Vocabulary

To invent – изобретать Extensive – обширный, крупный Navy – военно - морской флот, адмиралтейство Introduce – вводить, внедрять Device – устройство Arc – электрическая дуга Discharge – эл. разряд Record – записывать, регистрировать Lightning – молния Oscillation - колебания To transmit – передавать, пересылать To perfect – усовершенствовать, улучшать

To attach – присоединить, прикрепить Thunderstorm – гроза Wireless communication – беспроводная связь Battleship - линейный корабль, линкор To witness – засвидетельствовать Reception – получение, прием Audible - звуковой, слышимый Excite – возбудить Immense – огромный Profit – доход, прибыл Unique – единственный в своем роде, уникальный, бесподобный

Radio in Our Life

Nowadays it is impossible to imagine our life without radio, television, computer, telephone. We use telecommunication services practically every minute. And often we do not think about huge and powerful telecommunication industry that embraces the whole globe with its networks.

Communicating by radio is a method of sending or receiving sounds and data through the air by means of electrical waves. Radio is widespread for its portability. It can be easily carried around.

We use the airwaves for many purposes broadcasting most of our local and national radio and TV stations, in our mobile radio and telephone services, and to communicate on a global scale through distant satellites, which act as a kind of reflector in the sky, redirecting the information we send up to them.

The first regularly scheduled radio broadcasts began in the U.S. in 1920. Expansion of both audience and transmission facilities continued rapidly. Radio is generally the first of news media to report a local story or a news service bulletin, weather forecasting or traffic information.

Another important use of this means of communicating is in shipping. A ship that is in difficulty can call the nearest coast station, giving details of its situation and, if necessary, ask for help. We call this 'ship-to-shore' radio. Radio can ensure greater safety in navigation (for example, to warn of bad weather or of hazards in the shipping lanes) and it enables large amounts of information to be sent over land or water without the support of several hundred kilometres of wires and cables. Radio networks can, therefore, be cheaper to install but often have fewer circuits than cable links. Radar systems also enable air-traffic controllers to follow and guide the flight paths of planes from take-off to landing.

Radio-paging systems enable us to be contacted even though we do not have a telephone within easy reach. It is a way of letting us know that something important has just happened and that we must act quickly. It’s cheaper to have a pager than a cellular telephone. The system works through a pager or 'bleeper', a small receiver about the size of a packet of cigarettes, which you can keep in your ocket. When people want to contact you, they simply pick up the nearest telephone, dial your personal paging number free of charge, and wherever you are in the coverage area, your pager will bleep (You must, however, be above, not below, ground level, for the signal will not get through if you are underground.) The bleeping informs you that someone is calling you. You can identify up to four callers on some types of equipment. The most modem type of radio-pager displays the number of the telephone the caller is ringing from. The main advantage of radio-paging is that you can be contacted wherever you are, even though you may be a long way from a telephone set. At present you can send messages to a pager through Internet.

Many companies which have personnel on business trips have found that radio-paging improves their competitive position and allows them to be more responsive to a lot of their customers' needs. It also increases company efficiency by cutting out many unnecessary and expensive journeys that are sometimes made by salesmen. This saves time and fuel costs. Doctors can be contacted immediately and return to their surgery or hospital, thus possibly saving the life of a very sick patient.