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Module I

Computers and Information Technology

Unit 1

Introduction to Computers

Unit 2

Computer Hardware

Unit 3

Computer Software

Unit 4 The Internet Vocabulary 1. create [krı'eıt] творить, создавать2. network ['netwɜ:k] (инфор.) сеть3. spread [spred] распространять(ся), простирать(ся) 4. share [ʃeə] делиться; поделиться5. transfer ['trænsfɜ:] перемещать, передавать6. backbone ['bækbəυn] главная опора; основа; суть7. maintain [meın'teın] (тех.) обслуживать; содержать в исправности8. provide [prə'vaıd] предоставлять (услуги), давать9. provider (информ.) провайдер, поставщик информационных и коммуникационных услуг10. browse [braυz] просмотреть11. browse facility [fə'sılətı] (компьют.) средство просмотра12. feature ['fi:tʃə] (компьют.) функция, функциональность, опция, (сленг) фича (у программного продукта, системы)13. surf the Internet [sɜ:f] «путешествовать» по Интернету (тж. surf the net)14. etiquette ['etıket] этикетпрофессиональная этика15. netiquette ['netıket] (информ.) сетевой этикет16. flood (with spam) [flʌd] засыпать; заваливать(спамом)17. evaluate [ɪ'væljυeɪt] оценивать4.1. How would you describe what the Internet is? Discuss it with your partner.4.2. Match the terms and their definitions.a) Internet b) World Wide Web c) e-mail1. A global network connecting millions of computers. 2. The transmission of messages over communications networks. 3. A system of Internet servers that support specially formatted documents. 4.3. Now read the text and try to describe the Internet again using the key vocabulary in bold type.Believe it or not, the Internet was created way back in 1969, during the Cold War, by the United States military. It was meant to be a "nuke-proof"(1) communications network. Today, the Internet spreads across the globe and consists of countless networks and computers, allowing millions of people to share information. Data that travels long distances on the Internet is transferred on huge lines known collectively as the Internet backbone. The Internet is now maintained by the Internet service pro-viders.Many people think the Internet and the World Wide Web are the same thing. They're not! The World Wide Web is what you are browse. It is one of the many features of the Internet. E-mail, FTP(2), and Instant Messaging (3) are also features of the Internet.(http://www.sharpened.net)(1) "nuke-proof" устойчивый к воздействию ядерного оружия(2) FTP File Transfer Protocol протокол передачи файлов (используемый в Internet протокол передачи файлов между хост-компьютерами)(3) Instant Messaging система мгновенной передачи текстовых сооб-щений4.4. Interview your partners if they surf the Internet. Use the questions given below. Do you often surf the Internet? Which websites do you usually visit? Do you download any programs from the Internet? If so, what are they? Do you belong to any chat forum? Why? / Why not? What feature of the Internet do you consider the most attractive? Why? What is netiquette? 4.5. Read the passage below and think if you always follow the netiquette. Why? / Why not? Discuss it with your partner.Netiquette, or net etiquette, refers to etiquette on the Internet. Good netiquette involves respecting others' privacy and not doing anything online that will annoy or frustrate other people. Three areas where good netiquette is highly stressed are e-mail, online chat, and newsgroups. For example, people that spam other users with unwanted e-mails or flood them with messages have very bad netiquette. You don't want to be one of those people. If you're new to a newsgroup or online chat room, it may help to observe how people communicate with each other before jumping in.4.6.Think of good and bad points of the Internet and fill in the table. You can work either individually or in pairs. Advantages of the Internet Disadvantages of the Internet 4.7. Read Text A, compare your ideas with information given, and extend the table. How many advantages/disadvantages are there in your table? First, study the vocabulary you may need to understand the text.mankind [mæn'kaɪnd] (n) 1) человечество; человеческий род ['mænkaɪnd] 2) мужчины, мужской полmagnitude ['mæɡnɪtju:d] (n) 1) величина, paзмеры, 2) важность; значимостьoutweigh [̗aυt'weɪ] (v) быть тяжелее, превосходить в весеwealth [welθ] (n) изобилие, избытокtarget ['tɑ:ɡɪt] (n) цельadvent ['ædvent] (n) наступление (какой-л. эпохи, какого-л. события), available [ə'veɪləbl] (adj) доступный; имеющийся в распоряжении, entertainment [̗entə'teɪnmənt] (n) развлечение; зрелищное мероприятиеnumerous ['nju:mǝrəs] (adj) многочисленныйavailable [ə'veɪləbl] (adj) доступный; имеющийся в распоряженииtheft [θeft] (n) воровство, кражаobstruct [əb'strʌkt] (v) препятствовать, затруднять, мешатьprone (adj) подверженный (чему-л.)TEXT AAdvantages and Disadvantages of the InternetThe Internet has been perhaps the most outstanding innovation in the field of communication in the history of mankind. As with every single innovation, the Internet has its own advantages and disadvantages. But usually, greater magnitude of advantages outweighs its disadvantages. Today the Internet has brought a globe in a single room. Right from news across the corner of the world, wealth of information to shopping, purchasing the tickets of your favourite movie.Advantages CommunicationThe main target of the Internet has always been the communication. By the advent of the Internet, our earth has become a global village. Now we can communicate with a person who is sitting in the other part of the world.Information Information is probably the biggest advantage the Internet offers. Students and children are among the top users who surf the Internet for research. Today, it is almost required that students should use the Internet for research purpose of gathering resources. Entertainment Downloading games, visiting chat rooms or just surfing the Web are some of the entertainments. In fact, the Internet has been successfully used by people to find life long partners. When people surf the Web, there are numerous things that can be found. Music, hobbies, news and more can be found and shared on the Internet. Services Many services are now provided on the Internet such as online banking, job seeking, purchasing tickets. Often these services are not available off-line or can cost you more. E-Commerce It has got a really amazing and wide range of products from technology to household needs. Disadvantages Theft of personal information If you use the Internet, you may be facing danger as your personal information such as name, address, credit card number, etc. can be accessed and used by a criminal.SpammingSpamming refers to sending unwanted e-mails, which provide no purpose and obstruct the entire system. Virus threat Computers attached to the Internet are more prone to virus attacks and they can end up into crashing your whole hard disk. PornographyThis is perhaps the biggest threat related to your children’s healthy mental life. (http://www.buzzle.com)4.8. Match the words below to make word partners.1. global a. chat rooms2. surf b. privacy3. visit c. danger4. download d. village5. household e. needs6. face f. disk7. hard g. the Internet8. respect h. games4.9. Now use the word partners to complete these sentences. McLuhan believes that the world is rapidly becoming a ________, in which mankind is interconnected by contemporary technology, especially television and the world wide web. This method will allow you to _________ without leaving any information about what browser you're using, which computer system you have. Many people who ________ use them as a place to discuss their problems and get a kind of a support. People of all ages visit special free sites to safely ___________ of high quality. You are not computer addict, so low-powered computer is suitable for all your _________. How does computer software usually react when it ________ of virus attack? _____ can store anywhere from 20MB to more than 200GB. Sites like Facebook must ___________. They should not tell my friends what I buy on other sites. 4.10. Analyse the “-ing” form words in bold type in Text A. Are they gerunds? Why/Why not?Do you know that…? Because a gerund (base form of VERB+ -ing) acts as a noun, it can be used after prepositions, too. (e.g. That computer programmer is famous for spilling coffee into his keyboard. Complete the sentences, using gerund.1. He never thought of ____.2. This student is very clever at _____.3. I don’t insist on ____.4. We were tired of _____.5. Did you succeed in ____?6. Who is responsible for ____?7. They were grateful for ____.8. He had some difficulty in ____.Now give your own examples.4.11. Work in pairs or in small groups. Discuss if you always trust the information from the Internet? Why/Why not?Now skim Text B and say what the main idea of the text is.4.12. Read Text B and give your ideas on what could help Zack to understand that Professor Butz's Web page wasn't a reliable source of information?