tenure: 任期

根据美国法律，美国联邦储备委员会主席艾伦·格林斯潘明年1月31日将届满卸任。这意味着，美国总统布什必须在今后几个月里物色到一个能接替格林斯潘为美国经济掌舵的合适人选。而这个人选能否延续格林斯潘对货币政策既艺术又科学的驾驭手腕，却是个未知数。请看报道：

Not so long ago, it seemed like Alan Greenspan's successor as Federal Reserve chairman would have it pretty easy at first. The current economic climate of solid growth and tame inflation was expected to continue for many months to come.

That seems like a distant memory now that Hurricane Katrina has sent gasoline, heating oil and natural gas prices soaring and crippled major U.S. commerce hubs. At the same time, the housing market looks more fragile than it did before, causing even Greenspan to worry that the real-estate boom could be losing steam.

Greenspan, whose 18-year tenure ends in January, will leave behind a highly regarded and well-respected legacy as a strong inflation fighter. But his skills, and those of the successor President Bush will soon name, will likely be put to the test in the months ahead.

文中的tenure意思是a job or an official public position，即"任期"，如：During his tenure as dean, he had a real influence on the students.（在他当教务长期间，对学生们的影响很大。）