UNIT 6 Module I

UNIT SIX
INFORMATION SYSTEMS OBJECTIVES: After studying this unit, you will be able to:
o o o o o have a historical perspective of the Industrial Revolution evaluate the consequences of using computers in various areas of employment analyse changes that information technology brings about define statistics define cybernetics role in actual life (speak about its applications)

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MODULE I LEAD-IN
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. What is an employment pattern? What may affect the employment pattern of a country? Can you establish any relation between the Industrial Revolution and the change of the employment pattern? Why do certain jobs disappear? How can the social consequences of unemployment be diminished?

COMPUTERS AND THE CHANGING PATTERN OF EMPLOYMENT

Computers are used in most areas of employment; because of this, many job roles have changed or have been eliminated. New jobs have come into existence but according to the Policy Studies Institute more jobs are being lost than created (). New jobs come into existence, as the skills required in the past become less in demand because newer skills are needed to use and develop the information systems being created. This leads to a major change in employment patterns (). New technologies have always affected employment patterns. Up to the eighteenth century, the majority of the population worked in the primary industries, such as agriculture, forestry, fishing. Technological innovations began to improve the productivity of the workers in agriculture, starting with the mechanical seed sower which was introduced early in the eighteenth century, followed by automatic threshers and reapers in the nineteenth century. These developments meant that fewer workers could produce more agricultural produce and therefore the numbers of workers employed in the primary sector began to fall. During the eighteenth century the steam engine was invented and technology was applied to transport in the form of railways. These developments triggered the Industrial Revolution which created a rapidly growing secondary employment sector which consisted mainly of new manufacturing industries together with mining, construction, quarrying and utilities (gas, water and electricity). This growth in manufacturing absorbed all the labour that was no longer required in the primary sector. Even before the introduction of microelectronics in the mid-twentieth century, automation of the manufacturing processes was already beginning to reduce the number of the people in the secondary sector

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Business Issues

in the developed countries. Throughout the twentieth century there has been a continuing growth in the tertiary or servicing sector. This growth was in the employment of people in offices, banking and insurance, public administration, the entertainment industry and computing. The major growth in employment in this century is for information workers required for the new information technologies () Information technology changes the way information is handled and the way goods are manufactured. In the future, skill requirements will mean that people may have to be retrained once or twice during their working life as the job they do is no longer required. Retraining should be readily available and not cause people financial problems because they are retraining. It will be also necessary to train people to make better use of their non-working time, because apart from the financial problems of not working, there are the psychological problems that the unemployed face: the feeling of unwanted and of no value to society. We will now look at how the use of computers will change some areas of employment. There will be less demand for people to carry out routine, clerical and production jobs. Word processors, databases or electronic mail will take over many of the tasks such as typing, filing, recording orders and delivering internal mail that are currently carried out by people. Initially, the demand for word processor operators will increase, but the predicted introduction of the voice-controlled computers in the 1990s will eliminate many jobs. For example, typists and word processor operators will not be required as letters will be dictated directly into a computer. There will be less demand for maintenance engineers as electronic products, with their lack of moving parts, do not break down so frequently. When there is a breakdown, rectification requires less skill as it often means just replacing a circuit board with a new one. To develop the information systems there will be an increase in the demand for information technology specialists. These information scientists will structure the databases used. Business and organisation analysts will be needed to translate user needs into system specifications. (From Terry Corbitt, Information Technology and Its Applications, Avon, Great Britain, 1990)

VOCABULARY
skill = ability to do something expertly and well to employ = to give work to somebody, usually for payment employer = person who employs others employee = person employed for wages employment = 1. employing or being employed; 2. ones regular work or occupation the employment = 1. state of being unemployed; 2. amonut of unused labour to improve = to make better; to use well insurance = agreement by contract to pay money especially in case of misfortune; money paid (by an insurance company) as a result of such a contract thresher = machine used to beat the grain out of wheat reaper = machine used for cutting grain to entertain = to make people laugh by jokes and tricks trigger =lever for relaxing a spring especially for a fire arm to trigger something off = to be the immediate cause of something serious growth = increase in number or amount demand = the desire of people for a particular good or service clerical job = a clerks job involving work in an office to carry out = to fulfill; to complete to predict = to see or describe (a future happening) in advance as a result of knowledge, experience, reason etc. solicitor = lawyer who gives advice and acts for clients in legal matters

UNIT 6 Module I
COMPREHENSION I
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

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1.1. Answer the following questions on the text: Where did most of the population work up to the 18th century? What did the Industrial Revolution create? What has happened throughout the twentieth century as fa as employment is concerned? What professional category has recorded the major growth in employment? What will skill-requirements impose in the future? Why will people carrying out clerical work be no longer demanded? Even in the field of computers there will be less demand for some jobs. Can you mention them? Explain why this will happen. What do information scientist deal with?

