Train Technical English

K e y s  t o  e x e r c i s e s

ViCTE Newsletter  Number 31 – Giving a definition / July 2011

 Exercise 1  Make sentences putting the given words into a correct order:

1. By load shedding we mean an electrical power outage where electricity delivery is stopped.
2. Energy demand management is the modification of consumer demand for energy.
3. In the UK by the national grid  is meant the high voltage electric transmission networks.
4. High-voltage direct-current technology refers to electricity transfer for greater than 600 km.
5. Spinning reserve is taken to be plants operating at less than full load.

  Exercise 2  Match technical terms in column X to their explanations in column Y:

1 – D,   2 – A,   3 – E,   4 – C,   5 – B

 Exercise 3  Make guestions to highlighted parts of the sentences below:

1. By load shedding we mean an electrical power outage where electricity delivery is stopped.    What do we mean by load shedding?
2. Energy demand management is the modification of consumer demand for energy.   What is energy demand management?
3. In the UK the national grid  denotes the high voltage electric transmission networks.   Where does the national grid  denote the high voltage electric transmission networks?
4. High-voltage direct-current technology refers to electricity transfer for very long distances, typically greater than 600 km.   What does high-voltage direct-current technology refer to?
5. Spinning reserve is taken to be plants operating at less than full load.   What is spinning reserve is taken to be?

 

 ViCTE Newsletter   Number 30 – Cause – effect relationships in your Tech English writing / May 2011

Exercise 1  Put appropriate connectors from the box below into gaps according to the text Fuel cycle in fusion reactors:

 1 – so that;  2 – Due to;  3 – In response to;  4 – Thus;  5a – therefore;  5b – As a consequence;  6 – since;  7a – as a result of;  7b – Consequently;  8 – Hence;  9 – So;          10 – for this reason

 Exercise 2  Make sentences from A (CAUSE) and  B (EFFECT) and mark verbs indicating a cause-effect relationship:

	A (CAUSE)		B (EFFECT)
1a	Two light nuclei fusing	4b	produces a single nucleus with a slightly smaller mass than the sum of their original masses.
2a	The net positive charge of the protons in the nucleus	5b	prevents the fusion between the nuclei.
3a	The largest fusion cross-section	1b	causes the bigger probability of a fusion reaction occurrence.
4a	Heating the atoms	6b	leads to stripping the electrons from the atoms and leaving them as nuclei.
5a	D-T fusion produces substantial amounts of neutrons	3b	that results in induced radioactivity within the reactor structure.
6a	The neutron flux expected in a commercial D-T fusion reactor	2b	induces problems for material design.

 

 Exercise 3  Make sentences putting the given words into a correct order:

1. Fusion between the nuclei is opposed by their shared electrical charge.
2. Helium has an extremely low mass per nucleon.
3. Most fusion reactions combine isotopes of hydrogen to form isotopes of helium.
4. Hydrogen-3 (Tritium) is also an isotope of hydrogen, but it occurs naturally in only negligible amounts.
5. Similar to hydrogen, tritium is difficult to contain and may leak from reactors.
6. In a production setting, the neutrons react with lithium in order to create more tritium.

 

ViCTE Newsletter Number 29 – Easy such and so / April 2011

Exercise 1   Put in so,such or such a:

1. Such a helical field can be generated by adding a toroidal and a poloidal magnetic fields.
2. Magnetic fields are used for confinement because no solid material could withstand such an extremely high temperature of the plasma.
3. The tempereture of the plasma is so high that no solid material could withstand it.
4. Such an alternative to the tokamak is the stellarator.    
5. Such a toroidal electric current flows inside the plasma.
6. The cost of fuel makes such a minor cost component in the overall cost of nuclear power  that the price of uranium has little effect on it.
7. The cost of fuel is so lowly that the increase of the uranium price has little effect on the overall cost of nuclear power

 

Exercise 2   Choose an appropriate word from the table below and put it in the gap, i.e.:

1 – B; 2 – C; 3 – A; 4 – C; 5 – B; 6 – C; 7 – A.

1.       A magnetic field is used in tokamaks in order to confine a plasma in the shape of a torus.

2.       Plasma is a state of matter similar to gas, in which a certain portion of the particles are ionized.

3.       In a tokamak, the toroidal field is produced by electromagnets that surround the torus.

4.       The poloidal field is the result of a toroidal electric current that flows inside the plasma.

5.       The tokamak is one of the most-researched candidates for producing controlled thermonuclear fusion power.

6.       Magnetic fields are used for confinement because no solid material could withstand the extremely high temperature of the plasma.

