W: Hi, Jack. How is your economics paper going? M: It’s coming along. But I’ve been staring at this computer screen for hours and my eyes hurt. W: Yeah. Doing that can make your eyes really dry and tired. You should take a break. M: I can’t. I have to get this paper written. It’s due tomorrow. W: You know I read about computers and eye problems recently. The article says that they are usually caused by not blinking your eyes enough. M: Blinking? I thought I just needed new glasses. W: No. When you blink, the movement of closing and opening your eyes, even though it happens really fast, helps moisten your eyes. It’s the lack of moisture that causes the problem. M: That makes sense. But what does it have to do with the computer? W: People who use computers tend to stare at the monitor and blink less often than they normally would. That leads to dry, irritated eyes. M: Well, that’s certainly how mine feel now. They really hurt. W: The article I read about the office workers found that the workers averaged 22 blinks a minute when relaxed. But just 7 a minute while looking at the text on a computer screen. M: Wow. That’s quite a difference. W: They also kept their eyes open wider which means the moisture evaporated more quickly. M: I wonder if using some kind of eye-drops will make them feel better. W: That might help. But the best prescription is to take a break and rest your eyes. M: OK. Let’s go get some coffee. I can finish this later tonight. 27. What are the speakers mainly discussing? 28. Why is blinking important? 29. What should Jack do to improve his situation? 30. What can be inferred about Jack? Why Jack needs glasses. Research Jack has done for his economics paper. The disadvantages of working in an office. How using a computer can affect one’s eyes.

6. The essence of good management is to be found in getting average employees to do excellent work. 7. Our company has decided to set up a display for the city’s forthcoming Science and Technology Week. 8. If Jack could have fixed the lamp in the hallway, he wouldn’t have called in an electrician. 9. Following the dinner will be an address by the chief executive officer from our headquarters in New York. 10. Had he realized the possible consequences, he wouldn’t have made the suggestion at the committee meeting last week. Good management seldom gets better work from employees. Good management can make average employees work better. Average employees can do excellent work under any circumstances. Average employees cannot do excellent work despite good management.

W: Hi, Judy, mind if I sit down? M: Not at all, Steven. How have you been? W: Good. But I’m surprised to see you on the city bus. Your car is in the shop? M: No. I’ve just been thinking a lot about the environment lately. The air will be a lot cleaner if we all use public transportation when we could. W: I’m sure you are right. Though a diesel bus isn’t exactly pollution free. M: True. But they’ll be running a lot cleaner soon. We were just talking about that in my environmental class. W: What is the city going to do? Install pollution filters of some sort in all their buses? M: They could, but those filters make the engines work harder and really cut down on the fuel efficiency. Instead they found a way to make the engines more efficient. W: How? M: Well, there is a material called conium oxide. It’s a really good insulator. And a thin coat of it get sprayed on the certain part of the engine. W: An insulator? M: Yeah. Actually what it does is reflect back the heat of burning fuel. So the fuel will burn much hotter and burn up more completely. W: So a lot less unburned fuel comes out to pollute the air, right? M: Yeah, and the bus will need less fuel. So with the savings on fuel cost, they say this will all pay for itself in just 6 months. W: Sounds like people should all go out and get some of this stuff to spray their car engines. M: Well, it’s not really that easy. You see, normally, the materials are fine powder. To melt it so you can spray a coat of it on the engine parts, you first have to heat it over 10,000 degrees and then, well, you get the idea. It’s not something you or I will be able to do ourselves. 11. What is the conversation mainly about? 12. Why did the woman decide to take the city bus? 13. What is the conium oxide? 14. According to the woman, what may limit the use of conium oxide in cars? A new fuel for buses. The causes of air pollution. A way to improve fuel efficiency in buses. Careers in environmental engineering.

(1)Those who win an Oscar enter into a whole new competition when they give their acceptance speech: As if walking away with a little gold man wasn’t enough of a feat, they must then make—at the very least—an acceptable acceptance speech in which they remember to thank all the important people. But of course, it’s better to be memorable. Sometimes, it’s actions, not words, that make the speech more memorable. (2)Eating vegetables appears to help keep the brain young and may slow the mental decline sometimes associated with growing old. Older people who ate more than two servings of vegetables daily appeared about five years younger than those who ate few or no vegetables. That may be because vegetables contain healthy amounts of vitamin E that is believed to help fight chemicals produced by the body that can damage cells. Vegetables generally contain more vitamin E than fruits. Vegetables also are often eaten with healthy fats such as salad oils, which help the body absorb vitamin E.

