Английский язык для аспирантов. Вводно-адаптивный курс. Учебное пособие

Intelligent Machines

Precis

The text under review is entitled “Intelligent Machines” and is published in M. Berman’s book “Read and Recall: Passages for Advanced Reading Comprehension in English", London, 1980.

The problems spotlighted by the author deal with the evolution of artificial intelligence and the role of computers in particular.

As it is proved in the text, “intelligence” in a machine, as in a human. is best defined as the ability to solve complex problems swiftly,

In the first two paragraphs the author Outlines the possible uses of a computer.

Further in compressed form Berman focuses his attention on the Turing Test, proposed by the late British mathematician Alan Turing.

The hypothesis is put forward, that “the rise of machine’s IQ will be swift and the most likely outcome is a world-wide slave empire, in which we are the masters and the computers virtually run the planet for us”.

The author finds it significant to acquaint the reader with Professor Isaak Asimov’s three “Laws that are programmed into intelligent machines as instincts.

To conclude my precis I should remark that the problems treated in the article are of great value for those who are enthusiastic about computers and their role in the man’s life.

THE ART OF THINKING

2600 печатных знаков

What is thinking? The word “thinking”, like other words, has several meanings. The word is used popularly in the sense of “to have an opinion”. This opinion may be our own or it may be merely an echo of somebody else’s opinion. One of the definitions of the verb “to think” as given in the dictionary is “to express the mind otherwise than by passive reception of another's ideas”. And indeed the word is best used to mean real thinking: putting two and two together, and trying to find out the truth …

To accept as true certain thoughts because they happen to be popular, or modern, or because some person with a great name has told us that they are true, is not real thinking at all. It is precisely against this bad habit of looking

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to authority that Roger Bacon warned us over 500 years ago, and Aristotle long before that.

The most active form of thinking is found when we are discussing or arguing with others. А discussion consists in comparing our views or thoughts with those of others in order to see in what degree or measure our thoughts agree or disagree. By discussion we may modify our views or the views held by others. An argument is more in the nature of a battle, with thoughts used as weapons.

Therefore when we argue, we sometimes are less interested in finding the truth than winning our case and defeating (getting the better of) our opponent <...>.

Thinking may also be called “the machinery of association”, for it is to a large extent connected with memory: when we think we are putting facts into combination with facts – we are “putting two and two together”, as the saying is.

We may now ask ourselves the question: “May we, by striving, become good thinkers?" This depends largely upon the nature of our interest. There are false or doubtful kinds of interest, as well as good ones. A man may be interested simply in making money, and the machinery of association in his mind will work with astonishing skill and rapidity; or a boy may be interested only in passing an examination, and so his machinery of association works hard for a time at something or other, and after the examination, he seldom or never thinks of it again.

Worst of all. perhaps, in its results, is the kind of interest which sets men studying things only in order to defeat someone else, or to prove that they are right. or to make success for the party or the class to which they belong... This kind of interest is extremely powerful and very general. Unfortunately. interest of this kind and interest in money are the driving powers of most of the thinking that is done in the Western world.

Let us. rather. resolve to found our thoughts on the sort of interest which leads toward the discovery of truth, for there can be no higher ideal. The English translation of a certain Latin proverb runs. “Great is truth. and it shall prevail” or to put it more briefly:

“Truth will conquer”. And for truth to prevail we require thinkers, real thinkers unprejudiced thinkers, who are able to find and remember facts, and draw valid conclusions from them (Palmer Н. Е. Standard English Reader. London, [s. a]. Р. 347).

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Precis

1.The article I‘ve just compressed is entitled the “Art of Thinking".

2.The article is published in “Standard English Reader" and its author is Palmer H. E.

3.The problem considered is art of thinking.

4.From the very beginning Palmer makes a deep analysis of such a phenomenon as thinking.

5.He attracts our attention to the definitions of the word “to think”.

6.Further the author speaks in compressed form about the forms of thinking.

7.A hypothesis is put forward that the most active forms of thinking are discussing and arguing.

8.The author finds it significant to remark that thinking is to a large extent connected with memory.

9.He also touches upon the nature of interest and strongly believes that the sort of interest which leads toward the discovery of truth is of the highest idial.

10.I should say, I find this article useful and rather informative for young researchers.

CURIOSITY AS AN INCENTIVE TO THINKING

1500 печатных знаков

In common with other animals we are born with an instinct of curiosity. It provides the incentive for the young to discover the world in which they live <...>.

The curiosity of the scientist is usually directed toward seeking an understanding of things or relationships which he notices have no satisfactory explanation. Explanations usually consist in connecting new observations or ideas to accepted facts or ideas. An explanation may be a generalization which ties together a bundle of data into an orderly whole that can be connected up with current knowledge and beliefs <...> The student attracted to research is usually one who retains more curiosity than usual.

