📖 原文
(1) The first two decades of this century were dominated by the microbe hunters. These (2) hunters had tracked down one after another of the microbes responsible for the most (3) dreaded scourges of many centuries: tuberculosis, cholera, diphtheria. But there (4) remained some terrible diseases for which no microbe could be incriminated: scurvy, pellagra, rickets, beriberi. Then it was discovered that these diseases were caused by the lack of vitamins, a trace substance in the diet. The diseases could be prevented or cured (7) by consuming foods that contained the vitamins. And so in the decades of the 1920's and (8) 1930's, nutrition became a science and the vitamin hunters replaced the microbe (9) hunters. (10) In the 1940's and 1950's, biochemists strived to learn why each of the vitamins was (11) essential for health. They discovered that key enzymes in metabolism depend on one or (12) another of the vitamins as coenzymes to perform the chemistry that provides cells with (13) energy for growth and function. Now, these enzyme hunters occupied center stage. (14) You are aware that the enzyme hunters have been replaced by a new breed of hunters (15) who are tracking genes - the blueprints for each of the enzymes - and are discovering (16) the defective genes that cause inherited diseases - diabetes, cystic fibrosis. These gene (17) hunters, or genetic engineers, use recombinant DNA technology to identify and clone genes and introduce them into bacterial cells and plants to create factories for the (19) massive production of hormones and vaccines for medicine and for better crops for (20) agriculture. Biotechnology has become a multibillion-dollar industry. (21) In view of the inexorable progress in science, we can expect that the gene hunters will be replaced in the spotlight. When and by whom? Which kind of hunter will dominate the scene in the last decade of our waning century and in the early decades of the next? (24) I wonder whether the hunters who will occupy the spotlight will be neurobiologists who (25) apply the techniques of the enzyme and gene hunters to the functions of the brain. (26) What to call them? The head hunters. I will return to them later.
❓ 试题解析
问题 27： What is the main topic of the passage?
A. The microbe hunters
B. The potential of genetic engineering
C. The progress of modern medical research
D. The discovery of enzymes
✅ 正确答案： C）The progress of modern medical research
📝 解析： 全文按时间顺序介绍医学研究重点的变化：微生物猎人 → 维生素猎人 → 酶猎人 → 基因猎人 → （未来）脑猎人。
💡 解题技巧： 主旨题看各段的时间标记和研究领域转换。
问题 28： The word “which” in line 4 refers to
A. diseases
B. microbe
C. cholera
D. diphtheria
✅ 正确答案： A）diseases
📝 解析： “some terrible diseases for which no microbe could be incriminated” — which 指代 diseases。
💡 解题技巧： 代词题找介词 for 的逻辑宾语。
问题 29： The word “incriminated” in line 4 is closest in meaning to
A. investigated
B. blamed
C. eliminated
D. produced
✅ 正确答案： B）blamed
📝 解析： “no microbe could be incriminated” — 没有微生物被归咎为病因。
💡 解题技巧： 词汇题：incriminate = blame = hold responsible。
问题 30： Which of the following can be cured by a change in diet?
A. Tuberculosis
B. Cholera
C. Cystic fibrosis
D. Pellagra
✅ 正确答案： D）Pellagra
📝 解析： 坏血病、糙皮病、佝偻病、脚气病是由维生素缺乏引起，可通过饮食治愈。糙皮病是其中之一。
💡 解题技巧： 细节题定位“caused by the lack of vitamins”。
问题 31： The word “strived” in line 9 is closest in meaning to
A. failed
B. tried
C. experimented
D. studied
✅ 正确答案： B）tried
📝 解析： “biochemists strived to learn” — strived = 努力/试图。
💡 解题技巧： 词汇题：strive = try hard = endeavor。
问题 32： How do vitamins influence health?
A. They are necessary for some enzymes to function.
B. They protect the body from microbes.
C. They keep food from spoiling.
D. They are broken down by cells to produce energy.
✅ 正确答案： A）They are necessary for some enzymes to function.
