III. 阅读理解
阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从文后所给各题的四个选项中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。
Millions of people die of hunger in Southern Africa every year, but when Zambia was offered thousands of tons of free maize by the US, the government politely said no.
“We don’t know whether the food is safe,” said Zambia’s Commerce, Trade and Industry Minister Dipak Patel.
His worries are shared by countries around the world that are in two minds about America’s genetically modified (GM) crops. Just last week, EU member nations were discussing whether or not to import GM sweet corn from the US.
Ever since people started farming, they have tried to crossbreed (杂交) plants to make them stronger or better tasting. At one time, only related plants could be crossed with each other.
But when GM techniques were developed in the 1970s, scientists were able to put a single gene from a living creature into an unrelated creature.
This means they can make crops more productive and resistant to disease by adding genes from other species. They can also create food with special characteristics, such as “golden rice”, which is enriched with vitamin A. But many people believe GM foods are a health risk.
“If left to me, I would certainly not eat GM foods,” said Scottish scientist Arpad Pusztai. “We are putting new things into food which haven’t been eaten before. The effects on the immune system are not easy to predict.”
At the moment, the official argument is that GM foods “are not likely to present risks for human health”. But there are still many questions to be answered as the foods are produced in different ways.
Some experts believe the genetic material added to plants can transfer to humans and give damage to our bodies. Further harm could be caused by the genes from GM plants crossbreeding with naturally produced crops.
1. We learn from the passage __________.
A. people have discovered that GM foods will do harm to human health
B. millions of Zambia people die of eating too much GM foods
C. people are still not sure if GM foods will do harm to human health
D. genetic material added to plants will damage our bodies sooner or later
2. What does “in two minds” in the third paragraph mean?
A. Unsure. B. Worried. C. Likely. D. Careless.
3. Which of the following statements is NOT true about GM foods?
A. It is produced from plants added genes from other species.
B. GM foods can have special characteristics.
C. GM foods will affect people’s immune system.
D. GM foods have been produced since 1970s.
4. What’s the author’s attitude?
A. Supportive. B. Neutral. C. Doubtful. D. Critical.
