英语四级阅读训练

SectionB

Directions:Inthissection,youaregoingtoreadapassagewithtenstatements

attachedtoit.Eachstatementcontainsinformationgiveninoneoftheparagraphs.

Identifytheparagraphfromwhichtheinformationisderived.

Youmaychooseaparagraphmorethanonce.Eachparagraphismarkedwitha

letter.AnswerthequestionsbymarkingthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2.

AUniversityDegreeNoLongerConfersFinancialSecurity

A.Millionsofschool-leaversintherichworldareabouttobidatearfulgoodbye

totheirparentsandstartanewlifeatuniversity.Someareinspiredbyapureloveof

learning.Butmostalsobelievethatspendingthreeorfouryearsatuniversity-and

accumulatinghugedebtsintheprocess—willboosttheirchancesoflandinga

well-paidandsecurejob.

B.Theireldershavealwaystoldthemthateducationisthebestwaytoequip

themselvestothriveinaglobalisedworld.Blue-collarworkerswillseetheirjobs

outsourcedandautomated,thefamiliarargumentgoes.Schooldropoutswillhaveto

copewithalifeofcash-strapped（资金紧张的）insecurity.Butthegraduateelitewill

havetheworldatitsfeet.Thereissomeevidencetosupportthisview.Arecentstudy

fromGeorgetownUniversity'sCentreonEducationandtheWorkforceargues

thatnobtainingapost-secondarycredential（证书）isalmostalwaysworthit."

Educationalqualificationsaretightlycorrelatedwithearnings:anAmericanwitha

professionaldegreecanexpecttopocket$3.6moveralifetime;onewithmerelya

high-schooldiplomacanexpectonly$1.3m.Thegapbetweenmore-and

less-educatedearnersmaybewidening.Astudyin2002foundthatsomeonewitha

bachelor'sdegreecouldexpecttoearn75%moreoveralifetimethansomeonewith

onlyahigh-schooldiploma.Todaythedisparityisevengreater.

C.Butisthepastareliableguidetothefuture?Orareweatthebeginningofa

newphaseintherelationshipbetweenjobsandeducation?Therearegoodreasonsfor

thinkingthatoldpatternsareabouttochange—andthatthecurrentrecession-driven

downturn（衰退）inthedemandforWesterngraduateswillmorph（改变）into

somethingstructural.Thestrongwindofcreativedestructionthathasshakensomany

blue-collarworkersoverthepastfewdecadesisbeginningtoshakethecognitiveelite

aswell.

D.Thesupplyofuniversitygraduatesisincreasingrapidly.TheChronicleof

HigherEducationcalculatesthatbetween1990and2007thenumberofstudents

goingtouniversityincreasedby22%inNorthAmerica,74%inEurope,144%in

LatinAmericaand203%inAsia.In2007150mpeopleattendeduniversityaroundthe

world,including70minAsia.Emergingeconomies-speciallyChina-arepouring

resourcesintobuildinguniversitiesthatcancompetewiththeeliteofAmericaand

Europe.Theyarealsoproducingprofessional-servicesfirmssnchasTataConsulting

ServicesandInfosysthattakefreshgraduatesandturnthemintoworld-class

computerprogrammersandconsultants.Thebestandthebrightestoftherichworld

mustincreasinglycompetewiththebestandthebrightestfrompoorercountrieswho

arewillingtoworkharderforlessmoney.

E.Atthesametime,thedemandforeducatedlaborisbeingreconfigured(重新

酉已置)bytechnology,inmuchthesamewaythatthedemandfbragriculturallabor

wasreconfiguredinthe19thcenturyandthatfbrfactorylaborinthe20th.Computers

cannotonlyperformrepetitivementaltasksmuchfasterthanhumanbeings.Theycan

alsoempoweramateurstodowhatprofessionalsoncedid:whyhireaflesh-and-blood

accountanttocompleteyourtaxreturnwhenTurbotax(asoftwarepackage)willdo

thejobatafractionofthecost?Andthevarietyofjobsthatcomputerscandois

multiplyingasprogrammersteachthemtodealwithtoneandlinguisticambiguity.

