LESSON FOUR
Grammar. The Participle. The Absolute Participle
Construction.
Text A. Memory or Storage Unit.
Text B. The Floppy Disks.
Text B'. Bubble Memory.
Text C. Chips.
Exercises
Read the international words and guess their meaning:
final, base, container, register, object, subject, transmission, million, billion, disk, serial, series, track, resistor, transistor, millisecond, nanosecond, reaction, concentric, integration, technology, bipolar, diode, diameter, result, correct, to generate, element
Pronounce the following words correctly
storage [´sto:ridʒ] n – запоминающее устройство (ЗУ), память
intermediate [,intə(:)'mi:djət] a – промежуточный circle ['sə:kl] n – круг, окружность
internal [in'tə:nl] a – внутренний core [ko:] n – сердечник, память на магнитных сердечниках
require [ri'kwaiə] v – требовать
final ['fainl] a – окончательный; конечный
generate ['dʒenəreit] v – генерировать, (вос)производить
access ['ækses] n – обращение (к памяти), доступ; выборка (из памяти)
transmit [trænz'mit] v – передавать
use [ju:s] n использование, [ju:z] v – использовать
quantity ['kwontiti] n – количество, величина
hold [hould] v – держать, удерживать, проводить
external [eks'tə:nl] a – внешний, наружный
similar ['similə] a – подобный, похожий
achievement [ə'tƒi:vmənt] n – достижение
layer ['le(i)ə] n – слой
microcomputer ['maikroukəm'pju:tə] n –микрокомпьютер
primary ['praiməri] а – первичный, первоначальный main [mein] a – главный, основной
inch [intƒ] n – дюим (2,5 см)
slow [slou] a – медленный
fast [fa:st] a – быстрый, скорый
circuit ['sə:kit] n – схема, цепь, контур
integer ['intidə] – n целое число
differ ['difə] v – отличаться, различаться
development [di'veləpmənt] n – разработка, развитие
semiconductor ['semikən'dлktə] n – полупроводник
creation [kri(:)'eiƒ(ə)n] n – создание
density ['densiti] n – плотность, концентрация
allocation [,ælə'keiƒ(ə)n] n – размещение, распределение
chip [tƒip] n – чип, кристалл
permanent ['pə:mənənt] а – постоянный
programmable ['prougræməbl] а - программируемый
erasable [i'reizəbl] а – стираемый
firmware ['fə:mwεə] n – программно-аппаратное обеспечение, встроенное в компьютер фирмой
Grammar Review
Причастие – это неличная форма глагола, имеющая признаки прилагательного и глагола. Существуют причастия действительного залога Participle I (build + ing = building) и причастие страдательного залога Participle II (play + ed = played; written). В предложениях причастия могут быть:
определением;
The boiling water changes into steam.
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Кипящая вода превращается в пар.
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The fibres produced by our shop are of improved quality.
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Волокна, выпускаемые нашим цехом, улучшенного качества.
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обстоятельством
Studying a foreign language students should learn the words.
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Изучая иностранный язык, студенты должны учить слова.
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When asked the question, the students could not answer it at once.
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Когда студенту задали этот вопрос, он не смог ответить на него сразу.
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«Независимый причастный оборот» (THE ABSOLUTE PARTICIPLE CONSTRUCTION) имеет собственное подлежащее, выраженное существительным в общем падеже или личным местоимением в форме именительного падежа. На русский язык этот оборот переводится:
1) придаточным обстоятельственным предложением, начинающимся союзами, если; так как; когда; после того, как и др., если оборот предшествует подлежащему со сказуемым, выраженным личной формой глагола:
Some new devices having been obtained, the researchers could make more complex experiments.
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После того как были получены новые приборы, исследователи смогли делать более сложные опыты.
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It being late, we decided to stop working.
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Так как было поздно, мы решили прекратить работу
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самостоятельным предложением бессоюзным или с союзами причем, а, и, но, если причастный оборот стоит в конце предложения:
The installation was automated last year, its capacity rising by 25 per cent.
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Эта установка была автоматизирована в прошлом году, и её производительность увеличилась на 25 %.
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Memorize the following word combinations:
during the course of the computation – во время вычисления
an access time – время обращения (к памяти)
a floppy disk – гибкий диск
a series of concentric circles – ряд концентрических окружностей
a read/write head – считывающая – записывающая головка
internal (main) memory – оперативная память (ОЗУ)
a film memory device – ЗУ на тонких пленках
general-purpose registers – регистры общего назначения
floating-point registers – регистры с плавающей точкой
control registers – регистры управления
either ... or ... – или ..., или; либо..., либо
both ... and ... – как ..., так и ...; и ..., и ...
in the latter – в последнем (из двух упомянутых)
by spraying layers – путем напыления слоев
TEXT A MEMORY OR STORAGE UNIT
1. The part of a digital computer which stores information is called storage or memory. The computer's memory stores the numbers to be operated on; it stores intermediate results that are generated during the course of the computation; and it stores the final results. The instructions themselves are also stored in the computer's memory.
