Наука и технология (Science and Technology): Методические рекомендации по английскому языку для студентов неязыковых специальностей

I. S. RADCHENKO

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Министерство науки Российской Федерации Федеральное агентство по образованию Орский гуманитарно-технологический институт (филиал) государственного образовательного учреждения высшего профессионального образования «Оренбургский государственный университет»

И. С. РАДЧЕНКО

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Методические рекомендации

Орск 2008

1

Радченко И.С. Наука и технология Данные методические рекомендации

предназначены для

студентов, изучающих английский язык. Издание способствует расширению словарного запаса студентов по теме «Наука и Технология», развитию навыков устной речи, чтения и перевода научно-технической литературы. Освоение студентами фонетики, грамматики, синтаксиса, словообразования, сочетаемости слов происходит в процессе работы над связанными, законченными в смысловом отношении произведениями речи. В методические рекомендации включены оригинальные неадаптированные тексты, которые были сокращены лишь в той мере, в которой это представлялось

необходимым

по

соображениям

учебно-

методического характера и тест для осуществления самоконтроля сформированности лексико-грамматических навыков. Методические

рекомендации

составлены

с

учетом

теоретических положений и практических результатов

научно-

педагогического исследования автора.

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CONTENTS INTRODUCTION TO THE UNITS………………………………………...

4

UNIT 1 INVENTORS AND THEIR INVENTIONS ……………….

5

UNIT 2 TECHNOLOGY IN OUR LIVES…………………………….

12

UNIT 3 MACHINES BEHAVING BADLY….……………………….. 22 TEST …………………………………………………………………….

34

ADDITIONAL TEXTS FOR READING …………………………….

38

BIBLIOGRATHY ………..…………………………………………………….

48

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INTRODUCTION TO THE UNITS Science and technology are the spheres of knowledge which are of current interest to society. The electronic age has changed our lives as communicating human beings. New methods of sending and receiving information enable one to communicate with a bank or supermarket, interrogate a library catalogue or encyclopedia database. With the development of electronic systems of communication, new restricted language varieties have emerged. It seems likely that this trend will continue. The

aim

of

the

course

is

to

enlarge

students’

hi-tech

vocabulary; to practice talking about inventors and their inventions, to consider good and bad effects of technology. This course provides students with a critical understanding of how the things might be different in the future and how those differences will affect the way we might live. «Science and Technology » is a supplementary study material for learning some aspects of these areas in addition to traditional textbook materials. Under the title «Science and Technology» you will find interesting study material: original texts, useful exercises, a test for controlling students’ knowledge and skills. This study material can be used by students at all levels.

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UNIT 1. INVENTORS AND THEIR INVENTIONS

OBJECTIVE : to practice the active and passive verb forms; to practice talking about inventors and their inventions Ex.1. Read after the teacher. - perfect, chemist, aristocrat; - barrel, began, fantasy; - create, great; - production, run, combustion, success, industry, rubber; - bullet, enthusiast, solution; - ghost, most; - textile, reliable, design, financial, crisis; - pistol, engine, diesel. Ex.2. Form the derivatives and translate them. Основа глагола + -er /-or = существительное со значением лица, производящего действие, орудия действия. e.g. to work – worker (рабочий) 1. to invent – 2. to develop – 3. to design – 4. to use – 5. to paint – 6. to create – 7. to produce – 8. to drive – 9. to make – 5

Ex.3. Read and translate the text. Inventors and their inventions Samuel Colt was an American. He lived in the 19 t h century. In 1836 he designed and patented a pistol. It was a pistol with a revolving barrel that could fire six bullets one after another. It was the first pistol of its kind. Later there came many other pistols with six bullets. Rudolf Diesel was a German engineer. He was born in 1858 and died in 1913. In 1897 he invented a new internal combustion engine. This engine is known as a diesel. And it began a transport revolution in cars, lorries, trains and ships. Samuel Finley Morse was born in 1791. He died in 1872. he was a portrait painter. Then he became an inventor. For twelve years he tried to perfect the telegraph and he was a success. Later he invented the telegraphic dot-and-dash alphabet. Now it is known as Morse code. Morse code was not only one in America of that time. There were some others. But now we use Morse code all over the world. Charles Makintosh lived from 1766 to 1843. He lived in Scotland and was a chemist by profession. He worked in a textile industry. In 1823 he developed a rubber solution. This rubber solution was used for raincoat production. Raincoats with this rubber solution didn’t allow water to penetrate. These raincoats were called makintoshes. Now people all over the world use them in spring and in autumn. Charles Rolls was born in 1881 in Great Britain. He died in 1910. He was an aristocrat and businessman. He was especially interested in cars. Once he met another enthusiast of cars Henry Royce. Henry Royce was a famous car engineer. They decided to design the most comfortable and reliable car. At the beginning of the 20 t h century it seemed to be a fantasy. But they worked hard and at last in 1907 they 6

created the famous Rolls-Royce car. It was so comfortable and reliable that one of the models of Rolls-Royce cars «Silver Ghost» hadn’t changed greatly for 20 years since 1907. Gottlieb Daimler and Charles Benz were two inventors. They lived in Germany. They were both interested in car production. At the end of the 19 t h century each of them designed a car. At the same time they organized two independent firms to produce them. All the cars produced by the firm of Daimler were called «Mercedes». Mercedes was a daughter’s name of one of the stockholders of the firm. This man saved the firm of Daimler from financial crisis at the beginning of the 20 t h century. But after the World War I the firm of Daimler met with financial difficulties again. Ex.4. Find the words with similar meanings to these words. 1. to enable – 2. to invent – 3. to improve – 4. to start – 5. to name – 6. to design – 7. the benefit – 8. an occupation –

LEARN THESE SPEECH PATERNS 1. In 1823 he developed a rubber solution. This rubber solution was used for raincoat production. В

1823

он

разработал

резиновый

раствор.

