1-conglomerate 企业集团

Mr. Gates said on Friday that he would also step down from the board of Berkshire Hathaway, the conglomerate run by his close friend, Warrant E Buffett.

2-acumen 敏锐，精明

3-ruthless 雷厉风行的，残忍的

Known for his technical acumen and ruthless business practices, he helped to establish Microsoft's Windows Software as the primary system for the personal computer.

4-commit 承诺，保证

Last month, the Gates Foundation said it would commit an additional $100 million to fight the coronavirus.

5-drop out of school 退学

Mr.Gates found Microsoft in 1975, dropping out of Harvard and joining Paul Allen, his friend and technology collaborator since their teenage years at a private high school in Seattle.

6-fledgling 羽翼未丰的，毫无经验的

In 1975, they moved to Albuquerque N.W, where a fledglibg microcomputer company MITS, made the Altair 8800, a primitive machine often credited as the first personal computer.

7-philanthropist 慈善家

8-eradication 根除

Mr.Gates stepped aside as a chief executive in 2000. His main occupation has been as a philanthropist, donating billions to world health and disease eradication programs.