2014年12月20日大学英语四级考试真题Section B长篇阅读原文

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　　大学英语四级考试，即CET-4，College English Test Band 4的缩写，是由国家教育部高等教育司主持的全国性英语考试。考试的主要对象是根据教育大纲修完大学英语四级的在校专科生、本科生或研究生。下面是小编整理的2014年12月20日大学英语四级考试真题Section B长篇阅读原文，欢迎大家分享。

2014年12月20日大学英语四级考试真题Section B长篇阅读原文

　　2014年12月20日大学英语四级考试真题Section B长篇阅读原文

　　In Hard Economy for All Ages, Older Isn’t Better—It’s Brutal

　　[A] Young graduates are in debt, out of work and on their parents' couches. People in their 30s and 40s can't afford to buy homes or have children. Retirees are earning near-zero interest on their savings.

　　[B] In the current listless (缺乏活力的) economy, every generation has a claim to having been most injured. But the Labor Department's latest jobs snapshot and other recent data reports present a strong case for crowning baby boomers (二战后生育高峰期出生的人) as the greatest victims of the recession and its dreadful consequences.

　　[C] These Americans in their 50s and early 60s — those near retirement age who do not yet have access to Medicare and Social Security — have lost the most earnings power of any age group, with their household incomes 10 percent below what they made when the recovery began three years ago, according to Sentier Research, a data analysis company. Their retirement savings and home values fell sharply at the worst possible time: just before they needed to cash out. They are supporting both aged parents and unemployed young-adult children, earning them the unlucky nickname "Generation Squeeze."

　　[D] New research suggests that they may die sooner, because their health, income security and mental well-being were battered (重创) by recession at a crucial time in their lives. A recent study by economists at Wellesley College found that people who lost their jobs in the few years before becoming qualified for Social Security lost up to three years from their life expectancy (预期寿命), largely because they no longer had access to affordable health care.

　　[E] Unemployment rates for Americans nearing retirement are far lower than those for young people, who are recently out of school, with fewer skills and a shorter work history. But once out of a job, older workers have a much harder time finding another one. Over the last year, the average duration of unemployment for older people was 53 weeks, compared with 19 weeks for teenagers, according to the Labor Department's jobs report released on Friday.

　　[F] The lengthy process is partly because older workers are more likely to have been laid off from industries that are downsizing, like manufacturing. Compared with the rest of the population, older people are also more likely to own their own homes and be less mobile than renters, who can move to new job markets.

　　[G] Older workers are more likely to have a disability of some sort, perhaps limiting the range of jobs that offer realistic choices. They may also be less inclined, at least initially, to take jobs that pay far less than their old positions.

　　[H] Displaced boomers also believe they are victims of age discrimination, because employers can easily find a young, energetic worker who will accept lower pay and who can potentially stick around for decades rather than a few years.

　　[I] In a survey by the center of older workers who were laid off during the recession, just one in six had found another job, and half of that group had accepted pay cuts. Fourteen percent of the re-employed said the pay in their new job was less than half what they earned in their previous job. "I just say to myself: 'Why me? What have I done to deserve this?' " said John Agati, 56, of Norwalk, Conn., whose last full-time job, as a merchandise buyer and product developer, ended four years ago when his employer went out of business. That position paid $90,000, and his rsum lists stints at companies like American Express, Disney and USA Networks. Since being laid off, though, he has worked a series of part-time, low-wage, temporary positions, including selling shoes at Lord & Taylor and making sales calls for a limo company.

　　[J] The last few years have taken a toll not only on his family's finances, but also on his feelings of self-worth. "You just get sad," Mr. Agati said. "I see people getting up in the morning, going out to their careers and going home. I just wish I was doing that. Some people don't like their jobs, or they have problems with their jobs, but at least they're working. I just wish I was in their shoes." He said he cannot afford to go back to school, as many younger people without jobs have done. Even if he could afford it, economists say it is unclear whether older workers like him benefit much from more education.

　　[K] "It just doesn't make sense to offer retraining for people 55 and older," said Daniel Hamermesh, an economics professor at the University of Texas in Austin. "Discrimination by age, long-term unemployment, the fact that they're now at the end of the hiring queue, the lack of time horizon just does not make it sensible to invest in them."

　　[L] Many displaced older workers are taking this message to heart and leaving the labor force entirely. The share of older people applying for Social Security early spiked during the recession as people sought whatever income they could find. The penalty they will pay is permanent, as retirees who take benefits at age 62 will receive 30 percent less in each month's check for the rest of their lives than they would if they had waited until full retirement age (66 for those born after 1942).

　　Those not yet eligible for Social Security are increasingly applying for another, comparable kind of income support that often goes to people who expect never to work again: disability benefits. More than one in eight people in their late 50s is now on some form of federal disability insurance program, according to Mark Duggan, chairman of the department of business economics and public policy at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School.

　　The very oldest Americans, of course, were battered by some of the same ill winds that tormented those now nearing retirement, but at least the most senior were cushioned by a more readily available social safety net. More important, in a statistical twist, they may have actually benefited from the financial crisis in the most fundamental way: prolonged lives.

　　Death rates for people over 65 have historically fallen during recessions, according to a November 2011 study by economists at the University of California, Davis. Why? The researchers argue that weak job markets push more workers into accepting relatively undesirable work at nursing homes, leading to better care for residents.

　　拓展：英语四级考试作文真题总体解析

　　今年主要有三个话题:分别是①A course that has impressed you most in college (大学中给你印象最深的一门课）；②A campus activity that has benefited most (使你受益最深的一项校园活动) ③A classmate of yours who has influenced you most in college (大学中对你影响最深的一位同学)。

　　这三个话题均为我们所熟悉的话题性作文，写作手法可以采用叙议结合的方式，完成难度相对较低。考生可以很灵活的套用考前文都老师给大家准备的相关模板句。对于下面的功能句，如果能收放自如的灵活应用，考取高分绝对是轻而易举的事情。

　　一、开头句：

　　主题词has been playing an increasingly important role in individuals growth. It has brought a lot of benefits.

　　(……已在个人的成长中，扮演着越来越重要的角色.它给我们带来了许多好处。)

　　这里的主题词可以换成我们这次的有意义的课程/活动（the meaningful course/activity）、深厚的友谊(the deep friendship)直接替换即可。

　　二、中间段：

　　在具体展开原因时，可以从主次的角度来展开：

　　mainly owing to the fact that ...and partly due to the fact that ...（主要原因是……次要原因是……）

　　例如，这次题目二就可以直接套用：

　　The activity organized by the campus is the most meaningful for me mainly owing to the fact that it can strengthen our body and partly due to the fact that it makes me realize the spirit of teamwork.（由学校组织的体育比赛对我来讲是非常有意义的，主要原因是由于它有助于增强我们的身体素质，次要原因是由于它让我们意识到了团队精神。）

　　作文中能写出这样的句子，无疑属于高分亮点句。

　　三、结尾段：

　　至于结尾部分可以直接套用下列句型，简洁收尾。

　　Taking all these factors into consideration, I naturally come to the conclusion that

　　把所有这些因素加以考虑,我自然会得出结论

　　Taking into account all these factors, I may reasonably come to the conclusion that

　　考虑所有这些因素,我可能会得出合理的结论

　　Hence/Therefore, I d better come to the conclusion that

　　因此,我最好得出这样的结论

　　There is no doubt that...毫无疑问的是……

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