D. Love brings more joy to people than work does.

　　At your next meeting, wait for a pause in conversation and try to measure how long it lasts.

　　Among English speakers, chances are that it will be a second or two at most. But while this pattern may be universal, our awareness of silence differs dramatically across cultures.

　　What one culture considers a confusing or awkward pause may be seen by others as a valuable moment of reflection and sign of respect for what the last speaker has said. Research in Dutch and also in English found that when a silence in conversation stretches to four seconds, people start to feel uneasy. In contrast, a separate study of business meetings found that Japanese people are happy with silences of 8.2 seconds - nearly twice as long as in Americans' meetings.

In Japan, it is recognized that the best communication is when you don't speak at all. It's already a failure to understand each other by speaking because you're repairing that failure by using words.

In the US, it may originate from the history of colonial (殖民地) America as a crossroads of many different races. When you have a complex of difference, it's hard to establish common understanding unless you talk and there's understandably a kind of anxiety unless people are verbally engaged to establish a common life. This applies also to some extent to London.

In contrast, when there's more homogeneity, perhaps it's easier for some kinds of silence to appear. For example, among your closest friends and family it's easier to sit in silence than with people you're less well acquainted with.

25. Which of the following people might have the longest silence in conversation?

A. The Dutch. B. Americans. C. The English. D. The Japanese.

26. What might the Japanese agree with in a conversation?

A. Speaking more gives the upper hand.

B. Speak out what you have in your mind.

C. Great minds think alike without words.

D. The shorter talking silence, the better.

27. What can we learn from the text?

A. A four second silence in conversation is universal.

B. It's hard for Americans to reach a common agreement.