ID: 1023253•
Inglês•
Sinônimos Synonyms•
FGV•
Câmara dos Deputados•
manhã•
2023

Read the Text I and answer the question that follow it.


Text I


Correspondence

Human genome editing: potential seeds of conflict


Recently, The Lancet published an important declaration regarding the necessity of regulating and legislating for human genome editing. We agree with their opinions that the human genome editing technology and resulting research can have both positive and negative effects on human society. The use of genome editing for research and commercial purposes has sparked debates in both biological and political realms. However, most of them have mainly focused on the effects of human genome editing on the patients themselves, and little attention has been paid to their offspring.


Several films, such as Gattaca and Gundam SEED, have addressed the conflicts that arise from human genome editing. Such conflicts not only exist within the generation who have experienced editing but are also transmitted to their offspring. For example, in these films, the offspring of people without genome editing felt a sense of unfairness regarding the inferiority of their physical (or other non-edited domains) status, whereas the offspring of people with genome editing grew up in a biased, discriminated against, and ostracized environment. They could have lived in peace with a strong and well regulated government; however, when the tenuous grip of government weakens, jealousy and resentment can lead to ruins. Although these scenes still exist in films, they might become increasingly plausible in decades to come. Using the concept of preparedness, access, countermeasures, tools, and trust, we should prepare legitimate human genome editing, establish access to deal with imminent or potential discrimination, develop countermeasures and tools for prevention and resolution of conflict, and entrust future generations with the responsibility to use them wisely.

Bing-Yan Zeng, Ping-Tao Tseng, *Chih-Sung Liang


Adapted from: www.thelancet.com, vol. 401, June 24, 2023 at https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S0140-6736%2823%2901084-X

The word “seed” as used in the title is related to the act of

ID: 1023257•
Inglês•
Sinônimos Synonyms•
FGV•
Câmara dos Deputados•
manhã•
2023

Read the Text II and answer the question that follow it.

Text II

Global plastic treaty should address chemicals

In March, the global community agreed to establish a legally binding treaty to end plastic pollution. To deliver on this goal, the treaty needs to cover all issues of plastics chemicals as an inseparable part of the problem.

Plastics are complex materials consisting of chemical mixtures, including polymers, additives, residual monomers and processing aids, and non-intentionally added substances. Such mixtures release across the plastics life cycle, from feedstock extraction, production, and use, to reuse, recycling, and disposal; they also recombine along complex, unplanned pathways. As a result, humans and environments are ubiquitously exposed to plastics chemicals, often with serious consequences.

Out of more than 10,000 known plastics chemicals, at least 2,400 are classified as toxic, such as many phthalates and brominated flame retardants. Documented health effects span generations and include premature births, low birth weight, obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, endometriosis, infertility, and cancers. In the United States alone, associated costs of endocrine-disrupting chemicals amount to USD$300 billion/year. The total burden on community, ecosystem health, and biodiversity is far greater.

Even with material recycling, plastics chemicals ultimately proliferate in the ecosystem, whether as emissions or by entering new products, exposing waste-laborers, consumers, and frontline communities to new chemical cocktails. An effective, fair, and safe circular economy can only be achieved by phasing out toxic chemicals from plastic production.

As negotiations for a global treaty begin, plastics chemicals need to be front and center. However, preparatory meeting documents focus on downstream plastic waste and work from a narrow definition of chemicals as hazardous additives. To enable the treaty to fully address plastics’ ecological, health, and environmental justice problems, it is essential to redefine plastics as complex chemical mixtures and to integrate chemical issues across the life cycle within the scope and core obligations of the legal instrument.

Adapted from: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adf5410.

When one opts for “phasing out toxic chemicals from plastic production” (4th paragraph), this means the process is

ID: 1023254•
Inglês•
Voz Ativa e Passiva Passive and Active Voice•
FGV•
Câmara dos Deputados•
manhã•
2023

Read the Text I and answer the question that follow it.


Text I


Correspondence

Human genome editing: potential seeds of conflict


Recently, The Lancet published an important declaration regarding the necessity of regulating and legislating for human genome editing. We agree with their opinions that the human genome editing technology and resulting research can have both positive and negative effects on human society. The use of genome editing for research and commercial purposes has sparked debates in both biological and political realms. However, most of them have mainly focused on the effects of human genome editing on the patients themselves, and little attention has been paid to their offspring.


Several films, such as Gattaca and Gundam SEED, have addressed the conflicts that arise from human genome editing. Such conflicts not only exist within the generation who have experienced editing but are also transmitted to their offspring. For example, in these films, the offspring of people without genome editing felt a sense of unfairness regarding the inferiority of their physical (or other non-edited domains) status, whereas the offspring of people with genome editing grew up in a biased, discriminated against, and ostracized environment. They could have lived in peace with a strong and well regulated government; however, when the tenuous grip of government weakens, jealousy and resentment can lead to ruins. Although these scenes still exist in films, they might become increasingly plausible in decades to come. Using the concept of preparedness, access, countermeasures, tools, and trust, we should prepare legitimate human genome editing, establish access to deal with imminent or potential discrimination, develop countermeasures and tools for prevention and resolution of conflict, and entrust future generations with the responsibility to use them wisely.

Bing-Yan Zeng, Ping-Tao Tseng, *Chih-Sung Liang


Adapted from: www.thelancet.com, vol. 401, June 24, 2023 at https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S0140-6736%2823%2901084-X

The excerpt that has an example of a verb in the passive voice is

ID: 1023367•
Inglês•
Interpretação de texto Reading comprehension•
FGV•
Câmara dos Deputados•
manhã•
2023

The Future Of Accounting:
How Will Digital Transformation Impact Accountants?


In business, as in life, change is the only true constant. From mitigating unprecedented business disruptors to adapting to new operational paradigms, professionals in all industries find themselves dealing with major changes — many of them driven by emerging technologies.

Accounting is no exception. The profession has moved far beyond mere bookkeeping and payroll, and like its partner procurement, it’s taking an increasingly strategic role for forward-thinking businesses. While some pundits say accounting has a dim future in the digital world of tomorrow, technologies such as cloud-based data management, process automation and advanced analytics are actually poised to further elevate accountants in new and empowering ways.

As far back as 2015, industry leaders were sounding the death knell for accountants, convinced emerging technologies — particularly automation — would end in death by digital for accountancy as we know it. And as recently as 2019, accountants surveyed by Robert Half on the impact of automation on their profession expressed concerns about being replaced, having fewer opportunities for creative problem-solving and an overdependence on tech in completing daily tasks.

Yet, the events between then and now, including the Covid-19 pandemic, have instead shown that accountants, like other professionals, need to worry much more about adaptation than replacement.

There's no question that digital transformation has radically changed the playing field. Big data has become a rich resource that needs to be tapped to compete effectively. But for businesses ready to leverage the potential of digital tools, this shift is an opportunity, not a threat.

[…]

Both the skill set and the job description for tomorrow's accountant will be greatly expanded, while still hewing to the core competencies of the profession. Supported by technology in a collaborative setting, accounting teams will be populated with both dedicated accounting professionals and subject matter experts from other areas of the business.

Tomorrow's accountants may play an advisory role, welcoming business intelligence and procurement professionals and working to chart a strategic sourcing plan. They could leverage data management tools, including augmented reality, to humanize and contextualize spend data for the C-suite to make better decisions based on long-term value rather than return on investment alone.

With more diverse skill sets and greater technical acumen, accountants can bring their own expertise to teams in other business units, providing crucial financial intelligence, refining budgets or ensuring compliance. […]

As a function, accounting may become less about refining one's skill set through certifications and more about core competencies that grow over time, with a focus on lifelong education and skill development required to take on a complex, ever-changing business environment.

Automation and other data-driven technologies are poised to free accountants, not constrain them. Organizations thatunderstand the potential and importance of these technologies — and invest in the tools and training required to help their accountants take full advantage — will be ahead of the curve. Tomorrow's accountants will play a more creative and strategic role in their companies. As a result, their businesses will not only enjoy more efficient workflows and reap more useful insights from their accounting processes, but help strengthen their own resiliency, agility and competitive footing.


Adapted from: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2021/05/19/thefuture-of-accounting-how-will-digital-transformation-impactaccountants/?sh=343b437853fb
Accountants with “greater technical acumen” (7th paragraph) are considered to be

ID: 1023363•
Inglês•
Interpretação de texto Reading comprehension•
FGV•
Câmara dos Deputados•
manhã•
2023

The Future Of Accounting:
How Will Digital Transformation Impact Accountants?


