当前位置：文档库 › 新视界大学英语3选词填空答案

新视界大学英语3选词填空答案

1、If you are thinking of making a(n) (1) __application__ for a job, the passage you have just read may contain some useful advice: Put yourself in the position of the person who has to make the (2) ___judgment__ about who to employ. The (3) __simplicity___ of the advice is obvious, but it isn’t easy to follow. It means we should avoid giving unnecessary information about ourselves, (4) ____for the sake of___ representing us in the best way. And we have to realize that the (5) __outcome___you can expect from a(n) (6) ___selection__ process may not always be based on the factors that we think are going to be important.

2、he Glass Castle is a book with many (1) __layers_______, at times documentary, at times heartbreaking autobiography, sad but often extremely funny. In it Jeannette Walls relates the story of her childhood, and life on the road with her penniless parents. They are attracted to life a long way from the cities, where the streets are (2) ____polluted______ with the rubbish that has been (3) ____discarded______ by people who have so many things they do not know what to do with. In contrast, Jeannette’s family h as nothing. But a(n) (4) __constant________ theme of the book isthelovethatJeannettehas for her parents. In particular it is about the difficult relationship she has with her father. At one point he promises his daughter he will build her a “glass castle” which will be (5) ___visible_______ for miles around – one of the many promises he fails to keep. But in spite of everything she continues to (6) __admire________ him.

3、Great artists, it has often been said, have to suffer for their art. History provides us with many examples of artists who suffered mental illness (such as van Gogh) or physical (1) defects___. The German composer Ludwig van Beethoven who (2) ___dominated the musical scene from the beginning of the 19th century, suffered a complete loss of hearing during his most (3) ___productive period.This may have been due to (4) __exposure________ to lead (van Gogh, too, suffered from lead poisoning) but, far from being (5) ___discouraged_________, Beethoven was able to produce his greatest masterpieces when completely deaf. Indeed, many critics see the (6) _intensity_________ of expression of his later works as a direct (7) ____reflection______ of the personal drama he was experiencing. There are several moving (8) __episodes_ which seem to confirm this.For example, at the end of his last and greatest symphony, which he conducted, Beethoven feared a(n) (9) _hostile_________ reaction from the audience because of the (10) __experimental_____ nature of the work. He had to turn around to see that the audience were actually on their feet and shouting their approval. When he saw this he began to cry.

5、Perhaps more than any other work of literature, Henry David Thoreau’s Walden (1) _ embodies___ the American dream of independence and self-reliance. Thoreau wanted to show that he had the (2) _capacity___ to live by himself. To do so, he built a small log cabin in woodland in the (3) ___possession____ of his friend, the poet Emerson. The cabin was to be a(n) (4) __retreat___ from society for the next two years of his life. Thoreau spent his time in (5) __ diverse____ occupations such as growing vegetables, making bread, and clearing the land. But he did not cut himself off completely. He continued to (6) __socialize__ – since the cabin was not far from town, he received visits from friends. Rather, his aim was to give up some of the less serious aspects of social life.

6、If flying has made life easier for us today, we should be (1) __thankful________ to the first pilots who risked their lives with every flight. Perhaps the most heroic flight ever was the first solo crossing of the Atlantic in 1927, by Charles Lindbergh, who flew from New York to Paris in 33 hours. A lot was (2) __at stake________, including a prize of $25,000 and a place in the history books.Lindbergh decided to carry very little – just four sandwiches and some water – to make more space for fuel. To make a wrong calculation would have been a(n) (3) __unforgivable____ error. (4) ___Initially_______ the weather was good, but halfway across the ocean it began to snow. Lindbergh considered turning back. But then he saw a fishing boat, which meant that he was nearing Ireland. He changed direction, and flew over England towards the coast of France. By now it was nearly night time, but he was (5) __reassured____ by the lights of the London to Paris airway. Flying low over Paris, he then had to (6) __regain___ height to approach the airport, finally coming down in a long (7) __curve____. A hundred thousand people were there to greet him. As he stepped out of the plane, he was already famous.

7、Most people would probably agree that (1)___misfortunes_______ don’t come singly – bad luck seems to attract more bad luck. So, is (2) __coincidence________ just a matter of our chance, or is it more than that, a kind of attractive force which one day may be proved by science? Again, many people would probably say the (3) ___latter______.And they will tell you a story based on their personal experience to prove it. An example of this might be going on holiday and finding your next-door neighbours from home sitting at the table (4) __adjacent_____ to yours in a restaurant. Then you discover they are staying in a hotel (5) __situated____ just down the road from yours. The (6) ____frequency______ with which stories such as these occur makes it easy for people to see a scientific reality behind them. But they are also a timely (7) __reminder____ that there are still a lot of things in the world that cannot be completely understood.

