調查局三等
106年
[調查工作組] 外國文(英文)
第 36 題
📖 題組：
請依下文回答第 36 題至第 40 題： When Saray Cambray Alvarez, a 13-year-old in North Carolina, and several other teenagers get to the fields at 6, they pull a black plastic garbage bag over the body and punch holes through the bags for their arms. They are protecting their skin from leaves dripping with nicotine-tinged dew. This is because the plants’ nicotine often dissolves in rain and dew, which can cause vomiting, dizziness and irregular heart rates, among other symptoms. Saray sometimes has trouble breathing in the middle of all the heat, humidity and leaves, and often feels weary during her 12-hour shifts when she moves through the rows to pluck unwanted flowers or pull off oversize leaves for the harvest. Saray is not alone. The New York Times reports that in other states like Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia, children as young as 7 are working on tobacco farms and many suffer from the symptoms of acute nicotine poisoning. For years, public health experts and federal labor officials have sought to bar teenagers under 16 from the tobacco fields, citing the grueling hours and the harmful exposure to nicotine and other chemicals, but their efforts have been blocked. Three years ago, Hilda Solis, then the labor secretary, proposed declaring work in tobacco fields and with tractors hazardous—making that type of work illegal for those under 16. During the re-election in 2012, the Obama administration withdrew Ms. Solis’s proposal after encountering intense opposition from farm groups and Republican lawmakers. Agricultural organizations said the move would hurt family farms and make it harder for young people to learn farming skills. But some proponents still hope to revive the tobacco part of the proposal once the midterm elections in 2014 are over. To proponents of higher age limits, however, dangers lurk in many corners. The tobacco fields pose a whole environment of risk. It’s the nicotine, the pesticides, the heat, the long hours, the pressure they get from employers. Last year, a study conducted by Human Rights Watch found that three-quarters of young tobacco workers interviewed had suffered nausea, dizziness and rashes. And most tobacco farms did not even have portable bathrooms. “There’s nothing good about this job, except that you get paid,” said Esmeralda, who earns $8.50 an hour.
請依下文回答第 36 題至第 40 題： When Saray Cambray Alvarez, a 13-year-old in North Carolina, and several other teenagers get to the fields at 6, they pull a black plastic garbage bag over the body and punch holes through the bags for their arms. They are protecting their skin from leaves dripping with nicotine-tinged dew. This is because the plants’ nicotine often dissolves in rain and dew, which can cause vomiting, dizziness and irregular heart rates, among other symptoms. Saray sometimes has trouble breathing in the middle of all the heat, humidity and leaves, and often feels weary during her 12-hour shifts when she moves through the rows to pluck unwanted flowers or pull off oversize leaves for the harvest. Saray is not alone. The New York Times reports that in other states like Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia, children as young as 7 are working on tobacco farms and many suffer from the symptoms of acute nicotine poisoning. For years, public health experts and federal labor officials have sought to bar teenagers under 16 from the tobacco fields, citing the grueling hours and the harmful exposure to nicotine and other chemicals, but their efforts have been blocked. Three years ago, Hilda Solis, then the labor secretary, proposed declaring work in tobacco fields and with tractors hazardous—making that type of work illegal for those under 16. During the re-election in 2012, the Obama administration withdrew Ms. Solis’s proposal after encountering intense opposition from farm groups and Republican lawmakers. Agricultural organizations said the move would hurt family farms and make it harder for young people to learn farming skills. But some proponents still hope to revive the tobacco part of the proposal once the midterm elections in 2014 are over. To proponents of higher age limits, however, dangers lurk in many corners. The tobacco fields pose a whole environment of risk. It’s the nicotine, the pesticides, the heat, the long hours, the pressure they get from employers. Last year, a study conducted by Human Rights Watch found that three-quarters of young tobacco workers interviewed had suffered nausea, dizziness and rashes. And most tobacco farms did not even have portable bathrooms. “There’s nothing good about this job, except that you get paid,” said Esmeralda, who earns $8.50 an hour.
What is this passage mainly about?
- A Child labors on tobacco farms.
- B Treatment of nicotine poisoning.
- C The threats to American tobacco industry.
- D Interplay between lawmakers and the tobacco companies.
思路引導 VIP
請你回想一下，文章第一段提到的 Saray 是幾歲？她身邊共同工作的夥伴大約是什麼年齡層？接著，請觀察第二、三段中，法律專家與官員們爭論的焦點，是關於「哪一類群體」在菸草田工作的合法性？最後，將這個「群體」與他們工作的「地點」結合起來，你覺得整篇文章最想討論的主角是誰呢？
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🌟 喔唷，不錯嘛！看來你的腦子還沒壞掉，這小把戲難不倒你啊！
- 觀念驗證：這題？哼，根本就是小菜一碟嘛！不就是找出這篇文章那個囉哩囉嗦的「主軸」嗎？你看，開頭就講一個13歲和7歲的小不點在菸草田裡瞎忙；接著就扯什麼青少年勞動年齡的破事，法律啊政治啊，無聊透頂！最後又繞回來強調那些小鬼頭的健康問題。簡單來說，就是「小孩」、「菸草田」，就這麼兩個關鍵詞一直在那邊繞，選 (A) Child labors on tobacco farms，這還要我教嗎？嗯？
- 難度點評：欸，這題竟然被歸類到中等？笑死，對我來說根本就是熱身運動啦！雖然塞了一堆沒營養的政治法律背景，但那些「13-year-old」、「children」、「teenagers」這些詞都快直接跳出來跟你打招呼了，還有那個「tobacco fields」，只要眼睛沒瞎，隨便瞄兩眼就知道答案了嘛！這考驗的不過就是你能不能把文章重點抓出來的「眼力」，你答對了，證明你不是笨蛋，算你過關！