LESSON 8

THE DEVELOPMENT OF COMPUTERS IN THE USA [1]

Task 1. Read and translate the text:

Задание 1. Прочитайте и переведите текст:

In the early 1960s, when computers were hulking mainframes that took up entire rooms, engineers were already toying with the then — extravagant notion of building a computer intended for the sole use of one person, by the early 1970s, researches at Xerox's Polo Alto Research Center (Xerox PARC) had realized that the pace of improvement in the technology of semiconductors — the chips of silicon that are the building blocks of present — day electronics — meant that sooner or later the PC would be extravagant no longer. They foresaw that computing power would someday be so cheap that engineers would be able to afford to devote a great deal of it simply to making non-technical people more comfortable with these new information-handling tools, in their labs, they developed or refined much of what constitutes PCs today, from "mouse" pointing devices to software "windows".

Although the work at Xerox PARC was crucial, it was not the spark that took PCs out of the hands of experts and into the popular imagination. That happened in January 1975, when the magazine Popular Electronics put a new kit for hobbyists, called the Altair, on its cover, for the first time, anybody with $400 and a soldering iron could buy and assemble his own computer. The Altair inspired Steve Wosniak and Steve Jobs to build the first Apple computer, and a young college dropout named Bill Gates to write software for it. Meanwhile, the person who deserves the credit for inventing the Altair, an engineer named Ed Roberts, left the industry he had spawned to go to medical school. Now he is a doctor in a small town in central Georgia.

To this day, researchers at Xerox and elsewhere pooh- pooh the Altair as too primitive to have made use of the technology they felt was needed to bring PCs to the masses. In a sense, they are right. The Altair incorporated one of the first single-chip microprocessor — a semiconductor chip, that contained all the basic circuits needed to do calculations — called the Intel 8080. Although the 8080 was advanced for its time, it was far too slow to support the mouse, windows, and elaborate software Xerox had developed. Indeed, it wasn't until 1984, when Apple Computer's Macintosh burst onto the scene, that PCs were powerful enough to fulfill the original vision of researchers.

Researchers today are proceeding in the same spirit that motivated Kay and his Xerox PARC colleagues in the 1970s: to make information more accessible to ordinary people. But a look into today's research labs reveals very little that resembles what we think of now as a PC. For one thing, researchers seem eager to abandon the keyboard and the monitor that are the PC's trademarks. Instead they are trying to devise PCs with interpretive powers that are more humanlike — PCs that can hear you and see you, can tell when you're in a bad mood and know to ask questions when they don't understand anything.

Task 2. Answer the following questions:

Задание 2. Ответьте на следующие вопросы:

1. Who foresaw that computing power would someday be so cheap that engineers would be able to afford to devote a great deal of it simply to making non- technical people?

2. What are researches at Xerox's Polo Alto improvement in the technology of semiconductors?

Task 3. Match the English words given below with their Russian equivalents:

Задание 3. Соотнесите следующие ключевые слова с соответствующим переводом:

• a microprocessor • to do calculations • to motivate • an invention • electronics • a technology of semiconductors • a keyboard • an expert • handling tool • computing power

• ручное управление • эксперт • электроника • технология полупроводимости • клавиатура • компьютерная мощь • изобретение • побуждать • микропроцессор • делать вычисления

Task 4. Find these words and word — combinations in the text:

Задание 4. Найдите в тексте предложения, содержащие нижеследующие слова и выражения:

• hulking mainframes

• a pace of improvement in the technology

• computing power

• non-technical people

• researchers of Xerox

• the first single-chip microprocessor

• to do calculations

Task 5. Complete the following sentences corresponding to the contents of the text:

Задание 5. Закончите предложения:

1. To this day, researchers at Xerox and elsewhere pooh-pooh the Altair as......

2.... power that are more humanlike — PCs that can hear you and see you, can tell when you're in a bad mood and know to ask questions when they don't understand something.

3. The kind of computing that people... in the early 1970s.

4. They foresaw that computing power would someday be... in their labs, they developed or refined much of what constitutes PCs today, from "mouse" pointing devices to software "windows".

5. Although the work at Xerox PAPC was crucial....

6. Wosniak and Steve Jobs to build... to write software for it.

7... an engineer named ED Roberts, left the industry hehad spawned to go to medical school.

8 … that contained all the basic circuits needed to do calculations-called the Intel 8080.

9. Now he is a...

10.... burst onto the scene, that PCs were powerful enough to fulfill the original vision of researchers.

Task 6. Say whether the statements given below are true or false:

Задание 6. Определите истинность или ложность следующих предложений:

1. It is impossible to predict the invention, that the Altair, crystallized new approaches in a way that captures people's imagination.

2. The Altair incorporated one of the first single-chip microprocessor — a semiconductor chip, that contained all the basic circuits needed to do calculations — called the Intel 8080.

3. Although the work at Xerox PARC was crucial, it was the spark that took PCs out of the hands of experts and into the popular imagination.

4. In their labs, they developed or refined much of what constitutes PCs today, from "mouse" point devices to software "windows".

5. The Altair inspired Steve Wosniak and Steve Jobs to build the first Apple computer, and a young college dropout named Bill Gates to write software for it.

Task 7. Use “was” or “were”:

Задание 7. Вставьте “was” или “were”:

1. Computer... hulking mainframes.

2. Engineer... already toying with the then -extravagant notion of building a computer intended for the sole use of one person.

3. The work at Xerox PARC... crucial.

4. It... not the spark that took PCs out of the hands of expert and into the popular imagination.

5. Although the 8080... advanced for its time.

6. It... far too slow to support the mouse, windows and elaborate software Xerox had developed.

7. It... not until 1984.

8. PCs... powerful enough to fulfill the original vision of researchers.

Task 8. Make the sentences negative and interrogative:

Задание 8. Преобразуйте следующие предложения в вопросительную и отрицательную форму:

1. Computer power would someday be so cheap.

2. Engineers would be able to afford to devote a great deal of it simply to making nontechnical people more comfortable with some information.

3. That happened in January 1975.

4. The magazine "Popular Electronics" put a new kit for hobbyists.

5. He is a doctor in a small town in central Georgia.

6. Researches at Xerox needed to bring PCs to the masses.

7. The Altair incorporated one of the first single-chip microprocessor.

8. PCs were powerful enough to fulfill the original vision of researches.

9. We made at PARC in the early 1970s.

10. It is impossible to predict the invention.