新视角研究生英语3Unit4-On a role课文和翻译

第四章 On a Role论角色

You want a what when you get out of college? A job?

大学毕业后你想要什么？一份工作？

“Jobs?” asks Nelson Thall, the hyperbolic research director of the McLuhan Center for Media Sciences, in Toronto. “Jobs? There won’t be any jobs in the 21st century. Jobs are disappearing at a tremendous rate.”

“工作？ ”言辞夸张的多伦多麦克卢汉传媒学中心研究主任纳尔逊•塔尔问道“工作？21世纪工作将不复存在，工作正在迅速地消失。”

Don’t panic, though. Just because there are no jobs, Thall says, “ that doesn’t mean there won’t be a need for work. But you’ll need a role, not a job.”

但别因没了工作感到惊慌。塔尔说，“这并不意味着没有干活的需要。但你需要的是角色，不是工作。”

“Huh?”

“嗯？ ”

Like his mentor, the late media-studies guru Marshall McLuhan, Thall has a penchant for both bold pronouncements and semantics. ''In the U.S. at the turn of

this century,\" he says,“ we were able to turn people into part of the machine through specialization and fragmentation of effort: the assembly line. Now that same process is in reverse under electronic conditions. Today you don't have to break a car into a bunch of tasks, a bunch of jobs — you need one person with a computer. People — jobs 一 ate being replaced by computers, in effect.”

正如他已故的导师——媒体研究专家马歌尔•麦克卢汉一样，塔尔也喜欢作出大胆论断并谝爱语义研究。“在本世纪（指20世纪）初的美国，”他说，“我们能够通过专业分工及任务分解把人变成成机器的一部分：产品装配流水线。现在这一相同的过程在电子化条件下正反向运作着。今天你不需要将汽车生产拆散为一大堆任务或一大堆工作——你需要的是一个人及一台电脑。实际上，人们——也就是各种工作——正被电脑所取代。”

Who’s left? The person with enough adaptability to move on to something new. The person who sees himself not as a cog in the machine, not as a job description, but as a problem solver. The eclectic, creative thinker. The synthesizer. The role-player. ”There’s no need to fragment anymore,” says Thall, ”so you’re no longer have job—— you have roles. We all have to have roles.”

留下的是谁？是具有足够适应能力去开拓新事业的人。此人不是将自己看作是机器上的一个小零件，也不是把自己看作是一个只符合职位招聘要求的对象，而是一个问题解决者。他是兼收并蓄富有创造力的思考者，是综合者，是角色扮演者。塔尔说，“再也没有必要分解工作了，所以你不再有工作——你有的是角色。我们都必须拥有角色。”

Jobs ... roles — whatever you call them, like the man said, you’re still going to have to have one. And, rest assured, they’re still going to be around: According to

Malcolm Cohen, Ph.D., a visiting professor at the Industrial Relations Center of the University of Minnesota, the U.S. economy will create an estimated 4 million new positions between now and the year 2000; between 1994 and 2005, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, America will end up gaining more than 17.7 million jobs. Er, roles.

工作……角色——不论你怎么称呼它们，如塔尔以上所说，你仍然会拥有一个。而且，放宽心，它们仍然在我们身边：据明尼苏达大学劳资关系中心的访问学者马尔科姆•科恩博士说，从现在起到2000年，美国经济将创造约400万个新岗位；根据美国劳工统计局数据，在1994年到2005年之间，美国最终将获得1 770多万个工作岗位。呃，应该说是角色。

But how do you know which one to pick? And how do you get it?

