The world is on the cusp of a staggering rise in the number of old people
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But the notion of a sharp division between the working young and the idle old misses a new trend, the growing gap between the skilled and the unskilled.Employment rates are falling among younger unskilled people whereas older skilled folk are working longer.
The divide is most extreme in the U.S., where well-educated baby-boomers are putting off
retirement while many less-skilled younger people have dropped out the workforce.This trend will benefit not just fortunate oldies but also, in some ways, society as a whole.Growth will slow less dramatically than expected; government budgets will be in better shape, as high earners pay taxes longer.Rich countries with lots of well-educated older people will find the burden of ageing easier to bear than other countries like China, where half of all 50-to-64-year-olds did not complete primary-school education.At the other end of the social scale, however, things look grim.Manual work gets harder as people get older, and public pensions look more attractive to those on low wages and the unemployed.
Nor are all the effects on the economy beneficial.Wealthy old people will accumulate more savings, which will weaken demand.Inequality will increase and a growing share of wealth will eventually be transferred to the next generation via inheritance, entrenching the division between winners and losers still further.One likely response is to impose higher inheritance taxes.So long as they replace less-fair taxes, that might make sense.This would probably encourage old people to spend their cash rather than salt it away.But governments should focus not on redistributing income but on generating more of it by reforming retirement and education.
How likely are governments to make these changes? Look around the rich world today, and it is hard to be optimistic.The swelling ranks of older voters, and their disproportionate propensity to vote, have left politicians keener to pander to them than to implement disruptive reforms.Germany, despite being the fastest-ageing country in Europe, plans to cut the statutory retirement age for some people.In the U.S., both social security (the public pension scheme) and the fast-growing system of disability benefits remain untouched by reform.Politicians need to convince less-skilled older voters that it is in their interests to go on working.Doing so will not be easy.But the alternative 一 economic stagnation and even greater inequality is worse.
单选题第1题The word “staggering” underlined in Paragraph 1 means________.
A.swaying
B.unstable
C.zigzagging
D.astounding
参考答案：D
答案解析：词义界定。staggering 出现在第一段 “The world is on the cusp of a staggering rise
in the number of old people, and they will live longer than ever before ”，即世界老龄人口将
出现惊人增长，且他们的寿命会比以往更长。假设有读者不懂得staggering的意思，或者不确定staggering rise是快 速增长还是缓慢增长，因为staggering还有“蹒跚的”意思，可以借助下文的数据来确定：在过去20年间，全球65岁及以上老龄人口几乎增加了一倍。这样的增长自然是非常迅猛的，由此可以判断选项D符合句意。
单选题第2题Observers believe that the rise in the number of old people will NOT________.
A.affect the longevity of the elderly
B.bust government budgets
C.lead to secular stagnation
D.slow down economic growth
参考答案：A
答案解析：错误排除。根据关键词observers检索，本题涉及的原句为第一段最后一句has persuaded many observers that this shift will lead to slower economic growth and 'secular stagnation',while the swelling ranks of pensioners will bust government budgets ”，即（在二十世纪，人们的寿命变长使得退休岁月长于工作年限，这一经验）让许多观察家相信，这种转变将导致经济增长减缓和“长期性经济停滞”，而迅速扩大的领取养老金大军将使政府预算不堪重负。其中，唯独没有提到的是选项A。
单选题第3题There is a new trend in the U.S., where________.
A.there appears a baby boom
B.more younger unskilled people are unemployed
C.more older skilled people are working longer
D.both B and C
参考答案：D
答案解析：细节识别。根据关键词new trend in the U.S.检索，本题涉及的内容在第二段a new trend, .... Employment rates are falling among younger unskilled people whereas older skilled folk are working longer”，即技术不熟练的年轻人就业率下降，而技术熟练的老年人工作年限延长。对照选项发现本句包括选项B和C,因此，D正确。
单选题第4题Which of the following notions tends to be ignored as a new trend?.