PRACTICE I
2.1. Fill in the blanks using words from the text: In order to eliminate negative consequences of unemployment people should be Technological in the 18th century began to improve the productivity of work in agriculture. The mechanical (two words) was introduced early in the 18th century. The introduction of the (compound adjective) computer will eliminate many jobs. Business will be needed to translate user needs into system specifications. The development of (two words) could (two words) some of the jobs that are done by these specialists. 2.2. Give the verbs and adjectives corresponding to the following nouns: Noun Verb Adjective Production Employment Application Change Invention Growth Demand Payment Finance Information Necessity Delivery Movement Use

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2.3. Match up the following expressions and definitions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. to take over to break down apart from to face to lead to clerical jobs to carry out A. B. C. D. E. F. G.

Business Issues

to recognise and deal with based on office work to perform to assume control of besides to get out of order to generate

2.4. Word test A beginner in editing has just written this letter. He knows he has made many mistakes but he doesnt worry as he will use the spelling facilities of his computer. What spelling mistakes will the computer identify? Please correct the letter: Dare John, I am cvery hapy to tell you that I has just bought a computer. Its really wordenful to have it. It was not eazy to persuade my farther to invest in such a machine. You know my father. His so reluctant to inovations! Aprat from this, he is astreh too economicaly, I think. he doesnet like to spent. In this case, I think that hell come to understand the benefits soon, hell be the one to use the computer most, as his filed of work need it bedly. Thats all fro the moments. Ill witre youu soon to tell how thinks go. Bets wishes, Dan

2.5. Make up meaningful sentences by picking up items from the table below
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. word processors operators computer specialists emphasis the developments of the 18th and 19th centuries information workers retraining strategies automatic threshers and reapers when in on a in order to for of secondary employment sector the 19th century unemployment decision making voice-controlled computer new information technologies will be laid should be available created will be necessary could be used will lose their jobs were introduced to avoid negative consequences are introduced

how to use information

NOTE: Some items may be used more than once. The columns are not placed in logical order.

UNIT 6 Module I

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FOCUS ON LANGUAGE PRACTICE II

3.1. Put the verbs in brackets in the appropriate tense paying attention to the sequence of tenses I know that Jane (to leave) the book on the top shelf and I wonder why it (not be) there. I phoned her to ask about it and she said she (to do) exactly what I (to ask) her to. The book should be there. Perhaps my brother (to put) it somewhere else. I shall ask him when he (to come back) home if it (not to be) too late. On Monday he usually (to overwork) as he needs more money. Ill try to get in touch with him by phone. Itll be very good if I (to know) what has happened with my book. I have to return it to the library tomorrow. 3.2. Remember some rules of the Sequence of Tense 1. 2. Main Clause Present tense Past tense Subordinate Clause Any tense logically required a. past tense to express a past action simultaneous with that of the main verb; b. past perfect to express a past action prior to that of the main verb c. future in the past to express a future action related to the past Present Simple/Present Perfect to express future actions in: temporal conditional clauses (type I)

3.

Future

There are some exceptions to the rules mentioned above: Main Clause Past tense Past tense Subordinate Clause Present Simple to express general truths; facts universally known Any tense logically required in: attributive, comparative clauses; adverbial clauses of cause.

Complete the following sentences choosing the right verbal form from those given below: 1. The teacher told the pupils that water at 100 C. 2. They solved the problem fast as they remembered that two parallel lines never each other. 3. They all knew that the Earth around its axis. 4. He had demonstrated long time ago that the atom the smallest particle of matter. 5. I didnt speak to him about the new strategy for I him tonight and we can talk a lot about it. 6. Did you meet the man who the new building?

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boils boiled was boiling is boiling had met had been meeting meet met will be spinning spins spinned had spinned is not was not had not been being were not

Business Issues
should meet shall meet would meet was going to meet will design would design would be designed were going to design

