1 .
Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.
| A. application | B. currently | C. initial | D. detection | E. previously | F. feasibility |
| G. primarily | H. intelligent | I. active | J. availability | K. predictable |
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The agricultural sector is going to face enormous challenges in order to feed the 9.6 billion people that the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) predicts are going to inhabit the planet by 2050: Food production must increase by 70% by 2050, and this has to be achieved in spite of the limited 1 of arable (适合耕种的) lands, the increasing need for fresh water (agriculture consumes 70 per cent of the world’s fresh water supply) and other less 2 factors, such as the impact of climate change, which, according to a recent report by the UN could lead, among other things, to changes to seasonal events in the life cycle of plants and animals.
One way to deal with these issues and increase the quality and quantity of agricultural production is using sensing technology to make farms more “ 3 ” and more connected through the so-called “precision agriculture”.
Precision agriculture, also known as “smart farming”, is not new, In the beginning, it was about position technologies 4 , but it is becoming more complex moving towards all the aspects of agriculture.
It’s something that’s already happening, as corporations and farm offices collect vast amounts of information from crop yields, soil-mapping, fertilizer 5 , weather data, machinery, and animal health. In a subset of smart farming, Precision Livestock Farming (PLF), sensors are used for early 6 of reproduction events and health disorders in animals.
The European Union has sponsored several projects on the topic. The 7 running EU-PLF project, for instance, is designed to look at the 8 of bringing proven and cost-effective Precision Livestock Farming tools from the lab to the farm.
Several private companies are also starting to be 9 in this field, such as Anemon (Switzerland), eCow (UK), Connected Cow (Medria Technologies and Deutsche Telekom). Smart fishing is at 10 stage with some projects in Europe, South Korea, North America and Japan.
