历年考研英语阅读理解mp3(03-3)

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[00:00.91]2003 Text3
[00:04.44]In recent years, railroads have been combining
[00:07.46]with each other, merging¹ into supersystems,
[00:10.59]causing heightened concerns about monopoly.
[00:14.53]As recently as 1995, the top four railroads accounted
[00:19.38]for under 70 percent of the total ton-miles moved by rails.
[00:25.22]Next year, after a series of mergers² is completed,
[00:29.16]just four railroads will control well
[00:31.57]over 90 percent of all the freight moved
[00:34.72]by major rail carriers.
[00:37.65]Supporters of the new supersystems argue
[00:40.48]that these mergers will allow
[00:41.78]for substantial cost reductions
[00:44.57]and better coordinated³ service.
[00:47.09]Any threat of monopoly, they argue,
[00:49.20]is removed by fierce competition from trucks.
[00:53.36]But many shippers complain that
[00:55.16]for heavy bulk commodities traveling long distances,
[00:59.09]such as coal, chemicals, and grain,
[01:03.42]trucking is too costly⁴ and the railroads
[01:06.45]therefore have them by the throat.
[01:09.88]The vast consolidation⁵ within the rail industry
[01:13.51]means that most shippers are served
[01:15.64]by only one rail company.
[01:18.15]Railroads typically charge such
[01:20.14]"captive" shippers 20 to 30 percent more than they do
[01:25.08]when another railroad is competing for the business.
[01:29.11]Shippers who feel they are being overcharged
[01:32.13]have the right to appeal to the federal
[01:34.55]government's Surface Transportation Board for rate relief,
[01:38.78]but the process is expensive, time consuming,
[01:42.62]and will work only in truly extreme cases.
[01:47.14]Railroads justify⁶ rate discrimination
[01:49.86]against captive shippers on the grounds
[01:52.28]that in the long run it reduces everyone's cost.
[01:56.06]If railroads charged all customers the same average rate,
[02:00.49]they argue, shippers who have the option of switching
[02:04.12]to trucks or other forms of transportation would do so,
[02:08.06]leaving remaining customers to shoulder the cost
[02:10.79]of keeping up the line.
[02:13.41]It's theory to which many economists⁷ subscribe,
[02:16.85]but in practice it often leaves railroads
[02:19.22]in the position of determining
[02:21.03]which companies will flourish and which will fail.
[02:25.26]"Do we really want railroads to be the arbiters
[02:27.78]of who wins and who loses in the marketplace?"
[02:31.27]asks Martin Bercovici, a Washington lawyer
[02:34.70]who frequently represents shippers.
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[02:38.03]Many captive shippers also worry
[02:40.35]they will soon be his with a round of huge rate increases.
[02:44.79]The railroad industry as a whole,
[02:47.11]despite its brightening fortuning fortunes,
[02:49.33]still does not earn enough to cover the cost
[02:51.82]of the capital it must invest to keep up
[02:54.44]with its surging traffic.
[02:57.46]Yet railroads continue to borrow billions
[03:00.19]to acquire one another, with Wall Street cheering them on.
[03:04.42]Consider the $ 10.2 billion bid by Norfolk Southern
[03:09.36]and CSX to acquire Conrail this year.
[03:13.70]Conrail's net railway operating income in 1996
[03:18.74]was just $427 million, less than
[03:22.87]half of the carrying costs of the transaction.
[03:26.60]Who's going to pay for the rest of the bill?
[03:29.31]Many captive shippers fear that they will,
[03:32.75]as Norfolk Southern and CSX increase
[03:35.74]their grip on the market.

1 merging   

合并（分类）

参考例句：

• Many companies continued to grow by merging with or buying competing firms. 许多公司通过合并或收买竞争对手的公司而不断扩大。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• To sequence by repeated splitting and merging. 用反复分开和合并的方法进行的排序。

2 mergers   

n.（两个公司的）合并( merger的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Mergers fall into three categories: horizontal, vertical, and conglomerate. 合并分为以下三种：横向合并，纵向合并和混合合并。 来自辞典例句
• Many recent mergers are concentrated within specific industries, particularly in retailing, airlines and communications. 现代许多合并企业集中进行某些特定业务，在零售业、民航和通讯业中更是如此。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件

3 coordinated   

adj.协调的

参考例句：

• The sound has to be coordinated with the picture. 声音必须和画面协调一致。
• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

4 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

5 consolidation   

n.合并,巩固

参考例句：

• The denser population necessitates closer consolidation both for internal and external action. 住得日益稠密的居民，对内和对外都不得不更紧密地团结起来。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• The state ensures the consolidation and growth of the state economy. 国家保障国营经济的巩固和发展。 来自汉英非文学 - 中国宪法

6 justify   

vt.证明…正当(或有理)，为…辩护

参考例句：

• He tried to justify his absence with lame excuses.他想用站不住脚的借口为自己的缺席辩解。
• Can you justify your rude behavior to me?你能向我证明你的粗野行为是有道理的吗？

7 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》