In business, as in life, change is the only true constant. From mitigating unprecedented business disruptors to adapting to new operational paradigms, professionals in all industries find themselves dealing with major changes — many of them driven by emerging technologies.

Accounting is no exception. The profession has moved far beyond mere bookkeeping and payroll, and like its partner procurement, it’s taking an increasingly strategic role for forward-thinking businesses. While some pundits say accounting has a dim future in the digital world of tomorrow, technologies such as cloud-based data management, process automation and advanced analytics are actually poised to further elevate accountants in new and empowering ways.

As far back as 2015, industry leaders were sounding the death knell for accountants, convinced emerging technologies — particularly automation — would end in death by digital for accountancy as we know it. And as recently as 2019, accountants surveyed by Robert Half on the impact of automation on their profession expressed concerns about being replaced, having fewer opportunities for creative problem-solving and an overdependence on tech in completing daily tasks.

Yet, the events between then and now, including the Covid-19 pandemic, have instead shown that accountants, like other professionals, need to worry much more about adaptation than replacement.

There's no question that digital transformation has radically changed the playing field. Big data has become a rich resource that needs to be tapped to compete effectively. But for businesses ready to leverage the potential of digital tools, this shift is an opportunity, not a threat.

[…]

Both the skill set and the job description for tomorrow's accountant will be greatly expanded, while still hewing to the core competencies of the profession. Supported by technology in a collaborative setting, accounting teams will be populated with both dedicated accounting professionals and subject matter experts from other areas of the business.

Tomorrow's accountants may play an advisory role, welcoming business intelligence and procurement professionals and working to chart a strategic sourcing plan. They could leverage data management tools, including augmented reality, to humanize and contextualize spend data for the C-suite to make better decisions based on long-term value rather than return on investment alone.

With more diverse skill sets and greater technical acumen, accountants can bring their own expertise to teams in other business units, providing crucial financial intelligence, refining budgets or ensuring compliance. […]

As a function, accounting may become less about refining one's skill set through certifications and more about core competencies that grow over time, with a focus on lifelong education and skill development required to take on a complex, ever-changing business environment.

Automation and other data-driven technologies are poised to free accountants, not constrain them. Organizations thatunderstand the potential and importance of these technologies — and invest in the tools and training required to help their accountants take full advantage — will be ahead of the curve. Tomorrow's accountants will play a more creative and strategic role in their companies. As a result, their businesses will not only enjoy more efficient workflows and reap more useful insights from their accounting processes, but help strengthen their own resiliency, agility and competitive footing.


Adapted from: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2021/05/19/thefuture-of-accounting-how-will-digital-transformation-impactaccountants/?sh=343b437853fb
Based on the text, mark the statements below as true (T) or false (F).

( ) It is clear that accountants will need to do away with earlier core competencies.
( ) The impact of technology in accountancy tends to move more sluggishly than in areas like procurement.

( ) There was some fear earlier that accountants’ work would soon be taken over by automation.

The statements are, respectively,

ID: 1023319•
Inglês•
Interpretação de texto Reading comprehension•
FGV•
Câmara dos Deputados•
manhã•
2023

Read Text II and answer the question that follow it


Text II


Boy cries Wolf


After astonishing breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, many people worry that they will end up on the economic scrapheap. Global Google searches for “is my job safe?” have doubled in recent months, as people fear that they will be replaced with large language models (LLMS). Some evidence suggests that widespread disruption is coming. In a recent paper Tyna Eloundou of OpenAI and colleagues say that “around 80% of the US workforce could have at least 10% of their work tasks affected by the introduction of LLMS”. Another paper suggests that legal services, accountancy and travel agencies will face unprecedented upheaval.


Economists, however, tend to enjoy making predictions about automation more than they enjoy testing them. In the early 2010s many of them loudly predicted that robots would kill jobs by the millions, only to fall silent when employment rates across the rich world rose to all-time highs. Few of the doom-mongers have a good explanation for why countries with the highest rates of tech usage around the globe, such as Japan, Singapore and South Korea, consistently have among the lowest rates of unemployment.