We have seen that the stimulus to the production of ideas is the awareness of the present unsatisfactory state of knowledge. People with no curiosity sel-

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dom get this stimulus, for one usually becomes aware of the problem by asking why or how some process works, or something takes the form that it does. That a question is a stimulus is demonstrated by the fact that when someone asks a question it requires an effort to restrain oneself from responding.

<…> Asking «why» is a useful stimulus toward imagining what the cause or purpose may be. «How» is also a useful question in provoking thought about the mechanism of a process.

There is no satisfying the scientists’ curiosity, for, with each advance we reach a higher level from which аwider field of vision is open to us, and from which we can see events previously out of range (Beveridge W. I. B. The Art of Scientific Investigation. P. 84-85).

Resume

The article I'm going to summarize is “Curiosity as an Incentive to Thinking”. The author is Beveridge W. I. The article is published in “The Art of Scientific Investigation”. The problem considered is curiosity, its nature and essence.

The author comes to a conclusion that there cannot be any satisfying the scientists’ curiosity because of unsatisfactory state of knowledge

CLASSROOM ASSESSMENT TECHNIQUES (CATS)

Lee Haugen, Center for Teaching Excellence, Iowa State University 1500 печатных знаков

What are CATs?

Classroom Assessment Techniques are formative evaluation methods that serve two purposes. They can help you to assess the degree to which your students understand the course content and they can provide you with information about the effectiveness of your teaching methods. Most are designed to be quick and easy to use and each CAT provides different kinds of information.

Formative Evaluations

Formative evaluations provide information that can be used to improve course content, methods of teaching, and, ultimately, student learning. Formative evaluations are most effective when they are done frequently and the

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information is used to effect immediate adjustments in the day—to-day operations of the course. Some faculty incorporate a CAT into every class session.

How do CATS improve teaching and learning?

When CATs are used frequently, they can have the following impacts: For faculty, CATS can:

‒provide day-to-day feedback that can be applied immediately;

‒provide useful information about what students have learned without the amount of time required for preparing tests, reading papers, etc.;

‒allow you to address student misconceptions or lack of understanding in a timely way;

‒help to foster good working relationships with students and encourage them to understand that teaching and learning are on-going processes that require full participation.

For students, CATs can:

‒help develop self-assessment and learning management skills;

‒reduce feelings of isolation and impotence, especially in large classes;

‒increase understanding and ability to think critically about the course content;

‒foster an attitude that values understanding and long-term retention;

‒show your interest and caring about their success in your classroom.

Resume

Classroom Assessment Techniques (CATs)

The passage I’m dealing with is taken from the article “Classroom Assessment Techniques (CATs) written by Lee Haugen, Iowa State University.

As the title implies, the material is concerned with formative evaluation methods in teaching. The author outlines some impacts CATs can have, if they are used frequently and summarizes the results students may achieve operating with CATs.

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Приложение

Examination Questions

1.When did you graduate from the University?

2.What faculty did you study at?

3.Are you a post-graduate (an attached student. a probationer)?

4.Are you a correspondence post-graduate?

5.Who is your supervisor (scientific adviser)?

6.Have you already chosen the topic (subject, theme) of your scientific research?

7.What will be the title of your dissertation?

8.What problems are you going to deal with in your research?

9.What are your scientific interests?

10.What problem are you especially interested in?

11.What do you intend to prove in your dissertation?

12.What ideas do you put forward in your scientific work?

13.Have you analyzed practical applications of your work?

l4. Is your research carried out in collaboration with your colleagues from the chair? 15. What are the professional tasks and problems facing specialists in your narrow

field of science?

l6. Have you written any papers. connected with the theme of your dissertation?

17.Have you any publications. Where?

18.Have you passed any candidate examinations?

19.Was your exam in Philosophy (in a speciality) a success?

20.What mark did you get in Philosophy?

21.Have you already started writing your thesis?

22.Have you already collected material for your thesis?

23.Have you taken part in any scientific (practical) conferences? What report did you deliver there?

24.What did you manage to do during this study year?

25.Was the plan of your post-graduate work approved by the chair (by the scientific council)?

26.What difficulties did you face with while preparing for the candidate exam in English?

27.What narrow field of science do you deal with?

28.What form of the post-graduate courses are you going to take?

29.How many examinations do you take when entering the post-graduate courses?

30.What entrance examinations do you take when you enter the post-graduate courses?

31.How long does the training course of the post-graduate courses last?

32.What chair will you be attached to when you become a post-graduate student?

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About Myself and My Scientific Interests

1.I guess I’d start with introducing myself. I’m Ivanov Andrey and at present I’m working at Novosibirsk State Technical University as a lecturer. I’m engaged with full-time, evening and extramural students. Studying isn’t an easy process, taking a lot of time and patience. But it can be said for sure that most students are trying to do their best.

