English for AVT specialists. Английский для специалистов в сфере аудиовизуальных технологий. Сборник текстов и упражнений по английскому языку - страница 19

12. Write a list of five questions to the text. Exchange your list with your classmate and answer their questions.

13. Think of a plan to the article. Make a summary of the article according to your plan.

14. What information about audio systems today would you add to the article?

15. Talk to your classmate. Express your attitude to the following quotation:

Technology is a useful servant but a dangerous master.

Christian Lous Lange

Report your idea to the class. Discuss, compare and contrast your points of view.

WRITING

16. You want to enter a short story competition. The rules say that your story must start or end with the words: «There is music everywhere…» The story should contain 120—180 words (FCE Writing).

17. Make a report, do an electronic presentation or a project on one of the topics:

– The International Telecommunications Union

– Development and usage of digital audio systems

– High Definition Television (HDTV)

– Home theater (home cinema). History and later development

– DVD format

– Audio systems today

CHECK POINT

18. What have you learnt from the text in Unit 1, Part 3 about the following?

– The document «Recommendation for Multichannel Stereophonic Sound System With and Without Accompanying Picture»

– Achievements in the audio and video practices throughout the 1990s

– Surround sound systems in common use today

PRE-READING

1. Name some words and expressions related to the subject.

2. What do you know about Dolby Laboratories? Can you answer these questions?

1) When and where was the company founded?

2) Who started it?

3) What does Dolby Labs do?

4) Name some of the company’s most significant achievements.

5) What Dolby formats do you know and use?

Dolby Laboratories (often called Dolby Labs for short) is an American company which specializes in audio encoding/compression and audio noise reduction. Dolby Labs was founded by an American Ray Dolby in London in 1965. In 1976, it was moved to San Francisco, the USA. The first issue it manufactured was a simple compander, Type A Dolby Noise Reduction. The compander was distinguished from the others of the kind by capability to process only the quiet sounds that would be veiled by tape noise. Henry Kloss (a prominent American engineer and businessman) persuaded Ray Dolby to produce a consumer version of his noise reduction. In 1968, Dolby Company made an introduction of a compounding system Type B.