【正文】 going to offer a drink, free of charge, to everyone who missed his/her plane. it = the puter 12 B Language Point 1 Cell Phones, Email and Voice Mail cell: (= cellular) adj. using a work of radio stations to pass on signals 蜂窩式（細胞式）無線電通訊系統(tǒng)的 cell phones: (Wireless telephones are) handheld phones with builtin antennas, often called cell, mobile, or PCS phones. （無線電話）是帶有固定天線的手提電話，人們稱之為蜂窩電話、移動電話或個人通訊服務電話。 Do you have your cell phone with you? 你帶手機了嗎？ voice mail: It39。s a service that supplies customers with an individual mailbox where greetings can be given out and messages taken when the enduser is not available, or chooses not to answer the telephone. Endusers may store, forward, retrieve and erase the messages. voice mail 是語音郵件系統(tǒng)。它給顧客提供一個個人電子信箱，當終端用戶不在或選擇不接聽電話時該郵箱可以發(fā)出問候（語）并接收信息。終端用戶可以儲存、轉(zhuǎn)發(fā)、恢復和刪除信息。 The pany provides free voice mail services for some special schools. 這家公司為一些特殊的學校提供免費語音郵件服務。 Language Point 2 Aren39。t the above supposed to help us municate with each other more easily? Meaning: Is it not true that cell phones, and voice mail are supposed to help us municate with each other more easily? Here, the above refers to cell phones, and voice mail that are mentioned in the title. Language Point 3 Sadly, that is not always the case. Meaning: It39。s a pity that this is not always true. (In other words, cell phones, s, and voice mails are not always helpful to us when we need to municate with each other.) Language Point 4 Take the other day for example, when I was walking through the park with my friend... Meaning: For example, one day when I was taking a walk with my friend in the park... Language Point 5 ...and he answered it— ignoring me and cutting our conversation dead! Meaning: ...and he answered the cell phone call, paying no attention to me at all and stopping our conversation pletely! dead: adv. suddenly and pletely 突然地；完全地 stop dead 突然停止 Language Point 6 13 In point of fact, the park was filled with people talking on their cell phones. Meaning: In fact, you can find many people talking on their mobile phones here and there in the park. people talking on their cell phones = people who were talking on their cell phones Language Point 7 They were passing other people without even looking at them, or stopping to stroke their dogs. Meaning: When they were walking by other people, they did not even have a look at them, nor did they stop to touch their dogs as a sign of love. Language Point 8 It was clear that the voice on the cell phone was preferable to human contact. Meaning: Obviously (顯然 ), people like talking on the cell phone better than meeting and talking with each other face to face (面對 面地 ). prefer: vt. choose (one thing or action) rather than another。 like better （兩者中）寧愿選擇（其中之一）；更喜歡 He prefers black coffee. 他喜歡不加奶的咖啡。 preferable: adj. better or especially suitable。 that one should or would prefer 更好的；更適合的；更可取的 He finds country life preferable to city life. 他覺得鄉(xiāng)村生活比城市生活好。 Language Point 9 There we were, four friends driving down the road, but not being allowed to talk to one another because of something that is supposed to make munication easier! Meaning: Right in the car were the four of us friends, and we were driving down the road, but not allowed to talk to one another, simply because of the cell phone that is supposed to make munication easier. Language Point 10 Why is it that the more connected we get, the more disconnected I feel? Meaning: The more munication we have with the help of modern technology, the lonelier I feel. What is the reason for this strange thing? it = that the more connected we get, the more disconnected I feel Language Point 11 Every advance in munications technology seems to keep people from human contact. Meaning: It seems that the development of munications technology discourages people from meeting and talking with each other face to face. Language Point 12 With over the Inter, we can now municate without seeing or talking to one another. Meaning: As we can have s over the interactive work, we are able to exchange (交流 ) information even when we don39。t meet or talk to each other. Language Point 13 With voice mail, you can have conversations without ever meeting that person. Meaning: As you have voice mail, you can talk to someone without ever meeting him or her. Language Point 14 14 ...I can just leave a message on her answer phone. Meaning: ...I can just send her some information that may be stored in her mailbox. Language Point 15 As almost every kind of contact between human beings bees automated, my feeling of being disconnected gets stronger. Meaning: Since almost every kind of munication between people can be done by machines, my feeling of being lonely bees stronger. Language Point 16 You can39。t even call someone to get the phone number of another person, because getting a phone number now is almost always fully automated. Meaning: You don39。t have to take the trouble calling someone to get the phone number of another person, because the job of getting a phone number is almost always fully done by a machine these days. Language Point 17 Pretty soon, you won39。t have to take the trouble of making eye contact at the food store。 Meaning: In the near future, when you buy something at a food store, you won39。t have to greet or face the people there. Language Point 18 ...some stores are using a selfscanner so that you can check yourself out. Meaning: ...some stores are using a machine called selfscanner, and with this machine you can pay for what you39。ve bought without the cashier (收銀員 ). Language Point 19 Don39。t get me