但是，你怎么知道选择哪一个角色呢？而且如何得到它呢？

There’s no such thing as a lifetime career anymore.”says Lynda Garow, director of career services at Clark University, in Worcester Mass. “Employers are becoming smaller. Also, there’s lots of contracting-out now, lots of temp work. And technology has changed what employers want——no matter what you go into now, you’ve got to know something about technology. And markets are getting global, so you’ve got to understand other cultures, other languages”

“再也没有终身职业这样的事情了”，麻省伍斯特市克拉克大学就业服务中心主任林达*盖罗说，“用人单位的规模正在变小。而且，现在有很多外包业务和临时工作。而技术

已经改变了用人单位所需要的东西——不论你現在从事什么职业，都必须懂一些技术。市场正走向全球化，所以你必须懂得其他的文化及语言。”

Don’t pick a field to go into out of panic - or opportunism. “Don’t choose a career based only on what looks like it’s going to be the hot career four or five years from now,” says Garow, “because things change.” That said, it doesn’t hurt to know where prospects are best.

不要由于恐慌或机会主义就匆忙选择进入一个专业领域。“不要只根据今后四五年看起来可能是热门的行业来选择职业盖罗说，“因为情况会变化。”她说这些话的意思是，去了解哪些行业未来前景最好是没有坏处的。

Here’s a look at five fields in which forecasters see good futures in the 21st century:

下面来看一下预测家认为在21世纪前景看好的五个领域。

MEDICINE Health care, futurists say, will continue to be a major growth industry, perhaps the biggest one in terms of（在…方面） overall job growth for the next 20 to 30 years. The reason, in large part, is that more and more Americans are getting older and older and putting a greater and greater strain on existing health-care resources.

医疗。未来学家说，健康护理将继续是一个主要的增长产业，从未来20到30年的整体工作增长来看，或许这将是最大的产业。主要原因是越来越多的美国人正走向老龄化，

对现有的保健资源造成了越来越大的压力。

According to Cohen, there are currently about 600,000 physicians in the United States. Which would be plenty, he says, if more of them were family doctors; unfortunately, specialization was the trend in the ‘80s. Now, in the era of health-care reform — the age of “managed care:’ 一 the primary-care physician is the so-called gatekeeper of the system; you can't see that specialist without seeing your primary doctor first. Moral: If you want to be a doctor, Cohen says, think about getting back to basics.

据科恩说，现在美国约有60万名内科医生。他说，如果其中更多的是家庭医生的话，数量是足够的。可惜的是，专业化是20世纪60年代的趋势。现在，在保健改革的时代——“管理保健”的年代——基本护理医生被称为这一体系中的守门人：你必须先看基本护理医生之后才能见专家，科恩说，其中得出的教训是：如果你想成为一名医生，就要考虑从基础做起。

But you don't have to be a doctor. Although the bulk of new health-care jobs will be fairly menial — the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts there will be 0,000 new jobs for personal-care aides and home-health aides during the next 11 years — there will be plenty of work for college graduates.

但你并非必须成为一名医生，虽然大部分新出现的保健工作档次不高——美国劳工统计局预计未来11年中个人及家庭保健助理职业将有万个新岗位——对大学毕业生来说这些岗位足够啦。

TECHNPLOGY Medicine aside, the other field in which virtually every forecaster sees big growth in the coming decade is computers. Not hardware but software and networking, especially anything to do with that mother of all networks, the Internet.

技术。除了医疗以外，几乎每位预测家都认为在未来10年中有巨大増长的另一领域是计算机。不是硬件而是软件及网络，特别是与网络之母——英特网相关联的任何产业。

At present, Cohen says, \"demand is greatest for people who have the ability to write the software; engineers and analysts are in high demand.” Eventually, though, basic programming chores will move \"offshore,” as they have already begun to do, to places like India and Pakistan. The U.S. programming industry will turn its attention to what Art Shostak (Ph.D. ,a professor of sociology and the future at Drexel University, in Philadelphia) calls

“the

edge\" — complex

Internet-based applications and highly interactive multimedia software. What’s more, as the technology improves, becoming faster and more stable, there will finally be software that creates jobs for its users as well as its makers — and not just Web designers and architects, either, but advertising professionals and marketers. \"Anyone who can come up with innovative（创新的） ways for businesses to use the Web will come out a winner,” says Tom Duening, Ph.D., an assistant dean of the University of Houston’s College of Business Administration

