unit 1-3 原文+翻译 汇总

Unit1

Wanted：Blue-Collar Workers

招聘蓝领工人

1To many, America’s industrial heartland is a place that has too little work to offer its residents. But things look very different to Karen Wright, the CEO of Ariel Corporation in Ohio. Wright’s biggest problem isn’t a lack of work; it’s a lack of skilled workers. “We have a very skilled workforce, but they are getting older,” says Wright. “I don’t know where we are going to find replacements.”

对于很多人来说，美国的工业中心地带并不能给那里的居民提供许多就业岗位。但是，在卡伦-赖特看来，事情并非如此。作为俄亥俄州阿里尔公司的首席执行官，赖特面临的最大问题并不是缺乏就业岗位，而是缺乏熟练技术工人。“我们有一支非常熟练的劳动力队伍，但他们的年纪越来越大。”怀特说。“我不知道我们要去哪里寻找新鲜血液来替代他们。”

2. That may sound surprising, given that the state has suffered from lack of jobs for a generation. Yet across the heartland, one can almost find the same problem: a shortage of skilled workers. That shortage is surely a problem for manufacturers like Wright.

这听起来可能令人吃惊，因为这个国家整整一代人已经遭受了失业的痛苦。然而，纵观整个中心地带，我们几乎可以发现同样的问题：熟练工人短缺。这种短缺正是像赖特这样的制造商们所面临的一个共同问题。

3The skilled-labor shortage shows a remarkable recovery in American manufacturing. Since 2009, the number of job opportunities in manufacturing has been rising, with average annual earnings of $73,000, well above the average earnings in education, medical care, and many other fields.

熟练劳动力短缺表明美国制造业在明显复苏。2009年以来，制造业产生的就业岗位就一直在上升，年均收入73000美元，远远超过了教育、医疗和其他许多领域的平均收入水平。

4. The industrial recovery comes with a price: a quickly rising demand for skilled workers. The shortage of industrial skills points to a wide gap between the American education system and the demands of the world economy. For many years, Americans have been told that the future lies in high-end services, such as law, and “creative” professions, such as software-writing and systems design. This has led many bright students to think that the only real way to improve opportunities for the country’s middle class is to increase its chances to get higher education.

伴随工业的复苏是对熟练工人的需求的不断上升。工业技能的缺乏是由美国的教育体系和世界经济需求之间的巨大差距所导致的。多年来，美国的民众一直被灌输一种想法，即美国的未来是建立在诸如法律这样的高端服务或编写软件和系统设计这样的“创造性”

行业之上的。这就使得许多聪颖的学生以为，只有增加接受高等教育的机会，才是跻身中产阶级的唯一出路。

5Some manufacturers think the shortage of skilled workers results from the decline of vocational education. Today’s young people often do not regard craft work — plumbing, masonry, and carpentry, for instance — as popular, bec ause they’ve been instructed to enter into college.“People go to college not because they want to but because their parents tell them that’s the thing to do,” says Jeff Kirk, manager of human relations at a company in Ohio. “Kids need to better know that much of what they learn in school is not really needed in the workplace. They don’t realize a pipefitter makes three times as much as a social worker.”

一些制造商认为技术工人的短缺源于职业教育的衰落。今天的年轻人并没有把手工艺行业看做热门行业，比如管道工、泥瓦工、木工等，因为他们从小就被教导要上大学。“人们去上大学，并不是因为他们自己想去上，而是因为父母告诉他们应该去上”俄亥俄州某公司的人事经理杰夫-柯克这样说道。“孩子们需要更清楚地了解，他们在学校学到的很多知识在工作场所里并不会真正用得上，而且他们不了解水管工的收入是社会工作者的三倍。”

6Fortunately, more and more schools are coming to understand that message and passing it along to their students. One of these schools, Central Ohio Technical College, has recently expanded by 70 welding students and 50 machinists per year. Many of the college’s certificate programs are planned and partly supported by companies, which think that they’re making a wise investment. “You have a lot of people sit ting in the city doing nothing. They did not succeed in college. But this way, they can find a way up,” says Kelly Wallace, head of the college’s Career and Technology Education Center.

