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To Find Energy Sources That Are More Enviromentally FriendlyOn March 24.1989,a ship called the Exxon Valdez ran aground in Prince William Sound in Alaska.The ship was en route to Los Angeles and was carrying more than 150 million liters of crude oil Within six hours of its grounding ,more than thirty million liters were spread across many hundreds of square kilometers of water,and it would ultimately wash up along more than two thousand kilometers of shoreline.Many thousands of birds,plants ,seals, otters and other marine animals died and the oil spill made news headlines around the world.Oil was still in the environment more than ten years later,and the ecomomic impacts ran to hundreds of millions of dollars.While there were several contributing causes of the Exxon Valdez disaster, it happened for one reason: human beings use huge amounts of energy. Fossil fuels, including oil, are used to power our cars, boats and airplanes and to heat our homes and cook our food. Electricity, generated from failing water, buring coal or other sources, runs our refrigerators, computers , television sets and hundreds of other things. North Amercians are in African, uses energy, consumers, per capita, in the world but everyone, whether in North Amercian or in Africa,uses energy, and harnessing and using energy sources such as coal, oil or even falling water puts a huge strain on the environment.If we won‟t stop doing this, and even the most ardent environmentalist doesn‟t dare to even dream about that, can we find ways to use enery more efficiently, ues it without putting pollutants into the air and water and find energy sources that are more environmentally friendly? There are some encouraging signs because we are now using more solar energy and wind energy, and we are beginning to develop truly workable electric cars, but the reality is these things are having only a small effect so far. We will contribute to use fossil fuels for decades to come, and we will continue to pump poisons into our air and water. We are also learning to remediate some of the damage. We have already done because of poor environmental practices in the past.Unfortunately, all of these cost a lot of money and another reality is that, while the rich countries will spend the money, the poorer countries won‟t or, in some cases can‟t, so there is a consistant battle going on. It‟s a battle we can‟t afford to lose and some people fear we have already lost. Those who say we have already gone too far often point to global warming to prove their case and we will look at this phenomenon next month in Love Our World.PlanetHow the underwhelming Copenhagen Accord could yet turn into a useful documentFACED with the undoubled grandeur of climate change, a grand response seems in order. But, to the immediate disappointment to most of those participating and watching, the much anticipated UN climate conference held in Copenhagen in December led to no such thing.Initial ambitions for a legally binding agreement with numerical targets for big emitters hadalready been abandoned in favour of a politically binding deal in which developed and developing countries would commit themselves to numerical targets to cut emissions. In the event a few countries produced a short “accord” that sets dowm no specific limits for future emissions beyond those that its signatories volunteer and the commitments they have made so far do not look tough enough to limit the rise in temperature to above preindustrial levels, the widely accepted boundary beyond which scientists do not recommend goingHardly a grand response. Yet the Copenhagen. Accord is not the disaster that it at first appears. On two issue in particular the Copenhagen conference may yet mark the beginning of a new way forward.First, the UN‟s climate process has for more than a decade been bedeviled by a binary split between developed and developing countries. Under the Kyoto Protocol, only developed countries committed themselves to cutting emissions; developing countries made no such promises. That was the main reason why Kyoto failed, because Amercia would not accept a treaty that required nothing of countries such as china, and china insisted that the rich world should bear most of the necessary costs of constraining emissions. At Copenhagen developed countries were determined to move beyond this structure; many developing countries to hang on to it. That was the obstacle on which the conference fondered.Yet the Copenhagen Accord makes some progress towards closing this split. Developing, as well as developed. Countries signed up to it. And have agreed to an intemational role in monitioring any cuts they commit themselves to. That is a crucial concession.More than they can chewThe second reason for hope is that Copenhagen‟s failure may have encouraged the developed of political structures better suited to the challenge. Climate change is not just an unusually grand problem. It is also an unusually complex one, which crosses and confounds the boundaries that normally define our world; from farming to forestry, shipping to sovereignty, all sorts of interests are brought together in new ways that demand new actions. Trying to deal with all the sources of the many gases involved in a single set of negotiations, in a forum of 193 countries, is always s tall order.The Copenhagen Accord edges towards allowing negotiations to take place in new