Questões de Inglês

  Emerging Infectious Diseases

 

Is an unstoppable global pandemic possible?

 

From the deadly Ebola outbreak in West Africa to a mysterious new illness that killed a Kansas farmer last summer, emerging infectious diseases — illnesses never seen before or that reappear in new places or with new severity — threaten people around the world. About five new infections emerge in humans each year, typically three crossing over from animals. Many new kinds of infections also strike wild and domestic animals. Fifty years ago many medical scientists believed widespread use of antibiotics and vaccines would all but eliminate infectious disease. But factors such as environmental change, population growth, poverty and globalization are spurring new, often deadly, infections. Disease scientists urge policymakers to pay much more attention to animal health and to boost funding for public-health agencies here and abroad, but many conservatives say more money is not the answer. Meanwhile, scientists are gaining new insights into the genetic makeup of disease-causing microbes, giving them hope of discovering more ways to prevent or fight infections.

Disponível em: http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/document.php?id=cqresrre 2015021300 Acessado em 20 de outubro de 2015.

Emerging infectious diseases are

  Prisoners and Mental Illness

 

Are too many with psychiatric problems behind bars?

 

Thousands of people with schizophrenia, severe depression, delusional disorders or other mental problems are locked up, often in solitary confinement. While some committed violent crimes and remain a threat to themselves or other inmates and prison staff, many are incarcerated for minor offenses, simply because there is no place to send them for treatment. The number of mentally ill inmates has mushroomed in recent years as states have closed their psychiatric hospitals in favor of outpatient community mental health centers that typically are underfunded and overcrowded. In an attempt to reduce the influx of mentally ill inmates, some 300 specialized mental health courts have diverted them into court-monitored treatment instead of jail. Yet, many participants re-offend, and some experts say psychiatric treatment alone won't prevent criminal behavior. Meanwhile, courts in more than a half-dozen states have declared solitary confinement unconstitutional for those with mental illness. However, some corrections officials say solitary is necessary to separate dangerous prisoners.

Disponível em: http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/document.php?id=cqresrre 2015031300 Acessado em 20 de outubro de 2015.

The amount of prisoners with mental disorders has recently

Read the text below and answer the following question based on it.

 

World Blood Donor Day: Voluntary Blood Donations Save Lives
World Blood Donor Day highlights the critical need for voluntary donations of blood and blood products around the world.
Voluntary donations of blood donations are critical to the survival of hospital patients worldwide, especially in areas where there are few resources to provide payment for blood donors. On World Blood Donor Day, events are held around the world to raise awareness about the need for safe blood and blood products, as well as thank blood donors who volunteer their own life-saving gift of blood.
The observance was established in 2003, and has since been held annually on June 14 to honor the birth of Karl Landsteiner, who won the Nobel Prize for establishing the ABO blood group system.
The World Health Organization (WHO)'s goal is for all countries in the world to obtain all their blood supplies from 100% voluntary blood donations by 2020. So far, just 62 countries have met or come close to that goal, with 40 countries dependent upon family and/or paid blood donations. Of the 92 million blood donations collected every year, about half are collected in high-income countries, home to 15% of the world’s population.
Disponivel: http://www.goodspeaks.org/event/world-blood-donorday- voluntary-blood-donations-save-lives Acessado em 20 de outubro de 2015.

The World Health Organization

Read the text below and answer the following question based on it.

 

Iris Scanner Identifies a Person 40 Feet Away

Police traffic stops are in the news again, tragically, sparking a new round of discussion on whether and how to outfit police with cameras and other technology.
For several years now, researchers at Carnegie Mellon University’s CyLab Biometrics Center have been testing an iris recognition system that can be used to identify subjects at a range of up to 40 feet.
Like similar biometric technologies — fingerprint or facial recognition systems — the Carnegie Mellon project uses mathematical pattern-recognition techniques. The technology captures images from a live photographic or video feed and runs them through a database to find a potential match.
Like fingerprints, every iris is unique — thanks to enormously complex patterns that remain the same throughout a person’s lifetime. High-resolution cameras can capture images of the iris from a distance using light in the near-infrared wavelength band.
In the realm of law enforcement, iris recognition could be used to identify suspects at long range in various lighting conditions. The system can even be used to capture images through reflections in a mirror.
Disponível em: <http://news.discovery.com/tech/gear-andgadgets/ iris-scanner-identifies-a-person-40-feet-away-150410.htm> Acessado em 20 de outubro de 2015.

Iris Recognition Technology

Read the text below and answer the following question based on it.

 

Iris Scanner Identifies a Person 40 Feet Away

Police traffic stops are in the news again, tragically, sparking a new round of discussion on whether and how to outfit police with cameras and other technology.
For several years now, researchers at Carnegie Mellon University’s CyLab Biometrics Center have been testing an iris recognition system that can be used to identify subjects at a range of up to 40 feet.
Like similar biometric technologies — fingerprint or facial recognition systems — the Carnegie Mellon project uses mathematical pattern-recognition techniques. The technology captures images from a live photographic or video feed and runs them through a database to find a potential match.
Like fingerprints, every iris is unique — thanks to enormously complex patterns that remain the same throughout a person’s lifetime. High-resolution cameras can capture images of the iris from a distance using light in the near-infrared wavelength band.
In the realm of law enforcement, iris recognition could be used to identify suspects at long range in various lighting conditions. The system can even be used to capture images through reflections in a mirror.
Disponível em: <http://news.discovery.com/tech/gear-andgadgets/ iris-scanner-identifies-a-person-40-feet-away-150410.htm> Acessado em 20 de outubro de 2015.

Regarding Iris Scanning technology, it is true to say that

1) it only works up to a distance of 40 centimeters.
2) it can identify a person approximately 10 meters away.
3) the same technology in fingerprint recognition is used.
4) it has always despised other similar biometric technologies.
5) live image feed is used to identify suspects in traffic.

The correct alternatives are:

A couple of weeks ago I was asked what I thought the future of technology in education was. It is a really interesting question and one that I am required to think about all the time. By its very nature, technology changes at a fast pace and making it accessible to pupils, teachers and other stakeholders is an ongoing challenge. So what is the future? Is it the iPad? No, I don't think it is. For me, the future is not about one specific device. Don't get me wrong, I love the iPad. In fact, I have just finished a trial to see if using them really does support teaching and learning – and they have proved effective. I've written about the trial in more detail on my blog. iPads and other mobile technology are the 'now'. Although, they will play a part in the future, four years ago the iPad didn't even exist. We don't know what will be the current technology in another four. Perhaps it will be wearable devices such as Google Glass, although I suspect that tablets will still be used in education. The future is about access, anywhere learning and collaboration, both locally and globally. Teaching and learning is going to be social. Schools of the future could have a traditional cohort of students, as well as online only students who live across the country or even the world. Things are already starting to move this way with the emergence of massive open online courses (MOOCs). For me the future of technology in education is the cloud. Technology can often be a barrier to teaching and learning. I think the cloud will go a long way to removing this barrier. Why? By removing the number of things that can go wrong. Schools will only need one major thing to be prepared for the future. They will not need software installed, servers or local file storage. Schools will need a fast robust internet connection. Infrastructure is paramount to the future of technology in education. We don't know what the new 'in' device will be in the future. What we do know is that it will need the cloud. Schools and other educational institutions will need to futureproof their infrastructure the best they can.
(Source: The Guardian, Author: Matt Britland, 2013)

What´s the main topic of the text?