Module 1. Computer and modern society

MODULE 1. COMPUTER AND MODERN SOCIETY

• “Computing is not about computers any more. It is about living.” (Nicholas Negroponte)

 

VOCABULARY

A. VOCABULARY FOCUS

Study the following words and word combinations. Consult a specialized ICT dictionary or one of the following websites, if necessary.

• Free Online Dictionary of Computing: http://foldoc.org

• Tech Dictionary: www.techdictionary.com

• Tech Encyclopedia: www.techweb.com/encyclopedia

• Tech Terms Dictionary: www.techterms.com

• Free Online Dictionary of Computing: http://www.instantweb.com

 

access (n)	• entering a computer system; getting information from a storage device; means of access: to have ~ to more than 150,000 e-books;
computer(n)	• an electronic machine that can store, organize and find information, do calculations and control other machines: ~s perform many tasks; ~-generated unemployment;~ industry; to set up a ~; to restart a ~; to reboota ~;
data (n)	• a collection of factual knowledge about something; a body of facts; information: e-vote ~;
digital(adj)	• about an electronic system that has only two states, off and on: exchange ~ data; ~ citizens; ~ media extender; play ~ content onto TVs;Ant. analogue;
emoticon(n)	• an abbreviation or icon used on a network to indicate amusement: use ~s;
e-voting(n)	• a term encompassing several different types of voting, embracing both electronic means of casting a vote and electronic means of counting votes: ~ ballots; ~ voting machines;
Information Technology(n)	• (also Information Technologies) development, implementation, and maintenance of computer hardware and software systems to organize and communicate information electronically;
information society(n)	• a society characterised by a high level of information intensity: machine tools of the ~; a global ~;
Information Resources Management	• techniques of managing information as a shared organizational resource;
program(n)	• a series of instructions which can be put into a computer in order to make it perform an operation;
programme (n)	• a broadcast on television or radio: the government information ~ of the Republic of Belarus “e-Belarus”;
store (v)	• to save information in electronic form, for example in a computer’s memory: ~ gigabytes of music on a PMP;
transmit(v)	• to send out an electronic signal such as a radio, television or computer signal; to pass information to other people: ~ vote data.

Make sure you know what abbreviations, acronyms and blendings mean.

abbreviation(n)	• a shortened form of a written word or phrase used in place of the whole, such as ICT [ ai-si-ti ];
acronym(n)	• a word formed from the initial letter or letters of each of the successive parts or major parts of a compound term, such as GNU [ gə`nu:];
blending(n)	• a word made up by mixing usually two parts of words, such as emoticon [ emotion+icon ].

Study the following abbreviations, acronyms and blendings.

IT(or Info-Tech)	• Information Technology or Technologies
ICT	• Information and Communication Technology or Technologies
IRM	• Information Resources Management
PMP	• portable music player
the Web, wwwor 3w	• World Wide Web
Emoticon	• emotion and icon
CIM	• Computer-Integrated Manufacturing
GPS	• Global Positioning Service
DVD	• Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc

Read the information about the use of British and American English in this textbook. Then learn the British and American spellings and variants of the words below.

NB! This practice-oriented textbook for students of ICT contains original texts on a variety of topics from different indigenous sources. Due to this fact the reader may come across both British and American variants of English. The teaching instructions are given in British English, the original texts, though abridged and adapted, have preserved their authentic spellings and variants for the students of English not to be taken aback with the two Englishes when surfing the Internet or reading in the original.

British Spelling / Variant	American Spelling / Variant
analogue	analog
analyse	analyze
behaviour	behavior
characterised	characterized
catalogue	catalog
centre	center
cheque	check
colour	color
disc	disk
encyclopaedia	encyclopedia
endeavour	endeavor
favourable / unfavourable	favorable / unfavorable
fibre	fiber
fulfill, fulfillment	fulfil, fulfilment
informatisation	informatization
licence	license
marvellous	marvelous
mneumonics	mnemonics
mobile phone	cellular phone
modelling	modeling
organisation	organization
standardised	standardized
telelabour	telelabor
utilise	utilize

B. VOCABULARY USE

SWITCH ON ACTIVITY

READING

BEFORE YOU READ

WHILE YOU READ

Computers in Modern Society

 

Information Revolution. In most countries of the world, the “ information revolution ” has altered many aspects of life significantly: commerce, employment, medicine, security, transportation, entertainment, and so on. Consequently, information and communication technology (ICT) has affected – in both good ways and bad ways – community life, family life, human relationships, education, careers, to name just a few examples.

