Detailed Reading

I. Difficult Sentences

1. Sadly, she developed complications related to diabetes. When she lost her eyesight and most of her ability to walk, it was absolutely horrifying for me.
1) What does “complications” specifically refer to?
(=It refers to the diseases derived from diabetes, like the loss of eyesight and being unable to move.)
2) Translate these sentences into Chinese.
(=不幸的是，她患上了糖尿病引起的并发症。当她丧失视力和大部分行走能力时，我惊恐万状。)

2. I founded the stem cell research company Stemagen with another gentleman whose father had died of ALS.
What is in common between the two founders?
(=They both lost their parent to a terrible disease.)

3. It would just be absolutely wrong to take a human being and put them through what may well involve significant suffering for really no good end.
1) What is the real subject of the sentence?
(=“to take a human being and put them through what may well involve significant suffering for really no good end”.)
2) What is Dr. Wood talking about?
(=He’s talking about the terrible aspects of reproductive cloning.)

4. On the other hand, therapeutic cloning does not involve any type of risk to human life and actually provides tremendous potential for the relief of suffering in real human beings who are going through some awful things.
1) What are “some awful things”?
(=Terrible pain generated by diseases.)
2) What is Dr. Wood’s attitude towards therapeutic cloning?
(=He holds a positive attitude towards it.)

5. There’s really no effective way for an individual scientist to stop someone else from using the knowledge for something they shouldn’t.
1) What does “something they shouldn’t” mean?
(=It means human reproductive cloning.)
2) According to Dr. Wood, is it possible to stop human reproductive cloning?
(=No. He honestly thinks that someone will attempt human reproductive cloning and there is no way to stop it.)

6. I would hope that the legislation that’s in place and the great public disapproval that would result from any attempt to clone a human would dissuade anyone from going down that path.
1) Paraphrase “legislation that’s in place”.
(=Appropriate legislation.)
2) What is the public against?
(=The public is against the attempt to clone a human.)

7. In the end we decided that we wanted to put a human face on cloning.
1) Paraphrase the sentence.
(=At last we decided that we wanted to associate cloning with a specific person so as to make it very real.)
2) Why did Dr. Wood and his research group put a human face on cloning?
(=Because by doing so, they could make cloning very real so that people around the world know that cloning is coming along.)

8. When I looked down and saw that cloned blastocyst, it brought tears to my eyes.
1) How did Dr. Wood feel at that time?
(=He felt very excited and emotional.)
2) Why did the sight of the cloned blastocyst bring tears to his eyes?
(=Because the research was done for his mother, and he realized that if she had only been able to live a few years longer, maybe they could have used this technology to help her.)

9. We would have loved to have been able to avoid destroying them.
1) What’s the grammatical feature of this sentence?
(=The subjunctive mood.)
2) How did Dr. Wood think about destroying them?
(=He thought it was a pity.)

10. It doesn’t make sense to me that it’s such an emotional and contentious topic.
1) Do people already have an agreement on this topic?
(=No. It’s still disputable.)
2) Why does Dr. Wood argue that it doesn’t make sense to make their work an emotional and contentious topic?
(=Because he thinks that logically. According to him, an embryo is not life, although it is a potential life. The vast majority of embryos never become life — they just generate, don’t implant and die.)

II. Words & Expressions

clone:

1. n. a group of genetically identical cells or organisms derived from a single cell or individual by some kind of asexual reproduction

- Researchers produced clones from adult mice in 1998.

2. v. make multiple identical copies of

- The debate continues over whether it is ethically right to clone a human embryo.

- Many cars look alike because their makers cloned their competitors’ designs.

brilliant: adj.  of surpassing excellence

- He has got brilliant achievements in the field of physics.

- 她很有才华，但工作缺乏条理。

(=She is brilliant but her work lacks organization.)

CF: bright, clever & brilliant

这三个词都是形容词，都有“聪明的”、“才思敏捷的”之意。

bright是普通用语，多指年轻人或小孩，常用于口语，书写语言不宜多用。强调理解力强，思维非常活跃，谈话与态度也活泼生动。例如：

- I have among my students a number of very bright youngsters.

(=我的学生当中有许多十分聪明的孩子。)

clever 更强调天生的聪颖，有较高的理解力、思维敏捷、思路灵活，接受新东西快，但不强调理解得深刻全面。这个词也指灵活的双手与矫健的身躯。例如：

- It was clever of you to think of that.

