Mode, drive, access, driver, multitasking, bus, ROM, device, motherboard, program.

I. Read the text

The man who invented e-mail

Ray Tomilson is the man who invented e-mail. Back in 1971 he was working in a team of programmers who were working on a program called SNDMSG (‘send a message’) that allowed users of the same computer to leave messages for one another – a sort of single-computer version of an e-mail system. They were working on the ARPANET, which was set up by the US Defense Department’s Advanced Research Project Agency to connect different research computers, and which later developed into the internet.

Ray wanted to distinguish between messages that were headed out onto the network and those that were addressed to users in the same office. He studied the keyboard for a symbol that didn’t occur naturally in people’s names and that wasn’t a digit. He chose @ symbol to indicate that the user was ‘at’ some other distant hostrather than being local – and @ symbol is the only preposition on the keyboard. Before this, the purpose of the @ sign (in English) was to indicate a unit price (for example, 10 items @ $1.95). At the time Ray says he gave it only ’30 to 40 seconds of thought’.

To test the program he sent a message to another computer. The message was something quite forgettable, and he has now forgotten what it was. Electronic mail is now known as e-mail or email. Domain names (apple.com, cambridge.org, etc.) were not used until 1984. Before that each host was only known by its IP (Internet protocol) address number.

Ray’s ideas changed the world and made a lot of others rich, but not him. ‘Innovations is sometimes rewarded’, he says modestly, ‘but not this innovation!’

Leo Jones, Making progress, Cambridge University Press

I. Find synonyms from the text to the following explanations:

to differentiate; the first part of a website’s address, which usually begins with ‘www.’ and ends with ‘com’, ‘.org’, ’uk’, or other letters that show which country the website is from.

II. True or False?

1. The symbol @ meant the only preposition on the keyboard before Ray started to use it.

2. It took Ray too much time to decide to use @.

3. He has forgotten his first message.

4. Ray’s idea made him very rich.

II. Read the article

Louis von Ahn

E-mail users hate “spam”, and the people who send spam hate Louis fon Ahn. They use programs called spambots to steel e-mail addresses. To stop them, von Ahn developed a visual test involves recognising distorted words, letters and numbers. Humans can pass the CAPTCHA, or “Completely Automated Public Turning Test to Tell Computers and Human Apart ”, but spambots cannot. Some 60 million CAPTCHAs are decoded by people every day. Then von Ahn started thinking about using the method to digitize books. Pages are scanned into computers that convert images into text. But computers cannot recognize distorted letters. That’s where humans can help, says von Ahn. The solution is to send unclear texts in the form of CAPATCHAs for people to decode. Born in Guatemala City, 30-year-old von Ahn teaches computer science at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburg, Pensylvania.

Business Spotlight, 2/08

Try to give the explanation of the following words from the text:

Spam, spambot, to distort, to apart.

COMPUTER

Lesson 1

ACTIVE VOCABULARY

Give if possible definitions of the following words and word combinations and try to pronounce them correctly:

Computer science, computation, abacus (pl abaci), circa, BCE, to employ, to refer to, to perform, gradually, onset, digital, value, to store, analog, logical, purely, to invent, Turing machine, to evolve, Turing test, to run.

READING TEXT

Read the following text:

HISTORY OF COMPUTER SCIENCE

The earliest known tool for use in computation was the abacus, and it was thought to have been invented in Babylon circa 2400 BCE. Its original style of usage was by lines drawn in sand with pebbles. Abaci, of a more modern design, are still used as calculation tools today.

Before the 1920s, computers were human clerks that performed computations. Many thousands of computers were employed in commerce, government, and research establishments.

After the 1920s, the expression computing machine referred to any machine that performed the work of a human computer.

The phrase computing machine gradually gave away, after the late 1940s, to just computer as the onset of electronic digital machinery became common.

Since the values stored by digital machines were not bound to physical properties like analog devices, a logical computer, based on digital equipment, was able to do anything that could be described "purely mechanical." Alan Turing, known as the Father of Computer Science, invented such a logical computer known as the Turing Machine, which later evolved into the modern computer. These new computers were also able to perform non-numeric computations, like music.

