《經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家》讀譯參考1-133學(xué)習(xí)資料

1、Good is good, but better carries it.精益求精，善益求善。經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家讀譯參考1-133Jan19th2006|NEWYORKFromTheEconomistprinteditionRebuildingtheAmericandreammachineFORAmericascolleges,Januaryisamonthofreckoning.MostapplicationsforthenextacademicyearbeginningintheautumnhavetobemadebytheendofDecember,soauniversityspopularityi

2、sputtoanobjectivestandard:howmanypeoplewanttoattend.OneofthemoreunlikelyofficestohavebeenfloodedwithmailisthatoftheCityUniversityofNewYork(CUNY),apubliccollegethatlacks,amongotherthings,afamoussportsteam,bucoliccampusesandraucousparties(itdoesntevenhavedorms),and,untilrecently,academiccredibility.Ap

3、rimarydrawatCUNYisaprogrammeforparticularlycleverstudents,launchedin2001.Some1,100ofthe60,000studentsatCUNYsfivetopschoolsreceiveararethinginthecostlyworldofAmericancolleges:freeeducation.ThoseacceptedbyCUNYshonoursprogrammepaynotuitionfees;insteadtheyreceiveastipendof$7,500(tohelpwithgeneralexpense

4、s)andalaptopcomputer.Applicationsforearlyadmissionsintonextyearsprogrammeareup70%.Admissionhasnothingtodowithbeinganathlete,orachildofanalumnus,orhavinganinfluentialsponsor,orbeingamemberofaparticularlyaggrievedethnicgroupcriteriathatareincreasinglyimportantatAmericaselitecolleges.Mostofthestudentsw

5、hoapplytothehonoursprogrammecomefromrelativelypoorfamilies,manyofthemimmigrantones.AllthatCUNYdemandsisthatthesestudentsbediligentandclever.Lastyear,theaveragestandardisedtestscoreofthisgroupwasinthetop7%inthecountry.AmongtherestofCUNYsstudentsaveragesarelower,buttheyarenowjustbreakingintothetopthir

6、d(comparedwiththebottomthirdin1997).CUNYdoesnotappearalongsideHarvardandStanfordonlistsofAmericastopcolleges,butitsrecenttransformationoffersaneatparableofmeritocracyrevisited.Untilthe1960s,agoodcasecouldbemadethatthebestdealinAmericantertiaryeducationwastobefoundnotinCambridgeorPaloAlto,butinHarlem

7、,atasmallpublicschoolcalledCityCollege,thecoreofCUNY.Americasfirstfreemunicipaluniversity,foundedin1847,offereditsservicestoeveryonebrightenoughtomeetitsgruellingstandards.Citysgoldeneracameinthelastcentury,whenAmericasbestknowncollegesrestrictedthenumberofJewishstudentstheywouldadmitatexactlythetim

8、ewhenNewYorkwasteemingwiththebrightchildrenofpoorJewishimmigrants.In1933-54CityproducedninefutureNobellaureates,includingthe2005winnerforeconomics,RobertAumann(whograduatedin1950);Hunter,itsaffiliatedformerwomenscollege,producedtwo,andasisterbranchinBrooklynproducedone.CityeducatedFelixFrankfurter,a

9、pivotalfigureontheSupremeCourt(classof1902),IraGershwin(1918),JonasSalk,theinventorofthepoliovaccine(1934)andRobertKahn,anarchitectoftheinternet(1960).Aleft-wingplaceinthe1930sand1940s,Cityspawnedmanyoftheneo-conservativeintellectualswhowouldlaterswingtotheright,suchasIrvingKristol(classof1940,extra

10、-curricularactivity:anti-warclub),DanielBellandNathanGlazer.Whatwentwrong?Putsimply,Citydroppeditsstandards.Itwaspartlytodowithdemography,partlytodowithearnestmuddleheadedness.Inthe1960s,universitiesacrossthecountryfacedintensepressuretoadmitmoreminoritystudents.AlthoughCitywasopentoallraces,onlyasm

