Why elephants rarely get cancer is a mystery that has confused scientists for decades. A study was led by researchers at Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) at the University of Utah and Arizona State University, including researchers from the Ringling Bros. Center for Elephant Conservation may have found the answer. According to the results, elephants have 38 additional modified copies of a gene (基因) that encodes p53, a well-defined tumor (肿瘤) suppressor, as compared to humans, who have only two. Further, elephants may have a more powerful mechanism for killing damaged cells that are at risk for becoming cancerous. In isolated elephant cells, this activity is doubled compared to healthy human cells, and five times that of cells from patients with Li-Fraumeni Syndrome, who have only one working copy of p53 and more than a 90 percent lifetime cancer risk in children and adults. The results suggest extra p53 could explain elephants’ increased resistance to cancer.
“Nature has already figured out how to prevent cancer. It’s up to us to learn how different animals overcome the problem so we can adapt those strategies to prevent cancer in people,” says co-senior author Joshua Schiffman, M.D., pediatric oncologist (肿瘤学家) at Huntsman Cancer Institute, University of Utah School of Medicine, and Primary Children’s Hospital.
According to Schiffman, elephants have long been considered a walking problem. Because they have 100 times as many cells as people, they should be 100 times more likely to have a cell slip into a cancerous state and cause the disease over their long life span of 50 to 70 years. And yet it’s believed that elephants get cancer less often, a theory confirmed in this study. Analysis of a large database of elephant deaths estimates a cancer death rate of less than 5 percent compared to 11 to 25 percent in people.
1.Why do humans often get cancer compared to elephants according to the passage?
A.Elephants are bigger than humans.
B.Elephants have more p53 than humans.
C.Elephants are not as clever as humans.
D.Elephants eat more than humans.
2.Which of the following is right according to the passage?
A.Some damaged cells may be dangerous.
B.Some damaged cells are not dangerous.
C.Some damaged cells can’t be cancerous.
D.Some damaged cells in elephants’ bodies are more dangerous than those in humans’ bodies.
3.What can we know from the last paragraph?
A.Elephants have more cells than people. B.Elephants can get cancer easily.
C.Elephants seldom die from cancer. D.Elephants often die from cancer.
4.Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?
A.Elephants help us B.Learn from Nature
C.How to deal with cancer D.Nature helps us prevent cancer
Evening Workshops
Evening Workshops | |
Optional evening workshops will be held at small restaurants or other meeting places near the conference hotel. Meals and other costs are not included but are also optional. Locations will be announced at the conference site. Workshops are very loosely organized and most represent discussions that have been held at Society for Economic Botany (SEB) meetings over a series of years. | |
Workshop 1: Student Network | |
Date | Wednesday evening, Feb. 5th |
Chairs | Hugo de Boer and Arika Virapongse |
Sponsor | Society for Economic Botany |
Description | Student members of the SEB hold a networking mixer each year in order to meet each other and to become familiar with a variety of educational programs and faculty advisors (大学指导老师). Faculty members who are part of training programs are encouraged to join the mixer to meet and talk with students. |
Workshop 2: Botanical Film Making | |
Date | Wednesday evening, Feb. 5th |
Chair | David Strauch |
Sponsor | University of Hawaii |
Description | Digital film making is a particularly useful tool of linking cultural information to recognizable plants. This workshop is aimed towards increasing the quality of material recorded by giving participants greater control over the medium. We will cover technical aspects (e.g. camera settings, audio), technical aspects (framing, lighting, focus), and some ways of presenting the material. Experienced filmmakers are encouraged to attend, and participants are welcome to bring their own camera equipment. |
Workshop 3: Collections for Botany — Collections Development and Management | |
Date | Friday evening, Feb. 7th |
Chair | Jan Salick |
Sponsor | Society for Economic Botany |
Description | SEB is a network of researchers who have been developing standards for the development of collections of artifacts, plant samples and related materials. Participants discuss successes, problems, and funding sources for solving management issues. |
1.One of the purposes of a networking mixer held each year is to ________.
A.provide students with greater control over the media
B.link cultural information to recognizable plants
C.help the students to deal with most of the environment issues
D.help the students to be familiar with educational programs
2.Which of the following is true according to the poster?
A.Evening workshops will be held at small restaurants with meals included.
B.Participants have more than one option on Feb.5ththan another night.
C.Workshops have nothing to do with the discussions held at SEB meetings.
D.Faculty advisers can join the mixer without training experience.
3.You are a college student, interested in plants and good at taking TV pictures. Which of the Evening Workshops is most suitable for you?
A.Botanical Film Making. B.Collections for Botany.
C.Student Network. D.Society for Economic Botany.
听下面一段独白。回答以下小题。
1.Why did the waiter refuse to serve the man any drink?
A.The man was a taxi driver.
B.The man had had plenty of drink.
C.The man had never paid for the drink.
2.How did the man feel when he saw the waiter the second time?
A.Unexpected. B.Angry. C.Afraid.
3.From where did the man enter the bar the last time?
A.The front door. B.The side door. C .The back door.
4.What can we learn from the story?
A.The waiter called a policeman in the end.
B.The man asked the waiter to call a taxi for him.
C.The man thought he went to three different bars.
听下面一段较长对话。回答以下小题。
1.What are the speakers mainly discussing?
A.Old-fashioned televisions. B.The man’ s childhood. C.Difficult times of the past.
2.When did the TV programs start when the man was a child?
A.In the evening. B.In the afternoon. C.In the morning.
3.What did the man do on holiday when he was a boy?
A.He stayed at home.
B.He went to the seaside.
C.He took the train to England.
4.What does the woman think of the old days?
A.Hard. B.Funny. C.Boring.
听下面一段较长对话。回答以下小题。
1.Why is the woman bringing a suit?
A.To give it to her father. B.To wear it for a meeting. C.To use it against the cold.
2.What does the man suggest the woman get for Maria?
A.A book. B.A sweater. C.A video game.
3.Where did the woman's father buy the mask?
A.In New York. B.In Mexico City. C.In Tokyo.
听下面一段较长对话。回答以下小题。
1.What are the speakers talking about?
A.A new designer. B.New products. C.Newly-designed posters.
2.What is Lisa?
A.An artist. B.team leader. C.A product manager.