Here we introduce our first attempt at tracking AI’s impact on jobs. Using American data on employment by occupation, we single out white-collar workers. These include people working in everything from back-office support and financial operations to copy-writers. White-collar roles are thought to be especially vulnerable to generative AI, which is becoming ever better at logical reasoning and creativity.


However, there is as yet little evidence of an AI hit to employment. In the spring of 2020 white-collar jobs rose as a share of the total, as many people in service occupations lost their job at the start of the covid-19 pandemic. The white-collar share is lower today, as leisure and hospitality have recovered. Yet in the past year the share of employment in professions supposedly at risk from generative AI has risen by half a percentage point.


It is, of course, early days. Few firms yet use generative-AI tools at scale, so the impact on jobs could merely be delayed. Another possibility, however, is that these new technologies will end up destroying only a small number of roles. While AI may be efficient at some tasks, it may be less good at others, such as management and working out what others need.


AI could even have a positive effect on jobs. If workers using it become more efficient, profits at their company could rise which would then allow bosses to ramp up hiring. A recent survey by Experis, an IT-recruitment firm, points to this possibility. More than half of Britain’s employers expect AI technologies to have a positive impact on their headcount over the next two years, it finds.


To see how it all shakes out, we will publish updates to this analysis every few months. But for now, a jobs apocalypse seems a way off.


From The Economist June 17th 2023, p. 71
In the last sentence of the first paragraph, when the paper mentions an “upheaval”, it refers to the possibility of a future

ID: 1023366•
Inglês•
Vocabulário Vocabulary•
FGV•
Câmara dos Deputados•
manhã•
2023

The Future Of Accounting:
How Will Digital Transformation Impact Accountants?


In business, as in life, change is the only true constant. From mitigating unprecedented business disruptors to adapting to new operational paradigms, professionals in all industries find themselves dealing with major changes — many of them driven by emerging technologies.

Accounting is no exception. The profession has moved far beyond mere bookkeeping and payroll, and like its partner procurement, it’s taking an increasingly strategic role for forward-thinking businesses. While some pundits say accounting has a dim future in the digital world of tomorrow, technologies such as cloud-based data management, process automation and advanced analytics are actually poised to further elevate accountants in new and empowering ways.

As far back as 2015, industry leaders were sounding the death knell for accountants, convinced emerging technologies — particularly automation — would end in death by digital for accountancy as we know it. And as recently as 2019, accountants surveyed by Robert Half on the impact of automation on their profession expressed concerns about being replaced, having fewer opportunities for creative problem-solving and an overdependence on tech in completing daily tasks.

Yet, the events between then and now, including the Covid-19 pandemic, have instead shown that accountants, like other professionals, need to worry much more about adaptation than replacement.

There's no question that digital transformation has radically changed the playing field. Big data has become a rich resource that needs to be tapped to compete effectively. But for businesses ready to leverage the potential of digital tools, this shift is an opportunity, not a threat.

[…]

Both the skill set and the job description for tomorrow's accountant will be greatly expanded, while still hewing to the core competencies of the profession. Supported by technology in a collaborative setting, accounting teams will be populated with both dedicated accounting professionals and subject matter experts from other areas of the business.

Tomorrow's accountants may play an advisory role, welcoming business intelligence and procurement professionals and working to chart a strategic sourcing plan. They could leverage data management tools, including augmented reality, to humanize and contextualize spend data for the C-suite to make better decisions based on long-term value rather than return on investment alone.

With more diverse skill sets and greater technical acumen, accountants can bring their own expertise to teams in other business units, providing crucial financial intelligence, refining budgets or ensuring compliance. […]

As a function, accounting may become less about refining one's skill set through certifications and more about core competencies that grow over time, with a focus on lifelong education and skill development required to take on a complex, ever-changing business environment.

Automation and other data-driven technologies are poised to free accountants, not constrain them. Organizations thatunderstand the potential and importance of these technologies — and invest in the tools and training required to help their accountants take full advantage — will be ahead of the curve. Tomorrow's accountants will play a more creative and strategic role in their companies. As a result, their businesses will not only enjoy more efficient workflows and reap more useful insights from their accounting processes, but help strengthen their own resiliency, agility and competitive footing.


