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PamelaRonald_2015-_改造我们的食物的案例_
I am a plant geneticist . 我是一个植物遗传学家。
geneticist:n.遗传学者;
I study genes that make plants resistant to disease and tolerant of stress. 我研究一些能使植物抵抗疾病 和耐抗压的基因。
genes:n.基因;(gene的复数) resistant:adj.抵抗的,反抗的;顽固的;n.抵抗者; disease:n.病,[医]疾病;弊病;vt.传染;使…有病; tolerant:adj.宽容的;容忍的;有耐药力的;
In recent years, millions of people around the world have come to believe that there's something sinister about genetic modification . 在最近几年来, 世界上成千上万的人相信 转基因改造存在灾害性。
sinister:adj.阴险的;凶兆的;灾难性的;左边的; modification:n.修改;改进;改变;
Today, I am going to provide a different perspective . 今天,我将要提出一个不同的观点。
I am going to:我将要做什么事情 perspective:n.观点;远景;透视图;adj.透视的;
First, let me introduce my husband, Raoul. 首先,让我介绍我的丈夫,拉乌尔。
He's an organic farmer. 他是一个有机农民。
organic:adj.有机的;不使用化肥的;绿色的;有机物的;n.分子有机体;
On his farm, he plants a variety of different crops. 在他的农田里,他种着各种不同的农作物。
variety:n.多样;种类;杂耍;变化,多样化;
This is one of the many ecological farming practices he uses to keep his farm healthy. 这是许多生态农业试验的其中一个 用来保持他的农田健康的实践。
ecological:adj.生态的,生态学的;
Imagine some of the reactions we get: "Really? An organic farmer and a plant geneticist? 试想一些我们会得到的反应: “真的吗？一个有机农民和一个植物遗传学家？
reactions:n.反应;回应;抗拒;生理反应;副作用(reaction的复数)
Can you agree on anything?" 你们能达成什么共识？“
Well, we can, and it's not difficult, because we have the same goal. 嗯,我们可以,而且这并不困难,因为我们有共同的目标。
We want to help nourish the growing population without further destroying the environment. 我们想帮助滋养不断增长的人口 而不进一步破坏环境。
nourish:vt.滋养;怀有;使健壮;
I believe this is the greatest challenge of our time. 我相信这是我们时代的巨大挑战。
Now, genetic modification is not new; virtually everything we eat has been genetically modified in some manner. 如今,基因改造不是新事物, 事实上我们吃的所有食物都在一定程度上 被基因改造了。
virtually:adv.事实上,几乎;实质上; genetically modified:adj.(植物等)遗传修饰的;
Let me give you a few examples. 让我来给你举几个例子。
On the left is an image of the ancient ancestor of modern corn. 左边的图片是 现代玉米的古老祖先。
You see a single roll of grain that's covered in a hard case. 你看到一行覆盖着硬壳的玉米粒。
grain:n.粮食; v.把…作成细粒;
Unless you have a hammer , teosinte isn't good for making tortillas . 除非你有一个锤子, 墨西哥类蜀黍不适用于制作墨西哥饼。
hammer:n.锤子; v.锤打; tortillas:n.墨西哥玉米粉圆饼(tortilla的复数);
Now, take a look at the ancient ancestor of banana. 现在,看一下古老的香蕉祖先。
take a look at:看一看;检查;
You can see the large seeds. 你能看到巨大的种子。
And unappetizing brussel sprouts , and eggplant , so beautiful. 和引不起食欲的芽甘蓝, 和茄子,如此美丽。
unappetizing:adj.难吃的;倒胃口的;看似难吃的; sprouts:v.发芽;生长;出现;(使)涌现出;n.新芽;嫩枝;(sprout的第三人称单数和复数) eggplant:茄子,深紫色的
Now, to create these varieties, breeders have used many different genetic techniques over the years. 如今,为了创造这些变种, 多年来培育者已经用了很多不同的基因技术。
breeders:n.饲养员(breeder的复数);增殖(反应)堆;产仔的动物; techniques:n.技巧;技艺;工艺;技术;(technique的复数)
Some of them are quite creative , like mixing two different species together using a process called grafting to create this variety that's half tomato and half potato. 其中一些是相当有创造性的, 例如利用一个叫嫁接的程序 把两种不同的品种结合在一起 来创造一个一半是蕃茄和一半是土豆的品种。
creative:adj.创造性的; mixing:n.混合;混频;录音;v.混合,掺和,融合;调配;配制;相容;(mix的现在分词) species:n.[生物]物种;种类; process:v.处理;加工;列队行进;n.过程,进行;方法,adj.经过特殊加工(或处理)的; grafting:n.嫁接法;移植法;v.[农学]嫁接;接合;接受移植(graft的ing形式);