forums. Some of its provisions,notably on mechanisms for funding mitigation efforts in developing countries, can take effect outside the UN process. That could mark a new plurslism in climate politics, allowing coalitions of the willing to form for specific purposes –such as slowing deforestation. Or stemming emissions from shipping.There are risks to slice up the problem into smaller pieces. Bunding everything together, so that all parties need to offer some give in order to get their take, is a time-honoured format for negotiations; and stepping back form doing everything in one forum may mean doing less overall. But the world has twice, at Kyoto and at Copenhagen, tried to deal with the problem in one go, and failed. Smaller groups such as the G20 or the Major Economies Forum offer a better prospect for carbon, and in debating and approving or rejecting agreements whose details will largely be worked out elsewhere.Many problems lie ahead-and not just as a result of Copenhagen‟s failure. The main danger lies in the Amercian whether to approve or reject legislation to set up a cap-and-trade system to put a price on carbon. That will have more impact than any intemational conference, includingCopenhagen, on the future levels of greenhouse-gas emissions. But global negotiations will need to continue-and the participants need to learn ong useful lesson from Copenhagen. Climate change is too big a problem to be swallowed in a single bite. Smaller groups. Dealing with more manageable-sized chunks, have a better chanceMurdoch Attempts To Weaken GoogleRupert Murdoch‟s effort to change the economics of the internet by stopping Google linking to stories in his newspapers looks, at first glance, like an act of self-destruction. That is how News Corp‟s negotiations on a deal to favor Microsoft‟s search engine Bing instead is viewed by many rivals and technology experts.On closer inspection, however, Murdoch‟s initiative has an intriguing logic for other media groups facing the market power of Google. It may not achieve his desired result but it indicates how little he has to lose in revenur terms by experimenting.Most publishiers, including newspapers, have so far made their stories available free online. Their strategy is to make up for lost revenues from print subscriptions by gaining larger audiences online. The Guardian, for example, now reaches 30 millin unique users a month.One common strategy is to achieve higer ranking on Google and news aggregators so that people are drawn to them. This is what Jeff Jarvis,a professor at City University of New York, commends as “the link economy”.Newspapers, however, face the painful reality that, while traffic from search engines is valuable in marketing terms, it has not produced the revenue for which they hoped. Online advertising rates are fallig because of the mass of content on the web, and advertisers do not reward random clicks.Some 23 percent of traffic to the online Wall Streat Journal,Murdonch‟s flagship property, comes through Google and yet it probably brings in a few millions of dollars of advertising revenue. Murdoch, having considered this financial reality, hopes that Microsoft will offer more.His battle is part of a bigger contest over the future of newspapers online. Only The Wall Street Journal and The Finanicial Times have so far managed to charge their readers online., although The New York Times is again considering it, and The Times is in the forefront of Murdoch‟s efforts to chargeNews if far from the online form of content that draws people to use search engines, so Microsoft is in a stronger bargaining position than News Corp. Yet even Murdoch‟s rivals should welcome his attempt to shake things up.No one can predict what combination of subscription and advertising revenues will be able to attract, and how many of them will survive the digital shake-out. It is clear, however, that they can not rely on Google alone for their salvation.专家答疑解惑：Besides, a book is more portable than a computer, has a higher-resolution display, can be written on and dog-eared and is comparatively dirt cheep.Leisure educationLeisure awareness,leisure consiciousnessLeisure resourcesLeisure education can help people develop their appreciation, interests, skills, and opportunities that will enable them to enhance their leisure awareness, social interaction skills, leisure resources, and leisure activity skillsWith the enchancement of their leisure consciousness, the people have begun to choose various ways to spend their long holidays.We must make full use of public leisure resource such as open spaces, public parks, museums, art galleries, stadiums, swimming pools, cinemas and theatress.When leisure is generally mentioned, people will think of singing publicly in a karaoke bar, going on a tour, taking a saune bath and watching TV and so on. It seems that leisure is always associated with entertainment.But leisure is not just entertainment. Through leisure activities, we can improve the quality of our personal life. So we should enrich the intension and extension of our leisure time. For instance, we may act as volunteers, help the disadvantaged groups, participats in such activites as environmental protection,public welfare, community service, donation and philanthropy, take care of stray animals, plant trees, and so on.Leisure should not be limited to eating,drinking, being merry, seeking pleasure, taking tours and doing shopping.Through leisure