In 1948, the first practical computer that could run stored programs, based on the Turing machine model, had been built – the Manchester Baby.

Wikipedia

READING COMPREHENSION

I. Fill in the blanks with suitable words.

- Many thousands of computers were ………………….. in different spheres of people’s life.

- Human clerks that performed computations were called ……………...

- The original style of abacus, the earliest known tool for use in computation, has been ………………….. circa 2400 BCE.

II. Given below are certain statements. Write ‘T’ against true statements and ‘F’ against false statements.

- Alan Turing is known as the Father of such a logical computer known as the Manchester Baby.

- A logical computer was able to do anything that could be described "purely mechanical".

- The earliest known tool for use in computation was the wheel.

- The phrase computing machine gradually gave away, after the late 1940s.

- The first practical computer that could run stored programs appeared in 1948.

Speaking practice

Discuss the topic “COMPUTERS” with your partner using newly learnt words: the periods of computer science development and the role of computers in our century.

Writing practice

I. Compose sentences as many as you can, using the following words and discuss them with your partner:

Computer, invention, to load, program, microprocessor, to contribute.

II. Read the paragraph as many times as you can in 4 minutes. Then entitle it and tell your partner as much info as you can remember without looking into the text.

By 1987 the computer market on American campuses was thriving. Sales people from all the personal computer companies were actively pursuing the business of college administrators, professors and officials. They were selling computers less than half price and were adding attractive bonuses such as free software and support services. They were willing to venture a great deal of time and money in this market because they foresaw that it would thrive for a long time. There are 14 million people who provide or receive education on campuses, including 12.5 million new freshmen every year. Students who also buy computers are likely to become lifetime customers who may enter business after graduation and influence corporate buying decisions.

Wikipedia

Homework

Study new vocabulary.

Lesson 2

What can you tell about the history of computer science: main periods?

LEXICAL EXERCISES

I. Give definitions to words and word combinations which you have learnt at the previous lesson and spell them:

Circa, computer science, gradually, logical, to run, BCE, computation, analog, Turing machine, to refer to, purely, digital, Turing test, abacus, to store, to evolve, value, to employ, to invent, onset, to perform.

II. Learning new vocabulary for the theme “COMPUTER”. Match computer terms written in bold with definitions given below. Then read matched pairs aloud and put between the term and its definition the verb “is”. For example,

Computer science is the study of computers and their application.

Mode, drive, access, driver, multitasking, bus, ROM, device, motherboard, program.

1. the main board in a computer, into which the circuits are plugged.

2. a combination of physical components forming a unit that performs a specific function, such as storage or I/O.

3. a type of memory chip that can be read but cannot be written on or altered.

4. a unit that reads and writes data on an external storage device.

5. a program that controls devices or other programs.

6. the ability to store or retrieve data.

7. a circuit for the transfer of data or electrical signal between two devices.

8. a method or condition of operation.

9. the technique of concurrently executing a number of related tasks in the same partition.

10. a logically arranged set programming statements defining the operation to be performed by a computer.

III. Read the words as they are used in the following sentences and try to come up with your own definition.

1. Using computers to create graphics and sounds, virtual reality makes the viewer believe he or she is in another world.

2. Three-dimensional images are created using technology that fools the viewers’ mind into perceptive depth.

3. Plug a terminal directly into the brain via a prepared skull and you can enter cyberspace.

4. I’ve got a set of eyephones, 3D goggles, a fiber optic glove and the rest of the gear.

5. There are many word substitutes for invalids, e.g. the handicapped, challenged by birth or by accidents, disabled people.

6. The bowman took a deep breath, aimed at the target and shot, but the arrow went astray.

Virtual reality – ………………………………….............

Three-dimensional (3D) – ………………………..……...

Cyberspace – …………………………………………….

Gear – …………………………………............................

Disabled – ………………………………………………..

To go astray – …………………………………………….

SPEAKING PRACTICE

I. Working in pairs. Look at the picture and discuss with your partner what computer parts are the main and what parts are not obligatory for work on a computer.