A.The big gap between the well-educated and the undereducated.
B.The wide gap between male and female workers.
C.The widening gap between the skilled and the unskilled.
D.The growing gap between the working young and the idle old.
参考答案：C
答案解析：细节识别。根据关键词notion和a new trend可以检索到第二段的相关表述“a
new trend, the growing gap between the skilled and the unskilled”，即新的趋势是熟练技工和不熟练技工之间的鸿沟越来越宽。其中，逗号后面的短语是a new trend的同位语，是对后者的解释。这样的同位语在阅读理解题中经常用来确定先行词的词义。因为选项C与原句一致，所以不需要推理即可判断。
单选题第5题The new trend may also benefit society, for________.
A.economic growth will slow down as expected
B.high-earning old people pay taxes longer
C.government budgets will be in the red
D.governments encourage early retirement
参考答案：B
答案解析：细节识别。题干的关键词benefit和society会引导读者来到第三段第一句，然后发现下文举例说明老龄化的益处，其中有一条是... high earners pay taxes longer，即高收入者（特别是老年人）纳税时间更长。
单选题第6题Rich countries find the burden of ageing easier to bear because their aged people________.
A.may pay less taxes
B.may enjoy early retirement
C.are mostly well-educated
D.are mostly in good health
参考答案：C
答案解析：细节识别。根据关键词burden和easier检索到第三段“Rich countries with lots of
well-educated older people will find the burden of ageing easier to bear than other countries
like China...”，即富国拥有大量受过良好教育的老年人，因此，比起中国这样的国家，解决老龄化负担问题更容易。这一表述与选项C一致。
单选题第7题In rich countries, more savings of wealthy old people will________.
A.boost demand
B.diminish demand
C.decrease inequality
D.increase equality
参考答案：B
答案解析：细节识别。与前几道题一样，根据题干的关键词more savings检索到第四段”Wealthy old people will accumulate more savings, which will weaken demand”，即富有的老年人会增加储蓄，而高储蓄反而会降低需求。这里的weaken demand和选项B的diminish demand属于近义表述，因此可以确定选项B为正确答案。
单选题第8题The author suggests that the response to inequality is to________.
A.levy higher inheritance taxes
B.encourage the elderly to save their cash for the future
C.transfer the elderly savings to their next generations
D.cause further imbalance between winners and losers
参考答案：A
答案解析：细节识别。根据题干的关键词response to inequality检索到“ One likely response is to impose higher inheritance taxes”，即一个可能的应对之策是征收更高的遗产税。本句的impose taxes与选项A的levy taxes属于同义表述，因此选A确定无疑。
单选题第9题For their own sake, politicians________.
A.take good care of the less-skilled older voters
B.have another alternative to decrease inequality
C.cater to the older voters enthusiastically
D.are more likely to introduce disruptive reforms
参考答案：C
答案解析：近义表述。根据“…have left politicians keener to pander to them than to implement disruptive reforms”可知，让政客们更乐于取悦他们（老年人），而不是实行有损他们利益的改革。本句的pander to与选项C的cater to属于近义表述。
单选题第10题What is the appropriate title of this passage?
A.Global Ageing: A Grey Economy
B.Global Ageing: Powers of the Elderly
C.Today’s World: Pessimistic Prospects
D.Economy of Ageing: Slower and More Unequal
参考答案：D
答案解析：补充标题。回顾各段落主旨发现：第一段提出老龄人口激增会给经济带来诸多负面影响；第二段指出具体影响之一是年轻人因缺乏经验，在与老年人竞争工作时处于下风；第三段陈述了这一分化的利弊得失，但全面来看，弊大于利；第四段特别指出其结果是老年人储蓄的增加会降低需求，会造成不平等，而他们的财产由下一代继承后会增加不平等程度；最后一段指出政客们需要有所作为改变这一现状，而美国的政客们似乎无动于衷。综上，选项D的Slower and More Unequal能够概括全文，因此为正确答案。
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