activities, we should integrate our selfdevelopment with the social atmosphere full of warmth, friendship and mutual help through this way of acting.A special summerIt was the first summer of my four year-long university because of its significance. I didn‟t dicide to open up an English summer trianiing class due to my mother‟s encouragement. She said that I should take this opportunity to develop myself.Also I thought myself that I should do something special and meaningful to make this summer unforgettable.Then I began to take actions. Mom comanied me going to the nearest to our home to publize with exciting, and my father help me arrange the place to give a teach which we called “classroom” .Three days later, my first “teaching career”began. I could still remember how anxious I was the moment I first stood on the platform. However I could feel that I was popular with my junior graduates. The following 30 days. I taught them a lot, namely, new words, new prases, new sentences, new grammer. And I did what the best I could do. Simulataneously my students performed preety well. However, they were not in coorperetion with me every time in my class. The worst thing happened to me was that a naughty boy talked something loudly with his deskmate that had nothing to do with my teaching. It made me so angry that I called him name and dcriticized him in public. As a consequence, the boy refused to come to have class the next day. What was worse, he spred rumours saying that I had hit him in public. Apparently, I was the one whose heart hurt. Having heared some people said something not real about me and realized my changing, mom encouraged me frequently. Meanwhile I thought to myself that I was the one whoshould be apologized but not the one who should give the apology because of the saying”Deeds speak louder than words”. Not the least but the last, I overcomed this difficult obstacle.In general, the feeling of this training is nice. We have stayed together each antemeridiem for 30 days, learning, communicating, laughing, playing. In class, I taught them knowledge and helped them preview the previous ones they had learned hoping that they can remember them permanently. After class,they would tell me some funny things happened to them or they would tell some meaningful things they had done recently, like, grew a flowerpot of chrysanthemum, helped her mother sell vegetables in the market. It made all of us delighted. Somehow, it made me be easier on intimate terms with them and made them study more efficiently.“Time flys”, 30 days went extremely fast. All of us had to say googbye to each other with a pity. Although it was very laborious that my waist ached each time, I have gained a lot. As the saying goes ”No pains, no gains”. This summer is significant to me. I have learned that to be a good teacher requires a good mastery of knowledge, patience, the most essential one is responsibility. Only in this way can I approach to my dream of being an exellent teacher. I love this training, I love this summer.The last summer vacation was especially important because it was the first one in my four year-year college life. I decide to open an English summer training class due to my mother‟s encouragement. She said that I should take this opportunity to develop myself as a teacher. Also I want to do something special and meaningful to make this summer unforgettable.Then I began to take actions. Mom accompanied me around the neighborhood, promoting my training class, and my father helped me arrange a place that could be used as my classroom. Three days later, my first teaching career began. I could still remember how anxious I was the moment I first stood in front of the class. However I could feel that I was popular with my junior-high graduates. During the following 30 days, I taught them a lot , such as new words, new phrases, new sentences, and new grammar. I did my best, and my students also performed pretty well. However, they were not always in cooperation with me in my class. The worse thing happened to me was that a naughty boy talked about something loudly with his desk-mate that had nothing to do with my teaching. It made me so angry that I called his name and criticized him in public. As a consequence, the boy refused to come to class the next day. What was worse, he spread rumors saying that I had hit him in public. Apparently, I was the one whose heart hurt. Having heard the change in my mood, mom encouraging me to continue with my training class. Meanwhile I thought to myself”the naughty boy owes me an apology but not the other way around”; but soon I overcome this difficult obstacle.In general, the feeling of this training is nice. We have stayed together for 30 days, learning, communicating, laughing, and playing. In class, I taught them and helped them review previous lessons, hoping that they could learn them by heart. After class, they could tell me some funny things happened to them or they would tell me some funny things happened to them or they would tell some or they would tell some meaningful things they had done recently, like growing a flowerpot of chrysanthemum of helping their parents sell vegetables in the market. It made all of us happy, made me on more intimate terms with them, and made them study more effiently.Thirty days went by extremely fast. All of us had to say goodbye to each other. Although the teaching was hard work and gave me constant back pains, I have gained a lot, as the sayinggoes”No pains, I gain.” This summer is significant to me. I have learned that to be a good teacher requires a good mastery of knlwledge, patience, and , the most essential, a sense of responsibility. Only in this way can I realize my dream of becoming an excellent teacher. I love this training; I love this summer.