高级英语视听说教程第二册听力文本

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1、Book2Chapter1ThePopulationTodayweregoingtotalkaboutpopulationintheUnitedStates.Accordingtothemostrecentgovernmentcensus,thepopulationis281,421,906people.Nowthisrepresentsanincreaseofalmost33millionpeoplesincethe1990census.Apopulationofover281millionmakestheUnitedStatesthethirdmostpopulouscountryinth

2、ewholeworld.Asyouprobablyknow,thePeoplesRepublicofChinaisthemostpopulouscountryintheworld.Butdoyouknowwhichisthesecondmostpopulous?Well,ifyouthoughtIndia,youwereright.Thefourth,fifth,andsixthmostpopulouscountriesareIndonesia,Brazil,andPakistan.NowletsgetbacktotheUnitedStates.LetslookatthetotalU.S.po

3、pulationfigureof281millioninthreedifferentways.Thefirstwayisbyraceandorigin;thesecondisbygeographicaldistribution,orbywherepeoplelive;andthethirdwayisbytheageandsexofthepopulation.Firstofall,letstakealookatthepopulationbyraceandorigin.ThelatestU.S.censusreportsthat75.1percentofthepopulationiswhite,w

4、hereas12.3percentisblack.ThreepercentareofAsianorigin,and1percentisNativeAmerican.2.4percentofthepopulationisamixtureoftwoormoreraces,and5.5percentreportthemselvesas“ofsomeotherrace”.Letsmakesureyourfiguresareright:OK,white,75.1percent;black,12.3percent;Asian,3percent;NativeAmerican,1percent;amixtur

5、eoftwoormoreraces,2.4percent;andofsomeotherrace,5.5percent.Hispanics,whoseoriginslieinSpanish-speakingcountries,comprisewhites,blacks,andNativeAmericans,sotheyarealreadyincludedintheabovefigures.ItisimportanttonotethatHispanicsmakeup12.5percentofthepresentU.S.population,however.Finally,thecensustell

6、susthat31millionpeopleintheUnitedStateswereborninanothercountry.Ofthe31millionforeignborn,thelargestpart,27.6percentarefromMexico.Thenextlargestgroup,fromthePhilippines,number4.3percent.Anotherwayoflookingatthepopulationisbygeographicaldistribution.Doyouhaveanyideawhichstatesarethefivemostpopulousin

7、theUnitedStates?Well,Illhelpyououtthere.Thefivemostpopulousstates,withpopulationfigures,areCalifornia,withalmost34million;NewYork,with21million;Texas,with19million;andFlorida,with16million;andIllinoiswith12.5millionpeople.Didyougetallthosefiguresdown?Well,ifnot,Illgiveyouachancelatertocheckyourfigur

8、es.Well,then,letsmoveon.Alltold,overhalf,orsome58percentofthepopulation,livesintheSouthandintheWestoftheUnitedStates.Thisfigure,58percent,issurprisingtomanypeople.ItissurprisingbecausetheEastismoredenselypopulated.Nevertheless,therearemorepeoplealltogetherintheSouthandWest.Tounderstandthisseemingcon

9、tradiction,oneneedonlyconsidertherelativelylargersizeofmanysouthernandwesternstates,soalthoughtherearemorepeople,theyaredistributedoveralargerarea.Tofinishupthissectionongeographicaldistribution,considerthatmorethanthree-quartersofthepeopleliveinmetropolitanareaslikeLosAngeles,NewYork,Chicago,andHou

10、ston.Thatmeansthatonly20percent,or2outof10people,liveinruralareas.Aninterestingsidenoteisthatsome3,800,000U.S.citizensliveabroad,thatis,inforeigncountries.Beforewefinishtoday,IwanttodiscussthedistributionoftheU.S.populationintermsofageandsex.Justforinterest,wouldyousaytherearemoremenormorewomeninthe

11、UnitedStates?Well,accordingtothe2000census,therearemorewomen.Infact,therearemorethanfivemillionmorewomenthanmenintheU.S.population.Ifweconsiderthatmoremalesthanfemalesareborneachyear,howcanthisdifferencebeexplained?Well,foravarietyofcomplicatedreasonsthatwecantgointohere,thereisaprogressivelyhigherd

