《英语流行话题阅读:语境识词3500》Unit72:你所不了解的美国

　　Unit 72
The United States You May Not Know
The United States is the only superpower in the world, and it is far more advanced than any other country. However, we can't simply attribute its powerfulness and prosperity to its lucky escape from the destruction of the two world wars. What other nations should reflect on is the American spirit and its social system.
The most obvious features of the American Spirit are creativity and pragmatism. Nearly 70% of the important inventions have been made in the U.S. since the first industrial revolution. Since the U.S. occupies such an important position in science and technology, naturally it has become the first superpower in the world.
Americans are always discontent with what they have achieved, and they have an appetite for adventure over the love of ease. European countries have been pursuing a reformist policy of "high tax and high welfare" since the 1960s, while only the U.S. sticks to the policy of "high risk and high return". As a result, the U.S. has become the bellwether¹ of the third industrial revolution (in technology of information, materials and biology).
High salary is not the only attraction that the talents from other countries find in the United States. Some characteristics of American society should not be ignored. Family backgrounds and great wisdom in building connections and playing up the boss, to which great importance is attached in other countries, are not so important to individual development in the U.S. Most people are on the same starting line, and whether one can succeed or not depends on his own ability and hard work.
However, the American character is full of paradoxes². The American people are both extremely romantic and pragmatic. The American is a pleasure-seeking people, but in every field there are workaholics. The Americans are open-minded but they are very conservative on certain matters. Since China's reform and opening-up to the outside world, many media in Western countries have greatly changed their attitudes towards China. However, the American media are singing the same old tune³ against China as they were in the Cold War period. The Americans value freedom, but their government is very fond of interfering⁴ in other countries' internal affairs. What's most puzzling is that the Americans defy authority, but they highly respect the laws and regulations of the society. Therefore, in such a nation that values personal liberty, the society can still be kept in good order and operate with high efficiency. Is it odd? No one can provide a satisfactory answer.

1 bellwether   

n.系铃的公羊，前导，领导者，群众的首领

参考例句：

• University campuses are often the bellwether of change.大学校园往往引领变革的新潮。
• For decades the company was the bellwether of the British economy.几十年来，这家公司一直是英国经济的晴雨表。

2 paradoxes   

n.似非而是的隽语，看似矛盾而实际却可能正确的说法( paradox的名词复数 )；用于语言文学中的上述隽语；有矛盾特点的人[事物，情况]

参考例句：

• Contradictions and paradoxes arose in increasing numbers. 矛盾和悖论越来越多。 来自辞典例句
• As far as these paradoxes are concerned, the garden definitely a heterotopia. 就这些吊诡性而言，花园无疑地是个异质空间。 来自互联网

3 tune   

n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整

参考例句：

• He'd written a tune,and played it to us on the piano.他写了一段曲子，并在钢琴上弹给我们听。
• The boy beat out a tune on a tin can.那男孩在易拉罐上敲出一首曲子。

4 interfering   

adj. 妨碍的 动词interfere的现在分词

参考例句：

• He's an interfering old busybody! 他老爱管闲事！
• I wish my mother would stop interfering and let me make my own decisions. 我希望我母亲不再干预，让我自己拿主意。