英语听力精选进阶版 7256

社会往往对那些商业上的成功者给予奖赏，这其实并不好。真正应该受到赞颂的是那些具有才能但是并不成功的人。根据英国两所大学的调查，成功者之所以成功往往同运气有关。

The message that society's top performers are not the most skilled and shouldn't be emulated², appears to be counter-intuitive. Yet this report says that those who appear to have achieved the most in their particular field of expertise³, are often the beneficiaries of luck, an external, random⁴ force.

The authors of this study point to the example of Bill Gates, the co-founder of the computing⁵ giant Microsoft, and one of the world's richest men. They say that although he is undoubtedly⁶ talented, he achieved his initial success because his affluent⁷ family were able to send him to a school where programming was on the curriculum - at a time when most Americans didn't have access to computers. Family connections also helped, according to Professor Chengwei Liu from Warwick University Business School.

That kind of luck is often at work in the lives of the most successful, argues Mr Liu, which means their achievements aren't completely attributable to their own skill. Instead, he advocates looking at those whom he calls 'the second best'. They aren't relying on lucky chances, so their performances offer an opportunity to measure real success. The study also argues that there are dangers if colleagues try to emulate¹ the achievements of those who've been overly fortunate.

This could explain the global Banking⁸ crisis, says Professor Liu, who also believes that studying the lives of people such as Bill Gates for tips on reaching the top is fruitless. Of course, some academics argue that individuals can in fact create their own, lucky circumstances, through using personal contacts, and pursuing all available opportunities. This research though, says that because those with the highest salaries haven't completely earned them through skill, they should be taxed more heavily - which would be very bad luck.

Quiz 听力测试

True or false? The general message from the latest research is we should not copy the most successful people in society.

True. There are dangers if colleagues try to emulate the achievements of those who've been overly fortunate.

People who benefit from something are called____.

Beneficiaries.

Which word is closest in meaning to the word ’affluent’: influential⁹ or rich?

Rich.

Why should we learn from ‘the second best’?

Because they are not relying on luck.

Glossary¹⁰ 词汇表

emulated 模仿

affluent 富有的

attributable 归功于...的

advocates 提倡者

the second best 位居其二的优秀者

fruitless 没有成果的

pursuing 追求

1 emulate   

v.努力赶上或超越，与…竞争；效仿

参考例句：

• You must work hard to emulate your sister.你必须努力工作，赶上你姐姐。
• You must look at the film and try to emulate his behavior.你们必须观看这部电影，并尽力模仿他的动作。

2 emulated   

v.与…竞争( emulate的过去式和过去分词 )；努力赶上；计算机程序等仿真；模仿

参考例句：

• The havoc that months had previously wrought was now emulated by the inroads of hours. 前几个月已经使他垮下来，如今更是一小时一小时地在恶化。 来自辞典例句
• The key technology emulated by CAD and the circuit is showed. 对关键技术进行了仿真，给出了电路实现形式。 来自互联网

3 expertise   

n.专门知识(或技能等)，专长

参考例句：

• We were amazed at his expertise on the ski slopes.他斜坡滑雪的技能使我们赞叹不已。
• You really have the technical expertise in a new breakthrough.让你真正在专业技术上有一个全新的突破。

4 random   

adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动

参考例句：

• The list is arranged in a random order.名单排列不分先后。
• On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。

5 computing   

n.计算

参考例句：

• to work in computing 从事信息处理
• Back in the dark ages of computing, in about 1980, they started a software company. 早在计算机尚未普及的时代（约1980年），他们就创办了软件公司。

6 undoubtedly   

adv.确实地，无疑地

参考例句：

• It is undoubtedly she who has said that.这话明明是她说的。
• He is undoubtedly the pride of China.毫无疑问他是中国的骄傲。

7 affluent   

adj.富裕的，富有的，丰富的，富饶的

参考例句：

• He hails from an affluent background.他出身于一个富有的家庭。
• His parents were very affluent.他的父母很富裕。

8 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

9 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

10 glossary   

n.注释词表；术语汇编

参考例句：

• The text is supplemented by an adequate glossary.正文附有一个详细的词汇表。
• For convenience,we have also provided a glossary in an appendix.为了方便，我们在附录中也提供了术语表。