CLONING
The world was stunned by the news in late February 1997 that a British embryologist named Ian Wilmut and his research team had successfully cloned a lamb named Dolly from an adult sheep. Dolly was created by replacing the DNA of one sheep's egg with the DNA of another sheep's udder. The world media was immediately filled with heated discussions about the ethical implications of cloning. Scientists and ethicists have debated the implications of human and non-human cloning extensively when scientists at the Roslin Institute in Scotland produced Dolly.
No direct conclusions have been drawn, but compelling arguments state that cloning of both human and non-human species results in harmful physical and psychological effects on both groups.
Many people are convinced that the cloning of any species, whether they are human or non-human, is ethically and morally wrong. Cloning of human beings would result in severe psychological effects in the cloned child, and that the cloning of non-human species subjects them to unethical or unmoral treatment for human needs. The possible physical damage that could be done if human cloning became a reality is obvious when one looks at the sheer loss of life that occurred before the birth of Dolly. Less than ten percent of the initial transfers survive to be healthy creatures.
There were 277 trial implants of nuclei. Nineteen of those 277 were deemed healthy while the others were discarded. Five of those nineteen survived, but four of them died within ten days of birth of severe abnormalities. Dolly was the only one to survive. It has lived for seven years. In addition to physical harms, there are worries about the psychological harms on cloned human children. "One of those harms is the loss of identity, or sense of uniqueness and individuality.
The cloning of a non-human species subjects them to unethical treatment purely for human needs. What would happen if humans started to use animals as body for growing human organs? Where is the line drawn between human and non-human? If a primate was cloned so that it grew human lungs, liver, kidneys, and heart, what would it then be? Would non-human primates, such as a chimpanzee, who carried one or more human genes via transgenic technology» be defined as still a chimp, a human, a subhuman, or something else? It could create a world-wide catastrophe that no one would be able to stop. That is why the majority considers that the ethical and moral implications of cloning are such that it would be wrong for the human race to support it.
On the other hand, some people think that potential benefits outweigh the potential harms of cloning. Cloning would be probably used by infertile people who now use donated sperm, eggs, or embryos. It may provide a way for completely sterile individuals to reproduce, a valuable basic research of technologies related to reproduction and development.
The dilemma is very complex. The question shakes us all to our very souls. For humans to consider the cloning of one another forces them all to question the very concepts of right and wrong that make them all human. Many countries imposed a ban for human-cloning research.
Words:
1. to stun — оглушать, ошеломлять
2. research — (научное) исследование
3. lamb — ягненок, барашек; овечка
4. adult — взрослый, совершеннолетний
5. DNA — ДНК
6. е8£ — биол. яйцеклетка
7. heated discussion — горячая дискуссия
8. implication — следствие, вывод; последствия, результаты
9. to draw a conclusion — сделать, извлечь вывод
10. compelling — неодолимый, неотразимый, непреодолимый
11. harmful — вредный, пагубный
12. severe — жестокий, тяжелый (о болезни, утрате и т. п.); крупный, ощутимый (об убытке и т. п.)
13. treatment — обращение (of — с кем-л.)
14. obvious — очевидный, явный, ясный
15. sheer — абсолютный, полнейший, сущий, явный
16. loss — утрата, потеря
17. creature — создание, творение
18. trial — испытательный, пробный
19. nuclei — ядра
20. to survive — остаться в живых; выжить
21. abnormality — отклонение; аномалия
22. in addition — в добавление, к тому же, сверх, кроме того
23. identity — индивидуальность; личность
24. uniqueness — единственность, уникальность
25. lung — анат. Легкое
26. liver — анат. Печень
27. kidney — анат. Почка
28. heart — анат. Сердце
29. chimpanzee, chimp — шимпанзе
30. gene — ген
31. via — посредством чего-л., с помощью чего-л.
32. transgenic — трансгенный
33. majority — большинство
34. outweigh-— перевешивать; быть более влиятельным, важным
35. embryo — биол. зародыш, эмбрион
36. to impose a ban — налагать запрет; запрещать
Ex.1 Find English equivalents. Найдите английские эквиваленты.
Британский эмбриолог, исследовательская команда, клонировали овечку, горячая дискуссия, пагубный эффект, потеря индивидуальности, легкое, печень, почка, сердце, потенциальная польза, трансгенный, во многих странах наложен запрет.
Ex.2 Find Russian equivalents. Найдите русские эквиваленты.
A research team, an adult sheep, the DNA of one sheep's egg with the DNA of another sheep's udder, heated discussions, cloning of both human and non-human species, the psychological effects, the physical damage, human lungs, liver, kidneys, and heart, infertile people.
Ex. 3. Answer the questions. Ответьте на вопросы.
