英语听力精选进阶版 6326

In the battle of the sexes women have always won - at least when it comes to cheating death. Although they used to be called the fairer sex, they tend on average to live several years longer than men.

However, this gap in life expectancy¹ is closing and men could catch up by 2030, according to an adviser² for the UK's Office for National Statistics.

It is thought that changes to traditional gender³ roles might be the cause of the shift. Dangerous jobs like coal mining remain largely the preserve of men, but now millions are in safer office-based jobs. It may be less macho, but it's a lot safer.

Improvements in healthcare have also had an effect. Sufferers of heart disease, a condition that is more common among men, can expect to live much longer than they did a few decades ago.

On the other hand, more and more women are taking up smoking - what used to be a masculine habit. Rates of lung cancer are increasing in women but falling fast in men, who are living a healthier lifestyle.

Professor Les Mayhew of Cass Business school predicts that if these trends continue both sexes could, on average, be living to the age of 87 in 2030.

But in the Somerset village of Hinton St George, the girls are still on top. This community has the longest life expectancy in the UK. Female pensioners⁴ who are now 65 can expect to live to an average of 91.6 years, whereas old boys the same age have a predicted lifespan of 88.7 years.

Both of these figures are extremely impressive. What is the secret of Hinton St George? Dave Keirle, the local window cleaner, suggests jokingly that both sexes owe him a lot. According to the British newspaper The Guardian⁵, he says: "Clean windows mean more light, and they say that the more vitamin D you get from the sun, the longer your life."

Quiz 小测验

1. What could be contributing to the trend of men living longer?

2. What habit are more women taking up?

3. When might both sexes have the same life expectancy?

4. True, false or not given: Male pensioners tend to live longer than female ones in Hinton St George.

5. Look at the article. Can you find the expression used when referring to something usually done by men?

Glossary 词汇表

the battle of the sexes 两性之间的战争

the fairer sex 老式表达，指女性

life expectancy 寿命

to catch someone up 赶上别人

gender roles 性别角色

the preserve of men 只有男人才干的事情

macho （俚语）男子气概

masculine 男性，阳性

sexes 两性

the girls are on top 女性占上风

female pensioners 女性退休人士

old boys （俚语）老男人们

1 expectancy   

n.期望，预期，（根据概率统计求得）预期数额

参考例句：

• Japanese people have a very high life expectancy.日本人的平均寿命非常长。
• The atomosphere of tense expectancy sobered everyone.这种期望的紧张气氛使每个人变得严肃起来。

2 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

3 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

4 pensioners   

n.领取退休、养老金或抚恤金的人( pensioner的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He intends to redistribute income from the middle class to poorer paid employees and pensioners. 他意图把中产阶级到低薪雇员和退休人员的收入做重新分配。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I am myself one of the pensioners upon the fund left by our noble benefactor. 我自己就是一个我们的高贵的施主遗留基金的养老金领取者。 来自辞典例句

5 guardian   

n.监护人；守卫者，保护者

参考例句：

• The form must be signed by the child's parents or guardian. 这张表格须由孩子的家长或监护人签字。
• The press is a guardian of the public weal. 报刊是公共福利的卫护者。