Nothing else you can do for yourself has more benefits than regular exercise. Sure, exercise burns calories. And it tones muscles, tightening up arms and cinching in that waistline. But there are plenty of other reasons to get up and get moving: 1. More energy This one’s hard to believe, but exercising will make you feel more energetic. When scientists at the University of New Orleans asked 42 volunteers to assess their mood before and after a 50-minute aerobics class, most of them said they felt less tense and less tired after breaking a sweat. In a 1997 study, researchers found that a brisk 10-minute walk gave people more energy than eating a candy bar. How can that be? Exercise boosts a hormone that increases energy. And it doesn’t take more than a few workouts before strength and the lungs’ capacity to provide oxygen to working muscles improve, increasing stamina—which is enough to make anyone feel more energetic. 2. Less stress Just one simple workout can ease stress and anxiety. In an experiment at Indiana University, researchers used psychological tests to gauge anxiety levels in 15 volunteers before and after a 20-minute session on an exercise cycle. The volunteers all reported feeling significantly less anxious during an hour or two after the workout. Exercise enhances the flow of brain chemicals, such as serotonin, that are related to positive mood. Because it also increases core body temperature, it can be as relaxing as a good soak in a hot tub. 3. A sharper mind Exercise can even spark creativity. Researchers at England’s Middlesex University tested creative thinking in a group of 63 volunteers—once after they’d done an aerobic workout and once after they’d sat around watching a video. After the workout, volunteers in the experiment felt more positive and scored higher on creativity. 4. Healthier arteries Physical activity boosts levels of high-density lipoproteins, or HDL, the so-called good cholesterol, by as much as 20 percent. HDL helps rid the body of low-dey, even pick up cholesterol deposited in arteries and move it to where it won’t do harm. Another benefit to the arteries: The level of fat particles in the blood, called triglycerides, falls by as much as 40 percent after a vigorous workout. Exercising converts triglycerides into fatty acids—the form in which fat can be burned for energy. You burn stored fat each and every time you work out—the key to keeping weight off. Plus you lower your level of triglycerides in the blood. And the lower your triglyceride level, studies show, the lower your risk of heart disease. 5. Better defenses The moment you begin exercising, your heart starts pounding and your blood pressure surges, sweeping disease-fighting immune cells out into the blood, where they’re able to detect troublemakers like cold or flu viruses. Studies show that people who exercise have 40 to 50 percent fewer sick days than their sit-around-and-do-nothing counterparts.

At an office in Hampton, Virginia, in the east of the United States, a team of ten net savvy workers scours the web for sexual content, from basic sex education to sex acts. This “quality assurance“ team is making sure that the blocking component of Symantec’s Norton Internet Security 2000 computer program remains effective. This is because there is widespread parental concern about blocking websites with sexual content from children. Website blocking is nothing new—services like Net Nanny and programs like Cyber Patrol and Guard Dog have been around for a few years now, protecting children and reassuring parents that only wholesome websites are accessed by the youngsters. Net Nanny and Cyber Patrol will prevent access to any questionable sites when the program is in place. Now Symantec says it has created a new category in consumer software with a package that combines website blocking with a “firewall“, protecting your computer from hackers, snoopers and viruses, as well as preventing inadvertent disclosure of personal data. In short, Norton Internet Security(NIS), as the program is called, is designed to serve as the guardian of your digital health, keeping the bad things out and the private things in. The Symantec program can be configured in many ways. The website blocking, for example, can be set to be either selectively permissive or total in its banning of websites, or switched off entirely. Also, Symantec’s list of no-go areas, which on the CD now stand at around 36,000 addresses, is not confined to sex sites. The team in Virginia is also on the lookout for sites advocating drugs, or which contain references to violence or gambling, and keeps a watch on chat rooms, e-mail services, entertainment portals—even job search and financial pages. These sites can be blocked by the program. Computer users can also refresh the address list online with the Live update feature which is used by Norton Anti-Virus(which is bundled with NIS)to load the latest virus definitions. This service is free for the first year but, including virus definition updates, it costs $US 19.95 a year thereafter. The system is not perfect, however. Limited testing found the blocking of some “questionable“ sites was not comprehensive. Trying to get access to a well-known US site such as Playboy results in an immediate blocking message with a standard invitation to report an “incorrectly categorized“ site. By contrast, you could find in other countries such as New Zealand a sex site which declared itself to be “dedicated to providing sexual material, images, and anything a little bit unusual for sex enthusiasts all over the country“.

