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Computer Literacy in Modern Society




I

The introduction of computers is said to follow that pat­tern. Slowly but surely, however, computers have crept into our life. The microcomputer is now widely accepted as a very efficient device for performing many types of operation, such as the display of business and other information from a data base. It is used for performing computations of va­rying types at high speed including professional, scientific, engineering and accounting calculations. It is employed for mathematical calculations for the classroom as well as for word processing in typing and secretarial departments.In business the computer is known to be a means in­creasing administrative efficiency, payroll processing, sales, etc.

Therefore the pressure on those who still are unfamiliar with computers and their use is ever greater. So almost everyone will need to become familiar with data processing and computing, particularly microcomputing, to a greater or lesser extent. No matter whether we need it in the home, office, school, college or factory, it will be almost as common­place to use a computer as it is to drive a car.

Computers today are said to become more and more user friendly. That is they are becoming much easier to use and understand. To use a computer in the past, one had to learn computer languages such as FORTRAN (FORmula TRANslation) or COBOL (COmmon Business-Oriented Lan­guage). The learning process was slow, errors were plentiful, and the whole process was difficult for many students.

Today's computers are much easier to use. Focus in many schools is shifting away from programming computers to using them performing different types of operation.

Due to computer application, a lot of new jobs have ap­peared. Some of the careers in computers will involve systems analysts. Systems ana­lysts have the challenging job of analyzing the many functions of the firm and designing a computer system to per­form those functions more efficiently. First the systems analysts study how the job is now being performed. They must learn what information must be collected and processed, what output is needed, what computer capacity is needed, and the costs involved. Systems analysts must explain the system to the various computer users and tell the programmers what the system needs to do.

II

The greatest increase in computer jobs in the future may be for computer service technicians. During the last decades, companies were busy installing computers. Someone has to maintain and fix those computers. This is a great op­portunity for someone to start his or her own service busi­ness.

Thanks to computers and the information revolution lots of professions have appeared, someone, for example, must teach people how to use computers. There are computer consultants who advise firms which computer to buy. Computer librarians keep track of all the tapes, disks, and other data storage devices. A data processing manager supervises the data processing center. Computer security specialists try to prevent computer crime. Technical wri­ters write the manuals that tell how to use the computer. Naturally, there are also computer engineers who design computers and manufacturers that produce computers.There is a device that allows people to stay at home and work with a computer at work. It is called a modem. A modem converts data into a form that can be sent over phone lines so that one computer can «talk» to another.

Another major revolution is occurring in the use of com­puters to run machines, including robots, i. e. the use of computer-driven machines to do work formerly done by hu­mans. Robot technology has improved dramatically in the last few years. Today, intelligent robots are being used for different purposes. Some robots can see and read using cameras. One robot, for example, detects irregularities in welded seams and cor­rects any mistakes. Another robot reads identifying numbers in nuclear fuel rods. The newest robots can feel the difference between an egg and a piece of steel and handle each of them accordingly. Some robots even respond to voice commands. Computers linked with robots can perform dirty, difficult, repetitive tasks faster, cheaper, and better than people.

 4.  Answer the following questions.

1.How do people of the older generation accept the new technologies?

2. What technology is very efficient in processing various kinds of information?

3. With what must everyone become familiar and why?

4. What was it necessary to know to be able to use computer in the past and what is it necessary to know nowadays?

5. What new careers have evolved because of computers and information revolution?

6. How are robots connected with the computer?

7. What operations can modern intelligent robots perform ?

 

Exercises

1.  State to what parts of speech do the following words belong to :

Consultant, dramatically, career, managerial, procedure, introduction, company, business, efficient, technology, disruptive, opportunity, particularly, acquaintance.

 2.   Determine which of the following words and expressions are terms :

Repetitive task, robots, manufacturer, computer capacity, new system, technicians, microcomputing, new procedure, programmers, system analysts, accounting calculations, learning process, programming computer, design, processing centre, high-tech equipment, data storage device, computer trainers, welded seams, cameras, modem.

 3.  Match adjectives of column A and the nouns of column B to make terminological phrases or word combinations.

A

B

1. technological a) robot
2. managerial b) generation
3. repetitive c) job   
4. high-tech d) equipment
5. alder e) efficiency
6. administrative f) revolution
7. enjoyable g) task
8. challenging h) function
9. various i) decision
10. great j) programs
11. intelligent k) opportunity

 

 4.  . Find in the text English equivalents to the following Ukrainian words:

Відбуватись, відхилення від норми, обробка даних, цікава робота, більшою чи меньшою мірою, дружелюбний щодо користувача, розумні роботи, вміння, отже, технік з обслуговування комп´терів, пристрій збереження даних, стежити за, комп´ютери проникли в наше життя, виконувати обчислення різних типів, набагато простіше у використанні,прийняття рішення з питань управління ,високотехонлогічне обладнання, без кінця повторюване завдання, модем, запобігти злочину, пов´язана з комп´ютеризацією,

Віпдовідно вправлятися з чим-то, машинні, працюючі за допомогою комп´ютера, познайомитись з деякими термінами, стали майже звичайним явищем, переключатися.