Этот

резиновый раствор использовался для пошива плащей.

7

We use an active verb to say what the subject did. We use a passive verb to say what happened to the subject. Past simple active: cleaned, developed, saw etc. passive: was/were cleaned, developed, seen etc.

Ex.5. Read and translate these sentences. 1. Everyone agreed that the plan should go ahead. 2. They offered Nancy a pay increase. 3. All our money and passports were stolen. 4. The roof of the building was damaged in a storm a few days ago. 5. You were invited to the wedding. Why did not you go? 6. People advised us not to go out alone. 7. They accused me of stealing money. 8. All flights were cancelled because of fog. Ex.6. Put the verb into the correct form, past simple, active or passive. 1. The letter……… (post) a week ago and it ……….(arrive) yesterday. 2. Ron’s parents……… (die) when he was very young. He and his sister ………. (bring) up by their grandparents. 3. Why ……… (Sue/resign) from her job? Didn’t she enjoy it? 4. Where ……… (these photographs/take)? In London?

…………

(you/ take) them? 5. While I was on holiday, my camera…………

(disappear) from

my hotel room.

8

6. While I was on holiday, my camera………… (steal) from my hotel room. Ex.7. Give a brief summary of the text. Complete the table. Name 1.Samuel Colt

Country America

Invention

Advantage

A pistol with a It could fire six bullets revolving barrel one after another

2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Ex.8. Read the text and answer the questions below. How to Be a Successful Inventor Well, you need good timing for a start. You can have a great idea which the public simply does not want…yet. Take the Italian priest, Giovanni Caselli, who invented the first fax machine using an enormous pendulum in the 1860s. despite the excellent quality of the reproductions, his invention quickly died a commercial death. It was not until the 1980s that the fax became an essential piece of equipment in every office… too late for Signor Caselli.

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Money also helps. The Frenchman Denis Papin (1647-1712) had the idea for a steam engine almost a hundred years before the betterremembered Scotsman James Watt was even born… but he never had enough money to build one. You also need to be patient (it took scientists nearly eighty years to develop a light bulb which actually worked)… but not too patient. In the 1870s, Elisha Gray, a professional inventor from Chicago, developed plans for a telephone. Gray saw it as no more than «a beautiful toy», however. When he finally sent details of his invention to the Patent Office on February 14 t h 1876, it was too late; almost identical designs had arrived just two hours earlier… and the young man who sent them, Alexander Graham Bell, will always be remembered as the inventor of the telephone. Of course what you really need is a great idea – but if you have not got one, a walk in the country and a careful look at nature can help. The Swiss scientist, George de Mestral, had the idea for Velcro when he found his clothes covered in the sticky seed pods after a walk in the country. During a similar walk in the French countryside some 250 years earlier, Rene-Antoine Ferchault de Reaumur had the idea that paper could be made from wood when he found an abandoned wasps’ nest. You also need good commercial sense. Willy Higinbotham was a scientist

doing

nuclear

research

in

the

Brookhaven

National

Laboratoty in Upton, USA. In 1958 the public were invited to the Laboratory to see their work; but both parents and children were less interested in the complicated equipment and diagrams than in a tiny 120cm. screen with a white dot which could be hit back and forth over a «net» using a button and a knob. Soon hundreds of people were ignoring the other exhibits to play the first ever computer game – made from a simple laboratory instrument called an «oscilloscope». 10

Higinbotham, however never made a cent from his invention: he thought people were only interested in the game because the other exhibits were so boring! (From «Cutting Edge» by S. Cunningham, Longman, 1998)

1. Did Caselli’s «fax machine» actually work? 2. Who designed the first steam engine? 3. Who built the first steam engine? 4. Why does the story of the light bulb show that inventors need to be patient? 5. Who invented the first telephone? 6. What did the inventors of Velcro and of paper have in common? 7. What was the purpose of the exhibition at the National Laboratory at Upton in 1958? 8. Did Professor Higinbotham understand the potential of his «computer game»? 9. Which information in the article did you already know? 10.

Which information most surprised you?

Ex.9. Speak on the following: 1. If you could invent a new technological device, what would it be? Why would it be useful? 2. What will the library of the future be like? 3. How will family life be different one hundred years from now? 4. What will your chosen career be like one hundred years from now? Will it still exist?

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UNIT 2. TECHNOLOGY IN OUR LIVES

OBJECTIVE : to introduce and practice hi-tech vocabulary; to practice talking about good effects of technology. Ex.1. Read these international words. Pay your attention to the stress. - technology, aspect, telephone, scanner, code, product, bank, transaction, document, information, camera, number, credit, operator, contact, machine, company, register; -

modern,

personal,

technological,

medical,

computerized,

automated; -

to diagnose, to deposit, to analyze, to monitor.