幸运的是，越来越多的学校正在接受这一消息，并将其传递给学生。其他俄亥俄州中部技术学院每年都要扩招70名焊接专业和50名机修专业的学生。许多学院的认证项目由公司规划并得到其部分扶持，因为他们认为这是一项明智的投资。学院职业与技术教育中心得负责人凯利-华莱士说：“这个城市里许多人都无所事事。他们没能进大学，但是有了这一途径，他们可以找到一条出路。”

Unit 2

A Special Taxi

一辆特别的出租车

1 My friend, Jack, was a taxi driver. We became friends quite by accident. Five years ago, I made a trip to Chicag o. After I got out of O’Hare International Airport, I took a taxi to the Sears Tower.

我的朋友杰克是位出租车司机。我们成为朋友非常偶然。五年前，我去了一趟芝加哥。走出奥哈尔国际机场我打了一辆出租车去希尔斯大厦。

2The moment I stepped into the cab, I realized it was different. The floor was covered with a rug. There were small reproductions of painting s by van Gogh and Gauguin inside the cab. And the windows were spotles s. I told the driver I had never ridden in a more attractive taxi.

坐上出租车的那一刻，我就感到这辆车与众不同。脚下铺着小地毯，车里挂着梵高和高更的小仿制画，玻璃窗一尘不染。我对司机说这是我坐过最漂亮的出租车。

3“I like to hear my passengers say that,” he replied. “How long have you been decorating your cab?” I asked.

“我喜欢听乘客们这么说，”他回答道。“你的出租车这样装饰有多长时间了？”我问道。

4 “It’s not mine,” he said. “It’s a company cab. I got the idea years ago when I had a job as a clean-up man for the taxi company. Each car that came in at the end of the day was like a garbage pit. Cigarette butts and matches covered the floor. Sticky stuff like peanut butter was on the seats or door handles. I thought that if the company and the drivers would give people a car worth keeping clean, they might be more considerate.”

“这不是我的出租车，”他说道，“这是公司的车。我几年前在出租车公司做清洁工的时候有了这个想法。每天收工时，开回来的每辆出租车就像一个垃圾坑。满地都是烟蒂和火柴。像花生酱之类粘糊的东西粘在座位或门把手上。我想如果公司和司机们能给人们一辆值得保持干净的汽车，人们也许会更爱车内环境。”

5 “As soon as I got my taxi license, I tried out my ideas. I put a lot of extra decorations into the cab they gave me to drive. I got a nice light rug and some flowers. When each passenger got out, I checked to make sure that everything was in order for the next about a month of my bringing in a spotless cab, the boss reserved the same car for me each day. That was when I put up the reproductions of great paintings.

“一拿到出租车驾驶执照，我就这么做了。我在他们让我驾驶的出租车内加了一些装饰。我放了条好看的薄毯和一些花。每位乘客下车后，我会检查一下，以确保下一次载客时每件东西都整齐。大约一个月，我的车都保保持得一尘不染，此后，老板每天预留同一辆车给我开。从哪个时候开始我就挂上了这些名画的仿制品。”

6“How many years have you been a taxi driver?” I asked.

“你开出租车有多少年了？”我问道。

7 “I started driving ten years ago, and I’ve never been disappointed by people in all that time. I’ve never had to pick up a single cigarette butt. No peanut butter or ends of icecream cones. No garbage. Like I say, people appreciate beautiful things. If we planted more flowers and trees in the city and make the buildings more attractive, more people would be inclined to keep the city clean.”

“我十年前开始开出租车，人们从来没有令我失望过。我从来连个烟头都没捡过，没有花生酱和冰淇淋残渣，也没有垃圾。正如我说的，人们喜欢美丽的事物。如果我们在城市里种植更多的花草树木，并且使建筑物更漂亮，那么会有越来越多的人愿望保持城市整洁。”

8 Later, we became good friends. I was impressed by the taxi-driver, who had hit on a great truth, I thought. A sense of beauty comes with the gift of life. Most people don’t have to be instructed about the rarity of beauty. They respond when they find it. And, if they are made to feel a part of it, they will try to add to it.

