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Date: Mar 24, 2007
THE ARTICLEStudy says alcohol more harmful than marijuanaA major new study into drugs, published in the British medical journal The Lancet, has concluded that alcohol and tobacco are more dangerous than many highly illegal drugs. They are listed in the top 10 most dangerous substances in the study. Researchers believe British law should classify alcohol and tobacco the same as hard drugs such as heroin and cocaine. Head researcher Professor David Nutt of Britain's Bristol University suggested a new classification of harmful substances. He said it needed to be based on the actual risks posed to society. Professor Nutt said the new system was necessary in Britain as the existing one was out of date: "The current drug system is ill thought-out and arbitrary,” he said. He added there was no scientific basis for excluding alcohol and tobacco as serious drugs. Professor Nutt and his colleagues used three factors to find out how harmful a drug is: the physical harm to the user, how addictive the drug is, and the impact it has on society. The researchers were experts in drug addiction, lawyers and police officers with scientific or medical backgrounds and doctors. All of them agreed on the dangers of alcohol and tobacco. They ranked alcohol as the fifth and tobacco as the ninth most harmful drugs. Heroin and cocaine finished top, while marijuana was eleventh and Ecstasy finished last in the list of 20 drugs. The latter two are illegal in Britain and America, while alcohol and tobacco are legal. Tobacco causes 40 percent of all hospital illnesses, while alcohol is blamed for more than half of all visits to hospital emergency rooms. They also harm society in other ways. They damage families and stretch police services. WARM-UPS1. ADDICTION: Choose (imagine) one thing you are addicted to – It could be chocolate, love, English grammar, jogging, etc. Walk around the class and talk to other students to find out their addictions. Which ones do you share? 2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these topics or words from the article are most interesting and which are most boring.
Have a chat about the topics you liked. For more conversation, change topics and partners frequently. 3. WORLD RIVERS: With your partner(s), talk about these drugs. What is your image of them? What do you know of them? Change partners and share your findings.
4. ALCOHOL OPINIONS: Talk about each of these opinions. Do you think they are true for your country / other countries?
5. QUICK DEBATE: Have this fun quick debate with your partner(s). Students A think alcohol should be classed as a harmful drug; students B think alcohol is not harmful and should remain legal. Change partners and topics every two minutes. 6. DRUGS: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with drugs. Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories. BEFORE READING / LISTENING1. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):
2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:
3. PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article (sometimes more than one combination is possible):
WHILE READING / LISTENINGGAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text. Study says alcohol more harmful than marijuana
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A major new study into drugs, ________ in the British medical journal The Lancet, has ________ that alcohol and tobacco are more dangerous than many highly illegal drugs. They are ________ in the top 10 most dangerous substances in the study. Researchers believe British law should classify alcohol and tobacco the same as hard drugs such as heroin and cocaine. Head researcher Professor David Nutt of Britain's Bristol University ________ a new classification of harmful substances. He said it ________ to be ________ on the actual risks ________ to society. Professor Nutt said the new system was necessary in Britain as the existing one was out of date: "The current drug system is ill thought-out and arbitrary,” he said. He ________ there was no scientific basis for excluding alcohol and tobacco as serious drugs.
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suggested |
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Professor Nutt and his colleagues used three ________ to find out how harmful a drug is: the physical harm to the user, how addictive the drug is, and the ________ it has on society. The researchers were experts in drug addiction, lawyers and police officers with ________ or medical backgrounds and doctors. All of them ________ on the dangers of alcohol and tobacco. They ranked alcohol as the fifth and tobacco as the ninth most harmful drugs. Heroin and cocaine ________ top, while marijuana was eleventh and Ecstasy finished last in the list of 20 drugs. The latter two are illegal in Britain and America, while alcohol and tobacco are ________. Tobacco causes 40 percent of all hospital illnesses, while alcohol is ________ for more than half of all visits to hospital emergency rooms. They also harm society in other ways. They damage families and ________ police services. |
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agreed |
Listen and fill in the spaces.
A major new ________________, published in the British medical journal The Lancet, ________________ alcohol and tobacco are more dangerous than many highly illegal drugs. They are ________________ 10 most dangerous substances in the study. Researchers believe British law should classify alcohol and tobacco the same ______________________ heroin and cocaine. Head researcher Professor David Nutt of Britain's Bristol University suggested a new classification of harmful substances. He said it _______________________ actual risks posed to society. Professor Nutt said the new system was necessary in Britain as the existing one was out of date: "The current drug system ________________ arbitrary,” he said. He added there was _____________________ excluding alcohol and tobacco as serious drugs.