📝 解析： “key enzymes in metabolism depend on one or another of the vitamins as coenzymes”。
💡 解题技巧： 因果细节题定位“depend on”和“coenzymes”。
问题 33： In the third paragraph, the author compares cells that have been genetically altered by biotechnicians to
A. gardens
B. factories
C. hunters
D. spotlights
✅ 正确答案： B）factories
📝 解析： “introduce them into bacterial cells and plants to create factories for the massive production”。
💡 解题技巧： 比喻题定位“create factories”。
问题 34： The word “them” in line 17 refers to
A. cells and plants
B. hormones
C. genes
D. gene hunters or genetic engineers
✅ 正确答案： C）genes
📝 解析： “identify and clone genes and introduce them into bacterial cells” — them 指 genes。
💡 解题技巧： 代词题找及物动词 introduce 的宾语。
问题 35： The phrase “occupy the spotlight” in line 23 is closest in meaning to
A. receive the most attention
B. go the furthest
C. conquer territory
D. lighten the load
✅ 正确答案： A）receive the most attention
📝 解析： “which kind of hunter will dominate the scene”、“occupy the spotlight” — 成为关注焦点。
💡 解题技巧： 短语题结合上下文“dominate the scene”。
问题 36： The author implies that the most important medical research topic of the future will be
A. the functions of the brain
B. inherited diseases
C. the operation of vitamins
D. the structure of genes
✅ 正确答案： A）the functions of the brain
📝 解析： “I wonder whether the hunters who will occupy the spotlight will be neurobiologists who apply the techniques ... to the functions of the brain”。
💡 解题技巧： 推理题定位“wonder whether”暗示的未来方向。
问题 37： Which of the following best describes the author's tone in the last paragraph of the passage?
A. Critical
B. Speculative
C. Appreciative
D. Emotional
✅ 正确答案： B）Speculative
📝 解析： 最后一段提出推测性问题：“When and by whom?”、“I wonder whether...” — 推测性语气。
💡 解题技巧： 语气题找疑问句和不确定表达（wonder, whether）。
问题 38： With which of the following statements would the author be most likely to agree?
A. The focus of medical research will change in the next two decades.
B. Medical breakthroughs often depend on luck.
C. Medical research throughout the twentieth century has been dominated by microbe hunters.
D. Most diseases are caused by defective genes.
✅ 正确答案： A）The focus of medical research will change in the next two decades.
📝 解析： 作者预测基因猎人将被取代，脑神经科学家可能成为下一阶段的焦点。
💡 解题技巧： 推理题结合末段对未来变化的期待。
🌐 中文翻译
本世纪头二十年是微生物猎人的天下。这些猎人接二连三地追踪到了导致多个世纪以来最可怕灾祸的微生物：结核病、霍乱、白喉。但仍然有一些可怕的疾病无法归咎于任何微生物：坏血病、糙皮病、佝偻病、脚气病。后来发现这些疾病是由饮食中缺乏维生素（一种微量物质）引起的。通过食用含有维生素、食物可以预防或治愈这些疾病。因此，在20世纪20年代和30年代，营养学成为一门科学，维生素猎人取代了微生物猎人。 在20世纪40年代和50年代，生物化学家努力探究每种维生素对健康至关重要的原因。他们发现新陈代谢中的关键酶依赖于一种或多种维生素作为辅酶来执行化学反应，为细胞提供生长和功能所需的能量。现在，这些酶猎人占据了中心舞台。 你知道，酶猎人已经被新一代猎人取代，他们追踪基因——每种酶的蓝图——并发现导致遗传疾病的缺陷基因——糖尿病、囊性纤维化。这些基因猎人，或称基因工程师，使用重组DNA技术来识别和克隆基因，并将其引入细菌细胞和植物中，为医药领域大规模生产激素和疫苗、为农业培育更好的作物而创建工厂。生物技术已成为一个价值数十亿美元的产业。 鉴于科学不可阻挡的进步，我们可以预期基因猎人将在聚光灯下被取代。何时被取代？被谁取代？哪种猎人将在我们这个正在消逝的世纪的最后十年以及下个世纪的最初几十年占据主导地位？我想知道，占据聚光灯的猎人是否会是将酶猎人和基因猎人的技术应用于大脑功能的神经生物学家。该怎么称呼他们？脑猎人。我稍后会再回到他们。
🏷️ 标签：#托福阅读 #真题解析 #备考资料
