商務(wù)英語(yǔ)閱讀文章
英語(yǔ)最早被中世紀(jì)的英國(guó)使用，并因其廣闊的殖民地而成為世界使用面積最廣的語(yǔ)言。下面是小編為大家整理的商務(wù)英語(yǔ)閱讀文章，歡迎閱讀與收藏。
商務(wù)英語(yǔ)閱讀文章 篇1
A Changed Global Reality 世界經(jīng)濟(jì)格局新變化
Say this for the young century: we live in interesting times. Not quite 2 12 years ago, the world economy tipped into the most severe downturn since the Great Depression in the 1930s. World trade slowed sharply. Unemployment lines grew longer, especially in the old industrial economies. Financial institutions that had seemed as solid as granite disappeared as if they were no more substantial than a bunch of flowers in the hands of an old-style magician.
對(duì)于新世紀(jì)，我們得這樣說(shuō)：我們生活在一個(gè)有趣的時(shí)代。差不多兩年半之前，世界經(jīng)濟(jì)陷入了20世紀(jì)30年代經(jīng)濟(jì)大蕭條時(shí)期以來(lái)最慘重的低迷狀態(tài)。世界貿(mào)易進(jìn)程大幅放緩。失業(yè)隊(duì)伍也越來(lái)越快，這在舊工業(yè)經(jīng)濟(jì)體系表現(xiàn)尤為突出。原來(lái)堅(jiān)如磐石的金融機(jī)構(gòu)也消失了，似乎還不如老套的魔術(shù)師變的花束看起來(lái)真實(shí)。
Given that the scale of the downturn was so epochal, it should not be surprising that the nature of the recovery would likewise be the stuff of history. And it has been. As they make their way to Davos for the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) by helicopter, bus, car or train (which is the right way to do it), the members of the global economic and political elite will find themselves coming to terms with something they have never known before.
考慮到經(jīng)濟(jì)衰退幅度如此的跨時(shí)代，經(jīng)濟(jì)復(fù)蘇進(jìn)程會(huì)很慢也是理所當(dāng)然的，對(duì)此我們不應(yīng)該感到吃驚。事實(shí)也正如我們所料，復(fù)蘇進(jìn)程確實(shí)很慢。全球經(jīng)濟(jì)政治精英乘直升飛機(jī)、大巴、小汽車(chē)或是火車(chē)前往達(dá)沃斯參加一年一度的世界經(jīng)濟(jì)論壇會(huì)議，此次會(huì)議上，全球經(jīng)濟(jì)政治精英會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)自己開(kāi)始接受一些聞所未聞的事情。
The new reality can be expressed like this. For more than 200 years, since the Industrial Revolution, the world has seen two economies. One has dominated technological innovation and trade and amassed great wealth. The second — much of it politically under the thumb of the first — has remained poor and technologically dependent. This divide remains stubbornly real. The rich world — the U.S., Canada, Western Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and the four original Asian dragons — accounts for only 16% of total world population but nearly 70% of world output.
當(dāng)今的情況是這樣的。自工業(yè)革命以來(lái)的二百多年間，世界出現(xiàn)了兩大經(jīng)濟(jì)體。一個(gè)支配著技術(shù)創(chuàng)新和貿(mào)易，累積了大量財(cái)富。另一個(gè)在政治上主要受前者的控制，在經(jīng)濟(jì)上一直處于貧窮狀態(tài)并且在技術(shù)上存在依賴性。兩者的鴻亙古存在。發(fā)達(dá)國(guó)家----美國(guó)、加拿大、西歐、澳大利亞、新西蘭、日本及亞洲四小龍，以世界總?cè)丝诘?6%輸出著世界將近70%的產(chǎn)品。
But change is upon us. The developed world of the haves is struggling to restart growth and preserve welfare states, while the world of the once have-nots has surged out of the downturn. Big emerging economies like China and India have discovered new sources of domestic demand. Parts of Africa are attracting real interest from investors. All told, the strength of the developing world has supported the global economy. The World Bank estimates that economic growth in low- and middle-income countries contributed almost half of world growth (46%) in 2010.
