Lab Burger|科幻小说情节？人造肉上餐桌

by Owain Mckimm

Sometimes a normal hamburger is not a normal hamburger.

A hamburger that's as healthy as salmon certainly sounds appetizing. This is just one of the possibilities that scientists hope to achieve through the use of new techniques for producing cultured meat. Meat grown in a lab is an essential technology for expanding countries in the 21st century. _(1)_

It's not just scientists that are talking about the benefits of growing meat in test tubes. _(2)_ If this happens, PETA would see this development as a major step towards reducing animal cruelty and saving the environment. _(3)_

Cultured meat is grown by soaking stem cells in a nutrient-rich soup and then manipulating them to grow into muscle tissue. _(4)_ The meat produced so far is reported to have a texture more like a 7-Eleven Slurpee than a juicy steak. Also, one of the biggest problems for scientists is not how to grow the meat in the first place. _(5)_ Real meat is composed of a variety of textures that tickle the taste buds in just the right way, and this is exactly what has been giving scientists real headaches to recreate.

(A) Instead, it's getting the taste right.

(B) With the world's population expected to grow to nearly nine billion by 2050, scientists have suggested that cultured meat may be the solution to the feared global food shortage.

(C) The organization believes that once meat can be produced in the lab, it will eliminate the need for farming and thus cut down on greenhouse gases given off by livestock.

(D) Animal rights organization PETA has also offered a US$1 million prize to any scientist who can bring cultured chicken meat to supermarkets by 2012.

(E) However, the best ingredients for the soup and even the type of cells needed to produce the best meat remain a puzzle for scientists.

科幻小说情节？人造肉上餐桌

外观看起来正常的汉堡并非就一定是一般的汉堡。

　　像鲑鱼一样健康的汉堡确实听起来相当刺激食欲。而这只是科学家希望透过生产人造肉的新技术所达成的可能性之一。对人口不断增加的国家来说，在实验室培养肉类成为 21 世纪不可或缺的科技。随着 2050年世界人口预计会达到近 90 亿，科学家认为人造肉或许是解决令人忧心的全球粮食短缺的方法。

　　不只有科学家在谈论用试管培养人造肉的好处。动物权益组织 PETA（编按：PETA 为 People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals 的缩写）也提供了 1 百万美金的奖赏给任何一位能在 2012年前让人造鸡肉上市的科学家。如果真能实现，PETA将视这个发展为减少残害动物和拯救环境的一大进展。该组织相信一旦肉类可以在实验室制造出来，这将会消除养殖的需求，进而减少家畜所排放的温室气体。

　　人造肉的制造方式是藉由把干细胞浸泡在充满营养素的培养液，再加以操控让它们生长出肌肉组织。不过什么才是最合适的培养液原料，甚至需要哪种细胞才能制造出最好的肉，至今对科学家来说仍是个谜团。目前制造出来的人造肉据说口感比较像是 7-11 卖的思乐冰，而不是多汁的牛排。此外，科学家面临的最大问题之一并不是一开始要怎么把肉制造出来。而是要怎么让它尝起来像真的肉。真正的肉类是由各种不同的结构共同组成，并以最适当的方式刺激味蕾，要如何重建肉的味道就是一直让科学家伤透脑筋的难题。

答案：  1. (B)2. (D)3. (C)4. (E)5. (A)