“好男人”越来越难找了...
为什么呢？因为接受高等教育的女性比例已经超过了男性，据估计，每有3个男性取得学士学位，就有4个女性也取得了学士学位，而且在研究生学历上这种差距更大
这种趋势会带来什么结果呢？
好的一方面是什么？
同时又有什么潜在的问题会出现呢？
A Good Man Is Getting Even Harder to FindThe future of mating looks grim as more educated women compete for fewer eligible males.
When my daughters were small they had a favorite bit of doggerel that prefigured some early feminist leanings.
“Girls go to college to get more knowledge/Boys go to Jupiter to get more stupider,” they would chant at me, and, with more evident passion, at any young males in their vicinity. I’d try to take issue with the grammatical betise in the second line that, I would point out, slightly undermined the premise of the jibe, but it was no good. Girls were smarter than boys and immeasurably superior in just about every other respect.
On that, of course, I have never dared demur.
But as it turns out, and as my girls progress with grace and accomplishment up the gilded escalator of their liberal education, there’s a searing piece of truth in that couplet that points up a deep demographic chasm in this country and in much of the developed world.
The gender imbalance in educational attainment is getting larger every year. That may spell good news, ultimately, for income and employment equality—but it presages increasingly problematic social conditions for generations of men and women.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, more than 57% of the class of 2018 who graduated with bachelor’s degrees were female. The gap for master’s degrees was even wider: 59% to 41%.
In the game of life, love and relationships, the educational disparity between men and women is a problem.
This gender imbalance has existed since 1981, when more women than men graduated for the first time, and it’s widened just about every single year since then. In fact, the Department estimates that by 2027 women will account for about 60% of all bachelor’s degrees awarded.
Now, from the perspective of economic justice and equity, we can surely stipulate that this is progress. It may be the most tangible piece of evidence of a fundamental change in sexual equality since women were given the vote. If education really is the key to lifetime earning potential, then slowly, perhaps, steadily, we can expect the gap in pay and opportunities to narrow.
I realize of course that there are many other reasons for gender differences in economic outcomes, and many of those aren’t going away. But the impact of a more highly educated female population in the workforce should be substantial.
But while the economic consequences may play out this way, it’s worth pondering some of the social effects. In the much larger game of life, love and relationships, the growing educational disparity between men and women is a problem.
It is estimated that for every three men with bachelor’s degrees in their 20s and 30s, there are now four women. Most studies of human heterosexual attraction suggest both that intellectual capacity and achievement is an important attractor and that people tend to gravitate toward a partner with roughly the same level of attainment.
But every year, the pool of eligible male graduates is getting smaller relative to the number of women. Now of course college isn’t everything, and many women will find a perfect mate who hasn’t been through the four-year playground of parties, sleeping and the occasional lecture. But the reality is that more of them are going to have to if they want a meaningful relationship.
And there’s a larger problem confronting these new cohorts of well-educated women. It’s always been assumed that women are more selective in seeking out a partner of the opposite sex. Men are notoriously undiscriminating; women, obviously more refined and sophisticated, are more choosy. But with data now available from dating apps we are beginning to get a sense of just how big this gap is too.
Aviv Goldgeier, an engineer with the dating app Hinge, was recently interviewed about data he’d compiled on the “likes” of straight men and women. If we think of attractiveness in terms of an economic asset, we can measure how evenly or unevenly distributed that asset is among men and women. Economists use a measure—the Gini coefficient—to estimate the level of inequality in an economy. The nearer the number is to 0, the more evenly distributed the wealth. The closer it is to 1, the more unequal it is.
It turns out that the Gini index for males is 0.542—a high level of inequality. A small number of men hold most of the attractiveness assets. For women, in the eyes of men, the attractiveness assets were much more evenly spread—a Gini index of just 0.376. Grim confirmation: A much smaller number of men are considered eligible by women than is the case for women as viewed by men.
In other words, when they’ve finished college, it’s women who may need to go to Jupiter to find a decent partner.
词 汇 卡 片1. grim [ɡrɪm] adj.
worrying, without hope
令人担忧的，令人沮丧的
- When he lost his job, his future looked grim.
他失业以后前途不容乐观。
- Millions of Britons face the grim prospect (=something bad that will probably happen) of dearer home loans.
许许多多的英国人未来可能面对一个严酷的事实: 住房贷款负担更加沉重。
- We received the grim news in silence.
