高级英语视听说教程第二册听力文本

RUSERredactedonthenightofDecember17,2020高级英语视听说教程第二册听力文本Book2Chapter1ThePopulationTodaywe’regoingtotalkaboutpopulationintheUnitedStates.Accordingtothemostrecentgovernmentcensus,thepopulationis281,421,906people.Nowthisrepresentsanincreaseofalmost33millionpeoplesincethe1990census.Apopulationofover281millionmakestheUnitedStatesthethirdmostpopulouscountryinthewholeworld.Asyouprobablyknow,thePeople’sRepublicofChinaisthemostpopulouscountryintheworld.ButdoyouknowwhichisthesecondmostpopulousWell,ifyouthoughtIndia,youwereright.Thefourth,fifth,andsixthmostpopulouscountriesareIndonesia,Brazil,andPakistan.Nowlet’sgetbacktotheUnitedStates.Let’slookatthetotalU.S.populationfigureof281millioninthreedifferentways.Thefirstwayisbyraceandorigin;thesecondisbygeographicaldistribution,orbywherepeoplelive;andthethirdwayisbytheageandsexofthepopulation.Firstofall,let’stakealookatthepopulationbyraceandorigin.ThelatestU.S.censusreportsthatpercentofthepopulationiswhite,whereaspercentisblack.ThreepercentareofAsianorigin,and1percentisNativeAmerican.percentofthepopulationisamixtureoftwoormoreraces,andpercentreportthemselvesas“ofsomeotherrace”.Let’smakesureyourfiguresareright:OK,white,percent;black,percent;Asian,3percent;NativeAmerican,1percent;amixtureoftwoormoreraces,percent;andofsomeotherrace,percent.Hispanics,whoseoriginslieinSpanish-speakingcountries,comprisewhites,blacks,andNativeAmericans,sotheyarealreadyincludedintheabovefigures.ItisimportanttonotethatHispanicsmakeuppercentofthepresentU.S.population,however.Finally,thecensustellsusthat31millionpeopleintheUnitedStateswereborninanothercountry.Ofthe31millionforeignborn,thelargestpart,percentarefromMexico.Thenextlargestgroup,fromthePhilippines,numberpercent.Anotherwayoflookingatthepopulationisbygeographicaldistribution.DoyouhaveanyideawhichstatesarethefivemostpopulousintheUnitedStatesWell,I’llhelpyououtthere.Thefivemostpopulousstates,withpopulationfigures,areCalifornia,withalmost34million;NewYork,with21million;Texas,with19million;andFlorida,with16million;andIllinoiswithmillionpeople.DidyougetallthosefiguresdownWell,ifnot,I’llgiveyouachancelatertocheckyourfigures.Well,then,let’smoveon.Alltold,overhalf,orsome58percentofthepopulation,livesintheSouthandintheWestoftheUnitedStates.Thisfigure,58percent,issurprisingtomanypeople.ItissurprisingbecausetheEastismoredenselypopulated.Nevertheless,therearemorepeoplealltogetherintheSouthandWest.Tounderstandthisseemingcontradiction,oneneedonlyconsidertherelativelylargersizeofmanysouthernandwesternstates,soalthoughtherearemorepeople,theyaredistributedoveralargerarea.Tofinishupthissectionongeographicaldistribution,considerthatmorethanthree-quartersofthepeopleliveinmetropolitanareaslikeLosAngeles,NewYork,Chicago,andHouston.Thatmeansthatonly20percent,or2outof10people,liveinruralareas.Aninterestingsidenoteisthatsome3,800,000U.S.citizensliveabroad,thatis,inforeigncountries.Beforewefinishtoday,IwanttodiscussthedistributionoftheU.S.populationintermsofageandsex.Justforinterest,wouldyousaytherearemoremenormorewomenintheUnitedStatesWell,accordingtothe2000census,therearemorewomen.Infact,therearemorethanfivemillionmorewomenthanmenintheU.S.population.Ifweconsiderthatmoremalesthanfemalesareborneachyear,howcanthisdifferencebeexplainedWell,foravarietyofcomplicatedreasonsthatwecan’tgointohere,thereisaprogressivelyhigherdeathrateformalesastheygetolder.Thisisseenin2003lifeexpectancyfigures:thelifeexpectancyforwomenisyearswhereasformenitisonlyyears.Idon’tknowhowtheselifeexpectancyfigurescomparetothoseinyourcountries,butstatisticallywomengenerallylivelongerthanmenworldwide.Now,tofinishup,let’slookattheaverageageofthewholepopulation.Overall,theaverageageofthepopulationisincreasing:fromyearsin1990toyearsin2000.Theaverageagehasbeenslowly,butsteadily,increasingoverthepastseveraldecades.Thistrendtowardahigheraverageagecanbeexplainedbyadecreasingbirthrateandanincreasinglifeexpectancyforthepopulationasawhole.Well,I’dliketoinvestigatethesetwosubjectsfurther,butIseeourtimeisup,sowe’llhavetocallitquitsfortoday.YoumaywanttopursuethetopicoftheagingU.S.populationfurther,sotherearesomesuggestionsattheendofthelessontohelpyoudoso.Thankyou.ChapterTwoImmigration:PastandPresentTheactofimmigrating,orcomingtoanewcountrytolive,iscertainlynothingnew.Throughouthistory,peoplehaveimmigrated,ormovedtonewcountries,formanydifferentreasons.Sometimesthesereasonswereeconomicorpolitical.Otherpeoplemovedbecauseofnaturaldisasterssuchasdroughtsorfamines.Andsomepeoplemovedtoescapereligiousorpoliticalpersecution.Nomatterwhatthereason,mostpeopledonotwanttoleavetheirnativelandanddosoonlyundergreatpressureofsomesort,butafewpeopleseemquiteadventuresomeandrestlessbynatureandliketomovealot.ItseemsbothkindsofpeoplecametoAmericatolive.ThesubjectofimmigrationisquitefascinatingtomostAmericans,astheyviewthemselvesasanationofimmigrants.However,theearlyBritonswhocametowhatistodaytheUnitedStatesconsideredthemselves“settlers”or“colonists,”ratherthanimmigrants.Thesepeopledidnotexactlythinktheyweremovingtoanewcountrybutweremerelysettlingnewlandforthe“mothercountry.”TherewerealsolargenumbersofDutch,French,German,andScotch-Irishsettlers,aswellaslargenumbersofblacksbroughtfromAfricaasslaves.AtthetimeofindependencefromBritainin1776,about40percentofpeoplelivinginwhatisnowtheUnitedStateswerenon-British.Themajorityofpeople,however,spokeEnglish,andthetraditionsthatformedthebasisoflifeweremainlyBritishtraditions.ThisperiodwehavejustbeendiscussingisusuallyreferredtoastheColonialPeriod.Today,we’realittlemoreinterestedinactualimmigrationafterthisperiod.Let’sfirstlookatwhatisoftencalledtheGreatImmigration,whichbeganabout1830andendedin1930.Thenlet’sconsiderthereasonsforthisso-calledGreatImmigrationandthereasonsitended.Finally,let’stalkabouttheimmigrationsituationintheUnitedStatestoday,AsIsaid,we’llbeginourdiscussiontodaywiththeperiodofhistorycalledtheGreatImmigration,whichlastedfromapproximately1830to1930.ItwillbeeasierifwelookattheGreatImmigrationintermsofthreemajorstages,ortimeperiods.Thefirststagewasfromapproximate1y1830to1860.Now,beforethistime,thenumberofimmigrantscomingtotheUnitedStateswascomparativelysmall,onlyabout10,000ayear.However,theratebegantoclimbinthe1830swhenabout600,000immigrantsarrived.Theratecontinuedtoclimbduringthe1840swithatota1of1,700,000peoplearrivinginthatdecade.Theratecontinuedtoclimb,andduringthe1850s2,600,000immigrantsarrived.DuringthisfirststageoftheGreatImmigration,thatis,betweentheyears1830and1860,themajorityofimmigrantscamefromGermany,GreatBritain,andIreland.Nowlet’sconsiderthesecondstageoftheGreatImmigration.Thesecondstagewasfroml860to1890,duringwhichtimeanother10,000,000peoplearrived.Betweenl860and1890themajorityofimmigrantscontinuedtobefromGermany,Ireland,andGreatBritain.However,duringthesecondstage,asmallerbutsignificantnumberofimmigrantscamefromtheScandinaviannationsofDenmark,NorwayandSweden.ThethirdstageoftheGreatImmigration,whichlastedfrom1890to1930,wastheeraofheaviestimmigration.Betweentheyearsl890andl930,almost22millionimmigrantsarrivedintheUnitedStates.MostofthesenewarrivalscamefromtheSouthernEuropeancountriesofGreece,Italy,Portugal,andSpainandtheEasternEuropeancountriesofPolandandRussia.NowthatweknowsomethingaboutthenumbersandoriginsofimmigrantswhocametotheStatesduringtheGreatImmigration,let’sconsiderthereasonswhymostofthesepeopleimmigratedtotheUnitedStates.WhydidsuchlargenumbersofEuropeansleavetheirhomesforlifeinanunknowncountryItwouldbeimpossibletodiscussallthecomplexpoliticalandeconomicreasonsinanydepthtoday,butwecantouchonafewinterestingfactsthatmighthelptoclarifythesituationforyou.Firstofall,oneofthemostimportantreasonswasthatthepopulationofEuropedoubledbetweentheyears1750and1850.Atthesametimethatthepopulationwasgrowingsorapidly,theIndustrialRevolutioninEuropewascausingwidespreadunemployment.ThecombinationofincreasedpopulationandthedemandforlandbyindustryalsomeantthatfarmlandwasbecomingincreasinglyscarceinEurope.ThescarcityoffarmlandinEuropemeantthattheabundanceofavailablelandinthegrowingcountryoftheUnitedStateswasagreatattraction.Duringtheseyears,theUnitedStateswasanexpandingcountryanditseemedthattherewasnoendtoland.Infact,in1862,thegovernmentofferedpubliclandfreetocitizensandtoimmigrantswhowereplanningtobecomecitizens.Inadditiontoavailablefarmland,therewerealsoplentifuljobsduringtheseyearsofgreateconomicgrowth.Otherattractionswerefreedomfromreligiousorpoliticalpersecution.SomeothergroupsalsocametotheUnitedStatesasthedirectresultsofnaturaldisastersthatleftthemindesperatesituations.Forexample,thefrequentfailureofthepotatocropinIrelandbetweentheyears1845and1849ledtowidespreadstarvationinthatcountry,andpeopleweredriventoimmigrate.AnotherfactorthataffectedthenumberofimmigrantscomingtotheUnitedStateswasimprovedoceantransportbeginninginthe1840s.Atthattime,shipslargeenoughtocarrylargenumbersofpeoplebegantomakeregulartripsacrosstheocean.Nowlet’ssummarizethereasonsforthehighrateofimmigrationtotheUnitedStatesduringtheyearswediscussed:first,thedoublingofthepopulationinEuropebetween1750and1850;second,theunemploymentcausedbytheIndustrialRevolution;andthird,thelandscarcityinEurope,followedbyreligiousandpoliticalpersecutionandnaturaldisaster.Thesereasonscombinedwithimprovedtransportationprobablyaccountforthelargestnumberofimmigrants.IwouldnowliketotalkbrieflyabouttheperiodoftimefollowingtheGreatImmigrationandthereasonsforthedeclineintherateofimmigration.Althoughimmigrationcontinuestoday,immigrationnumbershaveneveragainreachedthelevelsthatwediscussedpreviously.Thereareseveralreasonsforthisdecline.ThisdeclinewasinpartduetovariouslawswhoseaimwastolimitthenumberofimmigrantscomingfromdifferentpartsoftheworldtotheUnitedStates.ThefirstsuchlawthatlimitedthenumberofimmigrantscomingfromacertainpartoftheworldwastheChineseExclusionActof1882.Thislawwasfollowedbymanyotherlawsthatalsotriedtolimitthenumbersofpeopleimmigratingfromvariouscountriesorpartsoftheworld.Inadditiontosuchlaws,certainlyeconomicandgeopoliticaleventsasimportantastheGreatDepressionstartingin1929andWorldWarIIalsocontributedtothedeclineinimmigration