【914-916】华尔街工人不再穿西装&加州科学展探索狗-人的友谊&中国和法国领导人呼吁贸易改革
AS IT IS
No More Suits for Wall Street Workers
March 26, 2019
FILE - Traders work inside the Goldman Sachs booth on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., September 21, 2018. (REUTERS/Brendan McDermid)
The Goldman Sachs Group recently eased its rules for what employees wear to work. Then, the company asked them for ideas on what they should wear to work now.
Goldman Sachs employees were told to leave comments with the Twitter social media service.
The most popular answer was “hoodie and sneakers.” The second most common answer was a “suit.”
The findings showed that the issue of what to wear to work has become important at one of the oldest, most traditional businesses.
Earlier this month, Goldman Sachs sent a letter to its employees. The 150-year-old company said that the time was right “to move to (a) firmwide flexible dress code.” At the same time, the firm asked its 36,000 employees to think carefully about how they dress for work.
The move toward flexible, less structured workplaces began in the 1990s, said Robert Burke, head of Robert Burke Associates, a service specializing in the fashionindustry.
The idea became widely accepted with the rise of technology companies like Amazon and Facebook and their leaders. Burke said that Goldman Sachs is one of the last big Wall Street firms to ease its dress code.
Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg is famous for wearing blue jeans and a gray T-shirt. He and his company changed the way people communicate with each other and advertise. When he wore a blue suit to a congressional hearing last year, some people said he appeared smaller or of less importance than his public standing.
That event shows that one cannot wear jeans everywhere.
But the financial companies knew they must change because they want young people working as their employees. These individuals could just as easily work for a technology company, and never have to wear a suit to work.
The clothing rules at Goldman Sachs first changed in 2017 for the company’s technology and digital division employees. By including the rest of its workforce, Goldman honors its “one firm philosophy and the changing nature of workplaces.” The change comes three years after JPMorgan Chase & Co, the largest bank in the United States, announced its own flexible dress code.
The change can be seen among the leaders of financial service companies. Goldman Sachs’ chief David Solomon sometimes goes to official events without a necktie, as have the chiefs of JP Morgan Chase and Citigroup.
Talk of the move to business casual is often about what men wear. That is because the banking industry has mostly male leaders. Catalyst is an organization that supports women in the workplace. The group says its research shows that men held nearly 80 percent of top positions in U.S. investment banking and securities dealing in 2015.
For many years, women have much harder choices to make about what to wear to work.
Jennifer Hyman is chief of Rent-the-Runway, a clothing service for women. She told Goldman Sachs in a tweet that none of the answers listed in its survey are related to women and what they should wear to work.
There are fashion tech companies that offer advice for women tired of investing so much time in deciding what to wear. Such businesses want to help women create their own office “uniform.”
Ariel Schur is head of the employment service ABS Staffing Solutions. Schur told the Associated Press that she gets more questions from men nowadays about what to wear for job interviews and meetings. Those kinds of questions have been asked by women for a long time.
“Guys have always just been able to wear the same suit, change their ties and shirt,” Schur said. “You have to be more cognitive” as a woman, she added.
So, what is acceptable to wear at the office these days?
“This is pretty much what we wear,” said Ed Silhan, who works for an advertising technology firm. “Flip flops, or playground sneakers — I’d stay away from that,” he said. “You know, beat-up Nikes that you play basketball with. Just look presentable.”
Silhan wore black jeans and boots as he spoke to an AP reporter in New York’s Midtown Manhattan.
The “midtown uniform” — slacks, button-downed shirt and fleece vest — has become a common choice for men who work in U.S. offices.
“That’s probably a lazy solution,” said Chris Bossola of The Need Supply Co. He says it would be better if men created a set of clothing that works for their industry.
I’m Bryan Lynn. And I'm Dorothy Gundy.
Alexandra Olson reported on this story for the Associated Press. Jill Robbins adapted this story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.
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Words in This Story
hoodie – n. a sweatshirt with a hood covering the head
sneaker – n. a shoe with a rubber bottom that is designed for people to wear while running or playing sports
suit – n. two or more pieces of clothing that are worn together
dress code – n. a set of rules about what clothing may and may not be worn at a school, office, or restaurant
fashion – n. the popular look or way of doing things
blue jean – n. clothing made of blue denim
interview - n. a meeting at which information gathered from a person
cognitive – adj. of or relating to intellectual activity
slacks – n. clothing worn from the waist down to the ankle
vest – n. clothing worn on the upper body over a shirt
What do you usually wear to work? Is the usual office clothing changing in your country? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.
AS IT IS
California Science Show Explores the Dog-Human Friendship
March 26, 2019
Did people decide to fall in love with dogs or did dogs choose people? And why do these two species seem to think so much alike, act so much alike and get along so well?
The California Science Center has spent the past five years finding the answer to those and many other questions about dogs. Answers came with the recent opening of a show called "Dogs! A Science Tail."
And, yes, real dogs will be there.
"It's really not...just dogs and science. It's really about how dogs and humans are both social animals…because we are both social animals, we've learned to work together," said Jeffrey Rudolph. He is the center's president and a dog lover who worked for years to put this show together.
