本文選自美國新聞，也是2021年12月CET6級的閱讀真題

學(xué)長建議

1. 在語境中學(xué)習(xí)表達(dá)用法；

2. 著重把握學(xué)長標(biāo)注的內(nèi)容；

3. 帶著問題去閱讀文章，嘗試完成6級真題（答案見最文章最下面）；

4. 四六級真題下載（微信公眾號：二寶學(xué)長）

Reading Comprehension

1.What can we observe from the author's description of our communities？

A) The growing passion for automation.

B) The shift from manual jobs to IT ones.

C) Their changing views on employment.

D) Their fading employment opportunities.

2.What do we learn from a recent report?

A) The manufacturing sector is declining at a fast rate.

B) The concerns about the effect of trade are exaggerated.

C) The fears about trade have been spreading far and wide.

D) The impact of trade on employment has been staggering.

3.What does the passage tell us about American workers in an era of transformation?

A) They feel ignored by politicians.

B) They feel increasingly vulnerable.

C) They keep adapting to the changes.

D) They keep complaining but to no avail.

4. What does the author think of automation?

A) lt will have the same impact as industrialization.

B) It provides sensible companies with alternatives.

C) Its alleged positive effects are doubtful.

D) Its detrimental effects are unavoidable.

5.What should we attach importance to when dealing with automation?

A) College graduates job prospects.

B) Women's access to employment.

C) People?s economic security.

D) People's social mobility

Save Jobs, Address Automation

“

Automation, not trade, is causing job losses and economists must address it.

In recent months, the subject of automation and its role in our economy has taken hold in our discourse. As anyone who has visited Youngstown, Ohio or Buffalo, New York could tell you, automation has already taken its toll on the American middle class. Technology broadly and automation specifically are dramatically reshaping the way we work. And we need to have a plan for what's still to come.

We don't have to look further than our own communities to see the evidence. From automated warehouses to touchscreen fast food restaurants, from Amazon's new cashier-less grocery stores to neighborhood libraries that offer self-checkout lanes in lieu of employing real people – automation is increasingly replacing jobs and leaving too few good new jobs in its wake.

The statistics in manufacturing are staggering. Despite the prevailing narrative from talking heads on TV, a recent Ball State report showed that just 13 percent of jobs lost in manufacturing are due to trade – the rest of the losses have been due to advances in technology.

That is just one reason more and more people from across the political spectrum are crying foul over the ever-increasing role of technology in our economy. Our country is manufacturing more than ever before, but we are doing it with fewer workers. But it's not just factories that are seeing losses – software and information technology are also having a dramatic impact on jobs most people think are secure from the forces of rapidly changing economy. Something transformative is happening in America that is not good for American families. Whether policymakers and politicians are willing to admit it or not, workers spoke loudly and clearly in the last election about their economic insecurity and desire to keep good jobs in America.

So why are the same people who missed what globalization did to America – the same people who missed the rise of Donald Trump – now so insistent on ignoring the perils of automation? Why are the same people who pushed failed trickle down economics and deregulation now missing what's happening in our communities? As Barclays' Stephen Berkenfeld put it, ""Economists are expected to look backwards, predicting the future by what's happened in the past and debating whether we are measuring the right things. But now, more than ever, we need to be looking ahead and to be thinking about what we should be doing about it."

That's not to say we should swim against the tide – automation is as inevitable as industrialization was before it. I sincerely hope the economists are right that automation will make us more effective and pave the way for new occupations. But, no one can currently say where the new jobs are coming from or when, and any sensible company or country should prepare for all alternatives.

Just look at what's happened to the labor force. According to economic research by Nicholas Eberstadt, one in six working-age men, 25-54, doesn't have a job. Fifty years ago, nearly 100 percent of those men ages were working. Women's labor force participation has slipped back to the level it was at in the late 1980s.

Automation is not only transforming the kinds of jobs available to working people today, but new innovation from robots to software to artificial intelligence will further uproot the labor market.

Smart people and economists alike have already recognized that automation is a problem for the American worker. Nobel Laureate Joseph Stiglitz said that automation would lead to "more inequality and lower wages." Elon Musk thinks that universal basic income will become necessary to alleviate economic distress from automation. Economist Angus Deaton supports governments creating basic income grants, and Bill Gates supports a robot tax.

It's no wonder President Obama, while still in office, acknowledged that artificial intelligence "has some downsides that we're going to have to figure out in terms of not eliminating jobs."