 

5.   Agree or disagree with the statements given below. The following phrases may be helpful:

    That’s right, exactly, absolutely, I fully agree, With you , that’s wrong , quite the contrary , I don’t think so .

1.New changing technology tends to enforce computing systems not only on young people but on the elder generation as well.

2. Computers today have not become user friendly .

3. Focus in schools is shifting only to programming computers.

4. The microcomputer is now widely accepted as a very efficient device.

5. There is no opportunity for someone to start his own service business.

6. Intelligent robots have not been used yet.

7. Computer security specialists try to prevent computer crime .

8. There are no such robots which could detect irregularities welded scams and could correct any mistakes.

9.Almost everyone needs to become familiar with data processing and computing to a greater or less extent.

 

 6.  Write the definitions of the following terms:

Modem, computer service technicians, system analysts, Fortran, microcomputer, intelligent robot , computer security specialist , data storage device, computer engineers.

 

 7. Give full wording of the following abbreviations, which of these languages are most widely used and which are obsolete?

PASCAL, LISP, APL, C++ BASIC, ALGOL, FORTRAN, LOGO, PROLOG, COBOL, Ada, Java, Assembler.

 

 8.   Transform the following sentences from Passive voice into Active and translate them:

 1. Existence of electromagnetic waves in space was predicted by Maxwell.

2. This simple experiment will be shown at the lecture.

3. First the systems analysts study how the job is now being performed.

4. The results can be checked at once and corrections made easily at no extra cost.

5. The microcomputer has widely been accepted as a very efficient device for performing many types of operation.

6. Systems analysts have been told how the job is now being performed.

7. A great progress of science and technology will have been made by the end of this year.

8.The origin of musical sounds has been studied by ancient Greek philosopher Pythagoras as early as the 6th century BC.

 9. Although acoustics was long neglected by professional historians, this unhappy situation today has been rectified.         

 

 9.  Translate the following sentences:

1.A wide introduction of robots cause unemployment. 

2. The Sun is known to represent a mass of condensed gases and vapours.

3. Certain properties of matter are considered to be always the same under definite conditions.

4. He is certain to become a great expert in computer technologies.

5. English is sure to be a language of international communications.  

6.A light object on the top of radio-set can be seen to tremble when the volume control is turned too far.

7. The computers to be installed in our shop are likely to be put into operation next week.

8. Newton is known to have formulated the laws of motions.

9. The melting point of ice proved to be lowered by the application of pressure.

10. This meter was reported to be tested under very severe conditions.

11.The present microprocessors appear to vary in their detailed architecture depending on their manufacture and in some cases on the particular semiconductor technology adopted.

12.The strength of this beam proves to be great .

13. The most recent mainframe computers are assumed to become available in the mid-1980’s.

14. The tiny and versatile computing devices turned out to control complex operations from the control and monitoring operations to playing chess.

15. This important information was thought to have been published recently in this journal.

 

 10.   Translate the following.       

1.Відомо що транзистори використовуються для створення компактних малогабаритних електроних приладів,котрі споживають мало енергії.

2. Здається, що введння нових технологій буде руйнівним.

3. Ми знаємо, що наукові та  технічні відкриття корисні, якщо вони покращують благополуччя людей.

4. Він змусив мене виступити на цій конференції.

5.Ми чули,що він гарний спеціаліст в своїй галузі.

 11.  Write a summary to the text and discuss it.



Unit 5

PERSONAL COMPUTERS

Lead-in

· What kind of computer is the most suitable for you? Why?

· What health problems can computer users experience?

· What can you do to prevent the harmful influence when working at the computer?

 1.  Practise pronunciation of the following words and underline the stressed syllable. Translate the words into Ukrainian.

Compatitive, companies, survive, components, storage, expensive, suppose, introduce, popularity, technology, exist, society, manufacturer, floppy, media activities, financially, metering, quite, array, onslaught, leisure, capabilities, injection, feasible, inscribe, proliferation.

