首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
Agriculture in Britain I. British agriculture and its supporting areas: account for around (1)______of GNP. II. Small percentage
Agriculture in Britain I. British agriculture and its supporting areas: account for around (1)______of GNP. II. Small percentage
admin
2013-04-23
84
问题
Agriculture in Britain
I. British agriculture and its supporting areas:
account for around (1)______of GNP.
II. Small percentage of the UK workforce in agriculture:
1705 or so: a majority of workforce
1850 or so: 10% of workforce
1950 or so: 3% of workforce only
2000 or so: 2% of workforce contributes to 20% of GNP
III. Two important (2)______to achieve efficiency:
1) the high level of training amongst the agricultural workforce.
2) the recognition by farmers of the value of investing in (3)______:
The "agribusiness" after WWII has brought visible changes.
a) large-scale mechanized planting and harvesting, aided by pesticides and fertilizers;
b) computer aided technologies to "map" fields.
IV. A small country but rich variety in (4)______:
1) North region:
a) (5)______land, thin soil and cool and wet climate.
b) A small, family-run farm concern, producing mainly wool and timber.
2) (6)______region:
a) Flatter land with fertile soils and a mixed climate.
b) UK’s great cereal-producing region and quality vegetable supply.
3) West region:
a) Warmer climate than in the north and (7)______than in the east.
b) The rich soils provide excellent (8)______.
c) The main products are milk, cheese and meat.
V. A strong sense of (9)______among regions:
1) A united front is presented in dealing with other interest-groups, such as government or the media.
2) The (10)______is established between all the agricultural
training colleges.
3) The national structure of the Farmers’ Union.
Agriculture in Britain
Good morning, everybody. I’m Elizabeth Reed. I hope that this first session, which I’ve called An Introduction to British Agriculture, will provide a helpful background to the farm visits you’ll be doing next week.
With more of us living in urban environments, far removed from the countryside, it is easy to loose touch with the origins of the rural environments that surround our towns and cities. I think I should start by emphasizing that agriculture still accounts for a very important part of this country’s economy. You might have a doubt about it, as we are so used to hearing the UK’s society and economy described as being "industrial" or even "post-industrial". (1) But we mustn’t let this blind us to the fact that agriculture and its supporting industries still account for around 26% of our Gross National Product.
This figure is especially impressive, I think, when you bear in mind how very small a percentage of the UK workforce is employed in agriculture. This is not a recent development—you would have to go back to 1750 or so to find a majority of the workforce in this country working in agriculture. By the middle of the next century, in 1850 that is, it had fallen sharply to 10%, and then to 3% by the middle of the twentieth century.
And now just 2% of the workforce contribute 20% of GNP. How is this efficiency achieved? Well, my own view is that it owes a great deal to a history, over the last 50 or 60 years, of intelligent support by the state, mainly taking the form of helping farmers to plan ahead. (2) Then the two other factors I should mention, both very important, are the high level of training amongst the agricultural workforce. (3) And secondly, the recognition by farmers of the value of investing in technology is also a remarkable factor. Since World War II farming has largely remained on a secure footing to become a true business — "agribusiness". It has brought visible changes to the British countryside; the most noticeable being the removal of hedges to enlarge fields so that large-scale mechanised planting and harvesting can take place, aided by pesticides and fertilizers. A field that would once has taken days to prepare, or sow, or harvest by hand, can now be achieved in hours. Such is the sophistication at the top end of the agricultural industry that computer aided technologies can "map" fields; allowing farmers to deliver extra fertiliser, nutrients or seed depending on the soil quality in different parts of the terrain, and thereby optimize output.
Now, although the UK is a fairly small country, the geology and climate vary a good deal from region to region. For our purpose today we can divide the country broadly into three. The region you will get to know the best, of course, is the north, where we are at present. (5) The land here is generally hilly, and the soil thin. The climate up here, and you’ve already had evidence of this, is generally cool and wet. As you will see next week, the typical farm here in the North is a small, family-run concern, producing mainly wool and timber for the market. In some areas such as Scotland and northern England an "infield-outfield" system of land use occurred. Fields nearest to a village were permanently used for cropping while those beyond were grazed. Beyond the "outfields" there would be waste land for common pasture, or moorland in the case of upland areas. These waste lands in both highland and lowland situations, were the only source of new lands and were frequently reclaimed to form new enclosed farm holdings.
