Advanced English Reading and Comprehension

Genetically modiied organisms: Breadbasket or Pandora’s box? 53

3. Paragraph 4
   a. Researchers at Stanford University succeeded in splicing DNA fragments in 1972.
   b. Research in molecular biology made it possible for scientists to identify, splice, and
   duplicate DNA.


4. Paragraph 5
   a. The irst transgenic mouse appeared on the cover of Nature magazine in 1982.
   b. The U.S. government supported genetic engineering by providing funding for
   research.


5. Paragraph 8
   a. Herbicides and pesticides cause serious health problems, such as neurotoxicity,
   disruption of the endocrine system, immune system suppression, and cancer.
   b. GE crops are grown in monocultures.


6. Paragraph 9
   a. In 2011, France and ive other countries banned genetically modiied organisms
   on their soil.
   b. GE foods are not as strictly regulated or controlled as additives and preservatives.
   Now, scan the rest of the reading text and highlight the essential details.

Critical thinking

4 · 11

EXERCISE

Making evaluationsIndicate which of the following uses of genetic engineering

you support (✓) and which you do not support (X). Give reasons to support your

answers.

1. Creating a peanut that doesn’t cause an allergic reaction


2. Creating larger fruits and vegetables in diferent colors and shapes


3. Creating fruits, such as peaches or cherries, that don’t have stones or pits


4. Improving or changing the taste of unpopular foods, such as spinach


5. Producing animals, such as pigs, with less fat


6. Producing animals and plants that carry vaccines and drugs


7. Creating giant animals that produce more meat


8. Injecting seeds with pesticides and herbicides so that crops do not have to be
   sprayed