Read the following articles and check out the links to answer the questions. You will need to do some extra reseaech, too.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/features/health/jan-june09/swineflu_04-28.html
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/featured_articles/20090501friday.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8021547.stm
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30794194
http://www.reuters.com/article/asiaCrisis/idUSLH683555
INITIATING QUESTIONS
1. What is an epidemic?
2. What is a pandemic?
3. What is an infectious disease?
4. What is a virus?
5. What makes the H1N1 virus a "novel" or "new" virus?
6. How do viruses mutate?
7. What does it mean that this virus has "parts" from other known swine flus, human flus and American bird flus?
8. How does that process happen?
9. How is the flu vaccine created?
10. Why are some viruses transmittable from human to human while others are not (avian flu)?
11. How does Tamiflu work?
12. Scientists worry that H1N1 might become resistant to Tamiflu. How might that happen?
READING COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS
1. What is the most predictable thing about influenza?
2. How many people have died in Mexico? (based on the article as well as on latest news)
3. Name 3 countries where swine flu has been confirmed in the last three days.
4. What are the symptoms of the swine flu?
5. When was the outbreak of the Spanish flu?
6. What percentage of the world population died of influenza then?
7. Why was there an emergency vaccination program in 1976?
8. Name a few actions the Mexican government has done to curb the spread of swine flu.
9. What were the consequences for Mexico and Mexicans due to the actions taken by the government?
10. What industries were particularly hard hit?
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Mexico has shut down schools and other public spaces; do you think that was the correct thing to do? Why or why not?
2. More people die from the regular flu then from swine flu, why do you think this became a big news story?
3. Why did people stop visiting Mexico? Why have Mexicans been discriminated? Do you think the fear of the disease is justified?
4. What questions about individual and human rights does preventing the spread of flu raise?