F.Severaleconomists,includingPaulKrugman,havebeguntoarguethat

post-industrialsocietieswillbecharacterizednotbyarelentlessriseindemandforthe

educatedbutbyagreat"hollowingout",asmid-leveljobsaredestroyedbysmart

machinesandhigh-leveljobgrowthslows.DavidAutor,oftheMassachusetts

InstituteofTechnology(MIT),pointsoutthatthemaineffectofautomationinthe

computereraisnotthatitdestroysblue-collarjobsbutthatitdestroysanyjobthatcan

bereducedtoaroutine.AlanBlinderofPrincetonUniversity,arguesthatthejobs

graduateshavetraditionallyperformedareifanythingmore"offshorable*1than

low-wageones.Aplumberorlorry-drivefsjobcannotbeoutsourcedtoIndia.A

computerprogrammer'scan.

G.Auniversityeducationisstillaprerequisiteforenteringsomeofthegreat

industries,suchasmedicine,lawandacademia(学术界)，thatprovidesecureand

well-payingjobs.Overthe20thcenturytheseindustriesdidawonderfuljobofraising

barrierstoentry-sometimesfbrgoodreasons(nobodywantstobeoperatedonbya

barber)andsometimesforself-interestedones.Buttheseindustriesarebeginningto

bendtheroles.Newspapersarefightingalosingbattlewiththeblogosphere.

Universitiesarereplacingtenure-trackprofessorswithnon-tenuredstaff.Lawfirms

arecontractingoutroutineworksuchas"discovery"(diggingupdocumentsrelevant

toalawsuit)tocomputerized-searchspecialistssuchasBlackstoneDiscovery.Even

doctorsarethreatened,aspatientsfindadviceonlineandtreatmentinWalmart'snew

healthcenters.

H.ThomasMaloneofMITarguesthatthesechanges-automation,globalizafion

andderegulation-maybepartofabiggerchange:theapplicationofthedivisionof

labortobrain-work.AdamSmith'sfactorymanagersbroketheproductionofpinsinto

18components.Inthesameway,companiesareincreasinglybreakingtheproduction

ofbrain-workintoevertinierslices.TopCoderchopsupITprojectsintobite-sized

chunksandthenservesthemuptoaworldwideworkforceoffreelancecoders.

LThesechangeswillundoubtedlyimprovetheproductivityofbrain-workers.

Theywillallowconsumerstosidestep（规避）theprofessionalindustriesthathave

extractedhighrentsfortheirservices.Andtheywillempowermanybrain-workersto

focusonwhattheyarebestatandcontractoutmoretedioustaskstoothers.Butthe

reconfigurationofbrain-workwillalsomakelifefarlesscozyandpredictableforthe

nextgenerationofgraduates.

46.Thecreativedestructionthathashappenedtoblue-collarworkersinthepastalso

startstoaffectthecognitiveelite.

47.Forthenextgenerationofgraduates,lifewillbefarlesscomfortableand

predictablewithbrain-workreconfigured.

48.Aftercomputersaretaughtbyprogrammerstodealwithtoneandlinguistic

ambiguity,thevarietyofjobstheycandowillincreasedramatically.

49.Mostschool-leaversbelievethat,despitethehugedebtstheyowe,goingto

universitywillincreasetheirchancesofgettingsecurejobswithhighsalaries.

50.Modemcompaniesaremorelikelytobreaktheproductionofintellectualwork

intoevertinierslices.

51.AscholarofPrincetonUniversityclaimsthatthejobstraditionallytakenby

graduatesaremorelikelytobeoffshoredthanlow-wageones.

52.TheincomegapbetweenanAmericanprofessionaldegreeholderandan

Americanhigh-schoolgraduateshowsincomeiscloselyrelatedtoeducational

qualifications.

53.Thechangesinthedivisionofbrain-workwillsaveconsumerssomehighservice

feestheprofessionalorganizationscharge.

54.Somestudentshavealwaysbeentoldthat,toachievesuccessinaglobalised

world,itismostadvisabletoequipthemselveswitheducation.

55.Emergingeconomiesareprovidingalotofresourcestobuilduniversitiesto

competewiththeeliteofAmericaandEurope.