判决与挣扎Chanceller: And in three days, our heroic disc jockeys become dangerous criminals Well done, Twatt. That is my kind of Christmas present.Twatt: Thank you,sir.Chanceller: Right. Pirate radio abolished. A show of hands. Now , we have to make up our minds onIn the house of Connons today, the new Marine Offenses Act was passed unanimously.From midnight on New Year‟Eve, all priate radio stations, including, of course, RadioRock, will be breaking the law. Everyone who works on them, and indeed everyonewho listen to them, will be in contravention of the new law. And risk prison sentences,both short and long.\Count: Carl. You okay ?Carl: Yeah, just…You know, a few months ago, I made a terrible mistake.Count: Really?Carl: Yeah. But I realized something. And instead of crushing the thought the moment it came I (I)let it hang on and…Now I know it to be true. And I …m afraid it‟s stuck in my headforever.Count: what was the thought?Carl: That these are the best days of our lives. It‟s a terrible thing to know, but I know it well.Yeah . Maybe you‟ll be lucky. Maybe you‟ll have better days, but I doubt it.Count: We stood on top of the mountain, compadre. It‟s a long way do-be-do-be down. The day has come. Tonight, pirate radio dies. From midnight, we are a ghost ship floatingwithout hope on cold and dark waters. You have done almighty work here. Thankyou!最后的倒数Count: I intend to broadcast from this ship 24 hours a day until the day I die. And then for a couple of days after that.Slmon: I‟m not wanting to sound rude or anything, but don‟t you think that might be an ever so slightly monotonous experience for the listener? What do you say to 12 hours each,noble sir?Count: The way I look at it, the world couldn‟t survive without my comedy, and who‟s going tohave the moral backbone or play the Seekers when the mood is right? They‟ve splitup. I intend to celebrate the back catalog.Slmon: I intend to stop you doing so. As some of you know, my wife left me after17 hours of marriage, but I survive that because I live for music. And now, with nothing else tolive to live for, I‟m willing to die for it as well. I‟ve always for news and weather.Happy to die for them, too. Especially the weather. I‟ve got nowhere else to go. So Ithink I‟ll stick around.Count: can‟t let everyone starve. Not about to go anywhere, just when I‟m in with a chance.Obviously, I‟m in. you‟re the only people in the world who like me. Thank you, ladiesand gentlemen! So faithful followers, the end is nigh. We bid you farewell withdignity and pride. We thought we‟d never die. But ,well, we can‟t fight city hall. Andso, take care, be good. Listen to the music. It‟s a good thing to do. It‟s the count,counting down and out for the count at last. Three, two. One….I hear this one all time! Let‟s cut to the chase: if you are good at English, your English is “good.”If your English has some problems then you can say that your English is “not verygood.” Saying “My English is not very well” literally means that your English abilityhas a physical illness!I once had a conversation with a student which went like this:My student: My English is not very well.Me: very good.My student: Oh, thank you!My student thought I was complimenting him!Remember, “good” is an adjective which describes how something is.Q : how are you?A: I‟m good!“well” is an adverb, which describes how somebody does something. For example, “Idrive well,” or “I don‟t speak English well.”“well,” of course, can also be an adjective, meaning …healthy.”Q: how are you?A: I‟m well.I am boringHere‟s the problem: both “boring” and “bored” are adjective, describing words. So, which to use in which situation? Let‟s make this simple: “boring” describes someone or something that is not interesting. Although it is grammatically correct. If you say “I‟m boring,”It means not an interesting person! You could say” He‟s boring!” if this person is quiet or what he talks about is uninteresting.However, to describe your or anyone else‟s feeling ,you must use the “-ed”from of the adjective. In short, someone or something that is “-ing” makes you feel “-ed.”Example: “He‟s boring…so I‟m bored”More examples:“I feel tired. This movie is so tiring!”This food is disgusting! I‟m disgusted!“I‟m so confused! This test is really confusing!I want to be a cookierI really like the Chinese language because sometimes it is very simple: if you don‟t know the word, maybe you can guess it!For example, one time I wanted to learn how to say the word”mermaid.” My friend told me it was “beautiful fish person.” So practical!Other time I guess the words for”volcano”and even “piranha”because a volcano is a fire mountain and a piranha is a fish that eats people!English can at times also be just as simple. How? Just add”-er”!Think about this:What do you use to dry your hair?A dryer.What do you use to print some documents?A printer.What do you use to grill you meat?A griller.How to prepare for college examsPassing exams is not just about intellectual process, although that can help. The key to passing exams is to prepare well and have a process that you must follow. This will help to minimize