Computers in business

Computers have become part and parcel of everyday life. No wonder today's schoolchildren carry around calculating power which would have filled a large room forty years ago. Computer scientists are now working on the next generation of computers; ones which will have true intelligence. The first step on the way is development of 'expert systems' which are partially intelligent.

For example, researchers at Stanford University have developed a computer for medical diagnosis. It stores 125 facts about each of 600 diseases. It can tell doctors which questions to ask, and which measurements to take. What is more, it can make an accurate diagnosis.

Scientists from University of California have invented computers which can write stones, while IBM has developed the Epistle program for business letters which can correct spelling, improve grammar and style and even check for mistakes by giving a list of words with similar sounds.

One of the most interesting programs, developed recently at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), is a kind of computer psychiatrist. There is another program called Eliza that is worth mentioning. It was developed by Professor Joseph Weizenbaum. It uses a technique known as 'reflective listening'. The computer seems to understand, and to make sympathetic responses. In fact it does not understand a word that is being typed into it.

(1394)

Notes

1. part and parcel – неотъемлемая часть

Задание 1. Прочитайте и переведите текст.

Задание 2. Согласитесь или не согласитесь со следующими утверждениями:

1. A computer can replace doctors in clinics and do their jobs more efficiently.

2. Computers have many more capacities than we can imagine.

3. The stories that computers write can't compete with those written by people.

4. A computer can correct the spelling of business letters but can't correct grammar and style.

5. Many people would prefer to visit a computer psychiatrist.

6. A 'reflective listening' technique can be effectively used to handle conflicts in business.

TEXT 8

Getting a job

Why do people work? Some work for money. Others work for self-fulfillment. Still oth­ers work for the sake of work itself. Job satisfaction plays a great role.

Some people think that the concept of job satisfaction is in some ways a luxury and only relevant to industrialized societies. The thing is that in developing countries, work is for the majority the only means of survival. People take semi-skilled and unskilled jobs for the sake of money. But there is little doubt that the energy crisis, economic instability and microchip technology are going to revolutionize work as we know it today. The status of work may change, from simple and trivial jobs to more challenging ones in which one can contribute to society and fulfill one's personal aspirations.

The traditional attitude towards work makes full-time employment and the desire for promotion the central motivating force in an adult's life. If anyone loses his job and be­come temporarily unemployed, he can and must find another one; anyone who is full-time unemployed is a failure and a scrounger, as he is then living off the State or, in other words, off other taxpayers' money.

In order to find a new job, research the market thoroughly. Use job search sites listing employers' and agencies' vacancies, for example www.hh.ru or www.staffwell.ru. It is important not to get complacent, nor to be­come demoralized. If you know exactly what you want, sooner or later you will find it. And there is one more advice. Theodore Roosevelt said:" Whenever you are asked if you can do a job, tell them "Certainly I can". Then get busy and find out how to do it".

A recent survey published in the consumer magazine tried to discover how a variety of people felt about their work. The most significant question asked was this:

"If you won £250,000 on the 'pools', would you carry on with your present job?' 35% of those surveyed said they would continue full-time, 18% said they would but part-time, and 47% said they wouldn't.

(1991)

Notes

1. the sake of – ради

2. challenging – требующий отдачи

3. scrounger - проныра

Задание 1. Прочитайте и переведите текст.

Задание 2. Согласитесь или не согласитесь со следующими утверждениями:

1. A person who is not full-time employed is a failure in our culture.

2. All people work for money.

3. The concept of job satisfaction is a luxury in Russia.

4. The Russians won't take unskilled jobs for the sake of money.

5. Nowadays people tend to work more to fulfill their own aspirations.

6. Many people in Russia wouldn't work if they had sufficient money to live on.

TEXT 9