我们默默地接受这个令人沮丧的消息。
2. eligible [ˈel.ɪ.dʒə.bəl] adj.
An eligible person is not married and is thought to be a suitable future marriage partner, especially because they are rich and attractive.
（作为结婚对象）理想的，合适的
- I can think of several eligible bachelors of my acquaintance.
在认识的人当中我能想到有几位条件不错的单身汉。
注：
此外，该词还有一个意思：
having the necessary qualities or satisfying the necessary conditions
具备条件的；有资格的；合格的
- Are you eligible for early retirement/maternity leave?
你符合提前退休／休产假的条件吗？
- You might be eligible for a grant.
你或许有资格得到奖学金。
- Only people over 18 are eligible to vote.
只有18岁以上的人才有资格投票。
3. doggerel [ˈdɒɡ.ər.əl] UN
poetry that is silly or badly written
蹩脚诗；打油诗
4. prefigure [priːˈfɪɡ.ər] vt.
to show or suggest that something will happen in the future
预示；预想，预见
- His paintings prefigure the development of perspective in Renaissance art.
他的绘画预示了文艺复兴时期的艺术作品中透视画法的发展。
5. leaning [ˈliː.nɪŋ] CN
a particular set of beliefs, opinions, etc. that someone prefers
（指信念、意见等的）倾向性
- I don't know what his political leanings are.
我不知道他的政治倾向。
- a person with socialist leanings
具有社会主义倾向的人
- a leaning towards comedy rather than tragedy
偏爱喜剧而不是悲剧
6. vicinity [vɪˈsɪn.ə.ti]
the area around a place or where the speaker is
周围地区；邻近地区；附近
- There are several hotels in the immediate vicinity of the station.
就在车站附近有好几家旅馆。
- We could see that there were several open Wi-Fi networks in the vicinity.
我们可以看见在附近就有好几个供公众使用的无线网络。
- Anyone who happened to be in the vicinity could have been injured or killed.
偶然身处附近的任何人都有可能受伤或者死亡。
注：
1. 文中的in their vicinity即“在她们周围的”的意思
2. 该词常以单数形式出现
7. take issue with
to disagree strongly
对…持强烈异议，很不赞同
- I took issue with him over his interpretation of the instructions.
我不赞同他对命令的理解。
8. betise [bi'ti:s] CN
an act of foolishness or stupidity
<法>愚蠢的行为
- Do not make such a betise again.
不要再犯这种错误了。
9. premise [ˈprem.ɪs] CN
an idea or theory on which a statement or action is based
（作为先决条件的）假定，前提
- [ that ] They had started with the premise that all men are created equal.
他们是从人人生来平等这一前提出发的。
- The research project is based on the premise stated earlier.
这项研究计划是基于早先提出的假设之上的。
10. jibe/gibe [dʒaɪb] CN
an insulting remark that is intended to make someone look stupid
嘲讽话
- Unlike many other politicians, he refuses to indulge in cheap jibes at other people's expense.
与许多其他政治家不同，他从不对他人滥加嘲讽。
11. immeasurably [ɪˈmeʒ.ər.ə.bli] adv.
You use immeasurably to emphasize the degree or extent of a process or quality.
极度地；极大地
- They have improved immeasurably since their arrival.
他们自来到这里以后，有了很大改进。
- The situation today is immeasurely more acute than it was 25 years ago.
今天的形势远比25年前严峻。
12. demur [dɪˈmɜː(r)] vi.
to express disagreement or refuse to do something
提出异议；拒绝
- The lawyer requested a break in the court case, but the judge demurred.
律师请求休庭，但法官没有同意。
- They demurred politely, but finally agreed to stay.
他们礼貌拒绝，但最后还是同意留下。
注：
该词的过去式和过去分词都要双写r
13. spell vt.
to have sth as a result; to mean sth
- The crop failure spelt disaster for many farmers.
对许多农民来说，庄稼歉收就意味着灾难。
- The lack of rain could spell disaster for farmers.
少雨会给农民带来灾难。
注：
该词的后面一般接消极的结果，但原文中是好的结果（good news），所以，语言是处在不断变化中的，要多读地道文章哦
14. presage [ˈpres.ɪdʒ] vt.
to show or suggest that something, often something unpleasant, will happen
预示，预兆（尤指不祥之事）
- But still the economy is not showing signs of any of the excesses that normally presage a recession.