Professor Nutt and his colleagues used three factors ________________ harmful a drug is: the physical harm to the user, how addictive the drug is, and the impact ________________. The researchers were experts in drug addiction, lawyers and police officers with scientific or medical backgrounds and doctors. ________________ the dangers of alcohol and tobacco. They ranked alcohol as the fifth and tobacco as the ninth most harmful drugs. Heroin and cocaine finished top, while marijuana was eleventh and Ecstasy finished ________________ 20 drugs. The latter two are illegal in Britain and America, while alcohol and tobacco are legal. Tobacco causes 40 percent of all hospital illnesses, while alcohol is ________________ half of all visits to hospital emergency rooms. They also harm society ________________. They damage families and stretch police services.
1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionaries / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words ‘hard’ and ‘drug’.
2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.
3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?
4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.
5. STUDENT “DRUGS” SURVEY: In pairs / groups, write down questions about drugs, alcohol, tobacco and society.
6. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall exactly how these were used in the text:
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STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)
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STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)
AFTER DISCUSSION: Join another partner / group and tell them what you talked about.
ROLE PLAY:
A discussion about drugs and society.
Team up with classmates who have the same role as you. Develop your roles and discuss ideas and “strategies” before the role play begins. Introduce yourself to the other role players. Discuss your roles after the role play ends.
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Role A – Professor Nutt You are sure that many governments wrongly think alcohol and tobacco are harmless. Your study shows they do a lot of harm to society. You believe they cause more harm than many drugs that are already illegal. You want alcohol and tobacco made illegal. - Think of more reasons why alcohol and tobacco should be illegal. |
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Role B – Smoker and drinker You think tobacco and alcohol are normal parts of your culture. People have been smoking and drinking for thousands of years. It is your right to drink. You enjoy it. Alcohol has never harmed your family, health or life. - Think of more reasons why Professor Nutt is wrong. |
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Role C – Addicted smoker and alcoholic Cigarettes and alcohol have ruined your life. You are in very poor health. Your family life is in ruins because you cannot stop drinking. You lost many jobs because of hangovers. You are angry with tobacco and alcohol companies for glamorizing cigarettes and alcohol. - Think of more reasons why alcohol and tobacco should be illegal. |
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Role D – Doctor You have seen hundreds of tragic traffic accidents where drivers have been drunk. You think alcohol is OK but governments should be stricter. You believe there should be very heavy punishments for any crime committed when a person is drunk. - Think of more reasons why the government should be stricter. |
CORRECT WORD: Put the correct words from a–d below in the article.
A major new study (1) ____ drugs, published in the British medical journal The Lancet, has concluded that alcohol and tobacco are more dangerous than many (2) ____ illegal drugs. They are listed in the top 10 most dangerous substances in the study. Researchers believe British law should (3) ____ alcohol and tobacco the same as hard drugs (4) ____ as heroin and cocaine. Head researcher Professor David Nutt of Britain's Bristol University suggested a new classification of harmful substances. He said it needed to be based on the actual risks (5) ____ to society. Professor Nutt said the new system was necessary in Britain as the existing one was out of date: "The current drug system is (6) ____ thought-out and arbitrary,” he said. He added there was no scientific basis for excluding alcohol and tobacco as serious drugs.
Professor Nutt and his colleagues used three factors to find out how harmful a drug is: the physical harm (7) ____ the user, how addictive the drug is, and the impact it has on society. The researchers were experts (8) ____ drug addiction, lawyers and police officers with scientific or medical backgrounds and doctors. All of them agreed (9) ____ the dangers of alcohol and tobacco. They ranked alcohol as the fifth and tobacco as the ninth most harmful drugs. Heroin and cocaine finished top, while marijuana was eleventh and Ecstasy finished (10) ____ in the list of 20 drugs. The latter two are illegal in Britain and America, while alcohol and tobacco are legal. Tobacco causes 40 percent of all hospital illnesses, (11) ____ alcohol is blamed (12) ____ more than half of all visits to hospital emergency rooms. They also harm society in other ways. They damage families and stretch police services.
