example: Every employee received the
announcement after it circulated in the office.
2. mutate (v.) – to change from
the original form
Example: Body cells that have mutated
change their form.
3. trample (v.) – to disregard or push aside something as if it
is not important
Example: Being careful about what
you say prevents you from trampling on someone’s feelings.
4. pandemic (n.) – a disease that quickly
spreads to a large population
Example: Medical researchers produced
large quantities of drugs to stop the pandemic.
5. context (n.) – the overall
situation that gives meaning to specific details
Example: Some words can be
misunderstood without their context.
Article
Read the text below.
The release of a new research on the
H5N1 virus has been delayed due to fears that terrorists will use the information
to make a biological weapon. As scientists argue against the delay, the World
Health Organization (WHO) is studying how the information can still be properly
circulated.
The research, which two leading science
journals hope to publish, describes how the H5N1 or bird flu virus can mutate
into a form that easily spreads among humans.
But governments are worried that the
research will fall into the hands of terrorists, who may create and use such
a virus as a weapon. Last November, the US National Security Advisory Board
for Biotechnology (NSABB) requested the journals to edit out "sensitive"
parts of the report before publication.
Some scientists, however, disagree with
NSABB's request, believing that it tramples on academic freedom.
Scientists say that in order to stop the H5N1 pandemic, the way the virus
mutates must be understood by as many experts and researchers as possible. The
virus has so far killed 60% of the people infected by it, and with the research’s
information, scientists may be able to develop a vaccine.
In addition, removing parts of the report
may be too late, as scientists have already talked about their complete research
in lectures and conferences.
To resolve the issue, 22 scientists and
journal representatives met at the WHO office in Geneva, Switzerland. They
concluded that the report would lose its context
and become useless without some of its parts.
However, they will still have to study
what details are already known to the public, before they can decide how and
to whom the full information will be shared.
Experts will be having more discussions
in the coming months, and until then, science journals will be putting the publication
of the research on hold.
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Viewpoint Discussion
Enjoy a discussion with your tutor.
Discussion A
●
Do you think the government should control information that gets
to the public? Please explain.
●
What could be the advantages of government control on
information?
Discussion B
●
Why do you think biological weapons are threatening?
●
What can governments do to prevent them from spreading?