If we contrast that with the Eastern region, the east is flatter and more low-lying, with fertile soils and a mixed climate. Average farm-size is much bigger in the east, and farms are likely to be managed strictly on commercial lines. As for crops, well, the east is the UK’s great cereal-producing region. However, increasingly significant areas are now also given over to high quality vegetables for supply direct to the supermarkets.
The third broad region is the west, where it’s a different story again. The climate is warmer than that in the north and (7) much wetter than that in the east. The resulting rich soils in the west (8) provide excellent pasture, and the farms there are quite large, typically around 800 hectares. The main products are milk, cheese and meat.
So, clearly, there are marked differences between regions. (9) But this does not prevent quite a strong sense of solidarity amongst the farming community as a whole, right across the country. This solidarity comes in part from the need to present a united front in dealing with other powerful interest-groups, such as government or the media. (10) It also owes something to the close cooperation between all the agricultural training colleges, through which the great majority of farmers pass at the beginning of their careers. And a third factor making for solidarity is the national structure of the Farmers’ Union, of which virtually all farmers are members.
Finally, I’d like to sum up this talk. I first emphasized the importance of agriculture in British economy and the factors that stablise its firm status, then I moved on to detail its current situations by dividing the country into three regions, in the end, I explained the common phenomenon between regions. All right, that is all for today. I wish you would enjoy your farm visits next week.
选项
答案
factors
解析
归总题。讲座中提到英国农业的高效得益于从事农业劳动力的受训程度较高,同时还得益于农民对科技的重视和投入,讲座填空题空格下方正是列举了这两个因素,因此答案为factors。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/EG4O777K
0
专业英语八级
相关试题推荐
Asanewspaperdeliveryman,whenyourservicesarerenderedat4a.m.,youcan’tsimplyhangaround,likeahotelbellboyexpect
Accordingtothescientificstudy,ashortageoffishandotherfoodsare1.______threateningmanyoftheworld’spenguins.As
AbranchoftheNationalAcademyofSciencesreportedWednesdaythatfederalsafetyregulatorslackoftheexpertisetomonitor
AllthehypeandprognosticationaroundApple’sallegedlyforthcomingMacBookProrefreshpivotsontwobulletpoints:thinnerf
Sincethestartofthisyear,Google’ssharepricehasfallensteadilyasinvestorshavebeguntofretaboutitslonger-termpro
Inthe1960sPopmusicunderwentarevolutionwhentheBeatlesbecameworldfamousandturnedtheirhometownof______intoaplac
Whatisthepublicreactiontowardsthenewsthatavaccineagainstcervicalcanceristobeputonthemarket?
Humanvisionlikethatofotherprimateshasevolvedinanarborealenvironment.Inthedensecomplexworldofatropicalforest
AccordingtoarecentregulationissuedbytheMinistryofHealth,smokingwillbebannedinallenclosedpubliclocationsinCh
Forcenturies,immigrantshavecometoAmericaseekingthepromiseoflife,liberty,andthepursuitofhappiness.Somecamefl
随机试题
雨天安全行车的注意事项是什么?
关于放射性污染的防护政策,不甚合理的是()。
防烟排烟系统施工调试完成后,由()组织进行竣工验收。
对会计电算化档案管理要做到()工作。
个体工商户甲在某集贸市场从事服装经营。2009年1月,甲以生意清淡经营亏损为由,没有在规定的期限办理纳税申报,所在地税务所责令其限期申报,但甲逾期仍不申报。随后,税务所核定其应缴纳税款1000元,限其于15日内缴清税款。甲在限期内未缴纳税款,并对核定的税款
甲企业为增值税一般纳税人,主要从事电冰箱的生产和销售,2017年6月发生如下事项:(1)购进生产钢材一批,取得的增值税专用发票上注明价款280万元,委托某运输企业将该批钢材运回,取得承运部门开具的增值税专用发票上注明运费10万元。(2)进口钢材一批,支
A公司为房地产开发企业,与土地使用权及地上建筑物相关的交易或事项如下。(1)2011年1月10日,A公司购入的—宗土地使用权及地上建筑物,价款为16000万元,其中土地使用权的公允价值为10000万元.地上建筑物的公允价值为6000万元,上述土地使用及地
在服务的生产和消费过程中不涉及任何东西的所有权转移。这是指服务的()。
请按下面注释的提示将类B的构造函数定义补充完整。classA{inta;public:A(intaa=0){a=aa;}};classB:publicA{
InthepasttwoyearsI’vephoned,e-mailedanddinedwiththreepotential"idealhusbands."(Thisisaccordingtotheauntsor
最新回复
(
0
)