Part Ⅰ Getting ready
Some telephone calls will not get through without the help of an operator, for example, a person-to-person call and a collect call which will be paid for by the person who receives it. Sometimes a long distance call and an overseas call will also be connected by an operator if it is not a direct call.
A The following words and phrases will appear in this unit. All of them are related to the telephone and some are frequently used when giving and receiving phone calls. Listen carefully and study the definitions.
1. person-to-person call: a telephone call made to one person in particular, and not needing to be paid for if he/she is not there and someone else answers
2. collect call: a telephone call to be paid by the receiver
3. go through: pass through
4. operator: a person who works a telephone switchboard
5. hang up: finish a telephone conversation by putting the receiver back
6. information: the telephone service which provides telephone numbers to people who ask for them
7. answering machine: a machine attached to a telephone which records messages when one is unable to answer the telephone
8. exchange: a central office where connections are made between telephone lines so that people can talk to each other by telephone
9. touch-tone telephone: a telephone that produces different sounds when its different numbered buttons are pushed
10. IDD: International Direct Dialling
B Here are some short conversations on the phone. Please listen and supply the missing words.
1. Man: Hello.
Operator: I have a _________ call from Calvin Leon. Will you accept the _________?
Man: Sure. Put him _________.
2. Operator: Operator.
Woman: Operator, I'm trying to call _________.
Operator: That number is outside this. It's _________ for _________ minutes.
Woman: All right I'll put in the _________.
3. Operator: Overseas Operator. Which country?
Man: Italy.
Operator: Yes, _________.
Man: I'd like to _________ a call to Venice, Italy.
Operator: For which _________ and _________?
Man: _________ at _________ a.m.
Operator: What's your name and _________ number?
Man: Robert Smith _________. The number in Venice is _________.
Operator: We'll call you when your call is _________ to go through.
4. Woman: Hello.
Operator: Hello. I have a _________ call for Mr. Hawkins from Carey Jones.
Woman: There's no Hawkins here. What number are you dialling?
Operator: I'm trying to _________ William Hawkins at _________.
Woman: That's our number, but you've made a _________.
Operator: Sorry for _________ you.
Part Ⅱ Giving and receiving phone calls
Sometimes even when a telephone call goes through, the caller is still unable to speak to the person being called. Instead, the call might be answered by a machine. An answering machine answers calls with a tape recording, and many answering machines also allow the caller to record a message. It's more efficient to leave your name and telephone number than to waste your time calling again and again.
A In this section you are going to hear several calls that are answered by machines. Listen to the recorded messages. Write down the reasons why each call is being answered by a machine instead of a person and the actions you decide to take. Write "W" for "wait on the line", "L" for "leave a message", and "C" for "call back later".
Receiver Reasons Actions
Transit Authority all lines _____________ ______________
Call for Action are volunteers_________ ______________
Charlie person ________________ ______________
Pioneer Travel all agents ____________ ______________
Steve person ________________ ______________
Message taking is one of the most useful skills in dealing with telephone calls. A great deal of practice is needed in this respect.
B You are going to hear some recorded phone calls. The first three calls are for Mr. Hamilton, and the last one is for Mr. Dobson.
1 First listen to some names.
Rebecca Evans Ted Paola Andreotti
2 Now listen to the calls. While listening for the first time, add more key words if you can in the left-hand column. After the second listening, complete the messages in the right-hand column with the help of the notes.
Messages
1. From: ____________________
Message: He couldn't ____________, but there are plenty of ____________. You can ____________ any time.
2. From: Mr.____________ of ____________ and Wheeler
Message: There are a few _______ regarding the __________ that need__________. Contact him ____________________.
3. From: ____________________
Message: Remember your __________.
4. From: __________ Andreotti from __________.
Message: Call her at _______ before __________ to clear up a__________ about the __________ of product number __________ -the one for the __________.
part Ⅲ Oh, there's a phone.
If you want to get a telephone call through, you'll have to know the correct number. (Sometimes the Information Centre will help you if the number is not an unpublished one and you know the receiver's address.) If you are using a coin telephone, you'll have to have some coins at hand. But if the number you dialled is busy, all your effort will result in nothing.
A You are going to hear a conversation in which one of the speakers tries several times to make a phone call but fails at last. The following vocabulary which is only acceptable in oral English is used in the conversation. Guess the meaning when you hear these words and expressions. While you listen, don't forget to add more key words in the notes column. They will be very helpful for the next section.
1. wait a sec:
2. wanna:
3. a quarter.
4. oh, boy:
5. c'mon:
B You are going to hear the conversation again. Answer the following question with the help of the notes.