the stress that you feel, and stress is the boring that causes perfectly capable students to fall exams.Here are my top 5 dos and 5 don‟ts tips:Dos1.Do revise thoroughly in the days or weeks before exams. For most of us there in noshortcut to success in exams-success require some hard work.2.Do take time to read exam paper questions and formulate skeletal answer plans before youstart to write the answer. This will enable you to make sure that you have pickec the best questions to answer, and that you have understood the questions correctly, and that your answer will have some sort of cohesive structure. In most cases, the reason why people fail is that they have liked to be asked rather than the questional that was asked.3.Do get your time management right. If you have 2 hours and have to answer 4 questionsthat are each worth 25% of the marks, then you should only spend half an hour on each question. You might answer the first question perfectly but it‟s only ever going to be worth25% of the marks.4.Do make sure in advance that you know where the exam is taking place and how long itwill take you to get there. Again, this is all about reducing your stress. You should make sure that you get to the exam room in time, but not too early.5.Do keep things in perspective. Sure, it may be important that you pass the exam but itwon‟t be the end of the world if you fail. You can probably resit the exam, and there are plenty of people who excel without having been academically successful.Don‟t‟s1.Don‟t swot on the morning of the exam. The knowledge needs to be already there, andyou need to use the time just before the exam to calm your nerves.2.Don‟t go to your textbook immediately after the exam to tryWhy I‟m not ChineseI was talking with my grandson the other day and asked him who discovered North Amercian. His answer, as I expected, was the first people to come here were the Vikings from Norway and they were followed later by people such as Chirstopher Columbus. That‟s what I was taught in school many years ago and that‟s what is being taught in Canada today. The problem is, it‟s wrong.In China, students learn about Emperor ZHU di and how, in the year 1421, he commissioned a vast fleet of junks under the brave and skillful guidance of admirals such as zhenghe, to discover the world for China. They sailed into the unknown and were gone for more than three years but when they returned they had discovered Africa. North and South America, Australia and New Zealand, Antarctica and countless islands in both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. They had sailed both the east and west coasts of the Americas, had perfected the ability to determine their latitude both north and south of the equator and, perhaps most brilliantly, had made maps showing their discoveries.Some 70 years later when Christopher Columbus entered the history books as the discoverer of America, he was following a map made by the Chinese. Other Europeans such as Ferdinand Magellan and James Cook, while they were brave adverturers, were also following in the wake of the early Chinese explores. So why don‟t they teach Canadian children that in school?Part of the reason is that the story of the early Chinese explorers has only recently been written. Thanks in large measure to a British researcher, Captian Gavin Menzies. The cost of the massive explorations that began in 1421 almost bankrupted China and building the ships destroyed huge areas of teak forest. In spite of the wealth of information brought back by the Chinese fleet. The bureaucracies ordered that no further exploration should take place and, to ensure this, that the records of the Chinese discoveries the destroyed. Thus, the Europeans got the credit for discovering the Americas. Most North Americans, including Canadians, trace their ancestry back to a European country and the amazing feats of the Chinese have been forgotten, at least until now Canadian schools have been slow to change but, thanks to Captain Menzies, we are learning about the first explorers and about why we should look west across the Pacific instead of eastacross the Atlantic for our history. I wonder what might happened if the bureaucracies had not ordered the records destroyed. Perhaps I would have been a Canadian born to ancestors from China. That‟s an interesting thought.。
ECONOMICS REPORT - Saving More forRetirementBy Mario RitterBroadcast: Friday, March 17, 2006I'm Steve Ember with the VOA Special English Economics Report.One of the most important questions a worker can ask is: "Will I have enough money for retirement?" For more than thirty years, Americans have used individual retirement accounts, or IRAs, to increaseretirement savings. Today, there are several plans that let workers invest. The plans also offer tax savings.The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of nineteen seventy-four providedfor the first IRAs. It set rules for retirement plans run by big businesses. Othermeasures provided for individuals who did not qualify for such plans, calledpensions.The first kind of IRA is now called a traditional IRA. A worker can put up to fourthousand dollars of his or her yearly earnings into a special account. Workers overthe age of fifty can invest four thousand five hundred dollars. Unlike a pension, thesaver controls the account and decides how it is invested. Money put in a traditional IRA is not taxed until it is withdrawn. But, savings cannot be