现代农林英语-转基因植物-Reading-Exercises翻译-教学内容

现代农林英语-转基因植物-R e a d i n g-

E x e r c i s e s翻译-

GM Crops:Food of Future?

转基因作物：未来的粮食？

Genetically-modified crops have made a big splash in the news lately.

转基因作物最近在新闻中引起很大轰动。

During the Oxford Farming Conference, held in London early this month, the British government’s chief scientist, Professor John Beddington, warned that Britain must embrace genetically-modified(GM) crops and cutting-edge developments to avoid catastrophic food shortages and future climate change (The Guardian, 7January 2010). 本月初，在伦敦举行的牛津农业会议上，英国政府首席科学家John Beddington

教授警告说，为了避免灾难性的食物短缺和未来气候变化英国必须接受转基因

作物和发展前沿（卫报，7january 2010）。

This announcement came under fire from farmers, academics and environmental groups.

这一通告受到农民、学术界和环保组织的强烈批评（攻击）。

They fear that GM seeds will erode traditional farmers’ rights and practices, contaminate seed supplies, and increase farmers’ dependence on private monopolized agricultural resources.

他们担心转基因种子会侵蚀传统农民的权利和做法，污染种子供应，增加农民

对私人垄断农业资源的依赖。

In recent years, hundreds of millions of acres around the world (the US tops the list followed by Canada) have been planted with GM seeds.

近年来，世界各地有数亿英亩土地(美国位居首位，其次是加拿大)已经种植了

转基因种子。

These seeds derived from organisms whose DNA has been modified through genetic engineering.

这些种子来源于通过基因工程改造DNA的生物体。

They are altered using lab techniques that make a particular crop drought-

tolerant,resistant to pests, or richer in a particular nutrient.

它们通过实验室技术改变作物，使作物具有耐旱性、抗虫性，或者在特定营养

物质中更丰富。

There are many concerns about GM foods, including issues relating to health, the environment and contamination.

人们对转基因食品有许多担忧，包括与健康、环境和污染有关的问题。Environmentalists and farmers fear that genetically-engineered insect-resistant crops could harm beneficial insects and upset-ecosystem balances.

环保人士和农民害怕转基因抗虫作物会伤害有益的昆虫，破坏生态平衡。Some scientists share their concern that genes inserted into plant or animal foods may inadvertently create new allergens (substances that cause allergies in some individuals) or toxins.

一些科学家也担心植入动物或植物中的基因可能无意中产生新的过敏原（引起

某些人过敏的物质）或者毒素。

There are also concerns about the overall threat to the seed diversity and the healthy diversity of our food supply.

也有人担心对种子多样性的全面威胁以及事物供应的健康多样性

Climate change and its current and potential impacts on food supplies have an increasing profile globally.

气候变化及其现状和食物的潜在影响在全球有越来越多的情况(侧面信息) Increasing global population and urbanization combined with the need to combat climate change, means the world will need to produce more food over the next decades, using less land, less water, less fertilizer and less pesticide.

随着全球人口和城市化的增加以及应对气候变化的需要，世界将需要在未来几

十年中用更少的土地、更少的水、量少的农药来生产更多的粮食。

In the race to tackle the problems of climate change, a growing number of countries are viewing GM crops as a vital tool for feeding a growing world population from a limited supply of agricultural land.

在应对气候变化问题的竞赛中，越来越多的国家把转基因作物看作是从有限的

农业供应量中养活日益增长的世界人口的一个重要工具。

According to Eldis, a database and email service of information source on international development, ‘Transgenic crops, with a traits like drought-tolerance or the ability to use nitrogen more efficiently, are proposed as vital tools to enable farmers to adapt to a warmer,direr climate.’