編者研究發現，這篇長篇閱讀文章選編自國外網站上一篇主題為人口老齡化的社會類文章。其原文如下(命題者沒有刪減或者 增加原文內容，只是改寫了原文中難度較髙的單詞和個別文字的格式，括號內標 底紋的部分是命題者添加或改編的內容，藍色字體為設題點):

Into the Unknown

The world has never seen population ageing before. Can it cope?

A) Until the early 1990s nobody much thought about whole populations getting older. The UN had the foresight to convene a “world assembly on ageing” back in 1982, but that came and went. By 1994 the World Bank had noticed that something big was happening. In a report entitled “Averting the Old Age Crisis”, it argued that pension arrangements in most countries were unsustainable.

B) For the next ten years a succession of books, mainly by Americans, sounded the alarm. They had titles like “Young vs Old”，“Gray Dawn” and “The Coming Generational Storm”, and their message was stark (blunt): health-care systems were heading for the rocks, pensioners were taking young people to the cleaners, and soon there would be intergenerational warfare.

C) Since then the debate has become less emotional, not least because a lot more is known about the subject. Books, conferences and research papers have proliferated (multiplied). International organisations such as the OECD and the EU issue regular reports. Population ageing is on every agenda, from G8 economic conferences to NATO summits. The World Economic Forum plans to consider the future of pensions and health care at its prestigious Davos conference early next year. The media, including this newspaper, are giving the subject extensive coverage.

D) Whether all that attention has translated into sufficient action is another question. Governments in rich countries now accept that their pension and health-care promises will soon become unaffordable, and many of them have embarked on reforms, but so far only timidly. That is not surprising: politicians with an eye on the next election will hardly rush to introduce unpopular measures that may not bear fruit for years, perhaps decades.

E) The outline of the changes needed is clear. To avoid fiscal (貝才政的)meltdown, public pensions and health-care provision will have to be reined back severely and taxes may have to go up. By far the most effective method to restrain pension spending is to give people the opportunity to work longer, because it increases tax revenues and reduces spending on pensions at the same time. It may even keep them alive longer. John Rother, the AARP’s head of policy and strategy, points to studies showing that other things being equal, people who remain at work have lower death rates than their retired peers.

F) Younger people today mostly accept that they will have to work for longer and that their pensions will be less generous. Employers still need to be persuaded that older workers are worth holding on to. That may be because they have had plenty of younger ones to choose from, partly thanks to the post-war baby-boom and partly because over the past few decades many more women have entered the labour force, increasing employers，choice. But the reservoir of women able and willing to take up paid work is running low and the baby-boomers are going grey.

G) In many countries immigrants have been filling such gaps in the labour force as have already emerged [ and remember that the real crunch (shortage) is still around ten years off]. Immigration in the developed world is the highest it has ever been, and it is making a useful difference. In still-fertile America it currently accounts for about 40% of total population growth, and in fast-ageing western Europe for about 90%.

H) On the face of it, it seems the perfect solution. Many developing countries have lots of young people in need of jobs; many rich countries need helping hands that will boost tax revenues and keep up economic growth. But over the next few decades labour forces in rich countries are set to shrink so much that inflows of immigrants would have to increase enormously to compensate: to at least twice their current size in western Europe’s most youthful countries, and three times in the older ones.

Japan would need a large multiple of the few immigrants it has at present. Public opinion polls show that people in most rich countries already think that immigration is too high. Further big increases would be politically unfeasible.

I) To tackle the problem of ageing populations at its root, “old” countries would have to rejuvenate (使年輕)themselves by having more of their own children. A number of them have tried, some more successfully than others. But it is not a simple matter of offering financial incentives or providing more child care. Modern urban life in rich countries is not well adapted to large families. Women find it hard to combine family and career. They often compromise by having just one child.

J) And if fertility in ageing countries does not pick up? It will not be the end of the world, at least not for quite a while yet, but the world will slowly become a different place. Older societies may be less innovative and more risk-averse (strongly disinclined to take risks) than younger ones. By 2025 at the latest, about half the voters in America and most of those in western European countries will be over 50—and older people turn out to vote in much greater numbers than younger ones. Academic studies have found no evidence so far that older voters have used their clout (power) at the ballot box to push for policies that specifically benefit them, though if in future there are many more of them they might start doing so.

