On the night of April 14, 1912, the Titanic steamed at a high speed into an ice field in the North Atlantic. The sea
was calm and its surface was covered with heavy fog. At 11:40 p.m. a lookout suddenly spotted an iceberg dead ahead.
The ship turned sharply and, as it scraped by, was opened up like a tin can with a gash below the water line three hundred
feet long. The captain determined that they were going to sink fast and at 12:15 a.m. ordered his wireless operator to send
the distress call. Within a few minutes the airwaves were rippling with signals as over a dozen ships became aware of the
disaster. At 1: 20 a.m. the world began to get news of the tragedy.
Because of the Titanic tragedy, people came to realize the magical power of wireless telegraphy. The New York
Times commented, “Through the roar of the big city there are constantly speeding messages between people separated by
vast distances, and that over housetops and even through the walls of buildings and in the very air one breathes are words
written by electricity.” An officer of the American Telephone and Telegraph Company also praised the wireless
communication that made it possible to follow the rescue. Without wireless technology, the Titanic tragedy would have
been a different story. 【題組】
47 How long did it take for the world to know the news of the shipwreck after the captain sent out the message?
(A) 100 minutes. (B) 85 minutes. (C) 65 minutes. (D) 35 minutes.
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