2014届高考英语一轮复习话题阅读素材64_高考复习指南

2014届高考英语一轮复习话题阅读素材64

The Story of Corn Before 1492, when Columbus "discovered" America, no one living in Europe knew corn existed. Up to this time, corn grew only in the Americas. Scientists believed corn was originally cultivated by Indians in the highlands of Mexico thousands of years ago. American Indians were growing corn in many parts of North America log before the first arrival of European explorers and traders. Christopher Columbus and the explorers that followed him took corn back to Europe and introduced it to the world. Native American Indians taught European colonists to grow many varieties of the corn including yellow, re, blue, pink, and black kernels. As time went on, the new settles to America began to depend on corn as one of the most important farm crops.

American farmers have always wanted to grow strong healthy corn plants that yield as much as possible. In the later 1800s scientists worked on the development of hybrid corn. This research led to better varieties of corn and higher yields. Did you know corn is used to help produce antibiotics, baby foods, condensed milk, some fruit juices and even peanut butter? From the corn syrup in your soda pop to thousands of products -- animal feed, human food, drugs, cosmetics, corn sweetener and cleansers, just to name a few. Beyond its food and consumer product uses, corn is replacing petroleum in many industrial applications, from plastic containers to clean-burning ethanol. Because corn products are a biodegradable and renewable natural resource, they are better for the environment than their petroleum counterparts. Corn and products made from corn improve the lives of Americans in thousands of little way. If corn and its products weren't available, many common products would be less useful, more expensive, even unavailable. Here are some examples of the little annoyances and bigger problems Americans would face without corn: No freezing pizza. Freezing pizza is a problem, because the moisture in the sauce can migrate into the crust, making it so soggy that it's unappealing to eat. Modified corn starch is used to provide a barrier that prevents water migration and keeps the crust crisp. On a low-fat diet?