(To understand the text better use the vocabulary given below.)TEXT BThe Web – Teaching Zack to ThinkAs more and more students access the Internet for research, it's important that they learn how to validate online information. The Internet is a place where you can find "proof" of almost any belief system that you can imagine. And, for too many students, "If it's on the Internet, it must be true."The following story is also true.Fourteen-year-old Zack was asked to research a unique topic for his history class. Zack knew a bit about using reliable sources on the Internet, so when he found some information on a Web page on the US Northwestern University site he felt sure that he had found a reliable source of information for his project. The topic was unique too–Holocaust Revisionism–Zack had never heard of that before, so he decided to write his history paper on "How the Holocaust Never Happened."Zack found his "information" from a Web page at http://pubweb. northwestern.edu/abutz/ (no longer at this URL), titled "Home Web Page of Arthur R. Butz." On his low-key home page, Butz explained that he wrote "A short introduction to the study of Holocaust revisionism" and that his material was intended for "advanced students of Holocaust revisionism." At the top of the page Butz identified himself as "Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Northwestern University». His article began with the following: “I see principal reasons for the widespread but erroneous belief in the legend of millions of Jews killed by the Germans during World War II: During both world wars Germany was forced to fight typhus… That was one of the main reasons for a high death rate in the camps, and the crematoria... Look at the above situation from the perspective of a 14-year-old, untrained to think critically about information. He's researching the Holocaust, and suddenly finds this Web page. His teacher told him to find a unique topic, and this certainly fit the bill. The page is simple and clear. It's written in a calm, logical tone. The page is clearly intended for experts in its field. Best of all is the source: Northwestern University! And a professor to boot! Perfect. validate ['vælɪdeɪt] v проверять достоверностьproof [pru:f] (n) доказательствоbelief [bɪ'li:f] (n) убеждение, мнение; вераreliable [rɪ'laɪ əbl] (adj) заслуживающий доверия, достоверныйreliable information – достоверные сведенияreliable source – достоверный, надежный источникlow-key (adj) 1) неброский; сдержанный2) гамма тёмных тоновin a lowkey – в тёмных тонах Associate Professor доцент университетаwidespread ['waɪdspred] (adj) широко распространённыйerroneous [ɪ'rəυnɪəs] (adj) ложный; ошибочный;typhus ['taɪfəs] (n) сыпной тифfit the bill отвечать всем требованиямto boot к общей пользе; вдобавок; к тому же4.13. Now read Text C and check your ideas. (To understand the text better use the vocabulary given below.)TEXT CThinking about What We've FoundThe fact is that students increasingly depend on the Internet for information, so it's important that they develop ways to evaluate their findings. Zack could have used some, or all, of the following techniques to decide whether the site was a reliable source for information.PurposeTry to determine a Web site's purpose. What is it trying to do? Why was it created? Most Web sites are designed to sell services and products, present information, put ideas forward, or entertain. Many sites do several of these at once.A Web site's purpose will not always be clear. Look at Butz's site. His purpose is surely advocacy, although he comes across as an objective information provider, especially in the closing sentence of his article: "Surely any thoughtful person must be skeptical." Would a 14-year-old know how to distinguish between objective information and propaganda?Understand the purpose(s) of a Web site, and that those purpose(s) may not be entirely obvious. Author The next step in validation involves the site's author. We all know that it's easy to fool people. Many people will believe someone if he or she sounds authoritative. Butz is a professor, sure, but he's an Engineering professor. How does that qualify him to speak as an expert on the