Ex.2. Form the derivatives and translate them. Основа существительного + -al = прилагательное 1. technology – technological (технологический) 2. medicine – 3. mechanic – 4. person – 5. technics – 6. physics – 7. digit – 8. structure – 9. nature – 10. electronics –

12

Ex.3. Read and translate these noun combinations. Products information,

packaging, bank

credit

transactions,

card e-mail

numbers,

bank

messages,

account

heat

(air)

conditioning, automated supermarket checkout lines. Ex.4. Read and translate the text. Technology in our lives Technology plays a role in all aspects of our lives – the way we work, the way we live at home. The speed of technological change in the past 100 years has been incredible. The early telephones were large, and they did not even have dials or buttons. You picked up a receiver and talked to an operator who made a call for you. Nowadays, cellular telephones fit in our pockets, and we can use them to make phone calls from anywhere to anywhere. In grocery stores, cashiers used to punch keys on cash registers to enter the price of each item. These days, scanners read bar codes on products packaging, and the prices are recorded by computerized cash register. In the past we made a trip to the bank to deposit or withdraw money. Now we can use ATMs (automated teller machines). And many people do their bank transactions at home on line. Modern technology has dramatically improved our lives. Personal computers enable us to create documents, store information, and analyze data – at work or at home. The Internet allows us to send and receive e-mail messages, connects us to the World Wide Web, and allows us to go shopping online from our homes. Miniature cameras that patients can swallow permit doctors to diagnose medical conditions without surgery. «Smart homes» operated by computers 13

turn lights on and off as people enter or leave the rooms and enable the homeowners to «call their houses» to turn on the heat or air conditioning. Many people feel, however, that technology has its price. With automated supermarket checkout lines, ATMs and online banking, and Internet shopping, we can meet our daily needs without having contact with other people. Life with technology can be very lonely! Also, many people are concerned about privacy. Technology makes it possible for companies or the government to monitor our use of the Internet. Our credit card numbers, bank account information, medical information, and other personal data are all stored on computers. Protecting that information will be an important issue in the years ahead. Bliss. (From «Side by Side», by Steven J. Molinsky, Bill)

Ex.5. Think about technological changes in our lives. Complete the following table. Item 1. to

make

In the past

Nowadays

telephone

calls 2. to enter the price of products 3. to

do

bank

transactions 4. to create documents 5. to get information 6. to diagnose medical 14

conditions 7. to connect people 8. to go shopping

LEARN THIS SPEECH PATERN 1. In grocery stores, cashiers used to punch keys on cash registers to enter the price of each item. В бакалейных магазинах кассиры раньше нажимали на клавиши кассовых аппаратов, для того чтобы ввести цену товара. Used + to-infinitive means that something happened regularly or went on for a time in the past. We normally use didn’t use to in negatives and did ….use to in questions.

Ex.6. Read and translate these sentences according to the model. 1. We used to play that game when we were young. 2. Where

did

people

use

to

buy

their

food

before

the

supermarket was built? 3. I used to think he was unfriendly but now I realise he is a very nice person. 4. There used to be a dancehall here, but they knocked it down. 5. Did you use to live in London? 6. This building is now a furniture shop. It used to be a cinema. 7. We did not use to have computers. 15

Ex.7. Complete these sentences with use(d) to + a suitable verb. 1. Dennis gave up smoking two years ago. He ……….40 cigarettes a day. 2. I rarely eat ice cream now but I ……….it when I was a child. 3. There ………a hotel opposite the station but it closed a long time ago. 4. It only takes me about 40 minutes to get to work since the new road was opened. It ………more than an hour. 5. When you lived in London,………to the theatre very often? 6. We came to live in Manchester a few years ago. We ……….in Nottingham. Ex.8. Read what J. B. Morgan, the Chief executive of IBM UK wrote about the digital revolution. Which of these do you think he called technologies and which did he call services? Write them in the appropriate column. That we are in the midst of a new revolution must be obvious to everyone. There is a revolution in the technologies: ……………..There is a revolution in the services being offered: ……………In many ways the communications revolution has only just begun. (J. B. Morgan the Chief executive, of IBM United Kingdom)

Technologies

Services

16

Ex.9. Use these words to complete the sentences. Use each item once only. database

computer networks

made redundant

life expectancy

mass-produced

locate resources

monitor

under development

genetic engineering

come to terms with

repetitive tasks

labour-saving devices

safety features

major breakthrough

strict safeguards

taken for granted

1. As more and more of us are linked by ………, how soon will it be before the paperless office becomes a reality. 2. This new technique is a ………in the treatment of cancer. 3. The dish-washer and other ………have helped to relieve the boredom of domestic chores. 4. Satellite technology can help to ………for extraction from the earth. 5. The Model T Ford was the first ………car in the world. 6. It is difficult for some people to ………the speed of change in the modern world. 7. The police have access to a vast ………which helps them in their fight against crime. 17

8. We need ………to prevent all the information stored on computers from being misused. 9. Many ………which people found boring and tiring can now be carried out by machines. 10. Many employees have been ………as a result of the introduction of new technology. 11. Nuclear power stations have computer-controlled systems to ………their reactors and prevent accidents. 12. This car comes with such ………as a collapsible steering column and a driver’s airbag. 13. A power station capable of producing electricity from waves is currently ………. 14. With the advances in ………we may be able to create a race of «perfect» human beings one day, or is that just science fiction. 15. The increase in ………has lead to problem such as how to pay for the care of the elderly. 16. Many technological development which have greatly affected the way we live are nowadays ………by the younger generation. Ex.10. Give English equivalents to the Russian ones. 1. офис, в котором отсутствует бумага 2. стать реальностью 3. спутниковая технология 4. иметь доступ к обширной базе данных 5. машина массового производства 6. смириться с чем-либо 7. бытовая техника 8. скорость изменений в современном мире 9. результат внедрения новой технологии 18

10. системы компьютерного контроля 11. отслеживать работу реакторов 12. предотвращать аварии 13. продолжительность жизни 14. забота о пожилых людях 15. считать само собой разумеющимся 16. разработки в области технологии Ex.11. Answer the questions. 1. Why does the paperless office become a reality soon? 2. What was the first mass-produced car? 3. Why do many nuclear power stations have computer-controlled system? 4. What makes a car safe and reliable? 5. What can help the police in their fight against crime? 6. What problems can arise with the increase in life expectancy? 7. What

technological

developments

are

nowadays

taken

for

granted? 8. How can we prevent the information stored on computers from being misused? 9. What can the introduction of new technology result in? Ex.12. Complete the situations. 1. How have science and technology changed our lives? Think about discoveries, inventions, new products and their effects.

