Question

 Ever since they were first put on the market in the early 1990s,genetically modified (GM, 转基因) foods have been increasingly developed and marketed in many countries in the word,mainly on the basis of their promise to end the worldwide food crisis. But can GM technology solve world hunger problems? Even if it would,is it the best solution?

  Despite what it promises,GM technology actually has not increased the production potential of any crop. In fact studies show that the most widely grown GM crop,GM soybeans,has suf?fered reduced productivity. For instance,a report that analyzed nearly two decades of research on major GM food crops shows that GM engineering has failed to significantly increase US crop production.

  Something else,however,has been on the rise. While GM seeds are expensive,GM com?panies tell farmers that they will make good profits by saving money on pesticides (杀虫剂) .On the contrary,US government data show that GM crops in the US have produced an overall in?crease in pesticide use compared to traditional crops. "The promise was that you could use less chemicals and boost production. But neither is true," said Bill Christison,President of the US National Farm Coalition.

  At the same lime,the authors of the book World Hunger; Twelve Myths argue that there actually is more than enough food in the world and that the hunger crisis is not caused by pro?duction,but by problems in food distribution and politics. These indeed deserve our efforts and money. Meanwhile,the rise in food prices results from the increased use of crops for fuel rather than food,according to a 2008 World Bank report.

  As a matter of fact,scientists see better ways to feed the world. Another World Bank re?port concluded that GM crops have little to offer to the challenges of worldwide poverty and hunger,because better ways out are available,among which "green" fanning is supposed to be the first choice.

(   ) 1. The author develops the second paragraph mainly         .

   A. by classification   B. by comparison

   C. by example   D. by process

(   ) 2. What does the underlined word "boost" in the third paragraph probably mean?

   A. Control. B. Evaluate. C. Obtain. D. Increase.

(   ) 3. GM companies promise farmers that they will benefit from         .

   A. practicing " green" farming

   B. less use of chemicals

   C. fair distribution of their crops

   D. using more crops for fuel

(   ) 4. Which of the following best describes the attitude of the author towards GM technology?

   A. Optimistic. B. Defensive.

   C. Disapproving. D. Casual.

Answer 1

1-4   CDBC      

A篇：本文是一篇议论文，就转基因技术到底是否提高作物的产量进行议论。

1. C本题考查的是对文章写法的分析能力。本段开头提出"转基因技术没有提髙作物产量"的观点，紧接着用事例证明这一观点。因此选C：。而A选项是"通过分类"；B选项是"通过比较"；D选项是"通过过程"。

2. D此题的词义推测是根据上文的less chem?icals推断的。转基因技术承诺"更少的化学物品"，与之并列的应为"增加产量"。

3. B这是一道细节理解题。文章第三段第四行引号中的话说明B答案是正确的。

A选项的"green"farming是更好地解决世界贫困和饥饿问题的方法，而不是指转基因技术;C选项在第四段，是饥饿问题的根源;而D选项在第四段最后一句,是食物价格上涨的原因，而与转基因技术的好处无关。

4. C这道题考查对作者态度的判断。文章第二段明确提出转基因技术并没有增加产量，第三段说增加了杀虫剂的使用，最后一段说转基因技术没能帮助解决世界贫困和饥饿问题，因此看出作者对这一技术的态度是否定的，不赞同的，故选C答案，"不赞同"。而A 选项为"乐观的",B选项为"防范的"，D选项为"不在乎的"。