Digital Decade

Notes to the text:

digital decade – цифрове десятиріччя modern inventions – сучасні винаходи in comparison – у порівнянні existence – існування fast / convenient / reliable – швидкий / зручний / надійний multifunctional appliance – багатофункціональний пристрій to develop skills – розвивати уміння

аvailable – доступний mysterious / much-dreaded – загадковий / жахаючий by hearsay – як чутки to occupy the whole room – займати цілу кімнату to controll giants – управляти гігантами achieved successes – досягнуті успіхи

A lot of things have changed since the come of the “ digital decade ”. As we enter the era of modern inventions, people’s ideology of living becomes very different, in comparison as it was fifty years ago. We got used to such new things, which very help us in everyday life, people from the nearest past couldn’t even dream about. Nowadays many people can’t imagine their existence without such props of modern living as: huge screen TV-set and powerful multi-channel music system, tidal wave of sound from which the house crashes, VHS / DVD / MP3-player, the Olympic-sized spa, Jacuzzi and power-shower, etc.

Today, it’s hard for many people to live without a personal computer. It makes the work fast, convenient and reliable. It helps to solve many routine problems and not only. Computer is an extremely multifunctional appliance. Either it is a complex calculation of some mathematical tasks or large text word processing, HiFi-quality music composing or high-definition video watching – computer is a very useful and labor-saving gadget. We study on PC, entertain ourselves during freetime. It is a great possibility to easily develop different skills on our own with the use of Internet, containing immeasurable amount of helpful information like encyclopedias, teaching programs, smart guides and much more. At all this is available only through the computer.

It is very interesting how those people in 50’s lived without all this. At that time the word “computer” sounded like something really mysterious and much-dreaded. People heard about them only by hearsay. Thus, there was no use for these great opportunities which PC gave. Besides, that time computers were so big in size that they could occupy the whole room that is unimaginable for our present time barebone-systems. It was a hard job of those computer system administrators who controlled these giants: every command had to be put into computer with thousands of punched cards, so that the whole process, for instance, A4-paper size text printing, took approximately an hour.

However, with this rapidly developing technological progress, the world will not stop on its achieved successes. What mankind has now, may be called old-fashioned junk in several years. Still, our homes are filled with push-button entertainment and we can’t even think what would be if we didn’t have all modern digital things. Occasionally we should be afraid of these dependences, because doubtless people are leading their life in lazier way than it was in the past, loosing their possibilities to work and to show their worth in it.

1. Comprehension questions.

1. In what way has ideology of modern people changed?

2. What can’t many people imagine their existence without?

3. Where is computer used and what are its advantages?

4. How did a computer of today change?

5. What may be a threat of modern technological progress?

1. Find in the text English equivalents to the following.

Цифровий, сучасні винаходи, у порівнянні, уявити своє існування, широкоекранний телевізор, багатоканальна музична система, зручний / надійний, буденні проблеми, багатофункціональний пристрій, економний пристрій, розважати, незмірна кількість інформації, доступний, таємничий / жахаючий, вводити команду, текстовий друк, гідність.

Дата добавления: 2015-10-26