American families and prominent business leaders get that there's a big problem with automation – so why don't our current elected officials do something about it? President Donald Trump claims he's going to lead a party of the working people, yet to date few too many leaders are moving toward creating policy that will tackle automation's effect on the everyday worker.

The great American escalator is broken. The value of a college degree is diminishing, and our upward mobility is declining. If we want an economy that allows everyone to be economically secure, we need our economists to get out of their bubble and thinking about how we can rightfully address automation.

全文翻譯

Automation, not trade, is causing job losses and economists must address it.

自動化，而不是貿(mào)易，正在造成就業(yè)損失，經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家必須解決這個(gè)問題。

In recent months, the subject of automation and its role in our economy has taken hold in our discourse. As anyone who has visited Youngstown, Ohio or Buffalo, New York could tell you, automation has already taken its toll on the American middle class. Technology broadly and automation specifically are dramatically reshaping the way we work. And we need to have a plan for what's still to come.

最近幾個(gè)月，自動化及其在我們的經(jīng)濟(jì)中的作用這一主題已經(jīng)在我們的討論中占據(jù)了主導(dǎo)地位。任何去過俄亥俄州揚(yáng)斯敦或紐約州水牛城的人都可以告訴你，自動化已經(jīng)對美國中產(chǎn)階級造成了損失。廣義的技術(shù)和具體的自動化正在極大地重塑我們的工作方式。我們需要為即將到來的事情制定一個(gè)計(jì)劃。

We don't have to look further than our own communities to see the evidence. From automated warehouses to touchscreen fast food restaurants, from Amazon's new cashier-less grocery stores to neighborhood libraries that offer self-checkout lanes in lieu of employing real people – automation is increasingly replacing jobs and leaving too few good new jobs in its wake.

我們不必再去看我們自己的社區(qū)，就能看到證據(jù)。從自動化倉庫到觸摸屏快餐店，從亞馬遜的新的無收銀員雜貨店到提供自助結(jié)賬通道而不是雇用真正的人的社區(qū)圖書館--自動化正在越來越多地取代工作，并在其之后留下太少的好工作。

The statistics in manufacturing are staggering. Despite the prevailing narrative from talking heads on TV, a recent Ball State report showed that just 13 percent of jobs lost in manufacturing are due to trade – the rest of the losses have been due to advances in technology.

制造業(yè)的統(tǒng)計(jì)數(shù)據(jù)是驚人的。盡管電視上的談話者普遍認(rèn)為，最近鮑爾州立大學(xué)的一份報(bào)告顯示，制造業(yè)損失的工作只有13%是由于貿(mào)易造成的——其余的損失都是由于技術(shù)的進(jìn)步。

That is just one reason more and more people from across the political spectrum are crying foul over the ever-increasing role of technology in our economy. Our country is manufacturing more than ever before, but we are doing it with fewer workers. But it's not just factories that are seeing losses – software and information technology are also having a dramatic impact on jobs most people think are secure from the forces of rapidly changing economy. Something transformative is happening in America that is not good for American families. Whether policymakers and politicians are willing to admit it or not, workers spoke loudly and clearly in the last election about their economic insecurity and desire to keep good jobs in America.

這只是一個(gè)原因，越來越多來自不同政治派別的人對技術(shù)在我們經(jīng)濟(jì)中不斷增加的作用表示不滿。我們國家的制造業(yè)比以往任何時(shí)候都多，但我們用更少的工人來做這件事。但是，看到損失的不僅僅是工廠——軟件和信息技術(shù)也對大多數(shù)人認(rèn)為在快速變化的經(jīng)濟(jì)力量下安全的工作產(chǎn)生了巨大的影響。美國正在發(fā)生一些對美國家庭不利的變革。無論政策制定者和政治家們是否愿意承認(rèn)，工人們在上次選舉中大聲清楚地表達(dá)了他們的經(jīng)濟(jì)不安全感和將好工作留在美國的愿望。

So why are the same people who missed what globalization did to America – the same people who missed the rise of Donald Trump – now so insistent on ignoring the perils of automation? Why are the same people who pushed failed trickle down economics and deregulation now missing what's happening in our communities? As Barclays' Stephen Berkenfeld put it, "Economists are expected to look backwards, predicting the future by what's happened in the past and debating whether we are measuring the right things. But now, more than ever, we need to be looking ahead and to be thinking about what we should be doing about it."

