Process Unit

Alzheimer’s Disease

Vocabulary (5 Minutes)

Directions: Try to guess the meaning of the highlighted words based on your knowledge of English. In each set of words, underline the two words that have similar meanings to the words in bold letters on the left. Use your dictionaries if necessary. The first one has been done for you.

1. supervision	a. guidance	b. control	c. care
2. merit	a. deserve	b. warrant	c. earn
3. sibling	a. parent	b. sister	c. brother
4. decline	a. deterioration	b. worsening	c. drop
5. flaw	a. error	b. mistake	c. blemish
6. hinder	a. thwart	b. help	c. impede
7. progressively	a. slowly	b. movingly	c. gradually
8. close	a. lax	b. careful	c. minute
9. impairment	a. injury	b. damage	c. compensation
10. fatal	a. accidental	b. terminal	c. deadly

Rapid Reading Warm-Up (30 Seconds)

Directions: The exercise below has 25 problems that will help you read faster. You will have only 30 seconds to finish. You will probably not finish all 25 problems, but you are to work as quickly as you can. Be careful not to make any error, so read rapidly but carefully. In this exercise, there are six words: one word to the left of the line and five to the right. Read the word on the left and then find it among the five words to the right. Once you have found it, circle it.

Example

raft	rift	rate	raft	rote	reef
1. progressive	progress	program	progressive	regressive	aggressive
2. years	year	ears	yore	years	yarn
3. control	counter	contra	controls	controller	control
4. patients	patience	patient	patent	patients	pretense
5. death	doth	death	dearth	dark	dash
6. causes	ceases	cause	causing	causes	courses
7. linked	launched	locked	linked	lanky	looked
8. form	form	firm	farm	forms	fame
9. particularly	particular	peculiarly	particle	particularly	peculiar
10. brain	brine	brawn	barn	break	brain
11. messenger	messenger	messengers	massage	message	messages
12. hindering	hounding	hankering	handing	hindering	hinders
13. theories	theorize	themes	thesis	theories	theorizes
14. inherited	inheritance	inherits	inheriting	heirs	inherited
15. molecules	molecule	molecular	molecules	molar	molecularly
16. free	freeze	freeing	frees	fries	free
17. cause	cause	course	case	cease	causes
18. culprit	culvert	culminate	commune	culprits	culprit
19. rate	riot	rote	rant	rate	raise
20. course	cause	cease	course	courses	counts
21. time	tame	tine	thyme	tone	time
22. perform	performance	prefer	perfume	performs	perform
23. some	same	summer	some	sane	simmer
24. mood	mound	moody	mend	mood	moose
25. sleep	slept	slipper	slap	slung	sleep

First Reading (3 Minutes for Preview – 3½ Minutes for Reading)

Directions: Starting with the first sentence of the passage, read as quickly as you can for three and a half minutes. Circle the last word you read when the time is up.

Second Reading (3½ Minutes)

Directions: Starting with the first sentence of the passage, read as quickly as you can for three and a half minutes. Circle the last word you read when the time is up.

Third Reading (3½ Minutes)

Directions: Starting with the first sentence of the passage, read as quickly as you can for three and a half minutes. Circle the last word you read when the time is up.

Fourth Reading (3½ Minutes)

Directions: Starting with the first sentence of the passage, read as quickly as you can for three and a half minutes. Circle the last word you read when the time is up.

Line

Word

Count

Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive, degenerative and irreversible brain disorder. It is estimated that 2-5 percent of people over 65 years of age and up to 20 percent of those over 8 years of age suffer from the disease. Although there have been advances made in the control of this disease through drugs, it has no definite cure. Patients with Alzheimer’s disease suffer from disorientation and intellectual and psychological impairment which eventually lead to death. The exact cause of the disease is still unknown. However, it has been associated with certain causes that merit to be studied, as they lead to devastating and sometimes fatal consequences.

Alzheimer’s disease is linked to the gradual formation of plaque in the brain, particularly in the hippocampus and adjoining cortex. As the disease develops, it destroys chemical messages used by the cells of the brain to communicate with each other. It is though that the disease either disrupts the production of an important neurotransmitter known as acetylcholine or stimulates the over-production of the enzyme cholinesterase, which eliminates the former, thus, hindering its performance.

Various theories have linked the disease to a number of other causes. It is believed that the disease can be inherited. People who have a parent or sibling with Alzheimer’s disease were found to be five times more likely to develop the disease as compared to those who did not. Some believe that highly chemically reactive oxygen molecules, known as free radicals, may be the cause. These, which have been blamed for heart disease and cancer, may lead to Alzheimer’s. In addition, other theories claim that physical trauma, such as whiplash injuries, or the body’s immune system may be the culprit.

The rate of decline in Alzheimer patients varies from patient to patient. The disease course runs anywhere from three to 20 years, with eight years being the average life span after diagnosis. However, there are some well-established features of the disease that can be observed during its course. The Alzheimer patient suffers from disorientation to time and place and has difficulty in performing difficult tasks. Some of the more noticeable symptoms are problems with memory, abstract thinking, and language. In addition to suffering from decreased judgment and changes in mood and behaviour, an Alzheimer patient may suffer from sleep disturbance, anxiety, and depression.

Adapted from BBC News Online Health, October 15, 2000

106

154

193

243

305

350

383

Reading Comprehension (10 Minutes)

Directions: Circle the letter next to the statement that best answers the following questions.

1. The article’s thesis presents _____ Alzheimer’s disease.

a. the arguments for and against the use of drugs in

b. the origin of

c. the causes and effects of

d. the treatment of

2. A definition of the disease and background information can be found in _____.

a. sentences beginning on lines 1 and 4

b. sentences beginning on lines 1, 2, 4, and 5

c. sentences beginning on lines 4, 5, and 7

d. sentences beginning on lines 4 and 7

3. This article is flawed in that it _____.

a. switches from topic to topic

b. has too broad a thesis

c. has no thesis sentence

d. has no conclusion

4. In the brain of an Alzheimer patient, _____.

a. communication between brain cells in hindered

b. cholinesterase disrupts the production of acetylcholine

c. acetylcholine stimulates the over-production of cholinesterase

d. chemical messengers are revived

5. How many possible causes of the disease are mentioned in the article?

a. 3

b. 4

c. 5

d. 5

6. Free radicals _____.

a. are chemically reactive hydrogen molecules

b. may lead to physical trauma and whiplash injuries

c. may cause cancer and Alzheimer’s disease

d. may affect the immune system of the body

7. What is the average life span of Alzheimer patients after diagnosis of the disease?

a. three years

b. eight years

c. 20 years

d. not mentioned in the article

8. From information in the article, it can be logically inferred that _____.

a. people should choose their parents carefully

b. Alzheimer patients require close supervision for their own safety

c. people who eat well balanced diets decrease their chances of developing Alzheimer’s

d. Alzheimer patients should have their brains scraped regularly

9. From information in the article, it can be logically inferred that people who begin to experience difficulty in remembering people or events _____.

a. suffer from Alzheimer’s disease

b. have three to 20 years to live

c. should see a doctor

d. have free radicals

10. In line 5, “definite” means _____.

a. ambiguous

b. vague

c. significant

d. specific

11. In line 13, “disrupts” means _____

a. stimulates

b. communicates

c. destroys