其他
冰桶挑战捐款帮助发现致病基因
美国渐冻症协会表示，2014年风行的冰桶挑战募集了大量资金，已经帮助科学研究发现了与渐冻症相关的重要基因。渐冻症是渐进性神经退行性疾病，学名为肌萎缩侧索硬化症（ALS）。科学家已经发现了一种导致该病症的新基因NEK1。NEK1基因的发现意味着科学家们从此可以开发治疗该病症的基因疗法。
Social media was awash （充斥的） with videos of people pouring cold water over their heads to raise money for ALS in the summer of 2014. More than 17 million people uploaded videos to Facebook, including many celebrities （名人）who rose to the challenge, which were then watched by 440 million people worldwide. It was criticised as a stunt （噱头）, but has funded six research projects.
2014年夏天，人们往头上浇冰水为渐冻症募捐的视频席卷了社交媒体。超过1700万人在脸书上传了视频，其中包括许多接受了挑战的名人。全世界有4.4亿人观看了相关视频。该活动曾被批为噱头，但所获捐款资助了六个研究项目。
- attacks nerves （[解剖] 神经） that control movement so muscles refuse to work (sensory nerves are not usually affected)攻击运动神经，导致肌肉无法工作（感觉神经通常不受影响）
- can leave people locked in a failing body, unable to move, talk and eventually, breathe患者受困于衰弱的躯体，不能移动，不能讲话，最终无法呼吸
- affects people from all communities所有人群都可能患病
- scientist Stephen Hawking is best-known person with the disease科学家史蒂芬•霍金是最有名的渐冻症患者
- kills around a third of people within a year of diagnosis and more than half within two years确诊后一年，约有三分之一死亡病例，两年内死亡数过半
- there is no cure 无法治愈
therapy ['θɛrəpi]n. 治疗，疗法
awash [ə'wɑʃ]adj. 被浪冲打的；与水面齐平的；充斥的
celebrity [sə'lɛbrəti]n. 名人；名声
stunt [stʌnt]n. 噱头，手腕；绝技
spinal ['spaɪnl]adj. 脊髓的；脊柱的
nerve [nɝv]n. 神经；勇气；[植] 叶脉