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1. |
(a) |
unto |
(b) |
out |
(c) |
into |
(d) |
onto |
|
2. |
(a) |
highly |
(b) |
high |
(c) |
lowly |
(d) |
low |
|
3. |
(a) |
classed |
(b) |
classy |
(c) |
classified |
(d) |
classify |
|
4. |
(a) |
as |
(b) |
such |
(c) |
so |
(d) |
with |
|
5. |
(a) |
composed |
(b) |
imposed |
(c) |
posed |
(d) |
supposed |
|
6. |
(a) |
unwell |
(b) |
painful |
(c) |
ill |
(d) |
sick |
|
7. |
(a) |
in |
(b) |
to |
(c) |
with |
(d) |
at |
|
8. |
(a) |
in |
(b) |
on |
(c) |
an |
(d) |
and |
|
9. |
(a) |
on |
(b) |
in |
(c) |
with |
(d) |
an |
|
10. |
(a) |
lastly |
(b) |
last |
(c) |
lasts |
(d) |
lasted |
|
11. |
(a) |
whatever |
(b) |
whom |
(c) |
which |
(d) |
while |
|
12. |
(a) |
further |
(b) |
for |
(c) |
from |
(d) |
fro |
1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.
2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find more information about the effects of alcohol on society. What are the laws in different countries? Talk about what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.
3. DRUGS POSTER: Make a poster about different kinds of drugs and the harm they do to our bodies, lives and societies. Include drugs we do not normally think are dangerous. Show your poster to your class in the next lesson. Vote on the best one(s).
4. MAGAZINE ARTICLE: Write a magazine article about the effects of alcohol and tobacco on your society. Discuss what society would be like with and without these two drugs. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Which article was best and why?
5. LETTER: Write a letter to the leader of your country. Tell him/her what he/she has to do to make sure alcohol and tobacco do not harm your society. Ask him/her three questions. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.
TRUE / FALSE:
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a. T |
b. T |
c. F |
d. F |
e. T |
f. F |
g. T |
h. F |
SYNONYM MATCH:
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a. |
major |
important |
|
b. |
highly |
very |
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c. |
classify |
group |
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d. |
arbitrary |
illogical |
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e. |
basis |
grounds |
|
f. |
factors |
aspects |
|
g. |
impact |
effect |
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h. |
experts |
specialists |
|
i. |
latter |
last-mentioned |
|
j. |
stretch |
drain |
PHRASE MATCH:
|
a. |
A major new study |
into drugs |
|
b. |
classify alcohol and tobacco |
the same as hard drugs |
|
c. |
based on the actual risks |
posed to society |
|
d. |
The current drug system is ill thought- |
out and arbitrary |
|
e. |
there was no scientific basis for |
excluding alcohol |
|
f. |
the physical harm to |
the user |
|
g. |
the impact |
it has on society |
|
h. |
All of them agreed |
on the dangers of alcohol |
|
i. |
The latter |
two are illegal in Britain |
|
j. |
They damage families and |
stretch police services |
GAP FILL:
A major new study into drugs, published in the British medical journal The Lancet, has concluded that alcohol and tobacco are more dangerous than many highly illegal drugs. They are listed in the top 10 most dangerous substances in the study. Researchers believe British law should classify alcohol and tobacco the same as hard drugs such as heroin and cocaine. Head researcher Professor David Nutt of Britain's Bristol University suggested a new classification of harmful substances. He said it needed to be based on the actual risks posed to society. Professor Nutt said the new system was necessary in Britain as the existing one was out of date: "The current drug system is ill thought-out and arbitrary,” he said. He added there was no scientific basis for excluding alcohol and tobacco as serious drugs.
Professor Nutt and his colleagues used three factors to find out how harmful a drug is: the physical harm to the user, how addictive the drug is, and the impact it has on society. The researchers were experts in drug addiction, lawyers and police officers with scientific or medical backgrounds and doctors. All of them agreed on the dangers of alcohol and tobacco. They ranked alcohol as the fifth and tobacco as the ninth most harmful drugs. Heroin and cocaine finished top, while marijuana was eleventh and Ecstasy finished last in the list of 20 drugs. The latter two are illegal in Britain and America, while alcohol and tobacco are legal. Tobacco causes 40 percent of all hospital illnesses, while alcohol is blamed for more than half of all visits to hospital emergency rooms. They also harm society in other ways. They damage families and stretch police services.
LANGUAGE WORK
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1 - c |
2 - a |
3 - d |
4 -b |
5 - c |
6 -c |
7 - b |
8 -a |
9 -a |
10 - b |
11 -d |
12 - b |
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