SectionC

Directions:Thereare2passagesinthissection.Eachisfollowedbysomequestions

orunfinishedstatements.ForeachofthemtherearefourchoicesmarkedA）,B.,

C.andD）.Youshoulddecideonthebestchoiceandmarkthecorrespondingletteron

AnswerSheet2withasinglelinethroughthecentre.

SectionB

Directions:Inthissection,youaregoingtoreadapassagewithtenstatements

attachedtoit.Eachstatementcontainsinformationgiveninoneoftheparagraphs.

Identifytheparagraphfromwhichtheinfonnationisderived.

Youmaychooseaparagraphmorethanonce.Eachparagraphismarkedwitha

letter.AnswerthequestionsbymarkingthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2.

Addicted,Really?

A.Mental-healthspecialistsdisagreeoverwhethertoclassifycompulsive

onlinebehaviourasaddiction■--andhowtotreatit.CraigSmallwood,adisabled

Americanwarveteran,spentmorethan20,000hoursoverfiveyearsplayingan

onlinerole-playinggamecalled"LineageII".WhenNCsoft,theSouthKoreanfirm

behindthegame,accusedhimofbreakingthegame'srulesandbannedhim,hewas

plungedintodepression,severeparanoia（偏执）andhallucinations（幻想）.Hespent

threeweeksinhospital.Afterthat,hesuedNCsoftforfraudandnegligence（过失）,

demandingover$9mindamagesandclaimingthatthecompanyactednegligentlyby

failingtowarnhimofthedangerthathewouldbecome“addicted”tothegame.

B.Butdoesitmakesensetotalkofaddictiontoonlineactivity?Mental-health

specialistssaythreeonlinebehaviorscanbecomeproblematicformanypeople:video

games,pornography（色I青作品）andmessagingviae-mailandsocialnetworks.

Butthereisfarlessagreementaboutwhetheranyofthisshouldbecalled"Internet

addiction"—orhowtotreatit.

C.Somemental-healthspecialistswanted"Internetaddiction"tobeincludedin

thefifthversionofpsychiatry'sbible,the"DiagnosticandStatisticalManualofMental

Disorders",knownasDSM-V,whichiscurrentlybeingoverhauled（全面修订）.The

AmericanMedicalAssociationendorsed（赞成）theideain2007,onlyto

backtrack（放弃）dayslater.TheAmericanJournalofPsychiatrycalledInternet

addictiona"commondisorder"andsupporteditsrecognition.LastyeartheDSM-V

draftinggroupmadeitsdecision:Interuetaddictionwouldnotbeincludedasa

“behavioraladdictionH-onlygamblingmadethecut—butitsaidfurtherstudywas

necessary.

D.SkepticssaythereisnothinguniquelyaddictiveabouttheInternet.Backin

2000,JosephWalther,acommunicationsprofessoratMichiganStateUniversity,

co-wroteanarticleinwhichhesuggested,tongueincheek,thatthecriteriausedto

callsomeoneanInternetaddictmightalsoshowthatmostprofessorswereHaddicted"

toacademia（学术活动）.Hearguedthatotherfactors,suchasdepression,arethereal

problem.

Hestandsbythatviewtoday.nNoscientificevidencehasemergedtosuggest

thatInternetuseisacauseratherthanaconsequenceofsomeothersortofissue,"he

says."FocusingonandtreatingpeopleforInternetaddiction,ratherthanlookingfbr

underlyingclinicalissues,isdefinitelyunwise."

E.Othersdisagree."Thatwouldbewrong,"saysKimberlyYoung,aresearcher

andtherapistwhohasworkedonInteractaddictionsince1994.Sheinsiststhatthe

Internet,withitspowerfullyimmersiveenvironments,createsnewproblemsthat

peoplemustlearntonavigate（应对）.Otherwise,thechanginglifestylewillaffectthe

developmentofthesociety.

