VOA慢速英语:How Gold Became the Gold Standard for Trade

The best example of something is often called the "gold standard." It sets the standard against which other things are measured. In economics, the term describes how major trading nations once used gold to set currency values and exchange rates. Many nations continued to use the gold standard until the last century.
某种东西最好的例子通常被人们称作“金标准”， 它设定了对其他事物的衡量标准。在经济领域，该词语描述了过去主要贸易国家之间如何用黄金来设定货币价值和汇率。直到上个世纪,许多国家还一直沿用金本位货币制度。

In the United States, people could exchange paper money for gold from the eighteen seventies until nineteen thirty-three. President Richard Nixon finally disconnected the dollar from the value of gold in nineteen seventy-one. Some politicians from time to time call for a return to the gold standard.
在美国, 从19世纪70年代到1933年之间人们可以用纸币兑换黄金。尼克松总统在1971年最终切断美元与黄金之间的价值联系。一些政客不时呼吁回归金本位货币制度。

But in nineteen seventy-eight the International Monetary Fund ended an official gold price. The IMF also ended the required use of gold in transactions with its member countries.
但是在1978年，国际货币基金组织结束了官方黄金价格。该组织也停止要求其成员国之间使用黄金进行交易。

Since that time, gold prices have grown, but unevenly. Prices -- uncorrected for inflation -- are now at record highs. The current price is above fourteen hundred dollars an ounce.
从那时起，黄金价格开始上涨，但不稳定。未经通胀率修正的黄金价格目前已创历史新高。目前的价格是一盎司高于一千四百美元。

But people keep buying. Neang Chan Nuon is a gold shop owner in the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh.
但人们还是继续购买。Neang Chan Nuon是柬埔寨首都金边一家金铺的老板。

NEANG CHAN NUON: "Some of my customers have even bought more as they believe the price will probably go higher. I sell more gold at these higher prices."
Neang Chan Nuon：“我的一些顾客甚至买得比以前更多，因为他们相信金价会继续上涨。价格越高,我卖得越多。”

Some people are "gold bugs." These are investors who say people should buy gold to protect against inflation.
有些人是热衷于黄金，这些投资者认为人们应该购买黄金来对抗通货膨胀。

People have valued gold for thousands of years. The soft, dense metal polishes to a bright yellow shine and resists most chemical reactions. It makes a good material for money, political power -- and, more recently, electrical power. If you own a device like a mobile phone or a computer, you might own a little gold in the wiring.
几千年来，人们都非常看重黄金。这种柔软,高密度金属擦亮后闪耀着黄色的光芒，还能够抵抗大部分化学反应，是用作金钱和政治权力的良好材料——最近，还被用于电力系统。如果你拥有像手机或电脑这样的设备，从这些设备的接线上,你可能发现少量黄金。

The gold standard was the subject of one of the best-known speeches in American political history. It took place at the eighteen ninety-six Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
金本位货币制度是美国政治历史上最著名的讲话中的一个主体。它发生在1896年芝加哥民主国民会议上。

William Jennings Bryan wanted the country to use both gold and silver as money. The idea was to devalue the dollar and make it easier for farmers pay their debts. Here is Bryan reading his speech much later, in nineteen twenty-one.
William Jennings Bryan希望美国使用黄金和白银来作为货币。当时的想法是为了让美元贬值，让农民更容易偿还债务。以下是1921年布莱安后来朗读他的讲话的录音。

WILLIAM JENNINGS BRYAN: "You shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns. You shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold."
William Jennings Bryan：“你们不该把带刺的王冠压在劳动人民的额头上；你们也不该将人类钉死在金制的十字架上.”

The speech made William Jennings Bryan famous. He was a presidential candidate three times. But he never won.
这次演讲使William Jennings Bryan闻名于世。他三次成为总统候选人，但他从未赢得选举。