Breeders have also used other types of genetic techniques, such as random mutagenesis , which induces uncharacterized mutations into the plants. 培育者还使用其它种类的基因技术, 例如随机突变, 能让植物产生非典型的 突变基因。
random:adj.[数]随机的;任意的;胡乱的;n.随意;adv.胡乱地; mutagenesis:n.突变形成;变异发生; induces:v.劝说;诱使;引起;引产;(induce的第三人称单数) mutations:n.[遗]突变;变化;转变(mutation的复数形式);
The rice in the cereal that many of us fed our babies was developed using this approach . 许多人用来喂婴儿的谷物大米, 就是用上述的方法改进的。
cereal:n.谷物;谷类植物;adj.谷类制成的; approach:n.方法;路径;v.接近;建议;着手处理;
Now, today, breeders have even more options to choose from. 现在,今天,培育者甚至有更多的选择。
options:n.选择; v.得到或获准进行选择; (option的三单形式)
Some of them are extraordinarily precise . 其中很多是非常精确的。
extraordinarily:adv.非常;格外地;非凡地; precise:adj.准确的;确切的;精确的;明确的;
I want to give you a couple examples from my own work. 我想从我的工作中给大家举几个例子。
I work on rice, which is a staple food for more than half the world's people. 我研究大米,这是多于全世界一半人口的主粮。
staple:n.主要产品; adj.主要的,常用的; v.把…分级;
Each year, 40 percent of the potential harvest is lost to pest and disease. 每一年,有40%的潜在粮食产量 都损失于虫害和疾病。
potential:n.潜能;可能性;[电]电势;adj.潜在的;可能的;势的;
For this reason, farmers plant rice varieties that carry genes for resistance . 为此,农民种植携带耐抗性基因的 大米品种。
resistance:n.电阻;抵抗;阻力;抗力;
This approach has been used for nearly 100 years. 这种方法已经被用了将近100年。
Yet, when I started graduate school , no one knew what these genes were. 但是,当我开始在研究院时, 还没有人知道这些基因是什么。
graduate school:研究所,研究院;
It wasn't until the 1990s that scientists finally uncovered the genetic basis of resistance. 直到90年代才有科学家最终发现 耐抗性的基因基础。
finally:adv.终于;最终;(用于列举)最后;彻底地; uncovered:adj.裸露的; v.揭开盖子; (uncover的过去式和过去分词)
In my laboratory , we isolated a gene for immunity to a very serious bacterial disease in Asia and Africa. 在我的实验室里,为了免疫一种在亚非都很严重的细菌性疾病 我们分离了一个基因。
laboratory:n.实验室,研究室; isolated:adj.偏远的; v.隔离,孤立,脱离; immunity:n.免疫力;豁免权;免除; bacterial:adj.[微]细菌的;
We found we could engineer the gene into a conventional rice variety that's normally susceptible , and you can see the two leaves on the bottom here are highly resistant to infection . 我们发现我们可以把这个基因移到一种通常容易染病的 传统大米品种, 而且你可以看到底下的两片叶子 都很好地抵抗了感染。
conventional:adj.符合习俗的,传统的;常见的;惯例的; normally:adv.正常地;通常地,一般地; susceptible:adj.易受影响的;易感动的;容许…的;n.易得病的人; highly:adv.高度地;非常;非常赞许地; infection:n.感染;传染;(身体某部位的)感染;传染病;
Now, the same month that my laboratory published our discovery on the rice immunity gene, my friend and colleague Dave Mackill stopped by my office. 现在,同一个月里我的研究室发布了 我们对大米免疫基因的发现, 我的朋友和同事 Dave Mackill 探访了我的办公室。
colleague:n.同事,同僚;
He said, "Seventy million rice farmers are having trouble growing rice." 他说:“七千万的大米农民正有种植大米的困难。”
That's because their fields are flooded, and these rice farmers are living on less than two dollars a day. 那是因为他们的农田都被洪水淹没了, 那些农民每天靠着不够2美元来生活。
Although rice grows well in standing water, most rice varieties will die if they're submerged for more than three days. 虽然大米能很好地在积水里生长, 但是如果它们被淹3天以上, 大部分的大米品种都会死掉。
submerged:adj.在水中的; v.(使)潜入水中,淹没; (submerge的过去式和过去分词)
Flooding is expected to be increasingly problematic as the climate changes. 随着天气的改变, 洪灾的发生越来越不确定。
increasingly:adv.越来越多地;渐增地; problematic:adj.问题的;有疑问的;不确定的;
He told me that his graduate student Kenong Xu and himself were studying an ancient variety of rice that had an amazing property. 他告诉我他的研究生 Kenong Xu 和他自己 正在研究一种拥有惊人性能的古老大米品种,
