Text2
When a disease of epidemic proportions rips into the populace， scientists immediately get to work， trying to locate the source of the affliction and find ways to combat it. Oftentimes， success is achieved， as medical science is able to isolate the parasite， germ or cell that causes the problem and finds ways to effectively kill or contain it. In the most serious of cases， in which the entire population of a region or country may be at grave risk， it is deemed necessary to protect the entire population through vaccination， so as to safeguard lives and ensure that the disease will not spread.
The process of vaccination allows the patient‘s body to develop immunity to the virus or disease so that， if it is encountered， one can ward it off naturally. To accomplish this， a small weak or dead strain of the disease is actually injected into the patient in a controlled environment， so that his body’s immune system can learn to fight the invader properly. Information on how to penetrate the disease‘s defenses is transmitted to all elements of the patient’s immune system in a process that occurs naturally， in which genetic information is passed from cell to cell. This makes sure that， should the patient later come into contact with the real problem， his body is well equipped and trained to deal with it， having already done so before.
There are dangers inherent in the process， however. On occasion， even the weakened version of the disease contained in the vaccine proves too much for the body to handle， resulting in the immune system succumbing， and， therefore， the patient‘s death. Such is the case of the smallpox vaccine， designed to eradicate the smallpox epidemic that nearly wiped out the entire Native American population and killed massive numbers of settlers. Approximately 1 in 10，000 people who receives the vaccine contract the smallpox disease from the vaccine itself and dies from it. Thus， if the entire population of the United States were to receive the Smallpox Vaccine today， 3000 Americans would be left dead.
Fortunately， the smallpox virus was considered eradicated in the early 1970s， ending the mandatory vaccination of all babies in America. In the event of a reintroduction of the disease， however， mandatory vaccinations may resume， resulting in more unexpected deaths from vaccination. The process， which is truly a mixed blessing， may indeed hide some hidden curses.
26.The best title for the text may be
[A] “Vaccinations: A Blessing or A Curse”
[B] “Principles of Vaccinations”
[C] “Vaccines: Methods and Implications”
[D] “A Miracle Cure Under Attack”
27.What does the example of the Smallpox Vaccine illustrate?
[A] The possible negative outcome of administering vaccines
[B] The practical use of a vaccine to control an epidemic disease
[C] The effectiveness of vaccines in eradicating certain disease.
[D] The method by which vaccines are employed against the disease.
28.The phrase “ward it off naturally” (Paragraph 2) most probably means
[A] dispose of it naturally [B] fight it off with ease
[C] see to it reluctantly [D] split it up properly
29.Which of the following is true according to the text?
[A] Saving the majority would necessarily justify the death of the minority
[B] The immune system can be trained to fight weaker versions of a disease.
[C] Mandatory vaccinations are indispensable to the survival of the populace.
[D] The process of vaccination remains a mystery to be further resolved.
30.The purpose of the author in writing this passage is
[A] to comment and criticize
[B] to demonstrate and argue
[C] to interest and entertain
[D] to explain and inform
Text3
The Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday that it is trying to track down as many as 386 piglets that may have been genetically engineered and wrongfully sold into the U.S. food supply.
The focus of the FDA investigation is pigs raised by researchers at the University of Illinois in Urbana Champaign. They engineered the animals with two genes： One is a cow gene that increases milk production in the sow. The other， a synthetic gene， makes the milk easier for piglets to digest. The goal was to raise bigger pigs faster.
There has been no evidence that either genetically altered plants or animals actually trigger human illness， but critics warn that potential side effects remain unknown. University officials say their tests showed the piglets were not born with the altered genes， but FDA rules require even the offspring of genetically engineered animals to be destroyed so they don‘t get into the food supply.
The FDA， in a quickly arranged news conference Wednesday prompted by inquiries by USA TODAY， said the University of Illinois will face possible sanctions and fines for selling the piglets to a livestock broker， who in turn sells to processing plants.
Both the FDA and the university say the pigs that entered the market do not pose a risk to consumers. But the investigation follows action by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in December to fine a Texas company that contaminated 500，000 bushels of soybeans with corn that had been genetically altered to produce a vaccine for pigs.
Critics see such cases as evidence of the need for more government oversight of a burgeoning area of scientific research. “This is a small incident， but it‘s incident like this that could destroy consumer confidence and export confidence， ”says Stephanie Childs of the Grocery Manufacturers of America. “We already have Europe shaky on biotech. The countries to whom we export are going to look at this.”
The University of Illinois says it tested the DNA of every piglet eight times to make sure that the animal hadn‘t inherited the genetic engineering of its mother. Those piglets that did were put back into the study. Those that didn’t were sold to the pig broker. “Any pig who‘s tested negative for the genes since 1999 has been sent off to market， ”says Charles Zukoski， vice chancellor for research.
But FDA deputy commissioner Lester Crawford says that under the terms of the university‘s agreement with the FDA， the researchers were forbidden to remove the piglets without FDA approval. “The University of Illinois failed to check with FDA to see whether or not the animals could be sold on the open market. And they were not to be used under any circumstance for food.”
The FDA is responsible for regulating and overseeing transgenic animals because such genetic manipulation is considered an unapproved animal drug.
31. The 386 piglets wrongfully sold into food supply are from
[A] Europe
[B] an American research organization
[C] a meat processing plant
[D] an animal farm
32. The purpose of the transgenic engineering research is to
[A] get pigs of larger size in a shorter time
[B] make sows produce more milk
[C] make cows produce more milk
[D] make pigs grow more lean meat
33. The 4th paragraph shows that the University of Illinois
[A] was criticized by the FDA
[B] is in great trouble
[C] is required by the FDA to call back the sold piglets
[D] may have to pay the penalty
34. The FDA declares that the wrongfully sold piglets
[A] may have side effects on consumers
[B] may be harmful to consumers
[C] are safe to consumers
[D] may cause human illness
35. It can be inferred from this passage that
[A] all the offspring have their mothers’ genetic engineering
[B] part of the offspring have their mothers’ genetic engineering
[C] none of the offspring have their mothers’ genetic engineering
[D] half of the offspring have their mothers’ genetic engineering
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