2006年VOA标准英语-UN Officials Say Bird Flu Threat Remains H

By Scott Bobb
Bangkok
10 April 2006
 
United Nations officials say the bird flu virus that has killed more than 100 people and millions of fowl¹ in various parts of the world continues to pose a major threat, despite successes by some countries in combating it. But they say the recent outbreak in Burma is more serious than previously² thought, causing new concerns.

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The United Nations coordinator³ on avian influenza⁴, David Nabarro, says although international efforts to combat bird flu have been largely successful to date, the world community cannot become complacent⁵. 

 

David Nabarro    
  

"Great progress in some places, still a lot to do in others," he said, " but overall, don't let any of us think that the problem has somehow gone away. It's not. It's there. And the current situation we're in of control in some countries is good, but it's fragile."

Nabarro made the remarks in Bangkok during a five-nation trip to Asia, where the virus reappeared more than two years ago. Since then, the disease has killed 109 people in nine nations and has spread to Europe, Africa and the Middle East. It has also led to the culling⁶ of millions of fowl.

Nabarro praised the response by Thailand and Vietnam, two of the countries hit hardest by the bird flu, and he noted⁷ a strengthening commitment by the Chinese government to combat the disease. But he added that greater efforts are needed to fight the virus in nations such as Indonesia and Cambodia, where new outbreaks continue.

Another expert, the regional representative for the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, He Changchui, said Burma, also known as Myanmar, is a new and significant concern, in part because of public ignorance of the disease. He said, although bird flu only was reported there last month, it has spread to 100 districts, mainly in the central and northern parts of the country.

He Changchui   
  
"The issue there (in Burma) is that the awareness⁸ is rather poor. The information is not that comprehensive," he said.

He said that Burma, one of Asia's poorest countries, does not have the personnel or facilities to deal with the outbreak but added that U.N. teams will focus on it in the coming weeks.

The military government in Burma has culled⁹ half a million birds and has requested U.N. assistance. It has also begun a public awareness campaign. But tight government controls on the news media and foreign aid groups has limited the development of systems that could be used to combat the disease.

Officials note that so far bird flu almost exclusively has infected humans who come into close contact with sick birds.

However, they worry that if the mutating virus gains the ability to spread from human to human, it could cause a global pandemic that could kill millions of people.

Nabarro says that the spread of the virus to Africa and Europe increases this possibility.

"Therefore increases the potential for that virus to lead to sporadic¹⁰ infection in humans. It also increases the chance of a very dangerous mutation¹¹ occurring," he said.

The U.N. experts said that unless a human vaccine¹² against bird flu is developed, the best way to avoid a pandemic is through surveillance and prevention. In other words, outbreaks at farms and live poultry¹³ markets must be found and isolated¹⁴ quickly.

1 fowl   

n.家禽，鸡，禽肉

参考例句：

• Fowl is not part of a traditional brunch.禽肉不是传统的早午餐的一部分。
• Since my heart attack,I've eaten more fish and fowl and less red meat.自从我患了心脏病后，我就多吃鱼肉和禽肉，少吃红色肉类。

2 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

3 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？

4 influenza   

n.流行性感冒，流感

参考例句：

• They took steps to prevent the spread of influenza.他们采取措施
• Influenza is an infectious disease.流感是一种传染病。

5 complacent   

adj.自满的；自鸣得意的

参考例句：

• We must not become complacent the moment we have some success.我们决不能一见成绩就自满起来。
• She was complacent about her achievements.她对自己的成绩沾沾自喜。

6 culling   

n.选择，大批物品中剔出劣质货v.挑选，剔除( cull的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The mathematicians turned to culling periodic solutions. 数学家们转而去挑选周期解。 来自辞典例句
• It took us a week to find you, a week of culling out prejudice and hatred. 我们花了一个星期的时间找到你们，把偏见和憎恨剔除出去。 来自演讲部分

7 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

8 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。

9 culled   

v.挑选，剔除( cull的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The herd must be culled. 必须有选择地杀掉部分牧畜。 来自辞典例句
• The facts were culled from various sources. 这些事实是从各方收集到的。 来自辞典例句

10 sporadic   

adj.偶尔发生的 [反]regular；分散的

参考例句：

• The sound of sporadic shooting could still be heard.仍能听见零星的枪声。
• You know this better than I.I received only sporadic news about it.你们比我更清楚，而我听到的只是零星消息。

11 mutation   

n.变化，变异，转变

参考例句：

• People who have this mutation need less sleep than others.有这种突变的人需要的睡眠比其他人少。
• So far the discussion has centered entirely around mutation in the strict sense.到目前为止，严格来讲，讨论完全集中于围绕突变问题上。

12 vaccine   

n.牛痘苗，疫苗；adj.牛痘的，疫苗的

参考例句：

• The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives.脊髓灰质炎疫苗挽救了数以百万计的生命。
• She takes a vaccine against influenza every fall.她每年秋季接种流感疫苗。

13 poultry   

n.家禽，禽肉

参考例句：

• There is not much poultry in the shops. 商店里禽肉不太多。
• What do you feed the poultry on? 你们用什么饲料喂养家禽?

14 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。