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Scientific benefits.

and You

technological only

have

to

breakthroughs

have

look

your

around

brought own

great

home

to

see…………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… Many

illnesses

can

now

be

treated

or

cured,

for

example,……………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… New products have also made a major difference to our working lives. Nowadays, …………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… 2. How will science and technology affect our lives in the future? In the future there may be even more major breakthroughs in the fields of medicine (leisure, work)………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… We may no longer have to………………………………………………….. ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… We will be able to ………………………………………………………….. ……………………………………………………………………………….. ……………………………………………………………………………….. Ex.13. Speak on the role of technology in our lives.

20

Ex.14. Discuss these ideas in small groups. 1. If a doctor from the middle of the nineteenth century walked into a modern hospital, how many pieces of equipment would he or she recognise? Most of the equipment? Some of it? Or almost none at all? Explain. 2. If a teacher from the middle of the nineteenth century walked into a modern classroom, how different would the technology be? Look round your own classroom and find things that he or she would find difficult to use. 3. If a teacher or a doctor of today went forward just ten years in time, how much more different do you think their jobs would be? 4. Make your predictions for each of the following forms of domestic technology. Predict the ways in which you think each of them are going to change in the future: television, cooker, telephone, radio.

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UNIT 3. MACHINES BEHAVING BADLY

OBJECTIVE : to consider the bad effects of technology; to practice talking about bad effects of technology. Ex.1. Pronouns these words after the teacher - technophobe, technology, technical - manufacture, feature - instruction, frustrating, much, customer, run - software, hardware, care, spare, stare - sale, hate, make, save, take, late - proudly, out, round, about - mobile, life, minor, surprise, like - learn, perfect, person - answer, thumb, hour, whole, what Ex.2. Form the derivatives and translate them. Основа прилагательного + - ly = наречие 1. actual – actually (фактически) 2. real – 3. proud – 4. final – 5. apparent – 6. unfortunate – 7. recent – 8. entire – 9. special – 10. exact – 22

Ex.3. Read and translate these noun combinations. Computer games, text messages, call centres, instruction manuals, a home computer, a quality picture, a hardware problem, a software company, a sales department. Ex.4. Read the article written by someone who is a technophobe. Then match the headings below with the seven paragraphs. 1. It does things you don’t need 2. It doesn’t save your time 3. It was out of date before you bought it 4. It’s anti-social 5. It’s destroying the English language 6. More choice doesn’t mean better 7. No one takes responsibility when things go wrong Everyone, it seems, has a mobile these days, even children in the kindergarten. Billions of text messages fly round the world every day, and computers and call centres run every aspect of our lives. But is all this really making our life better? Here are seven good reasons to hate modern technology. A It doesn’t save your time Many people make the mistake of thinking that technology is there to save you time. Wrong. It is there to give people new ways of filling their time. Take personal computers. Learning how to use all the features of a new PC uses up all your time that having a computer saves.

And

what

about

all

the

hours

you

spend

staring

at

23

incomprehensible instruction manuals for your new phone /TV/ digital doorbells. B ……………………………………………….. Of course it’s wonderful to have a CD player, a mobile, a home computer, or an electric toaster. But do you really want to play computer games on the 4-cm screen of your mobile phone? Do you need your computer to answer the phone, or your TV to make toast? C ………………………………………………… Digital TV is a perfect example. When it arrived, we were promised a better quality picture and more choice. But at 11 o’clock at night, as you flick through the 97 channels you can now get, it is not the quality of the picture that you worry about. More the fact that not one single programme is worth watching. D………………………………………………… After several frustrating weeks of finding all the right software for your new PC, then phoning «help» desks when it doesn’t work, you will proudly show off your new machine to friends only to hear «Oh, are you still using that one? I’m thinking of buying the new PYX 5000, myself». A few months later, when you try to buy some minor spare part, you find it is no longer manufactured, and that it would be much cheaper to replace the whole computer with the new PYX 7500. E………………………………………………… This is easy, because very few people really understand how the machines they have bought work. So you phone the software company and they will tell you it’s a hardware problem. You then phone the hardware company and they tell you it’s a software problem. Call 24

centres are the worst. Phone the so-called «customer care» number, and after waiting on hold for fifteen minutes you will be told you need the sales department. The sales department assures you that it’s the technical department you need, but surprise, surprise, the technical department put you back through to customer care. People can spend weeks of their lives like this. F………………………………………………… Apparently, teenagers now do so much texting and e-mailing that their thumbs are getting bigger and bigger. Unfortunately, they are also forgetting how to spell. One schoolgirl recently wrote her entire essay on «My summer holidays» in text speak. E………………………………………………. A recent survey showed that more than eight out of ten young people would rather text their friends or family than actually speak to them in person. And according to the same survey, 25 percent of people would answer their mobile phone even during a moment of passion. I ask you, is this really a better world? (From «New Cutting Edge Intermediate» by S. Cunningham and P. Moor © Person Education Ltd)

Ex.5. Give English equivalents to the Russian ones. 1. экономить время 2. израсходовать все время 3. брать ответственность 4. ненавидеть современную технологию 5. инструкции по эксплуатации 25

6. качество изображения 7. составлять текстовые сообщения 8. поговорить с кем-либо лично 9. отдел продаж 10. ни одна из программ не стоит просмотра 11. проблема, связанная с аппаратной частью компьютера 12. компания, занимающаяся разработкой программного обеспечения для компьютеров 13. ответить на звонок мобильного телефона 14. согласно данным того же исследования

LEARN THESE SPEECH PATERNS 1. Not one single programme is worth watching. Ни одна из программ не стоит просмотра.