(=你想到了那一点，真聪明。)

brilliant 指才华出众，超乎寻常的聪明，能解决各种复杂问题且游刃有余，获得普遍赞赏。例如：

- All his colleagues consider him a brilliant surgeon.

(=他的同行都认为他是一位杰出的外科医生。)

complication: n.

1) any disease or disorder that occurs during the course of (or because of) another disease

- Complications set in, and the patient died.

2) the act or process of complicating

- The car ran out petrol, and as a further complication, I had no money!

- 更麻烦的是他不肯坐飞机旅行。

(=A further complication was his refusal to travel by air.)

fraud: n.

1) intentional deception resulting in injury to another person

- Thousands of credit card frauds are committed every year.

- He combed through the files searching for evidence of fraud.

2) a person who makes deceitful pretenses

- He said he was an insurance salesman, but later she discovered he was a fraud.

CF: deception, fraud & trickery

这三个词都是名词，都有“欺骗”之意。

deception 应用范围极广，可指从小到大的多种欺骗行为。语气最温和时，它指必要的危害不大的欺骗行为。它最令人反感的意思是指为了私利而行骗。

fraud 常指“复杂的、非个人的，对来者或一般公众的欺骗行为”，着重指官方的欺骗行为或财政舞弊。“fraud”有时也用于认为无用东西的夸张描写。

trickery 在语气上比“deception”更严厉，用于个人或公众的行为，指以有步骤的诡计来追求私利或达成目的。

Fill in the blanks with the words above. Change the form where necessary.

1. A land development fraud bankrupted a dozen of elderly couples.

2. It was an innocent deception, meant as a joke.

3. She referred to the pills as sweets, a harmless deception that made it easier to administer them to the child.

4. The film was a total fraud.

5. They practiced trickery on their fair-weather friends in order to seem richer and more famous than they were.

focus on:  center upon

- He has given up running in order to focus on the long jump.

- 我们将集中讨论自由和必要性之间的关系这一问题。

(=We’re going to focus on the relationship between freedom and necessity.)

standpoint: n.  a mental position from which things are viewed 

- Let’s look at this from a historical standpoint.

- Has the matter been viewed from the taxpayers’ standpoint?

issue: n.  point in question, important topic for discussion 

- Don’t worry about who will do it — that’s just a side issue.

- 我们之间毫无问题。

(=There was no issue at all between us.)

CF: problem, question & issue

这三个词都是名词，都有“问题”之意。

problem 是客观存在的等待解决的问题，着重困难，有

时指要求解答的题目。例如：

- How to exploit the natural resources of our country is a complicated problem.

(=如何开发我国的自然资源是一个复杂的问题。)

question 是对某事怀疑因而提出等待“回答”的问题，着重疑惑和不能断定。例如：

- Which way is better still remains an open question.

(=哪个办法好仍是一个未能肯定的问题。)

issue 是指意见不能达成一致的“问题”，着重分歧和争端。例如： 

- Can you distinguish the major issues from the minor ones?

(=你能把主要问题和次要问题区分开来吗？)

Collocation：

bring up / raise an issue  提出争论点/问题

address an issue   处理问题 

settle an issue    解决争端

a burning issue   紧要问题 

a side issue    枝节问题

tremendous: adj.

1) very great, immense

- She rose above her difficulties and became a tremendous success.

- 她工作起来干劲十足。

(=She does her work with tremendous vigor.)

2) (infml) very good

- We went to a tremendous party last night.

CF: large, huge & tremendous

这三个词都是形容词，都有“大的”之意。

large 多指面积、体积、范围或数量之大。

huge 一般形容特大的物体，在非正式的用法中也可用于抽象的比喻。

tremendous 所表示的大往往接近引起紧张或恐怖的程度，常见于文学作品中。

Fill in the blanks with the words above. Change the form where necessary.

1. A large number of people came from all parts of the country to see the exhibition.

2. That required a tremendous effort.

3. China is a large country in Asia.

4. The fifth blind man said that the elephant was exactly like a huge fan.

potential:

1. n. possibility of being developed or used, qualities that exist and can be developed

- This new invention has an enormous sales potential.

- He hasn’t realized his full potential yet.

2. adj. that can or may come into existence, possible

- 发掘孩子的潜在能力很重要。

(=It’s important to draw out a child’s potential capabilities.)