12、eathrateformalesastheygetolder.Thisisseenin2003lifeexpectancyfigures:thelifeexpectancyforwomenis80.4yearswhereasformenitisonly74.5years.Idontknowhowtheselifeexpectancyfigurescomparetothoseinyourcountries,butstatisticallywomengenerallylivelongerthanmenworldwide.Now,tofinishup,letslookattheaverageageo

13、fthewholepopulation.Overall,theaverageageofthepopulationisincreasing:from33.1yearsin1990to35.3yearsin2000.Theaverageagehasbeenslowly,butsteadily,increasingoverthepastseveraldecades.Thistrendtowardahigheraverageagecanbeexplainedbyadecreasingbirthrateandanincreasinglifeexpectancyforthepopulationasawho

14、le.Well,Idliketoinvestigatethesetwosubjectsfurther,butIseeourtimeisup,sowellhavetocallitquitsfortoday.YoumaywanttopursuethetopicoftheagingU.S.populationfurther,sotherearesomesuggestionsattheendofthelessontohelpyoudoso.Thankyou.ChapterTwoImmigration:PastandPresentTheactofimmigrating,orcomingtoanewcou

15、ntrytolive,iscertainlynothingnew.Throughouthistory,peoplehaveimmigrated,ormovedtonewcountries,formanydifferentreasons.Sometimesthesereasonswereeconomicorpolitical.Otherpeoplemovedbecauseofnaturaldisasterssuchasdroughtsorfamines.Andsomepeoplemovedtoescapereligiousorpoliticalpersecution.Nomatterwhatth

16、ereason,mostpeopledonotwanttoleavetheirnativelandanddosoonlyundergreatpressureofsomesort,butafewpeopleseemquiteadventuresomeandrestlessbynatureandliketomovealot.ItseemsbothkindsofpeoplecametoAmericatolive.ThesubjectofimmigrationisquitefascinatingtomostAmericans,astheyviewthemselvesasanationofimmigra

17、nts.However,theearlyBritonswhocametowhatistodaytheUnitedStatesconsideredthemselves“settlers”or“colonists,”ratherthanimmigrants.Thesepeopledidnotexactlythinktheyweremovingtoanewcountrybutweremerelysettlingnewlandforthe“mothercountry.”TherewerealsolargenumbersofDutch,French,German,andScotch-Irishsettl

18、ers,aswellaslargenumbersofblacksbroughtfromAfricaasslaves.AtthetimeofindependencefromBritainin1776,about40percentofpeoplelivinginwhatisnowtheUnitedStateswerenon-British.Themajorityofpeople,however,spokeEnglish,andthetraditionsthatformedthebasisoflifeweremainlyBritishtraditions.Thisperiodwehavejustbe

19、endiscussingisusuallyreferredtoastheColonialPeriod.Today,werealittlemoreinterestedinactualimmigrationafterthisperiod.LetsfirstlookatwhatisoftencalledtheGreatImmigration,whichbeganabout1830andendedin1930.Thenletsconsiderthereasonsforthisso-calledGreatImmigrationandthereasonsitended.Finally,letstalkab

20、outtheimmigrationsituationintheUnitedStatestoday,AsIsaid,wellbeginourdiscussiontodaywiththeperiodofhistorycalledtheGreatImmigration,whichlastedfromapproximately1830to1930.ItwillbeeasierifwelookattheGreatImmigrationintermsofthreemajorstages,ortimeperiods.Thefirststagewasfromapproximate1y1830to1860.No

21、w,beforethistime,thenumberofimmigrantscomingtotheUnitedStateswascomparativelysmall,onlyabout10,000ayear.However,theratebegantoclimbinthe1830swhenabout600,000immigrantsarrived.Theratecontinuedtoclimbduringthe1840swithatota1of1,700,000peoplearrivinginthatdecade.Theratecontinuedtoclimb,andduringthe1850

22、s2,600,000immigrantsarrived.DuringthisfirststageoftheGreatImmigration,thatis,betweentheyears1830and1860,themajorityofimmigrantscamefromGermany,GreatBritain,andIreland.NowletsconsiderthesecondstageoftheGreatImmigration.Thesecondstagewasfroml860to1890,duringwhichtimeanother10,000,000peoplearrived.Betw

