BBC随身英语:Up in smoke 呼吁吸烟者戒烟一个月

Robert West, Director of Tobacco Studies at University College London, points out how peer pressure can prevent a tobacco addict's resolve going up in smoke.

"We are social animals, we are herd animals and we are influenced by each other," he said.

The initiative has met some scepticism among readers of the BBC News Online website. Some compared it to asking people to stop eating as a way of combating obesity. Others doubt the campaign's effectiveness.

"Its weakness is that it fails to address why a person smokes, and these reasons are as varied as the number of smokers", says someone who signed as BluesBerry.

Another reader, Cazz, has decided to give it some credit. He says: "Campaigns like this won't necessarily prompt the majority of smokers to quit, but may prompt those thinking about quitting to set a date and try. Surely it's worth a shot."

The number of smokers in England is estimated at 8 million.

According to the Department of Health, smoking is the biggest cause of premature death in the country.

Quiz 测验 For how long is the campaign asking smokers to be smoke-free?

28 days

Look at the article. Why is it easier to stop smoking when other people are doing the same?

According to the University College London's commentator Robert West, people are social animals and are influenced by each other.

Is the following statement true, false or not given? Most of the BBC News Online website readers do not believe the anti-smoking campaign will succeed.

False. The article mentions reader Cazz saying that it is worth for smokers who are thinking about quitting to take part in the campaign.

What adjective in the article means something done with the objective to cause shock?

'Hard-hitting'

What are the three verbs used to say 'not to smoke anymore'?

To give up, to kick the habit, to quit.

Glossary 词汇表 to give up放弃 to back支持 to light up点燃 to kick the habit要戒掉恶习 a public health expert公共健康专家 hard-hitting强硬的 to quit戒掉，放弃 to go cold turkey突然停止(做某事) peer pressure同伴压力 an addict瘾君子 to go up in smoke化为乌有，成为泡影 scepticism怀疑，怀疑主义 to address解决 to prompt促使 to be worth a shot值得一试的 premature过早