高二英语课外阅读

高二英语课外阅读材料（1）

（1）DNA—the Secret of Life

Part One

On February 28,1953, two scientists named James Watson and Francis Crick astonished the scientific community by saying, “We have discovered the secret of life.” It was true. Crick and Watson had found the answer to one of the most important questions of biology—how do living things reproduce themselves?

The answer is in a chemical in the human body called DNA. Every cell in our bodies contains our genes, which pass hereditary characteristics on to our children. Genes are made of the chemical DNA. Watson and Crick had succeeded in understanding the structure of DNA and how genes are able to reproduce themselves. The discovery of DNA has been called the most important biological work of the last 100 years. It has already had and will continue to have an enormous influence on our lives. We have already experienced the benefits in many areas.

Part Two

Story A

Ten years ago John Waters killed a man. Although the police questioned him, they did not arrest him. As a result, until recently Waters was a free man. But when he committed the murder, Waters left some of his own cells on his victim. Two months ago, scientists decided to examine these cells. They compared the DNA from these cells with the DNA of people they had questioned. John Waters’s DNA matched exactly. Waters is now in prison. Should DNA testing be made a standard procedure in criminal investigations?

Story B

Mike Heathers is a young, successful businessman. He and his wife, Julia, decided to have children. Mike and Julia visited a surgeon and told him they wanted a good-looking, very intelligent child. Two months later Julia had a small but very expensive operation, using a technology called genetic engineering. Nine months later, a highly intelligent, good-looking baby was born. But what about all those who cannot afford to pay for this operation?

Story C

Mark Sawyer is a top athlete, and he wants to stay that way. About six months ago, Mark secretly visited a surgeon, who performed an operation on him. During the operation, the surgeon inserted an animal gene into Mark that would make him run faster. After that Mark

won all his races. He’s a world champion again—but should he be?

Story D

Damian Peterson and his wife Clara are another couple that want to have children. But it is very likely that their child will be born with a terrible inherited illness. If so, the child will not live long. When Clara became pregnant, hospital tests showed that her child would have his illness. The couple decided to get rid of the unborn baby. Should this be allowed? Part Three

Watson and Crick’s discovery about DNA was the beginning of enormous advances in the field of genetics. We can see the results in the world today. Stories A and D have actually happened many times. Stories B and C will become possible in the near future.

The new technology of genetic engineering means that scientists will soon be able to insert new genes into unborn babies, children or adults. These new genes will create new characteristics. The unborn baby will be cleverer. The adult will be able to run faster. A new future is approaching. But do we want it? Where are these scientific developments taking us?

If we start choosing the characteristics of our babies, we are altering nature in a very direct way. What might the consequences be? It is possible that we will create two kinds of people, genetically engineered people and ordinary people. And do we want to get rid of unborn babies because they have certain diseases or characteristics? On the other hand, we may soon be able to get rid of the disease---but keep the baby! Wouldn’t that be wonderful? But what about the athlete who secretly changes his genes? How will we know if someone has done this?

Genetics is a science that has already caused and will cause great changes in our lives. As a result, there are many important issues to discuss. Let us hope that we can find the right answers.

参考生词：

hereditary /h red t ri/ adj.遗传的

question / kwest n/ v. 盘问，审问，询问

investigation /in vesti gei n/ n. 调查

alter / o lt / v. 使变样，改变

consequence / konsikw ns/ n. 结果，影响

阅读任务：

Task 1: Read part 1 of the passage and answer the questions.