Global networks like the Internet and especially the World Wide Web are connecting people all over the earth. So, for the first time in the history of the earth, ethics and values will be debated and transformed in a context that is not limited to a particular geographic region, or constrained by a specific religion or culture. This may very well be one of the most important social developments in history. Consider just a few of the global issues: global laws, global cyberbusiness, global education.

As a “universal tool” that can, in principle, perform almost any task, computers obviously pose a threat to jobs. Although they occasionallyneed repair, computers don’t require sleep, they don’t get tired, they don’t go home ill or take time off for rest and relaxation. At the same time, computers are often far more efficient than humans in performing many tasks. Therefore, economic incentives to replace humans with computerized devices are very high. Indeed, in the industrialized world many workers already have been replaced by computerized devices – bank tellers, auto workers, telephone operators, typists, graphic artists, security guards, assembly-line workers, and on and on. In addition, even professionals like medical doctors, lawyers, teachers, accountants and psychologists are finding that computers can perform many of their traditional professional duties quite effectively.

The employment outlook, however, is not all bad. Consider, for example, the fact that the computer industry already has generated a wide variety of new jobs: hardware engineers, software engineers, systems analysts, webmasters, information technology teachers, computer sales clerks, and so on. Thus it appears that, in the short run, computer-generated unemployment will be an important social problem; but in the long run, information technology will create many more jobs than it eliminates.

Even when a job is not eliminated by computers, it can be radically altered. For example, airline pilots still sit at the controls of commercial airplanes; but during much of a flight the pilot simply watches as a computer flies the plane. Similarly, those who prepare food in restaurants or make products in factories may still have jobs; but often they simply push buttons and watch as computerized devices actually perform the needed tasks. In this way, it is possible for computers to cause “de-skilling” of workers, turning them into passive observers and button pushers. Again, however, the picture is not all bad because computers also have generated new jobs which require new sophisticated skills to perform – for example, “computer assisted drafting” and “keyhole” surgery.

Computers and modern technology have been instrumental in the explosive advances in medical science and modern day conveniences. However computers and technology have also been twisted and debased to further the effectiveness of weapons and wars. So to be honest it’s a double edged sword that can be both used and seen in both a good and bad light.

Information Society. Information society is a term for a society in which the creation, distribution, and manipulation of information has become the most significant economic and cultural activity. An information society may be contrasted with societies in which the economic underpinning is primarily industrial or agrarian. The machine tools of the information society are computers and telecommunications, rather than lathes or ploughs.

Progress in information technologies and communication is changing the way we live, how we work and do business, how we educate our children, study and do research, train ourselves, and how we are entertained. The information society is not only affecting the way people interact but it is also requiring the traditional organisational structures to be more flexible, more participatory and more decentralised.

The idea of a global information society can be viewed in relation to Marshall McLuhan’s prediction that the communications media would transform the world into a “global village.”

Here is a succinct definition from the IBM Community Development Foundation in their 2012 report according to which “Information Society is a society characterised by a high level of information intensity in the everyday life of most citizens, in most organisations and workplaces; by the use of common or compatible technology for a wide range of personal, social, educational and business activities, and by the ability to transmit, receive and exchange digital data rapidly between places irrespective of distance.”

The aim of the information society is to gain competitive advantage internationally through using IT in a creative and productive way. An information society is a society in which the creation, distribution, diffusion, use, integration and manipulation of information is a significant economic, political, and cultural activity. People that have the means to partake in this form of society are sometimes called digital citizens.

Computer and Communication. For still many of us, communicating with family used to mean sending letters and cards through the mail and getting no response until weeks later. We’d pass hand-written notes to friends in class. We’d pick up the telephone – paying for long-distance calls, no less – and could only talk to one person at a time. On top of that, there were no answering machines to leave messages if a person wasn’t home, or Caller ID to screen calls if we didn’t feel like picking up the phone. And pay phones were the only option to call home if our car broke down on the side of the road, or if we had to stay after school.

For the past decade or so, technology has transformed the way we communicate, in part due to the advent of the Internet. Instead of mailing letters, we’re writing e-mailsthroughGmail or Windows Live Hotmail that can be sent instantaneously to a recipient. We can even add multiple recipients to these e-mails, so that more than one person can read them. Even more, we can send greeting cards over the Web with sites like someecards.com and GroupCard.com. No postage needed!