It could withstand two weeks of complete submergence . 它能够在被完全淹没的情况下生存两周。
withstand:vt.抵挡;禁得起;反抗;vi.反抗; submergence:n.下潜,下沉;淹没;
He asked if I would be willing to help them isolate this gene. 他问我是否愿意帮他们分离这个基因。
I said yes -- I was very excited, because I knew if we were successful, we could potentially help millions of farmers grow rice even when their fields were flooded. 我答应了他,我非常激动,因为我知道如果我们能成功, 我们可能可以帮助无数的农民种植大米, 即使他们的农田被淹没。
potentially:adv.可能地,潜在地;
Kenong spent 10 years looking for this gene. Kenong 花了10年来寻找这个基因。
Then one day, he said, "Come look at this experiment. You've got to see it." 然后有一天,他说: ”请来看看这个实验。你一定要来看。“
I went to the greenhouse and I saw that the conventional variety that was flooded for 18 days had died, but the rice variety that we had genetically engineered with a new gene we had discovered, called Sub1, was alive. 我去到温室看到 传统品种被淹18天后死了, 但是被我们通过基因改造 植入之前发现的叫 Sub 1的新基因的大米品种存活了。
greenhouse:n.温室;暖房;
Kenong and I were amazed and excited that a single gene could have this dramatic effect. Kenong 和我都很惊讶和兴奋, 一个基因能够有如此巨大的影响。
dramatic:adj.突然的;巨大的;令人吃惊的;激动人心的;
But this is just a greenhouse experiment. 但是这只是一个温室实验。
Would this work in the field? 这在田地中是否也能成功呢？
Now, I'm going to show you a four-month time lapse video taken at the International Rice Research Institute . 现在,我将要给大家展示一个在国际大米研究所拍摄的 时长4个月定时拍摄的视频。
lapse:n.(一时的)走神,判断错误; Institute:v.开始(调查);制定;创立;提起(诉讼);n.学会,协会;学院;
Breeders there developed a rice variety carrying the Sub1 gene using another genetic technique called precision breeding . 那里的培育者利用另一种叫精准培育的基因技术 培育了一种携带 Sub 1 基因的大米品种。
precision:n.精度,[数]精密度;精确;adj.精密的,精确的; breeding:n.繁殖;饲养;教养;再生;v.生产;培育;使…繁殖;(breed的现在分词)
On the left, you can see the Sub1 variety, and on the right is the conventional variety. 在左边,你可以看到 Sub 1 品种, 在右边的是传统品种。
Both varieties do very well at first, but then the field is flooded for 17 days. 两个品种开始都长得很好, 但是接下来农田被淹了17天。
You can see the Sub1 variety does great. 你可以看到 Sub 1 品种长得极好。
In fact, it produces three and a half times more grain than the conventional variety. 实际上,它还可以生产比传统品种多 3.5倍的谷物。
I love this video because it shows the power of plant genetics to help farmers. 我很喜欢这个视频 因为它展示了植物遗传学帮助农民的力量。
genetics:n.遗传学;
Last year, with the help of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation , three and a half million farmers grew Sub1 rice. 上一年,在比尔和梅林达盖茨基金会的帮助下, 三百五十万农民种植了 Sub 1 大米。
Foundation:n.基础;地基;基金会;根据;创立;
(Applause) （鼓掌）
Thank you. 谢谢。
Now, many people don't mind genetic modification when it comes to moving rice genes around, rice genes in rice plants, or even when it comes to mixing species together through grafting or random mutagenesis. 现在,很多人都不会反对基因改造 当我们在别处使用大米基因, 把大米基因用在大米农作物上, 或者甚至通过移植或随机突变把它和其它品种结合起来,
But when it comes to taking genes from viruses and bacteria and putting them into plants, a lot of people say, " Yuck ." 但是当我们从病毒或者细菌上提取基因 然后植入到农作物上, 许多人都说:”不好。“
Yuck:难吃;讨厌;恶心
Why would you do that? 大家为什么会这样呢？
The reason is that sometimes it's the cheapest, safest, and most effective technology for enhancing food security and advancing sustainable agriculture. 原因是有时候就是最便宜,最安全, 和最有效率的科技 才能提高食物的安全性和改进可持续农业。