7.       The word tokamak is a transliteration of the Russian word токамак, which is an acronym.

 

Exercise 3   Make questions beginning with the words in brackets:

1.      This current is induced inside the plasma with a second set of electromagnets.  (What is this current induced inside the plasma with?)

2.      Achieving a stable plasma equilibrium requires a magnetic field that moves around the torus.  (What kind of a magnetic field does achieving a stable plasma equilibrium require?)

3.       Such a helical magnetic field can be generated by adding a toroidal field and a poloidal field.  (How can such a helical magnetic field be generated ?)

4.       An alternative to the tokamak is the stellarator.  (What is an alternative to the tokamak?)

5.      Tokamaks were invented in the 1950s by Soviet physicists Igor Tamm and Andrei Sakharov,  (Who were tokamaks invented in the 1950s by?)

 

ViCTE Newsletter Number 28 – SVOMT revising/March 2011

Exercise    Make sentences putting the given words into a correct order:

 

1. Nowadays nuclear power stations generate energy using nuclear fission.
2. Atoms of uranium-235 rods in the reactor are split in the process of fission.
3. The possibility of nuclear meltdowns and other reactor accidents is infinitely small.
4. At present, nuclear energy is in decline.
5. A prototype reactor is being constructed on a site in Cadarache (in France).
6. The reactor is supposed to be put into operation by 2018.
7. The environmental movement emphasizes sustainability of energy use.
8. Nowadays nuclear plants provide about a third of Japan’s electricity.
9. Nuclear industry supporters had hopes of a nuclear renaissance.
10. Nuclear plants need trustworthy and transparent regulation.

 

 

ViCTE Newsletter 27 – Study some and countables vs uncountables / January 2011

 

 

ViCTE Newsletter Number 26 – Word formation – prefixes/ November 2010 

 Exercise 1    Choose the right prefix from the list in brackets:

1. id Tech 3 is a substantial improvement from the preceding Quake engine and id Tech 2.    (ante-, pre-, post-, retro-)
2. During that time, id Tech 3 competed with the Unreal engine.  (un-, im-, in-, il-, ir-, non-)
3. Although id Tech 3 was derived from the id Tech 2, a large portion of code was new or rewritten. (re-, over-)
4. Unlike most other games released at the time Quake III requires an OpenGL-compliant graphics accelerator to run.    (dis-, un-, im-, in-, il-, ir-, non-)
5. id Tech 3 uses a virtual machine to control object behavior on the server, effects and prediction on the client and the user interface.    (super-, trans-, inter-, ex-, extra-)
6. Other visual features include volumetric fog, mirrors, portals, decals, and wave-form vertex deformity.    (un-, im-, in-, il-, ir-, de-, non-)
7. Unless operations that require a specific endianness are used, a QVM file will run on any platform supported by Quake III.    (dis-, un-, im-, in-, il-, ir-, non-)

  

Exercise 2   Find out in the text “Game engine id Tech 3” words that are synonymous to the words in the left column of the table below:  

Para.No.	Synonyms	The word in the text above
1	corporation	company
	vastly	widely
2	considerable	substantial
	issued	released
	comprise	include
3	closely	tightly
	look	appearance
	prepared	provided
	manipulate	maintain
4	pass on	relay
	tries	attempts
	approved	confirmed
5	manage	control
	presents	opens up
	fully	entirely
	ordering of individually       addressable sub-units	endianness

Note: Para.No. =  a number of a paragraph

 

Exercise 3   Write down words with opposite meaning by using prefixes in brackets :

1	prove….(un, im, de)	unprove
2	kind…….(in, im, un)	unkind
3	mature….(un, im, in)	immature
4	visible….(un, in, de)	invisible
5	proper……(im, in, un)	improper

 

 

ViCTE Newsletter   Number 25 – Word formation – suffixes/ September 2010 

1.  The first generation of commonly available PC games were often text adventures or interactive fictions.
2. Further improvements to games were made with the introduction of the first sound cards in 1987.
3. Last technological improvements have allowed developers to increase the complexity of modern game engines.
4. PC gaming currently tends strongly toward improvements in 3D graphics.
5. The multi-purpose nature of personal computers often allows users to modify the content of installed games with relative ease.
6. The inclusion of map editors allow users to create modifications for games smoothly.