如今,科恩说，“需求量最大的是具有编写软件能力的人；工程师及分析师的需求量也很大。”但最终，基本编程这样单调的活儿将转移到“海外\"，现在已经开始这样做了，转移到像印度、巴基斯坦这样的地方去了。美国编程业将把注意力转向阿特.肖斯塔克（费城

德茁克塞尔大学社会学与未来学博士、教授）所称之为的“尖端技术”——基于因特网的复杂应用程序及互动程度高的多媒体软件。此外，随着技术进步，运行速度更快性能更稳定，最终将出现的软件既能为其使用者又能为其制造者创造工作岗位——而且也不仅仅是网页设计员及网页架构设计师，还有专业广告人员及营销人员。“任何人.只要能为企业提出创造性地使用网络的方法，就将成为成功者。”休斯顿大学工商管理学院院长助理汤姆•杜宁博士如是说。

MANAGEMENT Are there people in your household who speak something other than English as their native language? Once upon a time, being a first- or second-generation American was a liability. Not so in the 21st century, according to labor forecasters. ”I suspect that for some time to come, there will be major jobs of the globalist variety in management,\" says Shostak. “Fortune 500 companies continue to look for young people who are multicultural who can move between the corporate headquarters and emerging markets.” In particular, “young Americans with Chinese language facility should do very, very well.

管理。在你家中，有母语不是英语而是说其他语言的人吗？过去，身为第一代或第二代美国人是一种不利条件。据劳工预测人士说，21世纪不会再是这样的了。肖斯塔克说，“我觉得在今后一段时间，管理行业的主要工作将是全球范围的，又是多种多样的。财富500强公司要继续寻找拥有多元文化背景的年轻人，他们能在公司总部及出现的市场之间进行调动。\"特别是，“能说中文的美国人，将干得非常非常出色。”

“People who learned a second language at the knee of grandparents may find in the early part of the 2lst century that they can leverage that to great advantage,” Shostak says. “The person who has only Americana as his calling

card may be significantly disadvantaged for the first time.”

肖斯塔克说，“那些在祖父母膝下长大并学习了一门外语的人，在21世纪初将发现他们能充分发挥这—优势。以美国传统和历史为名片的正宗美国佬将首次处于劣势。”

EDUCATION Have you always wanted to work with children? If so, then consider working with rich, smart children. Teaching in public elementary and secondary schools won’t be a high-growth, high-salary occupation in the decades to come, Shostak says, \"but there will be new career possibilities in post-school tutoring for the children of what [Secretary of Labor] Robert Reich calls the 'fortunate fifth’: kids going to for-profit computer centers after school --- like Japanese kids now and Southeast Asian kids in this country.”

教育。你总想做与孩子打交道的工作吗？如果是这样的话，那么考虑一下富家聪明子弟吧。未来几十年中在公立小学和中学教书不会是高增长、高薪水的职业，肖斯塔克说，“但现在对孩子进行课后辅导将成为职场新机遇，这些孩子就是被美国劳工罗伯特.賴克称为‘幸运1/5’那部分人的子女：孩子们放学后去贏利性的计算机中心上辅导课——正如现今的日本儿童及在美国的东南亚裔的孩子们所做的那样。”

RECREATION Not so many years ago, a student who got a degree in leisure services management and then moved to Vail1 was called a ski bum. In the 21st century, that person will be known as an adventure-travel entrepreneur, Yes, now there's actually a market that justifies four years of skiing, mountain biking, backpacking and bungee jumping. \"Anything involving adventure is hot.” says Shostak. “Adventure travel, adventure vacations.\"

娱乐。就在几年前，一名学生在休闲服务管理专业获得学位后去韦尔滑雪场工作，被称为滑雪迷。在21世纪，这样的人将被称为探险旅游创业者。是的，现在确实有这样的市场，证明花4年时间学习滑雪、骑山地自行车、背包游及蹦极跳是值得的。“任何与探险有关的都是热门，”肖斯塔克说，“如探险旅游和探险度假。”

It's all about what futurists call the new high-tech, high-touch environment. That is, TV, movies and computers have raised our entertainment threshold so high that when we actually go outdoors and do something, it damn well better be exciting.