As he spoke just before the show opened, he stopped at a representation of a fire hydrant. Next to it is a button. When pushed, it lets visitors smell what a dog smells.
Rudolph said that while humans would just smell dog urine, “a dog can tell what dog was there, what time they were there and actually which direction they were going."
It is one of the ways dogs can decide how safe the area is. It is also how they tell time.
"They have an amazing ability to learn information," continues Rudolph. He says that dogs have 300 million sensory receptors in their noses while humans have just 6 million.
Nine similar places in the show permit people to see like a dog does --- not a very colorful display. And, visitors can learn how dogs hear sounds that humans cannot.
They can hear termites eating in the wall, Rudolph says.
In the museum, people could watch Garmin, a 2-year-old golden Labrador retriever who is about to complete guide-dog school. He demonstrates his skill with visitors with covers over their eyes. Garmin guides them around barriers in the path.
But do dogs really love us?
"If you look a dog in the eye, a dog will look back at you and you will produce oxytocin," said Diane Perlov. She is the center's senior vice president for exhibitions. Oxytocin is the chemical known as the love hormone because of the feelings it causes in people.
"And," she adds, "the dog will produce oxytocin in his own body from looking back at you.”
A chimpanzee, on the other hand, will just look away.
So how did the love between dogs and humans begin? Why are there dogs in more than 60 million American houses?
Scientists are not sure. They know dogs came from wolves and that wolves and people crossed paths more than 10,000 years ago, said Perlov. They learned they partnered well in the hunt for food. Could that be the beginning of love?
"It is…our ability to understand each other that forms the basis of our relationship," Perlov says.
I’m Susan Shand.
The Associated Press reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.
Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.
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Words in This Story
species - n. a group of animals or plants that are similar and can produce young animals or plants
hydrant - n. a pipe usually in the street that provides water especially for putting out fires
urine - n. waste liquid that collects in the bladder before leaving the body
actually - adv. used to refer to what is true or real
amazing - adj. causing great surprise or wonder :
receptor - n. a nerve ending that senses changes in light, temperature, pressure, etc., and causes the body to react in a particular way
termite - n. a kind of soft, white insect that lives in groups, eats wood, and causes a lot of damage to wooden structures
oxytocin - n. a chemical in the body that causes a sense of love or a bond
AS IT IS
Chinese and French Leaders Call for Trade Reform
March 26, 2019
French President Emmanuel Macron, second right, Chinese President Xi Jinping, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, left, hold a press conference at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris.
Chinese President Xi Jinping is continuing his visit to Europe with the second day of a state visit to France.
On Tuesday, French President Emanuel Macron invited German Chancellor Angela Merkel and European Commission President Jean-Claude Junker to discuss world trade with Xi. They met in Paris at France’s presidential palace.
The EU is China’s biggest trade partner.
During his European trip, Xi has stressed the importance of what he calls win-win economic cooperation with European countries.
On Monday, Chinese and French officials signed business contracts worth an estimated $40 billion. That included a deal to buy 300 Airbus passenger jets. Airbus is Europe’s major aerospace company. The deal, valued at $34 billion, equals China’s 2017 order for 300 passenger planes from the American company Boeing.
Xi called on France and China to deepen cooperation in nuclear energy, aerospace and other traditional industries.
Macron said that France is willing to cooperate with China on its Belt and Road Initiative, known as the BRI, for financing development. The BRI provides financing for bridges, railways, roads, ports and other infrastructure linking China with the rest of the world.
On Tuesday, Macron, Xi and Merkel said they want to make reforms to the world trade system, which has increasingly been marked by trade disputes. Both the United States and Europe have criticized China for enjoying relatively free trade with its World Trade Organization partners while placing barriers to foreign investment at home.
Xi expressed a willingness to continue long-promised economic reforms sought by Western countries.
“We will continue to stay on the path of reform…” the Chinese president said in Paris.
Macron and the other European leaders stressed cooperation and the need to give all sides something through trade and compromise, often called multilateralism.
Their meeting took place as the United States continues difficult negotiations with China over trade. The U.S. and its EU allies want China to reduce barriers and protect intellectual property rights.
The U.S. has angered its European trading partners and China by placing import taxes on products like steel and aluminum and threatening other measures.
In a joint statement, Xi and Macron called on each other to work together to support a rules-based international order. Germany’s Merkel noted the importance of having all sides involved. “There can’t be multilateralism without the United States,” she noted.
On Saturday, China expanded ties with one of Europe’s largest economies, Italy. Officials of the two countries signed an agreement that made Italy the first major European country to join the BRI. The document was agreed to during Xi’s visit to Rome while meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte.
I’m Mario Ritter Jr.
Mario Ritter Jr. wrote this story for VOA Learning English from AP, Reuters and AFP reports. Ashley Thompson was the editor.
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Words in This Story
intellectual property –n. something such as an idea, invention or process that comes from a person’s mind
infrastructure – n. the system of public works, such as roads, railways and ports in an area
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