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晨读伴侣Passage4：奥巴马访华的经济时代

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本文选自吴应时主编的《大学英语六级阅读真题精读——晨读伴侣》。本书对历年国家大学英语六级考试（CET-6）的仔细阅读部分进行了详尽而精准的分析、翻译和注释，对四六级考生有着事半功倍的效果，对提升整体英语能力也很有帮助。

学习导读：

经济问题永远是英文阅读中逃不掉的话题，而且比重较大。因为整个世界就是经济所主导的，我们没有办法离开经济活动而生存于社会。而作为全球经济第一大国的美国总是话题的焦点，对于中国的考试来说，美国总统来中国的经济消息还是比较合适的考试材料。从这里也可以窥见选材的倾向性，不过不论选什么样的题材，我们的英文实力永远是以不变应万变的王道。

You’ve [now] heard it [so many times], you can [probably] repeat it [in your sleep]. President Obama will [no doubt] make the point [publicly] [when he gets to Beijing:] the Chinese need to consume [more]; they need – ^believe it or not^ – to become [more] [like Americans], [for the sake of1 the global economy].

这种说法你已经听到过很多次了，即使你睡着了也很可能重复提到它。奥巴马总统抵达北京的时候，无疑会公开地阐明这个观点：中国人需要消费更多；不管你是否相信，为了全球的经济，他们（的消费方式）需要变得越来越美国人化。

注：1. for the sake of 为了，以什么的名义。美国人常喜欢用以上帝之名，for the sake of Jesus。例：

In the rapidly evolving smartphone field, security is often sacrificed for the sake of convenience.

在快速发展的智能手机领域，为了便利性往往牺牲了安全性。

[选自：MSN: Infected Smartphone Apps – The Next Wave of Malware]

And it’s [all] true. But the other side (of that equation 1) is that the U.S. needs to save [more]. [For the moment], American households [actually] are doing so. [After the personal-savings rate dipped 2 to zero in 2005], the shock (of the economic crisis) [last year] prompted3 people [to snap4 shut their wallets].

这的确是真的。但是这个等式的另一边却是，美国需要更多的储蓄。现在，美国的家庭实际上也是这样做的。自2005年个人存款率下降至零以后，去年经济危机的冲击就促使人们突然捂紧了钱包。

注：1. equation n.①（数学）等式，方程式；例：

The teacher asked me to write the equations on the blackboard.

老师叫我把几个等式写在黑板上。

But in terms of the impact on human society, threat is only part of the equation.

但就对人类社会的影响而言，威胁只是等式的一部分。

[选自：BBC: Coral reefs heading for fishing and climate crisis]

②（with)相等，均衡。例：

The equation of wealth with happiness can be unwise.

把财富和幸福等同起来可能是不明智的。

2. dip n. 浸泡; 倾斜; 蘸湿; 下沉 v. 浸; 把伸入; 泡; 舀取, 汲出; 浸一下; 倾斜; 下沉, 下降; 舀, 掏。例：

Her investments were doing well and she did not want to dip into this money.

她的投资都做得很好，她不想动用这笔钱。

[选自：FORBES: Time to Talk: Why the Buy and Hold Strategy Can Work Part Two]

3. prompt n. 催促, 付款期限, 提醒, 提示；

v. 促使; 怂恿; 激励; 引起, 激起。文中为促使意。例：

The traffic accident prompted the driver to renew his insurance.

这起交通事故促使这位司机为自己的保险续期了。

Closed questions prompt “Yes” or “No” answers which might be dull for your audience.

封闭式问题提示答案为“是”或“否”，这可能会让观众感到乏味。

[选自：BBC: Quiz: Gathering news]

adj. 迅速的, 立刻的, 敏捷的。例：

Our new manager is prompt on the job.

我们新来的经理工作起来干脆利落。

4. snap n. 猛咬, 劈啪声, 突然折断。例：

The fragment breaks loose with a snap.

随着啪嗒一声，碎片彻底散架了。

vi. 咬, 抓, 扑; 咬断, 争夺, 猛咬；突然的举动(或移动)，文中即突然的举动，例：

to snap to attention

喀嚓一声立正

adj. 突然的, 装搭扣的。例：

His snap appearing surprised me.

他的突然出现让我很惊讶。

[In China], the household-savings rate exceeds 20%. It is [partly] [for policy reasons]. (As we’ve seen,) 1 wage earners are expected to care for not only their children but their aging parents. And there is, [to date], only the flimsiest 2 (of publicly-funded health care and pension3 systems), (which increases incentives 4 [for individuals] [to save] [while they are working.]) But China is a society (that has [long] esteemed 5 (personal financial) prudence6.) There is no chance (that will change [anytime soon],) [even if the government creates a better social safety net and [successfully] encourages greater consumer spending.]

在中国，家庭储蓄达到了20%以上，部分是由于政策的原因。正如我们所见：工薪族不仅需要照顾孩子，还要照顾年迈的父母。还有，到目前为止，只有脆弱的公费医疗保健制度和养老保险制度，这些因素都促使人们一边工作一边存钱。但中国是一个有着浓厚个人艰苦朴素作风的社会。即使政府创建一个更好的社会保障制度，成功地鼓励更多的消费支出，这种状况也不可能在短时间内发生变化。

注：1. As引导的定语从句，非限制性的，as在这里作表语。

2. flimsy adj. 脆弱的；浅薄的；易损坏的；不周密的。例：

Finally, volunteer firefighter Dave Hunt, along with the other 11 firefighters, managed to deploy their flimsy shelters.

最后，消防员志愿者戴夫·亨特，连同其他11名消防队员，成功地部署他们简陋的遮蔽处。

[选自：NPR: Photo Captures Firefighters Ensnarled by Blaze]

n. 薄纸；复写纸；打字纸。

3. pension n.养老金，年金；live on a pension 靠退休金/抚恤金生活

4. incentive n.刺激，鼓励，动机。例：

As an incentive, the workers were promised a bonus if they finished the project ahead of schedule.

老板曾经许诺如果工人提前完成这个项目就给他们发放奖金，以资鼓励。

But in the long run, the airlines have no real incentive to keep doing that.

但是从长远角度来看，航空公司有没有真正的动力继续这样做。

[选自：CNN: Snyder: Padded flight times a reasonable buffer]

5. esteem vt. 尊重，尊敬。例：

“I personally esteem Mario Monti, a great person,” Maroni told Italy's Sky TG24 in an interview.“

我个人推崇马里奥·蒙蒂，她一个伟大的人，”马罗尼在接受意大利天空TG24记者采访时如是说。

[选自：NPR: Italian President Consulting On Support For Monti]

I admire her abilities and esteem her character.

我钦佩他的能力，也敬重他的人品。

n. 尊敬，敬重。例：

My esteem for your family is very sincere.

我对你们的家人的尊敬是非常诚挚的。

6. prudence n. 审慎。例：

Banks succeed by issuing debt at the intersection of prudence and opportunity.

在谨慎和机遇的十字路口，银行通过发行债券获得了成功。

[选自：FORBES: Most Popular]

Why does the U.S. need to learn a little frugality 1？Because healthy savings rates are one of the surest indicators (of a country’s long-term financial health). High savings lead, ^over time^, to increased investment, (which [in turn] generates productivity gains, innovation2 and job growth.) [In short], savings are the seed corn (of a good economic harvest).

为什么美国需要学得节俭一点？因为健康储蓄率是一个国家金融长期稳定运行最可靠的指标之一。随着时间的推移，高储蓄率会带来投资的增长，而高投资将会促进生产力的发展、技术的创新和就业的繁荣。简而言之，储蓄就是为获得经济的丰收而播下的种子。

注：1. frugality n. 俭省，节俭。例：

Frugality may be good for family budgets, but it's bad for the national economy.

节俭可能对家庭预算有利，但对国民经济不利。

[选自：MSN: Frugality is the new normal, by necessity]

2. innovation n. 革新, 创新, 改革; 新制度; 新方法; 新事物。例：

an age of technological innovation 一个技术创新的时代

Since its birth, the United States has been a nation built on discovery and innovation.

自诞生以来，美国一直是建立在发现和创新基础上的国家。

[选自：WHITEHOUSE: Transforming the American Economy Through Innovation]

The U.S. government [thus] needs to act [as well]. [By running constant deficits], it is dis-saving, [even as households save [more].] Peter Orszag, {Obama’s Budget Director}, [recently] called the U.S. budget deficits and he’s right. [To date], the U.S. has seemed unable to see the consequences (of spending so much more than is taken in). That needs to change. And [though Hu Jintao and the rest of the Chinese leadership aren’t inclined2 to lecture visiting Presidents,] he might [gently] hint3 that Beijing is getting [a little] nervous [about the value of the dollar] – (which has fallen 15% [since March],) [in large part because of increasing fears (that America’s debt load is becoming unmanageable.)]

