Post-reading Activity

Task 1. Answer the following questions.

 

1. What types of computers varying in size and power do you know? 2. Can we speak about a “computer revolution” with the invention of personal computers? Why? 3. What is the most important part of a computer? Dwell on it. 4. What is referred to as the CPU? 5. Give five examples of input devices (five examples of output devices). 6. How are signals carried to different parts of a computer? 7. Where can you find the CPU and storage devices in a desktop computer? 8. What external device may a portable computer use? 9. What is the function of storage? 10. What is a hard disk? 11. How does a hard disk function? 12. Where is a barcode reader used? 13. In what storage devices is laser light used? 14. What factors are to be taken into account when buying a computer?

 

Task 2. Find the English equivalents for the following Russian word combination.

1.Средство связи; 2. шина данных; 3. устройство ввода; 4. запоминающее устройство; 5. устройство считывания штрихового кода; 6. магистраль системного блока; 7. ручной компьютер; 8. адрес ячейки памяти; 9. уни­версальная головка; 10. быстродействующая буферная память; 11. гиб­кий диск; 12. память с произвольной выборкой

 

a. a system bus; b. barcode reader; c. a hand held computer; d. a communication device; e. a memory address; f. a cache; g. a data bus; h. a storage device; i. a random access memory; j. an input device; k. a floppy disk; l. a read/write head;

 

 

Task 3. Match each item in Column A with its function in Column B.

A Item

B Function

§ RAM § processor § mouse § clock § 3.5// floppy drive § monitor § keyboard § DVD-ROM drive § cache § ROM

1. controls the cursor 2. inputs data through keys like a typewriter 3. displays the output from a computer on a screen 4. reads DVD-ROMs 5. reads and writes to removable magnetic disks 6. holds instructions which are needed to start up the computer 7. holds data read or written to it by the processor 8. provides extremely fast access for sections of a program and its data 9. controls the timing of signals in the computer 10. controls all the operations in a computer

Task 4. Mark the following as True or False.

1. The function of a hard disk drive is to delete all the files stored on a disk. 2. Swipe cards are used to provide a secure means of identifying authorised users of many different facilities such as banks, libraries, and computer labs. 3. A supercomputer is used for processing small amounts of data. 4. Barcodes provide computer readable information on a product so that it can be identified and priced automatically. 5. A cache holds the program instructions and settings required to start up the computer. 6. The capacity of memory is determined by the period of the time required for the signals to travel the distance from the memory to the arithmetic/logic unit. 7. A mainframe computer is designed to be used on an office desk and to be operated by a single user.

Task 5. Complete each sentence choosing the correct preposition from the box.

outside, between, into, in, from, to, from, along, into, from, inside, into, across, to, from, to, into

 

1. The CPU is a large chip......... the computer. 2. Data always flows......... the CPU......... the address bus. 3. The CPU can be divided......... three parts. 4. Data flows......... the CPU and the memory. 5. Peripherals are devices......... the computer but linked......... it. 6. The signal moves......... the VDU screen......... one side......... the other. 7. The CPU puts the address......... the address bus. 8. The CPU can fetch data......... memory......... the data bus. 9. A program is read......... disk.......... memory. 10. The hard disk drive is......... a sealed case. 11. Tracks are divided......... sectors.

 

Task 6. Decide on the correct sequence of events when the data flows throughout the system. See Figure below for help.

1. The Arithmetic/Logic Unit makes the necessary mathematical and logical computations as you enter data and formulas. 2. The control unit directs the transfer of data from an input device to either memory or storage. 3. The control unit sends the results to memory. It can also send them to storage or to a printer. It erases the data from memory when instructed to do so. 4. Data in storage remains there until it is needed for the current processing task. Then the control unit transfers the data from storage to memory. 5. The control unit sends the required data from memory to the Arithmetic/Logic Unit.

 

Task 7. Give the appropriate translation to the Russian words.