23、eenl860and1890themajorityofimmigrantscontinuedtobefromGermany,Ireland,andGreatBritain.However,duringthesecondstage,asmallerbutsignificantnumberofimmigrantscamefromtheScandinaviannationsofDenmark,NorwayandSweden.ThethirdstageoftheGreatImmigration,whichlastedfrom1890to1930,wastheeraofheaviestimmigrati

24、on.Betweentheyearsl890andl930,almost22millionimmigrantsarrivedintheUnitedStates.MostofthesenewarrivalscamefromtheSouthernEuropeancountriesofGreece,Italy,Portugal,andSpainandtheEasternEuropeancountriesofPolandandRussia.NowthatweknowsomethingaboutthenumbersandoriginsofimmigrantswhocametotheStatesdurin

25、gtheGreatImmigration,letsconsiderthereasonswhymostofthesepeopleimmigratedtotheUnitedStates.WhydidsuchlargenumbersofEuropeansleavetheirhomesforlifeinanunknowncountry?Itwouldbeimpossibletodiscussallthecomplexpoliticalandeconomicreasonsinanydepthtoday,butwecantouchonafewinterestingfactsthatmighthelptoc

26、larifythesituationforyou.Firstofall,oneofthemostimportantreasonswasthatthepopulationofEuropedoubledbetweentheyears1750and1850.Atthesametimethatthepopulationwasgrowingsorapidly,theIndustrialRevolutioninEuropewascausingwidespreadunemployment.Thecombinationofincreasedpopulationandthedemandforlandbyindu

27、stryalsomeantthatfarmlandwasbecomingincreasinglyscarceinEurope.ThescarcityoffarmlandinEuropemeantthattheabundanceofavailablelandinthegrowingcountryoftheUnitedStateswasagreatattraction.Duringtheseyears,theUnitedStateswasanexpandingcountryanditseemedthattherewasnoendtoland.Infact,in1862,thegovernmento

28、fferedpubliclandfreetocitizensandtoimmigrantswhowereplanningtobecomecitizens.Inadditiontoavailablefarmland,therewerealsoplentifuljobsduringtheseyearsofgreateconomicgrowth.Otherattractionswerefreedomfromreligiousorpoliticalpersecution.SomeothergroupsalsocametotheUnitedStatesasthedirectresultsofnatura

29、ldisastersthatleftthemindesperatesituations.Forexample,thefrequentfailureofthepotatocropinIrelandbetweentheyears1845and1849ledtowidespreadstarvationinthatcountry,andpeopleweredriventoimmigrate.AnotherfactorthataffectedthenumberofimmigrantscomingtotheUnitedStateswasimprovedoceantransportbeginninginth

30、e1840s.Atthattime,shipslargeenoughtocarrylargenumbersofpeoplebegantomakeregulartripsacrosstheocean.NowletssummarizethereasonsforthehighrateofimmigrationtotheUnitedStatesduringtheyearswediscussed:first,thedoublingofthepopulationinEuropebetween1750and1850;second,theunemploymentcausedbytheIndustrialRev

31、olution;andthird,thelandscarcityinEurope,followedbyreligiousandpoliticalpersecutionandnaturaldisaster.Thesereasonscombinedwithimprovedtransportationprobablyaccountforthelargestnumberofimmigrants.IwouldnowliketotalkbrieflyabouttheperiodoftimefollowingtheGreatImmigrationandthereasonsforthedeclineinthe

32、rateofimmigration.Althoughimmigrationcontinuestoday,immigrationnumbershaveneveragainreachedthelevelsthatwediscussedpreviously.Thereareseveralreasonsforthisdecline.ThisdeclinewasinpartduetovariouslawswhoseaimwastolimitthenumberofimmigrantscomingfromdifferentpartsoftheworldtotheUnitedStates.Thefirstsu

33、chlawthatlimitedthenumberofimmigrantscomingfromacertainpartoftheworldwastheChineseExclusionActof1882.Thislawwasfollowedbymanyotherlawsthatalsotriedtolimitthenumbersofpeopleimmigratingfromvariouscountriesorpartsoftheworld.Inadditiontosuchlaws,certainlyeconomicandgeopoliticaleventsasimportantastheGrea