It is (not) worth…….. When this expression is followed by a verb, the verb ends in – ing.

Ex.6. Read and translate these sentences according to the model. 1. I live only a short walk from here, so it’s not worth taking a taxi. 2. It was so late when we got home, it wasn’t worth going to bed. 3. I don’t think newspapers are worth reading. 4. What was the film like? Was it worth seeing? 5. There is a beautiful view from that hill. It’s worth going to the top. Ex.7. Make sentences with worth – ing or not worth – ing. Chose one of these verbs: consider, keep, read, repair, see, visit. 26

1. The film is not very good. It is …………………………………… 2. It would cost too much to repair this watch. It is ……………….. 3. We can throw these old clothes away. They ……………………… 4. It is quite an interesting suggestion……………………………….. 5. There is an interesting article in the paper today. ………………. 6. If you have time, you should go to the museum. ……………….. 2. Eight out of ten young people would rather text their friends or family than actually speak to them in person. Восемь

из

десяти

молодых

людей

предпочли

бы

отправить своим друзьям текстовое сообщение, чем поговорить с ними лично. Study the differences in structures. We say: I would rather do something than do something else. I would rather do something. I would prefer to do something else. I prefer something to something else. I prefer doing something to doing something else. I prefer to do something rather than do something else.

Ex.8. Read and translate these sentences according to the model. 1. I prefer this coat to the coat you were wearing yesterday. 2. I prefer driving to traveling by train. 3. I prefer to drive rather than travel train. 4. Ann prefers to live in the country rather than live in a city. 5. I would prefer to stay at home tonight rather than go to the cinema. 27

6. I would rather stay at home tonight than go to the cinema. 7. I am tired tonight. I would rather not go out this evening. Ex.9. Write sentences using I’d prefer…… or I’d rather…..+ one of the following: eat at home, get a taxi, go alone, wait till later, listen to some music, stand, think about it for while, go for a swim, wait a few minutes. 1. Shall we walk home? – (prefer)…………………………………….. 2. Do you want to eat now? – (rather)………………………………… 3. Shall we wait TV? – (prefer)…………………………………….. 4. What about a game of tennis? – (rather)………………………… 5. Shall we leave now? – (rather)…………………………………… 6. Do you want to go to a restraint? – (prefer)……………………… 7. I think we should decide now? – (rather)………………………… 8. Would you like to sit down? – (rather)…………………………. 9. Do you want me to come with you? – (prefer)………………… Ex.10. Major revolutions in the industrial or business world also produce changes in language. Here are some examples of the way the digital is changing the English language. Fill in the gaps using the definitions underneath. Word 1. to boot

Original meaning

New meaning

to kick

2. a bug

an

error

in

a

computer

program 3. to crack

to make something split

28

4. a flame

an insulting or unfriendly email

5. a geek

an entertainer who bites the heads off live chickens

6. a pirate

a

person

who

illegally

copies software 7. to surf

1. to move around the Internet 2. a small insect 3. a person who robs ships at sea 4. a red or yellow burning gas 5. a rich successful person in the computer industry 6. to break a computer code 7. to start a computer Ex.11. Read the text and talk about the questions below. Challenger: Reflections on a Tragedy On January 28, 1986, the space shuttle Challenger shortly exploded after launch. Everyone in the crew died, including a civilian teacher, Christa McAuliffe. The launch was broadcast on national television. Millions saw the disaster live or later on the news. Malcolm McConnell writes about why the accident happened.

In the early 1960s, our leaders committed this nation to the exploration of space. In the 1980s, the space shuttle was the vehicle of this quest, and it became our phoenix. It lifted our national pride 29

from the ashes of military defeat and political strife. The shuttle was everybody’s dream of how good America could be. But after Challenger’s explosion, it became clear that our brave quest was tragically flawed. In the confused era following Vietnam and Watergate, a time of thinking small, we had tried to build humanity’s most complicated machine on the cheap. As a result, the design was flawed almost from the beginning. The solid rocket booster was built to drop into the ocean and be used again. The orbiter itself was deprived of the engines that would have allowed it to land like a regular jet plane – the intention of the original design team. Unlike the daring Apollo moon project, the space shuttle’s development was erratically funded and managed. And it was declared «fully operational» much too early, so that it could begin «paying for itself». Commercial satellite launches were planned on a regular schedule… Access to the space frontier became «routine», according to NASA press releases. Twenty-four times those 2250-ton vehicles had risen from the sand dunes of Cape Canaveral and returned safely to earth. Few of us bothered to consider the numerous near-disasters during those successful flights: engines coming close to explosion before snuffing out in flight, last-second aborts on the launch pad, computer failures in orbit. We were too impatient. Besides, we reveled in the breath-taking vision of the spacecraft rising on its fiery tail, of astronauts pirouetting through the sunlit vacuum as they retrieved and repaired stricken satellites. On January 28, NASA proceeded with Challenger’s launch despite danger signals… In retrospect, there seems little doubt that NASA was stretching its highly touted fail-safe rules in order to get on with the year’s busy schedule… 30

America needs a space program. We cannot retreat from that frontier or turn our backs on the high-technology future because of one tragic accident. But we must learn patience. We must never again blindly «press on» to meet unrealistic schedules, or succumb to public-relations pressures that override common sense. To exploit the space frontier, we must balance restraint with boldness and replace bravado

with

wisdom.