COMPREHENSION II
4.1. Read the paragraphs below carefully, identify the main ideas and give your comments on them: One area in which there will be a continuing growing demand for people will be in jobs that computers cannot do. This will include the caring services such as nursing and social work which require a considerable amount of human interaction. Computers are unlikely to be used for jobs that require a great deal of physical dexterity. These jobs, especially those in caring services, could become the status jobs of the future simply because they cannot be done by computers. As the whole population will come into contact with computer-based systems, the education system will need to provide a basic grounding in the use and nature of this technology. This does not mean that everyone will need to be able to program or be a computer specialist, but they will need to understand the overall nature of information technology, how the shape it to human or organisational requirements and how to use it. 4.2. Translate into English: 1. Se vor cere exper]i `n sisteme informa]ionale `nc\ mult timp. 2. E pu]in probabil ca aceste ma[ini sofisticate s\ fie utilizate pentru slujbe care cer dexteritate fizic\. 3. Te va surprinde c>nd vei afla c\ aproape fiecare persoan\ va trebui s\ se recalifice cel pu]in o dat\ `n via]a sa activ\. 4. El nu trebuie s\-[i fac\ griji `n ceea ce prive[te cariera sa, deoarece profesiile care implic\ interac]iunea uman\ nu vor fi `nlocuite de calculatoare. 5. Dac\ ar fi [tiut c\ sarcini precum `ndosarierea, distribuirea coresponden]ei sau b\tutul la ma[in\ vor fi f\cute de calculator, nu ar mai fi angajat at>]ia func]ionari.

UNIT 6 Module I
UNIT SIX
MODULE I KEY
1. 2. 3.

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4. 5.

Possible answers to LEAD-IN questions. A certain structure/model showing the distribution of jobs/labour in a certain area. There are many factors that may affect the employment pattern. We may speak of various factors that influence the employment pattern either directly or indirectly such as production shrinkage, economic stagnation, technical innovation, that lead to temporary or permanent disappearance of some jobs. The relation is obvious. The Industrial Revolution is generated by technical innovations due to which new jobs come into being, while others disappear which inevitably affects the distribution of labour, labour offer and demand. Because the skills they require become less in demand or are not needed at all. By a well-thought strategy meant to diminish and eliminate the financial and psychological pro-blems or the people who lose their jobs. Retraining seems to be the key-word.

PRACTICE I
2.1. retrained; innovations; seed sower; voice-controlled; analysts; experts systems; take over. 2.2. to produce to employ to apply to change to invent to grow to demand to pay to finance to inform to necessitate to deliver to move to use 2.3. 1. D; 2. F; 3. E; 4. A; 5. G; 6. B; 7. C. productive employed applying changing; changeable invented growing demanding paid; payable financial informed necessary; necessitous delivering; delivered moving; movable usable

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2.4.

Business Issues

Dear John, I am very happy to tell you that I have just bought a computer. Its really wonderful to have it. It was not easy to persuade my father to invest in such a machine. You know my father. Hes so reluctant to innovations! Apart from this, he is rather too economical, I think. He doesnt like to spend. In this case, I think that hell come to understand the benefits soon. Hell be the one to use the computer most, as his field of work needs it badly. Thats all for the moment. Ill write to you soon to tell how things go. Best wishes, Dan

PRACTICE II
3.1. has left, is not; had done; had asked; put; comes back; isnt; overworks; know. 3.2. 1-boils; 2-meet; 3-spins; 4-is not; 5-shall meet; 6-will design. 4.2. 1. Information system experts will be still in demand. 2. These sophisticated machines are unlikely to be used for jobs that require physical dexterity. 3. You will be surprised when you find out that each person will have to be retrained at least once in his/her working life. 4. He does not need to worry about his career, as jobs involving human interaction will not be replaced by computers. 5. If he had known that tasks such as filing, internal mail delivery and typing will be done by computers, he wouldnt have employed so many clerks.

UNIT 6 Module II
UNIT SIX
MODULE II STATISTICS

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OBJECTIVES: After studying this chapter students should be able to:

o o define statistics define its role in actual life (speak about its applications)

LEAD-IN
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. What is statistics? What is the difference between statistic and statistics? When and how did statistics appear? What is the role of numerical evidence in statistics? Which are the fields in which statistics is mainly used?

STATISTICS
The term and its meaning Statistics is a body of methods and theory applied to numerical evidence in making decisions in the face of uncertainty. As a discipline, it has advanced rapidly during the 20th century to become reorganised as a branch of mathematics. Partly due to the relative newness of statistics as a branch of study, the word statistics has come to have several meanings. In its earlier and still more common usage, statistics means a collection of numerical data. The figures showing sources of income and expenditures for budget, or the distances between major cities are all statistics. Closing prices from the Stock Exchange, or your reported income on last years tax return are also statistics. This usage is seen in the term vital statistics for figures on births, deaths etc., and in the titles of publications listing population and economic data. The main distinction between our definition and this usage of the word is its form, plural versus singular: statistics (SG) is a subject of study, whereas statistics (PL) are numerical facts. Its history Simple forms of statistics have been used since the beginning of civilization. Before 3000 BC the Babylonians used small clay tablets to record tabulations of agricultural yields and of commodities bartered or sold. The Egyptians analysed the population and material wealth of their country before beginning to build the pyramids in the 31st century BC. The biblical books of Numbers and 1 Chronicles are, in small parts, statistical works. Similar numerical records existed in China before 2000 BC. The ancient Greeks held censues to be used as bases for taxation as early as 594 BC. The Roman Empire was the first government to gather data about the population, area, and wealth of the territories that it controlled. During the Middle Ages in Europe

