2018考研英语双语阅读：日本人口出生率创新低

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　　Japan’s huge sex problem just hit a 67-year low

　　麻烦大了!日本人口出生率创新低

　　Ever since 1950 when Japan began tracking its population of children, the number has never been as low as it is today.

　　自1950年日本开始统计儿童人口以来，当今的数量创历史新低。

　　New data from the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry finds the population shrank by 170,000 kids from this time last year, to a new low of 15.71 million, The Japan Times reports.

　　据日本时报报道，来自内政通讯部的资料显示，从去年至今儿童人口缩减了17万，达到1571万的历史新低。

　　This is the 36th consecutive year the population has dropped.

　　这是人口连续缩减的第36年。

　　Japan’s fertility crisis has been many years in the making. As older generations start to die off without younger generations starting families behind them, economists say Japan shows all the signs of a "demographic time bomb."

　　日本的生育危机已经持续了多年。经济学家称日本显现出了“人口定时炸弹”的迹象，因为儿童的出生率低于人口的死亡率。

　　Without any intervention, Japan’s economy will only continue to shrink.

　　如果不加以干预，日本的经济会持续下滑。

　　"We will continue to put efforts into support for child-rearing," welfare minister Yasuhisa Shiozaki told The Japan Times in December of last year.

　　去年年底，社会福利部长Yasuhisa Shiozaki在日本时报的采访中表示：“我们会大力促进儿童出生率的提高。”

　　Japan’s fertility rate is among the lowest in the world, at just 1.4 births per woman.

　　日本的生育率排在世界末端，因为一名妇女平均只生育1.4个婴儿。

　　Sociologists have found populations stay steady when a country has at least 2.1 births per woman.

　　社会学家说，当一个国家的平均生育率保持在2.1时，人口就会保持不变

　　Beneath that threshold, and countries are likely to see their populations start to decline, which Japan has.

　　而日本却在这一门槛之下，因此日本人口缩减就大有可能了。

　　The trend has also led to another record-low, according to the new data: Japan’s ratio of children to the rest of the population is just 12.4%. That marks the 43rd straight year of declines and places Japan’s ratio at the very bottom of countries with 40 million people or more.

　　根据新的数据，这一趋势也创了历史记录：日本的儿童在人口中仅占比12.4%。这标志着日本这一比率连续第43年下降，使得仅有4000万儿童的日本以低比率排在世界末尾。

　　Other countries do face similar problems, including the US, Denmark, China, and Singapore — with fertility rates of 1.87, 1.73, 1.6, and 0.81, respectively — although Japan’s case may be the most severe.

　　其他国家也同病相怜，如美国，丹麦，中国和新加坡，人口出生率分别只有1.87，1.73，1.6和0.81，尽管日本的情况可能是最严重的。

　　A 2016 study conducted by a Japanese research firm found that nearly 70% of unmarried Japanese men and 60% of unmarried Japanese women weren’t in relationships. This is despite most people claiming they do want to get married eventually.

　　日本研究机构2016年的报告显示，近70%和60%的未婚男士和女士保持单身，尽管大多数人声称最后会结婚。

　　Japan has gone to some great lengths to boost its fertility rate to the goal of 1.8 births per woman by 2025, as set by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

　　日本首相安倍晋三表示，到2025年，日本平均每名妇女的生育率将提高到1.8.

　　For instance, the country is letting men play with dolls to get accustomed to fatherhood. And the government is organizing speed-dating events to help young people meet.

　　例如，日本鼓励男性与玩偶做游戏以适应父亲的角色，并且政府还安排快速约会给单身男女提供见面机会。

　　In the meantime, the time bomb has forced Japan to recognize the importance of innovation more than ever — specifically, with robotics technology. Without strapping youngsters to do the work, machines may be the next best thing.

　　与此同时，这颗定时炸弹使日本前所未有地认识到了创新地重要性，尤其是机器人科技，让机器人解放忙于工作的年轻人。

　　来源:雅虎新闻