 2.  Memorize the following words and word combinations

1. to inscribe – вносити, впроваджувати
2. to proliferate – розповсюджуватися, збільшуватися
3. stand-alone computer – автономний комп’ютер
4. to facilitate – полегшувати, сприяти
5. competitive operating system – конкуруюча операційна система
6. IBM (international Business Machine) – фірма з виробництва комп‘ютерів
7. to enter the fray – вплутатися у бійку
8. computer of choice – кращий комп’ютер
9. to survive onslaught – витримувати конкуренцію
10. online storage – неавтономне зберігання даних в ЗП
11.  offline storage – автономне зберігання даних окремо від компьютера
12. input, output storage – носій для вхідних та вихідних даних
13. general purpose – універсальний
14. to plug in – підключати, під’єднувати
15. floppy disk – гнучкий диск
16. to fall by the wayside – залишитися у стороні
17.  array – множина, масив
18. word processor – система підготовки текстів
19. technical background – технічна підготовка, освіта

 3. Read the text about personal computers. Name its main components.

PERSONAL COMPUTERS

There has been talk of a “computer revolution” ever since the electronic industry learned in the late 1950s to inscribe miniature circuits on a chip of silicon. What has been witnessed so far has been a steady, remarkably speedy revolution. With the proliferation of a personal computer, however, the way, indeed, be opened for a true revolution in how business is conducted, in how people organize their personal affairs, even in how people think.

Personal computers are supposed to appear in the late 1970s. one of the first and most popular personal computer was Apple II, introduced in 1977 by Apple Computer. During late 1970s and early 1980s, new models and competitive operating systems seemed to appear daily. Then, in 1981, IBM entered the fray with its first personal computer called IBM PC. The IBM PC quickly became the personal computer of choice, and most other personal computer manufacturers fell by the way-side. One of the few companies to survive IBM’s onslaught was Apple Computer, which is sure to remain a major player in the personal computer marketplace. In less than a decade the microcomputer has been transformed from calculator and hobbyist’s toy into a personal computer for almost everyone. It is the popularity of personal computer (PC) that has made society aware of the computer’s tremendous potential. The PC brought computer technology down to the individual level.

It can serve as a workstation for the individual today. Moreover, as it has become financially feasible to provide a computer for individual worker, so also technical developers have made the interface between man and machine increasingly “friendly”, so that a wide array of computer functions are now accessible to people with no technical background.

A personal computer is a small computer based on a microprocessor; it is a microcomputer. Not all computers however are personal computers. A microcomputer can be dedicated to a single task such as controlling a machine tool or metering the injection of fuel into an automobile engine; it can be a word processor, a video game or a “pocket computer” that is not quite a computer. A personal computer is something different: a stand-alone computer that puts a wide array of capabilities at the disposal of an individual.

So what is a personal computer? It is defined as a system that has all the following characteristics:

- First, a personal computer being microprocessor-based, its central processing unit, called a microprocessor unit is concentrated on a single silicon chip.

- Second, a PC has a memory and word size that are smaller than those of minicomputers and large computers. Typical word sizes are 8 or 16 bits, and main memories range in size from 16K to 512K.

- Third, a personal computer uses smaller, less expensive and less powerful input, output and storage components than do large computer systems. So the price should be as low as possible.

A PC employs floppy disks as principal online and offline storage devices and also as input and output media. The operating system facilitates an interactive dialogue: the computer responds immediately to the user’s actions and requests. The system is flexible enough to accommodate a wide range of programs serving varied applications, it is not designed for a single purpose. So a PC is a general-purpose, stand-alone system that can begin to work when plugged in and be moved from place to place. The range of application of the PCs is wide: business, home, science and education. Regardless of the purpose for which it is used, either for leisure activities in the home or for business applications in the office, we can consider it to be a personal computer.

Probably the most distinguishing feature of a personal computer is that is used by individual, usually in an interactive mode.

 

 4.  Answer the following questions.

1. When did the first personal computer appear?

2. What was one of the first PC models?

3. What is a personal computer?

4. What are the main characteristics of PC?

5. What does the term “microprocessor-based” mean?

6. What is the typical word size of a PC?

7. How is input carried out in personal computers?

8. What principle storage devices do PC use?

9. Can all microcomputers be personal computers?

10. What differs from microcomputers and from large computer systems?

 

Exercises

 1. Answer the following questions, using information from the text

 2.  Find in the text English equivalents to the following Ukrainian word combinations; learn them by heart.

Конкуруюча операційна система; з’являються щоденно; вплутатися в бійку; кращий комп’ютер; використовувати гнучкі диски; незалежно від мети; низько швидкісний принтер з по символьним друком; головний постачальник на комп’ютерному ринку; залишитися у стороні; дозвілля; інтерактивний режим; витримувати конкуренцію; вивести на екран; розмір слова; іграшка на любителя; за допомогою; суцільна мікросхема з кремнію; компоненти меншої потужності; відмінна риса; універсальний; пристрої (не)автономного зберігання даних; технічна підготовка; доступний; можливий з фінансової точки зору.

 3. Give synonyms to the following words

To distinguish, to introduce, speed, memory, daily, principal, application, floppy, purpose, major, to provide, accessible, background, a wide array of, capability, increasingly, developments.

