THE EVOLUTION OF COMPUTERS
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© Ніжнік Л.І., 2013 Contents Unit I. The digital Age…….………………………………………….4 Unit II. My future profession. Prominent computer scientists...........19 Unit III. Basic concepts about a computer. ……….……………...…33 Unit IV. Storage devices….………………………………………....46 Unit V. Input/Output devices………………………………………..57 Unit VI. The Internet ……………………………………………….74 Unit VII. Basic Software………………………………………...….97 Unit VIII. The link of computer science with mathematics. Programming languages...................................................................112 Unit IX. Graphics and design………………………………….…..133 Unit X. Artificial intelligence. Virtual reality. Hacking………...…146 Unit XI. Computers and health…………………………………….162 Appendices………………………………………………………...170 UNIT I “THE DIGITAL AGE” 1. Read, translate and retell the following text: THE EVOLUTION OF COMPUTERS It is very hard to believe but computer's era begins in ancient times. The first mechanical devices that somewhat can be called a limited function computers appeared in 2500 BC. Well, Sumerian abacus cannot be called a real computer, but its goal was helping in various calculations. The slide rule that can be called a mechanical analog computer appeared in 1620. Looking deeply in the ancient history many interesting and useful machines, that can be referred as primitive computers can be found. There were machines which calculated the astronomical positions of stellar bodies. The main idea is that the human is such a creature, whose aim is to create some devices to help him solving various problems. The main aim of every computer is to help us in calculations. The definition of the "computer" says that a computer is a programmable machine designed to automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The history of computer generations is very interesting field to explore, because since the 1946, when first real computers were created, they have evolved very rapidly.
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