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Business Issues

few comprehensive censues were made. Registration of deaths and births was begun in England in the early 16th century, and in 1662 the first noteworthy statistical study of population was written. A similar study of mortality made in Germany in 1691 was used by the English astronomer Edmund Halley as a basis for the earliest mortality table. In the 19th century, with the application of the scientific method to all phenomena in the natural and social sciences, investigators recognized the need to reduce information to numerical values to avoid the ambiguity of verbal description. Its universality There is perhaps no other subject quite like statistics. It is used by everybody, from some of the remotest people, such as the bushmen of Africas Kalahari Desert, to space scientists planning grand tours of the planets. Surprisingly, the use to which statistics is universally applied is not what most people imagine. The word statistics brings to mind masses of numbers, graphs, and tables. These two play a role in statistics, but a limited one. The Kalahari bushmen cannot count very far, know little mathematics, draw no graphs, and assemble no tables, yet they do use statistics. One common thread linking scientist and bushman is that both must make decisions in the face of uncertainty. The mechanisms used by both utilize limited experience and in this respect they are not substantially different. The remaining element making them statistical is that both use numerical evidence. Now, the scientists evidence is obviously numerical, while the bushmans numerical evidence is the frequency of successful experiments made under various prevailing conditions. Even though the bushmans findings represent a qualitative factor, frequencies of occurrence are themselves numerical. Its applications Our definition of statistics is particularly appropriate for readers who are primarily interested in applications to business and economics, where there is a high incidence of decisions made under uncertainty. Managerial decisions involving both numerical data and uncertainty are required daily, ranging from ordering material used to produce items whose demands are uncertain to hiring personnel whose performances cannot be predicted. Statistical decisions can answer long-range planning questions, such as when and where to locate facilities to handle future sales of uncertain levels. Statistics can be helpful in formulating strategic policies and affect a firms survival, such as new product development, pricing and financing. At present statistics is a reliable means of describing accurately the values of economic, political, social, psychological, biological, and physical data and serves as a tool to correlate and analyse such data. The work of the statistician is no longer confined to gathering and tabulating data, but is chiefly a process of interpreting the information. The development of the theory of probability increased the scope of statistical applications. Much data can be approximated accurately by certain probability distributions, and the results of probability distributions can be used in analysing statistical data. Probability can be used to test the reliability of statistical inferences and to indicate the kind and amount of data required for a particular problem. (Sources: L. Lapin, Statistics for Modern Business Decisions, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Inc. New York 1973, Microsoft Encarta 98 Encyclopedia 1993-1997, Microsoft Corporation).

UNIT 6 Module II
VOCABULARY
vital statistics = statistica popula]iei figure = cifr\ clay = lut yield = produc]ie, recolt\ (agr.); produs, randament (ind); venit, raport (taxe) to barter = a schimba marf\ contra marf\; a face troc census = reces\m>nt noteworthy = notabil, demn de a fi luat `n seam\ thread = a]\ (aici) leg\tur\ occurrence = apari]ie to range fromto = a se e[alona de lala to hire personnel = a angaja personal long-range planning = planificare pe termen lung reliable = de `ncredere, pe care te po]i baza to be confined to = a fi limitat la, a se limita la scope = posibilit\]i; anvergur\, (aici) domeniu reliability = fiabilitate

137

COMPREHENSION I
a) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Answer the following questions on the text: What is statistics applied to? Is it a science itself, or a branch of a more comprehensive science? What did it consistin in the early stage? What was it mainly used for at its beginning? What is it used for at present (What does it offer, correlate and analyse)? Why is it used in business and economics? Is it a reliable tool? Whom does it serve mainly? Which branch of mathematics is used in order to test the reliability of statistical inference?

