Download - 02 03 Telecommunications

CATEGORY: BUSINESS GROUP: 2. TECHNOLOGY & COMMUNICATION Topic: 3. Telecommunications Introduction: Staying in touch with friends and family is important to many international people living in the U.S. Today there are many different kinds of telecommunications that make this easy and inexpensive. Telecommunications are also important for communication in global business. Dialogue: Kim has just transferred from a company overseas to a position in the U.S. Shes been in the U.S. for two months now and has befriended an American colleague at work, Amy. Today theyre chatting together after their classes. Amy: Hi, Kim. Hows everything going? Kim: Oh, just OK. Amy: Is there something wrong? Kim: Well, Im just feeling a little lonely and homesick. Im still getting adjusted to life

in the U.S. Amy: How long have you been here now? Kim: Two months. Amy: Thats such a short time. Im sure its normal for everyone to feel homesick for

the first few months they move to a new country. Kim: Yeah, I guess so.

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Amy: Do you talk to your family and friends back home much? Kim: I talk to my parents about once a week and to my friends every couple of weeks. Amy: Do you call them? Kim: I dont have a landline. So, I use my cell phone to call my parents. Amy: Isnt it expensive to use your cell phone to call long distance? Kim: If I just used my cell phone it would be. But, I buy pre-paid phone cards and use

those to pay for the calls. Amy: Is it expensive? Kim: No. Its about seven cents a minute. Amy: Oh, thats not bad at all. Kim: Do you talk to your parents a lot? Amy: I guess I talk to them about once every two weeks. They live on the other side of

the country. Kim: Is it expensive to call them? Amy: Well, they usually call me, but sometimes I make a collect call to talk to them, so

I dont have to pay. Kim: Oh, youre a bad daughter! Just kidding. Amy: What about your friends? Do you call them often? Kim: We dont usually talk on the phone. Usually I just email them, or we talk online

using Skype or another VoIP. Amy: Ive never heard of VoIPs. How do they work? Kim: Its very simple. Both people have to download a companys free software. Then

they use it to talk for free over the Internet using a microphone and a headset. Amy: Thats so cool! So, you can call anywhere in the world for free? Kim: Yep. Its the cheapest way for my friends and I to stay in touch. Amy: Ill have to try it out. Will you show me one day?


Kim: Sure. Amy: Well, Im sorry that youre missing your friends and family. It must be hard being

so far away from them. Kim: Thanks. Amy: Would you like to go see a movie with me tomorrow? It might cheer you up. Kim: That would be great, thank you! Amy: Sure. Ill check whats playing and we can talk about it tomorrow. Kim: Sounds good. Amy: OK, see you tomorrow. Kim: Bye. Vocabulary: befriended: become friends with telecommunications: communication at a distance chatting: to talk in an informal manner homesick: longing for home and family while absent from them landline: a line of communication (as by telephone cable) on land pre-paid phone cards: cards that can be bought in set amounts ($10, $20, etc.), which

can be used to pay for phone communication collect call: a call where the receiver pays for the charges VoIP: The acronym VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol and is the technology

for transmitting voice conversations via the Internet stay in touch: remain in communication Discussion Questions:

1. Whats the main form of telecommunication that you use to talk with clients or partners at work? -At work I dont use any form of telecommunication. I dont communicate with people overseas for work purposes. At my previous job I did, and I mainly used email.


2. Whats the main form of telecommunication that you use to talk with friends or family? -I have friends and family that live overseas. To communicate with them, I mainly use email. Sometimes we talk on the phone as well. I use my cell phone and a pre-paid phone card to call them.

3. Have you ever been homesick before? When?

-Yes, I have. I was homesick when I first moved to France during my college years. I missed my friends and family. After a month or two, the homesickness went away.

4. Do you think landline phones will become obsolete in the future?

- I think they probably will. Many people today dont have landlines anymore. They just use their cell phones for phone communication. Theres really no reason to pay for a cell phone and a landline.

5. How many email accounts do you have? How often do you check them?

-I have too many. I have six or seven. I have personal email accounts, accounts from school, and accounts from work. Im in front of a computer working for a lot of time each day, so I check my email about five times a day.

6. Are cell phones popular in your country? Do you have one?

-Yes. Cell phones are very popular in the U.S. Almost everyone has one nowadays. Yes, I have one. Its a Samsung slide phone.

7. How do you think face-to-face communication differs from telecommunication

(email, phone, etc.)? -I think telecommunication is a lot more impersonal than face-to-face communication. You cant see a persons facial expressions or gestures. This sometimes leads to miscommunications.

8. Are long distance calls expensive in your country?

-No. I dont think so. There are a lot of good long distance phone plans out there and phone cards. The charge per minute for long distance phone calls is usually pretty inexpensive.
