By Oliver Wen & Alan Lin
Influenza/ˎɪnflu′enzə / [uncountable]
►an infectious disease that is like a very bad cold
►= flu
►a common illness that makes you feel very tired and weak, gives you a sore throat, and makes you cough and have to clear your nose a lot
--Steven's still in bed with flu.
--She's got the flu.
--I couldn't go because I had flu.
--Flu shots are recommended for people 55 and older.
Flu Types
˙There are three basic types of flu viruses: A, B, and C.
˙Influenza A is divided into subtypes based upon two proteins found on the virus itself: hemagglutinin [ˌhiməˈglutənən] (H, 紅血球凝集素) and the neuraminidase [ˌnjurəˈmɪnəˌdes ] (N, 神經胺酸水解酶). The flu pandemic of 1918 was a type A flu.
˙A-type influenza affects both animals and humans.
˙B-types affect only humans.
˙C-types result in mild respiratory(呼吸的) illnesses and are not believed to cause flu outbreaks.
˙A and B cause the majority of the flu seen today, although there is a C type, which is much less severe.
Subtypes of flu A viruses
˙H1N1 (Swine flu)
˙H5N1 (Bird flu)
New H1N1 Flu
˙It has two genes from flu viruses that normally circulate in pigs in Europe and Asia and avian(鳥類的) genes and human genes.
Epidemic /ˌɛpɪˈdɛmɪk / [countable]
►a large number of cases of a disease that happen at the same time
--50 to 100 million people died during the flu epidemic of 1918.
--An epidemic of hepatitis (肝炎)is terrible.
Epidemic /ˌɛpɪˈdɛmɪk / [countable]
►a sudden increase in the number of times that something bad happens
--The recent epidemic of car thefts has been blamed on bored teenagers.
Epidemic /ˌɛpɪˈdɛmɪk / adjective [only before noun]
►of disease or anything resembling a disease
--The epidemic disease could be wiped out.
►attacking or affecting many individuals in a community or a population at the same time
--Epidemic Influenza A H1N1 Spreads in 20 Countries.
--Violent crime is reaching epidemic proportions in some cities.
--Buying goods on the installment plan has become epidemic in recent years.
►= epidemical
Epidemical/ɛpəˈdɛmɪkl/ adjective
--The swine flu is epidemical, and its symptom is similar to influenza.
Epidemiology/ˈɛpɪˌdimɪˈɑlədʒɪ/[uncountable]
►the study of the way diseases spread, and how to control them
--Epidemiology is the compulsory credit of medical students.
Epidemiologist/ˌɛpɪˌdimɪˈɑlədʒɪst/[countable]
--The epidemiologist who is the representative of Taiwan suffered a protest abruptly.
Epidemiological/ˈɛpɪˌdimɪrˈlɑdʒɪkl/ adjective
--Recently, the HINI flu has become an outbreak in Japan, however, the domestic epidemiological experts were resentful about the quarantine and efforts of Japan.