Holocaust? It doesn't. But people see "Professor" and take what he says seriously.Zack didn't know anything about Butz, but could have researched his background. If Zack ran a search for "Arthur Butz," on the search engine Google, he would find Butz's name on a page titled "Holocaust Deniers" at the Web site for the anti-hate organization HateWatch (http://www.spl-center.org/intel/hatewatch/). Similarly, Zack would find Butz's article at a second hate directory site listed under "A Guide to Hate Groups on the Internet: Hate Books, Newsletters and Articles". Zack would find Butz mentioned negatively in a March 1998 USA Today article titled, "College anti-Semitism on the rise, according to new report." Zack would also find Butz's book described as popular among "anti-Semites" in a review of Deborah Lipstadt's book Denying the Holocaust.If Zack had run this multi-search on Butz, he would have seen how other people categorize Butz' work.Establish the credibility of the author. Meta-Web Information Meta-Web information validates Web pages solely within the context of other Web pages.Let's start with the URL, or address, of a Web page. You need to know when they're accessing a personal home page. Most Internet Service Providers give their subscribers a few megabytes of free space on a Web server to use as they want.Here are two sample URLs: and stefan/>. An experienced Web user knows that both URLs point to personal home pages.In the first example, the word "users" is the user name of someone who accesses the Internet through cdsinet.net. In the second example, focus on the . A tilde () indicates a Web site that has been created by someone given space on a Web server. "stefan" is the user name of someone who accesses the Internet through icon-stl.net.Knowing the above, if Zack had looked at Butz's URL - abutz/index.html> – he'd have seen the , an indicator that this is a personal Web site. Just as Zack can know something about individuals by their clothing, he can learn about a Web site by looking at its URL. Clothing tells us a lot, but the company a person keeps tells us more. Learning how a Web page interacts within the network of all other Web sites is valuable information.Meta-information sources.It is always a good idea to look beyond the Internet for sources of authentic information.evaluate [ɪ'væljυeɪt] (v) оценивать; определять количество, качество и т. п.technique [tek'ni:k] (n) метод; способdetermine [dɪ'tɜ:mɪn] (v) определять; устанавливатьentertain [̗entə'teɪn] (v) развлекать, заниматьadvocacy ['ædvəkəsɪ] (n) 1) защита2) пропаганда (взглядов и т. п.)distinguish [dɪ'stɪŋɡwɪʃ] (v) различать, распознаватьauthoritative [ɔ:'θɒrɪtətɪv] (adj) авторитетный; надёжныйdeny [dɪ'naɪ] (v) отрицать, отвергатьdenier тот, кто что-либо отвергаетcredibility [̗krədə'bɪlətɪ] (n) вероятность, правдоподобиеexperienced [ɪk'spɪərɪənst] опытный, знающийtilde ['tɪldə] (n) (полигр.) тильда (tilde)beyond [bɪ'jɒnd] (prep) за; по ту сторону, внеauthentic [ɔ:'θentɪk] (a) 1) подлинный, аутентичный2) достоверный, верный4.14. Translate the text into English and then finish it. Use the vocabulary from the Texts B,C.Все большее количество студентов используют Интернет как источник информации для своих исследований. Сегодня в Интернете можно найти доказательства любых идей, которые могут прийти вам в голову. А ведь многие считают ту информацию, которая представлена в Интернете вполне достоверной. Но это не так. Поэтому очень важно научиться оценивать достоверность такой информации. Для того чтобы определить является ли сайт надежным источником информации, можно использовать несколько методов: ___________4.15. Write a list of recommendations to help students critically evaluate the reliability of a Web site.4.16. Do the crossword.1. Electronic messages sent to someone over the Internet. 2. Copy information from a web site to your own computer.3. The place on the Internet where a company/organization/etc stores its documents. 4. A system linking millions of documents stored on Internet computers around the world.5. Move form one document or web site to another, to find information.6. Text, image or button that connects to other destination on the web.7. A device that makes connecting to the Internet possible.8. A group of computers joined together. 9. Now provide your own definition. 9 1 o o o o o o o o 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   ...   15

