Vocabulary notes

Task I. Read and memorize the following words.Translate the sentences.

1. network – мережа. The existing search programs are very simple and popular networks of sites.

2. to connect – з’єднувати, сполучати. If you ring the operator, he will connect you with the airport.

3. to exchange – обмінювати.. John exchanged books with Peter.

4. current – поточний. A newsreel shows current events.

5. advantage – перевага. Tony’s university education gave him an advantage over boys.

6. to estimate – оцінювати. I don’t know enough about him to form a true estimate of his abilities.

7. touch – дотик. I felt a touch on my shoulder.

8. access – доступ. Students need easy access to books.

9. link – зв’язок. There is a link between smoking and lung diseases.

10. up-to-date – сучасний. In this part of the city you can see ancient and up-to-date buildings next to each other.

11. to navigate – орієнтуватися. He was the first to navigate the Northern Ocean.

12. to incorporate – об’єднувати. The firm incorporated with others.

13. to contain – містити (в собі). This atlas contains forty maps.

14. to collaborate – співробітничати. The police and the army collaborated to catch the terrorists.

15. to receive – отримати. He received the news in silence.

16. considerable – значний.This computer is bought at a considerable expence.

17. require – потребувати, вимагати. We require extra help.

Task II. Read and translate the text.

Text 4A.

The Internet

The Internet is a magnificent global network with millions and millions of computers and people connected to one another where each day people worldwide exchange an immeasurable amount of information, electronic mail, news, resources and, more important, ideas.

It has grown at a surprising rate. Almost every one has heard about it and an increasing number of people use it regularly. The current estimate is that over 70 million people are connected, in some way, to the Internet – whether they know it or not.

With a few touches at a keyboard a person can get access to materials almost everywhere. One can have access to full-text newspapers, magazines, journals, reference works, and even books. The Web is one of the best resources for up-to-date information. It is a hypertext-based system by which you can navigate through the Internet. Hypertext is the text that contains links to other documents. A special program known as “browser” can help you find news, pictures, virtual museums, electronic magazines, etc. and print Web pages. You can also click on keywords or buttons that take you to other pages or other Web sites. This is possible because browsers understand hypertext markup language or code, a set of commands to indicate how a Web page is formatted and displayed.

Internet Video conferencing programs enable users to talk to and see each other, exchange textual and graphical information, and collaborate.

Internet TV sets allow you to surf the Web and have e-mail while you are watching TV, or vice versa. Imagine watching a film on TV and simultaneously accessing a Web site where you get information on the actors of the film. The next generation of Internet-enabled televisions will incorporate a smart-card for home shopping, banking and other interactive services. Internet-enabled TV means a TV set used as an Internet device.

The networks are also influencing business practices in marketing, advertising, and hiring. Consumers are reporting their needs directly to companies, and they are sending suggestion for changes in product design. Unemployed workers are turning to electronic employment services, which list job requirements and benefits in a far wider geographic area than was possible before the Internet.

In addition, the electronic discussion groups are creating a new style of social relations. People of similar interests are talking to each other using only text on a screen. Physical features such as age, appearance, and social class are hidden behind the screen. From their homes, e-mail users are finding new friends to discuss movies, hobbies, family life, health problems, fashion, travel, and politics. These discussions can be private (if the message is sent to an individual e-mail address) or quite public (if everyone in the group receives the message).

Politicians are paying attention to the political debate in electronic discussion groups, because the Internet is a good place to learn which issues really interest the voters. In some cases, politicians are changing their position in response to the opinions on the Internet.