Although most people continue to live as citizens of a single nation, they are culturally, materially, and psychologically engaged with the lives of people in other countries as never before. Distant events often have an immediate and significant impact, blurring the boundaries of countries. Items common to our everyday lives, such as the clothes we wear, the food we eat, and the cars we drive, are mostly the products of globalization.
34.交通發展與全球化
段落大意：交通的發展加速了全球化的進程，是全球化的一部分。
Improvements in transportation are also part of globalization. Even slow, oceangoing vessels （船） have streamlined （提高…的效率） transportation and lowered costs due to innovations such as containerized （用集裝箱運載的） shipping. Advances in transportation have allowed US corporations to subcontract manufacturing to foreign factories. For example, in the early 2000s, factory of Flextronic International in Guadalajara （瓜達拉哈拉）, Mexico, made pocket computers, Web-connected TVs, computer printers, and even high-tech blood-glucose （血糖） monitors, for a variety of US firms. Low transportation costs enabled Flextronic to ship these products around the world, and the North American Free Trade Agreement （NAFTA） made the Mexico location more attractive to Flextronic.
35.全球化加速了人的遷移
段落大意：在全球化浪潮下，不但商品、金錢和信息快速流通，而且越來越多的人也開始長距離遷移，促進彙款業務的發展。
Not only do goods, money, and information move around the globe quickly, but also more people are moving great distances. Migration, both legal and illegal, is a major feature of this era of globalization. Remittances （彙款）, money sent by workers to their home countries, have become an important source of income for many countries. In the case of El Salvador （薩爾瓦多）, for example, remittances are equal to 13.percent of the country’s total national income—a more significant source of income than foreign aid, investment, or tourism.
36.有關全球化的爭論
段落大意：很少有人、團體或政府完全反對全球化，人們主要在如何管理全球經濟上存在爭議。一方認為應消除貿易壁壘，另一方認為保護主義有利於提高國際競爭力。
Very few people, groups, or governments entirely oppose globalization. Instead, critics of globalization believe that some of the ways globalization operates should be changed. The debate over globalization is about what the best rules are for governing the global economy so that its advantages can grow while its problems can be solved. On one side of this debate are those who stress the benefits of removing barriers to international trade and investment, allowing capital to be allocated more efficiently and giving consumers greater freedom of choice. With free-market globalization, investment funds can move unimpeded （不受阻礙的） from where they are plentiful, mostly the rich countries, to where they are most needed, usually the developing countries. Consumers can benefit because the goods produced in faraway places are at low cost and reduced tariffs make imported goods cheaper. Manufacturers gain by selling goods to a wider market. More competition keeps sellers focus on innovation of new technologies which will eventually benefit others.
On the other side of the debate are critics who maintain that neoliberal （新自由的） policies produce greater poverty, inequality, social conflict, cultural destruction, and environmental damage. They say that the most developed nations, the United States, Germany, and Japan, succeeded not because of free trade but because of protectionism（保護主義） and subsidies （津貼）. They argue that the more recently successful economies of South Korea, and China both have strong state-led development strategies that do not follow neoliberalism（新自由主義）. These critics think that government encouragement of “infant industries,”that is, industries that are just beginning to develop, enables a country to become internationally competitive.
37.反全球化運動
段落大意：反全球化運動很少直指全球化本身，而是關注其給工人的權利及環境造成的危害。
Protests in the antiglobalization （反全球化） movement are seldom directed against globalization itself but rather against its negative effects that harm the rights of workers and the environment. The question raised by nongovernmental organizations and protestors at WTO and IMF gatherings is whether globalization will result in a rise of living standards or a race to the bottom as competition takes the form of lowering living standards and undermining environmental regulation. One of the key problems of the 21st century will be determining to what extent markets should be regulated to promote fair competition, honest dealings, and fair distribution of public goods on a global scale.
38.政府的概念
段落大意：政府是個政治組織，由個體和機構組成，被授權處理各類事務。
Government, the political organization comprising individuals and institutions, is authorized to enact public policies and conduct state affairs. Governments are empowered to establish and regulate the interrelationships of the people within their territorial confines （範圍）, the relations among the people, the community, and other political entities.
