Английский язык для специалистов по мехатронике и робототехнике. English for mechatronics and robotics students. Учебное пособие

20. Join these pairs of sentences into single sentences. Use which, where, from where and who to replace the words in italics.

Example: 1 ... to the satellite, from where ...

1The beacon sends a signal to the satellite. From here the signal is transmitted to the ground station.

2The rescue centre contacts the helicopter pilot. He or she then carries out the rescue.

3The sailor activated his beacon. This sent a 406 MHz signal to the sat-

ellite.

4The sailors were winched into the helicopter. Here they were given blankets and hot drinks.

5The sailors were taken by helicopter to the rescue centre. From here, they were driven by ambulance to the nearest hospital.

6Hundreds of survivors are saved every year by the Cospas-Sarsat system. This was first launched in 1982.

WRITING

21. Write your own summary of the text “Energy Conversion in Mechatronic Systems” in 100-120 words.

SPEAKING

22. Choose the device that illustrates certain type of conversion in mechatronic systems. Prepare a presentation that will show how it works.

The text below gives you the example of such kind of a device.

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UNIT 6. General Energy

BEFORE YOU READ

What do we need energy for?

VOCABULARY

Study the following words and phrases. Try to memorize them.

READING

1. Read the text and translate it.

What is Energy?

Energy lights our cities, powers our vehicles, and runs machinery in factories. It warms and cools our homes, cooks our food, plays our music, and gives us pictures on television.

Energy is defined as the ability or the capacity to do work.

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We use energy to do work and make all movements. When we eat, our bodies transform the food into energy to do work. When we run or walk or do some work, we 'burn' energy in our bodies. Cars, planes, trolleys, boats, and machinery also transform energy into work. Work means moving or lifting something, warming or lighting something. There are many sources of energy that help to run the various machines invented by man.

The discovery of fire by man led to the possibility of burning wood for cooking and heating thereby using energy. For several thousand years human energy demands were met only by renewable energy sources sun, biomass (wood, leaves, twigs), hydel (water) and wind power.

As early as 40003500 BC, the first sailing ships and windmills were developed harnessing wind energy. With the use of hydropower through water mills or irrigation systems, things began to move faster. Fuelwood and dung cakes are even today a major source of energy in rural India. Solar energy is used for drying and heating.

With the advent of the Industrial Revolution, the use of energy in the form of fossil fuels began growing as more and more industries were set up. This occurred in stages, from the exploitation of coal deposits to the exploitation of oil and natural gas fields. It has been only half a century since nuclear power began being used as an energy source.

In the past century, it became evident that the consumption of non-renew- able sources of energy had caused more environmental damage than any other human activity. Electricity generated from fossil fuels such as coal and crude oil has led to high concentrations of harmful gases in the atmosphere. This has in turn led to problems such as ozone depletion and global warming. Vehicular pollution is also a grave problem.

There has been an enormous increase in the demand for energy since the middle of the last century as a result of industrial development and population growth. World population grew 3,2 times between 1850 and 1970, per capita use of industrial energy increased about twenty-fold, and total world use of industrial and traditional energy forms combined increased more than twelvefold.

Due to the problems associated with the use of fossil fuels, alternative sources of energy have become important and relevant in today’s world. These sources, such as the sun and wind, can never be exhausted and are therefore called renewable. Also known as non-conventional sources of

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energy, they cause less emission and are available locally. Their use can significantly reduce chemical, radioactive, and thermal pollution. They are viable sources of clean and limitless energy. Most of the renewable sources of energy are fairly non-polluting and considered clean. However, biomass is a major polluter indoors.

Renewable energy sources include the sun, wind, water, agricultural residue, fuelwood, and animal dung. Fossil fuels are nonrenewable sources. Energy generated from the sun is known as solar energy. Hydel is the energy derived from water. Biomassfirewood, animal dung, and biodegradable waste from cities and crop residues - is a source of energy when it is burnt. Geothermal energy is derived from hot dry rocks, magma, hot water springs, natural geysers, etc. Ocean thermal is energy derived from waves and also from tidal waves.

Through the method of co-generation a cleaner and less polluting form of energy is being generated. Fuel cells are also being used as cleaner energy source.

Total commercial energy consumption has been growing tremendously since the last decade. Per capita commercial energy consumption in low-in- come countries have more than doubled.

About 15% of the world's population living in the wealthy industrialized nations consume over half the energy used in the world.

The number of motor vehicles in use worldwide has more than doubled since 1970.

In some respects, the global energy system has evolved in a cleaner direction in the last 25 years. The share of world primary energy derived from natural gasthe cleanest fossil fuelhas increased by more than 25%. So has the use and generation of renewable energy sources.

Still, the overall efficiency of energy production remains extremely low: on average, more than 90% of energy consumed is lost or wasted in the process of conversion from raw materials such as coal to the final energy service such as the light to read a book. The main problem isn't that we use energy, but how we produce and consume energy resources. What we really need are energy sources that will last forever and can be used without polluting the environment. Conserving energy has become the need of the day be it in the transport, household, or industrial sectors.

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DEVELOPING PROFESSIONAL VOCABULARY

Working out the meaning of unknown words

2. The following words in the box are all from the text above. Find them in the text.

3. For each word, read the sentence it occurs in and answer the questions.

a)Is the word positive, negative or neutral?

b)Is it a noun, adjective, adverb or verb?

c)Can you think of a word with a similar meaning (synonym) and one with an opposite meaning (antonym)?

