There is news of a much different sort tonight, news that Americans are having more babies. The government says the fertility rate - that’s the average number of births for every woman - has gotten to 2.1. That’s the highest rate since the end of the baby boom more than 35 years ago. ABC’s David Wright points out that’s a small increase, but it has big implications.
Little Sydney Degner, born 11:30 this morning, is part of a generation that doesn’t even have a name yet. Like most kids her age, in the US at least, Sydney is not an only child. She has a brother. - - You know, in a year or two, I may get the itch again and want to have another one. One small example of a population boom.
4,265,996 kids were born in the US last year - a three percent increase over the previous year, and the largest number of births since 1961. The so-called fertility rate is nowhere near what it was at the height of the baby boom. But at 2.1, there are more kids than parents. -- The US is one of the only countries in the world, in fact, by some measures, it’s the only country in the world that over the last 15 years has not had declining fertility rates.
In Italy, the Pope has urged people to reproduce. But the average Italian woman has only one child. In Russia, only one out of three women has children. So Vladimir Putin recently offered cash incentives - payments of up to 10,000 dollars to have more children. Why? Well, a declining birth rate means a population that skews older, higher health care and retirement costs, and fewer taxpayers to pay for them.
But many warn that a high birth rate like ours is bad for the environment. Think of it this way: all those kids will want cars someday. -- Patriotic Americans ought to stop at two and shoot for one. But today, that’s the last thing on Courtney Degner’s mind. -- I’m really looking forward to her life and experiencing it with her, so…” This is one trend ("Huh, baby?”) she’s delighted to be part of. David Wright, ABC News, Washington.
※ nowhere * get/go nowhere(fast) : to fail to achieve something or fail to be successful ex. Our investigation got nowhere. * get someone nowhere ex. Flattery will get you nowhere. * nowhere to be seen/in sight/to be found : impossible to see/find ex. The children were nowhere in sight. ex. The papers were nowhere to be found. * out of/from nowhere : appearing, arriving, happening, etc. quickly or unexpectedly ex. He came out of nowhere.
※ on one's mind : 마음에 걸려, 생각하고 있는 / If something is on your mind, you are worried or concerned about it and think about it a lot. / If you say that something is in your mind, you mean that you are thinking about it. / If your mind is on something or you have your mind on something, you are thinking about that thing. ex. I just forgot. I've had a lot on my mind. ex. You seem quiet today. Do you have something on your mind? ex. I wonder what's going on in her mind. ex. At school I was always in trouble - my mind was never on my work. 학업에 전혀 마음을 두지 않았다.
of a different sort : 다른 종류의 fertility : 비옥 , 다산 , 풍 부 , 수정 ( 受精 ) 능력 , 번식력 , ( 토지의 ) 산출력 * infertility : 불모 , 불임 (a. infertile) * fertility rate : 출산율 point out : ~ 을 가리키다 , ~ 을 지적하다 ex. He pointed out the best beaches on the map. 가리켰다 ex. Thank you for pointing that out. ex. He pointed out that we had two hours of free time before dinner. implication : ( 뜻의 ) 포함 , 함축 , 내포 , 암 시 , 언외 ( 言外 ) 의 의미 , 영향 , 결과 ([count usually plural] a possible effect or result) * imply 내포하다 , 함축하다 , 암시하다 , 넌지시 비추다 * have implications for: We believe that this will have serious implications for the environment. * implications of: We need to consider the financial implications of these changes. * implication that: I resent the implication that my work is not thorough. itch : 가려움 , 참을 수 없는 욕망 , 갈망 , 가렵 다 , 근질근질하다 , [ 대개 진행형으로 ] ( 하고 싶어 ) 못 견디다 (for) * have/get the itch to do something: ex. I still get the itch to pack a bag and just drive off. * be itching for something/to do something : ex. The boy is itching for a fight. 그 소년은 싸움이 하고 싶어서 못 견딘 다 . * itching 가려움 , 근질근질함 , ( …에 대한 ) 열망 , 갈망 [for], 가려운 , 하 고 싶어 [ 탐나서 ] 못 견디는 be nowhere near ~ : ~근처에도 미치지 못한다. ex. The surgery had already been going on for eight hours, and it was nowhere near finished. ex. He's nowhere near recovered from the loss. ex. Ithaca is nowhere near as large as Pittsburgh. height : 높이 , 고도 , [the ~] 절정 , 극치 , 극도 ; 한창 ( 때 ) * at the height of the battle 전투가 한창일 때에. * be at the height of one's fame[popularity] 명성[인기]의 절정을 누리고 있다. by some measures : 어떤 면에서(보면) * by any measure : 어느 면으로 보나, 어느 기준으로 보나 ex. By any measure, he is one of today's most remarkable scientists. 어떠한 기준에 의하더라도 그는 오늘날 가장 주목할 만한 과학자의 한 사람이다. * in a measure : 다 소, 얼마간 * in a great[large] measure 상당히, 대부분 skew : 비스듬해지다, 비스듬히 나아가다, ~ 을 비스듬하게 하다, ~ 을 곡해하다, 비스듬한 ex. A researcher's mistake has skewed the results of the study. * skew distribution 비 대칭(非對稱) 분포 patriotic : 애국의, 애국심이 강한, 애국적인 * patriot 애국자 / * patriotism 애국심 shoot for : ~ 을 달성하려고 노력하다 (to try to achieve a particular thing) the last thing I want to do~ : 제일 하기 싫어하는 것 ex. The last thing I want to do is stay home on a Saturday afternoon 토요일 오후를 집에서 보내는 것은 정말 싫다. ex. He is the last man to do such a thing. 그는 그런 짓을 할 사람이 절대로 아니다. delighted : 기뻐하고 있는 ex. delighted with: We're delighted with our new grandson. ex. delighted (that): The family is delighted that the case is finally over. ex. delighted to do something: I was delighted to see my old friends again. ex. delighted at: The company is delighted at the response to its advertiseme