Why did it take so long to accept that hand-washing saves lives?

Answer each question with 2–3 sentences.

1. Do you wash your hands as often as you should?
2. Have you ever had an idea that people rejected?
3. Why do people resist new ideas?
4. Which medical discovery do you think is the most important?
5. Would you trust a doctor who disagreed with all the others?
6. Do you believe that most people follow health advice?

Read each word and the example. Then say a sentence about medicine or hygiene.

Choose the word that fits.

1. Washing hands and keeping places clean is part of good .
2. The rate, the number of deaths per hundred patients, fell sharply.
3. Several doctors his findings without testing them, because the idea seemed strange.
4. To make fun of someone's ideas in public is to them.
5. A dirty wound may easily develop a serious .
6. Tiny living things that can cause disease are called .
7. To fail to notice something important is to it.
8. Years later, new research proved him right, and his ideas were finally .

Choose the right answer, then press Check answers.

1. hygiene = practices that keep people and places
   old and quietbusy and noisyclean and healthy
2. mortality is the number of
   doctorshospitalsdeaths
3. to dismiss an idea = to refuse to
   consider it seriouslytranslate itwrite it down
4. an infection is caused by
   mountainsgermsmoney
5. to vindicate = to show that someone was
   laterighttired
6. scepticism = a
   friendly attitudedoubtful attitudesleepy attitude

Use these phrases to talk about ideas that were accepted or rejected.

• His findings were dismissed as...Його висновки відкинули як...His findings were dismissed as nonsense.
• It has since been shown that...Відтоді було доведено, що...It has since been shown that hand-washing saves lives.
• It is now widely accepted that...Тепер широко визнано, що...It is now widely accepted that germs cause infection.
• Lives could have been saved if...Життя можна було б урятувати, якби...Lives could have been saved if his advice had been followed.
• He was ridiculed for...Його висміювали за...He was ridiculed for his ideas.
• It took decades for the idea to be accepted.Минули десятиліття, перш ніж ідею прийняли.It took decades for the idea to be accepted.
• The evidence was being ignored.Докази ігнорували.At that time the evidence was being ignored.
• What is at stake is...Йдеться про...What is at stake is people's health.

Read the text. Hover over the dotted words for help.

1. Semmelweis worked in a hospital in Vienna.
   TrueFalse
2. Mortality fell in the doctors' clinic after hand-washing began.
   TrueFalse
3. His ideas were accepted immediately.
   TrueFalse
4. Germ theory was already proved when he began his work.
   TrueFalse
5. The text says that evidence alone is usually enough.
   TrueFalse

1. Why do experts sometimes reject new ideas?
2. How should a scientist present a surprising result?
3. Which modern ideas might be ridiculed today and accepted later?
4. Would you have believed Semmelweis?

Common mistakes: use be + past participle after modals and in perfect and continuous forms, and get + past participle for things that happen to people. ✗ Hands must washed → Hands must be washed. ✗ The ward is cleaning now → The ward is being cleaned now. ✗ It has ignored for years → It has been ignored for years. ✗ He got ignore → He got ignored.

1. The ward
   is cleaningis being cleaned
   at the moment.
2. Hands
   must washmust be washed
   before surgery.
3. His results
   have confirmedhave been confirmed
   by many studies.
4. Many patients
   got infectgot infected
   in the old hospital.
5. The method is believed
   to have been savedto have saved
   thousands of lives.
6. He hated
   ridiculingbeing ridiculed
   in public.
7. The findings
   should have been takenshould have taken
   seriously.
8. Many more lives
   would have savedwould have been saved
   if the rule had been followed.

Each sentence has one mistake. Type the correct words.

1. The ward is cleaning now. →
2. Hands must washed before surgery. →
3. His work has ignored for years. →
4. Many patients got infect. →
5. The method is believed to saved many lives. →
6. The findings should have taken seriously. →

Answer in detail. Use advanced passives.

1. Which discovery do you think was accepted too slowly?
2. What should be done when a new idea is being ignored?
3. Have you ever been blamed for something you did not do?
4. What can be learned from the story of Semmelweis?
5. Do you think that experts should be questioned more often?
6. Which health advice is still being ignored today?

Three people discuss why good ideas are rejected. Compare them. Who blames the scientist? Who blames the system? Whose view is closest to yours?

Your teacher will time you.

1. Plan for one minute, then speak for one or two minutes.
2. Part 1: tell the story of an idea that was rejected and later accepted.
3. Part 2: explain why it was rejected (use at least two passive forms).
4. Part 3: say what can be learned today.

1. Do you wash your hands often?
2. Have you ever had an idea that was dismissed?
3. Do you trust health advice?
4. Which discovery in medicine do you admire?
5. Are you sceptical by nature?
6. Have you ever changed your mind because of evidence?
7. Do you take advice from experts?
8. What would you do if nobody believed you?

1. Who in your family works in medicine?
2. Who in your life listens to new ideas?
3. Who gave you the best health advice?
4. Who was ridiculed at school for being different?
5. Who do you know who has been proved right?
6. Who should decide what counts as good evidence?

1. Should experts always be trusted?
2. Is it a mistake to ridicule new ideas?
3. Would more lives be saved if people followed the advice?
4. Do scientists have to explain their ideas better?
5. Are we more open to new ideas than people in the past?