世界形勢(shì)正發(fā)生著變化。在發(fā)達(dá)國(guó)家的富人們努力重新刺激經(jīng)濟(jì)增長(zhǎng)并維持社會(huì)福利的時(shí)候，曾經(jīng)的窮人們卻已經(jīng)擺脫了經(jīng)濟(jì)困境。像中國(guó)和印度這樣大的新興經(jīng)濟(jì)體已經(jīng)找到了國(guó)內(nèi)需求的新來(lái)源。非洲的部分地區(qū)也正吸引著對(duì)他們真正感興趣的投資者�？傊�，發(fā)展中國(guó)家的力量撐起了世界經(jīng)濟(jì)。據(jù)世界銀行估計(jì)，2010年，中低收入國(guó)家的經(jīng)濟(jì)增長(zhǎng)約占世界經(jīng)濟(jì)增長(zhǎng)的一半(46%)。
A Sigh of Relief 經(jīng)濟(jì)回暖，令人欣慰
In the long term, this is nothing but good news. As billions of poor people become more prosperous, they will be able to afford the comforts their counterparts in the rich world have long considered the normal appurtenances of life. But before we celebrate a new economic order, deep divisions both between and within nations have to be overcome. Otherwise, the world could yet tip back into a beggar-thy-neighbor populism that will end up beggaring everyone. We are not out of the woods yet.
從長(zhǎng)遠(yuǎn)看來(lái)，這真的是個(gè)好消息。隨著幾十億的貧苦人們開(kāi)始變得富有起來(lái)，他們也將能夠支付得起發(fā)達(dá)國(guó)家的人們所擁有過(guò)的享受，而這些享受在富人們眼中僅僅是普通的生活附屬品而已。但是，在慶祝一個(gè)新的經(jīng)濟(jì)秩序建立之前，我們必須克服國(guó)與國(guó)之間以及國(guó)家內(nèi)部存在的深層分歧。否則，世界將會(huì)重新陷入以鄰為壑的民粹主義，最終每個(gè)人都淪為乞丐，我們?nèi)晕疵撾x困境。
First, though, let's assess how things stand. The world is in a much better state than many expected it would be a year ago. The double-dip recession some economists feared never materialized. In the U.S., which seemed to stall in the summer, there are early signs that consumers are spending and banks are lending again, while the stock market is at its highest point in 212 years. Though Europe is wheezing under cascading sovereign-debt crises, it has so far avoided the worst-case scenarios — a collapse of the euro, a debt crisis that spills from small economies such as Greece and Ireland to much bigger ones like Italy and Spain, and bitter social unrest in those nations that are having to massage wages down while cutting public budgets.
不過(guò)首先讓我們?cè)u(píng)估一下目前情況�，F(xiàn)在世界的狀況比一年前我們所想象的要好得多。一些經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家一直害怕發(fā)生的“雙底衰退”也從未出現(xiàn)過(guò)。2008年的美國(guó)經(jīng)濟(jì)似乎一直停滯不前，但是現(xiàn)在一些早期跡象表明顧客開(kāi)始消費(fèi)了，銀行也開(kāi)始發(fā)放貸款了，同時(shí)股市也在經(jīng)濟(jì)蕭條兩年半之后達(dá)到了巔峰狀態(tài)。盡管歐洲一直在一重接一重的主權(quán)外債危機(jī)下茍延殘喘，但是它到目前為止已經(jīng)避免了最糟糕的狀況-----歐元崩潰，歐元崩潰是一種債務(wù)危機(jī)，從希臘和愛(ài)爾蘭這樣小的經(jīng)濟(jì)體流竄到意大利和西班牙這樣大的經(jīng)濟(jì)體，并且加劇了一些國(guó)家的社會(huì)騷亂，這些國(guó)家在縮減公共預(yù)算的同時(shí)不得不減少薪資。
Amid all the encouraging news (or at least the absence of terrible tidings), Goldman Sachs economists have turned practically giddy, recently upgrading their 2011 global- and U.S.-growth forecasts (to 4.8% and 3.4%, respectively). While 2010 was the "Year of Doubt," 2011, they proclaim, will be the "Year of Recovery." U.S. economist Nouriel Roubini, the Cassandra of the crisis, reckons that if all goes right and nothing terrible goes wrong, the global economy might grow nearly 4% this year.