withdrawn before the account holder is fifty-nine and one-half years old. If the money is withdrawn before that time, it is taxed like income and there is a ten percent fine. The account holder must start withdrawals by age seventy and one-half or there also are fines.At first, IRAs were only for people not covered by pensions at work. But in nineteen eighty-one, everyone could to open an IRA. Six years later, congress banned highly paid individuals from claiming tax reductions.A Roth IRA is a similar plan. Workers can invest up to four thousand dollars of earnings yearly. But there is no tax savings on the year's earnings. Instead, withdrawals from a Roth IRA are generally not taxed.Roth IRA withdrawals cannot start until the saver is fifty-nine and one half years old. There are also fines for putting too much money in them. But people over seventy can still invest.Small businesses can also set up a kind of IRA. Simplified Employee Pensions, or SEP IRAs, have elements of both traditional IRAs and pensions.SEP IRAs are simple investment accounts controlled by the saver. And, like pension plans, employers add money to them too. Limits on these accounts are higher. A worker and an employer can invest twenty-five percent of the employee's yearly pay up to forty-two thousand dollars. The money is not taxed until it is withdrawn.This VOA Special English Economics Report was written by Mario Ritter. I'm Steve Ember. Our reports areonline at . For more than 30 years, Americans have used IRAs to increase retirement savings.。
ECONOMICS REPORT - Gold Prices Reach Their Highest Levels in YearsBy Mario RitterBroadcast: Friday, January 06, 2006I'm Steve Ember with the VOA Special English Economics Report.Gold has long been valued, and not just for its beauty. The metal is also valuable for its resistance to chemical reactions, and for its electrical qualities. But some people have always valued gold most as an investment, even without any guarantee of growth in its value.For years, gold prices fell. Now gold is in the news because priceshave risen to their highest levels since the early nineteeneighties. Gold is trading above five hundred dollars a troy ounce,about thirty-one grams.There seems to be no simple explanation for the increase in goldprices. Experts say investments in precious metals have increased ingeneral. This is true even without the economic warning signs that have traditionally led many investors to buy gold. In any case, the common belief in the security of gold has a long history.From nineteen hundred to nineteen thirty-three, United States money was fully based on gold. In fact, under the gold standard, anyone who wanted could exchange paper money for gold coins.But President Franklin Roosevelt and Congress began to cut the link between gold and money. Congress passed the Legal Tender Act of nineteen thirty-three. All United States money, paper or metal, became acceptable as payment for all debts, public and private. In nineteen thirty-four, the Gold Reserve Act made it illegal to use gold as a form of currency within the United States.But the gold standard remained important to international trade.In nineteen forty-four, the United Nations held a meeting at a hotel in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire. The Bretton Woods conference established a new international monetarysystem. Other currencies were linked to the value of the American dollar, and the dollar Goldremained linked to the value of gold.The official price of gold was controlled. It stayed at about thirty-five dollars an ounce until the late nineteen sixties.In nineteen seventy-one, the gold standard ended in the United States. By nineteen seventy-six, the International Monetary Fund agreed to a new system of exchangerates. But the process did not go smoothly. Gold prices reached record levels in the early eighties, at a time when inflation also jumped.Today, gold remains important to the wealth of nations. But money supplies and gold supplies no longer have the relationship they had in the past.This VOA Special English Economics Report was written by Mario Ritter. Internet users can read and listen to our reports at . I'm Steve Ember.。
ECONOMICS REPORT - Hedge Funds Let Wealthy Investors Take Risks for ProfitsBy Mario RitterBroadcast: Friday, June 16, 2006I'm Steve Ember with the VOA Special English Economics Report.Many people know that hedge funds are investments for the wealthy. But what exactly are they?A hedge fund is an investment group often organized as a limited partnership. Hedge funds are governed by agreements between investors and one or more advisers.Hedge funds have existed for more than fifty years. There are different kinds, and thousands of different funds. Still, the industry in the United States is small compared to the value of mutual funds.Hedge funds, though, do not have to report their activities to the Securities and Exchange Commission. The S.E.C. is the government agency that supervises financial markets. But as of this year, advisers must register so the agency knows who they are.Funds must also have a rules officer and written rules to help protect investors. Complex investment positions mean investors may not know the value of their investments at any given time.Hedge fund investors must be worth at least one million dollars. But a person with at least twenty-five thousand dollars to invest can put the money into funds that invest in hedge funds. Not all of