Most of the internet uses the IPV6 networking protocol
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Mоst оf the internet uses the IPV6 netwоrking protocol
DIRECTIONS: Chооse the best аnswer fоr eаch question. Scientists Sаy GE Foods are Safe, Public Doubts Remains [A] Genetically-engineered crops are as safe to eat as non-GE crops, they have no negative environmental impacts, and they have reduced the use of pesticides. That's according to a report released by the National Academy of Sciences today. The report admits that beyond safety, other issues need to be addressed, including earning the public's trust. It recommends a more transparent conversation about GE crops going forward. The report, two years in the making, is a 388-page look at every aspect of genetically engineered crops. [B] For those of you who want the report in a nutshell, here's a summary: • GE crops are safe to eat. There are always questions about safety, of course, but there's no evidence of harm. • The GE crops in our food system don't produce a larger harvest. However, because they have been introduced, farmers are better able to protect their harvests from insects and weeds. • Small-scale farmers may have trouble seeing economic gains because of the price of seed and lack of access to credit. • Appropriate regulation is needed, and that regulation should be based on the characteristics of the crop, rather than the technique used to develop it, whether GE or non-GE.[C] For those of you who interested in chapter and verse of the report, here are details of the committee's findings: Human Health[D] The committee doesn't find evidence that eating the GE foods increase food allergies. It also doesn't find any increases in cancer. The report's discussion of human health also includes some hope that both GE and non-GE crops with increased concentrations of some nutrients could result in "favorable effects on the health of millions of people."Harvests [E] There's no evidence that GE crops have increased harvests, which had been steadily increasing before GE crops were introduced, and have continued to increase afterward. GE crops can, however, help protect harvests from pests. Pesticide Use [F] Crops with a built-in organic pesticide, called Bt, have not just caused the reduction of the use of pesticides, they have, in some cases reduced the pest population so dramatically that pesticide spraying has gone down on non-GE fields. The report notes, however, that insects can develop a resistance to Bt. Environmental Impact [G] There's no evidence of negative effects of Bt crops on bees. Although crop diversity has been declining since 1987, the report didn't find a cause and effect relationship with GE crops. Social and Economic Effects [H] The report makes the point that, when we're talking about introducing a new kind of crop into our food system, we have to look beyond matters of human and environmental health, and take social and economic issues into consideration: • Overall GE crops have worked out well, economically, for the farmers who have chosen them, but there is a lot of variation in results. • Benefits of GE crops aren't always available to small-scale farmers, because of the high price of seed and lack of money, among other issues.• It's important to prevent the accidental presence of GE crops in non-GE fields, for both social and economic reasons. "Farmers want the freedom to decide what crops to grow," and non-GE crops command a higher price. The committee notes that this is often happening: "many areas are successfully growing organic, non-GE, and GE crops."• One important economic issue are trade problems. As different countries approve different GE crops at different times, trading becomes complicated. • The report also tackles the very issue of trust. It's difficult to add up "the cost of a loss of public trust in a product."Regulation [I] The report says that regulation of GE crops should achieve "the maximum societal benefits ... at given levels of acceptable risk." The committee knows that it's difficult to achieve, because both risks and benefits vary among crops. Other issues include: • Although the labeling issue is complex and there are strong arguments and considerable public support for labeling, the committee "does not believe that ... labeling of foods with GE content is justified to protect public health."• "Policy regarding GE crops has scientific, legal, and social dimensions, and not all issues can be answered by science alone." The values and priorities of everyone involved have to be considered. • "The lack of public access to the health and safety data" creates doubt in some people because "the public cannot judge for itself the quality, objectivity, and comprehensiveness of the materials submitted." The committee urges as much sharing as possible. Looking Forward [J] The report sees an important role for genetic engineering, and "the committee expects that its potential use in crop improvement in the coming decades will be substantial." Increased nutrition and a decrease in greenhouse gases are just some of the ways GE crops can improve human and environmental health and farmer well-being, it says.What is the main idea of the passage?