但经济仍未显露出任何过剩的迹象，这些迹象通常预示经济衰退。
- The large number of moderate earthquakes that have occurred recently could presage a larger quake soon.
最近多次发生中等强度的地震预示着可能很快就会发生更强烈的地震。
15. stipulate [ˈstɪp.jə.leɪt] vt.
to say exactly how something must be or must be done
规定，约定；明确说明
- She agreed to buy the car, but stipulated racing tyres and a turbo-powered engine.
她同意买这辆车，但指明要装赛车轮胎和涡轮动力引擎。
- [ that ] The law stipulates that new cars must have seat belts for the driver and every passenger.
法律规定新车必须为驾驶员和每位乘客配备坐椅安全带。
- [ question word ] We have signed a contract which stipulates when the project must be completed.
我们已签署合同，规定了项目必须完成的时间。
注：
原文的we can surely stipulate that this is progress就是“我们可以肯定地说，这是进步”
16. ponder [ˈpɒn.də(r)] vt./vi.
to think carefully about something, especially for a noticeable length of time
沉思，默想，考虑
- She sat back for a minute to ponder her next move in the game.
她在椅背上靠了一会儿，思考下一步棋该怎么走。
17. gravitate [ˈɡræv.ɪ.teɪt] towards/to sb/sth
to be attracted by or to move in the direction of something or someone
吸引到；受吸引而转到
- Susie always gravitates towards the older children in her playgroup.
苏茜在幼儿游戏组里总是爱跟比她大的孩子玩。
注：
该短语本身就是“被”的含义了，在使用时就不要画蛇添足地说成"be gravitated to"了
18. playground
a place where a particular group of people enjoy themselves
娱乐场所
- This area of the coast is the playground of the rich and famous.
海滨的这片区域是富人和名人们的娱乐场。
注：
1. 该词只以单数形式出现
2. 文中的be through the four-year playground of parties, sleeping and the occasional lecture描述得既扎心又真实，哈哈哈～
19. cohort [ˈkəʊ.hɔːt] CN
a group of people who share a characteristic, usually age
有共同特点（通常指年龄）的一群人
- This study followed up a cohort of 386 patients aged 65 for six months after their discharge home.
这项研究对386位年龄在65岁以上、出院回家的患者进行了6个月的跟踪观察。
注：
该词用作主语时，谓语动词可加s也可不加
20. the Gini coefficient
基尼系数
背景知识：
基尼系数是指国际上通用的、用以衡量一个国家或地区居民收入差距的常用指标。
基尼系数最大为“1”，最小等于“0”。基尼系数越接近0表明收入分配越是趋向平等。国际惯例把0.2以下视为收入绝对平均，0.2-0.3视为收入比较平均；0.3-0.4视为收入相对合理；0.4-0.5视为收入差距较大，当基尼系数达到0.5以上时，则表示收入悬殊。
基尼指数最早由意大利统计与社会学家Corrado Gini在1912年提出。
语法/长难句分析But as it turns out, and as my girls progress with grace and accomplishment up the gilded escalator of their liberal education, there’s a searing piece of truth in that couplet that points up a deep demographic chasm in this country and in much of the developed world.
自己先试着分析：
1. 这句话的主干是什么？
2. 其他成分是什么？
主干：
But as it turns out, and as my girls progress with grace and accomplishment up the gilded escalator of their liberal education, there’s a searing piece of truth in that couplet，其中的as... and as...是时间状语从句
其他成分：
that points up a deep demographic chasm in this country and in much of the developed world是定语从句修饰truth，that指代truth，在从句中作主语
we think about and work with是定语从句修饰things，关系代词which/that省去了，因为其在定语从句中作介词about和with的宾语
注：
1. 学学人家是怎么描述人越来越优雅，学业水平越来越高的：as my girls progress with grace and accomplishment up the gilded escalator of their liberal education，句子漂亮到简直想哭～
[ 再次强调一下，文中划线句子无条件背熟！]
2. demographic chasm就是difference/gap between the two genders的意思
3. that couplet即“Girls go to college to get more knowledge/Boys go to Jupiter to get more stupider”
趁 热 打 铁任选上面20个词中的1个造句，下方评论告诉我哦，会一一回复哒～
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