VOA慢速英语2009年-IN THE NEWS - Why We Should Care About

This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

Think of your family or friends. How well would those relationships work without trust -- or with a broken trust?

Tiger Woods considers a difficult shot from deep grass during the 2009 U.S. Open

Recently, Forbes magazine declared Tiger Woods the first athlete to reach one billion dollars in career earnings¹. That includes winnings, appearances, product endorsements² and more.

The Associated Press just voted him "athlete of the decade." But more than half the votes arrived before his private life hit the news.

The young golfer has admitted being unfaithful to his wife and family. Public opinion of him has fallen. Some companies have removed him from their advertising³. Tiger Woods is now taking what he calls "an indefinite⁴ break from professional golf."

Trust also plays into much bigger issues, like reaching a climate change agreement or reforming a health care system.

Two different researchers have recently studied the effects of trust within countries.

Pelle Ahlerup is an economics⁵ researcher at Sweden's University of Gothenburg. His research suggests that trust between people is more important in countries with a weak legal system. And in societies where there is less trust between people, the quality of the legal system plays a larger part.

He says projects designed to increase interpersonal trust can have a major effect in poor countries with undependable legal systems. Earlier research has shown that countries with greater trust between people generally do better in economic growth and other areas.

What about trust in government -- could it even affect murder rates? A historian⁶ at Ohio State University argues yes in a new book called "American Homicide."

Randolph Roth studied homicide rates over the past four hundred years in parts of the United States and western Europe. The Justice Department says rates in recent years fell to levels last seen in the middle of the nineteen sixties. Still, murder rates in the United States have generally been among the highest among Western democracies⁷ since the middle of the nineteenth century.

Professor Roth says poverty and unemployment do not lead to higher murder rates. Nor do stronger punishments and more police keep murder rates down.

He looked at murder among unrelated adults and found four things that relate to homicide rates. One is a belief that a government is stable and that the justice and legal systems are fair and effective. Another is a feeling of trust in government officials.

The third factor is a sense of pride in country and unity⁸ with other citizens. And the fourth is a belief that a person's position in society is satisfactory⁹ and that getting respect does not require violence.

When these feelings are strong, he says, murder rates are generally low. Rates are higher when people do not trust their leaders or feel protected or connected to society. But Professor Roth says even the best political leaders cannot unite a country once a society's problems get out of control.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. I'm Steve Ember.

 

1 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。

2 endorsements   

n.背书( endorsement的名词复数 )；（驾驶执照上的）违章记录；（公开的）赞同；（通常为名人在广告中对某一产品的）宣传

参考例句：

• He must make much money on those tennis shoe endorsements he does. 他替那些网球鞋珍重广告，就赚了不少钱。 来自互联网
• But celebrity endorsements remain an important promotional tool for marketers. 尽管如此，邀明星助阵仍是营销人员重要的推广手段之一。 来自互联网

3 advertising   

n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的

参考例句：

• Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
• The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。

4 indefinite   

adj.不明确的，模糊的，不定的，无限的

参考例句：

• The store will be closed for an indefinite period.这家商店将无限期关闭。
• He gave me an indefinite answer.他给了我一个含糊其辞的答复。

5 economics   

n.经济学，经济情况

参考例句：

• He is studying economics,which subject is very important.他正在学习经济学，该学科是很重要的。
• One can't separate politics from economics.不能把政治与经济割裂开来。

6 historian   

n.历史学家，编史家

参考例句：

• As a historian,he was most typical of the times in which he lived.作为历史学家，他是他所处时代最有代表性的人物。
• He calls himself a historian,but his books are a mere journalism.他自称为历史学家，但是他的书都是些肤浅的通俗作品。

7 democracies   

民主( democracy的名词复数 )； 民主国家； 民主精神； 民主权利

参考例句：

• Emergent democracies created markets that were ripe for exploitation. 新兴的民主国家创造了可供开拓的成熟市场。
• The new democracies face tough challenges. 这些新兴的民主国家面临着严峻挑战。

8 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

9 satisfactory   

adj.令人满意的；可喜的；恰当的

参考例句：

• I hope this arrangement will be satisfactory to you.我希望这种安排会使你满意。
• After much discussion we came at a conclusion satisfactory to all.经过充分讨论，我们得出了大家都很满意的结论。