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
考研
In 2008, Mark Lynas, an environmental activist, was unsparing in his criticism of genetically-modified (GM) food companies, call
In 2008, Mark Lynas, an environmental activist, was unsparing in his criticism of genetically-modified (GM) food companies, call
admin
2021-09-17
18
问题
In 2008, Mark Lynas, an environmental activist, was unsparing in his criticism of genetically-modified (GM) food companies, calling their claims that GM crops could feed the world "
outlandish
" and dismissing arguments that they could better cope with the impact of climate change "a new line in emotional blackmail" .
In his speech at the Oxford conference on January 3rd, Mr. Lynas was no less uncompromising. "We will have to feed 9.5 billion hopefully less poor people by 2050 on about the same land area as we use today, using limited fertilizer, water and pesticides. The only way of squaring this circle will be through GM."
Tom Macmillan of the Soil Association, which promotes the practice of organic farming, dismissed Mr. Lynas’s views and said that GM crops require extra herbicides and dearer seeds while producing more resistant weeds and pests.
Mr. Lynas’s speech spotlights a growing tension within the environmental movement over how far to embrace technologies that have environmental benefits, when they work, but which raise fears of environmental disaster if they don’t. Mr. Lynas makes the point that greens are happy to accept scientific findings when it comes to climate change, but dismiss them as biased when they attribute benefits to GM.
Mr. Lynas’s speech also added intriguing twists to an old debate. As he pointed out, regulatory delays introduced as a result of anti-GM movements are getting longer. Many GM crops have been waiting a decade or more for approval. And this has a cost. Mr. Lynas quotes figures from Crop Life, a Brussels based agricultural-technology association, which show that it now costs $139 million to move from discovering a new crop trait to full commercialization. That means only big companies can afford to do it, says Mr. Lynas.
Once, criticism of GM crops advanced on all fronts: these things were unnatural, an abuse of science; they would be bad for human health and so forth. The scientific fears have so far proved groundless. The main burden of complaint now seems to be that GM technology is a product of large companies which are unresponsive to public concerns. There is obviously much to be said for and against that charge. But for the moment it is worth noting two things. First, how much narrower the complaint is than the anti-GM criticism of only a few years ago. And second, as Mr. Lynas himself points out, how much critics of the technology have themselves contributed to the dominance of large firms, by raising the cost of developing GM crops so high.
Which of the following can be inferred from the last paragraph?
选项
A、GM foods have so far proved good for human health.
B、The critics are committed to the dominance of large firms.
C、The target of GM criticism has changed dramatically.
D、Big corporations ignore public concerns over GM issues.
答案
C
解析
推断题。文章最后一段指出批评者曾经对于转基因技术是毫不留情,而如今他们批评的焦点大变(从转基因食品和作物本身转向外在情况);指责垄断转基因技术的大公司对公众的顾虑毫不关心。因此答案为C项。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/Ol1Z777K
0
考研英语一
相关试题推荐
The21stcenturyisacenturyofbiotechrevolution.【F1】Yetbeforehumanbeingsareabletofullyenjoythefruitsofthebiotec
Asthebanksterphenomenonhassoeloquentlyillustrated,Homosapiensisexquisitelysensitivetoinjustice.【F1】Manypeoplegru
NoNobelprizehasyetbeenawardedfortheinventionofanelixiroflife,buttheprizeitselfseemstobeone.That,atleast
Formostofhumanhistoryrichpeoplehadthemostleisure.Ontheotherhand,thepoorhavetypicallyworkedpersistently.Hans
Formostofhumanhistoryrichpeoplehadthemostleisure.Ontheotherhand,thepoorhavetypicallyworkedpersistently.Hans
Criticismandself-criticismisnecessary______ithelpsustofindandcorrectourmistakes.
Heneverhesitatestomakesuchcriticism______isconsideredhelpfultoothers.
Communitycancerclustersareviewedquitedifferentlybycitizenactiviststhanbyepidemiologists.Environmentalistsandconce
随机试题
室性心动过速最常见的病因是
EnglishandEnglishCommunityThereisnodenyingthatEnglishisausefullanguage.ThepeoplewhospeakEnglishtodaymake
膀胱结石的典型症状是:
患者,男,30岁。因慢性肾小球肾炎入院。目前主要临床表现为眼睑及双下肢轻度水肿,血压150/100mmHg。护士观察病情中应重点关注()。
信用期限越长,企业坏账损失越小。()
道路交通事故是指车辆在道路上因过错或者意外造成的人身伤亡或者财产损失的事件。其中“道路”,是指公路、城市道路和虽在单位管辖范围但允许社会机动车通行的地方,包括广场、公共停车场等用于公众通行的场所。“车辆”,是指机动车和非机动车。“非机动车”,是指以人力或者
将以下6个句子重新排列,语序正确的是()。①子代体细胞中的这24条染色体,按形态结构来分,两两成对,共12对,每对染色体中的一条来自父方,另一条来自母方②蝗虫子代体细胞中的染色体数目,与双亲的体细胞染色体数目一样
Homeconstructionmightbe________,butindustrialconstruction—officebuildings,schools,airports,bridges—ispoisedforgrowt
大多数孩子很难解释清楚一个表示他当前看不到或摸不着的物体的词的具体含义。但是,这些孩子却能够很好地运用这些词来表达他们的意图和情感。可见,懂得一个词的意思并非一定要依赖于对这个词的含义做出清楚的解释。以下哪项原则如果被接受,能够为上述结论提供最好的理由?
A、Flowerywordsarethemostshiningpointofpoetry.B、Flowerywordsaren’tanabsolutenecessityforpoetry.C、Onecanwritep
最新回复
(
0
)