We

must

not,

however,

surrender

our

pioneering heritage. (Malcolm McConnell From Reader’s Digest)

Glossary 1.

quest – a search for an important goal

2.

phoenix – a bird in mythology that died and was reborn from

its own ashes 3.

strife – conflict, fighting

4.

flawed – containing an error or mistake

5.

booster – the large rocket used to lift the shuttle into space

6.

deprived – not allowed to have

7.

erratically – without a consistent pattern

8.

bothered – took the time or made the error

9.

snuffing out – stopping, putting out, as in a fire

10. reveled – enjoyed, with a sense of pride 11. pirouetting – turning around like a classical dancer 12. stricken – seriously damaged 13. retrospect – looking back 14. touted – advertised, publicized 15. blindly – without thinking 16. succumb – give in, go along with 17. override – replace 18. bravado – a show of courage, which may be false 31

19. heritage – traditions passed down from our ancestors Ex.12. Discuss these ideas in small groups: 1. In this case, people relied on technology too much. Can you think of another case in which that has happened? 2. Why

do

you

think

we

have

confidence

in

technology,

sometimes more than in people? Ex.13. How have science and technology changed our lives? Have our lives always been improved, however? Have we become too passive? Are we too dependent on technology? How dangerous could it be? Complete the situation. Take, for example, television …………………………………………….. ……………………………………………………………………………….. computer games ……………………………………………………………. ………………………..…..…………………………………………………. ………………………………………………………………………………… the Internet…………………………………………………………………… ...................................................................................................... ………………………………………………………………………………. ………………………………………………………………………………. Ex.14. Speak on the following. You have had a problem with a faulty product or bad service. Make a complaint. Think about when, where, and what happened, what you want done. I bought (item)……………. (date)………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………….. 32

Unfortunately …………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………. I went to your restaurant (hotel) …………………………………….. The food was (the room was; the staff were)…………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… Could you please replace it (repair it; refund my money; look into this matter for me)………………………………………………………………. ……………………………………………………………………………….

33

TEST This test carefully and a), b), c),d). go on to the There is only

consists of 15 items altogether. Read each of the item work as quickly as possible. Choose the correct answer – Don’t guess. If you don’t know the answer to one item, next. You only have 10 minutes to complete the test. one correct answer to each item.

1. I prefer texting …….. speaking in person. a) to b) for c) by d) at 2. You spend much time staring ……incomprehensible instruction manuals for your new phone. a) on b) at c) to d) for 3. Prices are recorded ……a computerized cash register. a) with b) by c) to d) for 4. Not one single programme is worth …… a) watching b) watch c) to watch d) watched

34

5. Cashiers ……to punch keys on cash registers to enter the price. a) use b) used c) uses d) have used 6. We did not play football yesterday. The match ……. a) were cancel b) was cancelling c) was cancelled d) is cancelled 7. How much money ……? a) were stolen b) was steal c) was stolen d) did steal 8. The Chinese ……….. printing. a) invented b) have invented c) had invented d) invent 9. Modern technology has dramatically …… our lives. a) improving b) improved c) improve d) improves

35

10. I would rather ……………………………………………………….. a) get a taxi than walk home. b) to get a taxi than to walk home. c) getting a taxi than walking home. d) get a taxi than walking home. 11. The dish-washer and other ……have helped to relieve the boredom of domestic chores. a) safety features b) strict safeguards c) labour-saving devices d) repetitive tasks 12. Many…… development which have greatly affected the way we live are nowadays. a) technology b) technologist c) technologic d) technological 13. The police have …… to a vast database which helps them in their fight against crime. a) access b) entrance c) availability d) assets

36

14. The Model…… was the first mass-produced car in the world. a) T Ford b) Silver Ghost c) Mini Cooper S d) Moskvich 412 15. Rudolf Diesel invented…………………………………. a) a rubber solution. b) a new internal combustion engine. c) the telegraphic dot and dash alphabet. d) a pistol with a revolving barrel.

37

ADDITIONAL TEXTS FOR READING Before reading the texts: • read the headlines of the articles and say if there are any articles devoted to superconductors, an AIDS vaccine, the technology of odours; • read the titles and the subtitles of the articles and say what information you could get from them.

Text 1. Recipes for an AIDS Vaccine One of the difficulties in trying to create an AIDS vaccine is knowing where to begin. The first decision is over how to stimulate the immune system, for it has two distinct arms that work in different ways. The second is what to use to do the stimulating, with everything from raw DNA to a harmless version of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, under consideration. The combination means that a vaccine hunt can unfold in myriad ways. The role of a vaccine is to give the body a taste of an invader, so that the immune system can respond much more rapidly if it ever encounters the real thing. Though surprisingly little is known about how a lot of vaccines work, most seem to operate mainly by stimulating the better-known arm of the immune system, the «humoral» response. This produces special proteins called antibodies that can recognise and lock on to a specific part of an invading virus (or other parasitic nasty, for an example a bacterium) while it is in a bodily humour such as the blood or the lymph. If the antibody latches on to a critical part of the virus, the invader is instantly disabled. And even if it does not, the 38