11、allnumberofblackandHispanicstudentspassedthestricttests(includingafuturesecretaryofstate,ColinPowell).That,criticsdecided,couldnotbesquaredwithCitysmissionto“serveallthecitizensofNewYork”.Atfirstthestandardsweretweaked,butthiswasnotenough,andin1969massivestudentprotestsshutdownCityscampusfortwoweeks

12、.Facedwithupheaval,Cityscrappeditsadmissionsstandardsaltogether.By1970,almostanystudentwhograduatedfromNewYorkshighschoolscouldattend.Thequalityofeducationcollapsed.Atfirst,withnobarriertoentry,enrolmentclimbed,butin1976thecityofNewYork,whichwasthenineffectbankrupt,forcedCUNYtoimposetuitionfees.Aner

13、aoffreeeducationwasover,andauniversitywhichhadonceservedsuchadistinctpurposejoinedthemuddleofAmericaslower-endeducation.By1997,sevenoutoftenfirst-yearstudentsintheCUNYsystemwerefailingatleastoneremedialtestinreading,writingormaths(meaningthattheyhadnotlearntittohigh-schoolstandard).Areportcommission

14、edbythecityin1999concludedthat“CentraltoCUNYshistoricmissionisacommitmenttoprovidebroadaccess,butitsstudentshighdrop-outratesandlowgraduationratesraisethequestion:Accesstowhat?”Usingthereportasammunition,profoundreformswerepushedthroughbyNewYorksthenmayor,RudolphGiuliani,andanotheralumnus,HermanBadi

15、llo(1951),AmericasfirstPuertoRicancongressman.AnewheadofCUNYwasappointed.MatthewGoldstein,amathematician(1963),hasshiftedthefocusbacktowardshigherstandardsamidconsiderablecontroversy.Forinstance,by2001,allofCUNYs11“senior”colleges(ie,onesthatofferfullfour-yearcourses)hadstoppedofferingremedialeducat

16、ion.Thispromptedhowlsfromtheteachingfaculty,whosaiditwould“createaghetto-likeseparationbetweenlevelsofcolleges”,keepingblackandHispanicstudentsoutofthebestschools.Infact,theracialcompositionoftheseniorschools,monitoredobsessivelybycritics,hasremainedlargelyunchanged:oneinfourstudentsattheseniorcolle

17、gesisblack,oneinfiveisLatino.AthirdhavetiestoPuertoRico,Jamaica,ChinaandtheDominicanRepublic.Admissionsstandardshavebeenraised.StudentsapplyingtoCUNYsseniorcollegesnowneedrespectablescoresoneitheranational,stateorCUNYtest,andtheadmissionscriteriaforthehonoursprogrammearethetoughestintheuniversityshi

18、story.ContrarytowhatMrGoldsteinscriticspredicted,higherstandardshaveattractedmorestudents,notfewer:thisyear,enrolmentatCUNYisatarecordhigh.TherearealsoanecdotalsignsthatCUNYisonceagainpickingupbrightlocals,especiallyinscience.OneadvancedbiologyclassatCitynowhastwiceasmanystudentsasitdidinthelate1990

19、s.Lastyear,twostudents,bothbornintheSovietUnion,wonRhodesscholarships,andaBronxnativewhowonthemuchsought-afterIntelSciencePrizeisnowinthehonoursprogramme.AllthisshouldnotimplythatCUNYisoutofthewoods.Muchofitlooksrundown.CUNYsannualbudgetof$1.7billionhasstayedlargelyunchanged,evenasstudentnumbershave

20、risen.WithNewYorkCitysfinancesstillprecarious,cityandstatesupportfortheuniversityhasfallenbymorethanone-thirdsince1991inrealterms.Ithas,however,beguntobringinprivatemoney.Anewjournalismschoolwillopenintheautumn,helpedbya$4mgrantfromtheSulzbergerfamily,whocontroltheNewYorkTimes,andledbyBusinessWeeksf

