单选题 Promptness is important in American business, academic, and social settings. The (56) of punctuality is taught to young children at school. Today slips and the use of bells signal to the child that (57) and time itself are to be respected.
People who keep (58) are considered dependable. If people are late for job interviews, appointments, or classes, they are often (59) unreliable and irresponsible. In the business setting, "time is money" and companies may (60) their executive for tardiness to business meetings. Of course, it is not always possible to be punctual. Social and business etiquette also provides rules for (61) arrivals. Calling (62) the telephone if one is going to be more than a few minutes late for (63) appointments is (64) polite and is often expected. Keeping a friend waiting (65) ten to twenty minutes is considered rude.
Respecting deadlines is also important in academic and professional (66) . Students who (67) assignments late may be surprised to find that the professor will (68) their grade or even refuse to (69) their work. (70) it is a question of arriving on time or of meeting a deadline, people are culturally expected to stick to the schedule time.