Collocation：

develop one’s potential  发挥某人的潜力

realize one’s potential  认识某人的潜力

a potential for ...   在…方面的潜力

in some ways:  to a certain extent but not entirely

- 这些变革有的方面有好处，有的方面没好处。

(=The change is beneficial in some ways, but not in others.)

make the most of:  profit as much as one can from (sth./sb.)

- 今天天气真好，我们得好好享受这一天。

(=It’s a lovely day today — we must make the most of it.)

- We’ve only got one day in London, so let’s make the most of it and see everything.

legislation: n.

1) laws considered collectively

- The committee proposed that new legislation should be drafted.

- The government will introduce legislation to restrict the sale of firearms.

2) action of making laws

- Legislation is not the President’s power.

Collocation：

adopt/enact/pass legislation  通过法规

introduce legislation   立法 

draft legislation    起草法规

in place:

1. suitable or appropriate

- The proposal is not quite in place.

2. in the proper or usual position

- 在离开办公室之前，应把所有物品摆放好。

(=Before you leave the office, everything should be put in place.)

- Ensure that the grille is in place while the machinery is in operation.

disapproval: n.  not approving (of sb./sth.)

- I noticed a slight frown of disapproval on his face.

- 他摇了摇头表示反对。

(=He shook his head in disapproval.)

Collocation：

express one’s disapproval  表示不赞成

in disapproval     不赞成地 

to one’s disapproval   不以为然地

N.B.: 该词的反义词为 approval，动词为 disapprove。

result from:  occur as a result of

- His failure resulted from not working hard enough.

- The flight delay resulted from mechanical problems.

come forward:  volunteer oneself for a task or post or to give evidence about a crime

- Three hundred donors have come forward in response to a request for people to give blood.

- 警方呼吁目击者挺身而出。

(=Police have appealed for witnesses to come forward.)

consent: vi.  give agreement or permission 

- Her father reluctantly consented to the marriage.

- My mother won’t consent to my leaving school.

CF: consent, agree & accept

这三个词都是动词，都有“同意”之意。

consent 只限于同意或接受所提的建议或请示。通常是上对下的允许，它所表达的同意暗示这种同意带有阻力。例如：

- She consented to his proposal of marriage.

(=她同意了他的求婚。)

agree 应用比较广泛，它可以表示肯定的赞同，可是在不涉及声明和反应或事先协商的情况下，它也可用来表示意见一致。例如：

- I met the new manager today and found that we agree on basic policies.

(=我今天遇见了新经理，发现我们在基本政策上意见一致。)

accept 指接受，同意收下。一般用于接受礼物、邀请、好意、批评等。例如： 

- We should accept criticism with an open mind.

(=我们应该虚心接受批评。)

donate: v.  give to a charity or good cause

- He donated to cancer research.

- 我充其量只能捐助100美元。

(=I can donate 100 dollars at best.)

- They used to donate large sum of money to the Red Cross every year.

procedure: n.  regular order or way of doing things

- The company has new procedures for dealing with complaints.

- 在机场检查手提行李现在已成例行程序。

(=Searching handluggage at airports is now standard procedure.)

Collocation：

establish a procedure 建立程序 

follow a procedure  按某一程序；遵照手续

a procedure for ...  …的程序（手续） 

no more than:  at most; only

- Jane left the restaurant at 3 p.m. and took a taxi to downtown Manhattan, a journey of no more than ten minutes even on a busy Friday afternoon.

- His whole school education added up to no more than one year.

transplant:

1. vt. take (tissue or an organ) from one person, animal or part of the body and put it into another

- Doctors transplanted a monkey’s heart into a two-year old child.

2. n.

1) an operation moving an organ from one organism (the donor) to another (the recipient)

- He survived a liver transplant.

2) (surgery) tissue or organ transplanted from a donor to a recipient

- 他的身体对移植的器官有排异反应。

(=His body rejected the transplant.)

in reality:  in actual fact; really

- In reality, things always happen out of expectation.

- 人们的学校生活回想起来要比实际上的快乐。

(=One’s school life seems happier in retrospect than in reality.)

misconception: n.  idea that is not correct or which has been based on a failure to understand a situation

- A number of misconceptions have grown up around this theory.

- We hope the program will dispel certain misconceptions about the disease.

analysis: n. study of sth. by examining its parts and their relationship

- 他对该问题的分析显示出敏锐的洞察力。

(=His analysis of the problem showed great perception.)

- Close analysis of sales figures showed clear regional variations.

