Skills focus: Reading for specific information; learn to analyze job trends.

 

1. Read the text and find the correct sentences (a-f) for each gap (1-6) in the text.

Between now and the 21^st century citizens of the world’s richest and most technologically advanced nations will find it increasingly difficult to keep up with the demand for change. For them, the future will arrive too soon. So begins Alvin Toffler’s book Future Shock, written back in 1970.

Now people are beginning to pay attention to Toffler’s prediction, because the speed of change is accelerating rapidly. It is sometimes difficult to work out the patterns of change. What should you do? (1)…….. Take a deep breath and try to get a sense of the good things the future has to offer.

You don’t need to be a genius to predict the job areas which will be most affected by technological change. Agriculture, textiles, coal mining and heavy industry are all doing badly.(2)…………….

Without doubt, the number of jobs in information technology will rise dramatically. There are currently over 100 million computers in the world and by 2020 the number will be around one billion. (3)…...

There are also many other important changes taking place in the workplace. First, the job market is getting more and more competitive and the idea of a ‘job for life’ has already become old-fashioned.(4)………...

According to Mark Hastings of the Institute of Management, in the future people will organize their working life around a variety of contracts, instead of working just for one company.

In the same way, companies will change, they will be organized more democratically. People will move sideways to do different jobs, rather than moving up ‘company ladder’ as before. Many more people will work for small, dynamic companies which can react quickly to changes in the market. Other people will give up working for a boss and become self-employed. All this means that companies will require people who are flexible and responsible.(5)…...

Good communication skills will be essential. According to Dr Laurence Lyons of the Future Work Forum, women will initially have an advantage in this area. James Traeger, of the training agency Menswork, explains that many men will have to be retrained.’It’s not about making men more like women, but helping men to communicate as well.’

We are undoubtedly moving towards a global economy. English will probably remain the international business language, so learning Russian or Chinese is not a priority.(6)…….. Above all, a manager will need to feel comfortable working with people from other cultures and coping with cultural differences.

New technology is the driving force behind the rapidly changing workplace, so don’t get left behind. You don’t need to become a computer expert, but you must consider improving your computer skills. Work with more than one program in case you have to use them at work, and try to read about all the latest technology.

Undoubtedly, all this new technology is changing the way we work and offering many alternative ways of working. Rather than go into an office, a lot of people are connected to the Internet and now work from home. Working like this may give you the flexibility you want- to live where you want, to continue your studies and to have a lot more free time. That must be good news.

 

Vocabulary:

1. technologically advanced nations – развитые в техническом отношении страны

2. the speed of change – темпы перемен

3. to accelerate – ускорять(ся)

4. to work out the patterns of change – разработать структуру перемен

5. to affect – воздействовать, влиять

6. to rise dramatically – резко возрастать

7. to give up working for a boss – отказаться работать на боса

8. flexible – гибкий

9. to improve your computer skills – улучшить навыки владения компьютером

10. self-employed – работающий не по найму

2. Read the text again and find the correct sentences (a–f) for each gap.

a) On the other hand, business and professional services, the media, IT, and the biosciences are doing really well.

b) Because of this, computer programmers and systems analysts will be in much greater demand.

c) However, understanding other people, their minds, culture and history will be vital.

d) First of all, don’t panic.

e) They will also need people who can work co-operatively and get on well in a team.

f) Because of this, workers will have to be more flexible.

 

3. Read the article again and answer these questions.

1. What is ‘future shock’ and how does it affect people?

2. What are the job areas of the future?

3. How will careers change?

4. What skills and personal qualities will people need?

5. What personal benefits will the new situation bring?

 

4. In pairs, discuss what things you can do to improve your future career prospects.

Accelerate rapidly, become old-fashioned, become self-employed, do badly, feel comfortable, find smth difficult, have an advantage, have free tme, pay attention to, react quickly, rise dramatically, take a deep breath

 

5. Complete the sentences below with the expressions given above:

1. I never really… speaking a foreign language.

2. If you look at the unemployment figures, they… in the 1990s.

3. We get so much homework that I don’t… to relax.

4. I’d like to … one day and not work for a boss.

5. Rally drivers have to … to avoid accidents.

6. I… maths…. I always… in maths exams.

 

Grammar Revision

The participle

12. Translate the following paying attention to the forms and functions of the participles.

1. The plane flying with great speed leaves behind a stream of white smoke.

2. Any change in a motion of a body is in proportion to the force pressing on it and takes place in the direction of a straight line in which the pressing body acts.

3. The law defining the properties of inertia was formulated by Newton.

4. The professor delivering this report works at our institute.

5. The method suggested by him was of great practical importance.

6. A great number of experiments being conducted are based on Newton`s first law.

7. The second law of mechanics states that a body being pressed by a force moves in the direction in which the pressing force acts.

8. Studying the various phenomenon of Nature, Newton discovered the law of gravitation.

9. Being asked to put his ideas on paper Newton did it in a very short period of time.

10. Having graduated from Cambridge Newton was left there to work as a tutor.

11. Having been the result of twenty year’s thinking the Principia took Newton only eighteen months to get it ready for publishing.

