1 A subway system has billions of inhabitants: the bacteria of

Swiss cheese and kimchi, bubonic plague and drug-proof bugs and human
skin. Now, for the first time, scientists have started to catalogue and map the
bacteria in a city’s subway – and they have found many interesting results.
2 Dr. Christopher Mason, a geneticist at Weill Cornell Medical College, led a team
that, for 18 months,  tested the New York City subway system for the microscopic
life forms that cover its turnstiles, seats, ticket booths and stations. His team found
meningitis at Times Square, a trace of anthrax on the handhold of a train carriage
and bacteria that cause bubonic plague on a rubbish bin and ticket machine at
stations in
uptown Manhattan.
3 The team has strongly downplayed the findings of plague and anthrax. They say
that there is only an extremely small trace of the latter, that rats likely carried the
former and that no one has fallen ill with plague in or around New York for years.
4 “The results do not suggest that plague or anthrax is prevalent,” the study says.
“Nor do they suggest that New York residents are at risk.”
5 In fact, most of the bacteria identified by the team are either harmless to
humans or beneficial in the
city’s thriving world of microorganisms.
6 Some of the results were expected and “should be a gentle reminder for people
to wash their hands”, Mason said. He also said that they found many bacteria of
the same sort as those “that are beneficial and helpful, like the one used
for making cheese.”
7 Bacteria appeared to reflect the eating habits of various neighborhoods. All
around the subway, bacteria associated with cheeses – brie, cheddar, parmesan
and the mozzarella found on New York pizza –  appeared. The distinctive
bacteria of Swiss cheese were more limited to midtown Manhattan and the
financial district, and the bacteria used to ferment cabbage for kimchi
and sauerkraut showed up in the financial district and Bay Ridge.
8 Bacteria associated with illness and infections were extremely common. Species
that cause diarrhoea and nausea, as well as E.coli, and the bacteria that can cause
skin infections and urinary-tract infections were common all over the city. The
species that produces tetanus appeared in Soho and bacteria that cause
dysentery appeared at a station in the Bronx and another in Harlem.
9 Mason and his team collected more than 1,000 samples at all of New York’s 466
open subway stations. They put the organic materials through a DNA sequencer
and, then, through a supercomputer. They identified 15,152 distinct species,
nearly half of which were bacteria.
10 The good news, the researchers said, is that these “potentially infectious
bacteria” are not spreading sickness or disease throughout New York. They seem
to be “normal co-habitants of a city”.
11 In short, the researchers conclude, the subway and city are about as safe as
everyone thought.
12 Mason said people should not be concerned about getting urinary-tract
infections from subway seats. “You should wash your hands,” he said, “and
probably get some sleep, eat salads and go to the gym, and that’s about the same
today as it was yesterday.”
13 “In fact,” he added, “I’ve become much more confident riding the subway.”
14 Many findings made sense: stations like Grand Central and Times Square,
where there are more people, had more bacteria and more diversity among them.
The Bronx, with its diverse neighbourhoods and stations, had the greatest diversity
of bacteria; Staten Island, with just three stops, had the lowest.
15 The researchers found marine bacteria at South Ferry, a station that flooded
during Hurricane Sandy – but they were surprised to note the species included
some normally associated with Antarctica and fish.
16 The next steps, Mason said, are studies of other cities, which have begun in
Paris, São Paolo and
Shanghai, and continued studies of New York, for instance to see how the results
change with the seasons. He said he hoped the research would provide “a
baseline” of research for health officials and geneticists, and could help
health officials to prevent and track diseases and pathogens

3º used after a negative statement when adding another negative statement

(one word, paragraph 4)  

4º in danger (two words, paragraph 4) 

5º used for introducing a summary of something that you have just said (two
words, paragraph 11)  

for example (two words, paragraph 16) 

What type of institute carried out the study?

2.

How long did the study run for?:

How long did the study run for?

3.

How many subway stations were tested in the study?:

How many subway stations were tested in the study?

4.

How many species of organic material were found?:

How many species of organic material were found?

5.

What proportion of these were bacteria?:

What proportion of these were bacteria?

6.

Why should we not be worried?:

Why should we not be worried?

7.

What should the study results remind us to do?:

What should the study results remind us to do?

8.

What does Dr. Mason want to do next?:

What does Dr. Mason want to do next?

9.

How could the study results help health officials?:

How could the study results help health officials?

Column B

a.It might help health officials to prevent and track infectious diseases and pathogens.

b.carry out similar studies in other cities around the world and continue the study in New York

c.nearly half

d.to wash our hands

e.The results show that the subways are about as safe as had been expected. Only small traces of
the dangerous pathogens were found and no one has fallen ill with the plague in or around New
York in years. Most of the bacteria identified by the team are either harmless to humans or
beneficial.

f.466

g.15,152

h.a medical college

i.18 months
Column A

1.

a disease that spreads quickly, causing a high fever, lumps on parts of your body and, in the past,
usually death ________________________ (paragraph 1):

a disease that spreads quickly, causing a high fever, lumps on parts of your body and, in the past,
usually death ________________________ (paragraph 1)

2.

infectious, but usually minor, illnesses ________________________ (paragraph 1):

infectious, but usually minor, illnesses ________________________ (paragraph 1)

3.

to make a list of all the things in a collection ________________________ (paragraph 1):

to make a list of all the things in a collection ________________________ (paragraph 1)

4.

to make a plan that shows the position of things in an area ________________________

(paragraph 1):

to make a plan that shows the position of things in an area ________________________

(paragraph 1)

5.

a very small amount of a substance, especially when it is too small to see clearly or measure
accurately ________________________ (paragraph 2):

a very small amount of a substance, especially when it is too small to see clearly or measure
accurately ________________________ (paragraph 2)

6.

deliberately made a situation seem less serious or important than it is or might be

________________________ (paragraph 3):

h
deliberately made a situation seem less serious or important than it is or might be
________________________ (paragraph 3)

7.

very common in a particular place ________________________ (paragraph 4):

very common in a particular place ________________________ (paragraph 4)

8.

growing; developing; very successful ________________________ (paragraph 5):

growing; developing; very successful ________________________ (paragraph 5)

9.

easy to recognize because of being different from other people or things of the same type
________________________ (paragraph 7):

easy to recognize because of being different from other people or things of the same type
________________________ (paragraph 7)

10.

a plant, animal or bacteria group whose members all have similar general features and are able to
reproduce ________________________ (paragraph 8):

a plant, animal or bacteria group whose members all have similar general features and are able to
reproduce ________________________ (paragraph 8)

11.

variations; differences ________________________ (paragraph 14):

variations; differences ________________________ (paragraph 14)

12.

a starting point for making comparisons ________________________ (paragraph 16):

a starting point for making comparisons ________________________ (paragraph 16)

13.

to follow the development or progress of something ________________________ (paragraph 16):

a

to follow the development or progress of something ________________________ (paragraph 16)

14.

things such as bacteria or a virus that cause disease ________________________ (paragraph 16):

things such as bacteria or a virus that cause disease ________________________ (paragraph 16)

Column B

a.downplayed

b.diversity

c.pathogens

d.distinctive

e.thriving

f.catalogue

g.baseline

h.bugs

i.trace

j.prevalent

k.plague

l.map

m.track

n.species