With only about 1, 000 pandas left in the world, China is desperately trying to

With only about 1, 000 pandasleft in the world, China is desperately trying to clone the animal and save theendangered species. That’s a move similar to what a TexasA & M University researchers have been undertaking for the past five yearsin a project called “Noah’sArk”.

Noah’sArk is aimed at collecting eggs, embryos(胚胎), semen and DNA of endangered animals andstoring them in liquid nitrogen. If certain species should become extinct, Dr.Duane Kraemer, a professor in Texas A & M’sCollege of Veterinary Medicine, says there would be enough of the basicbuilding blocks to reintroduce the species in the future.

It is estimated that as many as2, 000 species of mammals, birds, reptiles will become extinct in over 100years. The panda, native only to China, is in danger of becoming extinct in thenext 25 years.

This week, Chinese scientistssaid they grew an embryo by introducing cells from a dead female panda into theegg cells of a Japanese white rabbit. They are now trying to implant the embryointo a host animal. The entire procedure could take from three to five years tocomplete.

“The nuclear transfer of one species to another is not easy, andthe lack of available(capable of being used) panda eggs could be a majorproblem,” Kraemer believes. “Theywill probably have to do several hundred transfers to result in one pregnancy (havinga baby). It takes a long time and it’s difficult, but this could begroundbreaking science if it works. They are certainly not putting any livepandas at risk, so it is worth the effort,”adds Kraemer, who is one of the leaders of the Project at Texas A & M, thefirst-ever attempt at cloning a dog.

“They are trying to do something that’snever been done, and this is very similar to our work in Noah’s Ark. We’re both trying to save animalsthat face extinction. I certainly appreciate their effort and there’s a lot we can learn from what they are attempting to do. It’s a research that is very much needed.”

1. The aim of “Noah’s Ark” project is to _______.

A. make efforts to clone theendangered pandas  B. save endangered animals from dying out

C. collect DNA of endangeredanimals to study   D. transfer the nuclear of one animal to another

2. According to Professor Kraemer, the majorproblem in cloning pandas would be the lack of _______.

A. available panda eggs B. hostanimals    C. qualified researchers    D. enoughmoney

3.The best title for the passage may be_______.

A. China’sSuccess in Pandas Cloning           B.The First Cloned Panda in the World

C. Exploring the Possibility toClone Pandas   D. China —the Native Place of PandasForever

4.From the passage we know that _______.

A. Kraemer and his team havesucceeded in cloning a dog

B. scientists try to implant apanda’s egg into a rabbit

C. Kraemer will work with Chinesescientists in clone researches

D.about two thousand of species will probably die out in a century

试题答案

【答案】

1.B

2.A

3.C

4.D

【解析】

1.语义理解题。从第2段内容可知，“诺亚方舟”工程的目标是把濒临灭绝的动物的蛋(卵)、胚胎、精液和DNA储存在液体氮中，如果某一种动物濒临灭绝时，将来可以重现这一动物。

2.细节题。从第6段第1句话 The nuclear transfer(核子移植) of one speciesto another is not easy, and the lack of available (capable of being used )panda eggs could be a major problem  可以做出正确判断。

3.主旨题。从文章内容来看，无论是中国还是世界克隆熊猫还没有成功，所以排除A、B项；D项内容明显与文章内容不符，故排除。所以“探索克隆熊猫的可能性”应该是这篇文章的标题。

4.判断题。此题B项的干扰性较强，但由于它没有说明是Chinese scientists，所以应排除。A、C项明显与原文不符。根据文章第3段第1句可知答案非D莫属。