Can you really find out where someone is from based on how they queue (排队)?And why — across the world — do some queues seem to take forever, while others, even of the same waiting time, seem to go relatively quickly?
Richard Larson, Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor and a world expert on queues, as well as various social scientists, believes how you queue does, in fact, often give away your origin. In the United States, how people queue even depends on which city they are from. “One of my findings is that you can tell a lot about the social culture of citizens by watching their micro behavior in queues. People in Boston, New York and Washington D. C. all queue in different ways,”he says. “In Washington, people queue at a random point in a sidewalk. These are government workers who know that the bus stops at this place at 4:05, so they queue up dutifully — first come first serve. I have never seen any such behavior in New York or Boston.”
No matter how “good” the queuers are, though, scientists agree that for the queue to function, it needs to be fair. As long as people are served in the order they are lined up, queue anger can be avoided.
This is the idea behind the winding queue behind ropes or barriers where, when you reach the front, you are directed to the next available server. It’s no faster than having individual lines all the way through. But it does mean that no one arriving after you will get served before you.
The final moments of the queue are also important. Research by INSEAD business school professor Ziv Carmon and Princeton University psychology professor Daniel Kahneman found that if our wait ends on a happy note — for instance, if the queue speeds up at the end — we will view that experience more positively, even if for most of the time we were very uncomfortable, quietly cursing (骂) the person in front.
12. How does the author introduce the topic?
A.By analyzing facts. | B.By presenting findings. |
C.By raising questions. | D.By making comments. |
13. Which of the following statements may Richard Larson agree with?
A.Some people get more pleasure from queuing up than others. |
B.The way you queue is a reflection of your cultural background. |
C.People from Washington behave better than those from Boston. |
D.The understanding of social distance varies from place to place. |
14. What does the underlined part “the idea” in paragraph 4 refer to?
A.Queuing patiently. | B.No pain no gain. |
C.Queuing randomly. | D.First come first serve. |
15. What can we infer from the last paragraph?
A.One should take a positive attitude towards queuing. |
B.It is a good idea to keep queuing until the last moment. |
C.Waiting in a queue is anything but a pleasant experience. |
D.The movement speed of a queue might make a difference. |