聽(tīng)到如此多鼓舞人心的消息(或者至少是沒(méi)有很糟糕的消息)，高盛經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家?guī)缀踝兊幂p率起來(lái)，最近他們更新了2011年全球和美國(guó)經(jīng)濟(jì)增長(zhǎng)預(yù)測(cè)(分別是4.8%和3.4%)。盡管2010年是“令人懷疑的一年”，但是高盛經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家們宣稱2011年肯定是經(jīng)濟(jì)復(fù)蘇的一年，努里爾盧比尼----美國(guó)經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家，這次經(jīng)濟(jì)危機(jī)的預(yù)言者，認(rèn)為如果一切都順利，并且沒(méi)有更糟糕的事情發(fā)生，全球經(jīng)濟(jì)今年可能會(huì)增長(zhǎng)將近4%。
It must be said: not everyone agrees. Jim Walker, an economist at research firm Asianomics in Hong Kong, predicts that 2011 will be a "year of reckoning." The rebound in the U.S., Walker says, is a mirage created by excessive stimulus. He expects the U.S. to slip into the double dip it dodged in 2010. Even the less bearish worry that the global economy is far from healed. Most economists expect the rebound to flatten out in 2011, with growth likely to be lower than in 2010. In mid-January, the World Bank estimated global GDP growth will slow to 3.3% in 2011 from 3.9% in 2010. Stephen Roach, an economist at Yale University, believes that the world economy is still digging itself out of the debt and distortions built up during the last boom. "It's a really slow postcrisis workout," Roach says. "I'm not prepared to give the global economy the green light."
有人肯定會(huì)說(shuō)：并不是每個(gè)人都同意這個(gè)觀點(diǎn)。吉姆沃克----香港亞洲經(jīng)濟(jì)分析咨詢公司的經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家，預(yù)測(cè)2011年將會(huì)是“清算之年”。沃克談到，美國(guó)經(jīng)濟(jì)的反彈只是由過(guò)度刺激形成的海市蜃樓。他認(rèn)為美國(guó)將會(huì)落入2010年僥幸躲避過(guò)去的“雙底衰退”之中。即使是不那么悲觀的人也擔(dān)心全球經(jīng)濟(jì)遠(yuǎn)沒(méi)有恢復(fù)。大多數(shù)經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家預(yù)計(jì)2011年經(jīng)濟(jì)反彈會(huì)逐漸消失，經(jīng)濟(jì)增長(zhǎng)也可能會(huì)低于2010年。一月中旬，世界銀行估測(cè)全球GDP增長(zhǎng)將由2010年的3.9%下降到2011年的3.3%。耶魯大學(xué)的經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家史蒂芬羅奇認(rèn)為，世界經(jīng)濟(jì)仍會(huì)極力從上次經(jīng)濟(jì)繁榮期產(chǎn)生的債務(wù)和扭曲中脫身�！斑@真是一次緩慢的后經(jīng)濟(jì)危機(jī)考驗(yàn)�！绷_奇說(shuō)道，“我并不準(zhǔn)備給經(jīng)濟(jì)復(fù)蘇這個(gè)觀點(diǎn)亮綠燈”。
The caution is understandable. In the developed world, unemployment remains sickeningly high (9.4% in the U.S., 10.1% in the euro zone). The private-sector debt crisis of 2008-09 has morphed into a public-sector debt crisis in 2010-11, a result of the debt and deficits amassed in the process of stimulating economies and bailing out banks during the downturn.
這種謹(jǐn)慎是可以理解的。在發(fā)達(dá)國(guó)家，失業(yè)率仍然很高(美國(guó)是9.4%，歐元區(qū)是10.1%)。2008年9月的私營(yíng)部門(mén)債務(wù)危機(jī)到2010年11月已經(jīng)演變?yōu)楣膊块T(mén)危機(jī)。這是由經(jīng)濟(jì)低迷期刺激經(jīng)濟(jì)和救助銀行時(shí)所累積的債務(wù)和財(cái)政赤字造成的。
商務(wù)英語(yǔ)閱讀文章 篇2
管管倫敦的騎車(chē)族吧
不久前，有一篇報(bào)道說(shuō)，自行車(chē)車(chē)座會(huì)對(duì)生殖器官造成損傷性影響，經(jīng)常騎車(chē)的男性可能因此患上不育癥。這讓我太高興了。在我看來(lái)，任何阻止騎車(chē)人繁衍后代的事都是好事，應(yīng)該加以歡迎。
Some while ago I read a newspaper story saying male cyclists who rode a lot risked impotence because of the damaging effect of the saddle on their reproductive organs. It quite made my day. In my opinion, anything that stops cyclists breeding is to be welcomed as an unmitigated good.
