A new era is upon us. Call it what you
will: the service economy, the information age, the knowledge society. It all
translates to a fundamental change in the way we work. Already we're partly
there. The percentage of people who earn their living by making things has
fallen dramatically in the Western World. Today the majority of jobs in America,
Europe and Japan (two thirds or more in many of these countries) are in the
service industry, and the number is on the rise. More women are in the work
force than ever before. There are more part-time jobs. More people are
self-employed. But the breadth of the economic transformation can't be measured
by numbers alone, because it also gives rise to a radical new way of thinking
about the nature of work itself. Long-held notions about jobs and careers, the
skills needed to succeed, even the relation between individuals and
employers--all these are being challenged. We only have to look behind us to get
some sense of what may lie ahead. No one looking ahead 20 years possibly could
have foreseen the ways in which a single invention, the chip, would transform
our world thanks to its applications in personal computers, digital
communications and factory robots. Tomorrow's achievements in biotechnology,
artificial intelligence or even some still unimagined technology could produce a
similar wave of dramatic changes. But one thing is certain: information and
knowledge will become even more vital, and the people who possess it, whether
they work in manufacturing or services, will have the advantage and produce the
wealth. Computer knowledge will become as basic a requirement as the ability to
read and write. The ability to solve problems by applying information instead of
performing routine tasks will be valued above all else. If you cast your mind
ahead 10 years, information services will be predominant. It will be the way you
do your job.
单选题
A characteristic of the information age is that ______.
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 见第一段第三行至第七行，即A。服务性企业提供了大多数的就业机会。
单选题
One of the great changes brought about by the knowledge society is that ______.
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】[解析] 见第一段最后一句，即D。人们对工作的传统概念变得不合时宜。
单选题
By referring to computers and other inventions, the author means to say that ______.
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】[解析] 见第二段第二句和第三句，即C。未来技术领域的进展将会带来意想不到的巨变。
单选题
Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?