effective:adj.有效的,起作用的;实际的,实在的;给人深刻印象; technology:n.技术;工艺;术语; enhancing:n.优化,增强;暖色加重效果;v.增强(enhance的现在分词); sustainable:adj.可以忍受的;足可支撑的;养得起的;可持续的;
I'm going to give you three examples. 我会给大家三个例子。
First, take a look at papaya . It's delicious, right? 首先,看一下木瓜。很美味,是吗？
papaya:n.木瓜;[林]番木瓜树;
But now, look at this papaya. 但是现在,看一下这个木瓜。
This papaya is infected with papaya ringspot virus. 这个木瓜被感染了木瓜环斑病病毒。
infected:adj.带菌的; v.传染; (infect的过去分词和过去式)
In the 1950s, this virus nearly wiped out the entire production of papaya on the island of Oahu in Hawaii. 50年代,这种病毒几乎感染了夏威夷欧胡岛 的全部木瓜作物。
Many people thought that the Hawaiian papaya was doomed , but then, a local Hawaiian, a plant pathologist named Dennis Gonsalves, decided to try to fight this disease using genetic engineering . 许多人认为夏威夷木瓜肯定完了, 然而,一个本地夏威夷人, 一个叫丹尼斯·贡萨斐斯的植物病理学家, 决定尝试利用基因工程来对抗这种疾病。
Hawaiian:adj.夏威夷的;夏威夷语的;n.夏威夷人;夏威夷语; doomed:adj.注定的;命定的;v.使…注定失败(doom的过去分词和过去式) pathologist:n.病理学家; genetic engineering:n.基因工程;遗传工程(学);
He took a snippet of viral DNA and he inserted it into the papaya genome . 他提取了一小片病毒DNA 然后把它插入木瓜的基因组中。
snippet:n.小片;片断;不知天高地厚的年轻人; viral:adj.滤过性毒菌引起的;滤过性毒菌的; genome:n.基因组;染色体组;
This is kind of like a human getting a vaccination . 这就像人类接种疫苗。
vaccination:n.接种疫苗;种痘;
Now, take a look at his field trial. 现在,看一下他的农场试验。
You can see the genetically engineered papaya in the center. 你可以看到被基因改造了的木瓜在中间。
It's immune to infection. 它不受感染的影响。
immune:adj.免疫的;免于…的,免除的;n.免疫者;免除者;
The conventional papaya around the outside is severely infected with the virus. 环绕在外的传统木瓜则被病毒严重感染了。
severely:adv.严重地;严格地,严厉地;纯朴地;
Dennis' pioneering work is credited with rescuing the papaya industry. 丹尼斯的先驱性工作援救了木瓜行业而受到赞扬。
rescuing:v.营救;援救;抢救;(rescue的现在分词)
Today, 20 years later, there's still no other method to control this disease. 今天,20年之后,我们仍然没有其它方法控制这种病毒。
There's no organic method. There's no conventional method. 没有有机的方法。也没有传统的方法。
Eighty percent of Hawaiian papaya is genetically engineered. 80%的夏威夷木瓜都是基因改造过的。
Now, some of you may still feel a little queasy about viral genes in your food, but consider this: 如今,可能有些人还为食物中有病毒基因而感到一点不安, 但想一想:
queasy:adj.呕吐的;不稳定的;催吐的;
The genetically engineered papaya carries just a trace amount of the virus. 被基因改造的木瓜只是携带了微量的病毒。
trace:追溯,追踪
If you bite into an organic or conventional papaya that is infected with the virus, you will be chewing on tenfold more viral protein . 如果你咬一口被病毒感染的 有机的或传统木瓜, 你会嚼着多于十倍的病毒蛋白质。
tenfold:adj.十倍的;十重的;adv.十倍地;成十倍;n.十倍; protein:n.蛋白质;
Now, take a look at this pest feasting on an eggplant. 现在,看一下这只正在吃着茄子的害虫。
feasting:v.尽情享用(美味佳肴);(feast的现在分词)
The brown you see is frass , what comes out the back end of the insect. 你看到的棕色物质是虫粪, 它是从害虫子的后端出来的。
frass:n.幼虫的粪便;蛀屑;
To control this serious pest, which can devastate the entire eggplant crop in Bangladesh, 为了控制这种可以摧毁 孟加拉国所有茄子作物的严重害虫,
devastate:v.彻底破坏;摧毁;毁灭;使震惊;使极为忧伤;
Bangladeshi farmers spray insecticides two to three times a week, sometimes twice a day, when pest pressure is high. 孟加拉国的农民每个星期喷射 两至三次的杀虫剂, 有时候当虫害严重时一天两次。
spray:n.喷雾; v.喷; insecticides:n.[农药]杀虫剂(insecticide的复数);
But we know that some insecticides are very harmful to human health, especially when farmers and their families cannot afford proper protection, like these children. 但是我们知道一些杀虫剂对人体健康有很大害处, 尤其当农民和他们的家人 负担不起恰当的安全措施,就如这些孩子。
