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Vocabulary Focus
interference (n)
---noise or other electronic signals that stop you from getting good pictures or sound on a television or radio
jeopardize (v)
---to put something such as a plan or system in danger of being harmed or damaged
Specialized Terms
electromagnetic (adj)
---
电磁（体）的
have both electric and magnetic parts
open season (idiom)
---
开放期；某项行为不再被禁止
a period when restrictions on a certain activity are lifted
open the floodgates (idiom)
---
大开方便之门
allow something to happen a lot or allow many people to do something that was not previously allowed
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Passengers opposed to a proposal to lift the ban on in-flight cell-phone calls have some new research on their side. A study by engineers at CarnegieMellon University found that cell phones and other electronic devices can cause greater interference with an airplane’s electronics than was previously believed.
“
These devices can disrupt normal operations of key
____1____
instruments, especially global positioning system (GPS) receivers,” Dr. Bill Strauss, an aircraft
electromagnetic
expert, said in the article.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is considering a proposal that would allow passengers to use cell phones while planes are
____2____
. Its main concern in banning calls in the air has been potential interference with cell-phone use on the ground.
However, even if the FCC were to change its policy, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is not likely to end its ban on the use of cell phones in flight. The FAA will restrict the use of electronic devices until it is proven that they will not interfere with a plane’s instruments.
Opposition to the FCC proposal is
____3____
. Polls indicate that more than 60 percent of passengers want to keep the cell-phone rules in place.
“
Declaring
____4____
for cell-phone user’s onboard aircraft threatens to create an unmanageable situation, undermining order in the cabin and
____5____
aviation safety,” said Patricia Friend, president of the Association of Flight Attendants.
The Carnegie Mellon researchers noted that there was no evidence that interference from cell phones or other electronic devices had ever caused a commercial-airline crash.
“
We’re not trying to be alarmists, but the potential for difficulties in the long run [is] such that we ought to be very careful,”
said M. Granger Morgan, head of Carnegie Mellon’s engineering school. “Let’s see what’s going on before we
open the floodgates
,” Morgan said.
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