1. Why was the world stunned in late February 1997?
2. How was Dolly created?
3. What was the world media immediately filled with?
4. Why are many people convinced that the cloning is ethically and morally wrong?
5. What would cloning of human beings result in?
6. How many trial implants of nuclei were there? How many of them survived?
7. What are the worries about the psychological harms on cloned human children?
8. What could cloning create?
9. What are the benefits of cloning?
10. Is human-cloning research allowed nowadays?
11. What is your opinion about cloning?
Text
NATIONAL PROJECT “HEALTH”
Leaders of the Federal Assembly and the Presidium of the State Council of the Russian Federation, the Russian Ministry of Health and Social Development and the Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Well-being developed the National Priority Project in Public Health.
The project aims to:
Decrease mortality, disability and morbidity;
Make medical care more accessible for the population and improve the quality of care;
Develop a prevention-oriented health care system;
Increase the role of primary health care (including general practitioners, pediatricians, and other specialists);
Create conditions to expand out-patient medical services;
Increase hi-tech medical care to satisfy the population’s demand.
The implementation period for the project is 2006-2008.
The following outcomes of the project are expected:
Decreased mortality and disability rates among the population of the Russian Federation by ensuring higher accessibility and higher quality of the provided medical care;
Satisfy the demand of the Russian Federation population for free high-tech medical services;
Improved living standards for patients who need hi-tech medical care (minimize waiting period to get treatment, maintain ability to work on a permanent or temporary basis);
Solve social problems in terms of providing medical care to those who need social support from the state;
Decreased economic losses by recovering the labour forces and decreased material losses for disability payments and sick benefits.
Objectives and priorities of the project. Specific objectives of the project include:
Primary health care development (financial compensations, training and retraining of medical workers, equipping health care settings with diagnostic equipment):
Prevention (population immunization within the national vaccination programme, detection and treatment of people with HIV infection, hepatitis B and hepatitis C, medical examination of new-born children, clinical examination of the working population);
Provision of hi-tech medical care.
Words:
Federal Assembly and the Presidium of the State Council of the Russian Federation - Федеральное Собрание и Президиум Государственного Совета Российской Федерации
Ministry of Health and Social Development - Министерство здравоохранения и социального развития
Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Well-being - Федеральная служба по надзору в сфере защиты прав потребителей и благополучия человека
aim – цель
decrease - уменьшение
mortality- смертность
disability – инвалидность
morbidity – заболеваемость
accessible - доступный
quality – качество
prevention-oriented – ориентация на профилактику
primary health care – первичная медицинская помощь
expand – расширение
satisfy – удовлетворять
demand – требования, спрос
implementation period – срок реализации
outcomes – результаты
intend – собираться, намереваться
Ex.1 Find English equivalents. Найдите английские эквиваленты.
финансовые компенсации, переобучение медицинских работников, диагностическое оборудование, высокое качество, уменьшить смертность, врач общей практики
Ex.2 Find Russian equivalents. Найдите русские эквиваленты.
out-patient medical services, population’s demand, higher accessibility, living standards, social support, sick benefits
Ex.3 Answer the questions.Ответьте на вопросы.
Who developed the National Priority Project in Public Health?
What is the implementation period for the project?
How they intend to improve living standards for patients who need hi-tech medical care?
How they intend to decrease economic losses?
How they intend to develop primary health care?
Литература
Козырева Л.Г. Английский язык для медицинских колледжей и училищ. – Ростов-на-Дону: Феникс, 2002. – 316 с.
Кролик Н.И. Английский язык для студентов – медиков: Учебное пособие для вузов. - М.: ООО Изд-во Астрель, 2003. – 128 с.
Маслова А.М. Учебник английского языка для медицинских вузов./Маслова А.М., Вайнштейн З.И., Плебейская Л.С.- М.: Высшая школа, 1983. – 352 с.
Муравейская М.С., Орлова Л.К. Английский язык для медиков. Учебное пособие для студентов, аспирантов, врачей и научных сотрудников. М: «Флинта», «Наука», 2002. – 384 с.
Мухина В.В. Английский язык для медицинских училищ. - М.: Высшая школа, 2002. - 141 с.
Тылкина С.А. Пособие по английскому языку для медицинских училищ. - М.: АНМИ, 1997. – 157 с.
Щедрина Т.П. Английский язык в медицине. - М.: Высшая школа, 2004. – 207 с.
Katrin Senior, David Salariya. The X-Ray Picture Book of Your Body. Watts Books, London, 1995. – 47 c.
Nicola Peterson. Herbal Remedies. Blitz Editions, 1995. – 256 c.
Julius B. Richmond, Elenore T. Pounds, Charles B. Corbin. Health for Life. Scott, Foresman and Comp. Illinois, 1987. – 320 c.
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