Adapted from: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2021/05/19/thefuture-of-accounting-how-will-digital-transformation-impactaccountants/?sh=343b437853fb
The verb in “were sounding the death knell” can be replaced without change in meaning by

ID: 1023320•
Inglês•
Sinônimos Synonyms•
FGV•
Câmara dos Deputados•
manhã•
2023

Read Text II and answer the question that follow it


Text II


Boy cries Wolf


After astonishing breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, many people worry that they will end up on the economic scrapheap. Global Google searches for “is my job safe?” have doubled in recent months, as people fear that they will be replaced with large language models (LLMS). Some evidence suggests that widespread disruption is coming. In a recent paper Tyna Eloundou of OpenAI and colleagues say that “around 80% of the US workforce could have at least 10% of their work tasks affected by the introduction of LLMS”. Another paper suggests that legal services, accountancy and travel agencies will face unprecedented upheaval.


Economists, however, tend to enjoy making predictions about automation more than they enjoy testing them. In the early 2010s many of them loudly predicted that robots would kill jobs by the millions, only to fall silent when employment rates across the rich world rose to all-time highs. Few of the doom-mongers have a good explanation for why countries with the highest rates of tech usage around the globe, such as Japan, Singapore and South Korea, consistently have among the lowest rates of unemployment.


Here we introduce our first attempt at tracking AI’s impact on jobs. Using American data on employment by occupation, we single out white-collar workers. These include people working in everything from back-office support and financial operations to copy-writers. White-collar roles are thought to be especially vulnerable to generative AI, which is becoming ever better at logical reasoning and creativity.


However, there is as yet little evidence of an AI hit to employment. In the spring of 2020 white-collar jobs rose as a share of the total, as many people in service occupations lost their job at the start of the covid-19 pandemic. The white-collar share is lower today, as leisure and hospitality have recovered. Yet in the past year the share of employment in professions supposedly at risk from generative AI has risen by half a percentage point.


It is, of course, early days. Few firms yet use generative-AI tools at scale, so the impact on jobs could merely be delayed. Another possibility, however, is that these new technologies will end up destroying only a small number of roles. While AI may be efficient at some tasks, it may be less good at others, such as management and working out what others need.


AI could even have a positive effect on jobs. If workers using it become more efficient, profits at their company could rise which would then allow bosses to ramp up hiring. A recent survey by Experis, an IT-recruitment firm, points to this possibility. More than half of Britain’s employers expect AI technologies to have a positive impact on their headcount over the next two years, it finds.


To see how it all shakes out, we will publish updates to this analysis every few months. But for now, a jobs apocalypse seems a way off.


From The Economist June 17th 2023, p. 71
“as yet” in “there is as yet little evidence” (4th paragraph) can be replaced without significant change of meaning by

ID: 1023365•
Inglês•
Interpretação de texto Reading comprehension•
FGV•
Câmara dos Deputados•
manhã•
2023

The Future Of Accounting:
How Will Digital Transformation Impact Accountants?


In business, as in life, change is the only true constant. From mitigating unprecedented business disruptors to adapting to new operational paradigms, professionals in all industries find themselves dealing with major changes — many of them driven by emerging technologies.

Accounting is no exception. The profession has moved far beyond mere bookkeeping and payroll, and like its partner procurement, it’s taking an increasingly strategic role for forward-thinking businesses. While some pundits say accounting has a dim future in the digital world of tomorrow, technologies such as cloud-based data management, process automation and advanced analytics are actually poised to further elevate accountants in new and empowering ways.

As far back as 2015, industry leaders were sounding the death knell for accountants, convinced emerging technologies — particularly automation — would end in death by digital for accountancy as we know it. And as recently as 2019, accountants surveyed by Robert Half on the impact of automation on their profession expressed concerns about being replaced, having fewer opportunities for creative problem-solving and an overdependence on tech in completing daily tasks.

Yet, the events between then and now, including the Covid-19 pandemic, have instead shown that accountants, like other professionals, need to worry much more about adaptation than replacement.

There's no question that digital transformation has radically changed the playing field. Big data has become a rich resource that needs to be tapped to compete effectively. But for businesses ready to leverage the potential of digital tools, this shift is an opportunity, not a threat.

[…]

Both the skill set and the job description for tomorrow's accountant will be greatly expanded, while still hewing to the core competencies of the profession. Supported by technology in a collaborative setting, accounting teams will be populated with both dedicated accounting professionals and subject matter experts from other areas of the business.