“For

college kids who have taken rock-climbing courses and have

credentials,\" says Shostak, there's real entrepreneurial opportunity, the potential to build a lucrative small business right out of school.

未来学家所说的高科技，高敏感的环境。那就是，电视、电影和计算机已将我们的娱乐起点提到如此高的程度，以至于当我们真的到户外去做什么活动的时候，它最好是惊险刺激的。“对于学过攀岩课程并获得资格证书的年轻大学生而言，”肖斯塔克说，“确实存在创业机会，一走出校门就有潜力建立一个小规模但获利颇丰的企业”

How do you prepare for a role in the 21st century? Five basic rules;

你如何为21世纪的角色做准备呢？这里有5条基本准则：

1. Develop a close personal relationship with computers. “It’s critical in any job you go into,” says Larry Salters, director of the Career Center at the University of South Carolina, in Columbia. ,”To keep yourself marketable, you’ve got to have technology in your background. And computer literacy means a lot more than

word processing. You’ve got to know how to access information and use that information to support your employer's goals; you've got to use technology to gain edges in the market.”

发展与计算机的密切个人关系。“无论你从事任何职业，这都是至关重要的，\"哥伦比亚市南卡罗莱纳大学就业中心主任拉里.索尔特斯说，\"为了保持自己的市场杨销度，你必须拥有技术背景。而计算机基础知识和运用能力指的不仅仅是文字处理。你必须知道如何获取并使用信息来帮助雇主达到目标，你必须用技术来获得市场竞争优势。”

2. Learn the basic principles of running a small business. ”Lots of universities are changing their core curriculums,” says the University of Houston’s Duening. “I think it's a real shame that basic business isn't a core requirement.

2.学习管理小型公司的基本原则。“许多大学生正在改变他们的核心课程。”休斯顿大学的杜宁说，“我觉得基础商务不是一门核心课是件憾事”

Most people still think about getting into a large organization that's going to pay them a steady salary and two weeks of vacation and benefits for the rest of their lives -- but that’s not going to happen.” In the 21st century, Duening says, there will be a lot more telecommuting, a lot more part-timers and temps and freelancers, a lot more consulting and “outsourcing.”

“大多数人仍想着进大公司工作，公司支付他们稳定的收入，提供两周休假以及一生都能享受的福利——但这样的事不会发生了。”在21世纪，杜宁说，将有更多的远距离网上上班，更多兼职人员、临时工及自由职业者，更多的咨询工作及外包业务”。

\"Let's assume everybody is going to run something called Me Inc., and they’ re going to have to run it for the next 40 years,\" Duening says. \"People will need to know how to manage their finances, how to do their own tax returns and how to market their skills. Those who are able to package and sell their skills –and know how to price them — are the ones who will prosper.”

“让我们假设每人都将管理一家名为‘自我’的股份有限公司，而且必须持续管理40年。”杜宁说，“人们将需要知道如何管理财务，如何进行退税及推销他们的技能，那些能够包装并推销自己的技能——而且知道如何给技能定价的人——就是兴旺发达的人”

3. Learn to work with others. “Increasingly, teamwork is becoming important” in American business, says Cohen. The distance between boss and worker is smaller nowadays; because of corporate downsizing there’s less middle management. The future is about collaboration, teamwork.

3.学会与他人合作。在美国企业中，“团队合作正变得愈发重要”，科恩说道。如今老板与员工之间的距离缩短了：由于公司精简机构，中层管理人员更少了，企业的未来在于协作和配合。

Where do you learn those skills? Sports. Volunteer organizations. Management classes. The smartest idea of all: an internship. “Companies want work experience as well as a degree,” says Salters. “A 3.2 and experience is better than 4.0 and none.”

