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Reading Unit 3

SIGNALS, SIGNS AND SYMBOLS

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Read the text carefullyAlthough speech is the most advanced form of communication, there

are many ways of communicating without using speech. Signals, sign,

symbols, and gestures may be found in every known culture. The basicfunction of a signal is to impinge upon the environment in such a way that it

attracts attention, as for example, the dots and dashes of a telegraph circuit.

Coded to refer to speech, the potential for communication is very great. Less

adaptable to the codification of words, signs also contain meaning in and of

themselves. A stop sign or a barber pole conveys meaning quickly andconveniently. Symbols are more difficult to describe than either signals or

signs because of their intricate relationship with the receiver cultural

perceptions. In some cultures, applauding in a theatre provides performers

with an auditory symbol of approval. Gestures such as waving and

handshaking also communicate certain cultural messages.Although signals, signs, symbols, and gestures are very useful, they do

have a major disadvantage. They usually do not allow ideas to be shared

without the sender being directly adjacent to the receiver. As a result, means

of communication intended to be used for long distances and extended

periods are based upon speech. Radio, television, and the telephone are onlya few.

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Exercise 1.

Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?a. Signs, Signals, and Symbols

b. Gestures

c. Communication

d. Speech

What does the author say about speech?a. That it is the only true form of communication

b. That it is dependent upon the advances made by inventors

c. That it is necessary for communication to occur

d. That it is the most advanced form of communication

According to the passage, what is signal?

a. The most difficult form of communication to describe

b. A form of communication which may be used across long distances

c. A form of communication that interrupts the environment

d. The form of communication most related to cultural perceptions

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Applauding was cited as an example of

a. A signal

b. A sign

c. A symbol

d. A gesture

Why were telephone, radio and TV invented?

a. Because people were unable to understand sign, symbols, and

signalsb. Because people wanted to communicate across long distances

c. Because people believed that signs, signals, and symbols wereobsolete

d. Because people wanted new forms of entertainment

It may be concluded from this passage that

a. Signals, signs, and gestures are forms of communication

b. Symbols are very easy to define and interpret

c. Only some cultures have signals, signs, and symbols

d. Waving and handshaking are not related to culture

Exercise 1.

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Writing: Summarizing

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What is summary?

A summary is a shortened version of a longer reading that tells the basic ideasof the reading.

How to summarize?To be able to summarize properly, you will need1. Understand the reading material

2. Identify main ideas, write down in a note

3. Close the reading, then

4. Write only view sentences, use your own words and key words

from the reading

5. Do not include your opinion or how you feel about the topic.

Writing: Summarizing

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Why we have a moon?By David H. Levy

About 4.5 billion years ago, the Earth had a bad day. The sun was

shining on our young world, which had no oceans yet and no life,

but a surface filled with erupting volcanoes. The sky was awash

with stars , though not the ones we see now. But the familiar

planets were there

Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Mars

and another

planet the size of Mars but much closer.

Had we been alive back then, we would have noticed this other

planet looping again and again around the Sun in an odd orbit that

brought it very close to the Earth, then farther away. On this day,

that odd planet, approaching us again, became brighter than ever

before, filling the sky and getting bigger by the minute, its

gravitational pull now so great that rocks began to stretch and

rumble. Then, with unimaginable energy and deafening noise, itsideswiped the Earth, bounced off and, seconds later, tore right

back into our planet with a super colossal force.

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Although speech is the most advanced form of communication, there are

many ways of communicating without using speech. Signals, sign, symbols, and

gestures may be found in every known culture. The basic function of a signal is

to impinge upon the environment in such a way that it attracts attention, as for

example, the dots and dashes of a telegraph circuit. Coded to refer to speech,

the potential for communication is very great. Less adaptable to the codification

of words, signs also contain meaning in and of themselves. A stop sign or a

barber pole conveys meaning quickly and conveniently. Symbols are more

difficult to describe than either signals or signs because of their intricate

relationship with the receiver cultural perceptions. In some cultures, applauding

in a theatre provides performers with an auditory symbol of approval. Gestures

such as waving and handshaking also communicate certain cultural messages.

Although signals, signs, symbols, and gestures are very useful, they do have

a major disadvantage. They usually do not allow ideas to be shared without the

sender being directly adjacent to the receiver. As a result, means of

communication intended to be used for long distances and extended periods are

based upon speech. Radio, television, and the telephone are only a few.

SummarizingDo step 1, 2, and 3 of summarizing in each paragraph of the passage!

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Speech is not the only way to communicate.People also use other methods, i.e. using signals,signs, symbols, and gesture. Signals are coded

based on speech using unusual ways to attractattention. Signs are inflexible than signals withspecific meaning. Whereas, symbols usually havemore complex meaning due to the culture.

However, signals, signs, and symbols can not betransferred for long distance, thus,telecommunication still uses speech.

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Explaining how technology works

Ref.: Ibbotson, M. Cambridge English for

Engineering. Cambridge University Press. 2008

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Space elevator: preparing for takeoff

In pairs, look at the picture and

discuss the following questions.

a. How do you think a space

elevator would work?b. What could it be used for?

c. What technical challenges

would it face?

d. How seriously do you think

this concept of spaceelevators is being taken at

present?

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In his 1979 novel, The Fountains of Paradise, Arthur C Clarke wroteabout an elevator connecting the Earths surface to space. Three decades

later, this science-fiction concept is preparing to take off in the real world.NASA has launched the Space Elevator Challenge, a competition with agenerous prize fund, and several teams and companies are working onserious research projects aimed at winning it.

As its name suggests, a space elevator is designed to raise things intospace. Satellites, components for space ships, supplies for astronauts in

space stations, and even astronauts themselves are example of payloadsthat could be transported into orbit without the need for explosive andenvironmentally unfriendly rockets. However, the altitude of orbital space-a colossal 35,790km above the Earth-is a measure of the challenge facingengineers. How could such a height be reached?

The answer is by using an incredibly strong and lightweight cable,strong enough to support its own weight and a heavy load. The design ofsuch a cable is still largely theoretical. This would be attached to a basestation on Earth at one end and a satellite in geostationary orbit (fixedabove a point on the equator) at the other. Lift vehicles would thenascend and descend the cable, powered by electromagnetic force andcontrolled remotely.

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Listening (1)

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Listening (2)

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conventional

Conventional, eliminates, superior, energy-efficient, enhanced, reduces