especially:adv.尤其;特别;格外;十分; afford:v.给予,提供;买得起;
In less developed countries, it's estimated that 300,000 people die every year because of insecticide misuse and exposure . 在欠发达国家里,据估计每年有30万人 死于杀虫剂的滥用和暴露。
estimated:adj.估计的;预计的;估算的; misuse:vt.滥用;误用;虐待;n.滥用;误用;虐待; exposure:n.暴露;显露;揭露;面临;
Cornell and Bangladeshi scientists decided to fight this disease using a genetic technique that builds on an organic farming approach. 康奈尔和孟加拉国的科学家决定使用一种 建立在有机农业方法上的基因技术来对抗这场疾病。
Organic farmers like my husband Raoul spray an insecticide called B.T., which is based on a bacteria. 有机农民,如我的丈夫乌拉尔,喷洒一种以细菌为基础的 叫 B.T. 的杀虫剂。
This pesticide is very specific to caterpillar pests, and in fact, it's nontoxic to humans, fish and birds. 这种杀虫剂对毛虫很特别, 实际上,它对人类,鱼和鸟都没有毒性。
pesticide:n.杀虫剂; specific:adj.特殊的,特定的;明确的;详细的;[药]具有特效的;n.特性;细节;特效药; caterpillar:n.[无脊椎]毛虫;履带车;adj.有履带装置的; nontoxic:adj.无毒的;
It's less toxic than table salt. 它比食盐的毒性更小。
But this approach does not work well in Bangladesh. 但这种方法在孟加拉国作用不大,
That's because these insecticide sprays are difficult to find, they're expensive, and they don't prevent the insect from getting inside the plants. 因为这种杀虫剂 很难得到,它们很贵, 而且它们不能阻止害虫进入植物里。
sprays:n.喷雾;[药]喷雾剂(spray的复数);v.喷;扫射(spray的三单形式);
In the genetic approach, scientists cut the gene out of the bacteria and insert it directly into the eggplant genome. 在基因方法里,科学家从细菌里切出一个基因 然后把它直接放进茄子的基因组里。
directly:adv.直接地;立即;马上;正好地;坦率地;conj.一…就;
Will this work to reduce insecticide sprays in Bangladesh? 这个方法能不能够减低杀虫剂在孟加拉国的使用呢？
Definitely . 当然可以。
Definitely:adv.清楚地,当然;明确地,肯定地;
Last season, farmers reported they were able to reduce their insecticide use by a huge amount, almost down to zero. 上一个季节,农民回应他们已经可以 大大地减少杀虫剂的使用,几乎不需要使用。
They're able to harvest and replant for the next season. 他们能够收割庄稼和为下一季度重新种植。
replant:vt.改种;移植;移居;
Now, I've given you a couple examples of how genetic engineering can be used to fight pests and disease and to reduce the amount of insecticides. 现在,我已经给大家举了几个例子关于基因工程 如何能够用来抵抗害虫和疾病 和用来减少杀虫剂的使用量。
My final example is an example where genetic engineering can be used to reduce malnutrition . 我最后的例子是关于 基因工程在哪里能够被用来减低营养不良。
malnutrition:n.营养失调,营养不良;
In less developed countries, 500,000 children go blind every year because of lack of Vitamin A. 在欠发达国家, 每年有50万儿童因缺乏维生素A而失明。
Vitamin:n.维生素;维他命;
More than half will die. 一半以上会死亡。
For this reason, scientists supported by the Rockefeller Foundation genetically engineered a golden rice to produce beta-carotene , which is the precursor of Vitamin A. 基于这个原因,科学家在洛克菲勒基金的支持下, 从基因上设计了一种能够生产 β-胡萝卜素的 维生素A先驱的黄金大米。
beta-carotene:n.β-胡萝卜素; precursor:n.先驱,前导;
This is the same pigment that we find in carrots. 这是我们在胡萝卜里找到的同样色素。
pigment:n.[物][生化]色素;颜料;vt.给…着色;vi.呈现颜色;
Researchers estimate that just one cup of golden rice per day will save the lives of thousands of children. 研究人员估计每天只要一杯黄金大米 就可以拯救上千的儿童。
But golden rice is virulently opposed by activists who are against genetic modification. 但是黄金大米被反对基因工程的积极份子 大力反对。
opposed:adj.强烈反对; v.反对(计划、政策等); (oppose的过去分词和过去式)
Just last year, activists invaded and destroyed a field trial in the Philippines . 就在上一年, 积极份子们侵入和毁坏了在菲律宾的一片试验田。
invaded:v.入侵;拥入;遍布(invade的过去分词);adj.被侵入的; Philippines:n.菲律宾;