II. Divide into small groups and discuss the question:

What is important for optimum computer work (CPU clock, hard disk, motherboard, RAM, ROM, video card, audio card)?

III. Discuss with your partner for what purposes one can use a computer nowadays.

Homework

Refresh vocabulary from the first lesson of the section.

Study the second lesson new vocabulary.

Lesson 3

LEXICAL EXERCISES

I. Give definitions to words and word combinations and spell them:

To replace, a writable drive, to burn something, specs, a microprocessor, to be a whiz at something, PC, processor, memory, DVD, word processing, a monitor, a central processing unit, to be over your head, RAM, data, a mouse, a blank CD.

II. Learning new vocabulary for the theme “COMPUTER”. Match computer terms written in bold with option a-d. Then read matched pairs aloud and put between the term and its definition the verb “is”. For example,

Hit is a visit to a Web site.

cursor	A: coarse speaker B: indicator C: moneychanger D: technician
network	A: TV channel B: digital design C: system of computers D: filter
to download	A: to copy B: scramble C: erase D: delete
virus	A: flaw B: poison C: fatigue D: infection
browser	software that allows you toA: explore the Internet B: eavesdrop C: send a fax D: save a file
to boot	A: to fail gradually B: enlarge C: adjust D: start up
server	A: central computer B: speed control C: power supply D: trouble-shooter
modem	A: digital code B: keyboard C: visual display D: connecting device
glitch	A: flash B: excitement C: error D: stroke of luck
pixel	A: picture element B: programming oddity C: brief blur D: long delay
link	A: missing piece B: space station C: related site D: warning signal
scanner	machine that A: reproduces images B: translates files C: searches a document D: adds colour
shareware	A: hand-me-down clothing B: free hardware C: relic D: trial software
gigabyte	A:sudden shutdown B: unit of storage C: wide gap D: high pressure

III. Compose ten sentences using terms from the previous exercise using as many terms as you can.

SPEAKING PRACTICE

I. Working in pairs act the following dialogue in parts and then perform it to the class.

Henry: Hello Sheila. I didn't expect to see you here.

Sheila: Oh, I've been here for quite a while.

Henry: When did you arrive?

Sheila: Just after lunch.

Henry: Did Patrick pick you up from the station?

Sheila: No, it was a nice day so I walked.

Henry: Have you eaten anything since you've been here?

Sheila: Yes, I had afternoon tea with the girls.

Henry: What did you think of Penny?

Sheila: She's grown up a lot since I last saw her.

Henry: And how did you find Rebecca?

Sheila: She didn't join us. I haven't seen her yet.

II. Mini-conference. Answering questions.

One student answers the questions of his/her groupmates on the following points:

– What type of computers does he/she use?

– What does he/she use a computer for?

– What components does it contain of? And what does he/she want to add?

– What is more preferable a computer or a laptop?

III. Divide into groups (2 or 3 students) and make a short summary on topics under consideration (main computer parts, computer usage purposes, advantages and disadvantages of using a computer).

Homework

Refresh vocabulary from the first 3 lessons of the section.

Lesson 4

Discuss the following questions:

1. What major problems are there with the e-mail? Are they opinions or facts? Would it be a problem for you?

2. Is there etiquette for e-mail messages? What is it? What are the examples of this etiquette? What is the reason for the origin of e-mail etiquette?

Reading text

Read the following text:

USING EMAIL

One of the first things I do each morning is to check my email. I open the email program on my computer and I check for new messages. It usually takes only a few seconds for my new messages to download from the server into my inbox unless there’s a large attachment. I can then click onto each new message to read it.

I reply to messages or forward them to someone else. The important messages I save by putting them into one of my mailboxes. The unimportant ones I just delete.

I really hate getting spam. Luckily, my email program allows me to set up filters so that spam messages are put into a separate mailbox automatically. I usually scan the messages to make sure real messages weren’t put into the mailbox by mistake and then I put them in the trash.

I don’t know what I would do without email, but I’m constantly checking it for new messages. I’m not sure if it’s a blessing or a curse. I suppose it’s both.

Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

http://www.eslpod.com

Tell in what way you use your e-mail service.

Дата добавления: 2015-10-26