Vocabulary practice

1. In the text, find the opposites to the given words.

 

fall short of reduce fail lose

 

2. Fill in the blanks choosing from the variants given.

 

1. CMOS memory is a type of chip that requires very little power to … data.

a) affect b) compare c) hold d) execute

2. As a result of the power being off RAM does not … any instructions for the microprocessor to execute.

a) contain b) allocate c) develop d) provide

3. The ALU uses registers to hold data as the microprocessor …arithmetic and logical operations.

a) gains b) compares c) performs d) exchanges

4. When the microprocessor receives electrical power, it is ready to begin … instructions.

a) executing b) exchanging c) allocating d) holding

5. Microprocessor instruction sets can be classified as … or ….

a) RAM or ROM b) CISC or RISC c) ROM BIOS d) CMOS memory

6. The instructions for loading the operating system into RAM when a computer is first turned on are stored in …memory.

a) RAM b) CMOS c) RISC d) ROM

7. A microprocessor (sometimes simplyreferred to as a “processor”) is an integrated circuit … to process instructions.

a) affected b) performed c) held d) designed

 

3. Make three-word expressions connected with computing combining words from three lists: A, B and C. Then fill in the gaps in the following sentences.

 

A: random B: system C: processor

read-only access configuration

computer core circuitry

dual memory memory

 

1. A … is faster than one with a single core.

2. The battery trickles power to the CMOS chip so that it can retain vital data about your ….

3. … holds the results of processing until they can be stored more permanently on disk or tape.

4. … holds “hard-wired” instructions that are a permanent part of the circuitry and remain in place even when the computer power is turned off.

4. Fill in the gaps in the text.

 

The microprocessor and memory are two of the most important components in a computer. The microprocessor is an integrated circuit, which is ___ to process data based on a set of instructions. The microprocessor’s ALU ___ arithmetic and logical operations. The control unit fetches each instruction, ___ it, loads data into the ALU registers, and directs all the processing activities within the microprocessor. Microprocessor performance is measured in ___ – the number of cycles per second, or clock rate. Other factors ___ overall processing speed include word size cache size, instruction set complexity, and ___.

Speaking. Discuss the following questions.

 

1. What exactly is a microprocessor? How does it work?

2. Where does the microprocessor get its instructions?

3. What impact does word size have on performance?

4. How does the cache size affect performance?

5. How does the instruction set affect performance?

6. What is the difference between serial processing and parallel processing?

7. How is it possible to compare microprocessor performance?

8. How does RAM differ from hard-disk storage?

9. If a computer has RAM, why does it need ROM?

10. Where does a computer store its basic hardware settings?

Text C

Pre-reading. Match the meaning of the following English words with their Russian equivalents.

1. storage	a) жесткий диск
2. medium	b) резервирование; резервная копия
3. read-write head	c) темное, неотражающее пятно на поверхности CD-ROM
4. pit	d)отражающее пятно на поверхности CD-ROM
5. solid state storage	e)универсальная головка считывания – записи
6. land	f)авария (плавающих) головок
7. platter	g) контроллер, устройство управления
8. head crash	h) запоминающее устройство на монолитном носителе
9. backup	i) память, запоминающее устройство
10. controller	j) носитель; средство

Reading. Read the text and try to guess the meaning of the words in bold font. Check your variants in the dictionary.