Exercise 1-19: spelling and numbers
Just as there is stress in words or phrases, there is intonation in spelling and numbers. Americans seem to spell things out much more than other people. In any bureaucratic situation, you'll be asked to spell names and give all kinds of numbers——your phone number, your birth date, and so on. There is a distinct stress and rhythm pattern to both spelling and numbers——usually in groups of three or four letters or numbers, with the stress falling in the last member of the group. Acronyms（phrases that are represented by the first letter of each word） and initials ate usually stressed on the last letter. Just listen to the words as I say them, then repeat the spelling after me.
IBM
MIT
Ph.D.
MBA
LA
IQ
RSVP
TV
USA
ASAP
CIA
FBI
USMC
COD
SOS
X, Y, Z
Box : B O X
Cook: C O O K
Wilson: W I L S O N
Area code: 213
Zip code: 94708
Date : 9/6/62
Phone number: 555-9132
Just as there is stress in words or phrases, there is intonation in spelling and numbers. Americans seem to spell things out much more than other people. In any bureaucratic situation, you'll be asked to spell names and give all kinds of numbers——your phone number, your birth date, and so on. There is a distinct stress and rhythm pattern to both spelling and numbers——usually in groups of three or four letters or numbers, with the stress falling in the last member of the group. Acronyms（phrases that are represented by the first letter of each word） and initials ate usually stressed on the last letter. Just listen to the words as I say them, then repeat the spelling after me.
IBM
MIT
Ph.D.
MBA
LA
IQ
RSVP
TV
USA
ASAP
CIA
FBI
USMC
COD
SOS
X, Y, Z
Box : B O X
Cook: C O O K
Wilson: W I L S O N
Area code: 213
Zip code: 94708
Date : 9/6/62
Phone number: 555-9132