8、It’s Ch ristmas time in the department store – and dozens of parents are (1) _steering__ their children across the store to meet Father Christmas, also known as Santa Claus, especially in America, who is usually sitting in a small decorated room that is supposed to look like his home. They queue up patiently to make the (2) __payment______ to go inside – or these days maybe it’s a (3) ___donation _____ to a charity – and watch their child (4) __vanish____ inside. But this symbol of the British festive season is not really very old. The familiar image of Father Christmas is an old man with a long red coat that has white (5) fur___ round the edges.He pats every child on the head, wishes them a (6) __merry ___ Christmas and then (7) _ proceeds____ to give them a little present. The image was first made popular in the 19th century. So Father Christmas can (8) __scarcely _____ be described as an old British tradition; and there is no connection (9) __whatsoever________ between the jolly old man and the religious celebration of the birth of Jesus.

大学英语六级选词填空应试技巧

大学英语四级阅读：选词填空技巧汇总选词填空的考察形式一篇280词左右的文章，文章中挖出10个空，并统一给出A-O 15个备选答案。选词填空区别于完形填空，有更大的解题难度，原因在于： 1. 完形填空每题都是四选一，选词填空第一题要十五选一，就算用到排除法，最后一题也要六选一，而且在十五个选项中还有五个根本不会用到，难度加大； 2. 完形填空每题的四个选项都是统一的词性，只需要辨析词义、搭配就基本可以作答，而选词填空的十五个选项有多个词性，解题时需要同时判断词性和词义，难度加大； 3. 完形填空每题的四个选项往往都是统一时态，统一形式，而在选词填空中会涉及选项的动词时态、第三人称单数形式、被动主动语态，名词的单复数等的辨析，难度加大。针对选词填空的解题方法分为三步 1. 预览选项，了解词义并把选项分为四大类词性：名词n，动词v，形容词a，副词ad，在每个选项后作词性的简要标记； 2. 精读全文开头，把握文章主题，并以三个空或一个段落为一个单位，利用前后文判断每空的词性； 3. 把对应词性的选项逐一带回原文，含义通顺，时态、主谓搭配一致的为正确选项。四级考试的常用后缀在判断选项词性时可以有一定帮助作用。在根据前后文判断每空的词性时，一些经常考察的形式如下：名词：通常来说，冠词(如a，an，the)、形容词、介词后面搭配名词，即"a/an/the/adj./prep. + n。"，举例说明：Education soon became a _____. 冠词a后面加可数名词的单数形式，正确答案是nightmare，这句话的意思是"教育很快成了一种噩梦。" As the trade winds lessen in _____, the ocean temperatures rise causing the Peru current flowing in from the east to warm up by as much as 5 degrees. (06-6) 介词in后面加名词，正确答案是strength，这句话的意思是"当信风强度减弱的时候，海洋温度上升，导致从东部流入的秘鲁洋流上升了5摄氏度之多。"较难的一个例子：Husbands and children now do some of these jobs, a ____ that has changed the target market for many products. (06-12) 这里可以用两种判断方法来判断横线处所填词的词性。第一种方法，用句子结构来判断，前面一句话，husbands and children now do some of these jobs，这是一个完整的句子，主语husbands and children，谓语动词do，宾语some of these jobs；后面的that 引导的是一个同位语从句，它所修饰的中心词就是a后面需要填的词，而定语从句的中心词是名词，所以横线处应填一个名词。第二种方法，根据刚才所说的"a + 名词"的语法规则来判断，横线处应该填一个名词，而且是一个可数名词的单数形式。正确答案是situation。这句话的意思是"丈夫和孩子现在也做一些这样的工作了，这种情况就改变了许多产品的目标市场。" 动词：动词的考点很多，我们来看其中三种： 1. 主语后缺谓语动词。举例说明：He ____ from his teachers, came home in tears and thought about dropping out. 在这句话里，主语是he，本来后面应该有一个动词作谓语，但是这里没有动词，而是在横线后面出现了一个介词短语from his teachers，这样这句话就缺少谓语动词，所以横线上应该填一个动词。正确答案是hid，这句话的意思是"他不愿见老师，

大学英语四级选词填空单项训练+答案

Directions: In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are requested to select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage. Read the passage through carefully before making your choices. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter. Please mark the corresponding letter for each item on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once. Questions 47 to 56 are based on the following passage.