中华文明历来注重以民为本，尊重人的尊严和价值。早在千百年前，中国人就提出“民惟邦本，本固邦宁”、“天地之间，莫贵于人”，强调要利民、裕民、养民、惠民。今天，我们坚持以人为本，就是要坚持发展为了人民、发展依靠人民、发展成果由人民共享，关注人的价值、权益和自由，关注人的生活质量、发展潜能和幸福指数，最终是为了实现人的全面发展。保障人民的生存权和发展权仍是中国的首要任务。我们将大力推动经济社会发展，依法保障人民享有自由、民主和人权，实现社会公平和正义，使13亿中国人民过上幸福生活。

1. A lot of people nowadays have muscular problems in the neck, the shoulders and the back that are really due to stress and tension in their work. 2. The editor in chief called in question the accuracy of the figures in the draft report of the financial news. 3. I’m glad that Florence has made it and joined us in this reception, especially at such short notice. 4. The Vice President has a full schedule with a series of meetings next Monday and Tuesday, and have assistants. 5. Dr. Carter is a very busy man. Even so, he often takes time to have a cup of coffee with his colleagues. Hard work often brings about discomfort in parts of the human body. If you are nervous, you may hurt yourself in performing this kind of task. Those staff members who work back to back are hard on each other. This exercise is to relax your muscles in the neck, the shoulders and the back.

Let’s turn our focus now to advertising. We all know what an advertisement is, it’s essentially a message that announces something for sale. Now, there is an important precondition that must exist before you have advertising, and that’s a large supply of consumer goods, that is, things to sell. You see, in the place with a demand for product that is greater than the supply, there’s no need to advertise. Now, the early form of advertising going back many hundreds of years with a simple sign there were shop doors that told you whether the shop was a bakery, a butcher shop or what have you, then was the advent of the printing crest. Advertising increased substantially as products like coffee, tea, and chocolate appeared in newspapers and other periodicals as well as on the sides of the buildings. In the American colonies, advertising in communication’s media like newspapers and pamphlets became a major factor in marketing goods and services. By modern standards, these early advertisements were quite small and subdued, not the splash sheet whole page spreads of today, still some of them appeared on the front page of newspapers, probably because the news often consist of less and fresh reports from distant Europe, for the ads were current or local. Advertising really came into its own and became a central part of doing business, during the industry revolution, suddenly there was a much greater supply of things to sell. And as we said earlier, that is the driving force behind advertising. People’s attention had been drawn to the new product. Let’s take a look at some of the advertisements from that time. 15. What is the main topic of the talk? 16. According to the speaker, what is the important precondition for advertising? 17. According to the speaker, what was the first advertisement? 18. What did the early advertisements look like? The effect of advertising on world markets. Modern advertising techniques. Forms of communication in the American colonies. The early history of advertising.

W: Hi, Jack. How is your economics paper going? M: It’s coming along. But I’ve been staring at this computer screen for hours and my eyes hurt. W: Yeah. Doing that can make your eyes really dry and tired. You should take a break. M: I can’t. I have to get this paper written. It’s due tomorrow. W: You know I read about computers and eye problems recently. The article says that they are usually caused by not blinking your eyes enough. M: Blinking? I thought I just needed new glasses. W: No. When you blink, the movement of closing and opening your eyes, even though it happens really fast, helps moisten your eyes. It’s the lack of moisture that causes the problem. M: That makes sense. But what does it have to do with the computer? W: People who use computers tend to stare at the monitor and blink less often than they normally would. That leads to dry, irritated eyes. M: Well, that’s certainly how mine feel now. They really hurt. W: The article I read about the office workers found that the workers averaged 22 blinks a minute when relaxed. But just 7 a minute while looking at the text on a computer screen. M: Wow. That’s quite a difference. W: They also kept their eyes open wider which means the moisture evaporated more quickly. M: I wonder if using some kind of eye-drops will make them feel better. W: That might help. But the best prescription is to take a break and rest your eyes. M: OK. Let’s go get some coffee. I can finish this later tonight. 27. What are the speakers mainly discussing? 28. Why is blinking important? 29. What should Jack do to improve his situation? 30. What can be inferred about Jack? Why Jack needs glasses. Research Jack has done for his economics paper. The disadvantages of working in an office. How using a computer can affect one’s eyes.