21、ormereditor,SteveShepard(classof1961).Effortstoraisea$1.2billionendowmenthavepassedthehalf-waymark,helpedby(formerlyestranged)alumni.Intelsformerchairman,AndrewGrove,whograduatedfromCityin1960asapennilessHungarianimmigrant,donated$26m(about30%ofCitysoperatingbudget)totheengineeringschool,callinghisa

22、lmamater“averitableAmericandreammachine”.TherearebroaderlessonstodrawfromCUNY,especiallytodowithcreatingopportunitiesinhighereducationforthepoor.Currently,only3%ofthestudentsinAmericastopcollegescomefromfamiliesinthelowestincomequartileandonly10%fromthebottomhalf,accordingtoastudybyAnthonyCarnevalea

23、ndStephenRosefortheCenturyFoundation.Moststudentsarerelativelywell-off,andtheirnumbersincludeplentyofracialminoritieswhoreceivepreferentialstatusindependentoftheireconomiccircumstances.Forallitsimperfections,CUNYsmodeloflowtuitionfeesandhighstandardsoffersadifferentapproach.Anditsrecenthistorymayhel

24、ptodispelthemyththathighacademicstandardsdeterstudentsanddonors.“Elitism”,MrGoldsteincontends,“isnotadirtyword.”Jan26th2006FromTheEconomistprinteditionHerebedragonsGoogle,theinternetsearchenginethathasgrownintoacorporategiant,beganoperationsinChinaonJanuary25th.Thoughcriticssuggestithasbetrayeditsow

25、nmotto-“dontbeevil”-byagreeingtocensorcertainsites,GooglemaintainsitwilldomoregoodthanharmIN2001human-rightsactivistsinChinacrowedthatalittle-knownsearchenginecalledGooglewasthemostimportanttoolevercreatedtoskirtstatecensors.UserscouldretrievecontentthatBeijingbannedbyclickingtocallupa“cached”copyof

26、thewebpage,storedbyGoogle.Soon,however,Googleitselfwasbeingsporadicallyblocked.Thefirmwasinstructedtodeactivatethatparticularfeature,andforashorttimeitswebaddresswasevenre-routedbyChinesenetworkoperatorstothewebsiteofalocalrival.Thecontinualcat-and-mousegameendedthisweekwhenGoogle,nowacorporategiant

27、,enteredthedragonsden.OnJanuary25ththesearchengine“G”beganoperations.Itisafirststeptowardsbeefingupthecompanyslocalpresence,whichwillalsomeanplacingcomputer-serversinthecountry.Thiswillspeedupserviceformainlandusers,whootherwisemustpenetratethegreatfirewallofChina,whichdramaticallyslowsdownaccesstoG

28、.HavinglocalinfrastructuregivesanadvantagetoGooglessearch-enginerivals,suchasChinasB(whichenjoysaround40%oftheChinesesearchmarket,comparedwithGoogles30%),andYahoo!andMicrosoftsMSN,whichhavelocalChineseoperations.Chinasinternetmarket,withmorethan100musers,isoneofthefastest-growingandmostlucrativeinth

29、eworld.CanGooglewithitsmotto“dontbeevil”dobusinessinChinawithoutbetrayingitssoul?Thecompanyismakingaconcertedefforttodojustthat.IthasreachedanagreementwiththeChineseauthoritiesthatallowsittodisclosetousers,atthebottomofalistofsearchresults,whetherinformationhasbeenwithheld.Thisissimilartowhatthecomp

30、anydoesinothercountrieswhereitfacescontentrestrictions,suchasFranceandGermany(whereNazisitesarebanned),andAmerica(whereitremovesmaterialthatissuspectedofcopyrightinfringement).Althoughthedisclosureismoreprominentonthesewesternsites,puttingsuchamessageonitsChinesesiteisanimportantsteptowardstranspare

