In recent years a new farming revolution has begun, one that involves the【21】______ of lif
In recent years a new farming revolution has begun, one that involves the 【21】______ of life at a fundamental level—the gene. The study of genetics has 【22】______ a new industry called biotechnology. As the name suggest, it 【23】______ biology and modem technology through such techniques as genetic engineering. Some of the new biotech companies specialize in agriculture and are working feverishly to 【24】______ seeds that give a high yield, that 【25】______ diseases, drought and frost, and that reduce the need for 【26】______ chemicals. If such goals could be achieved, it would be most 【27】______ . But some have raised concerns about genetically engineered crops.
In nature, genetic diversity is created within certain 【28】______ . A rose can be crossed with a different kind of rose, but a rose will never cross with a potato. Genetic engineering, 【29】______ usually involves taking genes from one species and inserting them into another 【30】______ to transfer a desired Characteristic. This could mean, for example, selecting a gene which leads to the production of a chemical with antifreeze 【31】______ from an artic fish, and inserting it into a potato or strawberry to make it frost-resistant. 【32】______ , then, biotechnology allows humans to 【33】______ the genetic walls that separate species.
Like the green revolution, 【34】______ some call the gene revolution contributes to the problem of genetic uniformity—some say even more so 【35】______ geneticists can employ techniques such as cloning and 【36】______ culture(培养), processes that produce perfectly 【37】______ copies. Concerns about the erosion of biodiversity, therefore, remain. Genetically altered plants, however, raise new 【38】______ , such as the effects that they may have on us and the environment. "We are flying blindly into a 【39】______ of agricultural biotechnology with high hopes, few constraints, and little idea of the potential 【40】______ ," said science writer Jeremy Rifkin.
【21】
A.manipulation
B.management
C.manufacture
D.maturity