北京市中考模拟考试试题(6)
Time your calls wisely. If you make a call right before lunch or dinner, or at the end of the workday, people chat less.
Set a time limit. Start with, “Hi, I’ve only got a few minutes, but I wanted to talk to you about….” Or, “Gee, I’d love to talk more, but I only have a couple of minutes before I have to leave.”
Jump on a pause（间歇）. Even the most talkative caller has to pause now and then. Quickly say, “It has been great talking with you.” Then end the conversation.
Forget niceties. Some people just don’t take a hint. Cut your caller off and say, “I’d like to talk to you longer, but I’m afraid I have no enough time. Good bye.” Then hang up.
Find “a partner in crime”. If nothing else works, ask someone in your home to help you. For example, one woman gives a sign to her husband, who shouts, “Jane, I think the roast chicken is burning.”
Avoid the phone completely. Use an answering machine to screen calls. If you have an important message for a chatterbox（唠叨的人）, leave the message when he or she isn’t in.
50. What’s the good time to make a call so that people can chat less?
A. After lunch or dinner. B. In the middle o f the workday.
C. Before lunch or dinner. D. At the beginning of the workday.
51. “Finding a partner in crime” means ______.
A. finding someone to answer the call
B. getting right to the heart of the matter
C. telling the caller you are just cooking
D. asking someone to help you end the call
52. What’s Winston’s advice about?
A. How to talk on the phone.
B. How to make calls wisely.
C. How to make a phone call.
D. How to keep phone calls short.
C
People from East Asia tend to have more difficulty than those from Europe in differentiating facial expressions – and a new report published online in Current Biology explains why.