When I heard about the destruction , 当我听到试验田被毁坏时,
destruction:n.破坏,毁灭;摧毁;
I wondered if they knew that they were destroying much more than a scientific research project, that they were destroying medicines that children desperately needed to save their sight and their lives. 我在想他们是否知道他们毁坏的 不止是一个科学研究项目, 他们毁坏的是孩子们迫切需要的 用来挽救他们视力和生命的药物。
scientific:adj.科学的,系统的; desperately:adv.拼命地;绝望地;不顾一切地;极度地;
Some of my friends and family still worry: 我的一些朋友和家人仍然很担心:
How do you know genes in the food are safe to eat? 你怎么知道食物里的基因是安全可吃的？
I explained the genetic engineering, the process of moving genes between species, has been used for more than 40 years in wines, in medicine, in plants, in cheeses. 我解释了基因工程, 在物种间移取基因的方法已经 在酒中,在药物中,在植物中,在芝士中 被运用了40多年。
In all that time, there hasn't been a single case of harm to human health or the environment. 一直以来,都没有一个对人类健康或者环境 造成伤害的个案。
But I say, look, I'm not asking you to believe me. 但是我并不是要求你要相信我。
Science is not a belief system. 科学不是一个信仰体系。
My opinion doesn't matter. 我的观点不重要。
Let's look at the evidence . 我们相信的是证据。
evidence:n.证据,证明;迹象;明显;v.证明;
After 20 years of careful study and rigorous peer review by thousands of independent scientists, every major scientific organization in the world has concluded 经过20多年由成千上万独立的科学家 谨慎的研究和严格的同业互查, 世界上每一个主要的科学机构已经断定
rigorous:adj.严格的,严厉的;严密的;严酷的; peer review:n.各领域专家互相评阅;同行评审;同业监督小组;同业互查组织; independent:adj.独立的; n.无党派议员(或候选人等); organization:n.组织;机构;体制;团体; concluded:v.断定:得出结论:终止:达成:缔结(协定)(conclude的过去分词和过去式)
that the crops currently on the market are safe to eat and that the process of genetic engineering is no more risky than older methods of genetic modification. 市场上的所有庄稼都是可安全食用的 而且转基因的方法 没有比传统基因改造方法更危险。
currently:adv.当前;一般地; on the market:上市;出售的;
These are precisely the same organizations that most of us trust when it comes to other important scientific issues such as global climate change or the safety of vaccines . 这些机构恰好是大部份人在其它重要科学问题上, 例如全球气候改变或者疫苗安全问题上 都会相信的同样的机构
organizations:n.组织,构造,有机体(organization的复数);组织机构; issues:n.重要议题;争论的问题;v.宣布;公布;发出;(issue的第三人称单数和复数) global:adj.全球的;总体的;球形的; vaccines:n.[药][计]疫苗;
Raoul and I believe that, instead of worrying about the genes in our food, we must focus on how we can help children grow up healthy. 乌拉尔和我相信,与其担心食物中的基因, 我们更需要关注如何帮助儿童健康成长。
We must ask if farmers in rural communities can thrive , and if everyone can afford the food. 我们必需问一问农村社区的农民是否能够营生, 和每个人是否都能买得起食物。
rural:adj.农村的,乡下的;田园的,有乡村风味的; communities:n.社区;社会;团体;共有(community的复数) thrive:v.繁荣;茁壮成长;蓬勃发展;兴旺发达;
We must try to minimize environmental degradation . 我们必需努力将环境退化最小化。
minimize:v.使减少到最低限度;降低;贬低;使显得不重要; degradation:n.退化;降格,降级;堕落;
What scares me most about the loud arguments and misinformation about plant genetics is that the poorest people who most need the technology may be denied access because of the vague fears and prejudices of those who have enough to eat. 关于对植物基因激烈的争论和错误的信息 最令我害怕的是 那些最需要这种科技的最贫穷的人可能失去食物 正是因为一些有足够 食物的人的不明确的忧虑和偏见。
misinformation:n.误报;错误的消息; denied:v.否认;拒绝;否定;不承认;(deny的过去分词和过去式) vague:adj.模糊的;含糊的;不明确的;暧昧的; prejudices:成见;偏见;歧视(prejudice的复数);
We have a huge challenge in front of us. 在我们前面有着巨大的挑战。
Let's celebrate scientific innovation and use it. 让我们庆祝和利用科学的创新。
