Decide whether the following statements are true (T) or false (F) in relation to the information in the text. If you think a statement is false, change it to make it true.
| a | American inventor Lee De Forest invented an integrated circuit, an extremely small complex of electronic components contained on a thin chip or wafer of semiconducting material such as silicon. |
| b | John Logie Baird, English engineer and television pioneer invented the first commercially viable apparatus to transmit and receive visual images. c Sir Robert Watson-Watt, British physicist, is best known for his major contributions to the development of radar. |
| d | ENIAC, the first large-scale, general purpose, digital computer was built by American physicist John W. Mauchly and American electrical engineer John Presper Eckert, Jr. |
| e | The central processing unit that performs the basic operations in a microcomputer was invented in the early 1970s. |
| f | Since the launching of the first artificial satellite in 1960s, artificial satellites play key roles in the communications industry, in military intelligence, and in the scientific study of both Earth and outer space. |
| g | Many prominent American scientists, including the physicist Enrico Fermi, were associated with the development of the atomic bomb. |
2. The table below summarizes the major scientific advances of the 20th century, but the events are in the wrong order. Match each event with the correct year.
| Year | Event | ||
| a | Scottish engineer John Logie Baird developed the first video broadcasting system. | ||
| b | The Soviet Union launched the first Sputnik satellite | ||
| c | The development of the first microprocessor | ||
| d | American physicists John Bardeen, Walter Brattain, and William Shockley invented the transistor, an electronic device used to control or amplify an electrical current. | ||
| e | American inventor Lee De Forest invented the triode, or vacuum tube. | ||
| f | NASA designed, manufactured, tested, and eventually used the Saturn rocket and the Apollo spacecraft for the first manned landing on the Moon | ||
| g | Italian electrical engineer Guglielmo Marconi transmitted the first radio signal from Cornwall, England, across the Atlantic Ocean to a receiver near St. John’s in Newfoundland. | ||
| h | Some scientists demonstrated that in his experiments Fermi had achieved the splitting, or fission, of the uranium atom's nucleus. | ||
| i | American physicist Enrico Fermi began a series of experiments in which he used neutrons to bombard atoms of various elements, including uranium. | ||
| j | The electronic numerical integrator and computer (ENIAC) was constructed by American physicist John W. Mauchly and American electrical engineer John Presper Eckert, Jr. | ||
| k | British physicist Sir Robert Watson-Watt used radar signals to locate aircraft in flight. |
3. Find the passage in the text about:
| a | the invention of the first practical radio-signaling system; |
| b | the first flight to the satellite of the Earth; |
| c | the originator of the quantum theory; |
| d | the development that was later used for the creation of one of the most destructive weapons; |
| e | the progress in the scientific study of the origin and structure of the universe. |
Answer the following questions about the text.
| a | Which developments led to the modern computers? |
| b | Which countries contributed to the space exploration? |
| c | What does quantum theory deal with? |
| d | Which developments made the creation of the atomic bomb possible? |
| e | What is the scientists’ opinion about the origin of our universe? |
5. Read the text “Our Vision” and look for the answers to the following questions:
| a | What advances in energetics will help the mankind to become energy independent? |
| b | How will science contribute to the solution of the most important environmental problems? |
| c | What changes in the world’s economy will be caused by science? |
| d | What advances in medical science will we see in the future? |
| e | How will scientific discoveries improve our everyday life? |
Our Vision
We envision a future where our contributions to the physical, biological, and environmental sciences have transformed the world as we know it. Our discoveries have changed forever how we provide for life’s most basic needs – and how we view our own existence within a complex, ever-changing universe.
By 2023, science will have helped us achieve a large measure of energy independence. The energy intensity of our economy decreases, and energy sources are now more plentiful and clean. There is a new, more competitive menu of renewable energy sources, a safer generation of nuclear power, a hydrogen-based energy storage utilization infrastructure, and an efficient energy distribution network that is greatly enhanced by breakthroughs in nano-designed materials, computation, and other relevant fields of science. Having completed key experiments, the promise of fusion power – clean, almost limitless energy – is closer than ever.
