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The document discusses Amazon's 'anticipatory shipping' method, which uses big data to predict customer purchases and potentially ship items before they are ordered. It highlights the advantages of reducing delivery times and the challenges, such as the risk of sending unwanted items. The passage also touches on how Amazon might handle these challenges, including offering discounts or free items to customers.

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10 views4 pages

Screenshot 2024-12-17 at 16.24.21

The document discusses Amazon's 'anticipatory shipping' method, which uses big data to predict customer purchases and potentially ship items before they are ordered. It highlights the advantages of reducing delivery times and the challenges, such as the risk of sending unwanted items. The passage also touches on how Amazon might handle these challenges, including offering discounts or free items to customers.

Uploaded by

yassinedafir6666
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Unit 3: Shopping

I. Reading Comprehension: read the text thoroughly and choose ONE correct
answer:
Anticipatory Shipping
A patent filed by the e-commerce giant last December reveals the plan for ‘anticipatory
shipping’ - using big data to predict what customers will buy.
Late last year Amazon created headlines the world over by announcing plans to deliver by
drone. Now, this looks like child’s play compared to its new ambition: sending you your
packages before you even buy them.
The retailer giant calls this “anticipatory shipping” and in a patent granted last December
outlined how the method could further slim down its already impressively-small gap between
receiving an order and delivering it to a customer’s house.
By analyzing a wealth of user data including wish-lists, shopping cart contents, previous
orders and even how long a mouse cursor pauses over an item, Amazon is confident it could
figure out what you’re going to buy before you do.
Items that had been successfully identified would then begin to star down Amazon’s shipping
process and may even be “speculatively shipped to a physical address”. The patent also details
how partial addresses might be used to get an item closer to a customer, with the exact
location provided later in transit.
The patent – first spotted by The Wall Street Journal – acknowledges that “anticipatory
shipping” might have a number of teething problems. Not least of all would be shipping a
customer something that they decide not to order.
In these scenarios Amazon has said that they might consider giving customers discounts or
the items, or even simply giving it to them for nothing. “Delivering the package to the given
customer as a promotional gift may be used to build goodwill,” the patent reads.
Although the scheme sounds slightly far-fetched, it chimes with a growing trend amongst
technology companies to leverage vast sets of user-data in predicting future action.
Google’s autocomplete feature on its search bar is one of the more well-known examples, but
as companies take in more and more data from customers, these predictions will become
increasingly accurate. Oddly enough, you’re more likely to get shipped a package you haven’t
ordered yet than you are to have that same package delivered by drone.
Source: The Independent by James Vincent
1. What is the main focus of Amazon's "anticipatory shipping" method?
a. Delivering packages to customers before they are ordered
b. Reducing the time between order placement and delivery
c. Analyzing customer data to predict future purchases
d. Using drone technology for faster package delivery

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2. Based on the passage, which of the following types of customer data does Amazon use to
predict purchases?
a. Wish lists and shopping cart contents
b. Previous orders and cursor activity
c. Both A and B
d. None of the above

3. What is one potential drawback of Amazon’s “anticipatory shipping” method mentioned in


the passage?
a. Customers may not want items they didn’t order
b. The cost of speculatively shipping items
c. Difficulty in accurately predicting customer behavior
d. Customers' dissatisfaction with drone deliveries

4. How does the passage suggest Amazon might handle the issue of shipping items customers
don't want?
a. Offer customers discounts on the unwanted items
b. Give the unwanted items to customers for free
c. Both A and B
d. None of the above

5. Which of the following statements best describes the passage's perspective on the
‘anticipatory shipping’ method?
a. It is a revolutionary concept that will transform the retail industry.
b. It is a more practical solution than Amazon's drone delivery plans.
c. It is an example of how technology companies are leveraging data.
d. It is unlikely to be implemented due to significant challenges.

6. What is the main point made in the last paragraph of the passage?
a. Technology companies are improving at predicting customer behavior.
b. Google's autocomplete feature is an example of anticipatory shipping.
c. Customers are more likely to receive unordered packages than drone deliveries.
d. The "anticipatory shipping" method is a growing trend in the retail industry.

7. What is the overall tone of the passage regarding Amazon's "anticipatory shipping"
method?
a. Skeptical about the feasibility of the method
b. Enthusiastic about the potential benefits
c. Neutral and objective in presenting the details
d. Critical of Amazon's use of customer data

II. Vocabulary
a. Find a word or phrase in the text which means:
1. something that is very easy to do: ____________
2. make smaller: _____________
3. understand, find the solution to a question or problem: _____________
4. in the act of moving somewhere: _____________
5. in agreement with something: ______________

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6. admits, accepts: ________________

b. Collocations: Match the verbs with the nouns to form phrases from the text:

Now complete the sentences below with the phrases:


1. The company usually _____________ by plane.
2. Amazon’s new anticipatory shipping scheme is able to _________________ .
3. Amazon’s spokesperson has recently to deliver packages before customers have ordered
them.
4. If you invent an innovative product or system, you should ______________________ as
soon as possible.
5. In order to ____________________ with the customer, the company decided to offer the
product at a significant discount.
III. Grammar:
a. Convert the word into its comparative form. If applicable, use -er; otherwise, use more:
1. Dogs are ________________________ (intelligent) than rabbits.
2. Lucy is _________________________ (old) than Ellie.
3. Russia is far _________________________ (large) than the UK.
4. My Latin class is ______________________ (boring) than my English class.
5. In the UK, the streets are generally ________________ (narrow) than the streets in the
USA.
6. London is ___________________ (busy) than Glasgow.
7. Julie is __________________________ (quiet) than her sister.
8. Amanda is ____________________________ (ambitious) than her classmates.
9. My garden is a lot ____________________________ (colourful) than this park.
10. His house is a bit _________________________________ (comfortable) than a hotel.
IV. Writing; You are planning a dinner party. Create a shopping list that includes ingredients
and items you will need, with categories like Appetizers, Main Course, Sides, Dessert,
Beverages, and Miscellaneous Items.

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