在19世纪以前，人们想要拔牙或者进行牙科手术是非常痛苦和危险的事情。因为在当时的环境下，不仅没有麻药，拔牙工具简陋，而且操作牙科手术的人也都不是专业的牙医。所以很早之前各国的牙科医生们就不约而同地提出过一些预防牙病的方法：饭后剔牙、经常漱口、使用牙粉和刷牙等。可以说，人类已经和牙病斗争了几千年了。而且，这种“相互伤害”的过程还清楚地被一个展览给纪录了下来。位于英国伦敦的韦尔科姆收藏馆（Wellcome Collection）专门策划了一个医疗与艺术相结合的展览，并于5月17日开始展出。此次展览展出了与牙齿相关的上百件展品，探索了有史以来人类及其牙齿之间的关系是如何发展的，同时还展示了用来宣传牙齿卫生的海报是怎么跟含糖零食的广告作斗争的。
Chew on this: teeth
① Before the advent of modern dentistry in the 19th and 20th centuries, procedures were performed by barber-surgeons, blacksmiths and even fairground entertainers.
② Extractions without anaesthetic were gruesome, so people tried alternative methods to alleviate toothache.
③ Votive offerings, amulets and prayers to St Apollonia, the patron saint of toothache, were all thought to protect pearly whites.
④ An exhibition which opens on Thursday at the Wellcome Collection in London will explore our relationship with our teeth throughout history.
⑤ The show will display examples of these ancient offerings alongside objects that chart the development of our understanding of dental care, from Napoleon's silver toothbrush to King William IV's dentures.
⑥ Though dentistry has come a long way over the past couple of centuries, gnashers still need looking after: the exhibition will also show how posters used to publicise dental hygiene compete with adverts for sugary snacks.
⑦ There's plenty to get your teeth stuck into.
Words & Expressions:
1. chew on something/chew sth over: informal to think carefully about something for a period of time
eg. Let me chew it over for a few days.
2. advent /ˈædvent/: the advent of sth. the time when something first begins to be widely used =coming
eg. the advent of computer/television
3.fairground entertainer, an open space which a fair takes place / street entertainers
4.alleviate /əˈliːvieɪt/, to make something less painful or difficult to deal with
eg. alleviate the problem/situation/suffering etc
a new medicine to alleviate the symptoms of flu
measures to alleviate poverty
5.gruesome /ˈɡru:s(ə)m/: adj. very unpleasant or shocking, and involving someone being killed or badly injured.
eg. Police described it as a particularly gruesome attack.
Spare me the gruesome details.
6. get one's teeth into something, informal to start to do something with a lot of energy and determination
eg. I can’t wait to get my teeth into the new course.
Since you know about the project so well, now get your teeth into it.
7. have come a long way to have made a lot of progress.
eg. Computer technology has come a long way since the 1970s.
8. votive/ˈvəʊtɪv $ ˈvoʊ-/ adjective [only before noun] technical given or done because of a promise made to God or to a saint
eg. votive offerings
9. amulet/ˈæmjələt, -let $ -lət/ noun [countable] a small piece of jewellery worn to protect against bad luck, disease etc.
eg. Any infant protected by an amulet bearing the names of the angels would be immune from her attention.
10.patron saint of /ˈpeɪtr(ə)n/: a Christian saint who people believe gives special protection to a particular place, activitity, or person
eg. patron saint of
St. Christopher, the patron saint of travellers
11. publicise /ˈpʌblɪsʌɪz/: to give information about something to the public, so that they know about it
eg. television’s failure to publicize the unemployment issue
well/widely/highly publicized (=receiving a lot of attention)
His visit was highly publicized.
关于牙齿的词汇：
pearly white /ˈpə:li/: 牙齿
gnashers /ˈnaʃəz/: n.（复数）牙齿
denture /ˈdɛntʃə/: n. 假牙
extraction /ɪkˈstrakʃ(ə)n/: n. 拔牙；取出
anaesthetic /ˌanɪsˈθɛtɪk/: n. 麻药
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