For most delivery riders, a working day is measured in roads, traffic lights and stairs. In Pinghu, a small city in Zhejiang province, twenty-four riders recently spent seven days learning something rather different: how to fly a drone. The course covered control skills, flight planning, what to do when the machine fails, and how to hand a package from a rider on the ground to a drone in the air and then back again. For people who have spent four years on an electric bike, it was a strange and welcome change.
The class exists because a new job has just been officially named. In September, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security published its eighth list of new professions, which includes low-altitude logistics worker as one of twenty-three new roles. A name on a list may sound like paperwork, but it carries weight. Once a job is listed, training can be organised, skills can be tested, and a worker can show an employer a certificate instead of only promising that he is experienced.
The work itself is already visible. In Hangzhou, several drone delivery lines are running as businesses. A rider collects the parcel, a drone carries it across the city, and another rider completes the last part of the journey. A trip that once took tens of minutes on the ground can now finish in about ten. In Pinghu, drones move medical supplies and take food to visitors in scenic areas. On a busy afternoon, the sky is simply less crowded than the road below.
This does not mean riders will all become pilots. Drones carry light loads, cannot enter most buildings, and still need a person at both ends. What the new role offers is choice. A rider who learns to fly can move from a job with little promotion to one that needs a licence and a skill, and with that comes a little more income and a little more say about his own future. For a fast-growing industry, that may matter more than the machines themselves.
Words to know:
- rider (骑手)
- drone (无人机)
- flight (飞行)
- licence (执照；许可证)
- parcel (包裹)
- income (收入)
- scenic (风景优美的)
长难句拆解 · 并列不定式 + 介词宾语从句 · how to…, what to…, and how to…
主语是 The course，谓语是 covered，后面四个成分并列作宾语：control skills、flight planning、what to do…、how to hand…。 what to do when the machine fails 是「疑问词 + 不定式」结构，相当于一个名词，when the machine fails 是里面的时间状语从句。 hand sth from A to B 表示「把某物从 A 交到 B」，and then back again 承前省略了 hand a package，避免重复。 直译：课程涵盖操控技巧、航线规划、机器出故障时该做什么，以及如何把包裹从地面骑手交给空中无人机、然后再交回来。
长难句拆解 · 定语从句 + 插入语 · a rider who… can move from… to…
主干是 A rider can move from a job to one。who learns to fly 是定语从句修饰 a rider；one 代替 a job，后面 that needs a licence and a skill 又是修饰 one 的定语从句。 move from A to B 是固定搭配，两个名词后面各带一层修饰（一个介词短语、一个定语从句），读的时候要先把主干抓出来，再看修饰成分分别挂在哪里。 句末 and with that comes a little more income 是完全倒装，正常语序是 a little more income comes with that，that 指前面那个新工作。 直译：一个学会飞的骑手，可以从一份几乎没有晋升机会的工作，转向一份需要执照和技术的工作，随之而来的是一点更高的收入。
同义替换 · 雅思阅读利器
下面每组左边是原文表达，右边是可以在写作和阅读中互换的说法，点一下即可自测。
- a working day is measured in roads and stairs → the job is counted in streets and staircases → be measured in 表示「以……计量」
- how to fly a drone → the skills needed to control a drone → 疑问词 + 不定式可改写为名词短语
- carries weight → is taken seriously / really matters → carry weight 是「有分量、有影响力」
- a trip that once took tens of minutes → a journey that used to last dozens of minutes → tens of minutes 表示几十分钟
- the sky is less crowded than the road → there is more space in the air than on the ground → 比较级替换，注意前后对象一致
- offers is choice → gives workers an option → choice 在句中泛指「选择权」
- a little more say about his own future → slightly more control over what comes next → have a say 表示有发言权
阅读自测 · 3 题
- True / False / Not Given: The drone course in Pinghu lasted seven days and was open only to experienced riders.
- Short answer: Which new role was added to the national list in September?
- Short answer: Why does the writer say the new job matters more than the machines?
参考答案与解析
- Not Given。原文只说二十四名骑手参加了为期七天的培训，也在别处提到有人跑了近四年单，但从未说课程只对「有经验的骑手」开放，这个限制条件在原文里找不到，属于常见的无中生有限定。
- Low-altitude logistics worker, one of twenty-three new roles in the eighth list. 依据是 which includes low-altitude logistics worker as one of twenty-three new roles。
- Because it gives riders a choice: they can move to a job that needs a licence and a skill, with better income and more say about their future. 依据是末段 What the new role offers is choice。注意干扰项会说「因为无人机更快」，那是把效率偷换成意义。
中文译文
对大多数外卖骑手来说，工作日是用路、红绿灯和楼梯来计量的。在浙江省的小城平湖，二十四名骑手最近花了七天时间学一样很不相同的东西：怎么操控无人机。课程包括操控技巧、航线规划、机器出故障时怎么处置，以及如何把一件包裹从地面的骑手交到空中的无人机上、再交回来。对在电动车上跑了四年的人来说，这是一次陌生又让人高兴的变化。
这个培训班之所以出现，是因为有一个新职业刚刚有了官方名字。今年九月，人力资源和社会保障部公布了第八批新职业名单，把低空物流员列入二十三个新工种之一。名单上的一个名字听起来像是纸面工作，却有分量。一个职业进了名单，就可以组织培训、考核技能，从业者也能拿出一张证书给雇主看，而不只是口头说自己有经验。
这类工作已经看得见了。在杭州，多条无人机配送航线已经投入商业运营。一名骑手取件，无人机把包裹运过城市，再由另一名骑手完成最后一段。原本在地面需要几十分钟的一趟，现在大约十分钟就能完成。在平湖，无人机运送医疗物资，也把餐食送到景区的游客手里。忙碌的下午，天空确实比地面的路要空得多。
这并不意味着所有骑手都会变成飞手。无人机载重有限，进不了大多数楼里，两端仍然需要人。这个新职业真正给出的是选择。学会飞的骑手，可以从一个没什么晋升空间的工作，转向一个需要执照和技术的工作，随之而来的是一点更高的收入和对自己未来多一点发言权。对一个快速成长的行业来说，这可能比机器本身更重要。