Once the world embraced the automobile, the days of depending on horses, bicycles, ferries, and trains quickly slipped into the past. People were __47__ with the speed of the automobile but they were also enjoying the personal freedom that the automobile gave them. Owning a car gave people the freedom to go anyplace a road __48__. This allowed people to and at their own __49__. This independence gave the car a popular edge over buses and trains. The popularity of the automobile made it the __50__ of the transportation system. The automobile changed our lives when it created a giant industry that offered more and more jobs. The automobile made it possible for people to live in areas __51__ from their work place. This caused cities to grow and made suburban living more convenient. Of course, with more places to go, more __52__ roads had to be built. The automobile caused a __53__ effect. Jobs increased, industries grew, new industries developed, and cities appeared. Today the automobile industry continues to offer many __54__. Jobs are plentiful in this industry and improvements continue to be made to the automobile with new technologies. We have come a long way from that first __55__ carriage because of the cooperative efforts of many people in the last century. It will be interesting to see what the future holds for the automobile. We have already seen signs of the use of solar energy in this area. As long as man has a brain, the future of the automobile is __56__. A) backbone F) enjoyed K) definite B) infinite G) horseless L) developed C) further H) developing M) farther D) background I) opportunities N) impressed E) led J) snowball O) pace （2） A college education is an investment in the future. But it can be a 47 one. The College Board 48 that the costs at a four-year public college in the United States increased 10% this past school year. That was less than the 13% increase the year before, but still much higher than the inflation 49 Public colleges and universities still cost a lot less than private ones. Financial aid often helps. But financial experts 50 parents to start college savings plans when their child is Still very young. All fifty states and the District of Columbia 51 what are called 5-29 plans. These plans are named after the part of the federal tax law that created them in 1996. States use private investment companies to operate the 52 of the programs. Every state has its own rules 53 5-29 plans. Some of the plans are 54 of state taxes. And all are not required to pay federal taxes. However, the government could start to tax withdrawals in 2011 if Congress does not change the law. 5-29 plans include investment accounts that increase or decrease in value with the investments they contain. Families must decide how 55 they want to put money into stocks, or other investments. Another kind of 5-29 plan lets parents begin to pay for their child’s education in 56 and long before their child starts college. This kind of savings program is called a prepaid tuition plan. The money goes into an account A) aggressively F) consumes K) free B) estimates G) costly L) majority C) offer H) decline M) advance D) automatically I) advise N) governing E) rate J) capable O) general

大学英语六级选词填空练习

大学英语六级选词填空练习(3) 导读：本文大学英语六级选词填空练习(3)，仅供参考，如果觉得很不错，欢迎点评和分享。 Section A Directions: In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage. Read the passage through carefully before making your choices. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter. Please mark the corresponding letter for each item on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once. Questions 36 to 45 are based on the following passage. Culture is the sum total of all the traditions, customs, beliefs, and ways of life of a given group of human beings. In this （36）, every group has a culture, however savage, undeveloped, or uncivilized it may seem to us. To the professional anthropologist (人类学家), there is no intrinsic （37）of one culture over another, just as to the professional linguist there is no intrinsic hierarchy(等级制度) among languages. People once thought of the languages of backward groups as （38）and undeveloped forms of speech,consisting largely of grunts and groans. While it is possible that language in general began as a series of grunts and groans, it is a fact established by the study of "backward" languages that no spoken tongue answers that description today. Most

