首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
Supermarket shoppers have never been more spoilt for choice. But just when we thought traditional systems of selective farming h
Supermarket shoppers have never been more spoilt for choice. But just when we thought traditional systems of selective farming h
admin
2009-06-24
38
问题
Supermarket shoppers have never been more spoilt for choice. But just when we thought traditional systems of selective farming had created the most tempting array of foods money can buy, we are now being presented with the prospect of genetically created strains of cabbages, onion, tomato, potato and apple.
It may not tickle the fancy of food purists but it fires the imagination of scientists, last week they discovered that the classic Parisian mushroom contains just the properties that, when genetically mixed with a wild strain of mushroom from the Sonora desert in California, could help it grow en masse while at the same time providing it with the resilience of the wild strain.
66.______
"We have found a way of increasing the success rate from one to 90 percent".
This is just one of the many products that, according to skeptics, are creating a generation of "Frankenfoods". The first such food that may be consumed on a wide scale is a tomato which bas been genetically manipulated so that it does not soften as it ripens.
67.______
Critics say that the new tomato—which cost $25 million to research—is designed to stay on supermarket shelves for longer. It has a ten-day life span.
Not surprisingly, every-hungry U.S. is leading the search for these forbidden fruit. By changing the genes of a grapefruit, a grower from Texas has created a sweet, red, thin-skinned grapefruit expected to sell at a premium over its California and Florida competitors.
For chip fanatics who want to watch their waist-lines, new high-starch, low-moisture potatoes that absorb less fat when fried have been created, thanks to a gene from intestinal bacteria.
The scientists behind such new food argue that genetic engineering is simply an extension of animal and plant breeding methods and that by broadening the scope of the genetic changes that can be made, sources of food are increased. Accordingly, they argue, this does not inherently lead to foods that are less safe than those developed by conventional techniques. But if desirable genes are swapped irrespective of species barriers, could things spiral out of control? "Knowledge is not toxic", said Mark Cantley, head of the biotechnology unit at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, "It has given us a far greater understanding of how living systems work at a molecular level and there is no reason for people to think that scientists and farmers should use that knowledge to do risky things".
Clearly, financial incentive lies behind the development of these bigger, more productive foods. But we may have only ourselves to blame. In the early period of mass food commerce, food varieties were developed by traditional methods of selective breeding to suit the local palate. But as suppliers started to select and preserve plant variants that had larger fruit, consumer expectations rose, leading to the development of the desirable clones. Still, traditionalists and gourmets in Europe are fighting their development.
68.______
Even in the pre-packaged U.S., where the slow-softening tomato will soon be reaching supermarkets, 1,500 American chefs have lent their support to the Pure Food Campaign which calls for the international boycott of genetically engineered foods until more is known about the consequences of the technology and reliable controls have been introduced.
In the short term, much of the technology remains untested and in the long term the consequences for human biology are unknown. Questions have arisen over whether new proteins in genetically modified food could cause allergies in some people.
69.______
Then there are the vegetarians who may be consuming animal non-vegetable proteins in what they think is a common tomato, or the practicing Jew who unknowingly consumes a fruit that has been enhanced with a pig’s gene. As yet, producers are under no obligation to label "transgenetic" products.
Environmentalists worry that new, genetically engineered plants may damage natural environment. A genetically engineered pest-resistant strain of plant that contacts with a native strain, for example, could turn them into virulent weeds beyond chemical control.
Animal welfare groups worry about the quality of life of farm animals manipulated so that they produce more meat, milk, and eggs but which may suffer physical damage in the process.
70.______
Many of these fears spring from ignorance. And although it is hard to separate the paranoia from the benefits, the fact remains that genetic engineering offers ways of solving serious medical and agricultural problems.
A. Western farmers have already bred cattle with mare muscle than a skeleton can carry.
B. Supporters say the tomato, unsurprisingly called Flaw Saw, will taste better because it will be able to mature on the branch longer.
C. Consumer opposition means that there are genetically manipulated foods on the German markets, and the Norwegian government has recently put research into genetically engineered foods on hold.
D. For example, if a corn gene is introduced into a wheat gene for pest resistance, will those who are allergic to corn then be allergic to wheat?
E. "Mushrooms in the past were almost impossible to cross", says Philippe Callac, one of the three scientists working on the mushroom.
F. Genetic engineering will interfere with the balance of nature.
选项
答案
D
解析
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/1hTd777K
本试题收录于:
公共英语五级笔试题库公共英语(PETS)分类
0
公共英语五级笔试
公共英语(PETS)
相关试题推荐
Whereisthenapkinnormallyplacedduringthemeal?Whichofthefollowingshowsgoodtablemanners?
Whichofthefollowingdoesthefirstparagraphimply?theauthordecidedtostayathometolookaftertheirsoneightyearsa
AWaystoLearnaLanguageSuccessfullyBLearningaLanguagePurposefullyCLearningaLanguageActivelyDLearningaLangu
TheRoleofPressureGroupsInBritainGeneralElectionsinBritainareusuallyheldonlyonceeveryfiveyears.Governmentscan
TheAmericanFamilyIntheAmericanfamilythehusbandandwifeusuallyshareimportantdecisionmaking.Whenthechildrenareo
APopularityofScienceFictionBAFairlyNewDevelopmentCClassicsofScienceFictionDDifficultyinKeepingaheadofSc
WhereDidAlltheShipsGo?TheBermudaTriangleisone(1)thegreatestmysteriesofthesea.Inthistriangularareabetween
A.whatyousayB.apairofsunglassesC.thelisteningmachineD.avisualsensorE.whohavedisabilitiesF.l
Whichofthefollowingideasaboutreligiousbeliefisexpressedbythespeaker?Whichofthefollowingstatementsaboutthene
Whatdidthespeakertalkaboutlasttime?
随机试题
下列关于胸腔积液与气胸患者体征的对比,错误的是
患者,男性,30岁。因头晕、胸闷1天就诊,以扩张性心肌病收入院。曾有晕厥史。查体:心界扩大,心率38次/分。心电图提示三度房室传导阻滞。最恰当的处理是
丙将自己所有的一头耕牛借给甲,甲称这头耕牛为自己所有,将其卖给了乙,乙付款后,甲拒不交付,乙起诉甲,要求交付耕牛,在诉讼中,丙主张耕牛归自己所有,下列说法正确的是()
根据行政法律关系的知识,下列叙述中不正确的是()
【背景资料】某退水闸为大(1)型工程,批复概算约3亿元,某招标代理机构组织了此次招标工作。在招标文件审查会上,专家甲、乙、丙、丁、戊分别提出了如下建议:甲:为了防止投标人哄抬报价,建议招标文件规定投标报价超过标底5%的为废标。乙:投标人资格应与工程规
建筑节能分部工程验收会议由()主持。
某安装公司承担某液化气罐区的施工任务,其中2台新建1000m3球罐由上极板、下极板,上温带板、下温带板和赤道带板等部分组成,采用散装法施工。另有1台400m3球罐需从基础上拆除,放在托架上,用卷扬机牵引滑移,另处重新安装。滑移过程中要经过一条高压电缆沟,需
下列有关借款费用的表述中,正确的有()。
A、 B、 C、 D、 D1个黑圆相当于2个白圆时,每个图形中上下两部分的圆的个数相等,选项中只有D符合。
363,341,264,165,143,()
最新回复
(
0
)