Written by Geoff Lemon

　　We can all live without mobile telephones - right? Maybe not! More and more Chinese are buying and using cellphones. What is this need to be“connected”? Recruitment Manager Hong Li explained“Fierce competition in the job market means employers need to be able to contact job candidates quickly. Without a phone, chances are you will miss out on a job offer”. The average user likes to keep in touch with more than just the office. An astonishing 80 billion short text messages were sent in China in 2002. Seven billion messages in the first week of the 2003 Lunar New Year alone. Do you still think it’s a fad?

　　recruitment /ri5maind/ n.招募新人

　　fierce /fiEs/ adj.激烈的

　　employer /im5plCiE/ n.雇主

　　candidate /5kAndidit/ n.候选人

　　miss out遗漏

　　keep in touch保持联络

　　astonishing /Es5tCniFiN/ adj.可惊讶的

　　fad /fAd/ n.时尚