(四级填空)大学英语四级选词填空技巧汇总

选词填空技巧汇总大学英语四级考试的阅读部分，除了传统的两篇仔细阅读和一篇快速阅读，还有一种让考生普遍头痛的考法：选词填空。选词填空的考察形式是：一篇280词左右的文章，文章中挖出10个空，并统一给出A-O15个备选答案。选词填空区别于完形填空，有更大的解题难度，原因在于： 1. 完形填空每题都是四选一，选词填空第一题要十五选一，就算用到排除法，最后一题也要六选一，而且在十五个选项中还有五个根本不会用到，难度加大； 2. 完形填空每题的四个选项都是统一的词性，只需要辨析词义、搭配就基本可以作答，而选词填空的十五个选项有多个词性，解题时需要同时判断词性和词义，难度加大； 3. 完形填空每题的四个选项往往都是统一时态，统一形式，而在选词填空中会涉及选项的动词时态、第三人称单数形式、被动主动语态，名词的单复数等的辨析，难度加大。因此，针对选词填空的解题方法分为三步： 1. 预览选项，了解词义并把选项分为四大类词性：名词n，动词v，形容词a，副词ad，在每个选项后作词性的简要标记； 2. 精读全文开头，把握文章主题，并以三个空或一个段落为一个单位，利用前后文判断每空的词性； 3. 把对应词性的选项逐一带回原文，含义通顺，时态、主谓搭配一致的为正确选项。四级考试的常用后缀在判断选项词性时可以有一定帮助作用：常见名词后缀： -ability usability, capability -ibility visibility, responsibility, stability -age package, shortage, marriage -ance importance, allowance, reliance -ence presence, absence, confidence -ant assistant, accountant, inhabitant -ent president, resident, dependent

大学综合英语三选词填空翻译答案

Unit 2 一、填单词 1、China’s economic success over the past three decades has raised the living standards of hundreds of millions of Chinese citizens. 中国在过去三十年取得的经济成功提高了千百万中国人民的生活水平。 2、Citibank(花旗银行) picked the chief executive of https://www.wendangku.net/doc/1b5987714.html, as its first Chinese customer Thursday to open an account at its new branch in the historic Peace Hotel along Shanghai’s fabled waterfront. 花旗银行星期四选择了易唐执行总裁作为它新分行的第一位中国开户客户，该分行在位于上海外滩著名的和平饭店内。 3、The United States last Wednesday imposed tariffs of up to 30 percent on a range of foreign steel imports to help protect its domestic industry. 美国上星期三对外国进口钢材征收30 %的关税以保护国内钢产业。 4、Although he was raised as a Christian, he’s not really very religious.虽然他被当做一个基督徒被养大，但他不是非常虔诚的宗教信徒 5、You can distinguish between frogs and toads in the following way: frogs have slender bodies, long limbs, and a smooth skin, and toads have stouter bodies, shorts limbs and dry skin. 你可以从以下方面区分青蛙和蟾蜍：青蛙身体细长，四肢很长并且皮肤光滑，而蟾蜍身体粗壮，四肢短，皮肤干燥。 6、From the airplane window I could see a web of city streets. 从飞机的窗口我能看到城市街道的网状图 7、Aunt Pat smiled at her little niece and bade her to eat. 帕特阿姨笑着

大学英语六级选词填空完全攻略

大学英语六级选词填空完全攻略 Document serial number【NL89WT-NY98YT-NC8CB-NNUUT-NUT108】

大学英语六级选词填空应试技巧 ——胡一、了解题型选词填空又称15选10，在仔细阅读部分，是新增题型。试题文章长约200到250个单词，10个空格，备选词汇共15个，每个空格只准选用一个单词，每个词不能重复使用。备选词汇是名词，动词，形容词和副词，虚词不在考核范围内。二、应试方法及步骤 1、按照词缀准确判断15个单词的词性,将同一词性的备选单词归为一组，如果遇到动词还可以按照时态进行第二次分类,尽量将15个单词的类别分得越细越好。 2、只读试题所在的原句，通过前后词判断空内应填入词性和语法属性，通过上下句判断时态，回到相对应的词性组选择单词，如果遇到动词则需注意时态。 3、本试题并不侧重考察同义词辨析和固定搭配，否则就是完型填空，因此，只要能判断试题所在的句子所需要的词性和语法属性就不难找到正确答案。 4、未必要按顺序作题，因为本来就无须了解文章的意思，只读句子，遇到哪个简单就先做哪个，难的放到后面做，因为备选范围在不断缩小。 5、正确答案应满足语法和词性要求，句意通顺。设题原则: 设题原则是首句不设空，而且通常情况下此句是总体句，弄清此句有利于理解全文。一句话中不设两空，设空比较均匀，基本覆盖全文。选项特点: 10个空格考察的全部是实词，词性分配的基本比例: 3个名词正确答案+1个名词干扰答案 3个动词正确答案+1个动词干扰答案 3个形容词正确答案+2个形容词干扰答案 1个副词正确答案+1个副词干扰答案。