31、ncyand,furthermore,issomethingitsrivalsdonotdo.Furthermore,Googleistiptoeingintothecountrywithonlyahandfulofservices.Itisnotofferinge-mail,bloggingorsocial-networkingservices,becauseitworriesthatitwillnotbeabletoensureusersprivacy.ItwishestoavoidthesituationinwhichMSNandYahoo!findthemselves,wherebyt

32、heyareforcedtoobeytheChinesegovernmentsordersincensoringcontentandrevealingusersidentities.Ratherthanbeplacedinapositionwhereitmayhavetocompromiseitsvalues,Googleinsteadisnarrowingwhatitoffers(althoughitsnewsservicewillcontainonlygovernment-approvedmediasources).GooglebelievesthatenteringChina,evenw

33、ithrestraintsoncontent,letsitoffermoreinformationthanifitremainedoutside.YetthedecisioncomesasAmericaninternetfirmssuchasYahoo!andMSNduckcriticismthattheyarecomplicitwiththeChineseauthorities.MeanwhileinAmericaForGoogle,takingthehigherroadhappenstoalsobeawaytodifferentiateitsservice.ThismonthAmerica

34、sDepartmentofJusticewenttocourttoforceGoogletocomplywithasubpoenaseekingmorethan1mwebaddressesandaweeksworthofalluserssearches(downfromanoriginaldemandofeverywebaddressitholdsandtwomonthsofsearches),albeitwithoutanyinformationthatwouldidentifyindividualusers.Thegovernmentwantsthedatainordertoexamine

35、theeffectivenessofsoftwarefilterstoblockpornography,foracaseinvolvingalawprohibitingthecontent,whichtheSupremeCourtruledunconstitutional.Thegovernmentrequested,andreceived,informationfromYahoo!,MSNandAOLallofwhichinitiallystonewalledaboutwhethertheydisclosedthedata.YetGoogleresisted,arguingthat“acce

36、dingtotherequestwouldsuggestitiswillingtorevealinformationaboutthosewhouseitsservices.ThisisnotaperceptionthatGooglecanaccept.”Thedaythesubpoenawasmadepublic,Googlessharesdroppedalmost9%,itslargestsingle-daydeclinesinceitbegantradingin2004.Googlesstancecouldputcommercialpressureonitsrivalstoadoptmor

37、ecustomer-friendlypolicies,andmayserveasawarningtootherinternetfirmstotreatcustomersdatawithmorecare.Yetsuchhigh-mindednesswillbetestedasGoogleentersChina.Keepingitsoptionsopen,thecompanyisnotshuttingdowntheChinese-languageversionofG.Itwillremainavailable,forthosewillingtowaitabitlongerfortheiruncen

38、soredsearchresults.Feb9th2006FromTheEconomistGlobalAgendaFoodfirmsandfat-fightersFiveleadingfoodcompanieshaveintroducedalabellingschemefortheirproductsintheBritishmarket,inanattempttoassuagecriticswhosaytheyencourageobesity.Butconsumergroupsareunhappyallthesame.Isthefoodindustry,liketobaccobeforeit,

39、abouttobe*engulfed1byawaveoflawsuitsbroughtonhealthgrounds?KEEPINGfitrequiresacombinationofhealthyeatingandregularexercise.Onthesecondoftheseatleast,theworldsfoodcompaniescanclaimtobesettingagoodexample:theyhavebeenworkingupquiteasweatintheirattemptstofendoffassaultsbygovernments,consumergroupsandla

40、wyerswhoaccusethemofpeddlingproductsthatencourageobesity.Thisweeksawtheunveilingofanotherindustryinitiative:fiveleadingfoodproducersDanone,Kellogg,Nestl,KraftandPepsiCointroducedalabellingschemefortheBritishmarketwhichwillshow“guidelinedailyamounts”forcalories,fats,sugarandsaltonpackaging.Thenewlabe

41、lswillstarttoappearonthefirmscrisps,chocolatebars,cheeseslices*andthelike2overthenextfewmonths.Anumberofotherfoodgiants,suchasCadburySchweppesandMasterfoods,havealreadystartedputtingguidelinelabelsontheirproducts.Thefoodcompaniessaydoingthiswillempowerconsumers,allowingthemtomakeinformeddecisionsabo

42、utwhichfoodsarehealthy.（1）Butconsumergroupshavecriedfoul.TheypointoutthattheFoodStandardsAgency,agovernmentwatchdog,isduetorecommendadifferenttypeoflabellingschemenextmonth:a“trafficlight”systemusingcolourstotellconsumerswhetherproductshavelow,mediumorhighlevelsoffat,saltandthelike.Thefoodfirms,they

43、say,haverushedtointroducetheirown,fuzzierguidelinesfirstinacynicalattempttounderminethegovernmentsplanwhichtheyfearmighthurttheirsales.Inconsumertests,thetrafficlightperformedbetterthanrivallabellingschemes.Nevertheless,thefoodcompaniesarguethatthetraffic-lightsystemistoosimplisticandlikelytoscarepe

44、opleawayfromcertainproductsthatarefineifconsumedinmoderation,orinconjunctionwithplentyofexercisewhichmostobservers,includingthemedicalprofession,agreeiscrucialforanyonewantingtostayinshape.Theyalsopointoutthattheyhavecompetitorstoworryaboutnamelythebigsupermarketchainswiththeirown-labelproducts.Last

45、April,Tesco,thebiggestofthese,announcedthatitwasrejectingthetraffic-lightsysteminfavourofalessstark“signposting”approach.Itsrivalsfearthatadoptingcolour-codingcouldputthematacompetitivedisadvantage.Betterlabellinghasbecomeanimportantweaponofthefoodgiantsarmouryastheyfightbackagainsttheircritics.InOc

46、tober2005McDonalds,theworldslargestfast-foodcompany,saiditwouldstartprintingnutritionalfactsonthepackagingofitsburgersandfries,includingthefat,salt,calorieandcarbohydratecontent.Beforethat,informationabout（2）big-sellerssuchastheBigMac,whichcontains30goffat,couldonlybefoundonthefirmswebsiteorinleafle

47、ts.Butlabellingisnotenough;thefoodfirmsknowtheymustalsoofferhealthierfare.McDonaldshasintroducedsaladsandfruittoitsmenus.Kraftandothershavebroughtoutlow-carbohydrateranges.Lastyear,McDonaldsevenannouncedasportymakeoverforRonaldMcDonald,itsmascotclown,inabidtoencouragechildrentobemoreactive.Butsomein

48、theindustrysuspectthatconsumersarekeeneronseeing（3）lighter,healthiermealsonthemenuthantheyareonactuallybuyingandeatingthem;suchproductsarenotwhattheindustrycalls“（4）businessbuilders”.Thatsaid,someofNestlsmorenutritionalproducts,likeitsPowerBarrangeforathletes,enjoyhighermarginsandgrowththanitstradit

49、ionalfare.WobblingallovertheworldThepressureontheindustryismostacuteinAmerica,whichleadstheworldinobesity.TheproportionofAmericanscharacterisedasoverweighthasrisensteadilyfrom47%(（5）badenoughinitself)inthelate1970stoaroundtwo-thirds,includingover30%whoareclinicallyobese.Fast-foodchainsAmericansalesg

50、rewfromabout$6billionin1970toanestimated$134billionin2005.EricSchlosser,authorof“FastFoodNation”,aninfluentialbookattackingtheindustry,haspointedoutthatAmericansspendmoreonfastfoodthantheydoonhighereducation,PCsornewcarsworrying,whenasinglemealataKFCoflessthanapound-weightoffoodplusalargePepsicantop