那么，為什么那些錯(cuò)過了全球化對美國的影響的人——那些錯(cuò)過了唐納德-特朗普的崛起的人——現(xiàn)在卻如此堅(jiān)持忽視自動化的危險(xiǎn)？為什么那些推動失敗的涓滴經(jīng)濟(jì)和放松管制的人現(xiàn)在卻忽視了我們社區(qū)正在發(fā)生的事情？正如巴克萊銀行的Stephen Berkenfeld所說，人們期望經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家向后看，通過過去發(fā)生的事情來預(yù)測未來，并爭論我們是否在衡量正確的事情。但現(xiàn)在，我們比以往任何時(shí)候都更需要向前看，并思考我們應(yīng)該做些什么。"

That's not to say we should swim against the tide – automation is as inevitable as industrialization was before it. I sincerely hope the economists are right that automation will make us more effective and pave the way for new occupations. But, no one can currently say where the new jobs are coming from or when, and any sensible company or country should prepare for all alternatives.

這并不是說我們應(yīng)該逆流而上——自動化就像之前的工業(yè)化一樣是不可避免的。我真誠地希望經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家們是對的，自動化將使我們更有效率，并為新的職業(yè)鋪平道路。但是，目前沒有人可以說新的工作崗位來自哪里或何時(shí)，任何明智的公司或國家都應(yīng)該為所有的替代品做好準(zhǔn)備。

Just look at what's happened to the labor force. According to economic research by Nicholas Eberstadt, one in six working-age men, 25-54, doesn't have a job. Fifty years ago, nearly 100 percent of those men ages were working. Women's labor force participation has slipped back to the level it was at in the late 1980s.

只要看看勞動力發(fā)生了什么。根據(jù)Nicholas Eberstadt的經(jīng)濟(jì)研究，每六個(gè)25-54歲的工作年齡的男性中就有一個(gè)沒有工作。五十年前，這些年齡段的男性幾乎百分之百都在工作。婦女的勞動力參與已經(jīng)滑落到20世紀(jì)80年代末的水平。

Automation is not only transforming the kinds of jobs available to working people today, but new innovation from robots to software to artificial intelligence will further uproot the labor market.

自動化不僅改變了今天勞動人民可獲得的工作種類，而且從機(jī)器人到軟件到人工智能的新創(chuàng)新將進(jìn)一步拔除勞動力市場。

Smart people and economists alike have already recognized that automation is a problem for the American worker. Nobel Laureate Joseph Stiglitz said that automation would lead to "more inequality and lower wages." Elon Musk thinks that universal basic income will become necessary to alleviate economic distress from automation. Economist Angus Deaton supports governments creating basic income grants, and Bill Gates supports a robot tax.

聰明人和經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家都已經(jīng)認(rèn)識到，自動化是美國工人的一個(gè)問題。諾貝爾獎(jiǎng)得主約瑟夫-斯蒂格利茨說，自動化將導(dǎo)致 "更多的不平等和更低的工資"。埃隆-馬斯克認(rèn)為，為了緩解自動化帶來的經(jīng)濟(jì)困境，全民基本收入將成為必要。經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家安格斯-迪頓支持政府設(shè)立基本收入補(bǔ)助金，比爾-蓋茨支持征收機(jī)器人稅。

It's no wonder President Obama, while still in office, acknowledged that artificial intelligence "has some downsides that we're going to have to figure out in terms of not eliminating jobs."

難怪奧巴馬總統(tǒng)在任時(shí)承認(rèn)，人工智能 "有一些弊端，我們必須在不消除工作崗位方面弄清楚"。

American families and prominent business leaders get that there's a big problem with automation – so why don't our current elected officials do something about it? President Donald Trump claims he's going to lead a party of the working people, yet to date few too many leaders are moving toward creating policy that will tackle automation's effect on the everyday worker.

美國家庭和杰出的商業(yè)領(lǐng)袖都明白，自動化有一個(gè)很大的問題--那么為什么我們現(xiàn)在的民選官員不做點(diǎn)什么呢？唐納德-特朗普總統(tǒng)聲稱他將領(lǐng)導(dǎo)一個(gè)勞動人民的政黨，然而到目前為止，很少有領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人朝著制定政策，解決自動化對普通工人的影響。

The great American escalator is broken. The value of a college degree is diminishing, and our upward mobility is declining. If we want an economy that allows everyone to be economically secure, we need our economists to get out of their bubble and thinking about how we can rightfully address automation.

偉大的美國扶梯被打破了。大學(xué)學(xué)位的價(jià)值正在減少，我們的上升空間正在下降。如果我們想要一個(gè)讓每個(gè)人都有經(jīng)濟(jì)保障的經(jīng)濟(jì)，我們需要我們的經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家走出他們的泡沫，思考我們?nèi)绾文軌蛘_地解決自動化問題。

答案

DBBCC