大学英语四级选词填空练习

大学英语四级选词填空练习（二十七） Some years ago I was offered a writing assignment that would require three months of travel through Europe. I had been abroad a couple of times, but I could hardly __1__ to know my way around the continent. Moreover, my knowledge of foreign languages was __2__ to a little college French. I hesitated. How would I, unable to speak the language, __3__ unfamiliar with local geography or transportation systems, set up __4__ and do research? It seemed impossible, and with considerable __5__ I sat down to write a letter begging off. Halfway through, a thought ran through my mind: you can't learn if you don't try. So I accepted the assignment. There were some bad __6__. But by the time I had finished the trip I was an experienced traveler. And ever since, I have never hesitated to head for even the most remote of places, without guides or even __7__ bookings, confident that somehow I will manage. The point is that the new, the different, is almost by definition __8__. But each time you try something, you learn, and as the learning piles up, the world opens to you. I've learned to ski at 40, and flown up the Rhine River in a __9__. And I know I'll go on doing such things. It's not because I'm braver or more daring than others. I'm not. But I'll accept anxiety as another name for challenge and I believe I can __10__ wonders. [A] accomplish [B] advanced [C] balloon [D] claim [E] constantly [F] declare [G] interviews [H] limited [I] manufacture [J] moments

大学英语四级(选词填空)专项训练

2011年6月大学英语四级真题 Questions 47 to 56 are based on the following passage. The popular notion that older people need less sleep than younger adults is a myth, scientists said yesterday. While elderly people __47__ to sleep for fewer hours than they did when they were younger, this has a(n) __48__ effect on their brain's performance and they would benefit from getting more, according to research. Sean Drummond, a. psychiatrist (心理医生) at the University of California, San Diego, said older people are more likely to suffer from broken sleep, while younger people are better at sleeping __49__ straight through the night. More sleep in old age, however, is __50__ with better health, and most older people would feel better and more __51__ if they slept for longer periods, he said. ―The ability to sleep in one chunk (整块时间) overnight goes down as we age but the amount of sleep we need to __52__ well does not change,‖ Dr Drummond told the American Association for the Advancement of Science conference in San Diego. ―It's __53__ a myth that older people need less sleep. The more healthy an older adult is, the more they sleep like they did when they were __54__. Our data suggests that older adults would benefit from __55__ to get as much sleep as they did in their 30s. That's __56__ from person to person, but the amount of sleep we had at 35 is probably the same amount as we need at 75.‖ 答案Part IV Reading Comprehension (Reading in depth) 47 N tend 48 L negative 49 H efficiently 50 B associated 51 A alert 52 J function/ 53 F definitely 54 O younger 55 E continuing56 G different 文章大意：本文主要讲述的是关于老年人睡眠的问题：是否老年人与年轻人相比只需要较少的睡眠时间？ 2010年12月英语四级考试真题 Questions 47 to 56 are based on the following passage. What determines the kind of person you are? What factors make you more or less bold, intelligent, or able to read a map? All of these are influenced by the interaction of your genes and the environment in which you were 47 . The study of how genes and environment interact to influence 48 activity is known as behavioral genetics. Behavioral genetics has made important 49 to the biological revolution, providing information about the extent to which biology

2014年6月英语六级选词填空习题及答案(4)

2014年6月英语六级选词填空习题及答案（4） Nearly half the （1）__________ believes UFOs could be a （2）__________of extraterrestrial visitation. A HuffPost/YouGov poll reveals that 48 percent of adults in the United States are open to the idea that alien spacecraft are observing our planet -- and just 35 percent outright （3）__________ the idea.The poll was seen as vindication from the community of UFO researchers who often feel they are laughed off by government officials."It's always been intriguing to me how we act as though only kooks and quacks and little old ladies in tennis shoes believe in flying saucers. And it's never been true, at least for 30 or 40 years," said former nuclear physicist Stanton Friedman, who was the original civilian investigator of the events surrounding the （4）__________Roswell, NM, UFO crash of 1947.Friedman is very outspoken on the idea that some UFOs are （5）__________ controlled extraterrestrial vehicles."The believers are far more quiet, but far more on the side of reality," Friedman told The Huffington Post. "When you look at the polls, it's clear. And I see the benefit of that, （6）__________, because I've only had 11 hecklers in over 700 lectures. I've been out there, all over the place, in every state, 18 other countries, and I know that my （7）__________is more than tolerant -- they're accepting. It's been one of the things that really has kept me going."In the HuffPost/YouGov poll, conducted between Sept. 6-7, 1,000 adults were asked if they either believed or didn't believe that some people have （8）__________ UFOs that have an extraterrestrial origin.When YouGov offered （9）__________ the choice between "slightly disagree," "disagree" and "strongly disagree," those numbers added up to 35 percent who are skeptical of the notion that any UFOs may be alien-related.However, nearly half of the adults surveyed （48 percent）resounded in the affirmative, leaving 16 percent who （10）__________ that they weren't sure on either side of the ET issue. A: legendary B:accept C: reject D: respondents E: personally F: implied G: population H: responsibility I: intelligently J: indicated K: sign L: signal M: witnessed N: story O: audience