Tomorrow's accountants may play an advisory role, welcoming business intelligence and procurement professionals and working to chart a strategic sourcing plan. They could leverage data management tools, including augmented reality, to humanize and contextualize spend data for the C-suite to make better decisions based on long-term value rather than return on investment alone.

With more diverse skill sets and greater technical acumen, accountants can bring their own expertise to teams in other business units, providing crucial financial intelligence, refining budgets or ensuring compliance. […]

As a function, accounting may become less about refining one's skill set through certifications and more about core competencies that grow over time, with a focus on lifelong education and skill development required to take on a complex, ever-changing business environment.

Automation and other data-driven technologies are poised to free accountants, not constrain them. Organizations thatunderstand the potential and importance of these technologies — and invest in the tools and training required to help their accountants take full advantage — will be ahead of the curve. Tomorrow's accountants will play a more creative and strategic role in their companies. As a result, their businesses will not only enjoy more efficient workflows and reap more useful insights from their accounting processes, but help strengthen their own resiliency, agility and competitive footing.


Adapted from: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2021/05/19/thefuture-of-accounting-how-will-digital-transformation-impactaccountants/?sh=343b437853fb
Regarding the effects of technology, the outlook the text provides for accountancy is

ID: 1023570•
Inglês•
Interpretação de texto Reading comprehension•
FGV•
Câmara dos Deputados•
manhã•
2023

Read the Text I and answer the five questions that follow it.

Text I

Correspondence

Human genome editing: potential seeds of conflict

Recently, The Lancet published an important declaration regarding the necessity of regulating and legislating for human genome editing. We agree with their opinions that the human genome editing technology and resulting research can have both positive and negative effects on human society. The use of genome editing for research and commercial purposes has sparked debates in both biological and political realms. However, most of them have mainly focused on the effects of human genome editing on the patients themselves, and little attention has been paid to their offspring.

Several films, such as Gattaca and Gundam SEED, have addressed the conflicts that arise from human genome editing. Such conflicts not only exist within the generation who have experienced editing but are also transmitted to their offspring. For example, in these films, the offspring of people without genome editing felt a sense of unfairness regarding the inferiority of their physical (or other non-edited domains) status, whereas the offspring of people with genome editing grew up in a biased, discriminated against, and ostracized environment. They could have lived in peace with a strong and well regulated government; however, when the tenuous grip of government weakens, jealousy and resentment can lead to ruins. Although these scenes still exist in films, they might become increasingly plausible in decades to come. Using the concept of preparedness, access, countermeasures, tools, and trust, we should prepare legitimate human genome editing, establish access to deal with imminent or potential discrimination, develop countermeasures and tools for prevention and resolution of conflict, and entrust future generations with the responsibility to use them wisely.

Bing-Yan Zeng, Ping-Tao Tseng, *Chih-Sung Liang

Adapted from: www.thelancet.com, vol. 401, June 24, 2023 athttps://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S0140-6736%2823%2901084-X

Based on the text, mark the statements below as true (T) or false (F).

( ) In principle, the authors back the basic tenets on human genome editing technology held earlier by the same journal.

( ) Human genome editing research has focused mostly on the progeny rather than on the patients.

( ) The settings depicted in the motion pictures mentioned may come about in the real world.

The statements are, respectively,

ID: 1023256•
Inglês•
Interpretação de texto Reading comprehension•
FGV•
Câmara dos Deputados•
manhã•
2023

Read the Text II and answer the question that follow it.

Text II

Global plastic treaty should address chemicals

In March, the global community agreed to establish a legally binding treaty to end plastic pollution. To deliver on this goal, the treaty needs to cover all issues of plastics chemicals as an inseparable part of the problem.

Plastics are complex materials consisting of chemical mixtures, including polymers, additives, residual monomers and processing aids, and non-intentionally added substances. Such mixtures release across the plastics life cycle, from feedstock extraction, production, and use, to reuse, recycling, and disposal; they also recombine along complex, unplanned pathways. As a result, humans and environments are ubiquitously exposed to plastics chemicals, often with serious consequences.

Out of more than 10,000 known plastics chemicals, at least 2,400 are classified as toxic, such as many phthalates and brominated flame retardants. Documented health effects span generations and include premature births, low birth weight, obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, endometriosis, infertility, and cancers. In the United States alone, associated costs of endocrine-disrupting chemicals amount to USD$300 billion/year. The total burden on community, ecosystem health, and biodiversity is far greater.

