tenure

根據美國法律，美國聯邦儲備委員會主席艾倫·格林斯潘明年1月31日將屆滿卸任。這意味著，美國總統布什必須在今后幾個月里物色到一個能接替格林斯潘為美國經濟掌舵的合適人選。而這個人選能否延續格林斯潘對貨幣政策既藝術又科學的駕馭手腕，卻是個未知數。請看報道：

Not so long ago, it seemed like Alan Greenspan's successor as Federal Reserve chairman would have it pretty easy at first. The current economic climate of solid growth and tame inflation was expected to continue for many months to come.

That seems like a distant memory now that Hurricane Katrina has sent gasoline, heating oil and natural gas prices soaring and crippled major U.S. commerce hubs. At the same time, the housing market looks more fragile than it did before, causing even Greenspan to worry that the real-estate boom could be losing steam.

Greenspan, whose 18-yeartenureends in January, will leave behind a highly regarded and well-respected legacy as a strong inflation fighter. But his skills, and those of the successor President Bush will soon name, will likely be put to the test in the months ahead.

文中的tenure意思是a job or an official public position，即"任期"，如：During his tenure as dean, he had a real influence on the students.（在他當教務長期間，對學生們的影響很大。）

（中國日報網站編）