innovation:n.创新,革新;新方法;
It's our responsibility to do everything we can to help alleviate human suffering and safeguard the environment. 这是我们的责任 去做任何我们可以做的事情 来帮助减轻人类遭受的磨难和保卫环境。
alleviate:v.减轻,缓和; safeguard:n.[安全]保护;保卫;保护措施;vt.[安全]保护,护卫;
Thank you. 谢谢！
(Applause) （掌声）
Thank you. 谢谢！
Chris Anderson: Powerfully argued. 克里斯·安德森:热烈地争论了。
Powerfully:adv.强大地;强烈地;非常;
The people who argue against GMOs, as I understand it, the core piece comes from two things. 反对转基因生物的人, 就我理解而言,主要的批评来自于两点。
argue against:反对;据理反对;争辩; core:n.核心;要点;果心;[计]磁心;vt.挖...的核;
One, complexity and unintended consequence . 一点是复杂性和不可预料的结果。
complexity:n.复杂性;难以理解的局势 unintended:adj.无意识的;非计划中的; consequence:n.结果;重要性;推论;
Nature is this incredibly complex machine. 大自然是这样一个非常复杂的机器。
incredibly:adv.难以置信地;非常地;
If we put out these brand new genes that we've created, that haven't been challenged by years of evolution , and they started mixing up with the rest of what's going on, 如果我们拿出这些我们所创造的崭新的 没有经过长年进化演变的基因, 然后让它们和现有的基因开始的混合一起,
brand new:adj.崭新的;最近获得的; evolution:n.演变;进化;发展;渐进;
couldn't that trigger some kind of cataclysm or problem, especially when you add in the commercial incentive that some companies have to put them out there? 难道不会引发一些大变动或者问题吗？ 尤其当你加进 由一些企业已经摆出的商业动机。
trigger:n.触发器; v.触发; cataclysm:n.灾难;大洪水,地震;(社会政治的)大变动; commercial:adj.贸易的;商业的;赢利的;以获利为目的的;n.(电台或电视播放的)广告; incentive:n.动机;刺激;adj.激励的;刺激的;
The fear is that those incentives mean that the decision is not made on purely scientific grounds, and even if it was, that there would be unintended consequences . 这些忧虑是那些动机 意味着作出的决定不是基于纯粹的科学依据, 就算是,那也会有不可预料的后果。
incentives:n.激励;奖励;诱因(incentive的复数形式);奖励措施; purely:adv.完全;仅仅; consequences:n.后果,结果;影响(consequence的复数);
How do we know that there isn't a big risk of some unintended consequence? 我们怎么知道没有不可预计的后果的大风险呢？
Often our tinkerings with nature do lead to big, unintended consequences and chain reactions. 往往地我们对大自然的小修改会导致很大的,不可预知的后果 和连锁反应。
Pamela Ronald: Okay, so on the commercial aspects , one thing that's really important to understand is that, in the developed world, farmers in the United States, 帕梅拉·罗纳德:好,那么在商业影响下, 有一点非常值得理解的是, 在发达国家,在美国的农民,
aspects:n.方面;相位;面貌(aspect的复数); United:adj.联合的; v.联合,团结; (unite的过去分词和过去式)
almost all farmers, whether they're organic or conventional, they buy seed produced by seed companies. 几乎所有的农民,不论他们是有机的还是传统的, 他们买种子公司生产的种子。
So there's definitely a commercial interest to sell a lot of seed, but hopefully they're selling seed that the farmers want to buy. 所以这里当然有商业利益去卖许多的种子, 但是希望他们卖的是农民想买的种子。
It's different in the less developed world. 在欠发达世界就不同了。
Farmers there cannot afford the seed. 那里的农民买不起的某些种子
These seeds are not being sold. 那些种子就不会被销售。
These seeds are being distributed freely through traditional kinds of certification groups, so it is very important in less developed countries that the seed be freely available. 这些种子通过传统的 有资格认证的团体被自由分配, 因此,在欠发达国家 种子能不受限制地被使用是很重要的。
distributed:adj.分布的;分散的;v.分发;分配;使分布(distribute的过去分词和过去式) traditional:传统的,惯例的, certification:n.证明,保证;检定;
CA: Wouldn't some activists say that this is actually part of the conspiracy ? CA: 会不会有一些积极分子会说这实际上是阴谋的一部份呢？
conspiracy:n.阴谋;共谋;阴谋集团;
This is the heroin strategy . 这是海洛因策略。