PRACTICE I
2.1. Fill in the blanks with the suitable verb: to do or to make 1. They a lot of money last year, which I not, though I my best. 2. The main idea of the speech he yesterday was that everyone should his best just by up for lost time. 3. People must without such luxuries in times of crisis. 4. I think they business with that firm, but youd better certain. 5. He can use of it whenever he wants. 6. come tonight, its my birthday party. 7. It nt you any good to stay up so late! 8. She not a mistake in choosing her career: she will certainly a good doctor. 9. This is all I have, will it ? Ill it . 10. I cant out what hes trying to ; hes probably gym, this is why hes such a noise. 2.2. a) Choose between economic and economical and fill in the blanks with the proper word: 1. The adjective is related to economic or to economics, while means saving/not wasteful. 2. The business is no longer 3. Hes a rather person. 4. It doesnt make sense to own a car in town. 5. You can find out a lot about the way the system of a country works if you analyse the decisions of top managers. 6. It would be more to change lodging, if only we could find one with an rent.

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Business Issues

b) Choose between politic and political and fill in the blanks with the proper word: 1. A measure often affects the economic activity of a country. 2. You may talk about economics in general but its not to tackle the matter of their economy. 3. They are studying economy. 4. He thought it to refuse the offer, under the given circumstances. 5. A party should always consider the future perspectives. 6. Their action will prove to have been in the long run. 2.3. Fill in the blanks with one of the following nouns: mean, means, meaning 1. Money is a of change. 2. I dont see the of it. 3. Its nothing else than the geometrical 4. Do you know the of the golden ? 5. The of transport are rather crowded nowadays. 6. The level of an economy is highly dependent on the of production.

FOCUS ON LANGUAGE PRACTICE II

3.1. Combine the sentence using who (whose, whom), that, which and if necessary making the required changes in the word order 1. The industrial dispute has now been settled. It disrupted production while it lasted. 2. Lord Nelson was famous for his naval exploits. A column was erected in Trafalgar Square in his memory. 3. His first decision was more popular than his second. He took his first decision by himself. He consulted his legal advisers with regard to the second. 4. The Company Chairman was not re-elected to the Board. It was his responsibility to see that the company functioned profitably. He had failed in this. 5. This is the man. It was through his generosity that the scholarships were established. 6. The plan for a new bypass has now been approved by the Local Authority. By means of it, the heavy congestion will be considered relieved. This congestion is normally found in the city centre at rush hours. (adapted from B. D. GRAVER, Advanced English Practice, OUP, 1963) 3.2. Connect the following sentences using a) however or therefore, and b) if or unless: a) 1. The speedy means of transport have changed our lives. This change did not come abruptly. 2. City department stores are losing business. Some of them have opened suburban branches. 3. The big summer hotels have lost business. New motels are being built all the time. 4. European highways are much better than they used to be. They still are in need of improvement. 5. We live rather far from the city centre. We spend a lot of time commuting. 6. In the centre of town all the streets have parking meters. It is necessary to have a lot of small change if you go downtown to shop. b) 1. He will not learn much he works harder. 2. He will work harder he is motivated. 3. you rang, he would come, I suppose. 4. He wouldnt have known we were here you had rung.

UNIT 6 Module II
5. 6. I shant write to him he writes to me first. We shouldnt have been late your watch hadnt been slow.

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3.4. Fill in the blanks with the suitable connecting word: all, though, because, however since, therefore, this is why, thus 1. the goods were of the best quality, they were satisfactory we decided to buy in bulk. We did so also the price was convenient. 2. The probability of an event ordinarily represents the proportion of times under identical circumstances that the outcome can be expected to occur , a probability value is often subjective, set solely on the basis of personal judgement probability is a measure usually attributed to future events, the likelihood of a past event may also be expressed as a probability value. 3. The capacity of computers inside the animal skull is exploited almost to the full, leaving no scope for cumulative learning and mental evolution. 4. What is called human progress is purely an intellectual affair. Not much development is seen on the moral side 5. the history of civilization may be seen as the slow process of the mind learning from experience to actualise the brains potential. the human brains powers are in some respects immense, they are nevertheless limited in other respects. The new frontiers to be conquered are, in the convolutions of the cerebral cortex. 3.5. Read the text below carefully. Fill in the blanks with connecting words as previously. Avoid using the same word twice (if possible) a) Everything in nature is in a perpetual state of transformation, motion, and change we discover that nothing simply surges up out of nothing. , nothing ever disappears without leaving a trace. , this principle is not yet a statement of the existence of causality in nature . , it is even more fundamental than causality, it lies at the foundation of the possibility of our understanding nature in a rational way. To come to causality, the next step is to note inside of all complexity of change and transformation there are relationships that remain effectively constant. , objects released in midair under a wide range of conditions quite constantly fall to the ground. , water put into a container quite invariably seeks its own level. We interpret this constancy as necessary in the sense that it could not be otherwise. At this point, , we meet a new problem. the necessity of a causal law is never absolute. For instance if the object released in mid-air is a piece of paper, and if by chance there is a strong breeze blowing, it may rise. we see that one must conceive of the law of nature as necessary only one abstracts from contingencies representing essentially independent factors. Such contingencies lead to chance. we conceive of the necessity of a law of nature as conditional, it applies only to the extent that these contingencies may be neglected. (adapted from DAVID BHM, Causality and Change in Modern Physics)

b) Try to give a title to the text, and summarize it (about 50 words). c) Comment upon the relation between the text given above and statistics and/or its tool probability

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COMPREHENSION II

Business Issues

a.

b.

c.

d.