Even with material recycling, plastics chemicals ultimately proliferate in the ecosystem, whether as emissions or by entering new products, exposing waste-laborers, consumers, and frontline communities to new chemical cocktails. An effective, fair, and safe circular economy can only be achieved by phasing out toxic chemicals from plastic production.

As negotiations for a global treaty begin, plastics chemicals need to be front and center. However, preparatory meeting documents focus on downstream plastic waste and work from a narrow definition of chemicals as hazardous additives. To enable the treaty to fully address plastics’ ecological, health, and environmental justice problems, it is essential to redefine plastics as complex chemical mixtures and to integrate chemical issues across the life cycle within the scope and core obligations of the legal instrument.

Adapted from: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adf5410.

From the excerpt “humans and environments are ubiquitously exposed to plastics chemicals” (2nd paragraph), one can infer that this situation is

ID: 1023364•
Inglês•
Interpretação de texto Reading comprehension•
FGV•
Câmara dos Deputados•
manhã•
2023

The Future Of Accounting:
How Will Digital Transformation Impact Accountants?


In business, as in life, change is the only true constant. From mitigating unprecedented business disruptors to adapting to new operational paradigms, professionals in all industries find themselves dealing with major changes — many of them driven by emerging technologies.

Accounting is no exception. The profession has moved far beyond mere bookkeeping and payroll, and like its partner procurement, it’s taking an increasingly strategic role for forward-thinking businesses. While some pundits say accounting has a dim future in the digital world of tomorrow, technologies such as cloud-based data management, process automation and advanced analytics are actually poised to further elevate accountants in new and empowering ways.

As far back as 2015, industry leaders were sounding the death knell for accountants, convinced emerging technologies — particularly automation — would end in death by digital for accountancy as we know it. And as recently as 2019, accountants surveyed by Robert Half on the impact of automation on their profession expressed concerns about being replaced, having fewer opportunities for creative problem-solving and an overdependence on tech in completing daily tasks.

Yet, the events between then and now, including the Covid-19 pandemic, have instead shown that accountants, like other professionals, need to worry much more about adaptation than replacement.

There's no question that digital transformation has radically changed the playing field. Big data has become a rich resource that needs to be tapped to compete effectively. But for businesses ready to leverage the potential of digital tools, this shift is an opportunity, not a threat.

[…]

Both the skill set and the job description for tomorrow's accountant will be greatly expanded, while still hewing to the core competencies of the profession. Supported by technology in a collaborative setting, accounting teams will be populated with both dedicated accounting professionals and subject matter experts from other areas of the business.

Tomorrow's accountants may play an advisory role, welcoming business intelligence and procurement professionals and working to chart a strategic sourcing plan. They could leverage data management tools, including augmented reality, to humanize and contextualize spend data for the C-suite to make better decisions based on long-term value rather than return on investment alone.

With more diverse skill sets and greater technical acumen, accountants can bring their own expertise to teams in other business units, providing crucial financial intelligence, refining budgets or ensuring compliance. […]

As a function, accounting may become less about refining one's skill set through certifications and more about core competencies that grow over time, with a focus on lifelong education and skill development required to take on a complex, ever-changing business environment.

Automation and other data-driven technologies are poised to free accountants, not constrain them. Organizations thatunderstand the potential and importance of these technologies — and invest in the tools and training required to help their accountants take full advantage — will be ahead of the curve. Tomorrow's accountants will play a more creative and strategic role in their companies. As a result, their businesses will not only enjoy more efficient workflows and reap more useful insights from their accounting processes, but help strengthen their own resiliency, agility and competitive footing.


Adapted from: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2021/05/19/thefuture-of-accounting-how-will-digital-transformation-impactaccountants/?sh=343b437853fb
The sentence “some pundits say accounting has a dim future in the digital world of tomorrow” (2nd paragraph) implies these experts’ view is

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Interpretação de texto Reading comprehension•
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2023

Read the Text II and answer the question that follow it.

Text II

Global plastic treaty should address chemicals

In March, the global community agreed to establish a legally binding treaty to end plastic pollution. To deliver on this goal, the treaty needs to cover all issues of plastics chemicals as an inseparable part of the problem.