因此，美国政府也需要采取行动。即使美国家庭有更多的储蓄，但如果继续维持赤字经济的话，最后结果将依然是负储蓄。奥巴马的预算主管彼得·欧尔萨格近期称，美国的预算赤字已无法维持，而且他是对的。到目前为止，美国似乎还无法看到支出远高于收入的情况。目前的情况需要改变。尽管胡锦涛和其他中国领导人并不打算对来访的总统说教，但是他可能会礼貌地暗示北京对于美元的币值有些担心（自3月以来美元贬值了15%），很大程度上是因为公众越来越担忧美国的债务负担变得难以控制。

注：1. unsustainable adj.无法支撑的; 无法维持的。例：

“It is wasteful and unsustainable to demolish a structurally sound historic building,” the Victorian Society said.

维多利亚协会表示：“拆除一个结构完善、历史悠久的建筑是一种浪费而且不可持续的行为”。

unsustainable growth/demands 无法稳定的增长/无法维持的需求

2. incline v. ①（使）倾斜，（使）偏向。例：

The old man inclined towards the speaker to hear more clearly.

老人朝说话者倾过身去，以便可以听得更清楚些。

②（使）倾向于，赞同。

be inclined to do sth. 倾向于做某事。例：

But the usual causes of natural variability do not seem to explain the current trend, so scientists incline to the view that it is man-made.

但自然变异的通常原因似乎并没有解释目前的趋势，所以，科学家倾向于认为这是人为造成的。

[选自：ECONOMIST: Getting warmer]

3. hint n. 暗示, 提示；线索，细微的迹象；微量，少许。例：

I don’t know the answer. Please give me a hint. 我不知道答案，请提示一下吧。

Investors said they were looking for a hint of new plans to spur economic growth.

投资者表示，他们正在寻找一些新的计划，以刺激经济增长。

[选自：MSN: Dow soars 430 points in wild trading session - Business - Stocks & economy - msnbc.com]

v. 暗示, 示意; 作暗示, 示意，文中此意，作动词。例：

But as important as these disparate parts are, they hint at an even larger project.

与这些无法相比的部分一样重要，他们暗示道（这将是）一个更宏大的项目。

[选自：FORBES: Innovation In The Asphalt Jungle]

That’s what happens [when you’re the world’s biggest creditor]: you get to drop hints [like that], (which would be enough [by themselves] [to create international economic chaos] [if they were [ever] leaked1.]) ([Every time] any official (in Beijing) deliberates 2 [publicly] about seeking an alternative to the U.S. dollar [for the $2.1 trillion 3] (China holds [in reserve],) currency traders have a heart attack.) 原 [If Americans saved [more] and spent [less],] [consistently over time], they wouldn’t have to worry about all that.

这就是当你作为世界上最大的债权国时会做的事：你开始发出类似那样的暗示，一旦这些暗示被泄露出去，它们本身就足以造成国际经济的混乱。（每当北京的任何官员公开讨论要为中国所持有的21000亿美元外汇储备寻找美元之外的替代货币时，外汇交易员们都会心脏病发作。）如果美国人能多储蓄、少消费，并保持一段时间，他们也就不必担心所有这些事情了。

注：1. leak n. 漏洞, 裂缝; 漏出物; 漏出; 漏电

v. 漏; 泄漏; 使渗漏。文中作动词。例：

On Saturday, they discovered a leak where radioactive water was pouring into the ocean.

上周六，他们发现一个泄漏的地方有放射性水涌入大海。

[选自：MSN: Japan nuke plant dumps radioactive water in sea]

2. deliberate adj. 深思熟虑的，故意的。例：

Every step in the experiment was deliberate.

该实验的每一步都是经过深思熟虑的。

The fire that destroyed his offices in 1990 was a deliberate act of arson.

1990年那场摧毁了他的办公室的大火是有人故意纵火所为。

3. trillion n. 万亿。英文中对数字不要用中国人的思维来理解，直接用英文思维理解即可。也就是我们的概念中不再有万，只有千，那么表示1万就只需要说十千。于是，概念只有千、百万、十亿和万亿了，都按照三位数一个逗号来。例：

50,000 五十千fifty thousand，即五万。