K) Nor is there any sign of the intergenerational warfare predicted in the 1990s. After all, older people themselves mostly have families. In a recent study of parents and grown-up children in 11 European countries, Karsten Hank of Mannheim University found that 85% of them lived within 25km of each other and the majority of them were in touch at least once a week.

L) Even so, the shift in the centre of gravity to older age groups is bound to have a profound effect on societies, not just economically and politically but in all sorts of other ways too. Richard Jackson and Neil Howe of America’s CSIS, in a thoughtful book called “The Graying of the Great Powers”, argue that, among other things, the ageing of the developed countries will have a number of serious security implications.

M) For example, the shortage of young adults is likely to make countries more reluctant to commit the few they have to military service. In the decades to 2050, America will find itself playing an ever-increasing role in the developed world’s defence effort. Because America’s population will still be growing when that of most other developed countries is shrinking, America will be the only developed country that still matters geopolitically(地緣政治上).

Ask me in 2020

N) There is little that can be done to stop population ageing, so the world will have to live with it. But some of the consequences can be ameliorated (alleviated). Many experts now believe that given the right policies, the effects, though momentous (grave), need not be catastrophic. Most countries have recognised the need to do something and are beginning to act.

O) But even then there is no guarantee that their efforts will work. What is happening now is historically unprecedented. Ronald Lee, director of the Centre on the Economics and Demography of Ageing at the University of California, Berkeley, puts it succinctly (briefly and clearly): “ We don’t really know what population ageing will be like, because nobody has done it yet.”

下面我們將從如何刪改原文和如何設題、解題這兩個方面分析命題人的出 題思路，解除六級長篇閱讀的制勝之道。

如何刪改原文

從上文可以看出，原文是一篇社會類議論文，為了使選文更加適合作六級段 落信息匹配題的考查文章，命題者對原文進行了一些修改，主要為改寫原文中過 難的單詞：

stark、proliferated、crunch、clout、ameliorated和 momentous 這幾個單詞對于

大多數考生來說都是生詞，為了便于考生理解，命題者將上述單詞分別換成了 blunt、multiplied、shortage、power、alleviated和grave。此外，命題者對原文中的 risk-averse進行了改寫，用strongly disinclined to take risks 代替該詞;原文中的 succinctly被命題者改為briefly and clearly，降低了文章的難度。

如何設題和解題

從原文藍色字體部分的位置可以看出，設題點分布得較為平均，需要考生注 意的是相對于之前快速閱讀的題文同序原則，新題型的難度加大，即題目不是依 照文章的段落順序依次出題。另外，命題者所選取的設題點基本上都是細節信 息，大部分題目都可以根據題干中的信息詞定位到原文相關段落，進而確定答 案。具體題目如下：

46. Employers should realise it is important to keep older workers in the workplace. 解題：根據題干信息詞Employers和older workers定位到F段第二句，題目是對 文章原句的同義轉述，其中，題干的Employers should realise同義轉述了原文 的Employers still need to be persuaded that;題干的important to keep 同義轉述 了原文的worth holding on to。

47. A recent study found that most old people in some European countries had regular weekly contact with their adult children.

解題：根據題干信息詞A recent study和European countries可以定位到K段最后 一句，題目是對原文的同義轉述，題干的some European countries對應原文的

11 European countries;題干的most old people和their adult children對應原文的 the majority of them，題干的had regular weekly contact 對應原文的 were in touch at least once a week。

48. Few governments in rich countries have launched bold reforms to tackle the problem of population ageing.

解題：根據題干信息詞governments in rich countries和reforms可以定位到D段 第二句，題目是對原文信息的歸納。文中的句子理解起來較簡單，其中many of them have embarked on reforms, but so far only timidly 可以理解為 Few governments have launched bold reforms ;而 their pension and health-care promises will soon become unaffordable 貝1J 被抽象概括為 the problem of population ageing。

49. In a report published some 20 years ago, the sustainability of old-age pension systems in most countries was called into doubt.