34、tDepressionstartingin1929andWorldWarIIalsocontributedtothedeclineinimmigration.Letsconcludeourtalkbydiscussingthecurrentsituationwithrespecttoimmigration,whichisquitedifferentfromthatinthepast.Tounderstandsomeofthechanges,itsimportanttonotethatin1965strictquotasbasedonnationalitywereeliminated.Letss

35、eehowdifferentthingsaretodayfromthepast.AsInoted,thegreatestnumberofimmigrantstotheUnitedStateshavehistoricallybeenEuropean.AccordingtoU.S.Censusfigures,in1860,thepercentageofimmigrantsthatwereEuropeanwas92percent.Butby1960,thepercentageofEuropeanimmigrantshaddroppedto74.5percent,andbytheyear2002,it

36、haddroppedto14percent!In2002,52.2percentofimmigrantscamefromLatinAmerica,thatis,fromtheCaribbean,CentralAmerica,andSouthAmerica.MexicoisordinarilyconsideredpartofNorthAmerica,buttheU.S.CensusBureauconsidersMexicoasaCentralAmericancountryintermsofimmigrationstatistics,andestimatesthatmorethanone-thir

37、dofthetotalofallimmigrantstotheUnitedStatesin2002camefromMexicooranotherCentralAmericancountry.Thenextlargestpercentage,25.5percent,ofimmigrantscamefromAsia,mainlyfromthePhilippines,China,andIndia.AlthoughimmigrationdroppedsharplywhentheUnitedStatesenteredWorldWarIandremainedlowthroughouttheDepressi

38、onandWorldWarIIyears,attheendofthel940s,immigrationbegantoincreaseagainandhas,ingeneral,risensteadilysincethen.ItmightsurpriseyoutoknowthattheactualnumberofimmigrantscomingyearlytotheStatesinrecentyearsisaboutthesameasthenumberscomingyearlybetween1900and1910.Keepinmind,though,thatthepopulationoftheU

39、nitedStatesismuchlargernowthanattheturnofthecentury,sothatwhiletheyearlynumbersmaybesimilar,thepercentageofthepopulationthatisforeign-bornisconsiderablysmallertodaythanitwasacenturyago.Itmightbeinterestingtospeculateonimmigrationinthefuture.Willthetrendcontinuefornon-EuropeanstoimmigratetotheUnitedS

40、tates?Theanswerisprobablyyesfortheforeseeablefuture.Dothesenon-EuropeanpeoplecometotheUnitedStatesforthesamereasonsthatEuropeanscame?Well,landisnolongerplentifulandcheap.Industrynolongerrequireslargenumbersofunskilledworkers.Infact,thegovernmentusuallytriestorestrictimmigrationtothosepeoplewhoalread

41、yhavetheskillstobesuccessfulinU.S.society.Still,peoplecomeforpolitica1andeconomicreasonsandprobablywillcontinuetodoso.Chapter 3 AmericansatWorkWhetheryouloveitorhateit,workisamajorpartofmostpeoplesliveseverywhereintheworld.Americansarenoexception.Americansmightcomplainabout“blueMonday,”whentheyhavet

42、ogobacktoworkaftertheweekend,butmostpeopleputalotofimportanceontheirjob,notonlyintermsofmoneybutalsointermsofidentity.Infact,whenAmericansareintroducedtoanewperson,theyalmostalwaysaskeachother,“Whatdoyoudo?”Theyareasking,whatisyourjoborprofession.Today,however,wewontlookatworkintermsofwhatworkmeanss

43、ociallyorpsychologically.Rather,weregoingtotakealookatworkintheUnitedStatestodayfromtwoperspectives.First,welltakeahistoricallookatworkinAmerica.WelldothatbylookingathowthingschangedfortheAmericanworkerfromthebeginningtotheendofthetwentiethcentury,thatis,fromtheyear1900totheyear1999.Thenwelllookatho

44、wU.S.workersaredoingtoday.Aswelookatthechangesoverthelastcentury,weregoingtousealotofstatisticstodescribethesechanges.Youwillneedtowritedownalotofnumbersintodayslecture.First,letsconsiderhowthetypeofworkpeoplewereinvolvedinchanged.Atthebeginningofthetwentiethcentury,about38percentoftheworkforcewasin

