经济学人503:转基因作物 遭受捣毁

 　　Leaders

　　头条关注

　　Genetically² modified crops

　　转基因作物

　　Fields of beaten gold

　　遭受捣毁

　　Greens say climate-change deniers are unscientific and dangerous. So are greens who oppose GM crops

　　环保主义者表示,气候变化否认者是不科学和危险的。反对转基因作物的环保主义者也同样危险.

　　IN AUGUST environmentalists in the Philippines vandalised a field of Golden Rice, an experimental grain whose genes³ had been modified to carry beta-carotene, a chemical precursor⁴ of vitamin A.

　　8月，环保主义者在菲律宾蓄意破坏了一片金大米田地, 金大米是一种实验性的谷物，其基因被修改为维生素a的化学前体b胡萝卜素。

　　Golden Rice is not produced by a corporate⁵ behemoth but by the public sector⁶.

　　金大米不是由企业巨头,而是公共部门种植的。

　　Its seeds will be handed out free to farmers.

　　它的种子将免费发放给农民。

　　The aim is to improve the health of children in poor countries by reducing vitamin A deficiency, which contributes to hundreds of thousands of premature⁷ deaths and cases of blindness each year.

　　用于改善贫困国家儿童的健康状况，缓解这些儿童的维生素A缺乏情况, 每年都会10%以上的人因缺乏维生素过早死亡和失明。

　　Environmentalists claim that these sorts of actions are justified⁸ because genetically modified crops pose health risks.

　　环保人士声称,此类捣毁行为是合理的, 因为转基因作物对健康构成风险。

　　Now the main ground for those claims has crumbled⁹.

　　现在，此类声称的理由已被击破。

　　Last year a paper was published in a respected journal, Food and Chemical Toxicology.

　　去年，一篇论文在权威杂志《食品与化学毒理学》上发表。

　　It found unusual rates of tumours¹⁰ and deaths in rats that had been fed upon a variety of maize¹¹ resistant¹² to a herbicide called Roundup, as a result of genetic¹ modification¹³ by Monsanto, an American plant-science firm.

　　它发现在老鼠中出现不寻常的肿瘤和死亡状况，而这些老鼠被喂食过一种玉米，此种玉米是, 美国植物科学公司生产的转基因作物，对草甘膦农药具有抵抗力。

　　Other studies found no such effects, but this one enabled campaigners to make a health-and-safety argument against GM crops—one persuasive¹⁴ enough to influence governments.

　　其他研究并没有发现此种的影响。然而，此文章致使倡议人士以健康与安全问题为理由反对转基因作物，甚至对政府也产生了影响。

　　After the study appeared, Russia suspended imports of the grain in question. Kenya banned all GM crops.

　　这项研究发表之后, 俄罗斯暂停进口存在疑虑的粮食。肯尼亚禁止了所有的转基因作物。

　　And the French prime minister said that if the results were confirmed he would press for a Europe-wide ban on the GM maize.

　　法国总理表示, 如果结果得到证实, 他将敦促欧洲禁止转基因玉米。

　　But the methodology of the study, by Gilles-Eric Seralini of the University of Caen and colleagues, was widely criticised and, on November 28th, the journal retracted¹⁵ the paper.

　　但是卡昂大学的塞拉利尼和他的同事们这项研究的方法论,被广泛批评。 11月28日,《食品与化学毒理学》撤销该论文。

　　There is now no serious scientific evidence that GM crops do any harm to the health of human beings.。

　　现在没有足够的科学证据表明,转基因作物对人类的健康有任何危害。

　　There is plenty of evidence, though, that they benefit the health of the planet.

　　然而，却有大量的证据表明，转基因作物可以造福于人类的健康。

　　One of the biggest challenges facing mankind is to feed the 9 billion-10 billion people who will be alive and richer in 2050.

　　人类面临的最大挑战之一是到2050年，人们有粮食可吃以及有充足的食物。

　　This will require doubling food production on roughly the same area of land, using less water and fewer chemicals.

　　这将需要在大致相同面积的土地上使用更少的水和更少的化学物质生产出高达两倍的粮食。

　　It will also mean making food crops more resistant to the droughts and floods that seem likely if climate change is a bad as scientists fear.