Plastics are complex materials consisting of chemical mixtures, including polymers, additives, residual monomers and processing aids, and non-intentionally added substances. Such mixtures release across the plastics life cycle, from feedstock extraction, production, and use, to reuse, recycling, and disposal; they also recombine along complex, unplanned pathways. As a result, humans and environments are ubiquitously exposed to plastics chemicals, often with serious consequences.

Out of more than 10,000 known plastics chemicals, at least 2,400 are classified as toxic, such as many phthalates and brominated flame retardants. Documented health effects span generations and include premature births, low birth weight, obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, endometriosis, infertility, and cancers. In the United States alone, associated costs of endocrine-disrupting chemicals amount to USD$300 billion/year. The total burden on community, ecosystem health, and biodiversity is far greater.

Even with material recycling, plastics chemicals ultimately proliferate in the ecosystem, whether as emissions or by entering new products, exposing waste-laborers, consumers, and frontline communities to new chemical cocktails. An effective, fair, and safe circular economy can only be achieved by phasing out toxic chemicals from plastic production.

As negotiations for a global treaty begin, plastics chemicals need to be front and center. However, preparatory meeting documents focus on downstream plastic waste and work from a narrow definition of chemicals as hazardous additives. To enable the treaty to fully address plastics’ ecological, health, and environmental justice problems, it is essential to redefine plastics as complex chemical mixtures and to integrate chemical issues across the life cycle within the scope and core obligations of the legal instrument.

Adapted from: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adf5410.

Based on Text II, mark the statements below as true (T) or false (F).
( ) Evidence that plastics chemicals and different illnesses are closely related is scanty.
( ) Chemical mixtures in plastics may take unforeseen directions.
( ) Forthcoming documents ought to revamp earlier definitions of plastics.
The statements are, respectively,

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Read Text II and answer the question that follow it


Text II


Boy cries Wolf


After astonishing breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, many people worry that they will end up on the economic scrapheap. Global Google searches for “is my job safe?” have doubled in recent months, as people fear that they will be replaced with large language models (LLMS). Some evidence suggests that widespread disruption is coming. In a recent paper Tyna Eloundou of OpenAI and colleagues say that “around 80% of the US workforce could have at least 10% of their work tasks affected by the introduction of LLMS”. Another paper suggests that legal services, accountancy and travel agencies will face unprecedented upheaval.


Economists, however, tend to enjoy making predictions about automation more than they enjoy testing them. In the early 2010s many of them loudly predicted that robots would kill jobs by the millions, only to fall silent when employment rates across the rich world rose to all-time highs. Few of the doom-mongers have a good explanation for why countries with the highest rates of tech usage around the globe, such as Japan, Singapore and South Korea, consistently have among the lowest rates of unemployment.


Here we introduce our first attempt at tracking AI’s impact on jobs. Using American data on employment by occupation, we single out white-collar workers. These include people working in everything from back-office support and financial operations to copy-writers. White-collar roles are thought to be especially vulnerable to generative AI, which is becoming ever better at logical reasoning and creativity.


However, there is as yet little evidence of an AI hit to employment. In the spring of 2020 white-collar jobs rose as a share of the total, as many people in service occupations lost their job at the start of the covid-19 pandemic. The white-collar share is lower today, as leisure and hospitality have recovered. Yet in the past year the share of employment in professions supposedly at risk from generative AI has risen by half a percentage point.


It is, of course, early days. Few firms yet use generative-AI tools at scale, so the impact on jobs could merely be delayed. Another possibility, however, is that these new technologies will end up destroying only a small number of roles. While AI may be efficient at some tasks, it may be less good at others, such as management and working out what others need.


AI could even have a positive effect on jobs. If workers using it become more efficient, profits at their company could rise which would then allow bosses to ramp up hiring. A recent survey by Experis, an IT-recruitment firm, points to this possibility. More than half of Britain’s employers expect AI technologies to have a positive impact on their headcount over the next two years, it finds.


To see how it all shakes out, we will publish updates to this analysis every few months. But for now, a jobs apocalypse seems a way off.


From The Economist June 17th 2023, p. 71
By calling some economists “doom-mongers” in “Few of the doom-mongers have a good explanation” (2nd paragraph), the authors
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