VOA标准英语2011--US Trying to Stop 'Reverse Brain Drain'

US Trying to Stop 'Reverse Brain Drain'

The U.S. Congress is debating how to overhaul¹ the nation’s immigration system in an effort to get foreign nationals who earn advanced degrees at American universities to stay and work in the country to help the U.S. stay globally competitive.
Some are calling it a “reverse brain drain.”
Foreign students flock to American universities to earn master’s degrees and Ph.D.s in science, technology, engineering and math.
But many, like 25-year-old Yifang Wei from Xian in central China, may not be able to get a visa to work in the United States after graduation.
“Yes, I am very worried, very worried,” said Wei.
In 2009, foreign students earned up to two-thirds of the doctorates² in physics and engineering awarded by U.S. schools of higher education.
Xiao Qin is from Beijing and is working toward his Ph.D. in computer science at Georgetown University in Washington. He would like to work for Google, Yahoo or Microsoft.
“Obviously, we prefer to stay here for several years, but if we cannot get any valid³ visa we have to leave,” he said.
The United States limits the number of foreigners who can seek careers in the United States, and critics say restrictive immigration policies hurt America’s ability to retain top students.
Representative Zoe Lofgren of California said, “While we once asked the brightest minds in the world to come and make their homes here, we now turn them away. Having educated and trained the world’s best students in our universities, we no longer welcome them to enrich this nation.”
High-tech⁴ companies recruit workers at the nation’s top universities. But some, like Texas Instruments, say it can take 10 years for their foreign workers to become permanent U.S. residents.
Darla Whitaker, senior vice⁵ president at Texas Instruments, said, “This is not sustainable. It hurts our company and our industry, and it places burdens and stresses on our employees.”
The United States now limits the number of immigrants from other countries on a country-by-country basis, meaning students from large nations generally have the longest wait.
A recent study by the National Foundation for American Policy says a highly skilled Indian national could wait 70 years for permanent status.
Vivek Wadhwa conducts research about immigrant entrepreneurs, and is on the faculty⁶ of Harvard and Duke Universities.
“We are out of touch. We are in a knowledge economy. It is all about competition. If we don’t keep these people, if we don’t compete, we are going to lose. We are going to become a third world country and they are going to become like us,” said Wadhwa.
Congress is studying ways to change America’s immigration policies.
So far there has not been a consensus⁷, however, on how to reverse the brain drain and keep scholars like Yifang Wei and Xiao Qin in the United States once they graduate from one of America’s top universities.

1 overhaul   

v./n.大修，仔细检查

参考例句：

• Master Worker Wang is responsible for the overhaul of this grinder.王师傅主修这台磨床。
• It is generally appreciated that the rail network needs a complete overhaul.众所周知，铁路系统需要大检修。

2 doctorates   

n.博士学位( doctorate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Nearly 1,000 specialized personnel with doctorates have settled in Shenzhen. 现已引进博士学位的专门人才近千名。 来自互联网
• John played the field academically, obtaining doctorates from several universities. 约翰的学术广博，他从几所大学拿到了博士学位。 来自互联网

3 valid   

adj.有确实根据的；有效的；正当的，合法的

参考例句：

• His claim to own the house is valid.他主张对此屋的所有权有效。
• Do you have valid reasons for your absence?你的缺席有正当理由吗？

4 high-tech   

adj.高科技的

参考例句：

• The economy is in the upswing which makes high-tech services in more demand too.经济在蓬勃发展，这就使对高科技服务的需求量也在加大。
• The quest of a cure for disease with high-tech has never ceased. 人们希望运用高科技治疗疾病的追求从未停止过。

5 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

6 faculty   

n.才能；学院，系；(学院或系的)全体教学人员

参考例句：

• He has a great faculty for learning foreign languages.他有学习外语的天赋。
• He has the faculty of saying the right thing at the right time.他有在恰当的时候说恰当的话的才智。

7 consensus   

n.(意见等的)一致，一致同意，共识

参考例句：

• Can we reach a consensus on this issue?我们能在这个问题上取得一致意见吗？
• What is the consensus of opinion at the afternoon meeting?下午会议上一致的意见是什么？