(1)Even a self-confident person needs to practice before making a speech in public. (2)The tune of some folk music still keeps the traditional style, but the rhythm is rather fashionable. (3)On the bank of the beautiful Huangpu River, we’re extremely happy to see so many friends from the press circle across the country. (4)On October 1, 2001, Bank of China(HK)Limited was established upon the merger and restructuring of the 12 sister banks of the former BOC Group in Hong Kong. (5)This year is the 100-year birthday of Ford. The journey of Ford over the past century has witnessed the glory of the auto industry.

The freedom to lead different types of life is reflected in the person’s capacity set. The capacity of a person depends on a variety of factors, including personal characteristics and social arrangements. A full accounting of individual freedom must, of course, go beyond the capacities of personal living and pay attention to the person’s other objectives(e.g. social goals not directly related to one’s own life), but human capacities constitute an important part of individual freedom. Freedom, of course, is not an unproblematic concept. For example, if we do not have the courage to choose to live in a particular way, even though we could live that way if we so choose, can it be said that we do have the freedom to live that way, i.e. the correspondent capacity? It is not any purpose here to brush under the carpet difficult questions of this-and-other-type. In so far as there are genuine ambiguities in the concept of freedom, that should be reflected in corresponding ambiguities in the characterization of capacity. This relates to a methodological point, which In have tried to defend elsewhere, that if an underlying idea has an essential ambiguity, a precise formulation of that idea must try to capture that ambiguity rather than hide or eliminate it. Comparisons of freedom raise interesting issues of evaluation. The claim is sometimes made that freedom must be valued independently of the values and preferences of the person whose freedom is being assessed, since it concerns the “range“ of choice a person has—not how she values the elements in that range or what she chooses from it. I do not believe for an instant that this claim is sustainable(despite some superficial plausibility), but had it been correct, it would have been a rather momentous conclusion, driving a wedge between the evaluation of achievements and that of freedom. It would, in particular, be then possible to assess the freedom of a person independently of—or prior to—the assessment of the alternatives between which the person can choose.

For most thinkers since the Greek philosophers, it was self-evident that there is something called human nature, something that constitutes the essence of man. There were various views about what constitutes it, but there was agreement that such an essence exists—that is to say, that there is something by virtue of which man is man. Thus man was defined as a rational being, as a social animal, an animal that can make tools, or a symbol-making animal. More recently, this traditional view has begun to be questioned. One reason for this change was the increasing emphasis given to the historical approach to man. An examination of the history of humanity suggested that man in our epoch is so different from man in previous times that it seemed unrealistic to assume that men in every age have had in common something that can be called “human nature“. The historical approach was reinforced, particularly in the United States, by studies in the field of cultural anthropology. The study of primitive peoples has discovered such a diversity of customs, values, feelings, and thoughts that many anthropologists arrived at the concept that man is born as a blank sheet of paper on which each culture writes its text. Another factor contributing to the tendency to deny the assumption of a fixed human nature was that the concept has so often been abused as a shield behind which the most inhuman acts are committed. In the name of human nature, for example, Aristotle and most thinkers up to the eighteenth century defended slavery. Or in order to prove the rationality and necessity of the capitalist form of society, scholars have tried to make a case for acquisitiveness, competitiveness, and selfishness as innate human traits. Popularly, one refers cynically to “human nature“ in accepting the inevitability of such undesirable human behavior as greed, murder, cheating and lying. Another reason for skepticism about the concept of human nature probably lies in the influence of evolutionary thinking. Once man came to be seen as developing in the process of evolution, the idea of a substance which is contained in his essence seemed untenable. Yet I believe it is precisely from an evolutionary standpoint that we can expect new insight into the problem of the nature of man.

Some futurologists have assumed that the vast upsurge of women in the workforce may portend a rejection of marriage. Many women, according to this hypothesis, would rather work than marry. The converse of this concern is that the prospects of becoming a multi-paycheck household could encourage marriages. In the past, only the earnings and financial prospects of the man counted in the marriage decision. Now, however, the earning ability of a woman can make her more attractive as a marriage partner. Data show that economic downturns tend to postpone marriage because the parties cannot afford to establish a family or are concerned about rainy days ahead. As the economy rebounds, the number of marriages also rises. Coincident with the increase in women working outside the home is the increase in divorce rates. Yet, it may be wrong to jump to any simple cause-and-effect conclusions. The impact of a wife’s work on divorce is no less cloudy than its impact on marriage decisions. The realization that she can be a good provider may increase the chances that a working wife will choose divorce over an unsatisfactory marriage. But the reverse is equally plausible. Tensions grounded in financial problems often play a key role in ending a marriage. Given high unemployment, inflationary problems, and slow growth in real earnings, a working wife can increase household income and relieve some of these pressing financial burdens. By raising a family’s standard of living, a working wife may strengthen her family’s financial and emotional stability. Psychological factors also should be considered. For example, a wife blocked from a career outside the home may feel caged in the house. She may view her only choice as seeking a divorce. On the other hand, if she can find fulfillment through work outside the home, work and marriage can go together to create a stronger and more stable union. Also, a major part of women’s inequality in marriage has been due to the fact that, in most cases, men have remained the main breadwinners. With higher earning capacity and status occupations outside of the home comes the capacity to exercise power within the family. A working wife may rob a husband of being the master of the house. Depending upon how the couple reacts to these new conditions, it could create a stronger equal partnership or it could create new insecurities.

