1. Those endless rounds of extra tutoring, music lessons, sports sessions and educational visits, together with lively discussions at home about every subject under the sun, have proved highly effective at securing the good grades and social graces that will open the doors to top universities and well-paid jobs.
那些无休止的额外辅导、音乐课、体育锻炼和各种教育参观游学，以及在家里热烈讨论天底下的每个话题，已证明非常有效地确保了良好的成绩和社交礼节，打开了通向顶尖大学和高薪工作的大门。
词语解析
- endless rounds of 没完没了的，无止境的
- under the sun 天下；全世界的；究竟
everything under the sun 世界上的一切，一切可能之事
2. Working-class parents in America, for their part, lack the wherewithal to engage in such intensive parenting. As a result, social divisions from one generation to the next are set to widen.
美国的工薪阶层父母则缺乏必要的资金来如此细心地养育孩子。其结果是，从一代人到下一代人的社会分裂必将扩大。
词语解析
- working-class parents 工薪阶层父母
- wherewithal 为做某事而需要的钱，必要的资金
I'd like to buy a bigger house, but I don't have the wherewithal.
我想买一所大一点的房子，可是没那么多钱。
- social divisions 社会分裂，社会贫富差距
- be set to 被设定为，确定为，将会，势必会
3. In rich countries the overwhelming majority now lead urban lives. Almost 80% of people live in cities, which have many advantages, including better opportunities for work, education, culture and leisure. But these often come at a cost: expensive housing, overcrowding, lack of green space, heavy traffic, high air pollution and a sense of living among strangers rather than in a closeknit community.
几乎80%的人生活在城市。这带来了许多优势，包括更好的工作、教育、文化和休闲的机会。但这往往需要付出代价：住房昂贵、过度拥挤、缺乏绿地、交通繁忙、空气污染严重，以及生活在陌生人当中而非亲密社区里的感觉。
词汇解析
- overwhelming 难以抵挡的；无法抗拒的；巨大的，极大的
an overwhelming majority 绝大多数
overwhelming superiority 绝对优势
- come at a cost 付出代价，以…为代价
- closeknit / close-knit 关系紧密的；紧密团结的；组织严密的
a close-knitfamily / community 融洽的一家人／关系紧密的社区