We see a world where science provides enduring solutions to the environmental challenges posed by growing world populations and energy use. New, cost-effective approaches, some based on the use of engineered microbes, enable us to tackle some of our most intractable cleanup problems. On a global scale, we have a clearer picture of the complex process of climate change, and we have solutions in hand made possible through the biological and environmental sciences, and in particular, through genomics1.
Through 2023, science will sustain critical growth and strength in the world’s economy. During this period, entirely new industries will be created, and virtually all industries will benefit through the enormously broad reach of breakthroughs in energy and the physical sciences. Our mastery of catalysis, nano-assembly, self-replicating, and complex systems will not only increase our industrial efficiency, but it will create entirely new opportunities for harnessing the power of our material world.
Science fiction will give way to science fact as medical miracles unfold and a new set of promises arises to fill the void. DOE2 will continue to capitalize on its strength at the nexus of the physical and life sciences, delivering the nanoscience, biology, precision engineering, and advanced computation that will ‘close the deal’ in these developments and secure our valued contributing role in medical science. Restoring sight to the blind with microassembled retinal implants will start the journey, with the next stop, hope for those with spinal cord injuries.
As the future unfolds, not only do people enjoy an improved quality of life, but they are more secure. DOE science will have provided the science behind innovations in monitors, sensors, computational analysis, structures, materials, and countless areas that help to provide early threat detection and protect those that we serve.
In the not-too-distant future, our universe will seem more familiar to us, and the mysterious properties of matter and energy less complex. Our pursuit of answers to some of the most persistent questions of science will have revealed important secrets.
At the end of the day, we envision a future where our discoveries have resulted in improved benefits to mankind, whether it was to light the night, heat a home, transport food, cure an illness, or to see and understand the beginning of time itself.
Notes:
| Genomics– | the study of the relationships between gene structure and biological function in organisms. | |
| DOE– | Department of Energy. |
SECTION IV
Writing
Read the extract from the interview with British physicist Clifford Johnson, one of the world’s leading theoreticians in the field of elementary particle physics answering the question why it is important that scientists be open-minded. Then write a composition giving your opinion on the question. Prove your opinion by the examples from modern science and technology.
Being open-minded is what science is all about. The best science operates by letting our observations about nature determine what our theories of the world should be. Theories are tested by making verifiable predictions that can then be demonstrated through experiment.
One of the finest examples of this is Galileo. In the 16th century, following Copernicus, he put forth the idea that planets and other local heavenly bodies actually revolve around the Sun, not the Earth. At the time, Earth was believed to be the center of the universe, for religious reasons. The established religious community ridiculed both Copernicus and Galileo. Galileo used a telescope, which he constructed, and showed that Venus exhibits phases as it goes around the Sun (like the Moon does as it goes around the Earth) and that moons orbit Jupiter. These are both predictions of the idea that heavenly bodies can move around objects other than the Earth, an idea contrary to the prevailing view.
Galileo also demonstrated through experiments that light and heavy objects fall at the same rate. The Aristotelian view was that this rate depended on the weight of the falling object, so there was great resistance to this idea despite the experimental evidence.
The best modern-day scientists still operate in this tradition. New data comes along as we do new experiments. This data is assimilated into current theories. At some point, if overwhelming evidence from an experiment cannot support current theory, scientists abandon the old ideas. This is the exercise of open-mindedness in a controlled and fruitful way. However, accepting an idea on flimsy evidence is also not a good way of practicing science, and this can be just as bad as refusing to have an idea challenged.
2. Write a short essay on the latest developments in the field of science you are doing your research in. Make use of the following phrases:
to be engaged in; to conduct research; to make an experiment; to provide scientific knowledge; to meet human needs; to develop new approach to; a landmark of scientific achievement; research priorities in; to foretell the scientific breakthroughs; to improve the quality of life; to create new, innovative technologies.
UNIT 2
RESEARCH WORK
SECTION I
Language focus