Exercise 4. Comment on the following statement.

Every student ought to be able to read very fast.

One point of view: Reading requires thought; one needs time for thinking, reading ought to be a kind of dialogue with the author — this requires time; quality is more im­portant than quantity.

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A contrary point of view : Fast reading does not mean careless reading, nothing is left out, thinking can be very fast, fast reading is reading for meaning, it saves time (экономить) also for thinking, it is very important for a person to get a great deal of information in as little time as possible.

Exercise 5. Conduct a scientific meeting on: «Laser and its applications».

Use texts 10A, 10B, and IOC as a basis for the preparation of an oral talk (устное сообщение), short abstracts (краткие тезисы), summary (реферат) of the presenta­tion and for the discussion of the theme (тема).

Useful Words and Phrases of Scientific Communication at a scientific meeting, conference, round-table discussion, symposium, colloquium, seminar, session, con­gress, etc.

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Продолжение

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Окончание

Exercise 6. Read and smile.

A Story Too Terrible To Tell

Three men came to New York for the first time. They took a room in a hotel. In the evening they went sight-seeing and did not come back till nearly three in the morning. The room they had taken was on the 43rd floor. «I am sorry, gentlemen», said the por­ter, «but the elevator does not work, there is something wrong with it. You will have to walk up to your room». This was too bad, but the men agreed to tell stories on the way up in order to kill the time.

By the time the first one had told his story, they had climbed up to the 11th floor. The next story kept them amused till they had reached the 31st floor. At last it was time for the third man to tell his story, but he refused. He said the story he had in mind was too terrible, he simply couldn't tell it. They continued climbing and all the time the two asked him to begin. At last they stopped and re­fused to go on unless he told them his terrible story. «The story I have to tell you is a short one», he said at last, «we have left the key to our room downstairs with the porter».

Text 10b

Прочитайте текст и найдите информацию о преимуществах применения оптических волокон в технике связи; о том, что послужило основой разра­ботки систем оптической связи, а также о практическом применении опти­ческой технологии. Соотнесите отмеченные в тексте факты со следующими датами: 1960, 1970, 1982 гг. Изложите эту информацию по-английски.

Optical Technology

One of the most interesting developments in telecommunica­tion is the rapid progress of optical communication where optical

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fibers are replacing conventional telephone wires and cables. Just as digital technologies greatly improved the telephone system, opti­cal communication promises a considerable increase in capacity, quality, performance and reliability of the global telecommunica­tion network. New technologies such as optical fibers will increase the speed of telecommunication and provide new, specialized in-information service. Voice, computer data, even video images, will be increasingly integrated into a single digital communication network capable of processing and transmitting virtually any kind of information.

It is a result of combining two technologies: the laser, first dem­onstrated in 1960, and the fabrication 10 years later of ultra-thin silicon fibres which can serve as lightwave conductors. With the further development of very efficient lasers plus continually im­proved techniques to produce thin silica fibres of incredible trans­parency, optical systems can transmit pulses of light as far as 135 kilometers without the need for amplification or regeneration.

At present high-capacity optical transmission systems are being installed between many major US cities at a rapid rate. The system most widely used now operates at 147 megabits (thousand bits) per second and accommodates 6,000 circuits over a single pair of glass fibres (one for each direction of transmission). This system will soon be improved to operate at 1.7 gigabits (thousand million bits) per second and handle 24,000 telephone channels simultaneously.

A revolution in information storage is underway with optical disk technology.

The first digital optical disks were produced in 1982 as compact disks for music. They were further developed as a storage medium for computers. The disks are made of plastics coated with alu­minium. The information is recorded by using a powerful laser to imprint bubbles on the surface of the disk. A less powerful laser reads back the pictures, sound or information. An optical disk is al­most indestructible and can store about 1000 times more informa­tion than a plastic disk of the same size.

One CD-ROM disk (650 MB) can replace 300,000 pages of text (about 500 floppies), which represents a lot of savings in databases.

The future of optical storage is called DVD (digital versatile disk). A DVD-ROM can hold up to 17 GB, about 25 times an ordi­nary CD-ROM. For this reason, it can store a large amount of mul­timedia software and complete full-screen Hollywood movies in different languages. However, DVD-ROMs are «read-only» de­vices. To avoid this limitation, companies also produce DVD rewritable drives.

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Besides, it is reported that an optical equivalent of a transistor has been produced and intensive research on optical electronic computers is underway at a number of US companies as well as in countries around the world.

It is found that optical technology is cost-effective and versa­tile. It finds new applications every day — from connecting com­munication equipment or computers within the same building or room to long-distance transcontinental, transoceanic and space communications.

Text ioc

Прочитайте текст и расскажите о практическом применении лазеров.

An Encyclopedia on a Tiny Crystal

Scientists have discovered that a laser beam can be effectively used to record alphanumeric data and sound on crystals. According to Russian researchers a method for recording information on crys­tals by means of a laser has already been developed, but advanced technologies are needed to make it commercially applicable.

At present researchers are looking for the most suitable chemi­cal compounds to be used as data storages and trying to determine optimum recording conditions. Theoretically, the entire «Great Soviet Encyclopedia» can be recorded on a single tiny crystal.

As far back as 1845, Michael Faradey discovered that a light beam reverses its polarization as it passes through a magnetized crystal. Scientists of our day have used this phenomenon to identify crystalline materials capable of storing information. Lasers have been successfully employed to record information on and read it off.

No ideal data storage crystal has yet been found, but it is obvi­ous now that the future of computer engineering lies in lasers and optoelectronics.