1. Where did the conversation take place?
_________________________________________________________
2. When did the conversation take place?
_________________________________________________________
3. How old are the speakers?
_________________________________________________________
4. What is their relationship?
_________________________________________________________
5. What did they plan to do?
_________________________________________________________
6. Why one of them had to make a phone call?
_________________________________________________________
7. Why couldn't the call get through the first two times?
_________________________________________________________
8. Why couldn't the call get through the third time?
_________________________________________________________
9. What is her attitude toward being on time for appointments?
_________________________________________________________
C Now try this: listen to a more authentic version of the conversation and decide whether the statements after the conversation are True or False. Put a "T" or "F' in the brackets.
1. ( ) 2. ( ) 3. ( ) 4. ( ) 5. ( )
6. ( ) 7. ( ) 8. ( ) 9. ( ) 10. ( )
Part Ⅳ More about the topic: Videophones Get the Call
Nowadays more and more mothers go out of their homes and become career women. More and more extended families are being replaced by nuclear families. Some new problems hence occur, such as how to make sure that kids behave at home, what to do with the lonely grandparents who cannot see their grandchildren often, etc. Brilliant scientists rose to the occasion: they invented videophones.
The following short passage is about videophones. Supply the missing words while listening.
Videophones are now ________ in British Columbia, Canada. For about ________ month, you can ________ and ________ the other person at the end of the ________ line and even call home and use the video camera to ________ up on the kids or valuables.
A subscriber must have a touch-tone telephone, a standard telephone line and a ________ or ________ to connect to the device, which can pan, tilt and zoom. If a VCR is ________, the videophone call can also be ________.
But don't worry that the cameras will start rolling as soon as you ________ up your videophone. Both parties must decide to activate the ________. So you can still make ________ at your ________ without them seeing.
The videophone can also be activated from outside the home for those who want to check whether they've been ________ or if the kids are ________. Subscribers dial home, punch in a security code and watch. The ________ videophone must be left on for this to happen.
The device has been used by ________ care professionals to check up on patients, by grandparents who want to see their ________ and by companies for ________ job candidates.
The videophone technology isn't all new. Videophones were around ________ years ago when German engineers set up ________ booths in Berlin and Leipzig. People could make calls for only ________ the cost of a ________ conversation. AT&T also introduced videophones at the ________ World Fair, but the idea never took off.
Part Ⅴ Memory test: How to Make an International Direct Dialling (IDD) Call
With the advent of the programme-controlled telephone, you can now make an International Direct Dialling call without the help of an operator. That, of course, means greater convenience for the caller. But if you have never personally made an IDD call, you may ask: HOW TO BEGIN?
If you want to make an International Direct Dialling call, you have to know four things: the Access Code, the Country Code, the Area Code and the Local Telephone Number. For example, if you want to make an IDD call to a friend of yours in Sydney, Australia from Shanghai at 24661923, first you have to dial China's Access Code — 00, and then you dial Australia's Country Code — 61, after that Sydney's Area Code — 2, and at last the Local Telephone Number — 24661923. So the whole number will be 00612 24661923.
A Now you are going to hear some Access, Country and Area Codes. Write down the numbers as quickly as possible.
Country or Area Access Code Country Code Area Code
China _______________ ________________ ________________
Beijing _______________ ________________ ________________
USA _______________ ________________ ________________
Washington D.C. _______________ ________________ ________________
United Kingdom _______________ ________________ ________________
Manchester _______________ ________________ ________________
Canada _______________ ________________ ________________
Toronto _______________ ________________ ________________
Australia _______________ ________________ ________________
Melbourne _______________ ________________ ________________
New Zealand _______________ ________________ ________________
Wellington _______________ ________________ ________________
Russia _______________ ________________ ________________
Moscow _______________ ________________ ________________
Japan _______________ ________________ ________________
Tokyo _______________ ________________ ________________
France _______________ ________________ ________________
Paris _______________ ________________ ________________
Germany _______________ ________________ ________________
Berlin _______________ ________________ ________________
Italy _______________ ________________ ________________
Venice _______________ ________________ ________________
B You are going to hear some instructions on making IDD calls. With the help of the above table, write down the whole telephone number as quickly as possible.
1. ________________________________
2. ________________________________
3. ________________________________
4. ________________________________
5. ________________________________
Part Ⅵ Reminder of key points in this unit
Verb & Verb Phrase Noun & Noun Phrase Other
Part Ⅰ connect collect call at the moment
put... on person-to-person call overseas
book a call charge
go through operator
disturb zone
Part Ⅱ assist answering machine on duty
specialise in authority regular
stay on the line information centre immediately
hang up volunteer just a minute
regard beep urgent
contact detail
label property
clear up mix-up
Part Ⅲ deposit Information a million times
Directory Assistance instead of
drive
exchange
a quarter
Part Ⅳ check up extended family available
pan nuclear family standard
tilt videophone behaving
zoom telephone line at-home
attach video camera
tape valuable
roll subscriber
activate touch-tone telephone
make face in-law
punch security code
interview health care
professional
candidate
Part Ⅴ IDD (International Direct Dialling)
the Access Code
the Local Telephone Number |