问答题Practice 4　　The answer is, in a sense, all in our minds. For the last century, our society’s basic drive has been toward more—toward a bigger national economy, toward more stuff for each of us. And it’ s worked. Our economy is enormous; our houses are

The author's description of Ginny suggests all of the following EXCEPT ______.

______ our great surprise, our company has made much more profit than we expected lastyear.

What is the speaker’s attitude toward individualism?

Practice 7　　That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far- reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our healthcare is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.　　On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.　　On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.　　This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions - that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America. (Barack Obama: Inaugural Address)

Practice 3　　What today’s global market economy teaches many of us who are involved in political life, is that even when they are inconvenient, the laws of economics, like the laws of physics, cannot be repealed for the convenience of governments. The economic principles for national success are as difficult to implement as they are easy to state. There is a paradox in all our countries at this moment. Just as a new global economy creates more to look forward to than ever before, it also brings more uncertainty and more change to worry about than ever before. That is why the challenge of crafting economic policy in your country as in mine is one of balance. A balance between moving toward necessary objectives and maintaining stability. A balance between responding to global realities and upholding domestic traditions. And a balance between the virtues of competition as the best known motivator and driver of success, and the importance of cohesion and cooperation as sources of strength for our societies. These balances will have to be struck and calibrated every year in every country in this new global economy. These measures are what one might call the intangible infrastructure of a modern market economy.

Working Together Against the Infectious Diseases　　There is another area that really may sound like it’s outside the range of politics and Iraqi people where we’re cooperating together, but it’s an area that is vital to the well-being of the Chinese people, the American people, the people in the world, and it’s now we’re working together to deal with the dangers inherent in infectious diseases.　　China’s sobering experience with SARS stands as a lesson to all countries on the challenge of infectious diseases. I have called HIV/AIDS the world’s greatest weapon of mass destruction today. It threatens to kill tens of millions of men, women and children—in the Caribbean, in Latin America, in the subcontinent, especially in Africa—and yes, it is a danger to China as well.　　And China’s government is facing up to this crisis, working with us. The United States has told China we are ready to help. Last month, our Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson spoke in China of President Bush’s interest in furthering our practical cooperation on HIV/AIDS and other health issues. Specialists from our Centers for Disease Control are working on the ground with their Chinese counterparts. Our National Institute of Health has granted $14.8 million to help China upgrade its health care infrastructure.　　My friends, it is upon such concrete forms of cooperation on issues of regional and global importance that a 21st century US-China relationship will be built, issue by issue, experience by experience, challenge by challenge, initiative by initiative, program by program.　　As China participates more actively in world affairs, we will extend our welcome. Building and sustaining a healthy overall relationship is good for America, it is good for China, it is good for the region, and good for the international community.

_____ our great surprise, our company has made much more profit than we expected last year.

If there’s one man ______ opinion matters more than any others’, it’s our manager.

The coming of the railways in the 1830s（）our society and economy.

Is More Growth Really Better?　　A number of writers have raised questions about the desirability of faster economic growth as an end in itself, at least in the wealthier industrialized countries. Yet faster growth does mean more wealth, and to most people the desirability of wealth is beyond question. “I’ve been rich and I’ve been poor—and I can tell you, rich is better,” a noted stage personality is said to have told an interviewer, and most people seem to have the same attitude about the economy as a whole. To those who hold this belief, a healthy economy is one that is capable of turning out vast quantities of shoes, food, cars, and TV sets. An economy whose capacity to provide all these things is not expanding is said to have succumbed to the disease of stagnation.　　Economists from Adam Smith to Karl Marx saw great virtue in economic growth. Marx argued that capitalism, at least in its earlier historical stages, was a vital form of economic organization by which society got out of the rut in which the medieval stage of history had trapped it. Marx believed that “the development of the productive powers of society... alone can form the real basis of a higher form of productive powers of society”. Marx went on to tell us that only where such great productive powers have been unleashed can one have “a society in which the full and free development of every individual forms the ruling principle.” In other words, only a wealthy economy can afford to give all individuals the opportunity for full personal satisfaction through the use of their special abilities in their jobs and through increased leisure activities.　　Yet the desirability of further economic growth for a society that is already wealthy has been questioned on grounds that undoubtedly have a good deal of validity. It is pointed out that the sheer increase in quantity of products has imposed an enormous cost on society in the form of pollution, crowding, proliferation of wastes that need disposal, and debilitating psychological and social effects. It is said that industry has transformed the satisfying and creative tasks of the artisan into the mechanical and dehumanizing routine of the assembly line. It has dotted our roadsides with junkyards, filled our air with smoke, and poisoned our food with dangerous chemicals. The question is whether the outpouring of frozen foods, talking dolls, radios, and headache remedies is worth its high cost to society. As one well-known economist put it:　　The continued pursuit of economic growth by Western Societies is more likely on balance to reduce rather than increase social welfare... Technological innovations may offer to add to men’s material opportunities. But by increasing the risks of their obsolescence it adds also to their anxiety. Swifter means of communications have the paradoxical effect of isolating people; increased mobility has led to more hours commuting; increased automobilization to increased separation; more television to less communication. In consequence, people know less of their neighbors than ever before.　　Virtually every economist agrees that these concerns are valid, though many question whether economic growth is their major cause. Nevertheless, they all emphasize that pollution of air and water, noise and congestion, and the mechanization of the work process are very real and very serious problems. There is every reason for society to undertake programs that grapple with these problems. 11

Practice 4　　The answer is, in a sense, all in our minds. For the last century, our society’s basic drive has been toward more—toward a bigger national economy, toward more stuff for each of us. And it’ s worked. Our economy is enormous; our houses are enormous. We are living large. All that more is created by using cheap energy and hence built on carbon dioxide (CO2)—which makes up 72% of all greenhouse gases.　　Some pollutants decrease as we get richer.  But carbon dioxide consistency tracks economic growth. As Harvard economist Friedman concluded last year, CO2 is “the one major environmental contaminant for which no study has ever found any indication of improvement as living standards rise.” This means that if we’re going to cope with global warming, we may also have to cope with the end of infinite economic expansion.　　That sounds gloomy, but maybe not. New data suggest that we’ve been overstating the issue for many decades. We made an assumption that more was better. It seemed a reasonable thinking. But in recent years, economists, sociologists and other researchers have begun to question that link. Indeed, they’re finding that at least since the 1950’s, more material prosperity has yielded little increase in humans’ satisfaction.

Practice 8　　I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you’ve bestowed,  mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.　　Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding documents.　　That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.　　These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land—a nagging fear that America’s decline is inevitable, and the next generation must lower its sights. Today I say to you that the challenges we face arc real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America—they will be met.