 Exercise 2   Put words from the box below into gaps:

1 – stand for, 2 – core, 3 – platforms, 4 – series, 5 – selectively, 6 – variety, 7 – variety, 8 – graphical, 9 – demos,  10 – modelling, i.e.:

Game middleware

The term ”game middleware” stand for game engines providing a flexible and reusable software solution that ensures all needed core functions. Such a solution allows the same game to be run on various platforms including game consoles and personal computers. Only few, if any, changes should be made to the game source code in these cases. Some game engines are even designed as a series of loosely connected middleware components that can be selectively combined to create a custom engine. However extensibility is achieved, it remains a high priority in games engines due to a wide variety of uses for which they are applied. Despite the specific name, game engines are often used for other kinds of interactive applications with real-time graphical requirements. The examples of such applications include marketing demos, architectural visualizations, training simulations, and modelling environments.

 

ViCTE Newsletter Number 24– SYNONYMS/ August 2010

Exercise 1   Find out in the text above words that are synonymous to the words in the left column of the table below:

Para.No.	Synonyms	The word in the text above
1	comprises	includes
2	basic functions	core functions
3	permits	enables
	enlarged	extended
	elements	components
4	is attained	is achieved
	wide diversity	wide variety
	frequently	often
5	transferring	rendering
	to carry out	to implement
	even so	however

Note: Para.No. =  a number of a paragraph

 Exercise 2   Put articles if necessary; if no article is necessary, put x”: 

The term ”game middleware” stand for x game engines providing a flexible and reusable software solution that ensures all needed x core functions. Such a solution allows the same game to be run on x various platforms including x game consoles and x personal computers. Only few, if any, changes should be made to the game source code in these cases. Some game engines are even designed as a series of x loosely connected middleware components that can be selectively combined to create a custom engine. However x extensibility is achieved, it remains a high priority in x games engines due to a wide variety of x uses for which they are applied. Despite the specific name, x game engines are often used for other kinds of x interactive applications with x real-time graphical requirements. The examples of such x applications include x marketing demos, architectural visualizations, training simulations, and modelling environments.

ViCTE Newsletter  Number 23 – Use articles even in tech texts / July 2010

 Exercise 1  Put a, an or the into gaps if necessary. If not necessary, put +:

1. With the world full of electronic displays you don’t think of  + paper as a revolutionary display technology.
2. When the Chinese invented + paper in 105 A.D., it forever changed the way the world communicates.
3. Without + paper, + books might still be printed on + silk scrolls that only the wealthy could afford, making + literacy a rare skill.
4. For nearly 2,000 years, + ink on + paper was the only way to display + words and +images.
5. Paper still beats + computer displays when it comes to + portability and + price.
6. Paper also doesn’t require an external power supply.
7. Scientists are now close to developing a revolutionary technology called + electronic ink that could replace + paper.

Exercise 2 Use the word in capitals given in brackets at the end of each line to form a related  word that fits in the space in the same line:

1. With the world full of electronic displays you don’t think of paper as a revolutionary display technology.    (NOT THINK)
2. When the Chinese invented paper in 105 A.D., it forever changed the way the world communicates.    (INVENT, CHANGE)
3. Without paper, books might still be printed on silk scrolls that only the wealthy could afford, making literacy a rare skill.    (MAKE)
4. For nearly 2,000 years, ink on paper was the only way to display words and images.   (BE)
5. Paper still beats computer displays when it comes to portability and price. (BEAT, COME)
6. Paper also doesn’t require an external power supply.    (NOT REQUIRE)
7. Scientists are now close to developing a revolutionary technology called electronic ink that could replace paper.    (DEVELOP, CALL)

Exercise 3  Make sentences putting the given words into a correct order:

1. With the world full of electronic displays you don’t think of paper as a revolutionary display technology.
2. When the Chinese invented paper in 105 A.D., it forever changed the way the world communicates.
3. Without paper books might still be printed on silk scrolls.
4. For nearly 2,000 years ink on paper was the only way to display words and images.
5. Paper still beats computer displays as to portability and price.
6. Paper also doesn’t require an external power supply.
7. Scientists are now close to developing a revolutionary technology called electronic ink.

 

ViCTE Newsletter  Number 22 – That OR What: relative clauses

 Exercise 1  Put THAT or WHAT into gaps

1. It is just what virtual private networks (VPNs) are intended to be for.
2. The management of the company likes an idea a virtual private networks (VPN) building, but the draft of the project that the supplier proposed was frightful. 
3. Everything that mobile virtual private networks (VPNs) handle is bound to enable the endpoint to roam across various networks. 
4. What an Internet Protocol address ensures came surprising to me. 
5. Nobody was expecting what could happen to an Internet Protocol (IP) addresses in this computer network. 
6. Everything that concerns virtual private networks (VPNs) is difficult to be understood. 

