2013年考研英语二完形填空原文翻译及答案解析

Given the advantages of electronic money, you might think that we would move quickly to the cashless society in which all payments are made electronically. ___1___ , a true cashless society is probably not around the corner. Indeed, predictions have been ___2___ for two decades but have not yet come to fruition. For example, Business Week predicted in 1975 that electronic means of payment would soon "revolutionize the very ___3___ of money itself," only to ___4___ itself several years later. Why has the movement to a cashless society been so ___5___ in coming?

鉴于电子货币的优势，你可能认为我们将迅速迈向一个所有支付都通过电子方式完成的无现金社会。然而，一个真正的无现金社会可能并非近在咫尺。事实上，相关预测已存在二十年之久，但尚未成为现实。例如，《商业周刊》在1975年曾预测电子支付方式将很快'彻底变革货币本身的概念'，但几年后却推翻了这一观点。为何迈向无现金社会的进程如此缓慢？

Although electronic means of payment may be more efficient than a payments system based on paper, several factors work ___6___ the disappearance of the paper system. First, it is very ___7___ to set up the computer, card reader, and telecommunications networks necessary to make electronic money the ___8___ form of payment. Second, paper checks have the advantage that they ___9___ receipts, something that many consumers are unwilling to ___10___ . Third, the use of paper checks gives consumers several days of "float" — it takes several days ___11___ a check is cashed and funds are ___12___ from the issuer's account, which means that the writer of the check can earn interest on the funds in the meantime. ___13___ electronic payments arc immediate, they eliminate the float for the consumer.

尽管电子支付方式可能比基于纸质的支付系统更高效，但有若干因素阻碍了纸质支付系统的消亡。首先，建立使电子货币成为主流支付方式所需的计算机、读卡器和电信网络成本高昂。其次，纸质支票的优势在于提供收据，许多消费者不愿放弃这一点。第三，使用纸质支票可为消费者带来数天的'浮存'——支票兑现并从出票人账户扣款需要数日，这意味着支票签发人可在此期间获得资金产生的利息。由于电子支付是即时的，它们消除了消费者的浮存期。

Fourth, electronic means of payment may ___14___ security and privacy concerns. We often hear media reports that an unauthorized hacker has been able to access a computer database and to alter information ___15___ there. The fact that this is not an ___16___ occurrence means that dishonest persons might be able to access bank accounts in electronic payments systems and ___17___ from someone else's accounts. The ___18___ of this type of fraud is no easy task, and a new field of computer science is developing to ___19___ security issues. A further concern is that the use of electronic means of payment leaves an electronic ___20___ that contains a large amount of personal data. There are concerns that government, employers, and marketers might be able to access these data, thereby violating our privacy.

第四，电子支付方式可能引发安全和隐私方面的担忧。我们常听到媒体报道未经授权的黑客能够访问计算机数据库并篡改其中存储的信息。这种事件并非罕见，这意味着不诚实者可能通过电子支付系统访问银行账户并窃取他人资金。防范此类欺诈绝非易事，计算机科学领域正发展新方向以应对安全问题。更深层的担忧在于，使用电子支付方式会留下包含大量个人数据的电子痕迹。人们担心政府、雇主和营销商可能获取这些数据，从而侵犯我们的隐私。