DIRECTIONS: Chооse the best аnswer fоr eаch question.The Visuаl Village[A] Before the age of the smartphone, aspiring photographers had to learn how to use high-tech cameras and photographic techniques. Not everyone had cameras, and it took skill and a good eye to capture and create a great photograph. Today, with the huge range of camera apps on our smartphones, we are all amateur photographers. And pretty good ones, too: The quality of smartphone images now nearly equals that of digital cameras.[B] The new ease of photography has given us a tremendous appetite for capturing the magical and the ordinary. We are obsessed with documenting everyday moments, whether it's a shot of our breakfast, our cat - or the cat's breakfast. And rather than collect pictures in scrapbooks, we share, like, and comment on them with friends and strangers around the globe. [C] Even photojournalists are experimenting with cell phones because their near invisibility makes it easier to capture unguarded moments.1 The Internet also allows photojournalists to avoid traditional media.They can now act as their own publishers - reaching huge audiences via social media sites such as Instagram. A photograph taken in New York can get a response from someone in Lagos within a second of being uploaded.[D] In the past, magazines published unforgettable photos of important people and global events that captured our imaginations. These photos had the power to change public opinion - even the course of history. But if there are fewer memorable images today, it's not because there are fewer good images: It's because there are so many. No one image gets to be special for long.[E] Cameras are everywhere - a situation that is transforming the way we experience dramatic events. When there are major political events or natural disasters, it is ordinary citizens with cell phones - not photojournalists - who often provide the first news images. Quality still matters, but it's less important than what's instantly shared.[F] As people everywhere embrace photography and the media make use of citizen journalists, professional standards appear to be shifting. In the past, most people trusted photojournalists to accurately represent reality. Today, however, digital images can be altered in ways the naked eye might never notice. Any image can be altered to create an "improved" picture of reality. The average viewer is left with no way to assess the accuracy of an image except through trust in a news organization or photographer.[G] The question of the accuracy of images gets even trickier when photojournalists start experimenting with camera apps - like Flickr or Instagram - which encourage the use of filters. Images can be colored, brightened, faded, and scratched to make photographs more artistic, or to give them an antique look. Photojournalists using camera apps to cover wars and conflicts have created powerful images - but also controversy. Critics worry that antique-looking photographs romanticize war, while distancing us from those who fight in them.[H] Yet, photography has always been more subjective than we assume. Each picture is a result of a series of decisions - where to stand, what lens2 to use, and what to leave in or out of the frame. Does altering photographs with camera app filters make them less true?[I] There's something powerful and exciting about the experiment that the digital age has forced upon us. These new tools make it easier to tell our own stories, and they give others the power to do the same. Many members of the media get stuck on the same stories, focusing on elections, governments, wars, and disasters. In the process, they miss out on the less dramatic images of daily life that can be just as revealing and relevant.[J] The increase in the number of photographs and photographers might even be good for democracy itself. Hundreds of millions of potential citizen journalists make the world smaller and help keep leaders honest. People can now show what they are up against, making it increasingly difficult for governments to hide their actions. If everyone has a camera, Big Brother3 isn't the only one watching.[K] Who knows? Our obsession with documentation and constantly being connected could lead to a radical change in our way of being. Perhaps we are witnessing the development of a universal visual language. It's one that could change the way we relate to each other and the world. Of course, as with any language, there will be those who produce poetry and those who make shopping lists.[L] It's not clear whether this flowering of image-making will lead to a public that betterappreciates and understands images. Or will it simply numb4 us to the profound effects awell-made image can have? Regardless, the change is irreversible. Let's hope the millionsof new photographs made today help us see what we all have in common, rather than what sets us apart.1 Something done in an unguarded moment is done when you think no one is watching.2 A lens is a thin, curved piece of glass or plastic used in things such as cameras.3 Big Brother refers to a person or organization exercising total control over people's lives; the phrase originates from George Orwell's novel 1984.4 If an event or experience numbs you, you are not able to feel any emotions or think clearly. According to the passage, why do photojournalists sometimes use cell phones instead of professional cameras?