考研英语阅读例题：Andmanmadelife人造生命

And man made life人造生命[2010.05.20] The Economist
TO CREATE life is the prerogative of gods. Deep in the human psyche, whatever the rational
pleadings of physics and chemistry, there exists a sense that biology is different, is more than just
the sum of atoms moving about and reacting with one another, is somehow infused with a divine
spark, a vital essence. It may come as a shock, then, that mere mortals have now made artificial
life.
Craig Venter and Hamilton Smith, the two American biologists who unravelled the first DNA
sequence of a living organism (a bacterium) in 1995, have made a bacterium that has an artificial
genome—creating a living creature with no ancestor (see article). Pedants may quibble that only
the DNA of the new beast was actually manufactured in a laboratory; the researchers had to use
the shell of an existing bug to get that DNA to do its stuff. Nevertheless, a Rubicon has been
crossed. It is now possible to conceive of a world in which new bacteria (and eventually, new
animals and plants) are designed on a computer and then grown to order.
profound than even the
That ability would prove mankind’s mastery over nature in a way more
detonation of the first atomic bomb. The bomb, however justified in the context of the second
world war, was purely destructive. Biology is about nurturing and growth. Synthetic biology, as
the technology that this and myriad less eye-catching advances are ushering in has been dubbed,
promises much. In the short term it promises better drugs, less thirsty crops (see article), greener
fuels and even a rejuvenated chemical industry. In the longer term who knows what marvels could
be designed and grown?
On the face of it, then, artificial life looks like a wonderful thing. Yet that is not how many will
view the announcement. For them, a better word than “creation” is “tampering”. Have scien got too big for their boots? Will their hubris bring Nemesis in due course? What horrors will come
creeping out of the flask on the laboratory bench?
Such questions are not misplaced—and should give pause even to those, including this newspaper,
who normally embrace advances in science with enthusiasm. The new biological science does
have the potential to do great harm, as well as good. “Predator” and “disease” are just as much part of the biological vocabulary as “nurturing”　
But for good or ill it is here.
and “growth”.
Creating life is no longer the prerogative of gods.
1 In paragraph one, the author implies that to create life is .
A against God’s will
B against people’s religious right
C gods’ privilege
D a proof of men’s power
2 The statement “a Rubicon has been crossed” in paragraph two means that .
A the researchers have violated the law of the nature
B the researchers has solved the problem caused by Rubicon
C the researchers have overcome the protest from religious people
D the researchers have taken their decision and will never change
3 The author cites the example of the first atomic bomb to imply .
A mankind’s mastery over the nature
B the potential danger of creating life
C the harm brought about by scientific development
D the differences between physics and biology
4 In the last paragraph, the author urges people to .
A applaud warmly for scientific development
B give due support to advances in creating life
C think twice about the influence of creating life
D accept whatever is good or ill in existence
5 According to the passage, the author holds a attitude towards creating life.
A supportive
B detached
C biased
D suspicious
考研词汇
divine[d??va?n] a.神的，神圣的，非凡的，超人的，非常可爱的；n.牧师
conceive[k?n?siv] v.①（of）设想，构思，想象；②以为；③怀胎，怀有
profound[pr??fa?nd a.①深刻的，意义深远的；②渊博的，造诣深的
［真题例句］ But the environment must also have a profound (①) effect, since if competition is important to the parents, it is likely to become a major factor in
the lives of their children.［1995年阅读4］
［例句精译］但环境也一定对性格有深刻的影响，因为如果竞争对父母来说很重要的话，
那它也可能成为孩子生活中的一个重要因素。

［真题例句］ 56.What do American parents expect their children to acquire in school?［2004年阅读4］
［B］ Profound (②) knowledge of the world.
［例句精译］ 56美国的父母期望他们的孩子在学校获得什么？
［B］深谙世事。

artificial[?ɑrt??f???l] a.①人工的，人造的；②人为的，娇揉造作的
［真题例句］ Indeed the quest for true artificial (①) intelligence has produced
very mixed results.［2002年阅读2］
［例句精译］实际上对真正的人工智能的追求已经产生了各种各样的效果。

