In the last 12 years total employment in the United States grew faster than at any time in the peacetime history of any country from 82 to 110 million between 1973 and 1985 that is, by a full one third. The entire growth, however, was in manufacturing, and especially in no blue-collar jobs.
This trend is the same in all developed countries, and is, indeed, even more pronounced in Japan. It is therefore highly probable that in 25 years developed countries such as the United States and Japan will employ no larger a proportion of the labor force I n manufacturing than developed countries now employ in farming at most, 10 percent. Today the United States employs around 18 million people in blue-collar jobs in manufacturing industries. By 2010, the number is likely to be no more than 12 million. In some major industries the drop will be even sharper. It is quite unrealistic, for instance, to expect that the American automobile industry will employ more than one third of its present blue-collar force 25 years hence, even though production might be 50 percent higher.
If a company, an industry or a country does not in the next quarter century sharply increase manufacturing production and at the same time sharply reduce the blue-collar work force, it cannot hope to remain competitive or even to remain developed. The attempt to preserve such blue collar jobs is actually a prescription for unemployment
This is not a conclusion that American politicians, labor leaders or indeed the general public can easily understand or accept. What confuses the issue even more it that the United States is experiencing several separate and different shifts in the manufacturing economy. One is the acceleration of the substitution of knowledge and capital for manual labor. Where we spoke of mechanization a few decades ago, we now speak of robotization or automation. This is actually more a change in terminology than a change in reality. When Henry Ford introduced the assembly line in 1909, he cut the number of man hours required to produce a motor car by some 80 percent in two or three years far more than anyone expects to result from even the most complete robotization. But there is no doubt that we are facing a new, sharp acceleration in the replacement of manual workers by machines that is, by the products of knowledge.
1. According to the author, the shrinkage in the manufacturing labor force demonstrates _____.
A. the degree to which a countrys production is robotized
B. a reduction in a countrys manufacturing industries
C. a worsening relationship between labor and management
D. the difference between a developed country and a developing country
2. According to the author, in coming 25years, a developed country or industry, in order t remain competitive, ought to _____.
A. reduce the percentage of the blue-collar work force
B. preserve blue collar jobs for international competition
C. accelerate motor can manufacturing in Henry Fords style
D. solve the problem of unemployment
3. American politicians and labor leaders tend to dislike ____.
A. confusion in manufacturing economy
B. an increase in blue collar work force
C. internal competition in manufacturing production
D. a drop in the blue collar job opportunities
4. The word prescription in a prescription for unemployment may be the equivalent to ____.
A. something recommended as medical treatment
B. a way suggested to overcome some difficulty
C. some measures taken in advance
D. a device to dire
5. This passage may have been excepted from _____.
A. a magazine about capital investment
B. an article on automation
C. a motor-car magazine
D. an article on global economy
参考答案:
AADCD
GRE阅读题排除法分享
新GRE词汇会有什么要求
GRE之中国特色词汇盘点
GRE词汇怎么复习
GRE易混淆词汇盘点
GRE学术性词汇理解方法
GRE写作词汇背诵
GRE词汇精选之"it"
GRE词汇之进化论
GRE阅读之如何选定关键句
GRE高频词汇分析理解
GRE词汇背诵不可走入的误区
GRE词汇单词之传奇
GRE词汇词根之duc
gre反义词汇量
GRE阅读归纳经验分享
GRE词汇词根之flu
GRE词汇背诵工具选择
GRE词缀总结:F
GRE词汇背诵的时间规划
GRE词汇资料:diffidence
GRE单词一个月背诵计划
背诵GRE词汇方法
GRE之单词逆袭
GRE阅读之题型归纳
GRE词汇整理:juven
粗略法快速记忆GRE词汇
GRE词汇词根:graph
联想记忆GRE词汇的窍门
背诵GRE词汇步骤
不限 |
英语教案 |
英语课件 |
英语试题 |
不限 |
不限 |
上册 |
下册 |
不限 |