39.政府對工業發展的影響
段落大意：政府的參與及參與程度對國家的工業發展有著重要作用。
The type and extent of government involvement plays a strong role in a country’s industrial growth. A government may take a free market approach and let industries organize and grow with minimal governmental intervention. At the other end of the spectrum（範圍） of government planning and involvement is socialism, a system in which the means of production are, in theory, owned collectively by the whole community. For example, the centrally planned economies of the former Soviet Union achieved rapid rates of industrialization. However, these centrally planned economies eventually developed a lack of dynamism （活力） and innovation that produced slower growth rates and eventually economic crises.
40.美國政府在經濟中的作用
段落大意：美國經濟不是純粹的市場經濟，政府在經濟中起著重要的作用。政府提供市場無法提供的服務和商品，刺激特定產品的生產和消費，製定商業運作的指導方針等。
In a market economy, government plays a limited role in economic decision-making. However, the United States does not have a pure market economy, and the government plays an important role in the national economy. It provides services and goods that the market cannot provide effectively, such as national defense, welfare programs for low-income families, and interstate highways and airports. The government also provides incentives to encourage the production and consumption of certain types of products, and discourage the production and consumption of others. It sets general guidelines for doing business and makes policies that affect the economy as a whole. The government also establishes safety guidelines that regulate consumer products, working conditions, and environmental protection.
41.政府保護個體商業的例子
段落大意：美國政府很少通過幹涉要求或經濟競爭來保護個體商業，然而也有例外。
Historically in the United States, the government has rarely intervened to protect individual businesses from changing of demand or competition. However, there have been some notable exceptions, such as the federal government’s guarantee of $1.5.billion in loans to the Chrysler （克萊斯勒） Corporation, the nation’s third-largest automobile manufacturer, when it faced bankruptcy in 1980.
42.政府對本國產業的保護
段落大意：政府為本國產業提供津貼或部分保護，使其免受國際競爭的衝擊，但這樣做其實並不利於國家經濟。
Although direct financial assistance to corporations has been rare, the government has provided subsidies or partial protection from international competition for a large number of industries. Economic analysis of these programs rarely finds such subsidies and protection to be a good idea for the nation as a whole, though naturally the companies and workers who receive the support are better off. Usually these programs result in higher prices for consumers, higher taxes, and they sometimes damage the competitiveness of the US industries.
43.政府對相關產業保護的無力性
段落大意：政府無法對所有產業實施保護，有時候這種保護甚至是徒勞無益的。
It is simply not possible to subsidize and protect everyone in the US economy from changes in consumer demands and technology, or from international trade and competition. And while most people agree that the government should subsidize the production of certain types of goods required for national defense, such as electronic navigation and surveillance （監視） systems, economists warn against the futility （徒勞）of trying to protect large numbers of firms and workers from change and competition. Typically such support cannot be sustained over the long run, when the cost of protection and subsidies begins to mount up, except in cases where producers and workers represent a strong special interest group with enough political influence to maintain their special protection or subsidies.
44.貨幣政策對經濟的影響
段落大意：貨幣政策對國家經濟，尤其是金融市場的影響是巨大的。
The monetary policies adopted by the Federal Reserve System can have dramatic effects on the national economy and, in particular, on financial markets. Most directly, of course, when the Federal Reserve System increases the money supply and expands the availability of credit, then the interest rate, which determines the amount of money that borrowers pay for loans, is likely to decrease. Lower interest rates, in turn, will encourage businesses to borrow more money to invest in capital goods, and will stimulate households to borrow more money to purchase housing, automobiles, and other durable goods.
45.通貨膨脹發生的原因及危害
段落大意：貨幣的增長速度大於商品的生產速度時，物價會上漲，通貨膨脹率升高。通貨膨脹對收入固定的個人與金融機構都有著極大的危害。
Sometimes, the Federal Reserve System can go too far in expanding the money supply. If the supply of money and credit grows much faster than the production of goods and services in the economy, then prices will increase, and the rate of inflation will rise. Inflation is a serious problem for those who live on fixed incomes, since the income of those individuals remains unchanging while the amount of goods and services they can purchase with their income decreases. Inflation may also hurt banks and other financial institutions that lend money, as well as savers. In a period of unanticipated inflation, as the value of money decreases in terms of how much it can purchase, loans lose its original worth, and the funds that people have saved are worth less, too.
