passage3

注解：標(biāo)題為紅色，翻譯為藍(lán)色，分析為綠色。?

????????When it comes to the slowing economy, Ellen Spero isn't biting her nails【biting one's?nails咬手指，束手無策】 just yet. But the 47-year-old manicurist美甲師 isn't cutting, filing搓平?or polishing打磨 as many nailsas she'd like to, either. Most of her clients spend $12 to $50 weekly, but last month two longtime customers【?longtime customers長(zhǎng)期顧客】 suddenly stopped showing up.【show?up出現(xiàn).】 Spero blames the softening軟掉了的?economy."I'm a good economic indicator指示者,"she says."I provide a service that people can do without when they' re concerned about saving some dollars."So Spero is downscaling降低檔次, shopping at middle-brow中檔的 Dillard's department store【?百貨商場(chǎng)department store】 near her suburban郊區(qū)的?Cleveland home, instead of Neiman Marcus."I don't know if other clients are going to abandon me, too,"she says.

????????Even before Alan Greenspan's admission that America's red-hot economy is cooling, lots of working folks【working folks上班族】 had already seen signs of the slowdown themselves. From cardealerships經(jīng)銷店 to Gap outlets出售點(diǎn)，分銷點(diǎn)（本文意思），情緒發(fā)泄方式, sales have been lagging（lag滯后，掉后） for months as shoppers消費(fèi)者 temper緩和 their spending開支. For retailers, who last year took in 24 percent of their revenue收益 between Thanksgiving and Christmas, the cautious approach is coming at a crucialtime. Already, experts say, holiday sales are off 7 percent from last year's pace.But don't sound any alarms just yet【not yet尚未】. Consumers seem only mildly concerned, not panicked恐慌的, and many say they remain optimistic about the economy's long-term prospects even as they do some modest不太多的（本文意思），適中的，謙虛的?belt-tightening【belt-tightening縮小開支，勒緊褲腰帶（過日子）】.

????????Consumers say they' re not in despair because, despite the dreadful headlines, their own fortunes still feel pretty good. Home prices are holding steady in mostregions. In Manhattan,"there's a new gold rush happening in the $4 million to $10 million range【指地區(qū)房?jī)r(jià)】, predominantly占領(lǐng)導(dǎo)地位地?fed（資金）供給 by Wall Street bonuses,"says broker經(jīng)紀(jì)人 Barbara Corcoran. In San Francisco舊金山, prices are still rising even as frenzied狂暴的 overbidding高出出價(jià)的?quiets安靜."Instead of 20 to 30 offers報(bào)價(jià), now maybe you only get two or three,"says John Tealdi,a Bay Area real-estate【real-estate房地產(chǎn)】 broker. And most folks still feel pretty comfortable about their ability to find and keep a job.

????????Many folks see silver linings【?silver linings一線希望】 to this slowdown. Potential home buyers would cheer for lower interest rates. Employers wouldn't mind a little fewer bubbles in the job market. Many consumers seem to have been influenced by stock-market swings搖擺，擺動(dòng), which investors now view as a necessary ingredient因素 to a sustained boom繁榮. Diners might see an upside不好的事情, too. Getting a table at Manhattan's hot new Alain Ducasse restaurant used to be impossible. Not anymore不再了. For that, Greenspan & Co. may still be worth toasting舉杯.

一、文章結(jié)構(gòu)分析

本文從斯珀若的例子展開討論，論述了美國當(dāng)前經(jīng)濟(jì)形勢(shì)下，消費(fèi)者沒有表現(xiàn)出恐慌。

第一段：以美甲師斯珀若的情況為典型事例，說明美國的經(jīng)濟(jì)情況影響到了很多人的生活。

第二段：使用列舉的方法說明美國經(jīng)濟(jì)在降溫，但段落后半部分筆鋒一轉(zhuǎn)，點(diǎn)明人們并不恐慌。

第三段：使用房地產(chǎn)業(yè)為典型事例，說明段首的主題句：人們自己財(cái)富的感覺依然良好。

第四段：在此使用列舉的方法說明段首的主題句：人們從這次經(jīng)濟(jì)滑坡中看到了自己可以得到的好處。

31. By"Ellen Spero isn't biting her nails just yet"(Line 1, Paragraph 1), the author means.

[A] Spero can hardly maintain her business.

[B] Spero is too much engaged in her work.

[C] Spero has grown out of her bad habit.

[D] Spero is not in a desperate situation.

31.作者說“E11en Spero isn't biting her nails just yet”意思是。

【A】斯珀若無法維持自己的生意。

【B】斯珀若過分投入自己的工作。

【C】斯珀若改掉了壞習(xí)慣。

【D】斯珀若還沒處于絕望的狀態(tài)。

32. How do the public feel about the current economic situation?

[A] Optimistic.

[B] Confused.

[C] Carefree.

[D] Panicked.

32.公眾對(duì)目前的經(jīng)濟(jì)形勢(shì)感覺如何？

【A】樂觀

【B】迷惑

【C】無憂無慮的

【D】恐慌

33. When mentioning "the $4 million to $10 million range"(Lines 3, Paragraph 3), the author is talking about

[A] gold market.

[B] real estate.

[C] stock exchange.

[D] venture investment.

33.作者提到“the $4million to $10million range”（第三段第三至第四行）的時(shí)候，在談?wù)撌裁矗?/span>

【A】黃金市場(chǎng)

【B】房地產(chǎn)業(yè)

【C】股票交易

【D】風(fēng)險(xiǎn)投資

34. Why can many people see"silver linings"to the economic slowdown?

[A] They would benefit in certain ways.

