Task 2. Translate the following word combinations or find Russian equivalents.

1. software
2. software industry
3. media frenzy
4. IBM-compatible personal computers
5. to spare no expenses
6. venture capital
7. computer industry
8. programming expertise
9. non-profit organizations
10. professional skills development

Task 3. Translate the following sentences into Russian.

1. Gates’ foresight and his vision for personal computing have been central to the success of Microsoft.
2. The unprecedented marketing and media frenzy was for a piece of software Windows 95.
3. Through the force of his personality Bill Gates has imposed his own order on the burgeoning computer industry.
4. Microsoft’s mission has been to continually advance and improve software technology.
5. Bill Gates devoted his energy to make it easier, more cost-effective and more enjoyable for people to use computers.

Task 4. Fill the gaps in the sentences below with the words and expressions from the box. There are two expressions, which you don’t need to use.

1. Bill Gates is chairman and chief ______ of Microsoft Corporation.
2. Bill Gates is the worldwide leader in software services and _____ for personal and business computing.
3. Customers queued up outside computer stores to purchase Windows 95, ________ for IBM and IBM-compatible personal computers.
4. Microsoft Corporation spared no expense in exciting the ______ for its new product, namely Windows 95.
5. Bill Gates was a _____ before the term was invented: he devoted all his energies to developing _____ for personal computers.
6. The introduction of Windows 95 mirrored the rapid changes in the ______ and marked a new crucial point for Bill Gates.
7. Gates’ ability to anticipate _____ developments in _____ had given him in 1996 a ______ of $18 billion.
8. Bill Gates’ role in the personal computer revolution had turned him into an icon of ____________.
9. In 1999, Gates wrote a book that shows how computer technology can solve ______ in fundamentally new ways.
10. Being an _______ and ______ entrepreneur Bill Gates found ways to force the rest of the industry to follow his lead.

Task 5. Find English equivalents for the following Russian expressions and words.

1. лидер на мировом рынке
2. программное обеспечение
3. Интернет
4. операционная система
5. стимулировать спрос
6. компьютерный фанат
7. язык программирования
8. разработка программного обеспечения
9. ключевой момент
10. непоколебимая уверенность

Task 6. Translate the following sentences from Russian into English.

1. Успех «Майкрософт» состоит в непоколебимой убежденности Гейтса в своих собственных идеях.
2. Гейтс разработал версию языка программирования BASICдля первого микрокомпьютера.
3. У Гейтса были самые важные инструменты, необходимые для разработки программного обеспечения: мозги и компьютеры.
4. У Гейтса было все для компьютерной промышленности: продукт, опыт программирования и предвидение еще больших возможностей.
5. Гейтс пожертвовал гонорар, полученный за обе книги, общественным организациям.

Dialogue 1. Computers in Russia

Task 1. Read and translate the dialogue.

Foreigner:Many people think that Russians tend to lag behind other countries in computer literacy of the population. Is that True?

Russian:To some extent you are right if you mean the number of computers. But over the last few years we have progressed enormously. Two decades ago few people realized that computers would become part of our daily lives. Not only computers, many of the things that we do now were thought to be impossible 20 years ago.

F.:Yes, the world has changed. In advanced countries computers are everywhere these days. Computers monitor the flow of materials in plants and factories, computerized robots take over dangerous jobs in factories. They are widely used in business and finance, in science and medicine.

R.:They even help secretaries to get letters and contracts typed accurately and quickly. To be serious, the progress in computer technologies is amazing.

F.:Yes, soon computers will be able to recognize voice commands, people won’t be using keyboards.

R.:Undoubtedly within 20 years from now all information will be coming through computers even in my country. It will affect the labour market drastically.

F.:Can’t agree more. Many jobs will have disappeared by, say, 2015. Besides, computers provide access to the Internet. Do young people in your country use the system?

R.:I’d say an overwhelming majority of young people do use the Internet. They show an interest in websites relating to their occupations and studies.

F.:Do you often visit Internet shops?

R.:No, I log on to the Net from my office. Many people, however, are disappointed and embarrassed by the situation. We’ve become too dependent on computers.

F.:That’s right. Clerical staff cannot do simple arithmetic without calculators.

R.:Not only that. It’s difficult to keep information held on computers secret.

F.:Yes, even kids can hack the computers of large corporations, they can hack into banks and transfer huge amounts of cash.

R.:Connecting to other people’s computers secretly and illegally has become a problem. People may be right that the spread of computers has brought us as many problems as it has solved.

Vocabulary List

lagbehind– отставать

tosomeextent– до некоторой степени

voicecommand– команды, подаваемые человеческим голосом

drastically – коренным образом

disappear – исчезать

overwhelming majority – подавляющее большинство

beembarrassed– быть смущенным, растерянным

doarithmetic– делать арифметические подсчеты

takeover– брать на себя

Task2.Comprehension Questions

1. Has Russia made progress in computer literacy of the population?
2. Did many people in Russia foresee the future of computer technologies as far as two-three decades ago?
3. What can be done with the help of computers? Are they used in offices, at plants, in research institutes?
4. What breakthrough in computer technologies is likely to happen in the near future?
5. How do computers affect the labour market?
6. Do young people in Russia use the Internet?
7. How can people get access to the Internet?
8. Does hacking pose a serious problem?

Texts for additional reading

Task 1. Read and translate the text

First it was the movie, then the radio receiver and then the television. Each was once seen as magical technology that would transform education. Now it is the computer. Many governments have equipped schools with computers, convinced that their presence would improve the pace and efficiency of learning.

Some thought that installing computers was a good way to teach children and to fit them for the 21^stcentury.

Studies of children whose teachers use and do not use computers in the classroom suggest that the hopes for computers are just as wrong as those for classroom movies, radio and television.

The researchers found no evidence that the use of computers improved children’s test scores. In fact, they found the reverse. There are signs that computers may even impede learning. It’s obvious that young children, in particular, learn best when they face the teacher. Educational software is one-size-fits-all; it is not tailored to the varied abilities of pupils in a class.

Money should be spent to cut class size and to improve teacher training.

Words you may need

magical – волшебный

transform – преобразовывать

pace – темп, скорость

install– устанавливать

evidence– свидетельство, доказательство

thereverse– обратное

impede– затруднять

tailor– специально приспосабливать для какой-либо цели

Task 2. Decide, if these statements are true or false.

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