these register with the S.E.C., however.To hedge is to balance investment risk. Like mutual funds, hedge funds may buy stocks and bonds. But hedge funds often borrow very large amounts of money to trade in risky investments in hopes of high returns. That does not always happen.Hedge funds can be very profitable to manage. Management costs can take from one to five percent of the total value of the fund. And advisers can receive twenty or even forty percent of the profits.In nineteen ninety-eight, a major hedge fund got into financial trouble and almost failed. Long-Term Capital Management controlled investments worth more than one hundred thousand million dollars.The Federal Reserve helped get the parties involved to agree on a plan to save the company. World markets were already weak, so the central bank intervened to avoid a crisis.Recently, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned of risks to the financial system from the fast growth of the hedge fund industry. And the European Central Bank called hedge funds a major risk to world markets.Yet Alan Greenspan had praise for hedge funds. The former central bank chairman said they improve markets by finding what he called mispriced securities.This VOA Special English Economics Report was written by Mario Ritter. I'm Steve Ember.。
1、Leaders from more than one hundred nations are in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for a three-day United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development. More than forty thousand activists and political and business leaders are also there. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon spoke at the opening of the event, known as the Rio + 20.2、This year, officials are trying to reach final agreement on a document that details goals for reducing poverty while supporting clean energy and sustainable development. The conference will draw attention to seven major issues. The UN says jobs, energy and sustainable cities are of top importance. It notes that food security, water, oceans and dealing with disasters are other issues basic to lifting people out of poverty.3、The Mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg, took part in a discussion among mayors of some of the world's largest cities. They talked about measures to cut greenhouse gasses. These gasses are known to trap heat and have been linked to climate change. Cities are responsible for up to seventy-five percent of the gases. Mr.Bloomberg said the world's mayors are taking the lead on issues like the environment and sustainability.4、Mayors reported using electric vehicles, better street lighting and improved waste management to reduce cities' greenhouse emissions.5、Still, some environmental activists say the conference document is too weak. They say there are many promises of action but few clear targets for reducing pollution and the use of natural resources.。
ECONOMICS REPORT - Jobs and the U.S. EconomyBy Mario RitterBroadcast: June 11, 2004This is Bob Doughty with the VOA Special English Economics Report.The Labor Department says the United States economy created two-hundred-forty-eight-thousand jobs in May. The department says almost one million jobs have been added in the last three months.Even so, the unemployment rate in May was the same as April: five-point-six percent. News reports said this was because, while there were more jobs, there were also more job seekers in the market.The jobs report last Friday added to signs that the economy is improving. The Bureau of Economic Analysis at the Commerce Department says the economy has grown since the last three months of two-thousand-one. But, until September of last year, the number of people with jobs had been shrinking. That situation led to concerns that the United States was in a jobless recovery.Now, President Bush says the economy is strong and getting stronger. His administration gives credit for the new growth to its personal tax cuts. The reasoning is that people who pay less in taxes put the savings into investments and goods.But Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry says the United States is in a "wage recession." SenatorKerry's campaign released a statement about the jobs report. The statement said "America is still in the worst job recovery since the Great Depression." It said those who do find a job are earning less, while having to pay more for health care, college and gasoline.Before last September, about two-million-six-hundred-thousand more jobs had been lost than were created since Mister Bush took office. Recent job gains have cut that number by more than half. If the current rate continues, the deficit in jobs could disappear by the election in November. For more than seventy years, no American president has had more jobs lost than gained during his presidency.Measures of public opinion show that not all Americans are sure yet about the economic recovery. The Consumer Sentiment Index by the University of Michigan was reported down four percent in May. Some economists say worries about inflation and the possibility of higher interest rates may be influencing how people feel.The University of Michigan was supposed to release its early report for June on Friday. But it delayed the release because of the funeral of former President Ronald Reagan.This VOA Special English Economics Report was written by Mario Ritter. This is Bob Doughty.Email this article to a friendPrinter Friendly Version。
