Money is a vital part of our everyday lives.

Money can be earned by working, spent on things we need, saved for future spending or borrowed for immediate use.

Money, as we know it, takes two forms: cash money which consists of coin and paper currency and checkbook money which most people use to pay many of their bills. The important thing to remember, though, is that they are interchangeable. We can deposit cash into a checking account. Or we can write a check as a substitute for cash.

Money in itself really is useless. But as a medium of exchange it has value. The value is what the money can buy. Here is a simple example.

Ten years ago one dollar could buy:

hamburger postage stamp

ice cream cone ball point pen

Today one dollar can buy:

hamburger

Ten years from now one dollar might buy more or less or the same. Strange, isn't it? One dollar always equals 4 quarters or 10 dimes or 20 nickels or 100 pennies. So the dollar itself doesn't change. But what the dollar will buy, how much it will buy, does vary. Why does the value of the dollar change? How does this change affect us? How can we limit the dollar's changing value?

Imagine our economy as one huge machine. Instead of mills, factories, farms, offices and shops, this one machine turns out all our goods and services. Everyone with a job works this Total Production Machine. Some workers repair and maintain it. But most work to produce cars, washing machines, houses, food, tanks, roads and health services —— almost all the things we need and want.

Of course, everyone who works the machine gets paid. Some are paid in cash. Others are paid by check. In fact, sometimes this checkbook money is deposited directly into workers' bank accounts.

Then either with their cash money or checkbook money,people buy things to eat and wear and enjoy. Thus, people work on the machine,get paid by the machine and buy what the Total Production Machine has produced. When people buy all that the machine has produced, then everything is in balance, and the value of our money is stable and healthy.

錢在人們的日常生活中是不可缺少的。

掙錢靠工作，日常消費需要用錢，將來消費需要存錢，現在消費需要借錢。

眾所周知，錢有兩種形式：一種是現金，包括硬幣和紙幣；另一種是支票貨幣，大多數人用來支付賬單。不過，你要記住，支票貨幣是可用于交換的。人們可以把錢存到支票賬戶上去，或者開出支票代替現金使用。

錢本身確實沒有什么用，但作為交換媒介，它是有價值的。其價值在于它能購買到的東西。舉一個簡單的例子。

十年前，一美元可以買到：

一個漢堡包 一張郵票

一個蛋卷冰淇淋 一支圓珠筆

現在一美元只能買到：

一個漢堡包

以后的十年，一美元可以買到的東西或多或少，或者相同。奇怪嗎？一美元總是等于四個兩角五分的輔幣，或者十個一角銀幣，或者二十個五分鎳幣，或者一百分輔幣，因此，一美元本身的價值沒有變化。但是，一美元能買什么東西，買多少東西卻是變化無常的。一美元的價值為什么會發生變化呢？這種變化對人們的生活有怎樣的影響呢？人們怎樣才能將這種變化限制在一定的范圍內呢？

把我們生活的經濟社會設想為一臺巨大的機器，它不是作坊、工廠、農場、辦公室和商店，正是這臺機器，它生產出所有我們需要的商品和勞務。每一個有工作的人都在開動這臺“生產總機器”。有些工人在修理并維護它，但大多數人工作，生產出汽車、洗衣機、住房、食品、儲罐、道路和衛生服務——幾乎人們所需要的一切東西。

當然，任何開動機器的人都會得到報酬，有的人得到的是現金，有的人得到的是支票。實際上，這張支票貨幣有時直接存到工人的銀行賬戶上。

然后，人們既可以用現金貨幣，又可以用支票貨幣購買吃的東西、穿的衣服和享受服務。所以，人們開動機器，從機器得到報酬并購買這臺“生產總機器”生產出來的產品。當人們將其生產出來的產品全部購買掉，那一切都處于平衡狀態，我們社會中的貨幣價值就會穩定，機器就會正常運轉。

But once in a while, people decide to buy fewer cars. Or the federal government may cut back its spending on the space program. Perhaps local governments defer building a new school. Or industry decides to spend less on steel, for example, thinking that there is enough stockpiled in the nation's warehouses. And when spending or demand slows, then the machine's speed is reduced.

Fewer people are needed to work the Total Production Machine. As some incomes are cut out, total buying is even less than before. The machine works still slower and more people are laid off. This state of economic affairs —— the imbalance between demand and supply —— is called recession.

Sometimes the opposite happens. Instead of cutting back, people, industry and governments may decide to buy more. Demand goes up and our Total Production Machine gets busier. As the demand for its output becomes greater and greater, the machine must work harder and longer to produce more cars, more space capsules, more schools, more steel, more health care —— more of the things that are wanted.

