Английский язык в сфере компьютерных и телекоммуникационных технологий (стр. 17 )

Angelica, 17, a schoolgirl: I use my phone to call my boyfriend. We get in touch very often because we can’t live without each other.

EXERCISE 8

Speak about how to use a mobile phone.

EXERCISE 9

Read the text and then decide which word (A, B, C or D) best fits each space. The exercise begins with an example (0).

Help always at hand: a mobile is a girl’s best friend

If it fits inside the pocket, keeps you (0) A as well in touch with your office, your mother and your children, it is (1) _____worth having. This is the (2)_____ of the (3)_____ ranks of female mobile-phone users who are beginning to (4)_____ the consumer market.

Although Britain has been (5)_____ to be one of the most expensive places in the world to (6)_____ a mobile phone, both professional women and (7)____ mothers are undeterred. At first, the mobile phone was a rich man plaything, or a businessman’s (8)-_____ symbol. Now women own almost as many telephones as men do – but for very different reasons.

The main (9)_____ for most women customers is that it (10)____ a form of communication back-up, wherever they are, in case of (11)_____ . James Tanner of Tancroft Communications says: “The (12)_____ of people buying phones from us this year were women – often young women – or men who were buying for their mothers, wives and girlfriends. And it always seems to be a questionof (13)____ of mind.

“Size is also (14)_____ for women. They want something that will fit in a handbag,” said Mr Tanner. “The tiny phones coming in are having a very big (15)_____ . This year’s models are only half the size of your hand.”

0	A safe	B secure	C  guarded	D protected
1	A totally	B certainly	C absolutely	D completely
2	A vision	B vista	C view	D panorama
3	A swelling	B increasing	C boosting	D maximising
4	A master	B dominate	C overbear	D command
5	demonstrated	B shown	C established	D seen
6	A function	B drive	C work	D run
7	A complete	B total	C full-time	D absolute
8	A prestige	B fame	C power	D status
9	A attraction	B enticement	C charm	D lure
10	A supplies	B furnishes	C provides	D gives
11	A urgency	B emergency	C predicament	D contingency
12	A most	B preponderance	C majority	D bulk
A tranquility	B calmness	C serenity	D peace
14	A crucial	B necessary	C urgent	D essential
15	A impact	B impression	C perception	D image

EXERCISE 10

Speak about SMS using the learnt vocabulary.

PART III

ROBOTICS

UNIT I

WHAT IS ROBOT

EXERCISE 1

Read and translate the text.

A robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or remotely controlled. Robots range from humanoids such as ASIMO1 and TOPIO2 to nano robots, swarm robots3, industrial robots, mobile and servicing mimicking a lifelike appearance or automating movements, a robot may convey a sense that it has intent or agency of its own. The branch of technology that deals with robots is robotics.

When societies first began developing, nearly all production and effort was the result of human labour, as well as with the aid of semi - and fully domesticated animals. As mechanical means of performing functions were discovered, and mechanics and complex mechanisms were developed, the need for human labour was reduced. Machinery was initially used for repetitive functions, such as lifting water and grinding grain. With technological advances more complex machines were slowly developed, such as those invented by Hero of Alexandria (in Egypt),  suchas the Automata of Al-Jazari in medieval Iraq. They were not widely adopted as slave labour was still inexpensive compared to the capital-intensive machines. Men such as Leonardo Da Vinci in 1495 through to Jacques de Vaucanson in 1739 have made plans for and built automata and robots leading to books of designs such as the Japanese Karakurizui in 1796. As mechanical techniques developed through the industrial age we find more practical applications such as Nikola Tesla in 1898, who designed a radio-controlled boat, and John Hammond Jr. and Benjamin Miessner who in 1912 created the Electric Dog as a precursor to their self directing torpedo of 1915. We also find a more android development as designers tried to mimic more human-like features including designs such as those of biologist Makoto Nishimura in 1929 and his creation Gakutensoku, which cried and changed its facial expressions, and the more crudeElektro from Westinghouse Electric Corporation in 1938.

Electronics then became the driving force of development instead of mechanics, with the advent of the first electronic autonomous robots created by William Grey Walter in Bristol, England, in 1948. The first digital and programmable robot was invented by George Devol in 1954 and was ultimately called the Unimate. Devol sold the first Unimate to General Motors in 1960 where it was used to lift pieces of hot metal from die casting machines in a plant in Trenton, New Jersey. Since then we have seen robots finally reach a more true assimilation of all technologies to produce robots which can walk and move like a human. Robots have replaced slaves in the assistance of performing those repetitive and dangerous tasks which humans prefer not to do, or are unable to do due to size limitations, or even those such as in outer space or at the bottom of the sea where humans could not survive the extreme environments.

Man has developed an awareness of the problems associated with autonomous robots and how they may act in society. Fear of robot behaviour, such as Shelley's Frankenstein, drive current practice in establishing what autonomy a robot should and should not be capable of. Thinking has developed through discussion of robot control and artificial intelligence and how its application should benefit society, such as those based around Asimov's three laws. Practicality still drives development forwards and robots are used in an increasingly wide variety of tasks such as vacuuming floors, mowing lawns, cleaning drains, investigating other planets, building cars, in entertainment and in warfare.

Notes to the text:

1ASIMO ("Advanced Step in Innovative MObility") is a humanoid robot created in 2000 by Honda as a helper to people. ASIMO is used to encourage young people to study science and mathematics, as well. At 130 cm  tall and 54 kg, ASIMO was designed to operate in real-world environments, with the ability to walk or run on two feet at speeds up to 6km/h. The robot has made public appearances around the world, including the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the Miraikan Museum and Honda Collection Hall in Japan and the Ars Electronica festival in Austria.

2TOPIO ("TOSY Ping Pong Playing Robot") is a bipedal humanoid robot designed to play table tennis against a human being. It has been developed since 2005 by TOSY, a robotics firm in Vietnam. It was publicly demonstrated at the Tokyo International Robot Exhibition on November 28, 2007. The latest version of TOPIO stands approximately 1.88 m tall and weighs 120 kg. Every TOPIO uses an advanced artificial intelligence system to learn and continuously improve its skill level while playing.

3Swarm robotics is a new approach to the coordination of multirobot systems which consist of large numbers of mostly simple physical robots. It is supposed that a desired collective behavior emerges from the interactions between the robots and interactions of robots with the environment. This approach emerged on the field of artificial swarm intelligence, as well as the biological studies of insects, ants and other fields in nature, where swarm behaviour occurs.

EXERCISE 2

Words and expressions to be remembered:

virtual - воображаемый; виртуальный	autonomous - автономный
guidance - руководство; управление	robotics - роботизация
domesticated-натурализованный, одомашненный	mimicking - подражание
ultimately - окончательно	precursor - предшественник
repetitive - повторяющийся	awareness - информированность, осведомлённость

EXERCISE 3

Make up your own sentences with the word combinations and phrases from exercise 2

EXERCISE 4

Read and translate the following words. Use them in your own word combinations.

Perform; remote; guide; control; range; convey; deals with; discover; reduce; grind; adopt; invent; create; produce; replace; prefer; survive; benefit.

EXERCISE 5

Complete the following: