Unit 5 Working the Land My lifelong pursuit is to keep all the people away from hunger. ———Yuan Longping Yuan desired to prevent hunger and (starve) in the world. He can do this through his scientific knowledge of crops such as rice, allowing these crops to grow in places and situations they (normal) would not be able to do so. By doing this, Yuan increased people’s access food by allowing farmers to produce more. Terraced fields are common in hilly or (mountain) areas where the farmers cut into the hills to create flat surfaces—terraces—on to grow crops. As water runoff is a problem on slopes, a low wall is (type) built around each terrace to hold the water in. Supplementary Vocabulary oxen cattle pull plough fertilize pesticide/insecticide agritourism tend to crops back-breaking labour arid drip irrigation moisture hydroponics fibre mat vertical farming tray automated/automatic tractor harvester cultivate positioning system trim ripe storage livestock plantation greenhouse orchard hay straw dairy oat sorghum barn hoe peasant rural exodus mechanization breed non GMO (genetically modified organism) A Pioneer for All People Yuan Longping, (出生于) Beijing, had a slim but strong body like of millions of Chinese peasants, whom he had committed all his life. Instead of following his parents’ suggestion, he (choose) to major in agriculture in the hope of (解决危机) caused by severe (粮食短缺). It is unrealistic to have larger fields, so he was (convince) that the solution consisted in (提高产量) in the (give) amount of fields. No sooner had the concept of hybrid rice (put) forward than it (stir) up intense debate over the theory could be put into practice. The (assume) got its final answer when news came that Yuan had (overcome) enormous technical challenges and the hybrid (able) farmers to (扩大产量) significantly. As (estimate), more than half of domestic rice (consume) in China (由...组成) crops that (generate) from Yuan’s hybrid strains. Yuan enjoyed a fame at home and abroad due to his invaluable contributions to the whole world. In spite of his reputation and the wealth (come) along, he was still a man of soil who made large donations to (赞助) agricultural research, giving no thought to (名人;出名) or money. Yuan Longping’s (持续不断的) ability to go after his dreams leaves a deep impression on all of us. Once in an interview, he announced that he had envisioned rice plants as tall as (高粱), with each ear of rice as big as a (扫帚), and each grain of rice as huge as peanut. Chemical Versus Organic Farming Chemical pesticides and artificial fertilizers have been (wide) used in farming as an effective way to fight crop disease and increase output, but recently it is found that the (长期的) use could bring harm both the land and people’s health. Pesticides damage the land by killing the harmful bacteria as well as the helpful . The chemicals (persist) in the soil and underground water affect the cops (grow) on the land, as a result of , ... ...
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