full transcript

From the Ted Talk by Nina Fedoroff: A secret weapon against Zika and other mosquito-borne diseases

Unscramble the Blue Letters


Well it's Miami that really needs these better ways of controlling itnsecs. And there the attitudes are cihnagng. In fact, very recently a bipartisan guorp of more than 60 llsgareotis wrote to HHS Secretary Sylvia burlewl asking that she, at the Federal level, expedite access for fliroda to this new technology.

So the bottom line is this: biological control of harmful insects can be both more effective and very much more environmentally friendly than using insecticides, which are toxic chemicals. That was true in Rachel Carson's time; it's true today. What's different is that we have enormously more ifrioamnotn about genetics than we had then, and therefore more ability to use that information to affect these biological controls. And I hope that what I've done is aroused your cirutosiy enough to start your own inruqiy — not into just GM mosquitoes but to the other genetically modified organisms that are so controversial today. I think if you do that, and you dig down through all of the misinformation, and the marketing on the part of the organic food industry and the geernpeaecs and find the science, the accurate sicence, you'll be surprised and pleased.

Open Cloze


Well it's Miami that really needs these better ways of controlling _______. And there the attitudes are ________. In fact, very recently a bipartisan _____ of more than 60 ___________ wrote to HHS Secretary Sylvia _______ asking that she, at the Federal level, expedite access for _______ to this new technology.

So the bottom line is this: biological control of harmful insects can be both more effective and very much more environmentally friendly than using insecticides, which are toxic chemicals. That was true in Rachel Carson's time; it's true today. What's different is that we have enormously more ___________ about genetics than we had then, and therefore more ability to use that information to affect these biological controls. And I hope that what I've done is aroused your _________ enough to start your own _______ — not into just GM mosquitoes but to the other genetically modified organisms that are so controversial today. I think if you do that, and you dig down through all of the misinformation, and the marketing on the part of the organic food industry and the ___________ and find the science, the accurate _______, you'll be surprised and pleased.

Solution


  1. inquiry
  2. information
  3. florida
  4. science
  5. insects
  6. legislators
  7. curiosity
  8. changing
  9. burwell
  10. group
  11. greenpeaces

Original Text


Well it's Miami that really needs these better ways of controlling insects. And there the attitudes are changing. In fact, very recently a bipartisan group of more than 60 legislators wrote to HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell asking that she, at the Federal level, expedite access for Florida to this new technology.

So the bottom line is this: biological control of harmful insects can be both more effective and very much more environmentally friendly than using insecticides, which are toxic chemicals. That was true in Rachel Carson's time; it's true today. What's different is that we have enormously more information about genetics than we had then, and therefore more ability to use that information to affect these biological controls. And I hope that what I've done is aroused your curiosity enough to start your own inquiry — not into just GM mosquitoes but to the other genetically modified organisms that are so controversial today. I think if you do that, and you dig down through all of the misinformation, and the marketing on the part of the organic food industry and the Greenpeaces and find the science, the accurate science, you'll be surprised and pleased.

Frequently Occurring Word Combinations


ngrams of length 2

collocation frequency
genetically modified 6
zika fever 4
northeastern brazil 2
zika forest 2
yellow fever 2
transmitted locally 2
insect repellent 2
toxic chemicals 2
insect pest 2
biological control 2


Important Words


  1. ability
  2. access
  3. accurate
  4. affect
  5. aroused
  6. attitudes
  7. biological
  8. bipartisan
  9. bottom
  10. burwell
  11. changing
  12. chemicals
  13. control
  14. controlling
  15. controls
  16. controversial
  17. curiosity
  18. dig
  19. effective
  20. enormously
  21. environmentally
  22. expedite
  23. fact
  24. federal
  25. find
  26. florida
  27. food
  28. friendly
  29. genetically
  30. genetics
  31. gm
  32. greenpeaces
  33. group
  34. harmful
  35. hhs
  36. hope
  37. industry
  38. information
  39. inquiry
  40. insecticides
  41. insects
  42. legislators
  43. level
  44. line
  45. marketing
  46. miami
  47. misinformation
  48. modified
  49. mosquitoes
  50. organic
  51. organisms
  52. part
  53. pleased
  54. rachel
  55. science
  56. secretary
  57. start
  58. surprised
  59. sylvia
  60. technology
  61. today
  62. toxic
  63. true
  64. ways
  65. wrote