新东方网络课堂：中级口译真题9

Question 26～30

　　If You Really Want to Read This, You'll Be too Busy

　　NEW YORK—Pythagoras had his theorems, Einstein his theories and Murphy his laws. I have developed the maxim of inverse reciprocals.

　　After years of research, I've determined inverse reciprocals affecting all human endeavors. Consider these categorized examples.

　　Travel There is an inverse reciprocal between:

　　•the amount of luggage you are carrying and the distance from curbside to the airline ticket counter. The more luggage, the greater the distance.

　　•the ammount of time you have left before the flight leaves and the distance you must go to reach the gate from which the plane leaves. If you have 30 minutes,

　　the gate is 25 feet from the ticket counter. If you have three minutes, the gate is on the other side of airport.

　　Vacations These is an inverse reciprocal between:

　　•the size of the nonrefundable deposit you have already made and the health of the children(or spouse) the night before you are scheduled to leave.

　　•the time at which you take a much needed long weekend, and the weather conditions during just those days.

　　Entertainment There is an inverse reciprocal between:

　　•our desire to see a film to the spur of the moment and the length of the line in front of you (and, perforce, the possiblility of tickets being available when you are next).

　　•the time left to reach a theather for the opeining curtain (or, the start of movie) and the amount of traffic on the highway that you must take to get there (or, the number of red lights for which you must stop, if taking local roads).

　　Home Care There is an inverse reciprocal between:

　　•the number of plumbing parts removed, coupled with the importance of completing the new assembly, and the availability of one key nut (or, more generally, the need for a specific product and the time the store closes).

　　•the volume of leaves gathered in a pile and the velocity of the wind immediately after the pile is made.

　　Business There is an inverse reciprocal between:

　　•the importance of the guests you are entertaining, coupled with the size of the bill, and either the credit cards accepted at the restaurant (relative to the credit cards in your wallet), the amount of cash in your pocket or the balance in your checkbook.

　　•the new baby-sitter's curfew and the time it will take you to make the round trip to the dinner party your boss is giving.

　　In each instance, which of the following statements (A), (B), (C) or (D) offers the best advice or comment in view of what the author has to say on the five subjects?

　　26. Travel

　　A. It takes a long time to buy tickets.

　　B. It is best to travel light.

　　C. It is best not to arrive too early.

　　D. Latecomers usually catch their planes.

　　27. Vacations

　　A. Look for holidays with small deposits.

　　B. Never pay too small a deposit.

　　C. Book a day or two before you leave.

　　D. Don't pay too much attention to weather forecasts.

　　28. Entertainment

　　A. Give yourself plenty of time.

　　B. Latecomers have most advantages.

　　C. Traffic affects the size of a line (queue).

　　D. Avoid main roads on evenings out.

　　29. Home Care

　　A. Don't try to do it yourself.

　　B. Complete the new assembly in time.

　　C. Supply yourself with sufficient parts.

　　D. Remove the leaves gathered in a pile.

　　30. Business

　　A. Spend without limit on important guests.

　　B. Carry your credit card when entertaining.

　　C. Don't try to entertain guests cheaply.

　　D. Be suitably prepared before entertaining.