virus is marked for destruction by special phagocytic cells that eventually gobble it up. In AIDS, however, the natural antibody-response provoked by HIV rarely seems potent enough to get rid of the virus, so there can be no confidence that a vaccine-primed response will do so either. And while antibodies can stop HIV from entering cells, the viruses that slip through the net and set up inside cells are beyond their reach. These successful viruses are then a source of millions of new viral particles which flood the body. This means that to block HIV, it may be better to stimulate the other arm of the immune system, the «cellular» response: this attacks viruses after they have entered the body’s cells. It does so by the simple expedient of killing the infected cells. The assassination is performed by a special sort of immune-system cell known as a killer T-cell. So far, vaccine researchers have identified at least seven ways that an AIDS vaccine might be made. The most popular approach is to try to bolster the humoral response using a vaccine made of a protein, known as gp120, that coats HIV. Because this protein is on the outside of the virus, it is the one that most commonly stimulates an antibody response. A second method is to use fragments of several proteins from the inside of the virus. This is intended to stimulate the cellular response. killer T-cells know which cells to destroy thanks to fragments of viral proteins displayed on the surfaces of infected cells that need to be put out of their misery. The third method also employs free-floating molecules: in this case «naked» DNA from HIV. Only one or two of the nine viral genes are used, in order to avoid the virus reconstituting itself by acquiring missing genes from the wild virus. Some of the naked DNA is taken into cell nuclei, fooling the cells in question into producing viral proteins. 39

The other methods of creating an AIDS vaccine all involve actual viruses - some living, some dead and some artificial mock-ups.

The

most common of these approaches is to engineer one or two NIV genes into another, non-dangerous virus such as canary pox. This then infects cells and provokes a cellular response. Artificial

mock-ups,

known

as

pseudovirions,

are

a

more

speculative idea. They are attempts to get a better humoral response by sticking gp120 on to the surfaces of fatty bubbles. The most controversial approaches would use vaccine made of HIV itself. Deleting genes from HIV can produce an attenuated strain that is still alive, but is unable to reproduce and cause disease. But no one has yet dared try these ideas out on people. The use of killed or attenuated strains provides with a dilemma. HIV is more volatile than many other viruses: there is a risk that an attenuated strain may «unattenuate», or even that a dead virus may come back to life. That would be bad. (from «The Economist» June 5 t h – 11 t h 2004)

Glossary 1. DNA – deoxyribonucleic acid basic constituent of the gene 2. HIV – the human immunodeficiency virus which causes AIDS 3. humoral – гуморальный (from Latin «humor» - liquid) 4. response

– reaction; гуморальная реакция – реакция

организма осуществляемая через жидкие среды (кровь, лимфа, тканевая жидкость) 5. phagocytic – фагоцитарный

40

Comprehension check Ex.1 Decide if the following statements are true or false. 1. To create an AIDS vaccine it is necessary to decide how to stimulate the immune system, and what to use to do the stimulating. 2. The role of a vaccine is to make the immune system respond much more rapidly if it ever encounters the real thing. 3. There are two ways of stimulating the immune system: the «humoral» response and the «cellular» response. 4. Vaccine researchers have identified three ways to create an AIDS vaccine. 5. The most popular approach of creating an AIDS vaccine is to try to bolster the humoral response using a vaccine made of a protein, known as gp120. 6. Artificial mock-ups are known as pseudovirions. 7. The vaccine made of HIV itself was already tried out on people. 8. HIV is less volatile than many other viruses. Text 2. An Affair of the Heart Magnetic-resonance imaging could become more useful

Every year, more than a million X-ray angiograms are performed in the United States alone. These are done in order to look inside people’s arteries and figure out whether they are narrowing in a lifethreatening manner. The difficulty with this technique is that it requires either the use of contrast agents – which can cause kidney damage – or significant quantities of radiation. It would be better if such images could be taken with something less damaging, such as magnetic-resonance imaging (MRI). And that is exactly what Robert Judd and his colleagues at Duke University, in 41

North Carolina, think they have done. In the May issue of the journal «Nature Medicine», they explain that they have found a way of using MRI to make movies of blood traveling through vessels in the human body. MRI employs magnetic fields and radio signals to generate its pictures. Atomic nuclei, particularly the signal-proton nuclei of hydrogen atoms, are made to line up in the same direction by a strong magnetic field. A pulse of radio waves is then used to perturb this alignment, causing the nuclei to give off radio waves of their own. The radio signal sent back by a tissue thus depends on the chemical composition of that tissue, and since different tissues have different compositions, the application of sufficient computing power can turn the signal into a picture. Normally, MRI is applied to static tissues the imager takes pictures of

thin

slices

of

body, and

these

slices

are

«glued»

together

electronically. In Dr Judd’s technique, by contrast, the imager stays still and the tissue (blood, even though liquid, counts as a bodily tissue) does the moving. By using a series of radio pulses sent out at intervals of a few milliseconds, a moving picture known as a cine-angiogram can be built up frame by frame. With this technique, says Dr Judd, it is possible to see the anatomy of vessels, and to work out the rate of blood flow. That is useful information for doctors attempting to predict whether a contrasted vessel is likely to present a problem. The team is still developing the technique. In particular, it is trying to improve the clarity of the images. But things look promising – and if it can be made to work routinely, it could be applied easily to existing MRI machines. All that would be required is a charge of software. (from «The Economist» April 24 t h – 30 t h 2004)

42

Glossary 1. MRI (magnetic-resonance imaging) – магнетико-резонансный снимок 2. an angiogram - ангиограмма 3. a cine – angiogram - фильмо-ангиограмма Comprehension check Ex.1. Decide if the following statements are true or false. 1. X-ray angiograms are performed in order to look inside people’s arteries and figure out whether they are narrowing in a lifethreatening manner. 2. It is impossible to look inside people’s arteries with the help of magnetic-resonance imaging. 3. Dr Judd’s team has found a way of using MRI to make movies of blood traveling through vessels in the human body. 4. MRI employs magnetic fields and radio signals to generate its pictures. 5. Normally, MRI is applied to moving tissues (blood, even though liquid, counts as a bodily tissue). 6. This new technique allows doctors to predict whether a contrasted vessel is likely to present a problem. Text 3. Scanning the Future A new type of digital camera

