Prime Time 7/8, Language in Use, Arbeitsheft

The language of science: Location-based apps and the future of shopping a) Read the following text and highlight the features that are common in scientific texts. b) Find out which tenses are most frequent. 5 It is a current trend that more and more smartphone apps require access to location data provided by the phone’s built-in GPS module. According to a 2012 report, three- quarters of America’s smartphone owners use their devices to retrieve information related to their location. Such location data is promising to advertisers. They can begin sending customers so-called hyperlocal advertising, tailored not just to the city, but to a particular city block. The technology is called “geofencing”, which has been used for years in the ankle bracelets worn by accused criminals under constant surveillance. A judge might grant a criminal suspect permission to go to her job, her church and her local supermarket, with each approved location plugged into the court’s computer system. Data from the ankle-strapped GPS could confirm that the suspect was staying out of mischief or send a warning to police when she went to a prohibited location. Geofencing also has other uses, for example for parents who want to know about their children’s whereabouts. The service retrieves location data from a child’s phone and sends a message whenever the child arrives at home or at school or leaves again. When marketers build a geofence, they have no desire to restrict customers’ movements. The goal is to detect people’s close approach to a nearby business that is looking to make a sale, so the company can ping customers with a text message urging them to buy. Because marketers realise that nobody wants a constant stream of text messages, a policy of “frequency capping” is practiced. Customers generally get no more than five messages a week, even if many other attractive deals come within range. Still, geofencing is rarely used by advertisers nowadays. The technology requires constantly recalculating the phone’s position, which shortens battery life quickly. Yet, even if geofencing becomes more energy efficient, it might still not be a sound strategy for selling many consumer products. As psychologists found out, valuable things are usually not consumed spontaneously. It is highly unlikely that a customer, alerted by his phone that a half- price sale on expensive consumer technology is taking place in a store nearby, will act upon sudden impulse and seriously consider the offer. Even at the lower price, such items will cost hundreds of dollars and are thus the sort of purchase consumers think about and plan for. (Hiawatha Bray, discover.com , 30 April 2014; adapted and abridged) 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 c) Complete the sentences below with suitable words from the article. 1. Facebook plans to use location data from its mobile apps to customise the ads it serves consumers. 2. It can record video, access e-mail and from the web by connecting wirelessly to a user’s mobile phone. 3. You can use your smartphone to track your car’s location, get information on its condition and use to manage mileage. 4. We live in an age of where our words and actions can be made public by anyone with a mobile phone and an internet connection. 5. This short guide gives some examples of successful communication activities to help the project participants to develop a for communicating about their work. 6. Hamlet is the exact opposite; he is very hesitant, and does not act . 93 18 Science and technology Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv