英语100篇精读荟萃（中级篇）8a
时间：2007-09-17 06:03:39
（单词翻译:单击）
Passage Eight (The Improving Economic Situation In Greece)
Greece, economically, is in the black. With very little to export other than such farm products as tobacco, cotton and fruit, the country earns enough from ‘invisible earnings’ to pay for its needed, growing imports. From the sending out of things the Greeks, earn only $285 million; from tourism, shipping1 and the remittances2 of Greeks abroad, the country takes in an additional #375 million and this washes out the almost $400 million by which imports exceed exports.
It has a balanced budget. Although more than one drachma out of four goes for defense3, the government ended a recent year with a slight surplus -- $66 million. Greece has a decent reserve of almost a third of a billion dollars in gold and foreign exchange. It has a government not dependent on coalescing4 incompatible5 parties to obtain parliamentary majorities.
In thus summarizing a few happy highlights, I don’t mean to minimize the vast extent of Greece’s problems. It is the poorest country by a wide margin6 in Free Europe, and poverty is widespread. At best an annual income of $60 to $70 is the lot of many a peasant, and substantial unemployment plagues the countryside, cities, and towns of Greece. There are few natural resources on which to build any substantial industrial base. Some years ago I wrote here:
“Greek statesmanship will have to create an atmosphere in which home and foreign savings7 will willingly seek investment opportunities in the back ward8 economy of Greece. So far, most American and other foreign attempt have bogged9 down in the Greek government’s red tape and shrewdness about small points.”
Great strides have been made. As far back as 1956, expanding tourism seemed a logical way to bring needed foreign currencies and additional jobs to Greece. At that time I talked with the Hilton Hotel people, who had been examining hotel possibilities, and to the Greek government division responsible for this area of the economy. They were hopelessly deadlocked10 in almost total differences of opinion and outlook.
Today most of the incredibly varied11, beautiful, historical sights of Greece have new, if in many cases modest, tourist facilities. Tourism itself has jumped from approximately $31 million to over $90 million. There is both a magnificent new Hilton Hotel in Athens and a completely modernized12, greatly expanded Grande Bretagne, as well as other first-rate new hotels. And the advent13 of jets has made Athens as accessible as Paris or Rome - without the sky-high prices of traffic-choked streets of either.
1. The title below that best expresses the ideas of this passage is
[A] Greek income and expenditures14.
[B] The improving economic situation in Greece.
[C] The value of tourism.
[D] Military expenditures.
2. Many peasants earn less than
[A] $60 a week.
[B] $2 a week.
[C] $1 a day.
[D] $10 a month.
3. The Greek Government spends
[A] more than 25%of its budget on military terms.
[B] More than its collects.
[C] A third of a billion dollars in gold.
[D] Less than 25% of its budget on military terms.
4. According to the passage, Greece has
[A] a dictatorship.
[B] a monarchy15.
[C] a single majority party.
[D] too much red tape.
5. Greece imports annually16 goods and materials
[A] totaling almost $700 million.
[B] that balance exports.
[C] that are paid by tourists.
[D] costing $66 million.
Greece, economically, is in the black. With very little to export other than such farm products as tobacco, cotton and fruit, the country earns enough from ‘invisible earnings’ to pay for its needed, growing imports. From the sending out of things the Greeks, earn only $285 million; from tourism, shipping1 and the remittances2 of Greeks abroad, the country takes in an additional #375 million and this washes out the almost $400 million by which imports exceed exports.
It has a balanced budget. Although more than one drachma out of four goes for defense3, the government ended a recent year with a slight surplus -- $66 million. Greece has a decent reserve of almost a third of a billion dollars in gold and foreign exchange. It has a government not dependent on coalescing4 incompatible5 parties to obtain parliamentary majorities.
In thus summarizing a few happy highlights, I don’t mean to minimize the vast extent of Greece’s problems. It is the poorest country by a wide margin6 in Free Europe, and poverty is widespread. At best an annual income of $60 to $70 is the lot of many a peasant, and substantial unemployment plagues the countryside, cities, and towns of Greece. There are few natural resources on which to build any substantial industrial base. Some years ago I wrote here:
“Greek statesmanship will have to create an atmosphere in which home and foreign savings7 will willingly seek investment opportunities in the back ward8 economy of Greece. So far, most American and other foreign attempt have bogged9 down in the Greek government’s red tape and shrewdness about small points.”
Great strides have been made. As far back as 1956, expanding tourism seemed a logical way to bring needed foreign currencies and additional jobs to Greece. At that time I talked with the Hilton Hotel people, who had been examining hotel possibilities, and to the Greek government division responsible for this area of the economy. They were hopelessly deadlocked10 in almost total differences of opinion and outlook.
Today most of the incredibly varied11, beautiful, historical sights of Greece have new, if in many cases modest, tourist facilities. Tourism itself has jumped from approximately $31 million to over $90 million. There is both a magnificent new Hilton Hotel in Athens and a completely modernized12, greatly expanded Grande Bretagne, as well as other first-rate new hotels. And the advent13 of jets has made Athens as accessible as Paris or Rome - without the sky-high prices of traffic-choked streets of either.
1. The title below that best expresses the ideas of this passage is
[A] Greek income and expenditures14.
[B] The improving economic situation in Greece.
[C] The value of tourism.
[D] Military expenditures.
2. Many peasants earn less than
[A] $60 a week.
[B] $2 a week.
[C] $1 a day.
[D] $10 a month.
3. The Greek Government spends
[A] more than 25%of its budget on military terms.
[B] More than its collects.
[C] A third of a billion dollars in gold.
[D] Less than 25% of its budget on military terms.
4. According to the passage, Greece has
[A] a dictatorship.
[B] a monarchy15.
[C] a single majority party.
[D] too much red tape.
5. Greece imports annually16 goods and materials
[A] totaling almost $700 million.
[B] that balance exports.
[C] that are paid by tourists.
[D] costing $66 million.
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1
shipping
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| n.船运（发货，运输，乘船） | |
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2
remittances
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| n.汇寄( remittance的名词复数 )；汇款，汇款额 | |
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3
defense
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| n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩 | |
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4
coalescing
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| v.联合，合并( coalesce的现在分词 ) | |
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5
incompatible
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| adj.不相容的，不协调的，不相配的 | |
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6
margin
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| n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘 | |
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7
savings
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| n.存款，储蓄 | |
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8
ward
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| n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开 | |
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9
bogged
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| adj.陷于泥沼的v.（使）陷入泥沼， （使）陷入困境( bog的过去式和过去分词 )；妨碍，阻碍 | |
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10
deadlocked
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| 陷入僵局的；僵持不下的 | |
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11
varied
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| adj.多样的，多变化的 | |
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12
modernized
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| 使现代化，使适应现代需要( modernize的过去式和过去分词 )； 现代化，使用现代方法 | |
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13
advent
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| n.(重要事件等的)到来，来临 | |
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14
expenditures
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| n.花费( expenditure的名词复数 )；使用；（尤指金钱的）支出额；（精力、时间、材料等的）耗费 | |
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15
monarchy
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| n.君主，最高统治者；君主政体，君主国 | |
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16
annually
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| adv.一年一次，每年 | |
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