Module II

Fundamentals of Engineering

Unit 5

Engineering

Unit 6

Engineering Materials

Unit 7

Nanotechnology

Unit 8

Robotics

Unit 9

My Faculty

Module III

Job-hunting

Unit 10

Finding a Job

Unit 11

Making a Choice

Unit 12

Working Life

Unit 13

Employment

Unit 14

A Job Interview. CV. A Letter of Application

References



k) l)

start up







go on




shut down

computer

upgrade

the Internet

surf




surf





Do you know any other useful “computer” words and phrases? Share them with your group.

1.13. Study the vocabulary you may need to understand the text below. After that

  • count how many words/word combinations you’ve known before

  • elicit words/word combinations you would like to learn


phase out ['feɪz'aυt] (v) постепенно прекращать,

свертывать (выпуск,

производство и т. д.)

The makers have decided to phase out the production of this model. – Производитель решил постепенно прекратить производство этой модели.

difference ['dɪfrǝns] (n) разница; отличие, различие

great difference значительное различие

slight difference – незначительная разница

It makes no difference. – Нет никакой разницы; это не имеет значения.

It makes all the difference in the world. – Это существенно меняет дело; это очень важно.

portable ['pɔ:təbl] ( adj) портативный, переносный

portability (n) портативность

manufacturer [̗mænjυ'fæktʃǝrə] (n) изготовитель, производитель

car manufacturer производитель машин

computer manufacturer производитель компьютеров

matter (n) вопрос, дело

It is a matter of a few months. – “Это дело/вопрос нескольких месяцев.

weigh [weɪ] (v) весить, иметь вес

the computer weighs quite a lot – чемодан весит довольно много

How much do you weigh? – Cколько вы весите?

weight (n) вес; масса

heavy weight тяжелый вес

light weight – легкий вес

average weight – средний вес

pound [paυnd] (n) единица веса – фунт

(современная мера веса, используемая в англоговорящих странах; = 453,6 г)

fit (v) умещаться, помещаться, входить

to fit in a briefcase – умещаться в портфеле

lap (n) колени (верхняя часть ног

у сидящего человека)

The mother had her son on her lap. – Мать держала сына на коленях.

somewhat (adv) отчасти, до некоторой степени,

слегка

originally [ə'rɪdžɪnǝlɪ] (adv) первоначально, вначале; сначала, поначалу

Computers originally were very big. – Компьютеры вначале были очень громоздкими.

feature ['fi:tʃə] (n) особенность, характерная черта;

признак, свойство


компьют.: функция, функциональность, опция

сленг: фича (у программного продукта, системы)

tradeoff ['treɪdɒf] (n) компромисс

decrease [̗di:'kri:s] (v) уменьшать(ся), сокращать(ся)

(in – в чем-л.)

to decrease in size – уменьшаться в размере

decrease ['di:kri:s] (n) уменьшение, убывание,

понижение; спад

to be on the decrease – идти на убыль

device [dɪ'vaɪs] (n) устройство, механизм; аппарат,

прибор

term (n) термин

reason ['ri:zn] (n) причина, повод, основание,

основа

by reason of – по причине; из-за

to have a reason (for) – иметь уважительную причину (для)

comparable ['kɒmpǝrəbl] (adj) сравнимый, сопоставимый,

соизмеримый

comparable results – сравнимый результат

comparable prices – сопоставимая цена

lead (v) вести, приводить

heat (n) жар, тепло, теплота

well-suited [̗wel' sju:tɪd] (adj) подходящий, пригодный

interchangeably [̗ɪntə'tʃeɪndžəblɪ] (adv) заменяя друг друга, попеременно,

поочередно

inexpensive [̗ɪnɪk'spensɪv] (adj) дешевый, недорогой

powerful ['paυ əfl] (adj) мощный, сильный

generation [̗dženə'reɪʃn] (n) поколение

mainstream ['meɪnstri:m] (n) основное направление, главная

линия, тенденция (в искусстве,

технологии, и т. п.)
1.14. First discuss with your partner:

Is there any difference between a laptop and notebook computer? If so, what is it?
Then quickly read Paragraphs 1, 2 of the text below and compare your ideas with information given.
1.15. Read the text again and answer these questions.

1. Which mobile computer (laptop or notebook) is considered to be technically smaller in size?

2. What is the average weight of a notebook computer?

3. Why did the notebook originally weigh less than the laptop?

4. Why is the size of portable computers decreasing nowadays?

5. What are the reasons the term “laptop” is becoming used not so often?

6. What mobile computers are becoming mainstream devices?

7. Why aren’t netbooks perfect yet?
TEXT B

Is "Laptop" Being Phased Out?