F.Noonedisputesthatonlinehabitscanturntoxic.TakeSouthKorea,where

widespreadbroadbandmeansthattheaveragehigh-schoolstudentplaysvideogames

for23hourseachweek.In2007thegovernmentestimatedthataround210,000

childrenneededtreatmentforInternetaddiction.In2010newspapersaroundtheglobe

carriedthestoryofaSouthKoreancouplewhofedtheirinfantdaughtersolittlethat

shestarvedtodeath.Insteadofcaringforthechild,thecouplespentmostnightsatan

Internetcafe,sinkinghoursintoarole-playinggameinwhichtheyraised,fedand

caredforavirtualdaughter.AndseveralSouthKoreanmenhavediedfrom

exhaustionaftermarathon,multi-daygamingsessions.

G.TheSouthKoreangovernmenthassinceaskedgamedeveloperstoadopta

gamingcurfew（宵禁）fbrchildren,topreventthemplayingbetweenmidnightand8

a.m.Atthesametime,ithasalsoopenedmorethan100clinicsforInternetaddiction

andsponsoredan"Internetrescuecamp”forseriouscases.

H.Butcompulsivebehaviourisnotlimitedtogarners.E-mailorweb-usebehaviours

canalsoshowsignsofaddiction.Gettingthroughabusinesslunchinwhichnoone

pullsoutaphonetochecktheirmessagesnowcountsasaminormiracleinmany

quarters.Adeluge（泛滥）ofself-helpbooks,mostrecently"AloneTogether"by

SherryTurlde,asocialscientistattheMassachusettsInstituteofTechnology,offer

adviceonhowtounplug（去除障碍）.

LPomographyishardlynew,either,buttheInternetmakesaccessingitmuch

easierthaneverbefore.Whensomethingcanbesummonedinaninstantvia

broadband,whetheritisagameworld,ane-mailinboxorpornographicmaterial,itis

hardertoresist.Newservicesleadtonewcomplaints.Whenonlineauctionsitesfirst

becamepopular,talkof“eBayaddiction*1soonfollowed.Dr.Youngsayswomen

complaintohernowaboutaddictiontoFacebook—orevento"FarmVille0,agame

playableonlywithinFacebook.

J.Treatmentcentreshavepoppeduparoundtheworldwiththepopularityof

onlinegames.In2006Amsterdam'sSmith&Jonesfacilitybilleditselfas"thefirst

and,currently,theonlyresidentialvideo-gametreatmentprogramintheworld**.In

AmericathereSTARTInternetAddictionRecoveryProgramclaimstotreatInternet

addiction,gamingaddiction,andeven"textingaddiction*1.InChina,meanwhile,

military-style“bootcamps"arethepreferredwaytotreatInternetproblems.

K.Yetmanypeoplelikefeelingpermanentlyconnected.AsArikiaMillikan,an

Americanblogger,onceputit,"IfIcouldbejackedinateverywakinghourofthe

day,Iwould,andIthinkalotofmypeerswoulddothe,same."BobLaRose,an

InternetspecialistatMichiganStateUniversity,doesn'tbelieveher.Inhisresearchon

collegestudents,hefoundthatmostsensewhentheyare"goingoverboardandrestore

self-control".Lessthan1%haveapathological（病态的）problem,headds.Formost

people,Internetuse"isjustahabit-andonethatbringsuspleasure.”

46.AccordingtoJosephWalther,itisunwisetoemphasizethetreatmentofInternet

addictioninsteadofseekingforpotentialclinicalissues.

47.Asonlinegamesbecomepopular,treatmentcentreshavesprungupalloverthe

world.

48.Afterplayingonlinegamescontinuouslyfordays,severalSouthKoreanmenwere

exhaustedtodeath.

49.SmallwoodsuedNCsoftandclaimedahugecompensationforfraudandits

negligenceofwarninghimofthedangerofgameaddiction.

50.InSouthKorea,agamingcurfewfbrchildrenwasadoptedtopreventchildren

playingaftermidnight.

51.InternetaddictionstillneedstobefurtherstudiedthoughtheDSM-Vdidnot

categorizeitasa"behavioraladdiction".

52.AnInternetspecialistfoundthatmostcollegestudentscouldrealizewhentheyare

goingtoofarandrestoreself-control.