[B] The stock market shows signs of recovery.

[C] Such a slowdown usually precedes a boom.

[D] The purchasing power would be enhanced.

34.為什么在經(jīng)濟(jì)滑坡中人們看到了“一線希望”？

【A】他們可能在某些方面獲益。

【B】股票市場(chǎng)出現(xiàn)復(fù)蘇的跡象。

【C】緊接著這種滑坡的往往是繁榮。

【D】購買力得以增強(qiáng)。

35. To which of the following is the author likely to agree?

[A] A new boom, on the horizon.

[B] Tighten the belt, the single remedy.

[C] Caution all right, panic not.

[D] The more ventures, the more chances.

35.對(duì)于下列說法，作者可能同意哪個(gè)？

【A】新的繁榮即將出現(xiàn)。

【B】勒緊褲腰帶，這是唯一的解決方法。

【C】有必要謹(jǐn)慎，沒必要恐慌。

【D】投資越多，機(jī)會(huì)越多。

二、核心詞匯與超綱詞匯

（1）dealership（n.）代理權(quán)，經(jīng)銷權(quán)；dealer代理商

（2）downscale（v.）縮減…的規(guī)模

（3）frenzy（n.）狂暴，狂怒

（4）indicator（n.）指示器；indicate指出，顯示，預(yù)示

（5）lining（n.）[服裝]襯里；內(nèi)里；

（6）manicurist（n.）指甲修飾師

（7）panick或panic（n.）驚慌，恐慌

（8）predominant1y（ad.）主要地，突出地；卓越地；

predominate掌握，控制，支配；

predominant 主要的，占優(yōu)勢(shì)的

（9）retailer（n.）零售商人；retail零售；wholesale批發(fā)；wholesaler批發(fā)商

（10）slowdown（n.）減速

（11）temper（n.v.）回火；調(diào)節(jié)；使緩和；

三、閱讀答案：D A B AC

四、全文翻譯：?

????????當(dāng)經(jīng)濟(jì)發(fā)展減緩時(shí)，艾倫·斯珀若還沒有處于絕望的狀態(tài)。然而，“這個(gè)47歲的美甲師修剪、銼磨、上油的指甲卻沒有自己希望的那樣多了。她大多數(shù)的客戶每周花十二至五十美元，然而上個(gè)月兩個(gè)老顧客突然不來了。斯珀若將之歸結(jié)于疲軟的經(jīng)濟(jì)?！拔沂且粋€(gè)準(zhǔn)確的經(jīng)濟(jì)晴雨表”，她說，“我提供的服務(wù)在人們考慮省錢時(shí)就不需要了?！币虼?，斯珀若也在節(jié)約開支。她改去克利蘭德郊區(qū)她家附近的迪拉德百貨商場(chǎng)購物，而不再去奈曼·馬克爾斯了?！拔也恢榔渌目蛻羰欠褚矔?huì)棄我而去?！? ? ????

????????甚至在艾倫·格林斯潘承認(rèn)美國過熱的經(jīng)濟(jì)開始降溫之前，眾多的工人自己已經(jīng)看到了經(jīng)濟(jì)減速的跡象。隨著消費(fèi)者削減開支，從汽車銷售商到Gap名牌專賣店，銷售量開始幾個(gè)月來連續(xù)下降。對(duì)于零售商來說，在去年感恩節(jié)和圣誕節(jié)期間的收入為全年收入的百分之二十四，對(duì)他們來講，顧客的這種謹(jǐn)慎態(tài)度可是發(fā)生在節(jié)骨眼上。據(jù)專家稱，今年的假日消費(fèi)速度和去年相比已經(jīng)減緩了百分之七。不過，目前還不必拉響警報(bào)。消費(fèi)者好像僅僅是中度關(guān)注，沒有恐慌，很多人說，即使當(dāng)他們稍微勒緊褲腰帶的時(shí)候，他們對(duì)經(jīng)濟(jì)的遠(yuǎn)景還是樂觀的。

????????消費(fèi)者說，盡管報(bào)紙的頭條新聞很嚇人，他們之所以沒有絕望，其原因在于他們對(duì)自己的財(cái)產(chǎn)狀況仍然感覺良好。大部分地區(qū)房?jī)r(jià)保持穩(wěn)定。在曼哈頓，“又出現(xiàn)了新一輪的淘金熱，總值達(dá)到四百萬至一千萬美元。這筆資金主要是由華爾街股票紅利注入?！惫善苯?jīng)紀(jì)人芭芭拉·可考恩說。在舊金山，高價(jià)搶購現(xiàn)象雖然已經(jīng)平息，房?jī)r(jià)卻依舊看漲?！澳悻F(xiàn)在只能在兩三套房子間選擇了，而不是二十或三十套?！焙车貐^(qū)房地產(chǎn)經(jīng)紀(jì)人約翰·梯爾迪說道。而且大多數(shù)人仍然有能力找到并且保持一份工作，他們對(duì)此頗為滿足。

????????許多人從經(jīng)濟(jì)減緩中獲得了好處。潛在的買房人會(huì)因低利率而高興。雇主不介意人才市場(chǎng)有點(diǎn)泡沫。盡管很多消費(fèi)者似乎一直受到股票市場(chǎng)波動(dòng)的影響，投資者卻把這種波動(dòng)看作持續(xù)繁柴必不可少的一個(gè)因素。就餐者從中也得到很大的益處。過去，在曼哈頓新開的火爆的阿蘭·杜卡斯飯店吃上一桌是不可能的，而現(xiàn)在情形大不相同。就憑這個(gè)，也值得格林斯潘和商業(yè)舉杯。

????????