& Read the paragraphs below and comment upon them taking into account the suggestions given: There are 36 just men in every generation. If the 36 just men did not exist, mankind couldnt last a day, it would drown in its own wrongs. The 36 are not marked out by any rank or office. They cannot be recognised, they never yield their secret, perhaps they are not even aware of it themselves; and yet it is they who, in every successive generation, justify our existence and who every day save it anew. (Hassidische Bcher) There are only few who are dragging mankind forward: they are 20%, to be more precise. Only 20% of the population are the diligent, conscientious workers who do their best not just for the sake of promotion or for money, but because they think that if a thing is worth doing, it is worth doing well. And they feel so, indeed. In his theory of motivation Maslow says that people satisfy their needs in a systematic way: once a need has been met, it stops being a motivating factor, so that another a higher need is aimed at. According to Maslows hierarchy (of needs), the 1) basic; 2) security, and 3) social needs are dominant; while 4) esteem and 5) self-actualisation needs only seldom appear to be strong; and if so, this usually occurs at higher social levels (i.e. among individuals with a higher social status). We promote those who take initiative. He who does so may make mistakes; but we dont punish people for making mistakes, we punish them for not doing. If you dont take any risk, but just sit on your duff, then we care. (after Alvin Tffler) Are they (all) statistics? Is any a reliable statistics? Is there any relation between them? What does it consist in? Do their deep meanings converge? What is the moral (warning) they convey? Do you agree with it?

Translate into English: Statistica se bazeaz\ `ntr-o at>t de mare m\sur\ pe experien]\ [i pe judecata ra]ional\ `n alegerea procedurilor disponibile, `nc>t ar putea fi numit\ o art\. Pe de alt\ parte, statistica utilizeaz\ `ntr-o m\sur\ mai mare sau mai mic\ toate elementele metodei [tiin]ifice, dintre care cea mai notabil\ este concentrarea asupra erorii. Din aceast\ perspectiv\ este o [tiin]\. ~n orice caz, aceast\ ramur\ modern\ a matematicii ne conduce cu ajutorul probabilit\]ii [i prin calcularea erorii c\tre solu]iile cele mai adecvate; adic\, ne indic\ deciziile care, `n economie ca [i `n via]a social\, corespund `n cea mai mare m\sur\ scopului care este, `ntr-o economie s\n\toas\, eficien]a. Statisticile arat\ pe ce procent din popula]ia angajat\ ne putem bizui, `n c>]i la sut\ dintre oameni putem avea `ncredere c\ se vor implica p>n\ la cap\t.

UNIT 6 Module II
UNIT SIX
MODULE II KEY PRACTICE I

141

2.1. 1. made, did, did; 2. made, do, making; 3. do; 4. are doing, make; 5. make; 6. Do; 7. doesnt, do; 8. did, make, make; 9. do, make, do; 10. make, do; 11. doing, making. 2.2. a. 1. -ic, -ical; 2. -ic; 3. -ical; 4. -ic; 5. -ic; 6 -ical, -ic. b. 1. -ical; 2. -ic; 3. -ical; 4. -ic; 5. -ical; 6. -ic. 2.3. 1. means; 2. meaning; 3. mean; 4. meaning, mean; 5. means; 6. means.

PRACTICE II
3.2. a. b. 1. h; 2. th; 3. h; 4. h; 5. th; 6. th. 1. u; 2. if; 3. if; 4. u; 5. u; 6. if.

3.3. 1. Since (As); Thus/Therefore; because (since); 2. However; Although; 3. thus; 4. though; 5. Thus; Although; therefore. 3.4. Still; Likewise; However; Indeed; since; Thus; Similarly; however; For; Thus; if; Hence; as (since).

COMPREHENSION II
Suggested answer: To such an extent does statistics rely on/ Statistics relies so heavily upon experience and judgement / reasoning in closing the available procedures, that it may be called an art. On the other hand statistics utilizes to various degrees all the elements of the scientific method. The most noteworthy being / of which the most noteworthy is its focus on error. From this perspective it is a science. Anyway this modern branch of mathematics leads us through error and probability to the most appropriate decisions, i.e., it points out / indicates the / those decisions that, in economy as in social life, best suit the target which, in a sound economy is efficiency. Statistics show / indicate what percentage of the employed population are reliable / we can rely on, how many percent are certain to commit themselves entirely.