45、volvedinagriculture;thatis,theyworkedonafarm.Bytheendofthecentury,only3percentstillworkedonfarms.Therewasalsoalargedecreaseinthenumberofpeopleworkinginmining,manufacturing,andconstruction.Thenumberofworkersinmining,manufacturing,andconstructionwentdownfrom31percentto19percent.Whilethenumberofpeoplei

46、nthesegoodsproducingindustrieswentdown,thenumberofpeopleintheserviceindustrieswentup.Asyoumayknow,aserviceindustryisonethatprovidesaservice,ratherthangoodsorproducts.Afewexamplesincludetransportation,tourism,banking,advertising,healthcare,andlegalservices.Imsureyoucanthinkofmore.Theserviceindustrywo

47、rkforcejumpedfrom31percentoftheworkforceattheturnofthecenturyto78percentin1999.Letsrecapthenumbers:in1900,38percentinagriculture;31percentinmining,manufacturing,andconstruction;and31percentintheserviceindustries.Thatshouldaddupto100percent.In1999,3percentinagriculture;19percentinmining,manufacturing

48、,andconstruction;and78percentintheserviceindustries.Again,thatshouldaddupto100percent.Thelaborforcechangedinotherimportantways.Forexample,childlaborwasnotunusualatthebeginningofthetwentiethcentury.In1900therewere1,750,000childrenagedtentofifteenworkingfull-timeinthelaborforce.Thiswas6percentofthelab

49、orforce.Overtheyears,childlaborlawsbecamemuchstricterandby1999,itwasillegalforanyoneundersixteentoworkfull-timeinanyofthefiftystates.Whilethenumberofchildrenintheworkforcewentdown,thenumberofwomenwentupdramatically.In1900,only19percentofwomenwereemployed;in1999,60percentofwomenwereholdingdownjobs.Le

50、tsseewhathashappenedtowagesandsalaries.AllthenumbersIwillgiveyouareintermsof1999dollars.Letmeexplain.In1900theaveragepercapitaincomewas$4,200ayear.Thatdoesnotmeanthattheaverageworkerin1900earned$4,200,ayear,butthatwhatheorsheearnedwasequalto$4,200in1999.Thatis,theamountofmoneytheaverageworkerearnedi

51、n1900wasworththesameas$4,200in1999.Theaveragepercapitaincomein1999was$33,700.Notonlydidpeopleearnalotmoremoneyattheendofthecentury,theyalsoreceivedalotmoreinbenefitsthanatthebeginningofthecentury.Oneoftheimportantbenefitsmostworkersreceivedlaterinthecenturywashealthinsurance.Whereaswagesandsalariesr

52、oseoverthecentury,theaverageworkweekdropped.Thatis,workers,ingeneral,didnotworkaslonghoursin1999astheydidin1900.ThelastareathatIdliketogiveyouafewstatisticsaboutisworkplacesafety.Mostofuswhogotoworkeverydaydontthinkalotaboutwhetherwearesafeornot,butin1900itwasarealconcernforalotofworkers.Therearentm

53、anystatisticsavailable,buttheU.S.governmentdoeshavestatisticsontwoindustriesthatwillgiveyousomeideaofthedifferencestoday.In1900almost1,500workerswerekilledincoal-miningaccidents;in1999,thenumberwas35.2,555railroadworkerswerekilledin1900,comparedto56in1999.Peopleoftentendtoromanticizethepastandtalkab

54、out“thegoodolddays,”butIthinkitsfairtosaythatbytheendofthetwentiethcentury,U.S.workersingeneralmademoremoney,theyenjoyedmorebenefits,andtheirworkingconditionshadimprovedgreatly.NowletsturnourattentiontothecurrentsituationforU.S.workers.ThepictureisnotsorosyastheonedrawnbycomparingU.S.workersatthebeg

55、inningandtheendofthetwentiethcentury.Imgoingtofocusonthecurrentsituationintermsofproductivity,workinghours,andwagesandsalaries.Firstletsconsiderthenumberofhoursworked.Accordingtoa2003studyreleasedbytheUnitedNationsInternationalLaborOrganization,U.S.workersarethemostproductiveintheworldamongindustria