騎自行車(chē)的人真討厭。至少，我每天在倫敦見(jiàn)到的那些騎車(chē)人真讓人討厭。表面上，他們看起來(lái)像是和藹可親、值得尊敬、遵紀(jì)守法的中產(chǎn)階級(jí)人士。通常情況下，也許確實(shí)如此。但這幫人蹬起自行車(chē)的那一刻，就不是那么回事兒了。
I hate cyclists. At least, I hate the ones I see in London every day. Outwardly, they may appear to be nice, respectable, law-abiding, middle-class people, and perhaps they normally are. But the moment they straddle their bikes, something snaps.
讓騎車(chē)族變壞的不僅是自以為是，而是一種根深蒂固的不公平感。一方面，他們感到自鳴得意，高人一等。另一方面，他們?nèi)菀壮鲕?chē)禍，這一點(diǎn)很傷自尊。如此不公平讓騎車(chē)族怒火滿腔，把他們變成了十足的瘋子。他們被一種復(fù)仇的欲望攫住，要報(bào)復(fù)這個(gè)殘酷、如此錯(cuò)待他們的社會(huì)。
It is not just the self-righteousness that gets to them. It is a deep-seated sense of injustice. On the one hand, they feel smug and superior, yet on the other, they are constantly humiliated by the knowledge of their acute vulnerability. The unfairness of it all fills them with such outrage that they turn into complete nutters, gripped by a desire for vengeance on a world that has wronged them so cruelly.
騎車(chē)族對(duì)法律的蔑視令人吃驚。他們一向無(wú)視紅燈，讓本應(yīng)該安全無(wú)虞的過(guò)街行人險(xiǎn)象環(huán)生。這幫人沿著單行線逆行，每天早晨竟在我們當(dāng)?shù)匦W(xué)門(mén)外跟家長(zhǎng)和孩子玩“閃人”游戲。只要他們覺(jué)得方便，這幫人就會(huì)騎過(guò)人行交叉路口，騎上人行道。他們當(dāng)中比較好斗的，還會(huì)朝擋路人破口大喊大叫。至于那些一時(shí)誤入自行車(chē)道的汽車(chē)司機(jī)或行人，但愿老天保佑所有的人吧。
Their contempt for the law is breathtaking. They routinely ignore red traffic lights, menacing pedestrians crossing the road when it ought to be safe. They cycle the wrong way along one-way streets, notably outside our local primary school where they play dodge ’em with the parents and children every morning. They race over pedestrian crossings and along the pavements whenever it suits them, the more aggressive of them screaming abuse at anyone who gets in their way. Yet heaven help anyone, car driver or pedestrian, who strays even momentarily into a cycle lane.
這要緊嗎?當(dāng)然要緊。顯然，騎車(chē)族公然藐視法律，對(duì)公眾安全是一種威脅。另外，這也影響了倫敦的生活質(zhì)量。騎車(chē)族不僅把步行變成一種極不愉快、有時(shí)甚至嚇人的經(jīng)歷，還給人一種無(wú)法無(wú)天、混亂無(wú)序的感覺(jué)。
Does it matter? Yes, very much. Obviously, cyclists’ flagrant disrespect for the law is a threat to public safety. It also affects the quality of life in London, not just by making walking unpleasant and sometimes even frightening, but by contributing to a sense of lawlessness and disorder.
更重要的是，如果某個(gè)特定的馬路使用群體認(rèn)為自己可以凌駕于法律之上，那可是件非常糟糕的事兒。而更糟糕的是，政府和警察默許這種行為。為什么騎車(chē)族可以隨意做出違反交通法規(guī)的危險(xiǎn)舉動(dòng)?而大批警察、交通管理員和私人承包商卻要借助監(jiān)視攝像頭和其它技術(shù)，隨時(shí)準(zhǔn)備撲向開(kāi)汽車(chē)的人?并因?yàn)樽钗⒉蛔愕赖倪`規(guī)行為，罰他們的錢(qián)，沒(méi)收他們的車(chē)、甚至加以更重的懲罰?
More important, it is bad enough that a particular group of road users should regard themselves as above the law; it is much worse that the government and police should connive in it. Why should cyclists be allowed to commit dangerous traffic offences at will while vast numbers of police, traffic wardens and private sector contractors, assisted by spy cameras and other technology, are ready to pounce on car drivers for even the most trivial violations and punish them with heavy fines, the confiscation of their vehicles or worse?
