Question

Some people are so rude!

Who sends an e­mail or a text message that just says “Thank you”？ Who leaves a voice mail message rather than texts you? Who asks for a fact easily found on Google? Don’t these people realize that they’re wasting your time?

Maybe I’m the rude one for not appreciating life’s little politeness. But many social agreed standards just don’t make sense to people drowning in digital communication.

In texts, you don’t have to declare who you are or even say hello. E­mail, too, is slower than a text. Voice mail is a now impolite way of trying to connect.

My father learned this lesson after leaving me a dozen voice mail messages, none of which I listened to. Exasperated, he called my sister to express his dissatisfaction that I never returned his phone calls. “Why are you leaving him voice mail？” my sister asked. “Just text him.”

In the age of the smartphone, there is no reason to ask once­acceptable questions about: the weather forecast, a business’s phone number, or directions to a house, a restaurant, which can be easily found on Google Maps. But people still ask these things. And when you answer, they respond with a thank­you e­mail.

How to handle these differing standards? Easy. Consider your audience. Some people, especially older ones, appreciate a thank­you message. Others, like me, want no reply.

The anthropologist (人类学家) Margaret Mead once said that in traditional societies, the young learn from the old. But in modern societies, the old can also learn from the young. Here’s hoping that politeness never goes out of fashion but that time­wasting forms of communication do.

1.What does the underlined word “Exasperated” mean in the fifth paragraph?

A. Worried.    B. Surprised.

C. Annoyed.    D. Tired.

2.Why didn’t the writer reply to his father?

A. He liked text messages better.

B. He enjoyed checking his voice mail.

C. He didn’t receive any voice mail messages.

D. He didn’t want to talk with his father.

3.Which of the following does the writer agree to?

A. People needn’t learn from one another in traditional societies.

B. Dealing with voice mail should vary with each individual.

C. People needn’t turn to Google for help when in trouble.

D. Declaring who you are or saying hello in texts is necessary.

4.What’s the best title for this passage?

A. Nowadays: what should we do with text messages?

B. Nowadays: do you like leaving others a voice message?

C. Nowadays: what means should we use in communication?

D. Nowadays: do you need a thank­you message?

Answer

1. C

2. A

3. B

4. C

【解析】

本文为说明文。随着数字通讯设备的普及，人们对通讯礼节标准的理解也发生了很大的变化。作者在文中讨论了现代生活中人与人之间不同的交流方法：邮件，语音邮件和文本短信等，并发表了自己对这些方式的看法。

1.猜测词义题。由上一句“My father learned this lesson after leaving me a dozen voice mail messages, none of which I listened to”（我父亲在留给我十几条语音信箱，我一个也没听过后得到了这个教训）及下句“he called my sister to express his dissatisfaction that I never returned his phone calls”（他打电话给我妹妹表达了他的不满）可知，可以推测他一定是恼怒的，分析选项可知C符合题意。

2.细节理解题。由第四段In texts, you don't have to declare who you are or even say hello. E­mail, too, is slower than a text. Voice mail is a now impolite way of trying to connect.(发信息，你不需要说你是谁或者说你好，而电子邮件比信息更慢，语音邮件是一种不礼貌连接方式。)由此可知，作者更喜欢文本信息。分析选项可知A项符合题意。

3.细节理解题。由倒数第二段How to handle these differing standards？Easy：Consider your audience. Some people, especially older ones, appreciate a thank­you message. Others, like me, want no reply.(如何处理这些不同的标准？很简单。考虑一下你的听众。有些人，尤其是年长的，喜欢你的留言。其他人，像我，不需要回复。)由此可知，作者认为应当考虑不同的对方来解决不同的语音邮件。分析选项可知B项正确。

4.主旨归纳题。由全文内容可知作者讨论了现代生活中人与人之间不同的交流方法，并发表了对使用哪一种的看法。分析选项可知C项符合题意。