More people are hired to work the machine. Earnings rise. And spending increases. We push the machine to even greater efforts.

However, there's a limit to what the machine can produce —— at stable prices. Working at full throttle, the machine must use obsolete and inefficient parts. This is costly. Further, untrained people must be hired who may be less productive. So costs go up still more. And as costs go up, prices go up,too.

How can we produce more without rising prices? How can growing demand be satisfied at stable prices? To solve this problem, we must improve and enlarge the machine. To produce more at prices that stay level we must add to the machine's capacity. Therefore, part of the machine's output must be assigned to expand its capacity. This means that we must postpone the demand for additional cars, washing machines and services, so that we can spend more on steel mills, electric generating plants and spare parts —— the things that are needed to expand the Total Production Machine.

It seems, though, that people prefer not to postpone their demand. They would rather spend their incomes right away.

Some suggest that we get funds for new parts for the Total Production Machine by creating more money.

The banking system can create more money when people wish to borrow to supplement their spending out of current income. Borrowing may expand the Total Production Machine's output. But when the machine is working near or at full capacity, the rapid creation of more money will not increase production fast enough.

Since we cannot buy more than is being produced, the additional money only increases the competition for the available supply of products. Too many dollars are chasing too few goods. Prices of many kinds of goods will tend to go up. A dollar will not buy what it did before, and its value —— what and how much it will buy —— will go down. This state of economic affairs —— this imbalance between demand and supply —— is called inflation.

Inflation hurts many people. Those receiving fixed incomes, such as pensioners, find that their dollars buy less. And people with savings accounts find that inflation reduces the value of their savings.

Since too little spending may lead to recession and too much spending may lead to inflation, how much new money is needed to keep our economy growing, employment high and prices relatively stable? We are waiting for the answer.

但是，人們偶爾會決定減少汽車的購買量；或者聯邦政府可能會削減其太空計劃的費用；或許地方政府會推遲建一所新 學校；或者工業部門決定減少鋼產量，比如，工業部門認為國家庫存已十分充裕。當費用開支或需求減少，這時機器運轉的速度就會放慢。

當開動這臺“生產總機器”的人數減少，一些人的收入就會減少，購買總金額就會比以前減少，這臺機器運轉的速度就會放慢，就會有更多的人被解雇。這種經濟狀況——供求失衡——就叫經濟蕭條。

有時，經濟會發生相反的情況，消費者、工業部門和政府不是決定削減開支，而是增加購買金額。需求上升，我們的“生產總機器”運轉加快。由于對其產品的需求越來越大，這臺機器運轉更吃力、時間更長，以便生產更多的汽車、制造更多的太空倉、建更多的學校、煉更多的鋼鐵、提供更多的衛生保健服務——所需要的更多東西。

更多的人被雇來開動機器，人們收益增加，開支也隨著增加，人們得更努力地去推動這臺機器運轉。

然而，在物價穩定的情況下，機器生產的產品就會限制在一定的范圍內。如果開足馬力，機器的零部件就會老化，甚至失效，這樣做成本太高。此外，雇傭的人未經培訓，效率低下，因此，成本還會繼續上升。隨著成本的上升，價格也跟著上升。

在物價不上升的情況下，怎樣才能生產更多的產品呢？在物價穩定時，怎樣才能滿足不斷增長的需求呢？要解決這個問題，我們就必須改進機器，擴大機器的生產能力。為了在價格保持平穩的情況下生產更多的東西，我們必須擴大機器的生產能力。這就意味著我們必須推遲對汽車、洗衣機和勞務的額外需求，目的是為了將更多的費用花在鋼鐵廠、發電廠和配件廠——用于購買擴大這臺“生產總機器”生產能力所需要的一切東西。

可是，人們似乎不愿推遲他們的需求，寧愿將其收入立刻花費掉。

有人建議，通過增加發行貨幣的方法，我們就會獲得資金，為這臺“生產總機器”制造更多的零部件。在人們希望借到更多的錢，以增補現有收入的花費時，銀行系統可以發行更多的貨幣。借錢可以擴大這臺“生產總收入”的產出，但是，當它的生產能力接近或開足馬力，過多地發行貨幣將不會大幅度地增加生產。

