新视野大学英语读写教程第二册unit8.doc

Unit 8 Section A There’s a Lot More to Life than a Job 1. Pre-reading 1. 1 Background information Humanities (人文科学) In the context of the reading passage, humanities refers to a broad academic discipline. It includes such areas of study as Philosophy, Literature, Religion, Art, etc. humanities programs at U.S. universities are most often housed in the College of Liberal Arts. 在本文中指广义的人文学科，包括哲学\文学\宗教\艺术等。在美国的大学里，人文学科常包含在文理学院内 Associate degree (准学士学位) Associate degree is awarded to a student after he or she finishes a 2-year study at a junior college in the U.S. 美国学生在读完两年制职业专科学校时会被授予准学士学位。 Education in the United Stated (美国的学校制度) It is usually divided into 4 levels: kindergarten / pre-school, elementary, secondary, and higher education. The first is early childhood education, which is to prepare children for school. The second is elementary education, being divided into 6 or 8 grades. The third level is secondary education for junior or senior high school students. Some prepare themselves to go to college, while others take vocational / technical courses to prepare for jobs after graduation. There are many institutions of higher education in the U.S. Students at technical institutes can receive an associate degree after a 2-year program, then they can continue their study at a 4-year college. 美国学校分学龄前,小学,初\高中,和高等教育四个程度。学龄前教育为孩子们上学做准备;小学分六至八个年级;在初\高中阶段,部分学生为上大学做准备，部分学习职业\技术课程以便毕业后工作;美国高等教育形式多样,职业技术学院的学生学完两年课程获得准学士学位,然后可继续四年制本科学习。 Social Security (社会保障制度) It is the U.S. government system of benefit payments, especially to retired and disabled people and survivors. The web site at /social-security-number.htm explains how the system works in the U.S. The official web site for the Social Security Administration in the U.S. is located at . 这是美国政府针对退休人员\残疾人和灾害幸存者的津贴制度。欲了解美国该制度如何运作,请访问网址/social-security-number.htm 。美国社会保障制度的网址是: 。 Oscar Wilde (奥斯卡?王尔德) Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), the son of an eminent Dublin surgeon, was among the outstanding Victorian dramatists. He is reno