Ìåòîäè÷êà ÔÝÂÒ

UNIT 1.Computer applications.

1) Discuss these questions.

1.How are computers used at your university?

2.Where else/How else can you use the computer for your studies?

2) Read these terms aloud(âñëóõ ) and suggest Russian equivalents:

computer-aided design (CAD); PC (personal computer); database; to rely(ïîëàãàòüñÿ) on smth/smb; to provide(îáåñïå÷èâàòü) smth/smb with smth; workstation; to give real-time information; to store (information); to access (databases); to carry out(âûïîëíÿòü) (financial transactions); to display (data); to perform smth; sophisticated( ); device; to be capable(ñïîñîáíûé) of smth/doing smth; to turn smth on; hardware; software; to manage smth; gadget (áåçäåëóøêà).

3) In pairs write a list of as many uses of the computer, or computer applications, as you can think of.

4) Now read the text and underline any applications that are not in your list.

Computers can help students perform mathematical operations and solve difficult questions. They can be used to teach courses such as computer-aided design, language learning, programming, mathematics, etc. PCs are also used for administrative purposes: for example, school use databases and word processors to keep records of students, teachers and materials. Race(ñîñüÿçàíèÿ) organizers and journalists rely on computers to provide them with the current positions of riders and teams in both the particular stages of the race and in an overall competition. Workstations in the race buses provide the timing system and give up-to-the-minute timing information to TV stations. In the press room several PCs give real-time information on the state of the race. Computer databases are also used in the drug-detecting tests for competitors. Computers store information about the amount(êîëè÷åñòâî) of money held by each client and enable staff to access large databases and to carry out financial transactions at high speed. They also control the automatic cash dispensers(ðàçäàâàòü), which, by the use of a personal coded card, dispense money to clients. Airline pilots use computers to help them control the plane. For example, monitors display data about fuel consumption (ïîòðåáëåíèå) and weather conditions. In airport control towers, computers are used to manage radar systems and regulate air traffic. On the ground, airlines are connected to travel agencies by computer. Travel agents use computers to find out about the availability of flights, prices, times, stopovers(áèëåò) and many other details.

Computers and microchips have become part of our everyday lives: we visit shops and offices, which have been designed with the help of computers, we read magazines, which have been produced on computer, we pay bills prepared by computers. Just picking up a telephone and dialing a number involves the use of a sophisticated computer system, as does making a flight reservation or bank transaction. We encounter(ñòàëêèâàòüñÿ) daily many computers that spring(ïîÿâëÿòüñÿ) to life the instance(ïðèìåð) they are switched on (e.g. calculations, the car’s electronic ignition, the timer in the microwave, or the programmer inside the TV set), all of which use chip technology.

What makes your computer such a miraculous(óäèâèòåëüíûé) device? Each time you turn it on; it is a tabular rasa(íåòðîíóòîå) that, with appropriate(ñîîòâåòñòâóþùèé) hardware and software, is capable of doing anything you ask. It is a calculating machine that speeds up financial calculations. It is an electronic filing cabinet, which manages large collections of data such as customers’ lists, accounts, or inventories. It is a magical typewriter that allows you to type and print any kind of document – letters, memos, or legal documents. It is a personal communicator that enables you to interact with other computers and people around the world. If you like gadgets and electronic entertainment, you can even use your PCs to relax with computer games.

Exercises.

1. Look at these words. Are they nouns (nÑÓÙ), verbs (vÃëàã) or adjectives (adjÏðèë)? Suggest(ïðåäëîæèòå) possible collocations(ñëîâîñî÷åòàíèå ). e.g. to store data, a high-resolution monitor, etc.

1 workstation… 2 data… 3 perform…4 automatic… 5 monitor… 6 financial… 7 store… 8 connected… 9 word processor… 10 large…

2. Find the words in the text, and match them with the meanings below.

a) information ; b) execute (do); c) connected with money ;d) keep (save); e) massive; f) linked ; g)self-acting, mechanical ; h)screen ; i)powerful computer usually connected to a network ; j)program used for text manipulation; k)to need or be dependent on smth/smb; l) mechanical and electronic parts of computers; m)a small mechanical device or tool; n) data, programs, etc used when operating a computer)to make smth available for smb; p) to open a file to get information from or to put it into .

3. Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the verbs in passive.

Example: Houses (design)….. with the help of computers.

Houses are designed with the help of computers.

1 Various new terminals (are connected)….to this workstation this year.

2 Microcomputers are (know’s)…. as ‘PCs’.

3 The magazine (typeset’s)….by computer at the moment.

4 If a particular program is run, the data (have been process)….by the computer very rapidly.

5 Hard discs (use’s)….for the permanent storage of information for a long time.

6 The drug-detecting test in the tour de France last year (supported)….by computers.

7 All the activities of the computer system (are coordinated)….by the central processing unit.

8 In some modern systems information (hold’s)…. in optical disc.

4. In small groups , choose one of the areas below and discuss what computers can do in this areas:

a) Formula 1 cars; b) factories and industrial processes; c)entertainment; d)hospital and medical research.

Useful words:

Formula 1 cars: racing car, car body, design, mechanical parts, electronic components, engine speed.

Entertainment: game, music, animated image, multimedia, encyclopedia.

Factories: machinery, robot, production line, computer-aided manufacturing software.

Hospitals: patients, medical personnel, database program, records, scanner, diagnose, disease, robot, surgery.

Useful constructions

Computers are used to… A PC can also be used for… Computers can help… make… control… store… keep… provide… manage…give…perform… measure… test… provide access to…

Useful expressions

I think… I believe…I suppose…to my mind… In my opinion…I’m sure…As far as I know…I agree with you…That’s true…On one hand… On the other hand…I don’t think so…I see your point, but… It’s not entirely true.

5. Write a composition “Computer in my life”. Use your active vocabulary.

Unit 2. What’s inside a microcomputer?

1) Discuss the following questions.

1. What parts of a microcomputer do you know? What are their functions?

2. What types of memory do you know? How are they called? What’s the difference between them?

2) Read these terms aloud and suggest Russian equivalents:

central processing unit (CPU), circuit, to execute, control unit, disk drive, arithmetic logic unit (ALU), registers, program counter (PC), instruction register (IR), to evolve, to load, main memory/internal memory, to run an application, secondary storage devices(disks), RAM, ROM, expansion slots, boards, clock, SIMMs, cache, motherboard, routine, to erase, firmware.

3) Read the text and find out if you answered the questions (in exercise 1) correctly.

The nerve center of a microcomputer is the central processing unit or CPU. This unit is built into a single microprocessor chip – an integrated circuit –, which executes program instructions and supervises the computer’s overall operation. The unit consists of three main parts:

a) the control unit, which examines the instructions in the user’s program, interprets each instruction and causes the circuits and the rest of the components – disk drives, monitor, etc. – to be activated to execute the functions specified;

b) the arithmetic logic unit (ALU), which performs mathematical calculations (+, -, etc.) and logical operations (and, or, etc.);

c) the registers, which are high-speed units of memory used to store and control information. One of these registers is the program counter (PC), which keeps track of the next instruction to be performed in the main memory. Another is the instruction register (IR), which holds the instruction that is currently being executed.

One area where microcomputers differ is in the amount of data – the number of bits – they can work with at a time. There are 8, 16, 32 and 64-bit processors, and the computer’s internal architecture is evolving very quickly.

The programs and data, which pass through the central processor, must be loaded into the main memory (also called the internal memory) in order to be processed. Thus, when the user runs an application, the microprocessor looks for it on secondary storage devices (disks) and transfers a copy of the application into the RAM area.