解題：根據題干信息詞In a report和sustainability可以定位到A段，題目是對原 文最后兩句話的歸納和轉述。原文中的時間是1994年，題目用some 20 years ago來轉述，這是設題者慣用的伎倆(題干中的時間表達一般不會照搬原文， 而經常會換一種方式表達，以增加定位難度)。另夕卜，題干的the sustainability of old-age pension systems是對原文pension arrangements...were unsustainable的 轉述;call into doubt(對 表示異議)同義轉述了原文的argued。

50. Countries that have a shortage of young adults will be less willing to send them to war.

解題：根據題干信息詞a shortage of young adults可以定位到M段第一句話。題 目是對原文的同義轉述，出題點在舉例處，題干的less willing to同義轉述了原 文的more reluctant to; send them to war同義轉述了原文的commit the few they have to military service。

51. One-child families are more common in ageing societies due to the stress of urban life and the difficulties of balancing family and career.

解題：根據題干中的信息詞urban life和family and career可以定位到I段的最后

三句話，題目是對原文的總結概括，原文提到，發達國家的都市生活不適合 大家庭，女人們發現很難兼顧家庭和工作，她們經常以只要一個孩子作為妥 協，由此可知，由于城市生活的壓力以及很難平衡工作與生活，發達國家很 多家庭只要一個孩子。由此可得答案。

52. A series of books, mostly authored by Americans, warned of conflicts between the older and younger generations.

解題：根據題干信息詞books和by Americans可以定位到B段，題目是對原文的 同義轉述。原文的主語中的a succession of換成了它的近義詞組A series of;

mainly by Americans 換成了 另夕卜一種說法 mostly authored by Americans ; sounded the alarm 換成 了 其同義表達 warned of;原文中的 intergenerational warfare貝lj被替換為conflicts between the older and younger generations。

53. Compared with younger ones, older societies tend to be less innovative and take fewer risks.

解題：根據題干信息詞older societies和less innovative可以定位到J段第三句 話，題目是對原文的同義轉述，題目中的tend to對應原文中的may;題目中的 take fewer risks對應原文中的strongly disinclined to take risks。

54. The best solution to the pension crisis is to postpone the retirement age.

解題：根據題干信息詞The best solution和pension crisis可以定位到E段第三句 話，題目是對原文的同義轉述，題目中的The best solution對應原文中的the most effective method; pension crisis即文章中的pension spending; postpone the retirement age 即文章中的work longer。

55. Immigration as a means to boost the shrinking labour force may meet with resistance in some rich counties.

解題：根據題干信息詞Immigration、means和resistance可以定位到H段，題目 是對原文的總結推斷，H段的第一句提到“在應對勞動力不足的問題上，移民 似乎是完美的解決方案。”這句話對應題目的前半句話，而本段最后一句話又 提到“民意測驗顯示，大多數富裕國家的人巳經認為移民太多，移民人數繼續 增加可能會引起動蕩。”這暗指了在一些富裕國家，移民政策會遇到一些 阻力。原文中的unfeasible意為“難實施的”，對應題干中的meet with resistance。

解題技巧匯總

一、攻克詞匯關

詞匯是閱讀的基石。在長篇閱讀中，詞匯量的重要性進一步凸現。很難想象 如果沒有詞匯量的支持，如何能在這么短的時間里完成閱讀任務。所以考生平時 應該注意積累詞匯，只有在每個單詞上停留的時間少了，才能有更多的時間來 把握整個句子乃至整個文段。

二、攻克思想關

在準備六級的過程中，考生必須達到的狀態是——做題時注意力能高度集 中。看文章時要撇開私心雜念，擺脫畏難心理，做到心無旁騖，也就是說，要把自 己的思想融入到正在看的文章中。集中注意力不是說出來的，而是練出來的，考 生一定要在平時做閱讀練習時嚴格要求自己。一篇文章要一口氣看完，不要斷斷 續續，更不要養成邊看邊默念的習慣。

三、攻克閱讀技巧關

閱讀的技巧包括跳讀、略讀等很多種。最簡單的做法就是，試著連句或者一 目幾行。讀文章時注意不要逐字看，或是一句句地看，要把兩個或三個句子連起 來，一氣呵成把它們看完。培養這種能力的關鍵，就是要拓寬自己閱讀時的視 幅，這要下很大的苦功，但是只要持之以恒，就會取得效果。

四、攻克閱讀量關

進行大量的閱讀練習也是很重要的。從根本上講，閱讀速度的提髙是個日積 月累的過程。只有通過大量閱讀英文材料，閱讀速度乃至閱讀能力才會有質的飛 躍。建議考生連續半年保持每天8～10篇英文散文或議論文的閱讀量，只要能堅 持下來，閱讀速度自然會有飛躍。