 4. From the following choose the words which are nearly the same in meaning.

To name, to complete, to calculate, to develop, to keep, to interprete, to communicate, to fulfill, to apply, to translate, to improve, to build, to call, to store, to figure out, to perform, to use, to finish, to construct, to connect.

 5. Translate the following words paying attention to the negative meaning of prefixes: dis, in, un, non, ir.

dis – disadvantage, disconnect, disappear, disclose, discontinue, disintegrate, discriminate, discharge, discolour, discourage, discover, discredit.

in – invisible, inaccurate, inactive, incapable, insignificant, ineffective, indifferent, indecisive, incorrect, inconsiderable, inconsistent.

un – uncomfortable, unbelievable, uncharged, uncommunicative, unexpected, unfavourable, unkind, unforgettable

non – non-effective, noncomparable, noncontrollable, nonconstant, nondigital, nonprogrammable, nonusable.

ir – irregular, irrelative, irrelevant, irresponsible, irrecognizable, irrational.

 6. Translate the following sentences paying attention to such conjunctions as: both … and, as well as, not only, …but also, either … or, neither… nor.

1. These devices can perform both input and output functions. 2. Data are recorded on magnetic discs and the tapes either by outputting the data from primary storage or by using a data recorder. 3. Neither the programmer nor the analyst could explain the cause of the computer errors. 4. Data as well as instructions must flow into and out of a primary storage. 5. This grammar exercise is not only to long but also very difficult. 6. Character printers are used with all microcomputers as well as on computers of all sizes. 7. The CPU functional units can be in one of two states either “on” or “off”. 8. PCs memory as well as its word size must be smaller than those of minicomputers. 9. Personal computers can be used both for leisure activities in the home and for business applications in the office.

 7. Translate the following impersonal sentences, paying attention to their specificities

1. It is well known that personal computers enjoy great popularity among experimenters and hobbyists. 2. It took years to produce a high-speed computer performing a lot of functions. 3. When making up the summary of the article, one should put down the exact title of the article, the author’s name and date of the edition. 4. Concerning these substances one must say that they vary in their composition. 5. When working with these substances one should be very careful. 6. It was once a universal practice to manufacture each of the components separately and then assemble the complete device by wiring (монтаж) the components together with metallic conductors. 7. It should first be made clear what the term “microelectronics” means.

 

 8. Translate the following sentences, paying attention to the words and word-combinations: so that, whether, since, till, until, whatever, whenever, in order to, regardless of.

1. The operation part of the instruction is decoded so that the proper arithmetic and logic operation can be performed. 2. It is difficult to establish whether this problem can be solved at all. 3. Programs and data on which the control unit and the arithmetic-logical unit operate must be in internal memory in order to be processed. 4. Whatever we may think of him, there is no doubting his courage. 5. Regardless of the nature of the I/O devices, I/O interfaces are required to convert the input data to the internal codes used by the computer and to convert internal codes to a format which is usable by output devices. 6. The purpose of registers in the ALU is to hold the numbers and results of the calculation until they can be transferred to the memory. 7. Since the computer deals with pulses, the input device is a way of converting numbers written on paper into pulses and sending them to the storage. 8. Come to us whenever you find time. 9. Since scientists had succeeded in developing special films which protect the transistor crystal from other influences a new family of miniaturize instruments appeared. 10. He can’t take part in this conference till he has finished his experiments. 11. Since many elements of the computer during distributed processing can be working on different portions of the same task, the work may be done faster. 12. If one element in the network malfunctions, its workload can be shifted to another element or shared among several elements, so that the entire work is relatively immune to failure. 13. Very often years pass until experiments give the expected results. 14. It was not until after the Second World War that any major advances were made in electronics.

 

 9.  Look through the text again and find the sentences with the infinitive translate them and define the form and function of the infinitive.

 

 10. Read the sentences; find Verbals in them and define what they are; translate the sentences.

1. Keyboard enables inputting numerical and text data. 2. Being supplied with a special appliance a television set may have a remote control. 3. The problem to be solved is of great importance to the development of this branch of industry. 4. The necessary data having been obtained, we could continue our experiment. 5. The control unit operates by reading one instruction at a time. 6. These data appeared to have been investigated long ago. 7. He ordered these devices to be repaired as soon as possible. 8. The first amplifying semiconductor device’s having been developed in the USA is well established fact. 9. Computer system architecture is organized around the primary storage unit, all instructions passing through it. 10. An American clerk invented a means of coding the data by punching holes into cards. 11. We were told about the modem’s helping one computer to communicate with other computers thus allowing the individual to access information from all over the world. 12. Accelerating elementary particles can be achieved by high potential. 13. Many scientists of our University continue carrying on serious investigations in the field of electronics. 14. Due to modem computer information can be taken and changed into a signal that can be sent over telephone lines.

 










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