46.貨幣供應不足帶來的問題
段落大意：貨幣供應的增長速度過慢，會使得消費水平下降，從而導致經濟衰退。
If the supply of money and credit grows too slowly, then interest rates are likely to rise, leading to decreased spending on capital investments and consumer durable goods （耐用消費品） （products designed for long-term use, such as television sets, refrigerators, and personal computers）. Such decreased spending will hurt many businesses and may lead to a recession, an economic slowdown in which the national output of goods and services falls. When that happens, wages and salaries paid to individual workers will fall or grow more slowly, and some workers will be laid off （解雇）, facing possibly long periods of unemployment.
47.政府職能 I：保障公眾福利
段落大意：政府要保障社會成員的共同福利。
In the theory of political science, the function of government is to secure the common welfare of the members of the community over which it exercises control. In different historical epochs （時代）, governments have endeavored （致力於） to achieve the common welfare by various means. Among primitive peoples, systems of social control were rudimentary （初步的）, and they arose directly from ideas of right and wrong commonly perceived by the members of a social group and were enforced on individuals primarily through group pressure. Among more civilized peoples, governments assumed institutional forms. They rested on defined legal bases, imposing penalties on violators of the law and using force to establish their authority and fulfill their functions.
48.政府職能 II：調整特定產品和服務的生產和消費
段落大意：政府需要調整特定產品和服務的生產和消費，如國防，而這些是私人市場無法有效提供的。
The government attempts to adjust the production and consumption of particular goods and services where private markets fail to produce efficient levels of output for those products. The two major examples of these market failures are what economists call public goods and external benefits or costs. Private markets do not provide some essential goods and services, such as national defense. Because national defense is so important to the nation’s existence, the government steps in and entirely funds and administers this product.
49.政府職能 III：維持市場的競爭性
段落大意：競爭性市場是配置商品和服務的有效方法，同時保證消費者、生產者和企業家擁有自由選擇權。政府通過法律來維持市場的競爭性。
Competitive markets are efficient ways to allocate goods and services while maintaining freedom of choice for consumers, workers, and entrepreneurs. If markets are not competitive, however, much of that freedom and efficiency will be lost. One threat to competition in the market is a firm with monopoly （壟斷） power. Monopoly power occurs when one producer, or a small group of producers, controls a large part of the production of some products. If there are no competitors in the market, a monopoly can artificially drive up the price for its products, which means that consumers will pay more for these products and buy less of them. One of the most famous cases of monopoly power in US history was the Standard Oil Company, owned by US industrialist John D. Rockefeller. Rockefeller bought out most of his business rivals and by 1878.controlled 90.percent of the petroleum refineries （石油精煉廠） in the United States. Largely in response to the practices of Standard Oil and other monopolistic firms, the United States passed laws limiting monopolies. Since 1890, when the Sherman Antitrust Act was passed, the federal government has attempted to prevent firms from acquiring monopoly power or from working together to set prices and limit competition in other ways. A number of later antitrust（反壟斷） laws were passed to extend the government’s power to promote and maintain competition in the US economy.
50.政府政策減少競爭
段落大意：政府通過一些政策有意減少競爭，如新產品的專利權和圖書、影視作品等的版權，激勵人們創作出更多的作品。
Some government policies intentionally reduce competition, at least for some period of time. For example, patents （專利權） on new products and copyrights on books and movies give one producer the exclusive right to sell or license the distribution of a product for 17.or more years. These exclusive rights provide the incentive for firms and individuals to spend the time and money required to develop new products. They know that no one else is allowed to copy and sell their product when it is introduced into the marketplace, so it pays to devote more resources to developing the new products.
51.有關政府減少競爭的政策的爭議
段落大意：人們對一些減少競爭的政策的益處存在爭議，如限製大城市有線電視服務提供商的數量等。
The benefits of certain government policies that aim to reduce competition are not always clear. More controversial examples include policies that restrict the number of taxicabs in a large city or that limit the number of companies providing cable television services in a community. It is much less expensive for cable companies to install and operate a cable television system than it is for large utilities （公用事業公司）, such as the electric and telephone companies, to build the infrastructure they need to provide services. Therefore, it is often more feasible to have two or more cable companies in reasonably large cities. There are also more substitutes for cable television, such as satellite dish systems and broadcast television. Despite these options, many cities auction （拍賣） off cable television rights to a single company because the city receives more revenue that way. Such a policy results in local monopolies for cable television, even in areas where more competition might well be possible and more efficient.