53.Accordingtomental-healthspecialists,formanypeople,videogames,

pornographyandmessagingviae-mailandsocialnetworkscanbecomeproblematic

onlinebehaviors.

54.Peopleregarditasasmallmiracleifnobodytakesoutaphonetoreadthe

messagesatabusinesslunch.

55.KimberlyYounginsiststhatpeoplemustlearntodealwithnewproblemsbrought

aboutbytheInteract.

SectionB

Directions:Inthissection,youaregoingtoreadapassagewithtenstatements

attachedtoit.Eachstatementcontainsinformationgiveninoneoftheparagraphs.

Identifytheparagraphfromwhichtheinformationisderived.

Youmaychooseaparagraphmorethanonce.Eachparagraphismarkedwitha

letter.AnswerthequestionsbymarkingthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2.

GreenGrowth

A.Theenrichmentofpreviouslypoorcountriesisthemostinspiring

developmentofourtime.Itisalsowoirying.Theenvironmentisalreadyunderstrain.

Whatwillhappenwhentheglobalpopulationrisesfrom7billiontodayto9.3billion

in2050,asdemographers（人口统计学家）expect,andagrowingproportionofthese

peoplecan'affordgoodsthatwereoncereservedfortheelite?Cantheplanetsupport

somucheconomicactivity?

B.Manypolicymakersadoptatop-downandWestern-centficapproachtosuch

planetaryproblems.Theydiscussambitiousregulationsinglobalforums,orlookto

giantmultinationalsandwell-heeled（富有的）NGOstosetanexample.Butsince

mostpeopleliveintheemergingworld,itmakessensetolookatwhatsuccessful

companiestherearedoingtomakegrowthmoresustainable.

C.AnewstudybytheWorldEconomicForum（WEF）andtheBoston

ConsultingGroup（BCG）identifies16emerging-marketfirmsthattheysayare

turningeco-consciousnessintoasourceofcompetitiveadvantage.Thesehighly

profitablecompanies（whichthestudycalls"thenewsustainabilitychampions"）are

usinggreenerytoreducecosts,motivateworkersandforgerelationships.Their

home-grownideaswillprobablybeeasierfortheirpeerstocopythananything

cookedupintheWest.

D.Themostoutstandingqualityofthesecompaniesisthattheyturn

limitationsofresources,laborandinfrastructure）intoopportunities.Thus,India's

ShreeCement,whichhastongsufferedfromwatershortages,developedtheworld's

mostwater-efficientmethodformakingcement,inpartbyusingair-coolingrather

thanwater-cooling.ManilaWater,autilityinthePhilippines,reducedtheamountof

wateritwaslosing,throughwastageandillegaltapping,from63%in1997to12%in

2010bymakingwateraffordablefbrthepoor.

BroadGroup,aChinesemakerofairconditioners,tapsthewasteheatfrom

buildingstopoweritsmachines.ZhangzidaoFisheryGroup,aChineseaquaculture

（水产养殖）company,recyclesuneatenfishfeedtofertilizecrops.

E.Settinggreengoalsisacommonpractice.Sekem,anEgyptianfoodproducer,

setitselfthetaskofreclaiming（开垦）desertlandthroughorganicfarming.Florida

Ice&Farm,aCostaRicanfoodanddrinkcompany,hasadoptedstrictstandardsfor

theamountofwateritcanconsumeinproducingdrinks.

F.Thesefirmsmeasurethemselvesbytheirgreenery,too.FloridaIce&Farm,for

example,links60%ofitsboss'spaytothetriplebottomlineof"people,planetand

profit".Thesustainabilitychampionsalsoencouragetheirworkerstocomeupwith

greenideas.Natura,aBraziliancosmeticscompany,givesbonusestostaffwhofind

waystoreducethefirm'simpactontheenvironment.Masisa,aChileanforestry

company,invitesemployeesto"imagineunimaginablebusinesses*1aimedatpoorer

consumers.Woolworths,aSouthAfricanretailer,claimsthatmanyofitsbestgreen

ideashavecomefromstaff,notbosses.