The MBA boom in China is in close connection with its increasing market demands. Judging from the employment opportunities of MBA graduates in recent years, rivalry for talents is no longer confined to foreign funded enterprises. More and more state and private run enterprises have joined the vying. Up to now, many a state-run enterprise with a foresight has realized the importance of senior administrative talents in their future development, and has started investment of this sort in a planned way. According to Financial Time, a corporation in Shenzhen paid RMB 1,000,000, while asking other companies to join hands to raise a fund of RMB4,000,000 as scholarship in Tsinghua and three other famous universities for them to run courses for doctors of business administration.

It is estimated that approximately 350,000 managers are needed in China. With China’s entry into WTO, the demand for MBA graduates will be increasing in China’s talent market. To individuals, the key reason for MBA’s powerful attraction is its “worth in gold“, for it can bring to its possessors admirable profession and status as well as the money and interest accompanied. Many people appreciate the【C1】______of the city. There are some good reasons. First, living in the city, they are【C2】______the exciting and【C3】______that take place in the world. Besides, one can always go to new【C4】______. Second, modern【C5】______make it easy to travel around, People can take less time to go to work because of the shorter distance and one can even visit other parts of the world. Finally, shopping centers are always【C6】______. So it is convenient to get what one wants. While in the countryside, life will not be so convenient as in the city. The country, however, has its own attraction. People are【C7】______and enjoy a quiet and gentle pace of life, which is extremely【C8】______. In addition, they have【C9】______that there is always someone to turn to【C10】______. As a popular saying goes:【C11】______. Both the city and the country have disadvantages, too. City residents【C12】______public hazards, such as noise and air pollution, while【C13】______have to go on expeditions to the nearest large town for anything slightly【C14】______. As far as I am【C15】______, I’m one of the many city people who are always saying that【C16】______we would prefer to live in the country far from【C17】______of the city. I have managed to【C18】______that if it were not for my job, I would immediately【C19】______the open spaces and go back to nature in some sleepy village【C20】______.Many people appreciate the convenience of the city. There are some good reasons. First, living in the city, they are well-informed of the exciting and important events that take place in the world. Besides, one can always go to new shows and latest movies. Second, modern transportation facilities make it easy to travel around. People can take less time to go to work because of the shorter distance and one can even visit other parts of the world. Finally, shopping centers are always within easy reach. So it is convenient to get what one wants. While in the countryside, life will not be so convenient as in the city. The country, however, has its own attraction. People are close to nature and enjoy a quiet and gentle pace of life, which is extremely good to their health. In addition, they have the advantage of knowing that there is always someone to turn to when they need help. As a popular saying goes: Each coin has two sides. Both the city and the country have disadvantages, too. City residents suffer a great deal from public hazards, such as noise and air pollution, while country dwellers have to go on expeditions to the nearest large town for anything slightly out of the ordinary. As far as I am concerned, I’m one of the many city people who are always saying that given the choice we would prefer to live in the country far from the dirt and noise of the city. I have managed to convince myself that if it were not for my job, I would immediately head out for the open spaces and go back to nature in some sleepy village buried in the country.