56、lizednations,buttheyworklongerhoursthanEuropeanworkerstoachievethisproductivity.Europeanstypicallyhavefourtosixweeksofvacationayear,whereastheaverageAmericanworkerhasonlyabouttwoweeks.ThisstudypointsoutthatthelongerworkinghoursintheUnitedStatesisarisingtrend,whilethetrendinotherindustrializedcountri

57、esistheopposite.WorkersinsomeEuropeancountriesactuallyoutproduceAmericanworkersperhourofwork.IthasbeensuggestedthatthishigherrateofproductivitymightbebecauseEuropeanworkersarelessstressedthanU.S.workers.Atanyrate,thereseemstobegeneralagreementthatU.S.productivityhasgreatlyincreasedoverthelastthirtyy

58、ears.However,workershavenotseentheirwagesriseatthesamerate.AgroupofsociologistsintheirbookInequalitybyDesignpointoutthatthereisagrowinggapbetweenrichAmericansandeveryoneelseintheUnitedStates.Theywritethatbetween1949and1974,increasesinproductivitywerematchedbyincreasesinwagesforworkersinbothmanufactu

59、ringandtheserviceindustries,butsince1974,productivityincreased68percentinmanufacturingand50percentinservices,butrealwagesstagnated.Thatis,wagesmoveduplittleornotatall.So,wheredoesallthemoneygeneratedbytheincreasedproductivitygothen?Accordingtotheauthorsofthisbook,themoneygoestothesalariesforCEOs,tot

60、hestockmarket,andtocorporateprofits.Workersplayagreatroleinincreasingproductivity,butnolongerseetheirwagesconnectedtoincreasedproductivity.Inotherwords,CEOssalaries,thestockmarket,andthecorporateprofitsgoupasworkproductivitygoesup,butworkerswagesdont.WhatarethereasonswhyU.S.workers,whoarethemostprod

61、uctiveintheworld,havetoworklongerhours,havefewervacationdays,andseetheirwagesstagnateandnotrisingatthesamerateasproductivity?Theanswertothisquestioniscomplexandcontroversial,buttherearetworeasonsmostpeoplewhospeakorwriteabouttheseissuesmention:ThefirstisthatlaborunionsintheUnitedStateshavelostgreatp

62、owersincethebeginningofthe1980s,andthesecondisthatthegovernmenthaspassedlawsthatfavortherichandweakentherightsoftheworkers.Iseeourtimeisup.So,Illseeyounexttime.Chapter 4 FamilyintheUnitedStatesAhundredyearsago,oneheardthesamekindofcommentsabouttheAmericanfamilythatonehearstoday-inshort,thattheAmeric

63、anfamilyisdisintegrating.Proofofthisdisintegrationattheendofthenineteenthcenturyincludedthreepoints:thedecliningbirthrate,arisingdivorcerate,andevidencethatwomenwerenotcompletelycontentwiththeirdomesticrole.Itsalittlesurprisingtomethatthesameclaimaboutthefamilyisbeingmadetoday-thatitisdisintegrating

64、.Andoftenthesamepointsarementionedasproof:decliningbirthrates,increasingdivorcerates,anddiscontentofwomenwithdomesticroles.Now,innowaydoImeantoimplythatcultural,demographic,andeconomicconditionsarethesamenowastheywere100yearsago.Onthecontrary,theverynatureofthefamilyhaschangeddrasticallyinthelast50y

65、ears,nottomentionthelast100years.ButIdontthinktheaveragepersonsconceptofthefamilyhaschangedverymuchovertheyears.Alotofpeoplehaveonfixedideaofthefamily:amarriedcouplewhereMotherstayshometocareforthechildrenandFatherworks.ButthisideaischallengedbywhatweseeeverydayinU.S.society.Tobesure,thefamilyisaver

66、ysensitivebarometerforwhatishappeninginthesociety,theculture,andtheeconomyoftheUnitedStates.Tomakethispointclearer,welltakealookathowtheAmericanfamilyhaschangedinthelast50yearsbylookingatthreedifferenttimeperiods:therearethemid-1940stothemid-1960s;themid-60stothemid-80s;andfinallythepresent.SociologistB