四、閱讀測驗【請在下列各題中選出最適當的答案】         In today’s workplace, gossip is as common as ever. Rumors, half-truths, and lies fly from desk to desk andfrom employee to employee. Thanks to modern technology, gossip can spread through an entire company withinminutes. Though it’s hard to stop completely, it needs to be kept in check. Otherwise, it can cause trouble for one’scolleagues or even harm the company.         Office workers tend to gossip about two main areas. The first is a company’s general goings-on, such as hiringand firing news, yearly bonuses, and so on. As one U.S. survey revealed, nearly two-thirds of office workers areinvolved in this type of gossip. Some experts believe that, in small doses, that’s actually a good thing for it givesemployees a sense of what management is planning as company news are passed on. And hearing something on thegrapevine helps managers know better about the employees’ reaction and morale level.         The second type of gossip concerns one’s coworkers. An estimated 40% people love to talk about theircolleagues’ romantic interests, career goals, and private lives. Again, some analysts suggest that a small amount ofsuch personal gossip helps build group relationships as it shows people’s care about and attention on theircolleagues. However, when spread with malicious intentions, it can hurt people’s feelings, job performance, andeven their health.         Gossip is often passed around in employees’ break rooms and around desks. Instant messaging apps are also amajor channel for gossiping. A recent study in England found that some 80% of employees use these convenienttools on their smartphones to chat about other employees behind their backs. E-mail, once a widely used method adecade ago, has become a much less welcome choice, as many companies keep records of e-mails and their internalmessaging systems.         Most people strongly dislike being gossiped about. According to another large-scale questionnaire done inEurope, 60% of workers viewed gossip as the biggest office-related problem. Victims of gossip may even sue acompany for not doing enough to stop this pain in the neck in workplace. Consequently, more and more companiesnow have policies that limit or forbid office gossip.
【題組】21. Which of the following aspects of office gossip is NOT mentioned in this article?
(A) Types of office gossip
(B) Topics of office gossip
(C) Positive influence of office gossip
(D) A famous real case of office gossip