52.有效規範市場的政策很難製定
段落大意：受製於種種因素，有效規範市場的政策難以製定。
It’s difficult to establish government policies that efficiently regulate markets. Policies must often balance the benefits of having more firms competing in an industry against the possible gains from allowing a smaller number of firms to achieve scale effect （規模效應）. The government must try to weigh the benefits of such regulations against the advantages offered by more competitive, less regulated markets.
53.政府利用稅收抵消通貨膨脹的影響
段落大意：政府可以通過稅收政策和消費政策來抵消通貨膨脹、失業等的影響。
Government can use its taxing and spending policies, or fiscal （財政的） policies, to counteract （抵消） inflation or the cyclical （周期的） unemployment that results from too much or too little total currency in the economy. Specifically, if inflation rate is too high because consumers, businesses, and the government are trying to buy more goods and services than it is possible to produce at that time, the government can reduce total spending in the economy. The government can also raise taxes on households and businesses to reduce the amount of money the private sector spends. Either of these fiscal policies will help reduce inflation. Conversely （相反）, if inflation is low but unemployment rates are too high, the government can increase its spending or reduce taxes on households and businesses. These policies increase total spending in the economy, encouraging more production and employment.
54.政府通過消費和稅收政策穩定經濟
段落大意：政府的一些消費政策和稅收政策可以穩定經濟，如提高失業補償，為低收入家庭提供幫助等。
Some government spending and tax policies can stabilize the economy. For example, if the economy is moving toward a recession, with falling prices and higher unemployment, government can cut down income taxes paid by individuals and businesses and increase spending for unemployment compensation and other kinds of assistance programs for low-income families. Just the opposite needs to be done when the economy recovers and unemployment falls. Income taxes should be increased, while government spending for unemployment benefits should be decreased. In both cases, tax programs and government-spending programs help offset changes in nongovernment employment and spending.
55.政府的經濟政策並不總能獲得成功
段落大意：出於許多不同原因，政府的經濟政策並不總能獲得成功。
Government economic programs are not always successful in correcting market failures. Just as markets fail to produce the right amount of certain kinds of goods and services, the government will often spend too much on some programs and too little on others for a number of reasons. One is simply that the government is expected to deal with some of the most difficult problems facing the economy, taking over where markets fail. However, consumers and producers do not always provide clear signals about what they want. This lack of clear signals can sometimes make it difficult for the government to initiate a policy that will correct the problem.
56.政治影響力對政府政策的影響
段落大意：政治影響力對政府政策有著重要的影響力。
Political influences, rather than purely economic factors, often play a major role in inefficient government policies. Elected officials generally try to respond to the wishes of the voting public when making decisions that affect the economy. However, many citizens choose not to vote at all, so it is not clear whether the political signals reflect the thoughts of the whole community. In addition, most voters are not well informed on complicated matters of economic policy. For example, the federal government’s budget director David Stockman and other officials in the administration of President Reagan proposed cuts in income tax rates. Congress adopted the cuts in 1981.and 1984.as a way to reduce unemployment and to make the economy grow so much that tax revenues would actually end up rising, not falling. Most economists did not believe that would happen, but the tax cuts were politically popular.
57.GDP與生活水平
段落大意：GDP是衡量一個國家生活水平的標準，但其在作為衡量標準上，存在局限性。
Many economists use GDP to measure the standard of living in a country. They divide a country’s GDP by its population to arrive at GDP per capita （人均）. The figure is then often converted into US dollars to allow for comparisons between countries. If GDP grows at a higher rate than the population, standards of living are said to be rising. If the population is growing at a higher rate than GDP, living standards are said to be falling. GDP per capita does not take the cost of living into account. As a result, some people believe that it would be more accurate to judge living standards in other ways. One estimate of living standards is the Human Development Index, published for the first time in 1990.by the United Nations Development Program. It uses a scale （等級） of 1.to 100.and takes into account GDP per capita, adult literacy, and life expectancy.