2. There are two important factors about the memory unit: an access time and a capacity. The time required to transmit one computer word out of the memory to where it will be used is called the memory access time; it usually amounts to a few millionths of a second or less in modern fast computers. The speed of modern computers is the speed of access to their memories. The capacity of a computer is the quantity of data that its memory unit can hold.
3. There are many ways of memorizing information in memory cells of a digital computer. External memory or storage units may use magnetic tapes, magnetic drums, magnetic disks and floppy disks. The magnetic drum and magnetic disk are called a Direct Access, or Random Access, Storage Device (DASD).
4 The magnetic disk is very similar to the magnetic drum but is based upon the use of a flat disk with a series of concentric circles of magnetizable material, one read/ write head being for each concentric circle, i.e., for each track. Memory units on magnetic disks may store more than 100,000,000 bytes. The magnetic disk is illustrated in Figure 1.
5. Internal or main memory units were constructed of magnetic cores about 8 hundredths of an inch in diameter, each core storing one 'yes' or 'no', that is, each core representing one bit of information.
  
Record-1
Record-2
  
    
Track
Read/write head
Figure 1. Magnetic Disk
6. Information that is stored inside a computer is stored in registers, electronic units of hardware in which the positioning of physical objects stores information. Each register holds one machine word consisting usually of 32 bits or 4 bytes. Registers hold information temporarily during processing. The slower models of registers use magnetic cores; the faster models use special electronic circuits or film memory devices.
7. Usually the registers are of three types:
- General-Purpose Registers are sixteen registers, each being able to contain one word. These registers are used for storing the integer operands taking part in binary arithmetic operations.
- Floating-Point Registers are four registers, each being able to contain a double word. These registers hold the operands taking part in arithmetic operations on floating-point numbers.
- Control Registers form a group of registers differing from one model to another.
8. The development of the semiconductor integration technology has led to the creation of memories on LSI circuits. For constructing memory units on LSI circuits either bipolar or MOS memory are used. The access time of bipolar memory is about 100 nanoseconds, while the access time of MOS memory is 500 nanoseconds. But on the other hand the density of memorizing elements allocation in the latter is very high and amounts to 4 thousand memorizing elements for one chip. The latest achievements of modern electronics are the creation of memories on electronic circuits made by spraying layers of different memorizing materials.
9. Nowadays the main memory RAM which is regularly used in microcomputers can accept new instructions or information from a peripheral device. A term synonymous with the computer’s working memory RAM is: core, core storage, main memory, main storage, primary storage, read/write memory. Other memories, such as ROM or PROM, which are used in microcomputers as well, store instructions or information permanently. ROM, PROM, EPROM and EEPROM are all together called firmware which is 'hard' software.
Exercises
4. Find the equivalents:
1. the numbers to be operated on
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1. числа с плавающей точкой
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2. a magnetic core
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2. самые последние достижения
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3. an access time
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3. напылением слоев
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4. a computer's memory
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4. во время обработки
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5. intermediate results
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5. крупномасштабная интеграция
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6. Large Scale Integration
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6. магнитный сердечник
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7. during processing
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7. память компьютера
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8. by spraying layers
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8. промежуточные результаты
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9. the latest achievements
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9. время обращения
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10. floating-point numbers
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10. числа, которые будут
обрабатываться
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5. Memorize the following definitions:
1. Memory unit is a part of a computer which stores information. 2. The memory access time is the time required to transmit one computer word out of the memory to where it will be used. 3. The capacity of a computer memory is the quantity of data that the memory unit can hold.
6. Answer the following questions:
1. What is the general purpose of the memory or storage unit? 2. What information is stored in the computer memory? 3. Where is information stored inside the computer? 4. What is the memory access time? 5. What ways of memorizing words in a computer do you know? 6. What has led to the creation of memories on LSI circuits? 7. What is the latest achievement of modern electronics? 8. What memories are used in microcomputers?
7. What do you call a unit which:
1) accepts information from outside a computer? 2) memorizes information to be operated on? 3) brings information out of the computer? 4) is able to take in information at the very high speed from a computer and then to release it at the proper speed for the peripheral equipment?
