首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
考研
One of the least appreciated but most remarkable developments of the past 60 years is the extraordinary growth of American agric
One of the least appreciated but most remarkable developments of the past 60 years is the extraordinary growth of American agric
admin
2015-06-24
29
问题
One of the least appreciated but most remarkable developments of the past 60 years is the extraordinary growth of American agriculture. Farming now accounts for about one tenth of the gross domestic product yet employs less than 1 percent of all workers. It has accomplished this feat through exceptionally high growth in productivity, which haskept prices of food lowand thereby contributed to rising standards of living. Furthermore, the exportable surplus has kept the trade deficit from reaching unsupportable levels. Agriculture not only has one of the highest rates of productivity growth of all industries, but this growth appears to have accelerated during the past two decades.
Over the period 1948 to 2004, total farm production went up by 166 percent. The land used for farming dropped by one quarter over the 56-year period, and investment in heavy farm equipment and other capital expenditures decreased by 12 percent. Several developments drove these changes, beginning with the replacement of the remaining horses by tractors immediately after World War II and with the expanding use of fertilizers and pesticides. Later came the adoption of hybrid seeds, genetic engineering of plants and improved livestock breeding. A key element was the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) extension service. Operating through land-grant universities and other organizations, it educated farmers on biotechnology, pest management and conservation.
For many years, critics have claimed that modern agriculture is not sustainable, one of the major assertions being that it encourages erosion, which will eventually wash away most of the topsoil. Lost topsoil, the argument goes, is virtually irreplaceable because it takes up to 300 years for one inch of soil to form.
But a detailed study of two large areas, the Southern Piedmont and the Northern Mississippi Valley Loess Hills, showed that based on 1982 data, soil loss has dropped sharply from the very high rates of the 1930s. The study attributed the decrease in soil erosion to the USDA, which urged farmers after World War II to adopt conservation practices such as strip cropping, whereby alternating rows are planted, and leaving plant residues in the fields year-round to inhibit water runoff.
Despite being a robust contributor to the U.S. economy, modern agriculture is not without a dark side. Runoff of fertilizers, antibiotics and hormones degrade the environment and can upset the local ecology. If not grown properly, genetically modified crops could spread their DNA to conventional species.
The growth of American agriculture has been mainly stimulated by
选项
A、the productivity growth.
B、low prices of food.
C、rising standards of living.
D、the exportable surplus.
答案
A
解析
事实细节题。根据第一段第三句话可知农业迅猛发展的主要原因是农业生产率的提高,因此A项正确。其余三项都是农业生产率提高导致的结果,属因果倒置。
转载请注明原文地址:https://jikaoti.com/ti/sPFRFFFM
0
考研英语一
相关试题推荐
Intalksaboutreducingthenation’sexplodinghealthcarecosts,theword"rationing"strikesfearintotheheartsofbothpati
Intalksaboutreducingthenation’sexplodinghealthcarecosts,theword"rationing"strikesfearintotheheartsofbothpati
【F1】Thehypothesisthatmoraljudgmentsareemotionallybasedcanexplainwhytheyvaryacrossculturesandresisttransformatio
Comparedwithothermodesoftransport,traintechnologymightseemtobeprogressingasslowlyasasuburbancommuterservicer
Thestarsignhasbecomepopularamongyoungpeople.Tohelpstudentsgainsomeacademicknowledgeofit,theStudents’Unionis
Thedifferencesinlivingstandardsaroundtheworldarevast.In1993,theaverageAmericanhadanincomeofabout$25,000.In
Excitement,fatigue,andanxietycanallbedetectedfromsomeone’sblinks,accordingtopsychologistJohnStern【C1】______Washin
PLUSloansareapprovedforsomeparentswhocannotaffordtorepaythem,severalcollegefinancialaidofficersandfinancially
AmericansBecomePessimisticfromOptimisticAmericanshavelongpridedthemselvesasbeingpartofanoptimisticsociety.B
随机试题
(2019年烟台莱山区)上课时,有个别学生两眼呆呆地望着老师一动不动,而内心却在考虑其他的事情,大部分学生的视、听、动作则始终随着老师的讲解从一个问题转换到另一个问题。这两类学生分别反映了注意的()
预防麻疹的措施有
A房地产公司于2008年1月1日,通过出让方式,获得B市C县规划区内一地块,从事住宅楼开发建设。并于次日在签订了出让合同,交纳土地出让金6000万元,合同约定2006年3月1日开始动工建设。后由于种种原因,该项目直到2009年5月1日才开始动工建设。同时A
【背景材料】某工程,施工总承包单位(以下简称“乙方”)按《建设工程施工合同(示范文本)》(GF—1999—0201)与建设单位(以下简称“甲方”)签订了施工总承包合同,合同中约定开工日期2008年3月1日,乙方每月25日向甲方提交已完工程量报告,
按CIF条件达成交易,如果卖方愿意承担卸货费用,可以选用()。
(2012年)下列关于契税减免税优惠政策的说法,正确的是()。
注册会计师针对X公司财务报表的期初余额确定的审计目标中,不正确的是()。
阅读下列材料,回答问题。①来时,便听说台北是个多雨的城市,尤其是冬季,雨下得更是非同凡响,为世界上许多城市所不能比。我不是专门到台北来看雨的,我从家乡来,我说家乡话,我唱家乡戏,我带着家乡情来看家乡人。为两岸的文化交流,我们一行20人,应台湾名伶
国际金融危机对我国经济的冲击表面上是对经济增长速度的冲击,实质上是对经济发展方式的冲击。综合判断国际国内经济形势,转变经济发展方式已刻不容缓。我国经济发展应由主要依靠投资、出口拉动向依靠消费、投资、出口协调拉动转变,由主要依靠第二产业带动向依靠第一、第二、
IntheUnitedStates,thefirstdaynurserywasopenedin1854.Nurserieswereestablishedinvariousareasduringthe【C1】______
最新回复
(
0
)