  Exercise 2   Match the words in Column A to the expressions in Column B:

1 – d, 2 – f, 3 – b, 4 – e, 5 – c, 6 – a,  i.e.: 

	Column A		Column B
1	Mobile Virtual Private Network (VPNs)	d	a network that uses a public telecommunication infrastructure, such as the Internet, to provide remote offices or individual users with secure access to their organisation network.
2	Internet Protocol (IP) address	f	a numerical label that is assigned to devices participating in a computer network
3	Public safety	b	involves the prevention of and protection from events that could endanger the safety of the general public from significant danger, injury/harm, or damage, such as crimes or disasters
4	A name	e	indicates what we seek
5	An address	c	indicates where it is
6	A route	a	indicates how to get there

 

 

ViCTE Newsletter  Number 21 – That OR Which: relative clauses

 

Exercise 1  Make questions (but do not ask about a subject!):

1. The Directive 2009/28/EC was approved by the European Parliament and Council on 23 April 2009.   When was the Directive 2009/28/EC approved by the European Parliament and Council ?    What institution was the Directive 2009/28/EC approved by?
2. This Directive promotes the use of energy from renewable sources.   What does this Directive promote? 
3. This Directive came into force on 25.6.2009.    When did this Directive come into force?
4. National action plans set the share of energy from renewables consumed in production of electricity and heating.     What do National action plans set?
5. The Directive is a part of a package of energy and climate change legislation.   What package is the Directive a part of ? 
6. All Member States should meet Community targets for greenhouse gas emission savings.     What targets should all Member States meet? 

 

Exercise 2  Make one sentence from two using that, which:

1. The Directive 2009/28/EC was approved by the European Parliament and Council on 23 April 2009.     It promotes the use of energy from renewable sources.             The Directive 2009/28/EC, which promotes the use of energy from renewable sources, was approved by the European Parliament and Council on 23 April 2009.
2. The Directive 2009/28/EC was approved by the European Parliament and Council on 23 April 2009.     It came into effect on 25.6.2009.         The Directive 2009/28/EC, which was approved by the European Parliament and Council on 23 April 2009, came into effect on 25.6.2009.
3. The Directive 2009/28/EC, promotes the use of energy from renewable sources.     It came into force on 25.6.2009.        The Directive 2009/28/EC, which came into force on 25.6.2009, promotes the use of energy from renewable sources.
4. According to the Directive the Member States are to establish national action plans. The plans set the share of energy from renewables in production of electricity and heating up to 2020.          According to the Directive the Member States are to establish national action plans which (or that) set the share of energy from renewables in production of electricity and heating up to 2020.
5. Member States should build the necessary infrastructures.     The infrastructures ensure transport and distribution of electricity from renewables.           Member States should build the infrastructures that (or which) ensure transport and distribution of electricity from renewables.
6. The Directive is a part of a package of energy and climate change legislation. It appoints Community targets for greenhouse gas emission savings.           The Directive, which is a part of a package of energy and climate change legislation, appoints Community targets for greenhouse gas emission savings.   OR   The Directive that (or which) appoints Community targets for greenhouse gas emission savings is a part of a package of energy and climate change legislation.

 

 

ViCTE Newsletter Number 20 – Used to using Passives? / May 2010

Calculations of energy generation costs

NOTE: Passives are marked in colour letters 

Levelised energy cost (LEC) is the price at which electricity must be generated from a specific source. It is an economic assessment of the cost of the energy-generating system including all the costs over its lifetime: initial investment, operations and maintenance, cost of fuel, cost of capital. Furthermore, it is very useful in calculating the costs of generation from different sources.

This cost can be defined, for instance, in a single formula, where LEC, i.e. the Average lifetime levelised electricity generation cost, is calculated using  Investment expenditures in the year t, Operations and maintenance expenditures in the year t,  Fuel expenditures in the year t, Electricity generation in the year t, and some others.   

Typically LECs are counted up over 20 to 40 years lifetimes, and are given in the units of currency per kilowatt-hour, for example AUD/kWh or EUR/kWh or per megawatt-hour, for example AUD/MWh.

When comparing LECs for alternative systems, it is very important to define the boundaries of the ‘system’ and the costs that are included in it. For example, if transmissions lines and distribution systems should be involved in the cost. Typically only the costs of connecting the generating source to the transmission system are considered a part of generation costs. But in some cases wholesale upgrade of the Grid is needed. Careful thought has to be given before these costs are incorporated into the cost of power.