　　这也将意味着倘若气候变化如科学家们担心的那样糟糕，粮食作物要更耐旱和洪涝。

　　Organic farming—the kind beloved of greens—cannot meet this challenge. It uses far too much land.

　　有机作物-环保主义者钟爱的作物，不能承受这种挑战。它需要太多的土地。

　　If the Green revolution had never happened, and yields had stayed at 1960 levels, the world could not produce its current food output even if it ploughed up every last acre of cultivable land.

　　如果绿色革命从未发生过, 粮食产量一直停留在1960年的水平, 人类即使利用每一英亩的可耕种的土地，也不能产生出目前的粮食产量。

　　In contrast, GM crops boost yields, protecting wild habitat from the plough.

　　相比之下,转基因作物可以提高粮食产量,保护野生栖息地不遭受开垦。

　　They are more resistant to the vagaries¹⁶ of climate change, and to diseases and pests, reducing the need for agrochemicals.

　　他们更能承受变幻莫测的气候变化，疾病和害虫,减少对农药依赖性。

　　Genetic research holds out the possibility of breakthroughs that could vastly increase the productivity of farming, such as grains that fix their own nitrogen.

　　遗传研究给大大提高农业的生产力带来了突破的可能性, 例如谷物可以修复自己的氮。

　　Vandalising GM field trials is a bit like the campaign of some religious leaders to prevent smallpox¹⁷ inoculations: it causes misery¹⁸, even death, in the name of obscurantism and unscientific belief.

　　捣毁转基因试验田和一些宗教运动的领袖防止天花接种有点像: 它以蒙昧主义和信仰不科学的名义会造成痛苦,甚至死亡。

　　Follow your principles

　　遵循你的原则

　　America takes little notice of this nonsense.

　　美国需要很少关注此类无稽之谈。

　　But green groups in Europe, with the support of influential¹⁹ figures such as Prince Charles, have succeeded in shaping policy.

　　但在欧洲，环保组织在查尔斯王子等具有影响力的人士的支持下,已经成功地塑造了政策。

　　Governments have hedged genetic research around with so many restrictions²⁰ that much of the business has fled a continent that could be doing more than most to feed the world.

　　政府限制了遗传研究, 大部分业务已经逃离欧洲大陆。

　　Some developing countries—Kenya, India and others—have turned their backs on technologies that could literally²¹ save their peoples’ lives.

　　一些发展中国家肯尼亚、印度等国也对此项能够挽救人民的生命的技术嗤之以鼻。

　　And European governments spend taxpayers’ money financing groups encouraging them to do so.

　　欧洲政府花纳税人的钱资助团体鼓励他们这样做。

　　The group in the Philippines that trashed the rice trials, MASIPAG, gets money from the Swedish government.

　　菲律宾的组织,破坏了瑞典政府出资的MASIPAG水稻试验田。

　　On moral, economic and environmental grounds, this must stop.

　　无论是从道德、经济和环境上来说 ,此类举动都必须停止。

　　1.hand out 分发；拿出

　　They said that excellent companies actively²² look for excuses to hand out rewards.

　　他们在书中说道卓越公司积极寻找理由去分发奖金。

　　Plans were under way at his center to hand out maps so people would understand which areas were at risk.

　　他所在的研究中心当时也开始制定向民众分发地图的计划，好让人们知道哪些地区存在风险。

　　2.contribute to 有助于,促进

　　Such actions would contribute to the desired structural²³ transition.

　　此类举措将有助于实现中国渴望的结构转型。

　　They also may contribute to preventing severe disease and death.

　　这些药物还可有助于预防严重疾病和死亡。

　　3.such as 例如；譬如；诸如

　　What about future steps such as euro bonds?

　　诸如欧元联盟之类的未来计划怎样？

　　Imaginary problems such as these are usually hiding real ones.