倫敦早該整治一下騎車(chē)族的行為了。我無(wú)意阻止人們騎車(chē)，可我確實(shí)希望騎車(chē)族能夠認(rèn)識(shí)到，頭盔上環(huán)繞的綠色光環(huán)，并不能讓他們成為不用遵守交通法規(guī)的特殊群體，就像不能因?yàn)轵T自行車(chē)去超市就有權(quán)偷東西而不受罰一樣。
It is time London cracked down on cyclists’ behaviour. I do not want to stop people cycling but I do want them to realise that the green halo hovering over their helmets does not put them in a special category of road users to whom no laws apply, any more than cycling to the supermarket gives them the right to shoplift with impunity.
我知道，這么做有困難。目前，很難懲罰違規(guī)的騎車(chē)人。警察攔下一個(gè)騎車(chē)闖紅燈的人，騎車(chē)人留下個(gè)假名、假地址就走了，依舊在單行路上逆行，誰(shuí)也沒(méi)辦法。
I realise the difficulty. At present, it is difficult to punish cyclists for breaking the law. The police stop a cyclist for jumping a red light, she gives them a false name and address and off she goes, the wrong way up a one way street. There is nothing much anyone can do.
其實(shí)，還是有辦法的�，F(xiàn)在，應(yīng)該對(duì)自行車(chē)頒發(fā)牌照。所有16歲以上使用公共道路的騎車(chē)人，都應(yīng)該持有牌照。他們并不用通過(guò)考試獲得牌照，但這個(gè)制度必須自負(fù)盈虧，讓申請(qǐng)者出錢(qián)。如果不出錢(qián)的話，騎車(chē)族就是在馬路基建上揩油的人。目前，馬路使用費(fèi)主要是由汽車(chē)使用者交納的。如果你想到這點(diǎn)，就知道我這個(gè)要求并不過(guò)分。
Except, there is. It is time to introduce cyclist licensing. All cyclists over the age of 16 using public roads should be required to hold a licence. They would not need to pass a test to obtain one but the system would have to be self-financing, requiring applicants to pay a fee. This is not asking much when you consider that cyclists are otherwise freeloaders on road infrastructure that is overwhelmingly paid for by motorists.
發(fā)放牌照可以改變執(zhí)法，騎自行車(chē)的人要隨身攜帶牌照，以此提供身份證明。如果違規(guī)人不能出示牌照，那么就在當(dāng)事人出示牌照之前，把其自行車(chē)沒(méi)收。與開(kāi)汽車(chē)的人一樣，如果騎車(chē)族危及行人或其它道路使用者安全，就要在其牌照上做個(gè)記錄，違規(guī)三次就要加以取締。
Licensing would transform enforcement. Cyclists would be required to carry their licences with them at all times, providing proof of their identity. Those stopped for an offence who failed to produce one would have their cycles confiscated until they did so. As with motorists, cyclists endangering pedestrians or other road users would have their licences endorsed, with three offences leading to a ban.
如今，騎車(chē)族上人行道要罰款30英鎊。這種微不足道的罰款也應(yīng)大幅提高。只有這樣，執(zhí)法才能在財(cái)政上自給自足。與開(kāi)汽車(chē)的人一樣，倫敦各個(gè)區(qū)政府可以雇用一些交通管理員，對(duì)騎自行車(chē)違規(guī)者加以追究和罰款，也可以把這項(xiàng)工作外包給私人承包商。
Today’s piffling fines – ￡30 for riding on the pavement – should also be drastically raised. Then, enforcement could become self-financing. As with motorists, local authorities could employ teams of wardens to hunt down and penalise errant cyclists, or else turn the job over to private contractors.
我知道，不是所有的騎車(chē)人都不好。就在幾個(gè)月前，我還看見(jiàn)一位騎車(chē)人在紅燈處停了下來(lái)。不過(guò)，如果我們對(duì)騎車(chē)族的厭惡少一些，那些好的騎車(chē)人也可以從上述措施中受益。這就是我要改變的事情。我主張，現(xiàn)在就對(duì)自行車(chē)實(shí)施牌照制度，以塑造一個(gè)更安全，更公平，總而言之，更文明的社會(huì)。
I realise not all cyclists are bad; just a few months ago, I saw one stop at a red light. But the good ones will benefit from these measures if the rest of us hate cyclists less. So that is what I would change. I would introduce cyclist licensing now, for a safer, fairer and altogether more civil society.
