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Unit 3 The perfect copy Scientists have announced that they have cloned the first human embryo. This has caused much debate round the world. On the one hand, some scientists point out that if you clone an embryo, you can produce valuable human tissues—such bone or lung tissue—that could be used to save human lives. On the other hand, many people, including some scientists, disagree and are afraid that, if mankind toys with nature in this way, we may be on our way to producing a real-life Frankenstein's monster. Cloning is producing an exact copy of a plant or an animal using its cells. The first mammal to be cloned successfully from an adult cell was Dolly the sheep. She was born in 1996 and died in early 2003, at a much younger age than normal. When she was born, many people were worried that cloning would lead to more diseases in the animal world. However, in general the scientists were praised for their wonderful scientific advance. lan Wilmut, the Scottish scientist who created Dolly, is shocked that some scientists are now considering cloning human beings. Although he researches cloning, his intention has never been to create copies of humans. Instead, he thinks research efforts should concentrate on creating new tissues and organs that can be used to cure diseases like cancer. However, some people believe that cloning human embryos with the intention of destroying them shows no respect for human life. Even though human cloning is causing a lot of anxiety, it is good news for Faye Wilson, a 41-year-old saleswoman who cannot have a baby. 'I am axious to have a child of my own,' she says. 'I don't want to adopt someone else's child—If I had the chance, I would have a cloned baby right now.' While cloning human embryos is not legal in many countries, some scientists are already pushing ahead with research in order to produce a cloned human baby. Severino Antinori, an Italian physician, has declared that he wants to be the first to clone a human being. In China, scientists have focused their efforts on cloning animals, as well as cloned tissues to be used in medical treatment. China has succeeded in producing clones of cows and goats, and continues to research ways in which cloning can benefit mankind. 完美复制 科学家发表声说，已经克隆了第一个人类胚胎。这在全球引起广泛争议。 一方面，一些科学家指出，如果克隆人类胚胎，你就可以制造出宝贵的人体组织—如骨组织或肺组织—它们可以用来挽救人类的生命。 另一方面，包括一些科学家在内的许多人持不同意见，他们担心人类如果如此戏弄自然， 可能会制造出一个现实生活中的弗兰肯斯坦怪物。 克隆是指利用细胞精确复制植物或动物的技术。第一个成功地用成年动物细胞克隆出的哺乳动物是多利羊。 她生于1996年死于2003年，比普通羊的寿命短很多。 当她出生的时候，很多人都有顾虑，认为克隆可能会给动物界带来更多的疾病。 然而，总的来说，科学家们因他们伟大的成就而被赞扬。 lan Wilmut，创造多利的苏格兰科学家，对于现在一些科学家竟然想克隆人类而感到震惊。 虽然他研究克隆，但他的意图从来不是要克隆人类。 相反，他认为研究应集中在创造新组织和器官，来用于治疗如癌症类的疾病。 然而，有些人认为怀着摧毁人类胚胎的意图来克隆人类胚胎是对人类生命的不尊重。 即使这样，克隆还是激起了人类渴望，它对无法生育的41岁的女售货员Faye Wilson是个好消息。 “我渴望有一个自己的孩子，”她说， “我不想领养别人的孩子—如果我有这个机会，我会立即要一个克隆婴儿。” 尽管克隆人类胚胎在很多国家还不合法，但一些科学家正在加紧研究，以制造出克隆的人类婴儿。 Severino Antinori，意大利的一名内科医生，已经宣布他想成为克隆人类的第一人。 在中国，科学家已经集中全力克隆动物以及用于医疗的组织。 中国已经成功地克隆了牛、羊，并且继续研究克隆，造福人类。 |