Is there really a difference between a laptop and notebook computer? For most people shopping for a mobile (or portable) computer today, the short answer is “no”. In fact, the difference between a laptop and notebook today is mainly what the manufacturer chooses to call its product. Technically and traditionally, the difference between the two is a matter of size.

Notebook computers typically weigh less than six pounds and are small enough to fit easily in a briefcase. Laptop computers are small enough too that they can sit on your lap. Nowadays, laptop computers are more often called notebook computers, though technically laptops are somewhat larger in size than notebooks.

The laptop was originally designed to be similar to a desktop, but be small and light enough. For this reason, years ago, a laptop had more features than notebooks did, but the tradeoff was it was also a larger and heavier than a notebook. This is because the notebook style of portable computers was for mobility, not just portability. To be a more mobile device, the notebook was a thinner design and it weighed less than the laptop, simply because it didn't come packed with features and multiple devices and drives.

Today technology allows devices to be smaller and better for mobile computing by design, so the size of portable computers is decreasing.

Another reason the term “laptop” is becoming used not often is because a portable "comparable to desktop" system today could easily lead to heat discomfort if left on your lap for long periods of time. By calling a laptop a notebook, it also removes the association that the portable device is well-suited to being used only on your lap.



People often call their notebook a laptop and use the two words interchangeably. However, most mobile computer manufacturers stopped using the term “laptop” completely; they use the term “notebook.”

At present netbooks are a new category of laptops. It's an inexpensive, lightweight machine which is powerful enough for the basic, day-to-day, Internet-based tasks that people use a regular laptop for.

At the same time, today's netbooks aren't perfect. Since they are such small, inexpensive devices, they include processors, memory, and hard disks several generations behind the ones found in regular notebooks. Even so, the potential is there for netbooks to become mainstream devices.

(http://www.webopedia.com)
1.16. Listen to four people talking about computers and note what each of them uses computers for.

Can you guess what their occupations are?
Listen again and fill the gaps.
1. I work on ______ connected to а computer.

2. The computer _____ the sounds.

3. The thing which I find really _____ is electronic mail.

4. With e-mail I can _____ with the offices around the world.

5. I also use the computer ____ drawings and _____ records.

6. We have to test our installations ____.

7. I use either our ____ or _____ that we're connected to.

8. And we use computers _____ the books in the library.

Unit 2

Computer Hardware




Vocabulary

physical ['fɪzɪkl] физический, материальный,

телесный

store [stɔ:] (v) запасать, откладывать

(n) запас, резерв

storage device ['stɔ:rɪdž] устройство хранения

данных/информации

internal [ɪn'tɜ:nl] внутренний

external [ɪk'stɜ:nl] наружный, внешний

refer [rɪ'fɜ:] иметь отношение, относиться

peripheral [pə'rɪfrǝl] внешнее оборудование; внешние устройства;

периферийное оборудование

run on работать на

application [̗æplɪ'keɪʃn] прикладная программа

requirement [rɪ'kwaɪ əmənt] требование; необходимое

условие

equipment [ɪ'kwɪpmənt] оборудование

brain [breɪn] мозг

capacity [kə'pæsətɪ] вместимость, ёмкость; объём;

мощность

permanent ['pɜ:mǝnənt] постоянный, неизменный;

долговременный

temporary ['temprǝrɪ] временный

random ['rændəm] выбранный наугад, случайный; беспорядочный

access ['ækses] (информ). выборка (из памяти);

доступ (к базе данных)

preceding [prɪ'si:dɪŋ] предшествующий

common ['kɒmən] общий;простой, обыкновенный

общепринятый, распространённый

substance ['sʌbstǝns] вещество

overall [̗əυvər'ɔ:l] полный, общий, предельный

feed (fed) давать; дать
2.1. How would you describe what computer hardware is to someone who knows a little about computers? Work in pairs or small groups.
2.2. Now read the text and try to describe computer hardware again using the key vocabulary in bold type.

Computer hardware refers to the physical parts of a computer and related devices. Internal hardware devices include motherboards, hard drives, and RAM. External hardware devices include monitors, keyboards, mice, printers, and scanners.