你从哪里学到这些技能呢？从体育运动、志愿者组织和管理课程中去学习。最高明的

主意就是：实习。“公司对工作经历及学位的要求缺一不可。”索尔特索说，“平均绩点分3.2再加上实习经历比平均绩点分4.0而无实习经历来的强。”

4. Don't get bogged down in the details. Presumably the world is only getting more complicated. But that’s OK. “Kids have to realize,” says the McLuhan Center’s Thall, ”that the world is moving faster than they can make sense of it.”

4.不要让细节阻碍发展，也许世界只会变得更复杂。但那没什么。“年轻人必须认识到，”麦克卢汉中心的塔尔说，“世界变化之快，令他们来不及理解。”

Thus, in the future, says Duening, you should avoid overspecialization. Don't get tunnel vision — be flexible, be ready to move. While a master's degree may indeed be useful and increase your currency on the job market, Ph.D.s are becoming passe. “The return on the investment in advanced degrees becomes less and less over time,\" Duening says, so finish your schooling early and then “let your profession dictate your next area of specialization.” In the past, job security meant staying safely in the same place, but in the 21st century, security will be a function of your adaptability; moving around --moving laterally —may be just as important as moving up. \"Don't rely on [academic] credentials to get you where you're going,” says Duening. “Rely on skill building.”

因此，杜宁说，将来你必须避免专业过细。不要局限于一孔之见——要有灵活性，要准备好调换工作。硕士学位可能确实有用，而且能增加你在就业市场上的流通度，但博士学位则过时了。“随着时间的流逝,.高等学位的投资回报率将变得越来越低，”杜宁说.所以及早完成你的学业，随后“让你的职业决定下一个专业领域。”过去，工作安全感意味

着安稳的呆在同一个地方.但在21世纪安全感是你适应能力所起的一种功能，向四周发展——横向发展——可能它与升迁同样重要，“不要依靠学历文凭决定你的事业去向.”杜宁说，“要依赖技能的培养。”

Don’t forget problem solving, either. Indeed, although the 21st century will be more complex than any that has preceded it, 'I don't think a liberal arts education is by any means dead,” says Cohen.

也不要忘记解决问题的能力。确实，虽然21世纪比此前任何时代都更为复杂，“我决不认为文科教育没有出路。”科恩说。

5. Do what you dig. While it's perhaps true that you'll have more options in the 21st century, it’s also true that when you strip off the sugar coating, you're 'going to have to hustle a lot more than your parents did if you really want to be successful. Consequently, says Shostak, “It’s more important than ever to find something —and it can be anything --- that pleases you personally. Rather than go toward a growth field, spend time establishing what would pull you along. What would you wake up on Monday morning excited to go to?”

5.做你喜欢做的事。在21世纪你可能确实有更多的选择.但同样确实的是，当你剥去裹在外面的糖衣时，你如果真想要取得成功，必须比上一辈更为忙碌。因此，肖斯塔克说，“比以往任何时刻都更为重要的是，找到一件你个人喜欢做的事情——它可以是任何事情。不要走向一个有增长势头的领域，而是花时间来确定什么是吸引你的东西。什么会是你周一早上醒来，充满激情想去做的事？”

Also, says Shostak, just because a field isn't growing wildly doesn’t necessarily mean that it's drying up. \"There will still be teachers, for instance,” he says. “There will just be more competition. But if teaching art to children is something you get all tingly about, for God's sake, go do it — don’t let someone like me discourage you.”

肖斯塔克还说，仅仅因为一个领域没有大幅度增长并不意味着它在枯竭。“比如说，仍有教师这一职业，”他说。“只不过竞争更多罢了。但如果教孩子美术就是件让你感到兴奋的事，看在上帝份上，就去做吧——不要让我这样的人泄了你的气。”