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词数：441 words
难度：★★★☆☆
小贴士：
破坏性创新这个概念之前的文章中也多次提到过，文末有个推荐阅读，学有余力的同学可以翻看一下去年推送的相关文章~
——大橙子留
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上期划线句答案
Changes to the textiles used to make modern clothes have exacerbated the problem – washing clothes made from synthetic fabrics accounts for about 8% of the microplastics released into our water.
现代衣物使用的纺织品变化加剧了这一问题——因用合成面料制成的衣物洗涤过程中排放到水中的微塑料大约占8%。
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本期内容
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双语阅读
Para.1
“Middle-income countries are home to three out of every four people — and nearly two-thirds of those who struggle in extreme poverty. They are responsible for 40 per cent of the world’s total economic output — and nearly two-thirds of global carbon emissions. In short, the global effort to end extreme poverty and spread prosperity and livability will largely be won or lost in these countries.” These words by Indermit Gill, the World Bank’s chief economist, appear in the World Development Report 2024, entitled “The Middle-Income Trap”, which is the idea that economies tend to get stuck on the road to the high incomes of the US, Canada, Europe, Japan, South Korea, Australia and quite a few others.
Para.2
The most populous country to have become a high-income country since 1990 is South Korea. Meanwhile, important countries have failed to converge. Brazil is an example. Once successful, Chile has also stumbled. Above all, average incomes per head of middle-income countries have stayed below 10 per cent of US levels since 1970. This record is worrying, whether or not the notion of a “trap” is statistically significant. Moreover, adds the WDR, the path that works for low-income countries will not work for more advanced ones. It notes, crucially, that the gap between GDP per worker in middle-income countries and the US is far greater than the gap in availability of physical and human capital. Thus, the principal failure of middle-income countries lies not in accumulating too little capital, but in using it so poorly.
Para.3
The idea here is that the focus must shift from investment per se to infusion of new ideas available abroad, and then on to domestic innovation. What is needed, in sum, is development of a more sophisticated economy. That depends on the acquisition and development of knowhow. Infusion depends on the supply of skilled workers (engineers, scientists, managers) and openness to ideas from elsewhere (notably through direct investment and trade). For innovation, exchanges of human capital are particularly important, including via education and work abroad. The resulting diasporas are a huge potential asset. Innovation also depends on access to global markets.
Para.4
The WDR argues that countries need to internalise Joseph Schumpeter’s celebrated concept of “creative destruction”, as updated by the work of Philippe Aghion and Peter Howitt. The essential step is to force incumbents to compete, encourage entrants and open the economy to those who were historically outsiders. This involves both creation and destruction. The latter tends to be accelerated by crises.
Para.5
Creative destruction is also necessary if the energy transition is to accelerate. Middle-income countries tend to waste energy and have shifted too slowly towards renewables, even though many have exceptional potential. Part of the problem is the high cost of capital, itself the result of high levels of uncertainty. Improvements in institutions, with the aim of increasing predictability and security, will help. Above all, societies and economies need to become more open and meritocratic.
本文节选自：Financial Times（金融时报）
发布时间：2024.9.10
作者：Opinion
原文标题：Overcoming the ‘middle income’ trap
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写作句总结
Creative destruction is also necessary if the energy transition is to accelerate.
结构：… is also necessary if the energy transition is to accelerate.
为了加速能源转型，…也是必要的。
例句：Substantial funds are also necessary if the energy transition is to accelerate.
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阅读理解题
What does the term "creative destruction" in the context of the article most likely refer to?
A) The process of eliminating outdated technologies without replacing them.
B) A strategy for conserving energy by maintaining existing systems.
C) The cycle of innovation that involves both the creation of new products and the obsolescence of old ones.
D) The destruction of natural resources in the pursuit of economic growth.
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打卡作业
翻译文章中的划线句，文末留言打卡，下期推送会在文章开头处公布参考翻译答案，大家一起来学习英语吧~
翻译 | 大橙子
校对 | 李柚子
词汇词组 | 西西弗
划线句讲解 | 流木
写作句总结 | 沅沅
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