 

1. There are also компьютеры общего назначения in the office, at home, and at school. 2. Twenty or thirty years ago, most books on computers описывали большие, мощные машины, because they were the most common. 3. The basic parts of персонального компьютера for the home are микропроцессор и клавиатура. 4. All of these disk platters inside the sealed case вращаются с одной и той же скоростью, but each disk has its own головку считывания-записи. 5. Гибкие диски are a form of переносного запоминающего устройства that can be inserted into a computer’s дисковод. 6. Typically, каждый байт хранит один символ, using the same метод двоичного кодирования practiced in primary coding. 7. Интеграль­ная схема constituted another важный шаг in the growth of computer technology. 8. The method of обработки данных as well as имеющиеся в наличии периферийные устройства define computer generations. 9. Разно­сторонность and convenience of the microprocessor has altered всю архитектуру of modern computer systems. 10. The speed of modern computers is the speed of обращения к памяти.

 

Task 8. Translate the following sentences paying attention to the introductory “there”.

 

1. There are probably more than 30.000 viruses in existence but only about 200 to 300 are present in sufficient numbers to be a threat to your PC. 2. But there are some vital questions to be asked. 3. There will probably never be a programming language which can cope fully with the complexities of natural languages. 4. There has been recently developed the notion of chipset. 5. Finally, there remains the problem of unplugging all the cables except the power cord from your computer. 6. There seems to be considerable disagreement between observations of the same phenomenon by different authors. 7. There are believed to exist hackers who like to attack and penetrate computer systems belonging to large, important organizations. 8. There must be ATM (Automatic Teller Machine) in every bank to provide cash to bank customers. 9. There are a variety of security measures that can be used to protect hardware and software. 10. Is there any point in talking about it again? 11. There is sure to be trouble when a virus gets into your computer. 12. There is something worrying me in the way this mainframe functions. 13. There has been talk of a “computer revolution” ever since the electronic industry learned in the late 1950s to inscribe miniature electronic circuits on a chip of silicon.

 

Task 9. Translate the following sentences with the emphatic construction “It is (was)... that (who, which, when)...”.

 

1. It was the Intel Pentium that was introduced in 1993. 2. It was in 2001 that Microsoft launched Windows XP. 3. It is an electronic book that I don’t like. 4. It was the Wap phone that was the first mobile phone to make Internet access possible. 5. It is an alternative to silicon that we need. 6. It was Gordon Moore that Moore’s Law is named after. 7. It is the central processing unit that adds new processing capabilities and at the same time gets faster with each generation. 8. It was in 1867 when the first typewriter was invented. 9. It is in storage where data permanently reside. 10. It is for this reason that the computer code generally assigns a unique combination of eight 0s and 1s to each letter, number, and symbol.

 

Task 10. Translate the following sentences into English.

 

1. Компьютер представляет собой устройство, способное исполнять четко определенную последовательность операций, предписанную программой. 2. Процессор, память и периферийные устройства взаимо­действуют между собой с помощью шин, стандартизация которых делает архитектуру компьютера открытой. 3. Внутренняя память подразделя­ется на оперативную, информация в которой может изменяться проце­ссором в любой момент времени, и постоянную, информацию которой процессор может только считывать. 4. Периферийные устройства связы­вают компьютер с внешним миром, и без них он был бы «вещью в себе». 5. Архитектурный облик PC-совместимого компьютера определяется рядом свойств, обеспечивающих возможность функционирования про­граммного обеспечения, управляющего периферийным оборудованием. 6. Кэширование основной памяти для современных процессоров является средством весьма существенного повышения производитель­ности системы. 7. Пластины (platter) дисков могут быть гибкими или жесткими, но в любом случае их материал не должен сильно изменять свой размер со временем и под действием перепадов температур.

 

Task 11. Topics for discussion.

 

1. Name the four types of general purpose computers.

2. Explain the importance of learning about computers.

3. Describe the individual process of the computing cycle.

4. Distinguish between random access and read-only memory.

5. Speak on the way the information is stored in the computer.

6. Explain the uses of various kinds of peripheral devices.

7. Even if minis and mainframes were inexpensive, why it is unlikely that you would buy one for your home.

 

Task 12. Read Text B and find the answers to the following questions.

 

1. What is “hardware”? 2. What does the term CPU mean? How does this unit function? 3. What is the architecture of the system unit? 4. What types of disk drives do you know? 5. Can you imagine your life without a modem? Why?