The history about robots

In the eighteenth century a Frenchman named Maelzel built a robot that could play chess. However, the secret was finally discovered. Inside the mechanical man was a very smart midget, who was a good chess player.

Recently, scientists have built electronic robots that really can play chess. One of the first robots was an invention made by James Watt. He was the same man who invented the steam engine.

Robots are helping our research scientists answer many difficult questions Robots help astronomers find new stars, and lead the way to new and better rockets.

Scientists use robots to translate foreign languages.

Robots can teach, serving as assistants to human professors. They can even teach professors how to be better professors.

Прочтите текст еще раз и ответьте на следующие вопросы:

1. What is this text about?

2. Is the idea of robot absolutely new?

3. Can modern robots play chess?

4. What kind of robots can play chess in our days?

5. Who was the first inventor of the robot?

6. What can robots do?

7. What new information have you learned about robots?

20. Продолжите данные диалоги, используя как можно больше новых слов, терминов и словосочетаний:

A: The automation of production processes and operations in our country has been very important lately.

B: Yes, but it still has to be developed and perfected, and until better automatic devices are built, automation will be practical only for certain types of production… .

A: …

A: Much has been done in the sphere of automation and still more will have to be done.

B: I think mechanization of production operations and their automation is one of the most important problems of today.

A: Yes, and I suppose the most difficult task is the automation of production processes in oil and gas industry as well as in petrochemical industry.

B: I quite agree here. Today these industries are producing.

A: …

A: I know you are an expert in automation. What problem are you working at now?

B: We are trying to perfect new sensing devices.

Продолжите речь «В», используя следующие словосочетания:

advanced automatic control; material handling system; data-processing system; the automation of production processes.

A: Oh, that’s a very important and promising field of research.

Постарайтесь воспроизвести данные диалоги.