heroin:n.[药][毒物]海洛因,吗啡; strategy:n.策略;行动计划;部署;战略;
You seed the stuff , and people have no choice but to be hooked on these seeds forever? 你种植东西,人们没有选择 却永远沉溺于这些东西？
stuff:n.东西:物品:基本特征:v.填满:装满:标本: hooked:adj.弯曲的; v.(使)钩住,挂住; (hook的过去分词和过去式)
PR: There are a lot of conspiracy theories for sure, but it doesn't work that way. PR: 确实有很多阴谋论,但这是不一样的。
For example, the seed that's being distributed, the flood-tolerant rice, this is distributed freely through Indian and Bangladeshi seed certification agencies , so there's no commercial interest at all. 例如,被分配的种子,耐渍型大米, 通过印度和孟加拉国 种子认定机构被自由分配, 这样就没有了商业利益。
agencies:n.代理;代理处(agency的复数);
The golden rice was developed through support of the Rockefeller Foundation. 黄金大米是在洛克菲勒基金的支持下发展的。
Again, it's being freely distributed. 同样地,也是被自由分发的。
There are no commercial profits in this situation. 在这种情况下 没有商业利益。
profits:n.利润; v.获益; (profit的第三人称单数和复数)
And now to address your other question about, well, mixing genes, aren't there some unintended consequences? 现在来讨论一下其它问题,嗯,关于混合基因, 这会有什么不可预料的结果吗？
Absolutely -- every time we do something different, there's an unintended consequence, but one of the points I was trying to make is that we've been doing kind of crazy things to our plants, mutagenesis using radiation or chemical mutagenesis. 当然 -- 每次我们做不一样的事情 都会有想像不到的后果, 但是我想说的其中一点是 我们一直对我们植物做的看似疯狂的事情, 用辐射或化学诱变产生基因变异。
Absolutely:adv.绝对地;完全地; radiation:n.辐射;放射线;放射疗法; chemical:n.化学制品,化学药品;adj.化学的;
This induces thousands of uncharacterized mutations, and this is even a higher risk of unintended consequence than many of the modern methods. 这包含上千个不确定的突变, 而且这比起许多现代方法有着 甚至更高的的不确定后果风险。
And so it's really important not to use the term GMO because it's scientifically meaningless. 因此十分重要的不能使用基因改造生物 因为在科学上是没意义的。
scientifically:adv.系统地;合乎科学地;学问上;
I feel it's very important to talk about a specific crop and a specific product, and think about the needs of the consumer . 我认为讨论关于特定的农作物 和特定的产品,和考虑消费者的需要是很重要的。
consumer:n.[经]消费者;[生,生态]消费者;
CA: So part of what's happening here is that there's a mental model in a lot of people that nature is nature, and it's pure and pristine , and to tinker with it is Frankensteinian. CA: 在很多人中有一种思维模式, 就是天然就是天然,它是纯粹的和原始的 若是稍作修改就是作法自毙。
mental:adj.精神的;脑力的;疯的;n.精神病患者; pristine:adj.原始的,古时的;纯朴的; tinker:n.修补工;小炉匠,补锅匠,白铁匠;v.(尤指不起作用地)小修补,小修理;
It's making something that's pure dangerous in some way, and I think you're saying that that whole model just misunderstands how nature is. 这种想法在一定程度上很危险, 而且我想你指的是那整个模式 是误会了自然的本质。
misunderstands:vt.误解;误会;
Nature is a much more chaotic interplay of genetic changes that have been happening all the time anyway. 在自然中,基因改变的相互作用更混乱得多, 而且是无论如何一直在发生着的。
chaotic:adj.混沌的;混乱的,无秩序的; interplay:n.相互影响,相互作用;vi.相互影响,相互作用;
PR: That's absolutely true, and there's no such thing as pure food. PR:没错,而且这里没有一种东西是纯正的食物。
I mean, you could not spray eggplant with insecticides or not genetically engineer it, but then you'd be stuck eating frass. 我的意思是,如果你不可以喷洒杀虫剂 或者改造基因,那你就只能吃虫粪了。
So there's no purity there. 因此是没有纯粹的东西的。
purity:n.[化学]纯度;纯洁;纯净;纯粹;
CA: Pam Ronald, thank you. That was powerfully argued. CA:帕姆·罗纳德,谢谢。很有说服力的演说。
PR: Thank you very much. I appreciate it. PR:非常感谢！我很感激！
appreciate:v.欣赏;感激;感谢;理解;
(Applause) （掌声）