58.根據購買力平價與人均GDP比較不同國家的生活水平
段落大意：對不同國家生活水平進行比較的方法之一是根據購買力平價與人均GDP進行衡量。
One way of comparing standards of living between different countries is to look at gross domestic product （GDP） per capita in terms of purchasing power parities （PPP） （購買力平價）, which take into account the cost of living in each country. This is widely considered a better measure of living standards than simply taking GDP per capita and converting it into a common currency such as the dollar. The indications the two measures give of living standards in a country can be substantially different. For example, in United States dollars, straightforward GDP per capita in Australia or the United Kingdom is less than 50.percent of that in Switzerland, but judged by GDP per capita in PPP, the standard of living in the United Kingdom or Australia is much higher than that in Switzerland.
59.影響大眾觀點的因素
段落大意：影響大眾觀點的因素包括長期因素（如特定時期的流行文化、種族、宗教、地理位置、經濟地位、教育水平等）和短期因素（如時事、權威人士的觀點、大眾傳媒等）。
Public opinion is shaped both by relatively permanent circumstances and by temporary influences. Among the former are the ideas that characterize the popular culture of a given country at a given period of time. In the US, for example, the youth-oriented culture of the late 20th century affects the attitudes of many people toward aging and the elderly. Other fairly permanent circumstances such as race, religion, geographical location, economic status, and educational level can strongly influence the opinions of an individual or a particular group about many subjects. Certain temporary factors also affect the public’s attitudes. Among these are the impact of current events, the opinions of influential or authoritative persons, the effect of the mass media, and the concerted （協作的） campaigns conducted by public relations professionals.
60.對民意調查的批評
段落大意：對民意調查的批評很多，有著不同的起因。
Criticisms of public opinion research come from a variety of sources. Many people simply are not convinced that the opinions of a small sample of the population are a reliable representation of the opinions of the whole. On this matter, however, the polling （民意測驗） agencies can refer to the science of statistics and also to decades of experience from which it can be shown, for example, that the same question asked on two different sample surveys at the same time will almost always generate similar results. Other criticisms deal with sample procedures that, for reasons of economy or expediency （方便）, sometimes use outdated population data or make compromises with rigorous statistical requirements.
61.對政治民意調查的批評
段落大意：在政治領域，對民意調查的批評主要在於其恰當性，而非有效性。
In the political area, criticism sometimes focuses on the appropriateness of opinion polling, rather than on its validity. It is argued that elected officials may be too willing to act on what a poll says their constituents （選民） think rather than deciding the issues on their merits （價值）. Some experts also believe that polls may influence voters to favor certain political candidates who seem to be enjoying a notable popularity at the moment. The information that a certain candidate is far ahead in the polls may discourage people from voting at all or encourage them to vote for that candidate and thus may affect the results of the election.
62.法律的概念
段落大意：法律是管理社會、控製社會成員行為的一套官方規章製度，其性質和功能隨著曆史變遷而變化。
Law, body of official rules and regulations, generally found in constitutions, legislation, judicial opinions, and the like, is used to govern a society and to control the behavior of its members. The nature and functions of law have varied throughout history. In modern societies, some authorized body such as a legislature（立法機構） or a court makes the law. It is backed by the coercive （強製的） power of the state, which enforces the law by means of appropriate penalties or remedies （賠償）.
63.法律的功能
段落大意：法律具有許多不同的功能，如懲治犯罪活動、規範商業活動、限製政府權力等，還可用做社會變革機製。
Laws serve a variety of functions. Laws against crimes, for example, help to maintain a peaceful, orderly, relatively stable society. Courts contribute to social stability by resolving disputes in a civilized way. Property and contract laws regulate business activities and private planning. Laws limiting the powers of government help to provide the liberty of citizens that would not otherwise be possible. Law has also been used as a mechanism for social change. For instance, laws have been passed to inhibit social discrimination and to improve the quality of individual life in matters of health, education, and welfare.
64.一些關於法律的觀點
段落大意：得到司法支持的習俗或規範就是法律。相反，從未被遵從並執行的法令則是虛空的法律。社會對法律的態度是法律的一個重要組成部分。
Some experts believe the popular view of law overemphasizes its formal, coercive aspects. They point out that if a custom or norm gains judicial backing, it is, for practical purposes, law. On the other hand, a statute （法令） that is neither obeyed nor enforced is empty law. Social attitudes toward the formal law are a significant part of the law in process. The role of law in some Asian countries is somewhat different from its role in Western nations. Respect for the processes of law is low. Tradition still regulates everyday life to a large degree. Resort to legal resolution of a dispute is truly a last resort, with conciliation （調解） being the mechanism that is preferred for social control.