The internal hardware parts of a computer are often referred to as components, while external hardware devices are usually called peripherals. Together, they all fall under the category of computer hardware. Software, on the other hand, consists of the programs and applications that run on computers. Because software runs on computer hardware, software programs often have system requirements that list the minimum hardware required for the software to run.

(http://www.sharpened.net)
2.3. Decide if the statements are true (T) or false (F). Read Text A to check your answers.

1. Hardware is known as something you can actually touch.

2. The pages and the ink of a book are the hardware analogy.

3. The main memory refers to physical memory that is internal to the computer.

4. There are two different types of memory: the main memory and the random access memory.

5. Devices which can be connected to the CPU are known as
peripherals.


6. A keyboard is the most commonly used output device.

7. To display the processed data an input device is used.

8. Mass storage devices retain data even when the computer is turned off.
TEXT A

The Main Pieces of Hardware

Hardware refers to objects that you can actually touch, like disks, disk drives, display screens, keyboards, printers, boards, and chips. In contrast, software is untouchable. Software exists as ideas, concepts, and symbols, but it has no substance.

Books provide a useful analogy. The pages and the ink are the hardware, while the words, sentences, paragraphs, and the overall meaning are the software. A computer without software is like a book full of blank pages – you need software to make the computer useful just as you need words to make a book meaningful.


The most important item of hardware is the CPU (Central Processing Unit). This is the electronic unit at the center of the computer system. It contains the processor and the main memory.

The processor is the brain of the computer. It does all the processing and controls all the other devices in the computer system.

The main memory is the part of the computer where programs and data being used by the processor can be stored. It refers to physical memory that is internal to the computer. The word main is used to distinguish it from external mass storage devices such as disk drives. Another term for main memory is RAM.

RAM (pronounced ramm, acronym for random access memory) is a type of computer memory that can be accessed randomly; that is, any byte of memory can be accessed without touching the preceding bytes. RAM is the most common type of memory found in computers and other devices, such as printers.

All the other devices in the computer system, which can be connected to the CPU, are known as peripherals. These include input devices, output devices and storage devices.

An input device is a peripheral, which enables information to be fed into the computer. The most commonly used input device is a keyboard.

An output device is a peripheral, which enables information to be brought out of the computer, usually to display the processed data. The most commonly used output device is a monitor or VDU (Visual Display Unit). Another common output device is a printer. This prints the output of the CPU onto paper.

A mass storage device is a peripheral used for the permanent storage of information. It has a much greater capacity than the main memory. Mass storage is distinct from memory, which refers to temporary storage areas within the computer. Unlike main memory, mass storage devices retain data even when the computer is turned off. The main types of mass storage are various disks.

These are the main pieces of hardware of any computer system whether a small “micro” or a large mainframe system.
2.4. Match each piece of hardware on the left with its function on the right.


1. Storage device

a. displays the processed data.

2. Input device

b. holds the programs and data being used by the processor.

3. Output device

c. does all the processing and controls
the peripherals.

4. Main memory

d. allows data to be entered.

5. Processor

f. provides permanent storage for programs and data.


2.5. Fill in the gaps using the words from the box.
keyboard input unit requirements graphics the CPU
arithmetic control input calculation

_______ devices are used to supply the values needed by the computer and instructions to tell the computer how to operate on the value. _______ vary greatly from machine to machine.

Information is usually entered into a computer via a _______, with the characters typed on the screen. In English speaking countries the keyboard would have the QWERTY(1) layout. Many computers provide graphics commands which can be used to build up pictures. _______ are very important for the interface between the human user and the computer.

The arithmetic unit of a digital computer performs the actual work of computation and calculation. It carries out its job by the use of logic circuits. Modern computers use components called integrated circuits.

The control unit of a digital computer is an administrative or switching section. It receives information entering the machine and decides how and when to perform operations. It tells the arithmetic unit what to do, where to get the necessary information. It knows when the arithmetic unit has completed a ______, and it tells the arithmetic unit what to do with the results and what to do next.

The _______ unit and the ______ unit are usually grouped together in a computer and are the central processing unit or CPU. The