［真题例句］ The casual friendliness of many A mericans should be interpreted neither as superficial nor as artificial (②), but as the result of a historically developed cultural tradition.［1997年阅读2］
［例句精译］很多美国人不经意表现的友好不应被看做是表面或虚假的应酬，而应该看成
是文化传统历史发展的结果
embrace[?m?bres] v.①拥抱；②包含
［真题例句］ In the American economy, the concept of private property embraces (②) not only the ownership of productive resources but also certain rights, including
the right to determine the price of a product or to make a free contract with another private individual.［1994年阅读1］
［例句精译］在美国经济中，私有财产的概念不仅包括生产资料的所有权，也包括一定的
权利，比如，产品价格的决定权或与其他私有个体的自由签约权。

背景常识介绍
人造生命是指从其它生命体中提取基因，建立新染色体。

随后将其嵌入已经被剔除了遗传密码的细胞之中，最终由这些人工染色体控制这个细胞，发育变成新的生命体。

2007年10月8日，美国科学家克雷格·文特尔表示，他目前已经在实验室成功地制造出一个合成的人造
染色体。

2010年5月20日，美国私立科研机构克雷格·文特尔研究所宣布世界首例人造生命——完全由人造基因控制的单细胞细菌诞生，并将“人造生命”起名为“辛西娅”。

这项具有里程碑意义的实验表明，新的生命体可以在实验室里“被创造”，而不是一定要通过
“进化”来完成。

参考译文
人造生命
造物是上帝的特权。

无论从物理还是化学的角度来说，人造生命有多么合情合理，人类内心一直有这样一种观念——生物是特殊的，它不仅仅是一定数量的原子晃来晃去相互反应
的结果，而是，神之光芒，天地之精华的融合。

现如今，卑微的人类也造物了，想必令人震
惊。

1995年，美国的两位生物学家——克瑞格·温特和汉密尔顿·史密斯，第一次解开了一个
活的有机体（一个细菌）的DNA序列。

最近，他们制造出了一个有人造基因的细菌——也就是说，他们创造了一个没有祖先的生命。

叫真的学究们可能会争辩只有新生物的DNA是实验室制造的，科学家们不得不从现已存在的昆虫的躯体中取得DNA，然后才开始造物。

然而，难题已被拿下。

现在，我们可以想象有一天，科学家们在电脑上设计新的细菌（最终
可能是新的动植物），并让它们按照程序设计的那样生长。

从某种程度上而言，这一成果比第一颗原子弹的爆炸更能证明人类对自然的掌控。

然而，
原子弹虽然有二战的庇护，其性质实则是不折不扣的破坏；生物是一门关于培育和生长的学科；合成生物学前景广阔，作为一门科学技术现已运用于人造生命以及无数的和人造生命相
比不是那么引人注目的科学发展中。

从短期来看，合成生物学有助于研发更好的药品、耐旱作物、清洁能源，甚至是用于振兴化工业。

从长期来看，谁知道会有什么奇迹诞生并发展呢？
乍看起来，人造生命是个好东西。

然而，这并不是多数人的看法，他们认为，比起“创造”，“干涉”这个词更好。

科学家们是不是太自负了呢？他们的自负会不会招致惩罚呢？实验台上
的烧瓶里会产生什么样的噩梦呢？
这些问题不是杞人忧天——对于那些像本刊这样，一直满怀热情支持科技进步的人们来
说，也应该停下来好好想想。

生物学的新进展确实可能在带来进步的同时，带来巨大的伤害。

是“捕食”，“疾病”还是“养育”，“生长”在生物学上都是均等的。

但是，好也罢，坏也罢，人造生命已是既成事实。

创造生命不再是上帝的特权。