A．They are impersonal.B．They are effective.C．They are c……
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So you think you have some
of the good things in life. You’ve got a video tape recorder and a device that
answers the phone for you. And there’s a gadget that turns on the lights when
you’re out. Then there are all those goodies in the kitchen. How about the
electric knife, the coffee maker, the ice maker
Feel good
about having all that stuff or do you wonder whether the gadgets are running
you instead of you running them
Americans apparently feel more
hurried than ever these days. Part of the reason is trying to keep up with the
demands on their time to purchase, store, service, repair, replace, and protect
all those "time-saving" machines. Add to them the problems of the extra car and
the bigger house. And there’s the RV parked on the side lawn. A fellow may, poor
soul, feel just at wits end. "Americans are eating up their leisure time by
overloading themselves with all kinds of gadgets. "So says one expert in
marketing.
The downfall of lots of home is trying to keep up
with all the things that go wrong. There’s the time spent to call repair people,
Next we must wait for them to show up. Then there are the high hourly rates.
These may force many people into poor do-it-yourself jobs. And costly tools
often save little time because of the small scale of home repairs. Power-mowing
most lawns takes as long as mowing by hand. It takes longer if you add the extra
hours of work to keep the power mower in repair.
Likewise,
"labour-saving" appliances may lighten the housework. But they save little time.
Looking for the right electric knife or other new gadget and getting it ready
for use often can take more time than doing the job by hand. Studies show we
spend even more time on laundry than our grandparents did. That’s because we
have more clothes and wash them more often. Vacuum cleaners have raised
standards of cleanliness. But they tempt people to spend more time than with a
broom or dust rag.
Cars are another time gobbler. One expert
says that tires and batteries last longer than they used to, But US cars are
more prone to break down than they were. Plus, there are more gadgets on them to
go wrong. The growing complexity of the car means most owners can no longer play
with a screwdriver and wrench under the hood to fix things themselves.
Another problem we face more and more is dealing with computer in place of
people. Impersonal, cold, and error-prone machines are replacing clerks. So to
fix errors in bills and other problems with a product or service often is a slow
and maddening process.
Recreation has changed from the simple
pleasures that take time. We don’t read, stroll, and visit with friends much
now. We’re on to complicated, costly things. But to own RVs, backyard swimming
pools, and vacation homes is a mixed blessing. Not only do people work more
hours to pay for such costly toys, but they have less free time to enjoy them.
And repair chews up a lot more time than they bargained for. What’s more, many
such playthings are not even relaxing. "Buying a video game sounds like fun. But
it really is work, "says Ernest Dichter, a marketing expert.
The
number of video games and other free time objects grows. And the pressure of
choice joins in, Just to choose a free time activity from all the options taxes
many people.
And as people crowd their lives with things that eat up so much
of their time, they come to feel that time is short. They feel they are in
danger of wasting it.
In the end, then, the possessions we
consume end up consuming us.
Which is NOT true of computers according to the passage
A．They are impersonal.
B．They are effective.
C．They are cold.
D．They are likely to make mistakes.