Sending a note to a friend can be done in a matter of seconds through instant message clients like AOL instant message and Meebo. With them, we can see if a “buddy” is available or away, talk to multiple people at a time, “wink” and “sigh” using emoticons, ignore a message if we don’t feel like talking, and send links to our favorite Web articles and videos.

We are no longer bound to long-distance charges, either. Many folks have already kicked their landline phones to the curb and replaced them with Voice-over-Internet protocol (VoIP) andmobile phones. We can place free video calls, we can see the person we’re talking to, to anyone in the world over the Internet by using Skype and a headset. For a monthly paid service we can make regular phone calls over the Internet using the popular Vonage service or signing up for VoIP through our cable company.

Mobile phones have become a godsend, letting us place calls no matter where we are – on the way to work, at the beach, at school, etc. Even text messaging has become an efficient way to get a short message across, such as “Meet you there at 8” or “I’ll be home late.”

It’s true that technology has also made society somewhat impersonal. We communicate with each other mostly through e-mail and instant message. As a result, it’s difficult to tell when a person is serious or sarcastic – our clever turns of phrase can easily be misconstrued. Technology tends to make communication drag out more than it has to, too; sometimes it’s quicker to just get out of your seat and walk to the person, or simply pick up the phone.

Even worse, younger generations have forgotten how to spell and write complete sentences due to the increased use of text messaging on mobile phones. The State Examination Commission said in a report that in many cases, teenagers seemed “unduly reliant on short sentences, simple tenses, and a limited vocabulary” and that with the use of phonetic spelling and little or no punctuation, it’s beginning to pose a threat to traditional conventions in writing, not to mention oral communication.

In addition, we’ve seen how addicted people can become to their smart phones, like the Apple iPhone and the Black Berry Storm 9530. You’ve probably heard the term for it: “Crack Berry.” People possess an obsessive need to constantly check their e-mail, even when on vacation with the family. It’s as if we’re afraid we’ll miss something important or be out of the loop.

AFTER YOU READ

SUPPLEMENTARY READING

Scan the following texts and choose from the list (A-D) the sentence which best summarizes each part (1-2) of the text. There are two extra sentences which you do not need to use.

A ContemporaryMarketing Involves the Use of Computers

B How Hi-Tech Has Changed Social Life

C Electronic Means of Entertainment

D The Use of Computers in Business

Read over your segment at least twice to become familiar with the contents of it. You do not need to memorize it. In 15-20 min render your own segment using your active vocabulary and appropriate grammar.

 

Segment 1

Segment 2

 

Carol Bartz, the Former President and CEO of the Company Yahoo!

Carol Bartz is an American business executive, the former president and CEO of the Internet services company Yahoo!, and former chairman, president, and CEO at architectural and engineering design software company Autodesk.

She became CEO of Autodesk in 1992. According to ‘Forbes’, Bartz “transformed Autodesk from an aimless maker of PC software into a leader of computer-aided design software, targeting architects and builders. She is credited with instituting and promoting Autodesk’s ‘3F’ or “fail fast-forward” concept – the idea of moulding a company to risk failure in some missions, but to be resilient and move on quickly when failure occurs. She stepped down as CEO in 2006 and became the executive chairman of the board. Autodesk net revenue substantially increased during her tenure.

Bartz served on several boards of directors, including those of Intel, Cisco Systems, Autodesk, BEA Systems, Network Appliance, and the Foundation for the National Medals of Science.Additionally, she has been a member of the United States President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

When Bartz was hired by Yahoo in early 2009 she was paid an annual base salary of $1 million. She was eligible for an annual 400% bonus and received 5,000,000 shares in addition to an equity grant of $18 million of stock.

She was fired over the phone by Yahoo’s Chairman of the Board in October 2011.

 

Segment 3

Segment 4

Segment 5

 

Segment 6

Reed Hastings, Netflix Co-Founder

Reed Hastings co-founded Netflix in 1997 with then CEO Marc Randolph and launched the subscription service in 1999. He currently serves as Chairman and CEO of the movie-rental company. In 2005, ‘Time’ magazine added Reed to its “Time 100” list of the one hundred most influential global citizens. In March 2007 Reed was appointed to Microsoft’s board of directors.

At present Netflix, Inc. is an American public company, provider of on-demand Internet streaming media and online DVD and Blu-ray Disc rental in the United States, Canada, Latin America, the Caribbean, United Kingdom and Ireland. Reed Hastings is its co-founder and CEO, the company is headquartered in Los Gatos, California.