List of affirmative and possible question sentences

Affirmative sentences	Possible question sentences
Levelised energy cost (LEC) is the price at which electricity must be generated from a specific source.	Must electricity be generated from a specific source at Levelised energy cost?
This cost can be defined, for instance, in a single formula.	How can this cost be defined?
The average lifetime levelised electricity generation cost, is calculated using several important variable parameters.	With the assistance of what is the average lifetime levelised electricity generation cost calculated?
Typically LECs are counted up over 20 to 40 years lifetimes, and are given in the units of currency per kilowatt-hour	How long lifetime are LESs counted for?
When comparing LECs for alternative systems, it is very important to define the boundaries of the ‘system’ and the costs that are included in it.	Are the costs of the system included in LECs?
Transmissions lines and distribution systems should be involved in the cost.	Should transmissions lines and distribution systems be involved in the costs?
Typically only the costs of connecting the generating source to the transmission system are considered a part of generation costs.	Which costs are considered typically a part of generation costs?
But in some cases wholesale upgrade of the Grid is needed.	When is wholesale upgrade of the Grid needed?
Careful thought has to be given before these costs are incorporated into the cost of power.	Why does careful thought have to be given before these costs are incorporated into the cost of power?Are these costs incorporated into the cost of power?

 

 

ViCTE Newsletter Number 19 – Passives VS. Actives / April 2010

Exercise 1  Transform Actives into Passives

• 1)      The kernel tasks include managing the systems resource
• Managing the systems resources is included in the kernel     tasks.
• 2)      The kernel provides the lowest-level abstraction layer for the resources.
• The lowest-level abstraction layer for the resources is provided by the kernel.
• 3)      The abstraction layers make implementation of the system feasible
• Implementation of the system is made feasible due the abstractionlayers.
• 4)      The kernel usually provides features for dispatching processes.
•  Features for dispatching processes are usually provided by the kernel.
• 5)      The kernel takes responsibility for resolving which of running programs should be allocated to the processor.
• Responsibility for resolving which of running programs should be allocated to the processor is taken by the kernel.
• 6)      Frequently multiple programs demand more memory than the computer has available
• More memory than the computer has available are frequently demanded by multiple programs.
• 7)      The kernel allocates requests from applications to perform I/O operations to an appropriate device.
•  Requests from applications to perform I/O operations to an appropriate device are allocated by thekernel.
• 8)      Different kernels, depending on their design and implementation, do differently operating system functions.
• Operating system functions are done differently by different kernels, depending on their design and  implementation. 
• 9)      Monolithic kernels execute all the operating system code in the same address space. 
• All the operating system code is executed by monolithic kernels in the same address space. 
• 10)   Microkernels run most of the operating system tasks in user space.
  Most of the operating system tasks are run by microkernels in user space.

Exercise 2  Fill in the gaps with Past Participles of verbs in brackets:

Multi-function devices and Device Containers

Afore Windows 7, every device attached to the system was treated as a single functional end-point, which has a set of capabilities and a “status”. This is quite appropriate for single-function devices (such as a keyboard or scanner). But it does not accurately represent multi-function devices such as a combination printer/fax machine/scanner, or web-cams with a built-in microphone. In Windows 7, the drivers and status information for multi-function devices can be grouped together as a single “Device Container”. Then the user manipulates this container in the new “Devices and Printers” Control Panel as a single unit. This capability is provided by a Container ID, which is a Globally Unique Identifier that is unique for every instance of a physical device. The Container ID can be embedded within the device itself by the manufacturer, or created by Windows and associated with each functional end-point, when it is connected to the computer for the first time. In order to ensure the uniqueness of the generated Container ID, Windows attempts to use information unique to the device, such as a Media Access Control address (MAC address) or USB (Universal Serial Bus) serial number.

 Exercise 3  Complete the sentences using one of the verbs in Passive from the box below:

simplify   implement  make   group   intend    handle

1. The kernel is intended to manage communication between hardware and software components of a computer system
2. The kernel merely corresponds to the lowest level of abstraction that is implemented in software
3. Several improvements and additions have been made to Windows 7 (and Server 2008 R2) kernel components.
4. The designing of all the software is simplified due to the concept of abstraction layers.
5. In Windows 7, the drivers and status information for multi-function devices is grouped together as a single “Device Container”.
6. In Microsoft Windows operating systems, scheduling of threads inside a process is handled by the kernel.