Passage 2Empowering workers constitutes the first step toward a stronger economy and stronger citizenry. It is a vital step toward overcoming inequality in American society. During the 1980s, the need for better wages for all workers increased as women, traditionally secondary earners, assumed greater responsibility for their own and their children’s well-being. Yet the ability to raise families to a decent living standard through wage work decreased; real wages fell for most workers. And the Federal Government enacted, no new policies to facilitate the integration of work and family, as working women and Working families suffered a loss in political power as well.Black or Hispanic women are four times as likely to be low-wage workers as are white men with comparable skills and experience. White women are more than three times as likely as white men to be low-wage workers, and black or Hispanic men more than one-and-a-half times as likely. More than half of ail low-wage workers are the only wage workers in their families, or live alone.Employment no longer provides an escape from poverty. More than eight million working adults are poor; two million of them work full-time, year-round. More than seven million poor children have at least one working parent. When that one working parent is a low-wage worker, the children have no better chance of escaping from poverty than if the parent were not working at all; more than two-fifths of such children are poor.Even if generous income assistance were available, file wages employers pay would be held to a minimum. In addition, policies such as tax credits for working parents do nothing to increase the political power of working women and men.Our research shows that unionization is among the most effective strategies for raising pay, especially for women and minority men. Being a union member, or being covered by a collective-bargaining agreement, raised 1984 wages by $1.79 per hour for Hispanic men, $1. 32 for black men, $1.26 for Hispanic women, $1.01 for black women, $0.68 for white women, and$ 0.41 for white men, when all other factors, such as occupation, industry, firm size, education and experience were held constant. In percentage terms, the union increase was more than 15 percent for blacks and Hispanics, 11 percent for white women, and 4 percent for white men. According to Paragraph 2, who are most likely to be poor()
A. Women of color
B. White women
C. Men of color
D. White men
第一篇Motoring Technology1.2 million road deaths worldwide occur each year, plus a further 50 million injuries. To reduce car crash rate, much research now is focused on safety and new fuels, though some electric vehicle and biofuel research aims at going faster.Traveling at speed has always been dangerous. One advanced area of research in motoring safety is the use of digital in-car assistants. They can ensure you don’t miss important road signs or fall asleep. Most crashes result from human and not mechanical faults.Some safety developments aim to improve your vision. Radar can spot obstacles in fog, while other technology "sees through" big vehicles blocking your view.And improvements to seat belts, pedal (脚踏)controls and tires are making driving smoother and safer. The color of a car has been found to be linked with safety, as have, less surprisingly, size and shape.But whatever is in the fuel tank, you don’t want a thief in the driving seat and there have been many innovations(创新). Satellite tracking and remote communications can also come into play if you crash, automatically calling for help.Accidents cause many traffic jams, but there are more subtle interplays between vehicles that can cause jams even on a clear but busy road. Such jams can be analyzed using statistical tools. Robotic drivers could be programmed to make traffic flow smoothly and will perhaps one day be everyone’s personal chauffeur(司机) , but their latest efforts suggest that won’t be soon. Which of the following statements is true of robotic drivers()
A. It will take some time before robotic drivers are available.
B. Robotic drivers are not allowed to driveon busy roads.
C. Robotic drivers can never replace human drivers.
D. Robotic drivers are too expensive to use.