W: I’m very impressed by all the work you’ve done on your house, Mr. Sloane. How long have you been working on it? M: I first became interested in DIY several years ago. You see, my son Thomas is disabled. He’s in a wheel-chair and I just had to make alterations to the house. I couldn’t afford to pay workmen to do it. I had to learn to do it myself. W: Had you had any experience of this kind of work? Did you have any practical skills? M: No. I got a few books from the library but they didn’t help very much. Then I decided to go to evening classes so that I could learn basic carpentry and electrics. W: What sort of changes did you make to the house? M: First of all, practical things to help Thomas. You never really realize the problems handicapped people have until it affects your own family. We used to live in a flat, and it was totally unsuitable. Just imagine the problems a disabled person would have in your house. We needed a large house with wide corridors so that Thomas could get from one room to another. We didn’t have much money and we had to buy this one. It’s over 90 years old and it was in a very bad state of repair. W: Where did you begin? M: The electrics. I completely rewired the house so that Thomas could reach all the switches. I had to lower the light switches. M: What else did you do? W: By the time I’d altered everything for Thomas, DIY had become a hobby. I really enjoyed doing things with my hands. Look, I even installed smoke-alarms. M: What was the purpose of that? W: I was very worried about fire. You see, Thomas can’t move very quickly. I fitted them so that we would have plenty of warning if there were a fire. I put in a complete burglar-alarm system. It took weeks. The front door opens automatically, and I’m going to put a device on Thomas’ wheelchair so that he’ll be able to open and close it when he wants. M: What are you working on now? W: I’ve just finished the kitchen. I’ve designed it so that he can reach everything. Now I’m building an extension so that he will have a large room on the ground floor where he can work. W: Here’s a 10,000-pound prize. How are you going to spend it? M: I’m going to start my own business so that I can convert ordinary houses for disabled people. I think I’ve become an expert on the subject. 19. What has Mr. Sloane done to his house? 20. Why did Mr. Sloane do something to his house? 21. According to Mr. Sloane, what will he do with the money he has won? 22. How much is the prize? He painted it. He renovated it. He decorated it. He altered it.

Last week, you recall, we discussed the early development of railroads in the United States. Today I want to mention an even earlier form of transportation, one that brought the first European settlers to America. And that’s the wooden sailing ship. From colonial times sailing ships were vital to the economy. Many coastal towns depended on fishing or whaling for employment and income. This was especially true in the northeastern states. And there the wood from nearby forests and the skills of local designers and workers also formed the basis of an important shipbuilding industry. But the big profits were to be made on trade with far away places. And since sea captains often became part owners of their ships, they had a strong interest in the commercial success of their voyages. So these Yankees, that’s what US sailors and officers came to be called, they carried on a very profitable trade with other parts of the world. The high point of this trade came in the mid-19th century with the introduction of the clipper ship, the enormous Yankee clippers with huge sails reaching nearly two hundred feet into the sky. He’d carry passengers and cargo from New York around South America to San Francisco in less than three months and to China in just half a year. At that time this seemed unbelievably fast and efficient. But in the 1860s, more reliable steam-powered ship began to take over. And soon the important role of sailing ships in the US economy would come to an end. 23. What does the professor mainly discuss? 24. According to the professor, what may be one reason for the success of the merchant ships of the United States? 25. What does the professor say about clipper ships? 26. What took over the clipper ships? Employment in the fishing and whaling industries. Nineteenth-century sea captains. The economic importance of sailing ships. The development of the steamship.

Since the late 1960s, another image of “one world“ has edged its way into contemporary consciousness—the globe in its physical finiteness. We share in “humanity“, we are connected by the “world market“, but we are condemned to one destiny because we are inhabitants of one planet. This is the message conveyed by the first photograph of the “one world“, taken from outer space, which has irresistibly emerged as the icon of our age. The photo shows the planet suspended in the vastness of the universe and impresses on everybody the fact that the Earth is one body. Against the darkness of infinity, the circular Earth offers itself as an abode, a bounded place. The sensation of being on and inside it strikes the onlooker almost instantly. The unity of the world is now documented. It can be seen everywhere. It jumps out at you from book covers, T-shirt and commercials. In the age of TV, photographs are our eyewitness. For the first time in history, the planet is revealed in its solitude. From now on, “One world“ means physical unity: it means “one Earth“. The unity of mankind is no longer an Enlightenment fancy or a commercial act but a biophysical fact. However, this physical interconnectedness stands in relief against the background of proliferating dangers. From creeping desertification to impending climate disaster, alarm signals multiply. The biosphere is under attack and threatens to cave in. Local acts such as driving a car or clearing a forest add up, when multiplied, to global imbalances. They turn beneficial cycles into vicious ones that undermine the reliability of nature. In the face of incalculable debacles, concerned voices call for a global political coherence which would match the biophysical interconnections. “The Earth is one but the world is not. We all depend on one biosphere for sustaining our lives.“ After having intoned this leitmotiv, the Brundtland Reports spells out the fateful new meaning of unity. The Brundtland Report, the leading document on development policy in the late 1980s, takes unity for granted, but a unity which is now the result of a threat.