Collocation： 

make an analysis   做分析

upon analysis    经分析

in the last/final analysis  总之，归根结底

N.B.: 该词的动词为 analyze 或 analyse，它的复数为 analyses。 

by necessity:  necessarily; unavoidably

- As I said, what I did was dictated by necessity.

- 由于没有公交车，他只好走路去上班。

(=He walked to work by necessity, because there was no bus.)

opponent: n.  person who is against another person in a fight, a game or an argument

- He beat his opponent in the election.

- 他的对手毫无取胜的机会。

(=His opponent did not stand a chance.)

condemn: vt.  criticize strongly, usually for moral reasons

- The terrorist action has been condemned as an act of barbarism and cowardice.

- We condemned him for his bad conduct.

in a sense:  in one way of speaking; partly

- 在某种意义上你是对的，但你不了解全部事实。

(=You are right in a sense, but you don’t know all the fact.)

- In a sense she was misled by the advertisement’s claims, and expected too much of the product.

contentious: adj.  causing or likely to cause an argument; controversial

- Abortion is a highly contentious issue.

- She has some rather contentious views on education.

implant: vt.  insert (tissue, etc.) into a part of the body

- 植入一个起搏器

(=implant a pacemaker)

- The operation to implant the artificial heart took two hours.

After Reading >> Useful Expressions

去世       pass away

集中于（某事物）    focus on

大多数       the majority of

及其他等等，等等    et cetera

为…提供…       provide ... for ...

缓解痛苦      the relief of suffering

遭受，经受，经历    go through

在某种程度上      in some ways

充分利用，尽量利用     make the most of

适当的，在合适的位置    in place

是…的结果，由于…而发生  result from

劝止…做…       dissuade ... from ...

自告奋勇，主动争取，自愿作证  come forward

达到目的       serve the purpose

干细胞系列      stem cell lines

至多，不超过，仅仅     no more than

事实上，实际上     in reality

由于客观情况的需要，为情势所迫 by necessity

在某种意义上     in a sense

有道理，有意义      make sense

患上糖尿病引起的并发症   develop complications related to diabetes

从医学的角度来看     from a medical standpoint

科学界        scientific community

掀起轩然大波      create a firestorm of controversy

科学造假行为     scientific fraud

起争议的话题      an emotional and contentious topic

After Reading >> Sentence Translation

1. It would just be absolutely wrong to take a human being and put them through what may well involve significant suffering for really no good end.

(=让人经受极有可能遭到巨大痛苦的事，却又得不到什么好的结果，那是绝对错误的。)

2. I would hope that the legislation that’s in place and the great public disapproval that would result from any attempt to clone a human would dissuade anyone from going down that path.

(=我希望适当的法规以及公众对于试图克隆人的极力反对能够劝阻任何有此企图的人走那条路。)

3. In reality, it is transcendent — when you look through the microscope, you see what you may have looked like a long time ago, at least in part.

(=事实上，这一研究成果真是妙不可言——透过显微镜，你至少部分地看到自己很久以前大概是什么模样。)

4. There was so much skepticism about this process because of the scientific fraud from the past that it was critical that there be no doubt that they were clones.

(=由于以往的科学造假行为，人们对于我们的研究过程抱有诸多怀疑，所以确保它们确系克隆胚胎是至关重要的。)

5. 其原因在于其他物种的无性繁殖个体事实上大多数都是畸形的，流产率很高，死产率很高，胎儿畸形，出生不久便夭折，如此等等。

(=The reason is that the majority of reproductive clones in other species are actually abnormal, with very high miscarriage rates, very high stillbirth rates, fetal anomalies, death soon after birth, et cetera.)

6. 从另一方面来说，治疗性的克隆技术不牵涉任何对人生命的威胁，还能真正为正在经受痛苦的人们提供缓解痛苦的极大的可能性。

(=On the other hand, therapeutic cloning does not involve any type of risk to human life and actually provides tremendous potential for the relief of suffering in real human beings who are going through some awful things.)

7.在分析的过程中，我们必须毁掉那些胚胎。换句话说，从细胞里提取遗传物质进行分析，你只得毁坏细胞。

(=In the process of analysis, the embryos were destroyed by necessity. In other words, to get the genetic material from inside the cells to analyze it, you have to destroy the cell.)

8. 罗马教廷谴责我们，布什总统的国情咨文对我们也颇有微词。

(=We were condemned by the Vatican and mentioned in a negative light in President Bush’s State of the Union address.)