G.Inemergingmarketsitishardforcompaniestosticktoonespecialism,

becausetheyhavetoworryaboutsomanywiderproblems,fromhumble

infrastructuretounreliablesupplychains.Sothesustainabilitychampionsseekto

shapethebusinessenvironmentinwhichtheyoperate.Theylobby（游说）regulators:

GrupoBalbo,aBrazilianorganic-sugarproducer,isworkingwiththeBrazilian

governmenttoestablishacertificationsystemfororganicproducts.Theyform

partnershipswithgovernmentsandNGOs.Kenya'sEquityBankhasformedan

alliancewithgroupssuchasTheInternationalFundforAgriculturalDevelopmentto

reduceitsriskswhenlendingtosmallholders.Naturahasworkedwithitssuppliersto

producesustainablepackaging,includinganewngreen"plasticderivedfromsugar

cane.

H.Thefirmsalsoworkhardtoreachandeducatepoorconsumers,often

sacrificingshort-termprofitstocreatefuturemarkets.Masisaorganizeslocal

carpentersintonetworksandconnectsthemtolow-incomefurniturebuyers.Broad

Grouphasdevelopedaminiaturedeviceformeasuringairpollutionthatcanfitinto

mobilephones.JainIrrigation,anIndianmakerofirrigationsystems,usesdanceand

songtoexplainthebenefitsofdripirrigationtofarmerswhocan'tread.Suntech,a

Chinesesolar-powercompany,hasestablishedalow-carbonmuseumtocelebrate

waysofreducingcarbon-dioxideemissions.

Richbecamegreen,orgreenbecamerich?

LOnecouldquibble（争辩）withBCG*sanalysis.PhilRosenzweigof

Switzerland'sIMDbusinessschoolhasarguedthatmanagementwritersareproneto

"thehaloeffect":theytreatthetemporarysuccessofacompanyasproofthatithas

discoveredsomeeternalprincipleofgoodmanagement.Thefactthatsomesuccessful

companieshaveembracedgreenerydoesnotprovethatgreenerymakesafirm

successful.Somefirms,havingprospered,findtheycanaffordtosplurge（挥霍）on

greenery.Somesuccessfulfirrnspursuegreeneryforpublic-relationspurposes.And

foreverysustainableemergingchampion,therearesurely100firmsthathave

prosperedbybelching（喷出）fumesintotheairorpumpingtoxinsintorivers.

J.Nonetheless,thecentralmessageoftheWEF-BCGstudy—thatsomeofthebest

emerging-worldcompaniesarecombiningprofitswithgreenery—is

thought-provoking.Manycriticsofenvironmentalismarguethatitisarich-world

luxury:thatthepoorneedadequatefoodbeforetheyneedsuper-cleanair.Someeven

seegreeneryasarich-worldconspiracy（阴谋）：theWestgrewrichby

industrializing（andpolluting）,butnowwantstostoptherestoftheworldfrom

followingsuit.TheWEF-BCGreportdemonstratesthatsuchfearsareoverblown.

Emerging-worldcompaniescanbejustasgreenastheirWesternrivals.Manyhave

foundthat,whennaturalresourcesarescarceandconsumersarecash-strapped（资金

短缺的）,greenerycanbealucrative（利润丰厚的）businessstrategy.

46.Anair-conditionermanufacturerusesthewasteheatfrombuildingstosupplyits

machineswithpower.

47.Manycriticsofenvironmentalismholdtheviewthatgreeneryisarich-world

luxurybecausethat'snotwhatthepoorpeoplebadlywant.

48.Workersofthesustainabilitychampionsaremotivatedtobringforwardgreen

ideas.

49.Itismeaningfultostudywhatsuccessfulcompaniesintheemergingworldare

doingtoachievemoresustainablegrowth,sincemostpeoplelivethere.

50.It'sdifficultforcompaniesinemergingmarketstokeepfocusingononespecific

problembecausetheyhavemanywiderproblemstoworryabout.

51.Althoughsomesuccessfulfirmshaveembracedgreenery,itdoesn'tmeanthat

greenerywillleadtothesuccessofafirm.

52.Itwillprobablybeeasierforcompaniestofollowthehome-grownideasthan

thoseinventedintheWest.