51、1,600calories,notfarshortofthedailyintakerecommendedbythegovernmentforadultsdoingonly“l(fā)ightphysicalactivity”.（6）WheretheUnitedStatesleads,othersarefollowing.IntheEuropeanUnion,upto27%ofmenareconsideredtobeobese,andalmostaquarterofallchildrenaredeemedoverweight.Britain,withitsloveofburgersandpackaged

52、meals,isseenasfollowingclosestonAmericasheels,buttherateofobesityhasstartedtoswellonthecontinenttoo.Some11%oftheadultpopulationofFrancewereobesein2003,upfrom8%in1997(theactuallevelmaybehigherstillsincethefiguresarebasedonpollsaskingpeopleiftheyarefat,and（7）self-reportingproducesunderestimates).Franc

53、ehas*latchedonto3thefast-foodculture:itisoneofthebiggestandmostprofitableEuropeanmarketsforMcDonalds.Nowonder,then,thatthepastfewyearshavebeenbadforfoodcompanies(8)inimagetermsandterribleforthefast-foodlot.Attacksontheindustryhavechangedthepsychologicalclimateinwhichitoperates,andtheymayyetchangethe

54、legislativeclimatetoo.Sofar,lawsuitsbroughtonhealth-and-safetygroundshavebeenmoreofawarningthanageneralthreat.In2003aNewYorkjudgedismissedalawsuitclaimingthatMcDonaldshadmisledcustomersintobelievingthatitsfoodwashealthy(thoughthesuitwaslaterpartiallyreinstated).AnumberofAmericanstateshavepassed“comm

55、on-senseconsumptionlaws”aimedatdeterringobesitycasesinlocalcourts.Nevertheless,somelawyersstillseeasimilaritybetweenthepositionoffoodcompaniesnowandthatoftobaccocompaniesinthe1960sand1970s,whenprivatelawsuitspavedthewayforaco-ordinatedattackon“bigtobacco”byattorneys-general.Worriesaboutrisingobesity

56、ratesamongchildren,andfearofsubsequentlegalactions,havecausedcompaniesto（9）scalebacktheirmarketingoffattyfoodandsoftdrinkstominors.Inseveralcountries,governmentpronouncementsandactionshaveaddedtothepressureontheindustry.TheBritishgovernmentspushtointroducetraffic-lightlabellingcomesinthewakeofahard-

57、hittingreportfromtheHouseofCommonsHealthSelectCommittee,whosechairmansaid:“Thedevastatingconsequencesoftheepidemicofobesityarelikelytohaveaprofoundimpactoverthenextcentury.”InFrance,alawhasbeenpassedtoimposea1.5%taxontheadvertisingbudgetsoffoodcompaniesiftheydonotencouragehealthyeating.Theindustryma

58、yclaim,withsomejustification,thatultimateresponsibilityforbaddiet*restswith4theindividual,andthattheamountofexerciseyoudoisjustasimportantastheamountoffoodyoueat.Butaslongasgovernments,lawyersandhealthcampaignerscontinuetopileonthepressure,itwillhavetoworkhardtoconvincethemitis(10)doingitsbittostopp

59、eoplepilingonthepounds.Feb9th2006FromTheEconomistGlobalAgendaAquestionofstandardsMoresuggestionsofbadbehaviourbytobaccocompanies.MaybeANOTHERroundhasjustbeenfoughtinthebattlebetweentobaccocompaniesandthosewhoregardthemasspawnofthedevil.InapaperjustpublishedintheLancet,withtheprovocativetitle“Secrets

60、cience:tobaccoindustryresearchonsmokingbehaviourandcigarettetoxicity”,DavidHammond,of*WaterlooUniversity1inCanadaandNeilCollishawandCynthiaCallard,twomembersofPhysiciansforaSmoke-FreeCanada,alobbygroup,criticisethebehaviourofBritishAmericanTobacco(BAT).Theysaythefirmconsideredmanipulatingsomeofitspr