8. Translate the following sentences paying attention to the words in bold type:
a) 1. Every student must know that reasonable operations are logical and mathematical operations. 2. His experiment is simpler than that of yours. 3. The capabilities of a digital computer are greater than those of an analog computer. 4. It is clear that these diagrams are like those shown in Fig. 4.
b) 1. As science progresses the difference between man-made systems and natural systems may be reduced infinitely. 2. As you know information is a set of marks that have meaning. 3. As new operations can be composed of sub-operations, no new programming is needed. 4. The development of computers as machines for handling information has gone a long way. 5. As it is known, program is a set of instructions.
c) 1. One of these problems has been solved by a computer. 2. By means of a computer one can easily solve any problem. 3. There is only one solution, the one stated above, when n and m are equal. 4. One should remember all these rules, while solving a problem.
9. Translate the following sentences paying attention to the form and function of the Participle:
1. The input unit consists of some devices using different means. 2. Performing addition the computer must have two numbers to be added. 3. When pressing the keys the operator makes the adding machine operate. 4. The operator pressing the keys makes the adding machine operate. 5. A device invented by the German mathematician Leibnitz could control automatically the amount of additions to be performed by a given digit. 6. Logical operations performed by a computer are comparing, selecting, sorting, and determining. 7. Discussing the advantages of the new memory unit the professor gave the students all the necessary explanations. 8. Having punched holes in a card the operator put it into the computer. 9. When passed through the reading equipment the characters are read in a way similar to a way used for a magnetic tape. 10. The density of memorizing elements in MOS memory is very high.
10. Translate the following sentences paying attention to the Absolute Participle Construction:
1. The first automatic computers of the 1940's not being very reliable, scientists went on improving them. 2. Specialists use computers widely, the latter helping in performing computations at great speeds. 3. Personal computers being used for many purposes, scientists go on improving their characteristics. 4. The computer SM-100 is used in industrial processes and scientific researches, its main function being to carry out reasonable operations with numbers and to calculate complex problems. 5. With the current on, the computer automatically begins operating.
11. Find the sentences in which the Absolute Participle Construction is used:
1. Register R storing the code for number 3, the computer will perform the operation 3 times. 2. When storing the code for number 3 register R makes the computer perform the operation 3 times. 3. The computer performs the operation 3 times, the code for number 3 being stored in one of the registers. 4. The register storing the code for number 3 is arranged in the computer's memory. 5. The code for number 3 being stored in register R, the operation will be performed by the computer 3 times.
12. Read Text В and make up questions on the text for your group mates to answer:
TEXT B THE FLOPPY DISKS
Floppy disks are a magnetic storage medium which can be recorded, erased and used over and over again. Floppy disks are flexible plastic disks which have several standard sizes. Full size floppy disks are 8 inches in diameter; minifloppy disks are 5 inches in diameter. Both full size floppy disks and minifloppy disks are housed in a paper-like plastic envelope, usually black, and remain in the envelope at all times.
Microfloppy disks are in sizes from 3 to 4 inches. They are housed in a rigid plastic shell of different design. The numbers of bytes that can be recorded on a floppy disk are about 80,000 to 1,000,000 and more. Floppy disks are used extensively in personal computers, small business computers, word processing, etc.
13. Read Text B’ and translate it without a dictionary.
TEXT B' BUBBLE MEMORY
Bubble memory is storage for programs and information. It is a storage technology which combines both semiconductor and magnetic recording techniques to create a solid state storage device. Bubble memory is unique, because it is a disk that doesn't spin. The bits on the surface spin around the disk instead. Bubble memory units are only two square inches in size, and contain a thin film recording layer. The bits called bubbles because of their globular shape are electromagnetically generated in circular strings inside this layer. In order to read or write the bubbles the strings of bubbles are made to rotate past the equivalent (the string of bubbles) of a read/write head in a disk.
Bubble memory holds its contents without power, like a disk or a tape. It is considerably faster than floppy disks and many hard disks. It is often used in portable terminals and computers instead of disks.
Notes:
bubble memory – пузырьковая память
techniques – технические приемы
solid state – полупроводниковый
to spin – вращаться
globular shape – округлая форма
string – цепочка; последовательность
portable terminals – портативные терминалы
14. Read Text C. Render it in Russian.
TEXT С CHIPS
Chips are miniaturized electronic circuits. A chip contains several hundred thousand electronic components (transistors, resistors, etc.). The terms synonymous to chip are integrated circuits and microelectronics. There are some types of chips. Logic chip is a single chip that can perform some or all the functions of a processor. A microprocessor is an entire processor on a single chip. One or more microprocessors are used in a portable or desk computer. Larger computers may use several types of microprocessors. Memory chips contain from several hundred to hundreds of thousands of bits (storage cells). RAM chips are the computer's primary internal working storage and require constant power to keep their bits. Chips such as ROMs, PROMs, EPROMs and EEPROMs are permanent memory chips and hold their contents without power.
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