AFTER READING TASKS

4. Answer the following questions and give examples.

1)Why do we need energy?

2)When did people begin to use wind energy? Give the reason.

3)When did the use of energy in the form of fossil fuels begin growing?

Why?

4)Why have alternative sources of energy become important and relevant in today's world?

5)What are non-conventional energy sources?

6)Where is geothermal energy derived from?

7)What method was used to generate a cleaner and less polluting form of energy?

8)What sources do we call non-renewable? Why?

9)What is the main problem we deal with nowadays?

5. Decide whether the following statements are true or false according to the text.

1)The discovery of fire by man was the first step to use energy.

2)The very first energy sources were renewable.

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3)The use of wind energy influenced the speed of moving.

4)Hydropower is a major source of energy in some countries.

5)Nuclear power has been used as an energy source for a century.

6)Vehicular pollution is considered to be a serious problem.

7)Industrial development and population growth results in increasing demand for energy.

8)The sun, wind, water are non-renewable sources.

9)Hydropower is energy derived from waves.

10)The use and generation of renewable energy sources have increased by more than 25%.

6. Complete the following sentences according to the text.

1)Energy is defined as ....

2)Work means ....

3)The consumption of non-renewable sources of energy causes ....

4)Such sources as the sun and wind, can never be exhausted and are therefore called ....

5)Renewable energy sources include ....

6)15% of the world's population in developed countries consume ....

7. Match the terms with their definitions

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8. What parts of the text can you define? Do they correspond to the paragraphs? Name each part.

1._________.

2._________.

3.__________.

4.__________.

5.___________.

9. Match the synonyms.

10. Make sentences by putting the words in the correct order.

1)Defined/ Energy/ is/ as /the /or/ the /do/ ability/ to/ work/ capacity.

2)Energy/ Conserving/ has/ the/ transport/ become /of /the /need /day/ it/ be /in /the/, industrial /or /sectors/ household.

3)Energy/ sources/ and/ a/ Non-conventional /of /less/ cause/ are/ locally /Emission /available.

4)thermal /Ocean /tidal/ energy/ is/ from/ waves /derived /and /from/ waves /also.

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5)Cleaner/ global/ The/ evolved/ energy/ has/ system/ in /a/ in/ 25/ the/

last/

6)direction /years.

7)number /1970/ The /of /vehicles/ motor/ use/ in/ has/ worldwide/ than /more/ since/ doubled.

8)are /cells /Fuel /being /also/ as //cleaner used /source /energy.

9)also /grave /problem/ Vehicular /is/ a /pollution.

11. Fill in the correct prepositions, then choose any five items and make up sentences of your own.

1)to transform smth ... smth; 2) due ... the problem; 3) to be ... turn;

4)... some respects; 5) to increase ... demand; 6) to increase ...25%; 7) the demand ... energy; 8) ... average; 9) a result ... development; 10) need ... the day.

GRAMMAR FOCUS

12. All these sentences are from the text” What is Energy?”. Find nouns in all the sentences and tell whether they are countable or uncountable.

1)Energy lights our cities, powers our vehicles, and runs machinery in factories.

2)We use energy to do work and make all movements

3)The discovery of fire by man led to the possibility of burning wood for cooking and heating thereby using energy

4)Fuelwood and dung cakes are even today a major source of energy in rural India.

5)Solar energy is used for drying and heating.

Countable and uncountable nouns

We can identify two classes of nouns: countable

uncountable

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A countable noun typically has both a singular and plural form. Look at the following(production)words:

component/components • cycle/cycles • defect/defects factory/factories • line/lines • machine/machines

An uncountable noun typically has only one form, which normally takes a singular verb. Look at the following (health and safety) words:

dust • environment • friction • harm • inhalation • waste

Notes:

1A small number of countable nouns only have a plural form:

The report identified six major findings.

2A small number of uncountable nouns take a plural verb:

briefs (textiles) • clothes (textiles) • eaves (construction) goods (production) • jeans (textiles)

Also: gasworks (energy), waterworks (energy) and other compound words with works.

3 A small number of uncountable nouns look plural, but take a singular verb: electronics (electronics); hydraulics (energy); mechatronics

Hydraulics is a branch of science that deals with practical applications (like the transmission of energy or the effects of flow) of liquid (like water) in motion.

13. Decide if the following nouns are countable or uncountable and write them in the appropriate column below.

drill • dye • electronic mail • equipment • factory • fault • information • laboratory machine • machinery • packaging • pollution • reliability • silk

• tunnel •energy • food • work • biomass

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14. Complete the sentences with a suitable noun from the box. Make it plural or add a/an if necessary.

study • paint • pavement • storage • prevention • disposal • reservoir • inspection

1.The European Community has prepared guidelines on waste_________ .

2.Companies usually want to deliver goods as soon as they have been completed because___________ takes up a lot of room and is very expensive.

3.Government officials have carried out___________ of the factory.

4.The main aim of the training is accident_______________ .

5.Painters often use hot air guns to burn off old____________ .

6.During icy weather, the____________at the side of the road may become slippery.

7.Drinking water for the local population comes from_________________ in the mountains.

8.Scientists arc carrying out_______________of children's eating habits.

WORD BUILDING

15. Form the verbs from the following nouns and translate them.

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