商務(wù)英語(yǔ)閱讀文章 篇3
My Father - 父愛(ài)無(wú)邊
My father was a self-taught mandolin player. He was one of the best string instrument players in our town. He could not read music, but if he heard a tune a few times, he could play it. When he was younger, he was a member of a small country music band. They would play at local dances and on a few occasions would play for the local radio station. He often told us how he had auditioned and earned a position in a band that featured Patsy Cline as their lead singer. He told the family that after he was hired he never went back. Dad was a very religious man. He stated that there was a lot of drinking and cursing the day of his audition and he did not want to be around that type of environment.
Occasionally, Dad would get out his mandolin and play for the family. We three children: Trisha, Monte and I, George Jr., would often sing along. Songs such as the Tennessee Waltz, Harbor Lights and around Christmas time, the well-known rendition of Silver Bells. "Silver Bells, Silver Bells, its Christmas time in the city" would ring throughout the house. One of Dad's favorite hymns was "The Old Rugged Cross". We learned the words to the hymn when we were very young, and would sing it with Dad when he would play and sing. Another song that was often shared in our house was a song that accompanied the Walt Disney series: Davey Crockett. Dad only had to hear the song twice before he learned it well enough to play it. "Davey, Davey Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier" was a favorite song for the family. He knew we enjoyed the song and the program and would often get out the mandolin after the program was over. I could never get over how he could play the songs so well after only hearing them a few times. I loved to sing, but I never learned how to play the mandolin. This is something I regret to this day.
Dad loved to play the mandolin for his family he knew we enjoyed singing, and hearing him play. He was like that. If he could give pleasure to others, he would, especially his family. He was always there, sacrificing his time and efforts to see that his family had enough in their life. I had to mature into a man and have children of my own before I realized how much he had sacrificed.
I joined the United States Air Force in January of 1962. Whenever I would come home on leave, I would ask Dad to play the mandolin. Nobody played the mandolin like my father. He could touch your soul with the tones that came out of that old mandolin. He seemed to shine when he was playing. You could see his pride in his ability to play so well for his family.
When Dad was younger, he worked for his father on the farm. His father was a farmer and sharecropped a farm for the man who owned the property. In 1950, our family movedfromthe farm. Dad had gained employment at the local limestone quarry. When the quarry closed in August of 1957, he had to seek other employment. He worked for Owens Yacht Company in Dundalk, Maryland and for Todd Steel in Point of Rocks, Maryland. While working at Todd Steel, he was involved in an accident. His job was to roll angle iron onto a conveyor so that the welders farther up the production line would have it to complete their job. On this particular day Dad got the third index finger of his left hand mashed between two pieces of steel. The doctor who operated on the finger could not save it, and Dadended up having the tip of the finger amputated. He didn't lose enough of the finger where it would stop him picking up anything, but it did impact his ability to play the mandolin.
After the accident, Dad was reluctant to play the mandolin. He felt that he could not play as well as he had before the accident. When I came home on leave and asked him to play he would make excuses for why he couldn't play. Eventually, we would wear him down and he would say "Okay, but remember, I can't hold down on the strings the way I used to" or "Since the accident to this finger I can't play as good". For the family it didn't make any difference that Dad couldn't play as well. We were just glad that he would play. When he played the old mandolin it would carry us back to a cheerful, happier time in our lives. "Davey, Davey Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier", would again be heard in the little town of Bakerton, West Virginia.
In August of 1993 my father was diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer. He chose not to receive chemotherapy treatments so that he could live out the rest of his life in dignity. About a week before his death, we asked Dad if he would play the mandolin for us. He made excuses but said "okay". He knew it would probably be the last time he would play for us. He tuned up the old mandolin and played a few notes. When I looked around, there was not a dry eye in the family. We saw before us a quiet humble man with an inner strength that comesfromknowing God, and living with him in one's life. Dad would never play the mandolin for us again. We felt at the time that he wouldn't have enough strength to play, and that makes the memory of that day even stronger. Dad was doing something he had done all his life, giving. As sick as he was, he was still pleasing others. Dad sure could play that Mandolin!