Earlier in his career, Reed founded Pure Software, which was acquired by Rational Software in 1997 after a successful IPO and numerous acquisitions. He also served as President of the California State Board of Education from 2000 to 2004. After receiving his Bachelors at Bowdoin College in 1983, Reed served in the U.S. Peace Corps as a high school math teacher in Swaziland.

The US President Obama from time to time sits down with a pack of Silicon Valley tech titans in San Francisco. Among the attendees: Apple CEO Steve Jobs, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Google CEO Eric Schmidt,Twitter CEO Dick Costolo and Netflix CEO Reed Hastings.

As a rule the president and the business leaders discuss the shared goal of promoting American innovation, and talk about the tech titants’ commitment to new investments in research and development, education and clean energy. Another purpose of the discussion is innovation. Innovation, yes, but lowercase “jobs” is what Obama is most concerned about. “The focus of the discussion is innovation and job creation,” Obama’s press secretary Jay Carney said, “and these are representatives of businesses who can – who know a lot about private sector job growth.” Obviously other topics could come up.

Now form temporary expert groups in which one student from each jigsaw group joins the other students assigned to the same segment. You are given 10 minutes to discuss the main points of your segment and rehearse the presentation you are going to make to your jigsaw group.

 

MULTIMEDIA FILE

In this section you will watch the multimedia file “Obama meets Jobs, Zuckerberg, others in Silicon Valley” which is a piece of news from ‘IDG News Service’.

BEFORE YOU WATCH

WHILE YOU WATCH

AFTER YOU WATCH

TRANSLATION

TEXT RENDERING

Информационные технологии

21 век по праву принято считать веком информационных технологий. По оценкам специалистов к середине текущего столетия стоимость активов ведущих мировых производителей более чем наполовину будет состоять из стоимости информации. В условиях стремительно развивающегося информационного общества крайне важной задачей становится подготовка высококвалифицированных кадров в сфере управления, обладающих необходимыми знаниями и навыками в области прикладных информационных технологий и систем.

Эффективная работа современного руководителя невозможна вне широкого информационного поля, формируемого посредством применения информационно-аналитических систем, систем поддержки принятия решений, технологий ситуационного моделирования и прогнозирования.

В настоящее время Академия управления обладает современной материально-технической базой, в учебном процессе, научно-исследовательской и административно-хозяйственной деятельности широко используются следующие информационные ресурсы, системы и технологии:

· компьютеризованные учебные аудитории и классы, мультимедийные аудитории, оснащенные системным и прикладным программным обеспечением;

· разделяемые информационные ресурсы, используемые в качестве средств совместной работы преподавателей и обучаемых;

· информационно-образовательные технологии и ресурсы системы дистанционного обучения (открытого образования);

· информационные системы, обеспечивающие процессы планирования учебной работы и управления вузом;

· электронные библиотечные системы.

В различных формах информационные технологии используются при изучении более 70 дисциплин. Информационные технологии в Академии управления продолжают свое развитие в русле основных современных тенденций по главным направлениям, определенным Концепцией развития информационной системы:

· Внедрение новых способов организации управления компьютерными классами на основе технологий виртуализации учебных машин и кластеризации учебных серверов;

· Внедрение средств совместной работы как технологической основы формирования информационно-образовательной среды Академии управления;

· Разработка и внедрение портальных технологий;

· Разработка и внедрение системы планирования учебной работы;

· Развитие беспроводного сегмента сети;

· Развитие учебного комплекса ситуационного моделирования.

· Создание системы хранения данных высокой емкости, единого источника корпоративных данных;

· Развитие системы управления доступом к информационным ресурсам;

· Виртуализация серверного парка.

Большинство перечисленных работ выполняются специалистами Центра информационных технологий Академии управления без привлечения сторонних организаций, что является уникальным явлением среди высших учебных заведений нетехнического профиля. В работах также принимают активное участие студенты старших курсов факультета инновационной подготовки, приобретая практические навыки в сфере управления разработкой, внедрением и сопровождением современных информационных систем и технологий.

DISCUSSION

9.1. Work in groups of four students. Complete the ‘ vocabulary network ’ below with those spheres of human life computer has affected most. Speak on the fields of human activities affected by computer. Report back to the class the results of your discussion.

Vocabulary Network

PROBLEM SOLVING

SELF-STUDY

WRITING

MODULE 1. COMPUTER AND MODERN SOCIETY

• “Computing is not about computers any more. It is about living.” (Nicholas Negroponte)

 

VOCABULARY

A. VOCABULARY FOCUS