12. Having been published in 1687, the three laws of motion are still the basis for many scientific achievements.

13. Computing machines being used for many purposes, scientists go on improving their characteristics.

14. Many great achievements of science were made possible by Newton’s laws of motion having been universally adopted.

15. Early in the 19^th century Dalton advanced his atomic theory, the emphasis on the weights of the atoms being his great contribution to the science of his period.

The gerund

13. Translate the following sentences into Russian. State the forms and functions of the gerund.

1. Reading technical books helps in studying special subjects.

2. What is necessary for every engineer is reading much on his specialty.

3. It is necessary to know grammar rules and a considerable number of words for technical books.

4. One cannot acquire good knowledge without reading much.

5. I saw her at the writing table in the reading room, reading a book.

6. Looking through foreign technical literature is very important
for us.

7. We heard of Petrov’s having been sent to a large machine building plant as chief engineer.

8. Without consulting chief engineer he bought new equipment for the workshop.

9. This included the problem of converting printed messages into machine language for computer processing.

10. As a scientific discipline, computer vision is concerned with the theory for building artificial systems that obtain information from images.

11. Such opposing views demonstrate a gap between the organizational structure that existed prior to information technology and the current shrive in utilizing information at the workplace.

12. The second system was sold to the Standard Oil Company of California for reading credit card imprints for billing purposes, with many more systems sold to other oil companies.

13. This complexity brings benefits to the organization and its structure. IT has enabled several organizations to increase revenues and profits as a consequence of utilizing the technology.

14. The underlying premise is that the purpose of e-learning is useful knowledge, and that the design of e-learning should therefore be integrated with the design of related knowledge management – particularly personal knowledge management. e-learning will be explored using the notion of “distributed learning”.

15. This paper is based on work in designing and building learning materials and environments in a variety of contexts.

The Infinitive

14. State the forms and functions of the infinitive.

In summer we had practical training at large machine – building plant. We had heard the plant to be equipped with most modern machinery. We knew of the machinery to be capable of producing huge components for the machine tools to produce machinery. To improve productivity, product quality and working conditions to say nothing of reducing cost, groups of machine tools have been integrated into lines by automatic handling devices. These lines, known as “transfer machines”, are considered to be the most advanced development of modern industrial engineering. Our aim was to watch them perform the machining of various parts to be used for the fabrication of all kinds of machines and machine tools. Among the machinery to be fabricated from parts processed on transfer machines mention may be made of engines, turbines, pumps, huge components, for rolling mills, lathes, forging and pressing machines etc. We know the largest billets being machined to have been supplied from a rolling mill or a forge.

 

15. Analyse the infinitive groups and translate the sentences into Russian.

1. Scientists expect the high altitude rockets to become powerful research laboratories for the exploration of the expanses of the universe.

2. One of the problems which confronted the constructors of rockets was to overcome their turning over and over in space.

3. To overcome the lack of stability of the rockets at high altitudes some of the rockets have been fitted with stable platforms which are to keep them facing the Sun by means of photo electric cell and servo –mechanism.

4. The rotation of the rocket about its axis caused by slight irregularities in the fins, which are provided to keep it head-on to its direction of motion has been found very useful in the rockets to be used for the observation of the sun.

5. Cosmic rays have been observed to end their paths from outer in violent nuclear collisions, the latter being known to take place high above the earth.        

СПИСОК ЛИТЕРАТУРЫ

 

1. David Cotton, David Falvey, Simon Kent “Market Leader” (pre-intermediate, intermediate, upper- intermediate).

2. Virginia Evans “Round-up- 6”, English Grammar Book, Pearson Longman Stuart Redman, “ English Vocabulary in Use”, Cambridge University Press.

3. Virginia Evans, Jenny Dooley, Enterprise 2, coursebook, Express publishing, Unit 15.

4. David Grant, Robert McLarty “ Business Focus” (pre- intermediate).

5. Glending Eric H., Glending Norman. Oxford English for Electrical and Mechanical Engineering.

6. Deirdre Howard- Williams, Cyntbia Herd, “Business Words”, Heineman.

7. Дроздова Т.Ю., Берестова А.И., Маилова В.Г. «English Grammar”.

8. Ceri Jones, Tania Bastow, Jon Hird. Inside Out. Advanced. Student’s bookMacmillan, Unit 8.

9. Val Lambert, Elaine Murray. Everyday Technical English. Longman, 2003.

10. Santiago Remacha Esteras, Professional English in Use. – Cambridge University Press, 2007.

11. Lindsay White, Engineering Workshop. – Oxford, 2003.

12. Дроздова Т.Ю., Берестова А.И. English Grammar. Reference and Practice. – СПб.: Антология, 2004.

13. Новицкая Т.М., Макеева В.М., Учебник английского языка для технических вузов. – М.: «Высшая школа», 1976.