　　像这样的臆想的问题通常隐藏真实性的。

1 genetic   

adj.遗传的，遗传学的

参考例句：

• It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
• Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。

2 genetically   

adv.遗传上

参考例句：

• All the bees in the colony are genetically related. 同一群体的蜜蜂都有亲缘关系。
• Genetically modified foods have already arrived on American dinner tables. 经基因改造加工过的食物已端上了美国人的餐桌。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 基因与食物

3 genes   

n.基因( gene的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You have good genes from your parents, so you should live a long time. 你从父母那儿获得优良的基因，所以能够活得很长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Differences will help to reveal the functions of the genes. 它们间的差异将会帮助我们揭开基因多种功能。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术的世纪

4 precursor   

n.先驱者；前辈；前任；预兆；先兆

参考例句：

• Error is often the precursor of what is correct.错误常常是正确的先导。
• He said that the deal should not be seen as a precursor to a merger.他说该笔交易不应该被看作是合并的前兆。

5 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

6 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

7 premature   

adj.比预期时间早的；不成熟的，仓促的

参考例句：

• It is yet premature to predict the possible outcome of the dialogue.预言这次对话可能有什么结果为时尚早。
• The premature baby is doing well.那个早产的婴儿很健康。

8 justified   

a.正当的，有理的

参考例句：

• She felt fully justified in asking for her money back. 她认为有充分的理由要求退款。
• The prisoner has certainly justified his claims by his actions. 那个囚犯确实已用自己的行动表明他的要求是正当的。

9 crumbled   

（把…）弄碎， （使）碎成细屑( crumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 衰落； 坍塌； 损坏

参考例句：

• He crumbled the bread in his fingers. 他用手指把面包捻碎。
• Our hopes crumbled when the business went bankrupt. 商行破产了，我们的希望也破灭了。

10 tumours   

肿瘤( tumour的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Blood vessels develop abnormally in cancer tumours. 在癌肿瘤中血管出现不正常。
• This apparatus scans patients' brains for tumours. 这台仪器扫描检查病人的脑瘤。

11 maize   

n.玉米

参考例句：

• There's a field planted with maize behind the house.房子后面有一块玉米地。
• We can grow sorghum or maize on this plot.这块地可以种高粱或玉米。

12 resistant   

adj.(to)抵抗的，有抵抗力的

参考例句：

• Many pests are resistant to the insecticide.许多害虫对这种杀虫剂有抵抗力。
• They imposed their government by force on the resistant population.他们以武力把自己的统治强加在持反抗态度的人民头上。

13 modification   

n.修改，改进，缓和，减轻

参考例句：

• The law,in its present form,is unjust;it needs modification.现行的法律是不公正的，它需要修改。
• The design requires considerable modification.这个设计需要作大的修改。

14 persuasive   

adj.有说服力的，能说得使人相信的

参考例句：

• His arguments in favour of a new school are very persuasive.他赞成办一座新学校的理由很有说服力。
• The evidence was not really persuasive enough.证据并不是太有说服力。

15 retracted   

v.撤回或撤消( retract的过去式和过去分词 )；拒绝执行或遵守；缩回；拉回

参考例句：

• He made a false confession which he later retracted. 他作了假供词，后来又翻供。
• A caddy retracted his statement. 一个球童收回了他的话。 来自辞典例句

16 vagaries   

n.奇想( vagary的名词复数 )；异想天开；异常行为；难以预测的情况

参考例句：

• The vagaries of fortune are indeed curious.\" 命运的变化莫测真是不可思议。” 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• The vagaries of inclement weather conditions are avoided to a certain extent. 可以在一定程度上避免变化莫测的恶劣气候影响。 来自辞典例句

17 smallpox   

n.天花

参考例句：

• In 1742 he suffered a fatal attack of smallpox.1742年，他染上了致命的天花。
• Were you vaccinated against smallpox as a child?你小时候打过天花疫苗吗？

18 misery   

n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦

参考例句：

• Business depression usually causes misery among the working class.商业不景气常使工薪阶层受苦。
• He has rescued me from the mire of misery.他把我从苦海里救了出来。

19 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

20 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

21 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

22 actively   

adv.积极地，勤奋地

参考例句：

• During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
• We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。

23 structural   

adj.构造的，组织的，建筑（用）的

参考例句：

• The storm caused no structural damage.风暴没有造成建筑结构方面的破坏。
• The North American continent is made up of three great structural entities.北美大陆是由三个构造单元组成的。