Passage A
Many Americans harbor a grossly distorted and exaggerated view of most of the risks surrounding food. Fergus Clydesdale, head of the department of food science and nutrition at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, says bluntly that if the dangers from bacterially contaminated chicken were as great as some people believe, “the streets would be littered with people lying here and there.”
Though the public increasingly demands no-risk food, there is no such thing. Bruce Ames, chairman of the biochemistry department at the University of California, Berkeley, points out that up to 10% of a plant’s weight is made up of natural pesticides. Says he: “Since plants do not have jaws or teeth to protect themselves, they employ chemical warfare.” And many naturally produced chemicals, though occurring in tiny amounts, prove in laboratory tests to be strong carcinogens—a substance which can cause cancer. Mushrooms might be banned if they were judged by the same standards that apply to food additives. Declares Christina Stark, a nutritionist at Cornell University: “We’ve got fat worse natural chemicals in the food supply than anything man-made.”
Yet the issues are not that simple. While Americans have no reason to be terrified to sit down at the dinner table, they have every reason to demand significant improvements in food and water safety. They unconsciously and unwillingly take in too much of too many dangerous chemicals. If food already contains natural carcinogens, it does not make much sense to add dozens of new man-made ones. Though most people will withstand the small amounts of contaminants generally found in food and water, at least a few individuals will probably get cancer one day because of what they eat and drink.
To make good food and water supplies even better, the Government needs to tighten its regulatory standards, stiffen its inspection program and strengthen its enforcement policies. The food industry should modify some longaccepted practices or turn to less hazardous alternatives. Perhaps most important, consumers will have to do a better job of learning how to handle and cook food properly. The problems that need to be tackled exist all along the food supply chain, from fields to processing plants to kitchens.
What does the author think of the Americans’ view of their food?
根据第一段第一句“Many Americans harbor a grossly distorted and exaggerated view of most of the risks surrounding food.”可知，许多美国人歪曲或夸张地估计了食品给人类带来的潜在危险，即过高地估计了食 品的危害，因此答案选C。
The author considers it impossible to obtain no-risk food because ________.
根据第二段第四句“And many naturally produced chemicals, though occurring in tiny amounts, prove in laboratory tests to be strong carcinogens—a substance which can cause cancer.”可知，实验表明植物本身就含有 一系列天然的危险致癌化学物质，因此答案选C。
By saying “they employ chemical warfare” (Para. 2), Bruce Ames means “________”.
根据第二段第三句“Since plants do not have jaws or teeth to protect themselves, they employ chemical warfare.”可知，植物没有坚硬的利齿来保护自己，所以只能使用化学武器来战斗，也就是会生成化学物质 来保护自己，因此答案选A。
The reduction of the possible hazards in food ultimately depends on ________.
根据最后一段最后两句“Perhaps most important, consumers will have to do a better job of learning how to handle and cook food properly. The problems that need to be tackled exist all along the food-supply chain, from fields to processing plants to kitchens.”可知，最重要的是，消费者应当更好地学习如何正确地处理和烹饪食 物，减少食品中的可能的危害，最终取决于消费者本身，因此答案选B。
What is the message the author wants to convey in the passage?
全文主旨题。本文提到了美国人目前过高地估计了食品的危害，保持警惕是对的，但是不应该过分紧 张，因此答案选D。