Text 10d

Прочитайте текст и найдите примеры все возрастающей тенденции к более тесному международному сотрудничеству. Почему такое сотрудничество необ­ходимо? Назовите страны-участницы такого сотрудничества. Запомните произ­ношение названий стран.

Science and International Cooperation

One of the most striking features of modern science is the in­creasing tendency towards closer cooperation between scientists and scientific organizations (institutions) all over the world. In

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fact, it is becoming more and more evident that many of the prob­lems that affect the world today cannot be solved without joining scientific efforts and material resources on a wo rid-wide scale. The exploration of space, world finance, global environment protection problems and the development of new sources of power are the ex­amples of areas of scientific research which are so costly and com­plicated that it is difficult for a single country to solve them efficiently and in a short period of time. The renewal of interna­tional scientific cooperation was demonstrated in the sharing of data which were obtained by Russian, Japanese and European space probes in 1986 on Halley's comet.

Many countries were successfully cooperating on a programme called Intercosmos in launching a large number of vertical geo­physical rockets and satellites. Space exploration programmes were being conducted between Russia and Austria, India, France, Swe­den and other countries. Joint manned flights by Russian and for­eign cosmonauts included citizens from numerous countries. Many international crews have worked on orbit and carried out a lot of scientific experiments,

Russian and the U.S. engineers are now working side by side on the International Space Station, the largest peacetime engineering project in history.

Launched from opposite sides of the world, the first Interna­tional Space Station components Zarya and Unity have begun a new era of exploration as 16 nations joined their scientific and technological resources in the first truly international space pro­gram to improve life on Earth. Even before its launch, the Interna­tional Space Station has opened new spheres of research on Earth by overcoming barriers of language, culture and technological dif­ferences worldwide.

Indeed, it represents unprecedented (беспрецедентный, бес­примерный) global cooperation and trust. There is no doubt that it is the first step towards a unified «planetary civilization» that will explore space as citizens of Earth, not of individual nations.

Дополнительные задания

Упражнение 1. А. Прочитайте словосочетания из текста 10А и постарай­тесь понять значения выделенных слов.

time to disintegrate

the duration of the pulse

to be encountered

in just a fraction of a second

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В. Подберите к каждому выделенному в А слову соответствующее ему по значению.

a. to meet unexpectedly

b. only, merely

с break up into small parts

d. time during which smth lasts or exists

Упражнение 2. А. Прочитайте текст и постарайтесь понять значение сло­восочетания off-the-shelf item. Дайте определение или объяснение этому тер­мину.

Laser Propulsion

Another approach is to absorb laser light in a plasma «flame» sustained by laser light focused in the center of a flowing stream of propellant gas. Thrust levels as high as 10,000 N with a specific im­pulse (удельный импульс) of 1,000 sec appear achievable using hydrogen as the propellant gas. Laser power as low as 1 MW would be useful for low Earth orbit launching without relay optics. 10-100 MW lasers can launch small payloads from the ground. With up to 100 launches a day, a 20 MW launcher weighing 20 kg could place several hundred tons in orbit per year. Low-gigawatt lasers could launch multi-ton spacecraft with the same ease that present multi-gigawatt chemical rockets do. Laser rockets will have much better payload fraction since the heavy power plant is left on the ground and the higher specific impulse results in lower propellant fraction. Although gigawatt lasers are not off-the-shelf items, there is no doubt they could be built if the need were strong enough.

В. Выберите соответствующие контексту А значения выделенных слов.

approach

a. coming near to

b. approximation, a way to solve a problem с way, path, road

sustain

a. enable to keep up, maintain

b. suffer, undergo с keep from falling

relay

a. supply of fresh horses to take the place of tired ones

b. device which receives signals and transmits them with greater strength, thus increasing the distance over which they are carried

с place from which radio programs are broadcast after being received from another station

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payload

a. passengers and cargo, but not fuel

b. bomb in a missile

с crew and instruments of a spaceship item

a. each single thing, part or object in a list

b. detail or paragraph (of news) с number of a program

off-the-shelf

a. commercially available

b. ready to use

с possible or likely

Упражнение 3. Заполните пропуски словами. А.

capacity as well laser information light existing advantage space doubt amplified cost conventional

Optical fibres are made of glass and use (1) ... (usually from a (2) ... ) to transmit messages. There is no (3) ... optical fibre sys­tems have enormous (4) ... over (5) ... transmission systems. They have a much higher (6) ... than copper wires, can carry much more (7) ... and have a potentially lower material (8) ... Besides, optical fibres occupy far less (9) ... The quality of transmission is high (10) ... The signal does not need to be (11)... as often as with (12) ... ca­bles. Optical fibres do not suffer from interference.

в.

heat treatment distance melt identify beams vaporize displays light communication

Nowadays, lasers are used to (1) ... targets in military uses. In engineering, powerful laser (2) ... can be focused on a small area. They can (3) ..., (4) ..., or (5) ... material in a very precise way. La­sers are ideal for (6) ... in space. Laser light can travel long (7) ... without losing signal strength. In medicine, laser beams can be used for the (8) ... of damaged tissue (ткань) in a fraction of a sec­ond without causing harm (вреда) to healthy tissue. In the arts, la­sers can provide fantastic displays of (9) ... Pop concerts are often accompanied by laser (10) ...

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Упражнение 4. Составьте возможные словосочетания глаголов из колон­ки А и существительных из колонки В.

come to

overcome / encounter

record / store / carry

realize

place

В

a. information, data, sound

b. into orbit с a project

d. reality

e. difficulties, differences

Упражнение 5. Заполните таблицу на словообразование.

Упражнение 6. А. Назовите 15—20 ключевых слов и словосочетаний на тему: «Laser applications».

В. Speak about:

Laser as a means of propulsion.

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