53.Ithasbeenfoundthatgreenerycanbeprofitablewhennaturalresourcesarescarce

andconsumersareshortofcash.

54.Sekem,whichproducesfoodinEgypt,setagoaltoreclaimdesertlandthrough

organicfarming.

55.Tocreatefuturemarkets,thefirmsalsomakeefforttoreachandeducatepoor

consumers,oftenatthecostofshort-termprofits.

SectionB

Directions:Inthissection,youaregoingtoreadapassagewithtenstatements

attachedtoit.Eachstatementcontainsinformationgiveninoneoftheparagraphs.

Identifytheparagraphfromwhichtheinformationisderived.

Youmaychooseaparagraphmorethanonce.Eachparagraphismarkedwitha

letter.AnswerthequestionsbymarkingthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2.

HowYourLanguageAffectsYourWealthandHealth

A.Doesthelanguagewespeakdeterminehowhealthyandrichwewillbe?

NewresearchbyKeithChenofYaleBusinessSchoolsuggestsso.Thestructureof

languagesaffectsourjudgmentsanddecisionsaboutthefutureandthismighthave

dramaticlong-termconsequences.

B.Therehasbeenalotofresearchintohowwedealwiththefuture.For

example,thefamousmarshmallow（棉花糖）studiesofWalterMischeland

colleaguesshowedthatbeingabletoresisttemptationispredictiveoffuturesuccess.

Four-year-oldkidsweregivenamarshmallowandweretoldthatiftheydonoteat

thatmarshmallowandwaitfbrtheexperimentertocomeback,theywillgettwo

marshmallowsinsteadofone.Follow-upstudiesshowedthatthekidswhowereable

towaitforthebiggerfuturerewardbecamemoresuccessfulyoungadults.

C.Resistingourimpulsesforimmediatepleasureisoftentheonlywaytoattain

theoutcomesthatareimportanttous.Wewanttokeepaslimfigurebutwealsowant

thatlastsliceofpizza.Wewantacomfortableretirement,butwealsowanttodrive

thatdazzlingcar,goonthatdreamvacation,orgetthosegorgeousshoes.

Somepeoplearebetteratdelayinggratification（1茜足）thanothers.Those

peoplehaveabetterchanceofaccumulatingwealthandkeepingahealthylifestyle.

Theyarelesslikelytobeimpulsebuyersorsmokers,ortoengageinunsafesex.

D.Chen*srecentfindingssuggestthatanunlikelyfactor,language,strongly

affectsourfuture-orientedbehavior.Somelanguagesstronglydistinguishthepresent

andthefuture.Otherlanguagesonlyweaklydistinguishthepresentandthefuture.

Chen'srecentresearchsuggeststhatpeoplewhospeaklanguagesthatweakly

distinguishthepresentandthefuturearebetterpreparedforthefuture.They

accumulatemorewealthandtheyarebetterabletomaintaintheirhealth.Theway

thesepeopleconceptualizethefutureissimilartothewaytheyconceptualizethe

present.Asaresult,thefuturedoesnotfeelverydistantanditiseasierfbrthemtoact

inaccordancewiththeirfutureinterests.

E.Differentlanguageshavedifferentwaysoftalkingaboutthefuture.Some

languages,suchasEnglish,Korean,andRussian,requiretheirspeakerstorefertothe

futureexplicitly（明确地）.EverytimeEnglish-speakerstallaboutthefuture,they

havetousefuturemarkerssuchas"will"orngoingto."Inotherlanguages,suchas

Mandarin,Japanese,andGerman,futuremarkersarenotobligatory（强制性的）.The

futureisoftentalkedaboutsimilartothewaypresentistalkedaboutandthemeaning

isunderstoodfromthecontext.AMandarinspeakerwhoisgoingtogotoaseminar

mightsaynWoqutingjiangzuo,"whichtranslatesto"Igolistenseminar.0Languages

suchasEnglishconstantlyremindtheirspeakersthatfutureeventsaredistant.For

speakersoflanguagessuchasMandarinfuturefeelscloser.Asaconsequence,

resistingimmediateimpulsesandinvestingforthefutureiseasierforMandarin

speakers.

F.Chertanalyzedindiv