As for me I was born in Novosibirsk and my childhood and school years didn’t differ much from those of other people. I did pretty well at school and it wasn’t a problem for me to enter the University and to get higher education free of charge. At the University we happened to have good teachers who treated us with great respect. They gave us profound knowledge, helped us to develop our critical and creative thinking, to form our views, characters, attitudes to life and other people. While at the University we made a lot of investigations, analyzed phenomena by means of particular techniques, participated in festivals and scientific conferences. We appreciated the opportunity of working on our own initiative and to take a certain amount of responsibility.

Five years have passed since I graduated from the University. I realize that a moment has come to make further progress in my life. So, I entered post-graduate courses. If I finish the course and write a thesis I’ll get a candidate degree.

I know for sure that doing research work will be of great difficulty for me, because the narrow field of Chemical Technology I’ve chosen is too hard. I am aware that much progress has been made in this very field of Chemistry, a series of experiments have been performed but I believe my supervisor Petrov V.V. will help me anyway to find necessary approaches to my research.

I hope to take part in conferences that provide a stimulating environment of the exchange of information on the latest scientific results and promote cooperation of scientists of the country.

I dare assume that someday my participation will probably contribute to understanding di erent processes occurring in my field of study.

Thank you for your time and attention.

2.My Field of Study

My field of study is Computer Science with a major in Cyber Security. I selected this major as soon as I entered the University in…. I enjoyed math and science at the University, and as a result I became involved with a project called the National Engineering Design Challenge. I helped design the computer system on my team project, I had the opportunity to present it at a regional competition and I really enjoyed the technical and teamwork aspects of this work. So, I thought that a career in engineering would be a good fit for me.

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Besides, I enjoy problem solving and love a challenge, and I believe that Computer Science will be a challenging, but rewarding course of study.

The more I learned about engineering and the broad range of career opportunities available to engineers, the more excited I became about my chosen field.

3. Cyber Security Engineers

In general, security engineers develop and supervise data and technology security systems to help prevent breaches, taps, and leaks associated with cybercrime. Alternate titles for this career include information assurance engineer, information systems security engineer, and information security engineer.

Companies may combine a security engineering role with an analyst's role, but these positions typically focus on different things. Security analysts identify cybersecurity weaknesses, while security engineers build systems, such as firewalls and intrusion detection systems, to defend against attacks or leaks.

As commerce and data storage increasingly move into the cloud, organizations increasingly require robust information security systems. As a result, information security professionals can work across diverse industries, such as computer systems design, manufacturing, insurance, finance, and education.

4. Materials Engineers

Materials engineers develop, process, and test materials used to create a wide range of products.

They generally work in offices where they have access to computers and design equipment. Others work in factories or research and development laboratories. Materials engineers typically work full time and may work overtime hours when necessary.

Materials engineers must have a Master’s degree in materials science and engineering or in a related engineering field. Completing internships and cooperative engineering programs while at University can be helpful in getting hired as a materials engineer.

Employment of materials engineers is projected to show little or no change over the next ten years. Materials engineers will be needed to design uses for new materials both in traditional industries, such as aerospace manufacturing, and in industries focused on new medical or scientific products. However, most materials engineers work in manufacturing industries, many of which are expected to have declines or little change in employment.

5. Computer Science

The question "What is your field of study? " is easily answered. It is Computer Science. However, the question "Why did you take it?" is harder to respond to.

I'm not the kind to plan out my career. When asked the typical question if "What to do want to be when you grow up?" I never had a real answer. I had two major

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things I liked though - books and gadgets. And yet, though I liked reading books, I didn't like discussing them, in an academic sort of way. For me, reading was more about stories. That, combined with the society's attitude towards those who took up humanities, means I never went the literary way for a career.

So I took up the science stream in school, specifically Bio with Maths, for various reasons. Now, there are two very clear cut options for a science student - IIT-JEE and AIPMT. My parents went ahead and enrolled me into IIT coaching, since I didn't find Biology to my liking. I should clarify that it wasn't that I was forced into taking JEE coaching, but I wasn't interested in anything specifically, so I let my parents decide.

So, a few stumbles and I got an AIR of 3647. I went through counselling, pretty much filling choices semi-randomly, and got Dual Degree program in Biotechnology in IIT Madras. I decided to give it another shot, and dropped a year, and next year my AIR was 88.

Good enough, I could take pretty much any branch I wanted. So I just went ahead and took the one with the most hype - Computer Science. Of course, it wasn't totally random. I had the aforementioned passion for gadgets - specifically computers, and I had taken an online course on Python earlier, just for the hell of it, and liked what I saw of programming.

Luckily, it turned out to be a good fit for me. I enjoy coding, and from what I've seen of other branches in my two years at college, I would not have enjoyed any other branch. So, that's how I came to be in CS.

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