Cavities: Going, Going, Gone

蛀牙不見了New research could make a trip to the dentist less painful by Ruth Devlin

Face it -few people joyfully anticipate a trip to the dentist. Time spent in a dentist's chair means discomfort in addition to the possibility of a lecture on how to better care for one's teeth. Dentistry routinely makes people's lists of most-hated professions, but most everyone would agree that a trip to the dentist is a necessary evil. This is especially true when it comes to fixing cavities. To do that, a dentist drills out the decay and fills the tooth with gold or other filling material.

New research, however, may make that process a thing of the past. A new peptide called MSH, which is placed in a gel or thin film and pasted next to a cavity, encourages cells inside the tooth to regrow. A study in mice showed that cavities treated with the gel disappeared in about a month. The French scientists who performed the study warned, however, that the gel does not prevent cavities.

People still need to brush several times a day, floss and use mouthwash to maintain good dental health. Also, it will be years before an MSH gel or film will be approved for use in humans.

Grammar Tips:
Time spent in a dentist's chair means discomfort....
"mean" -
What does "rough" mean? It means "not smooth".
time spent in a dentist's chair - it does not mean (definition) of discomfort.
"mean" here is when we talk about the situation has a certain result.
=Sitting in a dentist's chair is expected to be an uncomfortable experience
*Going to Aunt Susan's house means getting delicious apple pie and coffee.
*For most people, having a typhoon means getting a day off.

Vocabulary Tips:
anticipate-期待，期盼 know what going to happen, people are prepared for..
*The kids have been anticipating this trip for weeks.
*We didn't anticipate much opposition from the board when we proposed this change.
decay-朽腐，腐朽，蛀牙，（衰敗，荒涼，腐爛）。
decay(v)-getting worst, or being damaged.
decay(n) - the damaged area of teeth, the damaged thing.
*Eating too many sweets can cause tooth decay.
*The city has fallen into decay after the bombing.
*The wooden floor is in decay and it's hard to restore it.
gel-凝膠，膠狀物，a thick, clear liquid-like substance.
*The doctor rubbed some heat-resistant gel on the patient before he did the ultrasound. 超音波
*You have to use a lot of hair gel to keep that hairstyle.
Chloe doesn't like shower gel. She prefers soaps. 沐浴膠
peptide - a type of chemical.
mouthwash-a liquid put in your mouth, let it move around inside the mouth to clean your mouth and teeth.
painful- two meaning here (1)-physical pain, (2)a feeling that very discomfort, painful in feeling.
necessary evil, going to dentist is not a evil thing, it is an unpleasant thing, but it also a necessary thing.

Chat Room:
pulling teeth-拔牙.
is like pulling teeth -某事相當困難，很難達成，就像要拔對方的牙那般。hard to ask someone to do something.
Getting Billy to clean his room is like pulling teeth.
a kick in the teeth-粗暴對待，侮辱，出乎意料的被判。
sink your teeth into something.-興致勃勃，迫不及待，等不及的要去做（讀，看) eagerly to do
sink your teeth into the new book -買了新書，等不及的要去讀它。
have a tooth pulled.