这个系列文章希望通过帮助大家学习阅读外刊，从而达到学习英文句型的目的。在完整的文章或句子中去学习一些句型，可以帮助大家更好地了解和记忆，这也对往后的句型运用能够起到一定的帮助。

1.对某事物的利弊进行权衡

如何表达“对……进行权衡”，下面的外刊段落提供了一个句式（来自The Economist文章Pessimism v progress）

Worries about screen time should be weighed against the much more substantial benefits of ubiquitous communication and the instant access to information and entertainment that smartphones make possible.

上面标颜色的两句话的意思是：人们常常只看到新技术的弊端，对它带来的好处却当作理所当然。人们对于使用屏幕时间过长的担忧应该与智能手机所带来的更多实质性好处相权衡。智能手机带来的好处是它使无处不在的通信以及即时访问信息和娱乐成为可能。

第二句话中有一个句型：worries about XX should be weighed against the benefits of…（对于XX担忧应该和……所带来的好处相权衡）。举个例子：

Worries aboutthe safety of nuclear energy should be weighed against the much more substantial benefits of fewer carbon emissions and lower energy prices.

句子中worries/benefits也可以换成其他相对立的事物，比如costs/gains, pros/cons等，比如：

The costs of advertising should be weighed against the likely gains from increased business.

这一句式也可以使用主动形式somebody weighs A against B，比如：We have to weigh the benefits of the scheme against the costs.

2.见证了……的发生

下面的句子选自The Economist对于大城市无家可归问题的报道How to cut homelessness in the world’s priciest cities

Almost every European country is seeing a rise in the number of homeless people, including those who live in temporary accommodation, as well as the smaller number who live on the streets.

句子的意思是：几乎在每个欧洲国家无家可归者的人数都在增加，其中包括住在临时住所中的人，以及流落街头的少部分人。

通常要表达“某地正在发生某事”，可以说 something is taking place in XX，也可以参考句子中的说法 XX is seeing something，举个例子，要表达“这所大学在多年来发生了很大变化”，除了可以说：

Great changes have taken place in this university over the years.

还可以说：

This university has seen great changes over the years.

句子的主语也可以是时间，比如要表达“过去十年间这个国家的汽车拥有率得到了提升”，可以说：

The past decade has seen a rise in car ownership in this country.

另一个单词witness也有相同的用法，比如：Recent years have witnessed a growing social mobility.

3.某事的影响波及面很大

下面的句子选自The Economist对于加州互联网数据法案的报道Companies should take California’s new data-privacy law seriously

The impact of the CCPA is being felt beyond boardrooms. Big Tech is lobbying lawmakers in Washington, DC, for a federal statute on the subject.

文章的背景是美国加州最近通过了“加州消费者隐私保护法案”（California Consumer Privacy Act），旨在更有效地保护互联网用户的隐私。但这一法案可能会给中小型企业带来很大负担，对大公司的影响反而不大。上面这句话的意思是：“加州消费者隐私保护法案”影响的是远不止是公司决策层。大的科技公司正在游说华盛顿特区的立法者就此议题制订联邦法规。

这里有一个值得注意的句式：The impact of XX is felt beyond…（XX带来的影响超出了……） ，比如BBC在报道席卷墨西哥的猪瘟时有这样一句话：

As the virus spreads and new cases emerge around the globe, it seems inevitable that the economic impact will be felt beyond its borders.

随着病毒不断传播以及新病例在全球各地出现，它带来的经济影响将会超出墨西哥本国范围，这一点似乎不可避免。

这一句式在日常写作中也有不少应用，比如在写环保话题时我们可以说：

The impact ofthe Amazon rainforest fires will be felt beyond the borders of Brazil because the rainforest plays an important part in regulating the world's oxygen and carbon cycles. The destruction of the Amazon forest can have a knock-on effect on the global ecosystem.

句式中impact也可以换成effect/influence/repercussions/benefits等词，例如下面的BBC例句：

Labour says Mr Miliband's pledge to improve bus provision outside London is part of his plan to ensure that the benefits of economic recovery are felt beyond the capital.

4.一个转折句式

我在之前的文章中曾经介绍过一个转折句型At first glance…A closer look, however, suggests… 今天这里再补充一个：

It can be tempting to dismiss teenagers’ news-consumption habits. Most cannot vote, have limited spending power and are probably incapable of finding El Salvador on a map. Such sneers are misplaced.

句子的意思是：人们可能禁不住会对青少年的新闻阅读习惯不屑一顾。他们当中大多数人无法投票，消费能力有限，并且可能无法在地图上找出萨尔瓦多在哪里。这样的嘲讽是不恰当的。

从中可以学习一个句式：It can be tempting to dismiss…Such…is misplaced. 使用该句式时可以在dismiss后面接上文提到的观点进行让步，然后通过Such…is misplaced来对上文进行转折。该句式的使用难点也在于如何构造这样一个结构。

举个例子，在关于“是否支持动物实验”的话题中，我们可以说：

It can be tempting to dismissanimal testing as inhumane and worthless. Many argue that animal experiments often result in suffering or death for the animals. Such an argument is misplaced. There are huge benefits to be had by carrying out scientific experiments on animals. For example, hundreds of millions of people have benefited from the medical breakthroughs brought by animal testing.

总结：

本期一共介绍了以下几个表达：

(1) worries about XX should be weighed against the benefits of…

(2) XX is seeing something

(3) The impact of XX is felt beyond…

(4) It can be tempting to dismiss…Such…is misplaced