At first sight, the idea of making a digital camera that looks at its subject as a single pixel at a time sounds insane. A pixel is one of the dots of which a picture is composed, so this would be like peering at the world through a moving straw. However, when a pixel 43

can be captured in just 40 billionths of a second, the idea seems slightly less stupid. In one second, such a system could take 30 pictures with the resolution of a standard laptop screen. Microvision, a firm based in Bothell, in Washington state, has developed a camera that works on this principle. Its speed stems from the fact that, instead of using ambient light, the camera illuminates its target. It does so using not a flash, but a laser beam or, rather, three laser beams, one for each of the primary hues needed to build up a colour picture). These are scanned rapidly across the object being photographed. Because of its high intensity, the reflected laser light can be detected quickly – millions of times faster than in a conventional digital camera. The core of the system is a tiny mirror made from a piece of crystalline silicon. This does the scanning. The mirror is moved around

by

a

combination

of

electrostatic

and

electromagnetic

«actuators». Since the lasers, detectors, mirror and lens can all

be

built into a unit a couple of centimeters in diameter, the camera starts out pretty small. For endoscopy, the first application Microvision has in mind, this is a significant advantage. It is easier to stick something inside a patient if it is small. Indeed, the business end of the camera can be made even smaller for this application by delivering the laser beams through glass fibres, rather than generating them inside the patient. More prosaically, Microvision’s engineers hope that the new camera will make new applications of two-dimensional bar codes possible. At the moment such codes – which can carry a lot more information than the familiar one – dimensional codes are used only for high – value products. The problem is that they are hard to read with a conventional camera when they are moving. Even a relatively small movement, say 2-3 cm a second, blurs an image so much that it 44

is unsuitable. The speed of the Microvision system eliminates such blurring. Tests show that crisp images can be produced even if a bar code is moving at 70 cm a second. (from «The Economist» August 2

nd

- 8

th

2003)

Glossary 1. actuators – стимуляторы 2. endoscopy - эндоскопия 3. to blur - делать неясным, нечетким 4. ambient – окружающий 5. crisp – четкий, резко очерченный Comprehension check Ex.1. Decide if the following statements are true or false. 1. A pixel is one of the dots of which a picture is composed. 2. Microvision has developed a digital camera that looks at its subject as a single pixel. 3. Because of its high intensity, the reflected laser light can not be detected quickly. 4. This invention has a significant advantage for endoscopy. 5. Two-dimensional bar codes can carry a lot more information than the familiar one – dimensional codess. 6. A new type of digital camera can not produce crisp images if a bar code is moving at 70 cm a second. Tasks to be done after reading the articles 1. Find some facts in the articles to justify its title. 2. Find the part of text 1 related to the description of the most popular approach of creating an AIDS vaccine. 45

3. Find the part of text 2 speaking how MRI works. 4. Find the part of text 3 describing the advantages of a new digital camera. 5. Divide text 1 into several logical parts, give a heading to each of them. 6. Compress text 3 to 6-8 sentences. 7. Mark off the passages of text 2 that seem important to you. 8. State the main problems discussed in the text 1. 9. Render one of the articles making use of the following scheme: The plan for rendering the text

Some expressions to be used

1 1. The title of the text

2 a) The article is headlined…. b) The headline of the article I have read is…………..

2. The author of the article,

The author of the article is….

where and when the article The article is written by….. was published 3. The main idea of the article

The article is (was) published.. a) The main idea of the article is…… b) The article is about ……. c) The article is devoted to….. d) The article deals with ….. e) The article touches upon…. f) The purpose of the article is to

give

the

readers

some

information on ……… g) The aim of the article is to provide the reader with some material (data) on…….. 46

1 4. The contents of the article. Some facts, names, figures

2 a) The author starts by telling the reader that………… b) The author writes (states, stresses,

thinks,

points

out)

that…………. c) The article describes…… d) According to the text…… e) Further the author reports (says)………… f) The article goes on to say that..... g) The author comes to the conclusion that………… 5. Your opinion of the article

I found this article important (interesting, dull, of no value, too hard to understand……)

47

BIBLIOGRATHY 1. Учитесь читать газеты / Королькова В. А. [и др.],

– М.:

Высш. шк., 1989. – 176с. 2. Эйто Дж. Словарь новых слов английского языка / Эйто Дж. – М.: Рус. яз., 1990. – 434с. 3. Flower, J. First Certificate Organizer /Флауэр, Д. Сборник упражнений для подготовки к вступительному экзамену по английскому языку в университеты Англии. – Обнинск: Титул, 1997. - 208с. 4. Evans, D. Powerhouse: An Intermediate Business English Course / Evans D. and Strutt P. – England : Longman, 2000. - 160p. 5. Evans, D. Powerhouse: An Intermediate Business English Course. Teacher’s Book / D. Evans. – England : Longman, 2000. – 78p. 6. Eastwood, J. Oxford Practice Grammar / J. Eastwood. – the UK : Oxford University Press, 2005. – 432p. 7. Murphy, R. English Grammar In Use / R. Murphy. – England : Cambridge University Press, 1997. - 350p. 8. Strutt, P. Powerhouse : An Intermediate Business English Course.

Study Book / P. Strutt – England: Longman, 2000. –

97p.

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