The phrases underlined in the text have figurative meaning. Explain them in different words.
Revise what you’ve learnt about the first computer. Make a short report.
Below you have the address you may contact with Manchester University and Linda Brackenbury. Think of two more questions you would like to ask her.
BBC Manchester, New Broadcasting House, PO Box 27, Oxford Road, Manchester, M60 1SJ
phone: 0161 200 2020 | e-mail: manchester.online@bbc.co.uk
Separate the following words into categories. Then write all possible derivatives to these words. The first is done for you. (See Appendix 3)
considerable, combine, end, impress, sufficient, compete, able, perform, improve, typical, communicate, science, develop, program, announce, forerun, afford
| noun
| verb
| adjective
| adverb
|
| consideration
?
| consider
combine
| considerable
?
| considerably
|
Read the texts and define what parts of speech are needed in the blanks.
Write the correct form of the word in capitals to complete the gaps.
| Computer That Play Games
Computers have had the (1)___________ to play chess for many years now, and their (2)____________ in games against the best player in the world has shown steady (3)_____________. However it will be years before the designers of computer games machines can beat their (4)____________ challenge yet – the ancient board game called ‘Go’. The play area is (5)____________ larger than in chess and there are far more pieces, so that the (6)_____________ of moves is almost (7)________________. The game involves planning so many moves ahead that even the (8)________________ calculations of the fastest modern computer are (9)_____________ to deal with the problems of the game.
In recent (10)____________________ for compute ‘Go” machines, the best machine beat all its rivals, but lost (11)________________to three young school children, so there is obviously still a lot work to do.
|
ABLE
PERFORM
IMPROVE
BIG
CONSIDERABLE
COMBINE
END
IMPRESS
SUFFICIENT
COMPETE
HEAVY
|
| Computer
The word computer once referred to a person tasked with (1)____________ mathematical calculations. Today, computer (2)_____________ means the machine sitting in front of you, a multi-purpose device that can be used for a range of tasks, from (3)_________________ to digital photography. But pinpointing the birth of the computer in the modern sense is not straightforward.
Engineers might chart the history of the computer as physical object, whilst (4)_____________ might concern themselves with the computer as (5)_____________ idea. Thus Charles Babbage's " Analytical Engine", though never actually built, is often cited as the first (6)_________________ computer.
The first electronic computers were large and (7)_________ and were used to complete military objectives. The American ENIAC, (8)___________ in 1946, had been originally built to calculate artillery ballistics firing tables.
Stored program computers (computers that store its program in its own memory, rather than, for example, on a punched card) can be considered the (9)_______________ to the modern computer. These were developed in the late 1940s. However, it was the (10)______________ of the microprocessor in the 1970s that was to usher in the age of the (11)_________________ personal computer".
|
PERFORM
TYPICAL
COMMUNICATE
MATHEMATICS SCIENCE
PROGRAM
COST
ANNOUNCE
FORERUN
DEVELOP
AFFORD
|
18 Imaging you are writing your autobiography or memoir. Write a paragraph in which you tell about the role of computer in your life. Think of a good title for the paragraph. Write about 120-150 words.
Check that you know these words and phrases.
| advanced computer user
capable of running the same software
communicate
competing operating systems
considerable
desktop publishing
graphicscapability
hardware
installation
integrated circuit
processing power
program
replica
science
single-user systems
sophisticated facilities
sufficient
technical apparatus
| to afford
to combine
to compete
to design
to develop
to do the programming
to download
to forerun
to form networks
to impress
to improve
to make graphs
to perform
to process data,
to run spreadsheets
to send messages,
to store
to surf the net,
valve
word processing
|
UNIT2
COMPUTER STRUCTURE
Label the computer system shown in the picture.
Keyboard, key, mouse, monitor, printer, screen, system unit, floppy drive, case, cable, floppy disk
Work with a partner. Read these slogans and quotations and guess what computer element they refer to. Then make a similar slogan for any part of the computer system and let your group-mates guess.
1 A “Point and click here for power.”
B “Obeys every impulse as if it were an extension of your hand.”
2 A “Displays your ideas with perfect brilliance.”
B “See the difference – sharp images and a fantastic range of colours.”
3 A “I love this drive. It’s quiet and fast.”
B “With this it’s easy to back up your data before it’s too late.”
4 A “Power and speed on the inside.”
B “Let your computer brain to do the work.”
5 A “…a big impact on the production of text and graphics”
B “Your choice: a laser power house”