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UNIT SIX
MODULE III

Business Issues

CYBERNETICS AND ITS CONNECTIONS OBJECTIVES: After studying this chapter you should be able to:
o define cybernetics o define its principles

LEAD-IN
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. What is cybernetics? What does it study? What is information? What is feedback? Which way do information & feedback operate within a system? What is a system? What are the applications of cybernetics? In which fields are these applications mainly used? What are their consequences?

CYBERNETICS AND ITS CONNECTIONS

According to Wieners definition cybernetics is the information technology and a storage of information. The cornerstones of cybernetics are the information theory, the theory of algorithms, and the theory of automatic systems, which investigate the methods of building data-processing systems. Its mathematical apparatus includes the theory of probability, the theory of functions, mathematical logic. Cybernetics studies the common properties of different control systems, properties quite independent of their material basis and which can equally manifest themselves in the inorganic world, in living nature and in human collectives. It is indeed the remarkable similarity of control processes in systems of entirely different nature that provided the basis for the development of cybernetics which makes use of mathematical methods to study control systems and processes. Hence Pekeliss definition of cybernetics as the science of the general principles of control, means of control, and their utilization in engineering, living organisms, and human society. In the first flush of enthusiasm in the late 1940s the founding fathers of cybernetics hoped it might be the answer to life, the Universe, and everything.. By the time of the preface to the second edition of Wieners book in 1961 this optimism was already fading. Cybernetics had suffered a period of buzzword fashionability which provoked a reaction of disillusion. A more solid development followed, in which Wieners keywords of control, communication, information, and feedback were more clearly seen as facets of the united science

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of information, and its useful application with information theory as the quantitative foundation. Thus cybernetics may be defined as the basic discipline of information sciences and their applications. Cybernetics can be subdivided into: a) theoretical mathematical and logical basis, and philosophical problems; b) technological design and operation of control, and computer hardware; c) applied use of theoretical and technological cybernetics for solving specific control tasks in industry, power supply, transport, communication etc. Our century may be termed the century of cybernetics. Today science, technology, industry can hardly be imagined without electronic computers, without automata, without the new methods that the science of control and regulation place at the disposal of man. However, cybernetics is a key not only to modern information-based technology but also to modern developments in biological and social sciences. Cybernetics helps scientists to discover various laws in economics and sociology. And since to quote Wiener again communication and control belong to the essence of mans life just as they belong to his life in society, cybernetics also came to help physiologists and psychiatrists in their investigations of the organism, in discovering the quantitative laws governing the functioning of living control systems. Cybernetics seeks to discover the common features of two control systems: it studies human thinking in order to create algorithms more or less faithfully describing the operations of the living control systems; it also studies the automata design principles, and investigates the possibilities of using them in order to mechanize human mental process. Thus it enriches the engineers engaged in creating complex automatic systems with the experience of nature. Therefore we may say that one of the fundamental issues cybernetics is concerned with is that of artificial intelligence (Ai), i.e. the ability to reproduce, by whatever means are available to us, the full range of humanlike abilities. One way of thinking about this problem of cybernetics is to ask the question Could machines be made to think? If we can manufacture a system, or program a computer able to perform the full range of intelligent activities of human beings such as problem solving, decision taking, thinking, learning, adapting to changing circumstances, and the like then we will have to answer the question in the affirmative. Now thinking machines are the results of this concern of cybernetics with artificial intelligence. Indeed, mention the words cybernetics and artificial intelligence and the word computer seems to emerge almost immediately. The incorporation of computers into cybernetics systems requires, in turn, an understanding of the principles of artificial intelligence as well as those of adaptive, learning, self-organizing, self-repairing systems.

VOCABULARY
cornerstone = piatr\ de temelie flush of enthusiasm = val de entuziasm buzzwords fashionability = mondenitate zgomotoas\ issue = 1. chestiune, subiect, problem\; 2. rezultat to be concerned with = a fi preocupat de available = disponibil a full range of = o larg\/`ntreag\ gam\ de

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COMPREHENSION I
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.

Business Issues

1.1. Answer the following questions on the text: What are the cornerstones of cybernetics? What theories does its mathematical apparatus include? What provided the basis for the development of cybernetics? Which are the keywords of cybernetics? Which way do these concepts operate? Which is the relation between them? Does cybernetics offer an answer to life/change/evolution? What are the branches of cybernetics? What is artificial intelligence (Ai)? Can machines think (as people do)? Is cybernetics of any help in discovering various laws in, say, economics and/or sociology? Which other fields of investigation has cybernetics come to help? What is the relation between computer science and cybernetics?