既然我們所購買的東西不能超過現有的生產能力，額外增加的貨幣只能增加對現有產品的競爭。太多的美元追逐極少的貨物，許多貨物的價格就會呈上升趨勢。一美元就不會買到以前所能買到的東西，而且它的價值——它所能買到的東西和買到多少東西——將會下降。這種經濟狀況——這種供求失衡的狀況——就叫通貨膨脹。

通貨膨脹會對許多人造成傷害，那些有固定收入的人，比如領養老金的人，會發現他們手持的美元所能買到的東西減少了，而且有儲蓄的人發現，通貨膨脹減少了他們儲蓄的價值。

因為消費太少可能會引起經濟蕭條，過多的消費可能會引起通貨膨脹，所以，為保持經濟增長，充分就業，物價相對穩定，我們究竟需要發行多少新貨幣呢？我們等待著答復。

New Words
money n.錢，貨幣 
economy n. 經濟
vital adj.生死攸關的；致命的 
earn vt. 賺得；掙得 
spend vt. 花錢
save v. 節省；儲蓄
cash n. 現金，通貨
currency n. 貨幣；流通紙幣
checkbook n. （空白）支票簿
bill n. 帳單
interchangeable adj. 可交換的
interchange vt. 交換
deposit vt. 存錢：把（錢）存在銀行戶頭上
check n. 支票
account n. 帳戶
substitute n. 代用品；代替物
value n. 價值
limit vt.　 限制或限定在一邊界或范圍之內

Phrases and Expressions
cash money 現金
paper currency 紙幣
checkbook money 支票貨幣
deposit…into… 把…存入
a checking account 支票帳戶
in itself 本身；實質上
postage stamp 郵票
ice cream cone 蛋卷冰淇淋
ball point pen 圓珠筆 
changing value 不斷變化的價值
turn out 生產；制造
 
Notes

1.We Live in a "Money Economy".我們生活在"貨幣經濟社會"。

(1)money n.pl.mon.eys或 monies

①a commodity, such as gold, or an officially issued coin or paper note that is legally established as an exchangeable equivalent of all other commodities, such as goods and services, and is used as a measure of their comparative values on the market錢，貨幣，紙幣：一種商品，如金子或官方發行的鑄幣或紙幣，把這種貨幣或紙幣定為可與其他一切商品、如貨物和服務的等價交換物，并用作市場交換價值的尺度

②the official currency, coins, and negotiable paper notes issued by a government通貨：由政府發行的官方貨幣、鑄幣和可轉讓紙幣

③assets and property considered in terms of monetary value; wealth財產，財富：被認為有金錢價值的財產或財富；財富

(2)economy n.①the system or range of economic activity in a country, region, or community經濟體：國家、地區或群體的經濟活動體系和范圍：

例：Effects of inflation were felt at every level of the economy.

通貨膨脹影響到每一經濟階層

②a specific type of economic system經濟制度：特定經濟體系類型

例：an industrial economy工業經濟體制；

a planned economy計劃經濟體制

2.The important thing to remember, though, is that they are interchangeable.然而，需要記住的事情是支票貨幣是可用于交換的。

(1)此句為"主-系-表"句型結構。其中由that…引導的從句是表語從句。

(2)動詞不定式to remember作后置定語，修飾前面的thing。

3.But what the dollar will buy, how much it will buy, does vary.但是，一美元能買什么東西，買多少東西卻是變化無常的。

(1)此句的主語是兩個主語從句what the dollar will buy和how much it will buy，謂語是does vary,此處的does起強調作用。

4.Of course, everyone who works the machine gets paid.當然，任何開動機器的人都會得到報酬。

(1)此句是"主-系-表"句型結構。句中的get作系詞，意為"to be successful in becoming成功地變成"；paid是動詞pay的過去分詞，在句中做表語。

(2)句中的"who works the machine開機器的…"是定語從句。動詞work意為to operate操作。

5.When people buy all that the machine has produced, then everything is in balance, and the value of our money is stable and healthy.當人們將其生產出來的產品全部購買掉，那一切都處于平衡狀態，我們社會中的貨幣價值就會穩定，機器就會正常運轉。

(1)此句中的(all)that the machine has produced是由關系代詞that引導的定語從句。由于先行詞是不定代詞all，所以關系代詞只能用that，而不能用which。

(2)in balance處于平衡狀態

balance n.a state of equilibrium or parity characterized by cancellation of all forces by equal opposing forces平衡：平衡或均等的狀態，具有所有力量被相反的力量所抵消的特點

(3)句末的healthy解釋為"possessing good health健康的；擁有良好健康狀況的"，意為"社會就像一個機器正常運轉"。

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