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  3. In much of the rich world 65 still marks the beginning of old age. Jobs end, subsidized bus travel begins and people start to be

In much of the rich world 65 still marks the beginning of old age. Jobs end, subsidized bus travel begins and people start to be

admin2020-11-04  24
问题    In much of the rich world 65 still marks the beginning of old age. Jobs end, subsidized bus travel begins and people start to be seen as a financial burden rather than an asset to the state. The larger the "65-plus" group becomes, compared with the population of working age, the more policymakers worry about the costs of their health care and pensions. By the end of the century the "old-age dependency ratio" , which tracks this relationship, will triple. Pessimists predict a " silver tsunami" that will bankrupt us all. But does it still make sense to call 65-year-olds " old" ?
   The Oxford English dictionary defines "old" as "having lived for a long time". It illustrates the sense with an accompanying phrase, "the old man lay propped up on cushions" : the old person as one who has made all the useful contributions he can possibly make to society and is now at rest. When pensions were first introduced in Prussia, in the 1880s, this was probably a fair characterisation for anyone over 65. Not many people lived beyond this age; those who did were rarely in good health. But today many 65-year-olds are healthy and active. Donald Trump (71) may be many things, but old he is not, nor for that matter is Vladimir Putin (64) , who qualifies for his bus pass in October. Yet governments and employers still treat 65 as a cliffs edge beyond which people can be regarded as "old" : inactive, and an economic burden.
   This is wrong, for three reasons. First, what "old" means is relative. Today the average 65-year-old German can expect to live another 20 years. So can most people in other rich countries, meaning old age now arguably kicks in later than before. Second, the term carries an underlying implication about health, or at least fitness. But healthy-life expectancy has grown roughly in tandem with life expectancy; for many, 70 really is the new 60. Third, surveys show that the majority of younger over-65-year-olds increasingly want to stay actively involved in their communities and economies. Few want to retire in the literal sense of the word, which implies withdrawing from society as a whole. Many want to continue working but on different terms than before, asking for more flexibility and fewer hours.
According to the last paragraph, what is the working attitude of most over-65-year-olds?
选项 A、They want to retire when they hit the retirement age.
B、They still want to work as hard as before.
C、They still want to work hard like the young.
D、They still want to work but with lower work intensity.
答案D
解析 事实细节题。定位句提到，调查显示，大多数65岁以上稍年轻些的人群越来越希望积极参与社区和经济活动。很少有人想按字面意义退休，那意味着退出整个社会。很多人还想要继续工作，但与以前不同的是，他们要求更多的灵活性和更少的工作时间。由此判断，大多数65岁以上的老年人仍然想从事一些劳动强度较低的工作，故答案为D)。A)“他们一到退休年龄就想退休”、B)“他们仍然想像以前一样努力工作”和C)“他们仍然想像年轻人一样努力工作”均与原文内容不符，故排除。
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