A

Time talks. It speaks more plainly than words. Time communicates in many ways.

Consider the different parts of the day， for example. The time of the day when something is done can give a special meaning to the event. Factory managers in the United States fully realize the importance of an announcement（通知） made during the middle of the morning or afternoon that takes everyone away from his work.

In the United States， it is not customary to telephone someone very early in the morning. If you telephone him early in the day， while he is shaving or having breakfast， the time of the call shows that the matter is very urgent（紧急的） and needs immediate attention. It is the same with telephone calls made after 11：00 p. m. If someone receives a call during sleeping hours， he probably thinks it is a matter of life or death. The time chosen for the call communicates its importance.

The meanings of time differ in different parts of the world. Thus， misunderstanding arises between people from cultures that treat time differently. In the United States， people often think of time as something fixed in nature， something from which one cannot escape. As a rule， Americans think of time as a road into the future， along which one progresses. The road has many sections（部分）， which are to be kept separate…“One thing at a time”。 Thus， an American may feel angry when he has made an appointment with someone and then finds a lot of other things happening at the same time.

Americans look ahead and are concerned almost entirely with the future. The American idea of the future is limited， however. It is the foreseeable future and not the future of involving （包括） many centuries.

Since time has much different meanings in different cultures， communication is often difficult. We will understand each other a little better if we can keep this fact in mind.

41. According to the passage， an announcement made during the day in a factory must be very important because_________.

A. it interrupts the work of all employees

B. it is made by the manager

C. it makes everyone lose his job

D. it communicates in many ways

42.In the United States， a phone call made after 11：00 p. m. is considered________，in the view of the writer.

A. as important as one made in the morning

B. impolite since it disturbs the receiver‘s sleep

C. to be a threat to the receiver‘s life

D. even more urgent than one made early in the morning

43. An American may feel angry if ____________________.

A. he is to deal with many things at one appointed time

B. people from different cultures misunderstand him#p#分页标题#e#

C. he cannot escape from something fixed in nature

D. others do not keep things separate

44. The underlined expression“the foreseeable future”could be most suitably replaced by ___________.

A. the future which involves centuries

B. the future that one looks forward to

C. the future that will not be far away