Text Comprehension Exercises

I. Listen to the text “Telecommunications“ and answer the following questions

1. What basic network components is telecommunications comprised of?

2. What does telecommunications usually involve?

3. How does telecommunications work?

4. What technologies does telecommunications without wires use?

II. Listen to the text again and say which of the following replies is correct

1.Telecommunication devices convert different types of information into:

1. electromagnetic waves; b. electronic signals; c. radio waves.

2. When a signal reaches its destination, the device on the receiving end converts the electronic signal back into an: a. illegible; b. original; c. understandable message.

3. These impulses are then sent by wires, radio waves, or other media to a receiver that: a. encodes; b. decodes; c. changes the modulation.

4. Cable television provides hundreds of video: a. channels; b. programs; c. signals to subscribers.

5. The satellites receive transmissions from Earth and transmit them back to numerous Earth station: a. transmitters; b. switches; c. receivers.

Text Exercises

I. Read the text and find in it English equivalents of the following words and word combinations

Коммутация, реципиент, волоконно-оптический кабель, сотовый телефон, обеспечивать, гибкость, спутник, программное обеспечение, средства доступа, объем информации, способ передачи информации, отражать, первоначальное средство, медный провод, телевизионный канал, исходное сообщение, телефонный разговор, движущаяся картинка, средство передачи.

II. Read the text and answer the following questions

1. What types of information do telecommunications devices convert?

2. What are telecommunications media?

3. What constitutes user equipment?

4. What is switching?

5. What form of transmission is known as analogue?

6. What are the advantages of fibre-optic cables and digital transmissions?

7. How does wireless telecommunications work?

8. What characteristics of communications satellites as a form of telecommunications are important?

III. Agree or disagree with the following statements, in your answers use the standard expressions of agreement or disagreement

1. Telecommunications only includes devices to provide reliable telephone communications. 2. Telecommunications devices convert sound and video information into electronic signals. 3. Telecommunications enables people to maintain contacts across town, between towns and countries, and to or from any flying or sailing object. 4. Any telecommunications system is a network of cables, wires, switching or broadcasting stations. 5. Radio waves were the original media for telecommunications. 6. Fire-optic cables were the first to be used in the telephones of the last century. 7.Wireless communication offers increased mobility and flexibility. 8. Communication satellites are used only for weather forecasting purposes.

IV. Develop the following ideas, use the words and word combinations provided in brackets

1. Telecommunications system enables people to communicate with each other (electronic signals, to transmit, across long distances, to send and receive messages, a sender, a recipient, media, devices, systems, to convert information, to reach its destination, an understandable message, to enable, etc.).

2. Telecommunications involves 3 basic network components (to access the network, user equipment, transmission, switching, to provide a means of, huge amounts of data, hierarchy of local, long-distance and international switches, to connect, etc.).

3. Telecommunications makes use of different types of media to transmit messages (original messages, wires and cables, coaxial cables, switching stations, fibre-optic cables, radio waves, cordless phones, cellular radiotelephones, cable television, telephone system, cable television, wireless communication, to provide hundreds of video channels to subscribers, to transmit several TV channels, thousands of telephone conversations, walkie-talkies, etc.).

4. Wireless communications offers increased mobility and flexibility (examples of devices, television, radio, cellular radiotelephones, to operate by modifying electronic signals, the medium of communication, radio waves, micro waves, telephone companies, analogue transmission, to use, to send signals over long distances, to transmit digital information, digital networks, computers, to carry a mix of voice, data, text and pictures, etc.).

5. Communications satellites transmit telecommunications all over the globe (without any need, network, wires and cables, located far from each other, ship, airplane and land navigators, to determine one’s geographic location, to receive signals from satellites, etc.).

3. Extend the following statements, use the text for your reference

   1. Telecommunications involves a sender of information, recipients and transmitting media.

   2. Telecommunications networks have 3 basic hardware components.

3. Wires and cables are original media for telecommunications.

4. Wireless telecommunications uses modern technologies.

5. Digital information transmission has many advantages over analogue transmission.

6. Telecommunications satellites further enhance telecommunications application.

4. Speak on:

   1. the telecommunications definition;

   2. the telecommunications networks;

   3. the telecommunications media;

   4. the types of telecommunications;

   5. modern advances in telecommunications.