我父親是個(gè)自學(xué)成才的曼陀林琴手，他是我們鎮(zhèn)最優(yōu)秀的弦樂(lè)演奏者之一。他看不懂樂(lè)譜，但是如果聽(tīng)?zhēng)状吻�，他就能演奏出�?lái)。當(dāng)他年輕一點(diǎn)的時(shí)候，他是一個(gè)小鄉(xiāng)村樂(lè)隊(duì)的成員。他們?cè)诋?dāng)?shù)匚鑿d演奏，有幾次還為當(dāng)?shù)貜V播電臺(tái)演奏。他經(jīng)常告訴我們，自己如何試演，如何在佩茜?克萊恩作為主唱的樂(lè)隊(duì)里占一席之位。他告訴親人，一旦被聘用就永不回頭。父親是一個(gè)很?chē)?yán)謹(jǐn)?shù)娜�，他講述了他試演的那天，很多人在喝酒，咒罵，他不想呆在那種環(huán)境里。
有時(shí)候，父親會(huì)拿出曼陀林，為親人彈奏。我們?nèi)齻�(gè)小孩：翠莎、蒙蒂和我，還有喬治通常會(huì)伴唱。唱的有：《田納西華爾茲》和《海港之光》，到了圣誕節(jié)，就唱膾炙人口的《銀鈴》："銀鈴，銀鈴，城里來(lái)了圣誕節(jié)。"歌聲充滿了整個(gè)房子。父親最愛(ài)的其中一首贊歌是《古老的十字架》。我們很小的時(shí)候就學(xué)會(huì)歌詞了，而且在父親彈唱的時(shí)候，我們也跟著唱。我們經(jīng)常一起唱的另外一首歌來(lái)自沃特?迪斯尼的系列片：《戴維?克羅克特》。父親只要聽(tīng)了兩遍就彈起來(lái)了，"戴維，戴維?克羅克特，荒野邊疆的國(guó)王。"那是我們家最喜歡的歌曲。他知道我們喜歡那首歌和那個(gè)節(jié)目，所以每次節(jié)目結(jié)束后，他就拿出曼陀林彈奏。我永遠(yuǎn)不能明白他如何能聽(tīng)完幾遍后就能把一首曲子彈得那么好。我熱愛(ài)唱歌，但我沒(méi)有學(xué)會(huì)如何彈奏曼陀林，這是我遺憾至今的事情。
父親喜歡為親人彈奏曼陀林，他知道我們喜歡唱歌，喜歡聽(tīng)他彈奏。他就是那樣，如果他能把快樂(lè)奉獻(xiàn)給別人，他從不吝嗇，尤其是對(duì)他的親人。他總是那樣，犧牲自己的時(shí)間和精力讓親人生活得滿足。父親的這種付出是只有當(dāng)我長(zhǎng)大成人，而且是有了自己的孩子后才能體會(huì)到的。
我在1962年1月加入了美國(guó)空軍基地。每當(dāng)我休假回家，我都請(qǐng)求父親彈奏曼陀林。沒(méi)有人彈奏曼陀林能達(dá)到像我父親那樣的境界，他在那古老的曼陀林上撫出的旋律能夠觸及你的靈魂。他彈奏的時(shí)候，身上似乎能發(fā)出四射的光芒。你可以看出，父親為能給親人彈奏出如此美妙的'旋律，他是多么的自豪。
父親年輕的時(shí)候，曾在農(nóng)場(chǎng)為爺爺工作。爺爺是農(nóng)場(chǎng)使用者，要向農(nóng)場(chǎng)所有人交納谷物抵租。1950年，我們?nèi)野犭x農(nóng)場(chǎng)，父親在當(dāng)?shù)厥沂墒瘓?chǎng)謀得職位。采石場(chǎng)在1957年倒閉，他只好另覓工作。他曾在馬里蘭州登多克的歐文斯游艇公司上班，還在馬里蘭州的洛斯的托德鋼鐵公司上過(guò)班。在托德鋼鐵公司上班期間，他遇到了意外。他的工作是把有棱角的鐵滾到搬運(yùn)臺(tái)上，這樣焊接工才能作進(jìn)一步加工來(lái)完成整個(gè)工序。在那個(gè)特殊的日子里，父親的
左手第三個(gè)手指被纏在兩片鋼鐵中。醫(yī)生對(duì)手指施手術(shù)，但未能保住那只手指，最后父親只好讓醫(yī)生把那手指的指尖給切除了。那個(gè)手指并沒(méi)有完全喪失拿東西的能力，但是卻影響了他彈奏曼陀林的能力。
事故后，父親不太愿意彈奏曼陀林了，他覺(jué)得再也不能像以前彈得那么好了。我休假回家請(qǐng)求他彈奏曼陀林，他以種種借口解釋不能彈奏的原因。最后，我們軟硬兼施逼他就范，他終于說(shuō)："好吧，但是記住，我撥弦再也不能像過(guò)去一樣了。"或者會(huì)說(shuō)："這個(gè)手指出意外后，我再也不能彈得像過(guò)去那樣好了。"對(duì)于親人來(lái)說(shuō)，父親彈得好不好并沒(méi)有分別，我們很高興他終于彈奏了。當(dāng)他彈起那把陳舊的曼陀林，就會(huì)把我們帶回昔日那些無(wú)憂無(wú)慮的幸福時(shí)光。"戴維，戴維?克羅克特，荒野邊疆的國(guó)王"就會(huì)再次響徹西弗吉尼亞州的貝克頓小鎮(zhèn)。
1993年8月，父親診斷得了不宜動(dòng)手術(shù)的肺癌。他不想接受化療，因?yàn)樗塍w面地過(guò)完他生命最后的時(shí)光。大約在父親去世的一周前，我們請(qǐng)求他能否為我們彈奏曼陀林，他說(shuō)了很多借口，最后還是答應(yīng)了。他知道這可能是他最后一次為我們彈奏了，他為老曼陀林調(diào)弦，彈了幾個(gè)音。我環(huán)顧四周，親人個(gè)個(gè)都淚水滿眶。我們看見(jiàn)在我們面前是一個(gè)安靜的、謙虛的人，以生命最后的力量，用愛(ài)的力量支撐著。父親再也沒(méi)有足夠的力量彈奏，這使我們對(duì)那天的記憶更加強(qiáng)烈。父親做著他一生都在做的事情：奉獻(xiàn)。即使生命已走到了盡頭，他卻仍盡力為他人創(chuàng)造歡樂(lè)。沒(méi)錯(cuò)，父親一定還能彈奏曼陀林的。
