I've always been an optimist and I suppose it is rooted in my belief that the power of creativity and intelligence can make the word a better place.
For as long as I can remember, I've loved learning new things and solving problems. So when I sat down at a computer for the first time in seventh grade, I was hooked. It was a clunky old teletype machine and it could barely do anything compared to the computers we have today. But it changed my life.
When my friend Paul Allen and I started Microsoft 30 years ago, we had a vision of "a
computer on every desk and in every home", which probably sounded a little too optimistic at a time when most computers were the size of refrigerators. But we believed that personal computers would change the world. And they have.
And after 30 years, I'm still as inspired by computers as I was back in seventh grade.
I believe that computers are the most incredible tool we can use to feed our curiosity and
inventiveness -- to help us solve problems that even the smartest people couldn't solve on their own.
Computers have transformed how we learn, giving kids everywhere a window into all of the world's knowledge. They're helping us build communities around the things we care about and to stay close to the people who are important to us, no matter where they are.
Like my friend Warren Buffett, I feel particularly lucky to do something every day that I love to do. He calls it "tap-dancing to Work". My job at Microsoft is as challenging as ever, but what makes me "tap-danceing to work" is when we show people something new, like a computer that can recognize your handwriting or your speech, or one that can store a lifetime's worth of photos, and they say, "I didn't know you could do that with a PC5 !"
But for all the cool things that a person can do with a PC, there are lots of other ways we can put our creativity and intelligence to work to improve our world6. There are still far too many
people in the world whose most basic needs go unmet7. Every year, for example, millions of
people die from diseases that are easy to prevent or treat in the developed world.
I believe that my own good fortune brings with it a responsibility to give back to the world.
My wife, Melinda, and I have committed to improving health and education in a way that can help as many people as possible.
As a father, I believe that the death of a child in Africa is no less poignant or tragic than9 the death of a child anywhere else, and that it doesn't take much to make an immense difference in these children's lives.
I'm still very much an optimist, and I believe that progress on even the world's toughest
problems is possible -- and it's happening every day. We're seeing new drugs for deadly diseases,
new diagnostic tools, and new attention paid to the health problems in the developing world.
I'm excited by the possibilities I see for medicine, for education and, of course, for
technology. And I believe that through our natural inventiveness, creativity and willingness to solve tough problems, we're going to make some amazing achievements in all these areas in my lifetime.
注释：
1.be rooted in：扎根于;深深地存在于
2.It was a clunky old teletype machine and it could barely do anything compared to the computers we have today.那是一台笨重的旧式电传打字机，跟我们今天的电脑相比几乎干不了什么事。本句中，barely意为almost not;compare to在美国英语中也可以等同于compare with (与……相比)。
3.They’re helping US build communities around the things we care about and to stay close to the people who are important to US，no matter where they are.电脑帮助我们就我们所关心的事情建立一个交流的场所，并且与那些我们认为对我们有重要意义的人密切相处，不管他们身在何处。care about指不管喜欢或不喜欢的事情都很关心、介意、在乎、计较。
4.“tap—dancing to work”：“跳着踢踏舞工作”。tap原意是“叩击、轻敲”;tap dance是“踢踏舞”。这里实际意思是“(手指)轻轻敲击键盘的工作”。 5.PC(personal computer)：个人计算机
6.But for all the cool things that a person can do with a PC，there are lots of other ways wecan put our creativity and intelligence to work to improve our world.除了我们能用计算机做的所有神奇的事情，还有很多其他方式发挥我们的创造力和智慧，从而使世界更加美好。
7.go unmet：得不到满足。在这里go是系动词，unmet是过去分词作表语：
8.commit to此处意为，保证做某事。
9.no less…than：和……一样，不亚于……
10.and that it doesn’t take much to make an immense difference in these children’S lives.而且要改善这些孩子们的命运，其实不难。此处it是形式主语，真正的主语是不定式短语to make an immense difference in these children’S lives。
练习：
1. A computer was as big as an icebox when Bill Gates was a high school student.
A Right
B Wrong
C Not mentioned
2. Bill Gates has been dreaming of the popularity of computers for his lifetime.
A Right
B Wrong
C Not mentioned
3. Bill Gates compares his hard work on a PC to "tap-dancing to work".
A Right
B Wrong
C Not mentioned
4. To Bill Gates' mind, there is a big difference between the death of the poor's children and the death of the rich's children.
A Right
B Wrong
C Not mentioned
5. So far Bill Gates has contributed several dozen billion dollars to the charities.
A Right
B Wrong
C Not mentioned
6. Bill Gates and his wife consider it their duty to help the poor better their health and education as much as possible.
A Right
B Wrong
C Not mentioned
7. Bill Gates will leave only a small portion of his wealth for his children.
A Right
B Wrong
C Not mentioned
答案与题解：
1.A文章第三段中比尔盖茨说，当他念七年级时，电脑就是冰箱那么大小。
2.A文章第三段比尔盖茨说，他30年前与Paul Allen一起创办微软公司时就梦想一桌一机、一户一机，而且从其他各段也可以看到他对电脑有很多的期待。
3.B从第七段第二句可以看到作这样比较的是他的朋友Warren Buffett，而不是他自己。
4.B在倒数第三段，比尔盖茨已经明确说，所有这些儿童的死亡都一样令人伤心和悲痛，没有什么区别。
5.c文章没有提到他给慈善机构捐款的事。
6.A倒数第四段比尔盖茨认为他一生好运，就理应回报社会，所以他和他的妻子做出了，要帮助尽可能多的人改善医疗和教育条件。
7.C文章没有提到。
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