VI. Choose the most suitable variant.

1. Nanotechnologists work with materials …

(a) about the size of one millimeter

(b) about the size of atoms and molecules

(c) as thin as paper

2. The invention of the scanning tunneling microscope enabled scientists to observe ...

(a) the structure of water

(b) distant objects in space

(c) molecules and even atoms in greater detail than ever before

3. The speech "There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom" by a Nobel Prize winner Richard Feynman is discusses the theory ...

(a) that scientists can make devices about the size of atoms

(b) that carbon dioxide can be turned into carbon sixty

(c) that scientists cannot go further than the size of atoms in making devices

4. When did scientists first begin to think about using nanotechnologies to make extre­mely small devices?

(a) after the period of industrial revolution

(b) after the development of carbon nano-tubes

(c) after IBM supported research

What was not mentioned in the report as a use of the nanotube?

(a) film

(b) flat material

(c) glass

Where, according to the report, can nanotechnologies be used?

(a) in production of sporting goods and machines that reduce air pollution

(b) in the machine building industry

(c) in the computer design industry

7. What is one prospect for nanotechnolo­gies in computer science?

(a) nanotechnologies will make computers affordable for everyone

(b) nanotechnologies will help to make small, and fast computers

(c) nanotechnologies will help to make transistors useless

What is Intel famous for?

(a) the personal computer

(b) the micro chip with tiny transistors

(c) the micro computer

9. What are the most current issues nano­technologists deal with?

(a) to create a nano-sized transistors

(b) to make nano-sized transistors work in Hewlett Packard computers

(c) to stop competition between Intel and Hewlett Packard

What danger of nanotechnologies was not mentioned in the report?

(a) nano-particles in mobile phones cause cancer into laboratory mice

(b) nano-particles caused lung damage into laboratory mice

(c) nano-particles can harm the human body's ability to fight infection

What is known about the effect of nanotechnologies on the environment?

(a) nanotechnologies have a positive effect

(b) nanotechnologies have a negative effect

(c) not much is known about the effect of nanotechnologies on the environment

12. The environmentalists think the government should...

(a) develop rules for nanotechnology con­sumers

(b) develop rules for nano-materials

(c) develop rules for nano-materials pro­ducers

VII. Small Group Discussion:

In groups of 3-4 students discuss the following questions:

- What have you learned from this report that you didn’t know before?

- What is nanotechnology?

- Where and how can nanotechnologies be applied?

- How can nanotechnologies be applied in the computer industry?

- What other new technologies have been developed in the last few years?

- What technologies do you personally use on a daily basis?

- What technologies would you like to have access to in the future? Why?

- How will they change your life?

VIII. Find the key sentences in the text and use them in your retelling.

IX. Render the following text into English:

Научно-технический прогресс и его влияние на нашу жизнь

Любое изобретение или открытие, сделанное учеными, предназначено для того, чтобы улучшить нашу жизнь и расширить границы человеческих знаний. Оно может быть выведено путем умозаключений или быть случайным. Примером открытия первого типа является изобретение молниеотвода Бенжамином Франклином, а примером второго – открытие рентгеновских лучей Вильгельмом Рентгеном. Такие открытия, как пенициллин, радар, искусственные подсластители (заменители сахара), тефлон, жевательная резинка, называют «счастливой случайностью», потому что ученые проводили исследования в одной области и случайно открывали вещество или прибор, который оказывался очень полезным. Сейчас трудно приписать открытие одному человеку. Это результат работы группы ученых и даже целых научно-исследовательских институтов. Современные передовые области исследований – нанотехнологии, трансплантология, электронные коммуникации, аэродинамика (уменьшение колебаний высотных сооружений), самоуправляемые машины и приборы, фармакология.

X. Internet Research Project