商務(wù)英語(yǔ)閱讀文章 篇4
《保護(hù)公司機(jī)密》
Every company has secrets. Some confidential company information can be so important that if your competitors got hold of it, your company could suffer very serious financial losses.
每家公司都有秘密。公司里有些機(jī)密信息是很重要的，如果你的競(jìng)爭(zhēng)對(duì)手得到這些信息，你的公司就可能會(huì)遭受到很?chē)?yán)重的經(jīng)濟(jì)損失。
Some types of secrets include financial information, details about your company's products, secret information about how your company makes products (like Coke and KFC) and future business plans.
一些類型的秘密包括財(cái)務(wù)信息，公司產(chǎn)品的細(xì)節(jié)，有關(guān)公司如何生產(chǎn)產(chǎn)品的機(jī)密信息（如可口可樂(lè)與肯德雞）以及未來(lái)的商務(wù)計(jì)劃。
Some companies don't pay close attention to protecting their secrets. Often they don't think that anyone would want to steal their secrets or they fail to realize the value of their own information.
有些公司不注意保護(hù)他們的機(jī)密。通常他們認(rèn)為不會(huì)有人想偷竊他們的秘密，或者他們意識(shí)不到他們自己信息的價(jià)值。
Every year, many companies lose millions (and sometimes billions) of dollars due to corporate spies. Corporate spies are highly trained to specific target and obtain information from one company for sale to another company.
每一年，很多公司由于公司間諜而損失數(shù)百萬(wàn)（有時(shí)數(shù)十億）美元。公司間諜受過(guò)高水平的訓(xùn)練，專門(mén)瞄準(zhǔn)并獲取一家公司的信息，然后把它賣(mài)給另一家公司。
Protecting your company information can be very simple. Make sure that all your employees understand why there is a need to protect data, use secure and reliable email and Internet software, lock draws and cabinets and shred any important documents before throwing them away.
保護(hù)公司信息其實(shí)很簡(jiǎn)單。確保你的所有雇員明白為什么需要保護(hù)資料、使用值得信賴的電子郵件以及網(wǎng)絡(luò)軟件、鎖上抽屜和柜子、丟棄任何重要文件之前要先切碎。
Safely protecting company secrets is the responsibility of every employee. You expect your company to be able to pay you on time - something that they might not be able to do if they keep losing all of their valuable data to their competitors.
安全地保護(hù)公司的秘密是每一個(gè)員工的職責(zé)。你期望公司能夠按時(shí)支付你薪水－如果他們老是丟失所有有價(jià)值的資料而讓競(jìng)爭(zhēng)對(duì)手得到的話，他們就可能無(wú)法這么做。