后来我们成为好朋友，这位出租车司机给我留下了深刻的印象，我认为他发现了一个伟大的真理。美感与生俱来，大部分人生本就懂得美的珍贵，不会对美无动于衷。并且，只要让他们感受到一点点美，他们就会努力去锦上添花。

Unit 3

My First Day at McDonald’s

在麦当劳的第一天

1I arrived early on my first day. My uniform hat and apron were handed to me and a helpful McDonald’s assistant explained out the operation of the cash register.

第一天，我早早地便来上班了。有人给我拿来了工作帽和围裙，接着一位热心的麦当劳员工向我解释了如何操作收银机。

2To those unused to all the different colors and names, the cash register looked a little bit like the control panel of an aircraft. Each button was for a different type of food — Big Mac, fruit pie, Filet-O-Fish, and so on. Then there were the “combo” (combination) meals and other , if someone asked for the combo but wanted a special, you pressed this other button …

收银机上有各种颜色和名称的按钮，对于不熟悉它的人来说有点像飞机的控制面板。每个按钮都代表了一种不同的食物，如巨无霸、水果派、麦香鱼。等等。除了这些，还有各式套餐和其他特价品种。如果有人点了一份套餐但同时还需要一份特价食品，那么你就需要按另一个按钮。

3The confusion never went away for a were told to ask whether someone who had ordered a meal would like some dessert or something else to drink. You were not to be a pushy salesman, but you suggested the idea. It was forbidden to push a sale to children and old ladies.

对于新手，总有一些事搞不清楚。按要求，你需在顾客点餐之后询问对方是否需要甜点或饮料。当然，你不能做一个过于主动的推销员，而是要间接地表达你的意思。向孩子和上了年纪的女士强行推销食品是不允许的。

4I was told it was very important to place the carton of fries wi th the McDonald’s name facing the customer so that they could receive the advertising message loud and clear. And it was important to put the drinks on the right hand side of the tray for the customer. Most people are right-handed and so are stronger with their right hand when it comes to lifting heavier weights. 我了解到，将带有“麦当劳”字样的薯条盒正对顾客摆放很重要，因为那样顾客能很容易准确无误地接受到广告信息。将饮料放在顾客托盘右手位置也很重要，因为是绝大多数顾客惯于使用右手，因此托重物时右手更有力。

5The first customer stood in front of me. “I would like a cheeseburger, fries and a thick s hake,” she said. “Would you like any dessert with that?” I said in my best McDonald’s selling manner.

第一位顾客站在我的面前。“我想要一个吉士汉堡、一包薯条、一杯浓奶昔。”她说“需

要再来点甜品吗？”我尽可能地按麦当劳的方式来促销。

6 “No, thank you,” was the reply and I missed my first McDonald’s sale.

“不用了，谢谢。”就这样，我的第一次促销以失败告终。

7If I couldn’t find the correct button on the register, a McDonald’s staff member, who was always kind to “temporary employees”, would come and help me out.

如果我在收银机上找不到正确的按钮，一位总是对“临时工”特别关照的麦当劳工作人员会前来帮我。

8This was most important, especially when the combo buttons seemed to disappear, or when you pushed the button for the money total and found the sale and the change had disappeared completely from the small computer screen on the cash register.

这样的帮助非常重要，特别是在你找不到套餐按钮的时候，或是当你按下了计算需付总金额的按钮却发觉总额与找零显示已经从收银机的小屏幕上彻底消失了的时候。

9Then I had to get used to feeding the fries into the cartons and to pushing the right button for the drinks. I had to call out when I picked up a Big Mac or any other burger so the kitchen staff would know they would need to cook more; I had to check the times on the cartons so I would know if I had to throw away the food because it was past its time …

接着，我得适应如何将薯条倒进包装盒、如何按对标明不同饮料的按钮。每当顾客点了巨无霸或其他汉堡之后，我得大声提醒生产间员工多做这类食品。我还得检查包装盒上的日期，看看是否过了保质期，如果过期了就得扔掉。。。。。。

10Such was my first day at McDonald’s, the most unforgettable day in my working experience.

这就是我在麦当劳工作的第一天，也是我工作经历中最为难忘的一天。