P2 Don't dismiss that possibility entirely. [21题] About half of U.S. jobsare at high risk of being automated, according to a University of Oxford study,with the middle class disproportionately squeezed. Lower-income jobs likegardening or day care don't appeal to robots. But many middle-classoccupations-trucking, financial advice, software engineering — have arousedtheir interest, or soon will. The rich own the robots, so they will be fine.
P3 This isn't to be alarmist. Optimists point out that technologicalupheaval has benefited workers in the past. The Industrial Revolution didn't goso well for Luddites whose jobs were displaced by mechanized looms, but iteventually raised living standards and created more jobs than it destroyed.Likewise, automation should eventually boost productivity, stimulate demand bydriving down prices, and free workers from hard, boring work. [22题] But in themedium term, middle-class workers may need a lot of help adjusting.
P4 [23题] The first step, as Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee argue inThe Second Machine Age, should be rethinking education and job training.Curriculums —from grammar school to college- should evolve to focus less onmemorizing facts and more on creativity and complex communication. Vocationalschools should do a better job of fostering problem-solving skills and helpingstudents work alongside robots. Online education can supplement the traditionalkind. It could make extra training and instruction affordable. Professionalstrying to acquire new skills will be able to do so without going into debt.
P5 The challenge of coping with automation underlines the need for the U.S.to revive its fading business dynamism: Starting new companies must be madeeasier. In previous eras of drastic technological change, entrepreneurs
smoothedthe transition by dreaming up ways to combine labor and machines. The best usesof 3D printers and virtual reality haven't been invented yet. The U.S. needs thenew companies that will invent them.
P6 [24题] Finally, because automation threatens to widen the gap betweencapital income and labor income, taxes and the safety net will have to berethought. Taxes on low-wage labor need to be cut, and wage subsidies such asthe earned income tax credit should be expanded: This would boost incomes,encourage work, reward companies for job creation, and reduce inequality.
P7 Technology will improve society in ways big and small over the next fewyears, yet this will be little comfort to those who find their lives and careersupended by automation. Destroying the machines that are coming for our jobswould be nuts. But policies to help
workers adapt will be indispensable.
21. Who will be most threatened by automation?
[A] Leading politicians.
[B]Low-wage laborers.
[C]Robot owners.
[D]Middle-class workers.
22 .Which of the following best represent the author’s view?
[A] Worries about automation are in fact groundless.
[B]Optimists' opinions on new tech find little support.
[C]Issues arising from automation need to be tackled
[D]Negative consequences of new tech can be avoided
*注：本文从第一段起，开始提出由automation(自动化)所arise(引发)的问题(即中产阶级就业受威胁)，从第三段起，提出三个措施(教育，创业，税收政策)去进行tackle(应对)。
23. Education in the age of automation should put more emphasis on
[A] creative potential.
[B] job-hunting skills.
[C]individual needs.
[D]cooperative spirit.
24. The author suggests that tax policies be aimed at
[A] encouraging the development of automation.
[B] increasing the return on capital investment.
[C] easing the hostility between rich and poor.
[D] preventing the income gap from widening.
25. In this text, the author presents a problem with
[A] opposing views on it.
[B] possible solutions to it.
[C] its alarming impacts.
[D] its major variations
[25题]
本文中作者提出的问题是：自动化威胁中产阶级工作;以及作者提出的措施是：p4改善教育，p5鼓励创业，p6调整税收。
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