.Let’sconcludeourtalkbydiscussingthecurrentsituationwithrespecttoimmigration,whichisquitedifferentfromthatinthepast.Tounderstandsomeofthechanges,it’simportanttonotethatin1965strictquotasbasedonnationalitywereeliminated.Let’sseehowdifferentthingsaretodayfromthepast.AsInoted,thegreatestnumberofimmigrantstotheUnitedStateshavehistoricallybeenEuropean.Accordingto.Censusfigures,in1860,thepercentageofimmigrantsthatwereEuropeanwas92percent.Butby1960,thepercentageofEuropeanimmigrantshaddroppedtopercent,andbytheyear2002,ithaddroppedto14percent!In2002,percentofimmigrantscamefromLatinAmerica,thatis,fromtheCaribbean,CentralAmerica,andSouthAmerica.MexicoisordinarilyconsideredpartofNorthAmerica,butthe.CensusBureauconsidersMexicoasaCentralAmericancountryintermsofimmigrationstatistics,andestimatesthatmorethanone-thirdofthetotalofallimmigrantstotheUnitedStatesin2002camefromMexicooranotherCentralAmericancountry.Thenextlargestpercentage,percent,ofimmigrantscamefromAsia,mainlyfromthePhilippines,China,andIndia.AlthoughimmigrationdroppedsharplywhentheUnitedStatesenteredWorldWarIandremainedlowthroughouttheDepressionandWorldWarIIyears,attheendofthel940s,immigrationbegantoincreaseagainandhas,ingeneral,risensteadilysincethen.ItmightsurpriseyoutoknowthattheactualnumberofimmigrantscomingyearlytotheStatesinrecentyearsisaboutthesameasthenumberscomingyearlybetween1900and1910.Keepinmind,though,thatthepopulationoftheUnitedStatesismuchlargernowthanattheturnofthecentury,sothatwhiletheyearlynumbersmaybesimilar,thepercentageofthepopulationthatisforeign-bornisconsiderablysmallertodaythanitwasacenturyago.Itmightbeinterestingtospeculateonimmigrationinthefuture.Willthetrendcontinuefornon-EuropeanstoimmigratetotheUnitedStatesTheanswerisprobablyyesfortheforeseeablefuture.Dothesenon-EuropeanpeoplecometotheUnitedStatesforthesamereasonsthatEuropeanscameWell,landisnolongerplentifulandcheap.Industrynolongerrequireslargenumbersofunskilledworkers.Infact,thegovernmentusuallytriestorestrictimmigrationtothosepeoplewhoalreadyhavetheskillstobesuccessfulinU.S.society.Still,peoplecomeforpolitica1andeconomicreasonsandprobablywillcontinuetodoso.Chapter3AmericansatWorkWhetheryouloveitorhateit,workisamajorpartofmostpeople’sliveseverywhereintheworld.Americansarenoexception.Americansmightcomplainabout“blueMonday,”whentheyhavetogobacktoworkaftertheweekend,butmostpeopleputalotofimportanceontheirjob,notonlyintermsofmoneybutalsointermsofidentity.Infact,whenAmericansareintroducedtoanewperson,theyalmostalwaysaskeachother,“Whatdoyoudo?”Theyareasking,whatisyourjoborprofession.Today,however,wewon’tlookatworkintermsofwhatworkmeanssociallyorpsychologically.Rather,we’regoingtotakealookatworkintheUnitedStatestodayfromtwoperspectives.First,we’lltakeahistoricallookatworkinAmerica.We’lldothatbylookingathowthingschangedfortheAmericanworkerfromthebeginningtotheendofthetwentiethcentury,thatis,fromtheyear1900totheyear1999.Thenwe’lllookathow.workersaredoingtoday.Aswelookatthechangesoverthelastcentury,we’regoingtousealotofstatisticstodescribethesechanges.Youwillneedtowritedownalotofnumbersintoday’slecture.First,let’sconsiderhowthetypeofworkpeoplewereinvolvedinchanged.Atthebeginningofthetwentiethcentury,about38percentoftheworkforcewasinvolvedinagriculture;thatis,theyworkedonafarm.Bytheendofthecentury,only3percentstillworkedonfarms.Therewasalsoalargedecreaseinthenumberofpeopleworkinginmining,manufacturing,andconstruction.Thenumberofworkersinmining,manufacturing,andconstructionwentdownfrom31percentto19percent.Whilethenumberofpeopleinthesegoodsproducingindustrieswentdown,thenumberofpeopleintheserviceindustrieswentup.Asyoumayknow,aserviceindustryisonethatprovidesaservice,ratherthangoodsorproducts.Afewexamplesincludetransportation,tourism,banking,advertising,healthcare,andlegalservices.I’msureyoucanthinkofmore.Theserviceindustryworkforcejumpedfrom31percentoftheworkforceattheturnofthecenturyto78percentin1999.Let’srecapthenumbers:in1900,38percentinagriculture;31percentinmining,manufacturing,andconstruction;and31percentintheserviceindustries.Thatshouldaddupto100percent.In1999,3percentinagriculture;19percentinmining,manufacturing,andconstruction;and78percentintheserviceindustries.Again,thatshouldaddupto100percent.Thelaborforcechangedinotherimportantways.Forexample,childlaborwasnotunusualatthebeginningofthetwentiethcentury.In1900therewere1,750,000childrenagedtentofifteenworkingfull-timeinthelaborforce.Thiswas6percentofthelaborforce.Overtheyears,childlaborlawsbecamemuchstricterandby1999,itwasillegalforanyoneundersixteentoworkfull-timeinanyofthefiftystates.Whilethenumberofchildrenintheworkforcewentdown,thenumberofwomenwentupdramatically.In1900,only19percentofwomenwereemployed;in1999,60percentofwomenwereholdingdownjobs.Let’sseewhathashappenedtowagesandsalaries.AllthenumbersIwillgiveyouareintermsof1999dollars.Letmeexplain.In1900theaveragepercapitaincomewas$4,200ayear.Thatdoesnotmeanthattheaverageworkerin1900earned$4,200,ayear,butthatwhatheorsheearnedwasequalto$4,200in1999.Thatis,theamountofmoneytheaverageworkerearnedin1900wasworththesameas$4,200in1999.Theaveragepercapitaincomein1999was$33,700.Notonlydidpeopleearnalotmoremoneyattheendofthecentury,theyalsoreceivedalotmoreinbenefitsthanatthebeginningofthecentury.Oneoftheimportantbenefitsmostworkersreceivedlaterinthecenturywashealthinsurance.Whereaswagesandsalariesroseoverthecentury,theaverageworkweekdropped.Thatis,workers,ingeneral,didnotworkaslonghoursin1999astheydidin1900.ThelastareathatI’dliketogiveyouafewstatisticsaboutisworkplacesafety.Mostofuswhogotoworkeverydaydon’tthinkalotaboutwhetherwearesafeornot,butin1900itwasarealconcernforalotofworkers.Therearen’tmanystatisticsavailable,butthe.governmentdoeshavestatisticsontwoindustriesthatwillgiveyousomeideaofthedifferencestoday.In1900almost1,500workerswerekilledincoal-miningaccidents;in1999,thenumberwas35.2,555railroadworkerswerekilledin1900,comparedto56in1999.Peopleoftentendtoromanticizethepastandtalkabout“thegoodolddays,”butIthinkit’sfairtosaythatbytheendofthetwentiethcentury,.workersingeneralmademoremoney,theyenjoyedmorebenefits,andtheirworkingconditionshadimprovedgreatly.Nowlet’sturnourattentiontothecurrentsituationfor.workers.ThepictureisnotsorosyastheonedrawnbycomparingU.S.workersatthebeginningandtheendofthetwentiethcentury.I’mgoingtofocusonthecurrentsituationintermsofproductivity,workinghours,andwagesandsalaries.Firstlet’sconsiderthenumberofhoursworked.Accordingtoa2003studyreleasedbytheUnitedNationsInternationalLaborOrganization,U.S.workersarethemostproductiveintheworldamongindustrializednations,buttheyworklongerhoursthanEuropeanworkerstoachievethisproductivity.Europeanstypicallyhavefourtosixweeksofvacationayear,whereastheaverageAmericanworkerhasonlyabouttwoweeks.ThisstudypointsoutthatthelongerworkinghoursintheUnitedStatesisarisingtrend,whilethetrendinotherindustrializedcountriesistheopposite.WorkersinsomeEuropeancountriesactuallyoutproduceAmericanworkersperhourofwork.IthasbeensuggestedthatthishigherrateofproductivitymightbebecauseEuropeanworkersarelessstressedthanU.S.workers.Atanyrate,thereseemstobegeneralagreementthatU.S.productivityhasgreatlyincreasedoverthelastthirtyyears.However,workershavenotseentheirwagesriseatthesamerate.AgroupofsociologistsintheirbookInequalitybyDesignpointoutthatthereisagrowinggapbetweenrichAmericansandeveryoneelseintheUnitedStates.Theywritethatbetween1949and1974,increasesinproductivitywerematchedbyincreasesinwagesforworkersinbothmanufacturingandtheserviceindustries,butsince1974,productivityincreased68percentinmanufacturingand50percentinservices,butrealwagesstagnated.Thatis,wagesmoveduplittleornotatall.So,wheredoesallthemoneygeneratedbytheincreasedproductivitygothenAccordingtotheauthorsofthisbook,themoneygoestothesalariesforCEOs,tothestockmarket,andtocorporateprofits.Workersplayagreatroleinincreasingproductivity,butnolongerseetheirwagesconnectedtoincreasedproductivity.Inotherwords,CEOs’salaries,thestockmarket,andthecorporateprofitsgoupasworkproductivitygoesup,butworkers’wagesdon’t.Whatarethereasonswhy.workers,whoarethemostproductiveintheworld,havetoworklongerhours,havefewervacationdays,andseetheirwagesstagnateandnotrisingatthesamerateasproductivityTheanswertothisquestioniscomplexandcontroversial,buttherearetworeasonsmostpeoplewhospeakorwriteabouttheseissuesmention:ThefirstisthatlaborunionsintheUnitedStateshavelostgreatpowersincethebeginningofthe1980s,andthesecondisthatthegovernmenthaspassedlawsthatfavortherichandweakentherightsoftheworkers.Iseeourtimeisup.So,I’llseeyounexttime.Chapter4FamilyintheUnitedStatesAhundredyearsago,oneheardthesamekindofcommentsabouttheAmericanfamilythatonehearstoday---inshort,thattheAmericanfamilyisdisintegrating.Proofofthisdisintegrationattheendofthenineteenthcenturyincludedthreepoints:thedecliningbirthrate,arisingdivorcerate,andevidencethatwomenwerenotcompletelycontentwiththeirdomesticrole.It’salittlesurprisingtomethatthesameclaimaboutthefamilyisbeingmadetoday---thatitisdisintegrating.Andoftenthesamepointsarementionedasproof:decliningbirthrates,increasingdivorcerates,anddiscontentofwomenwithdomesticroles.Now,innowaydoImeantoimplythatcultural,demographic,andeconomicconditionsarethesamenowastheywere100yearsago.Onthecontrary,theverynatureofthefamilyhaschangeddrasticallyinthelast50years,nottomentionthelast100years.ButIdon’tthinktheaverageperson’sconceptofthefamilyhaschangedverymuchovertheyears.Alotofpeoplehaveonfixedideaofthefamily:amarriedcouplewhereMotherstayshometocareforthechildrenandFatherworks.ButthisideaischallengedbywhatweseeeverydayinU.S.society.Tobesure,thefamilyisaverysensitivebarometerforwhatishappeninginthesociety,theculture,andtheeconomyoftheUnitedStates.Tomakethispointclearer,we’lltakealookathowtheAmericanfamilyhaschangedinthelast50yearsbylookingatthreedifferenttimeperiods:therearethemid-1940stothemid-1960s;themid-60stothemid-80s;andfinallythepresent.SociologistBarbaraDafoeWhiteheadlabelsthesethreeperiods:theperiodoftraditionalfamilism,theperiodofindividualism,andtheperiodofthenewfamilism.Iwilltryforeachperiodtoshowhoweconomic,demographic,andcultura