大学综合英语三选词填空翻译答案unit1

Unit 1 、填单词 1、M y job varies between the extremely tedious and the annoyingly busy. __On balanee __I think rm happier during the really busy times; no time to think about how bored I am。我的工作既有特无聊的时候，也有忙得要命的时候。但总的来说, 我在真正忙的时候高兴些，因为在那个时候，我没时间去想我有多厌倦。 2、It is the n ature of the wise to _ resist__ pleasures, but the foolish to be a slave to them 明智之人天生会抵制享乐，而愚蠢之人却成了它的奴隶。 3、I figure out a good team of dogs, hitched to a light sled, can _haul__ 1,000 pounds of goods. 一组健壮的狗可以用轻小的雪橇拉动1,000磅的货物。 4、I n the story, the little girl has a _wicked__ stepmother, who makes her life a misery.在这个故事中，小女孩有一个心肠很坏的继母，让她生活很痛苦。 5、N othing ever becomes real till it is experieneed -- even a proverb is no proverb to you till your life has _ illustrated __ it.眼见为实一一即使是谚语在你没有在生活中得至U证明时，也不一定正确。 6、N owadays almost all libraries are finding it increasingly difficult to remai n within their__ budget _ .当前，几乎所有图书馆发现靠他们的预算生存下去越来越难。 7、You can in crease a tyres grip in win ter by slightly __loweri ng __ its pressure .冬天可以稍微放点气来增强轮胎的抓力。 8、L akes Superior, Huron, Erie, and Ontario are shared by the United States and Canada, and form part of the _ boundary _between the two

2013年12月英语六级选词填空习题及答案

2013年12月英语六级选词填空习题及答案(1) A novel way of making computer memories, using bacteria　FOR half a century, the (1) __________of progress in the computer industry has been to do more with less. Moore's law famou observes that the number of transistors which can be crammed into a given space (2)__________ every months. The amount of data that can be stored has grown at a similar rate. Yet as (3)________ get smaller, making them gets harder and more expensive. On May 10th Paul Otellini, the boss of ntel, a big American chipmaker, put the price of a new chip factory at around $10 billion. Happily hose that lack Intel's resources, there may be a cheaper option—namely to mimic Mother Nature, has been building tiny (4)__________, in the form of living cells and their components, for billions of years, and has thus got rather good at it. A paper published in Small, a nanotechnology journal , set out the latest example of the (5)__________. In it, a group of researchers led by Sarah Staniland at University of Leeds, in Britain, describe using naturally occurring proteins to make arrays of tiny magnets, similar to those employed to store information in disk drives. The researchers took th 6)__________ from Magnetospirillum magneticum, a bacterium that is sensitive to the Earth's magnet ield thanks to the presence within its cells of flecks of magnetite, a form of iron oxide. Previous w has isolated the protein that makes these miniature compasses. Using genetic engineering, the team managed to persuade a different bacterium—Escherichia coli, a ubiquitous critter that is a workhorse of biotechnology—to (7)__________ this protein in bulk. Next, they imprinted a block of gold with a microscopic chessboard pattern of chemicals. Half the squares contained anchoring points for the protein. The other half were left untreated as controls. They then dipped the gold into a solutio containing the protein, allowing it to bind to the treated squares, and dunked the whole lot into a heated 8)__________ of iron salts. After that, they examined the results with an electron microscope. Sure enough, groups of magnetite grains had materialised on the treated squares, shepherded into place he bacterial protein. In principle, each of these magnetic domains could store the one or the zero o bit of information, according to how it was polarised. Getting from there to a real computer memor would be a long road. For a start, the grains of magnetite are not strong enough magnets to make a useful memory, and the size of each domain is huge by modern computing (9)__________. But Dr Staniland reckons that, with enough tweaking, both of these objections could be dealt with. The 10)__________ of this approach is that it might not be so capital-intensive as building a fab. Grow hings does not need as much kit as making them. If the tweaking could be done, therefore, the resu might give the word biotechnology a whole new meaning.