Inthesummerof2014,about17millionpeoplepostedvideos...

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In the summer of 2014, about 17 million people posted videos of themselves dumping (倾倒) ice water over their heads. Even many famous people, including singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, basketball player LeBron James, and former U.S. President George W. Bush, took part. Why did they do such a strange thing?

Those in the Ice Bucket Challenge all helped raise awareness (意识) and money to fight amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a deadly disease. It is also known as Lou Gehrig' s disease, after a famous baseball player who had it. It destroys neurons (nerve cells) that control muscle (肌肉) movement.

Each year, about 5,600 people in the U.S. are diagnosed (诊断) with ALS. The disease leads to the inability to move. Many people die two to five years after learning they have it. Right now, there's no right treatment for ALS. But the Ice Bucket Challenge may help lead to one.

"Before the Ice Bucket Challenge, few people knew about this terrible disease," Jonathan Ling said. He is one of the scientists at Johns Hopkins University in Maryland. His team was unable to complete its research without the money raised through the Ice Bucket Challenge, Ling says.

Through their research, Ling and his team discovered that a protein (蛋白质 ) is damaged in most ALS patients. The scientists also found that nerve cells with these damaged proteins die quickly. But when the scientists put a new protein that acted like the damaged one into the nerve cells, the neurons came back to life!

Thanks to the team' s research, experts believe they may be one step closer to a treatment that slows down or even stops ALS. Still, more research needs to be done, Ling admits. With that in mind, the ALS Association is promising that the Ice Bucket Challenge will continue every August until a good treatment is found.

12. What can we learn about ALS?

A. No one knows how to treat the disease.

B. It is also named after a singer.

C. People will die a few days after they have it.

D. It can make people lose the ability to hear.

13. What might be Ling's attitude to the Ice Bucket Challenge?

A. Worried. B. Doubtful.

C. Uninterested. D. Thankful.

14. According to the text, Ling' s team __

A. knows little about ALS

B. is now short of money

C. has made some progress