PART 3

YOUNG MAN: That seminar yesterday on automation and the future of work was really good, wasn't it?

男学生：昨天关于自动化和未来工作的研讨会真的很棒，不是吗？

Looking at the first industrial revolution in Britain in the 19th century and seeing how people reacted to massive change was a real eye-opener.

看看19世纪英国的第一次工业革命，看看人们对巨大变化的反应，真是大开眼界。

YOUNG WOMAN: Yes. It was interesting to hear how people felt about automation then and what challenges they faced.

女学生：是的。了解到人们当时对自动化的看法以及他们面临的挑战是很有趣的。

I didn't know that first started with workers in the textile industry.

我不知道这是从纺织行业的工人先开始的。

YOUNG MAN: With those protesting workers called the Luddites destroying their knitting machines because they were so worried about losing their jobs.

男学生：那些抗议的工人被称为卢德分子，他们摧毁了他们的针织机，因为他们非常担心失去工作。

YOUNG WOMAN: Yes, and ultimately, they didn't achieve anything.

女学生：是的，他们最终没有达到目的。

And anyway, industrialisation created more jobs than it destroyed.

不管怎样，工业化创造的就业机会多于它破坏的就业机会。

YOUNG MAN: Yes, that's true – but it probably didn't seem a positive thing at the time.

男学生：是的，确实如此。但当时这似乎不是一件好事。

I can see why the Luddites felt so threatened.

我明白为什么卢德分子感受到如此巨大的威胁。

YOUNG WOMAN: I know. I'm sure I would have felt the same.

女学生：我知道。我相信我也会有同样的感觉。

The discussion about the future of work was really optimistic for a change.

关于未来工作的讨论对于变革持乐观态度。

I like the idea that work won't involve doing boring, repetitive tasks, as robots will do all that.

我喜欢这样的想法，那就是未来的工作不会涉及做无聊、重复的任务，因为机器人会把那些事都做了。

Normally, you only hear negative stuff about the future.

通常，人们只会听到有关未来的负面消息。

YOUNG MAN: Bit too optimistic, don't you think?

男学生：有点太乐观了，你不觉得吗？

For example, I can't see how people are about to have more leisure time, when all the evidence shows people are spending longer than ever at work.

例如，当所有证据表明人们花在工作上的时间比以往任何时候都长，我看不出人们会有更多的闲暇时间。

YOUNG WOMAN: No – that's true.

女学生：是的。

And what about lower unemployment?

那么降低失业率呢？

I'm not so sure about that.

我不太确定。

YOUNG MAN: Perhaps in the long term – but not in the foreseeable future.

男学生：从长远来看也许会，但在可预见的未来不会。

YOUNG WOMAN: Mmm. And I expect most people will be expected to work until they're much older – as everyone's living much longer.

女学生：嗯。而且我预计大多数人都应该工作到更老的时候，因为每个人的寿命都更长了。

YOUNG MAN: That's already happening.

男学生：这已经在发生了。

YOUNG WOMAN: I enjoyed all that stuff on how technology has changed some jobs and how they're likely to change in the near future.

女学生：关于技术如何改变一些工作以及这些工作在不久的将来可能如何改变的说法我都很喜欢。

YOUNG MAN: Yeah, incredible. Like accountants.

男学生：是的，难以置信。比如会计师。

You might think all the technological innovations would have put them out of a job, but in fact there are more of them than ever.

你可能认为所有的技术创新都会让会计失业，但事实上，会计的数量比以往任何时候都多。

They're still really in demand and have become far more efficient.

会计仍然很受欢迎，而且工作效率更高。

YOUNG WOMAN: Right. That was amazing.

女学生：对，太震撼了。

Twenty times more accountants in this country compared to the 19th century.

与19世纪相比，这个国家的会计师人数增加了20倍。

YOUNG MAN: I know. I'd never have thought that demand for hairdressing would have gone up so much in the last hundred years.

男学生：我知道。我从没想过在过去一百年里对美发的需求会增长这么多。

One hairdresser for every 287 people now, compared to one for over 1,500.

现在每287人配备一名理发师，而过去是1,500多人配备一名。

YOUNG WOMAN: Yeah because people's earning power has gone up so they can afford to spend more on personal services like that.

女学生：是的，因为人们的赚钱能力提高了，所以他们有能力在这样的个人服务上花更多的钱。

YOUNG MAN: But technology hasn't changed the actual job that much.

男学生：但是技术并没有给美发师的实际工作内容带来太大的改变。

YOUNG WOMAN: No, they've got hairdryers, etc. but it's one job where you don't depend on a computer … The kind of work that administrative staff do has changed enormously, thanks to technology.

女学生：是的，吹风机早就有了。但这是一项你不依赖电脑的工作。由于技术的进步，行政人员所做的工作已经发生了巨大的变化。

Even 20 years ago there were secretaries doing dictation and typing.

即使在20年前，秘书也会负责听写和打字。

YOUNG MAN: Yes. Really boring compared to these days, when they're given much more responsibility and higher status.

男学生：是的。与现在相比，他们被赋予了更多的责任和更高的地位，过去这份工作真的很无聊。

YOUNG WOMAN: Mmm. A lot of graduates go in for this kind of work now … I'd expected there to be a much bigger change in the number of agricultural workers in the 19th century.

女学生：嗯。现在很多毕业生都从事这类工作。我原以为19世纪从事农业的人的数量会发生更大的变化。

But the 1871 census showed that roughly 25% of the population worked on the land.

但1871年的人口普查显示，大约25%的人口是农民。

YOUNG MAN: Yeah, I'd have assumed it would be more than 50%.

男学生：是的，我原以为会超过50%。

Now it's less than 0.2%.

现在不到0.2%。

YOUNG WOMAN: What about care workers?

女学生：护理人员呢？

YOUNG MAN: They barely existed in the 19th century as people's lifespan was so much shorter.

男学生：在19世纪几乎不存在，因为人们的寿命要短得多。

But now of course this sector will see huge growth.

但是现在这个行业当然会有巨大的增长。

YOUNG WOMAN: Yeah – and it's hard enough to meet current demand.

女学生：是的，而且很难满足当前的需求。

The future looks quite bleak for bank clerks.

银行职员的未来看起来相当暗淡。

They've been in decline since ATMs were introduced in the eighties.

自八十年代引入自动取款机以来，就业人数一直在下降。

YOUNG MAN: And technology will certainly make most of the jobs they do now redundant, I think.

男学生：我认为，有了技术，他们现在所做的大部分工作都会变得多余。

YOUNG WOMAN: I agree, although the situation may change.

女学生：我同意，尽管情况可能会改变。

It's very hard to predict what will happen.

很难预测会发生什么。