PRACTICE I
2.1. a. Fill in the blanks with the suitable verb to provide or to supply They food for everyone in the damaged area. Our firm will the schools with a new library. Which company water to the town? Candidates must their own pencils and paper. Can you a substitute for it? Well the tools for the job. They kept us ed with milk for months. It accommodation for several families.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

b. Now fill in the blanks with the nouns corresponding to the verbs given above: 1. Our are already exhausted. 2. Fortunately a fresh will soon arrive. 3. This is the law of and demand. 4. Well get in a of raw materials. 5. They still have a good of coal. 2.2. a. Match the following definitions with the words: information, knowledge, news, message knowledge, item of knowledge, news (on, about); new information, fresh events reported, interesting information; oral/written communication sent one by one person to another; persons range of information, familiarity gained by experience (of), understanding, awareness. b. Fill in the blanks with one of the words in a: 1. Have you any of him? 2. He had no of the facts at the time. 3. Unfortunately we still have no on the point. 4. We cant take any measures until more is available. 5. Do let me have your ! 6. She has a thorough of English. 7. Would you give him this ? 8. Ask for some more about it, first. 9. Have you heard the about the company chairman? 10. She gave us worthy about their firm. 11. Its common that the advance of depends on the amount of gathered. 12. I left a for the manager. 13. When the broke he was abroad. 14. They had never, to my , complained before.

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2.3. Say it in a different way (in English, paying particular attention to the underlined words): 1. She has rather slender means, indeed. 2. Im afraid theres no means of doing it. 3. Ill try to open it by means of a penknife. 4. They have always lived beyond their means. 5. My brother has been the means of my success. 6. Theres no doubt that he is a man of means. 7. She is by no means stupid. 8. Its certain that he succeeded by means of hard work. 9. Faith is the means of salvation. 10. They havent got the means to buy it. 11. The main issue is to find out whether they meant it (or not). 12. They were, as usual, at issue over the matter of private ownership.

FOCUS ON LANGUAGE PRACTICE II

3.1. Fill in the blanks with articles (where necessary): a). 1. information is facts that have been processed into form that increases understanding and is useful to people making decision. 2. It is made up of inputs, processes, and outputs. 3. inputs may be matter, energy, humans, or facts entered into system. 4. process is that which transforms input into output. 5. outputs are results of operation of process. b) 1. science now begins to focus on 2. convergence of 3. man and 4. nature, on 5. framework which makes us, 6. living beings, 7. dependent parts of 8. nature and simultaneously makes 9. nature 10. object of our thoughts and actions. 11. scientist can no longer confront 12. universe as 13. objective observer. 14. science recognizes 15. participation of 16. man with 17. universe. 3.2. Remake the sentences below, placing the underlined adverbs/adverbial phrases at the beginning of the sentence (and making the necessary inversion): He had no sooner bought a car than something went wrong with the supply of fuel to the engine. They tried in vain to bring the matter to a successful issue. She had hardly had time to check the devices when she was asked to leave if she was not able to do something. The experts not only demanded new training facilities; they also required higher salaries. We didnt discover until later that someone had used the computer during our absence. They can make the law effective only in this way. His integrity has never before been at issue. She wants it so much that shell find the means to get it.

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Business Issues

3.3. Emphasize the underlined words in the text below making the necessary changes in the word order (make as many sentences as underlined words are) My brother wanted to become an expert in computer science. So last year he became a student at the Faculty of Cybernetics. There he found out that nowadays there are systems sciences everywhere, even among the humanities. That is why he wrote a paper on the relationships between systems sciences and cybernetics, which sounds as follows: Cybernetics, as a systems science, can be related to the General Systems Theory. However, cybernetics is not concerned with systems in general, as GST is. Cybernetics studies a particular case of the closed, self-controlled systems with feedback. 3.4. a) Use the following words so as to obtain the definitions of: 1. Information and 2. Feedback 1. 2. theory, in, term, reduces, any, the, means, communication, input, information, organism, its, modern, which, that, uncertainty, is, informs; the, is, as, coupling, the, feedback, to, generally of, input, defined, output, the.

1. 2. 3.

b) Use the following words, each in its proper place, in order to make up correct, meaningful sentences: succeeds, best, she, begins, seldom, though, does, her, in, always, whatever, she, finishing, she, enthusiastically. sent, to find, we, Wednesday, as, their, had, the, soon, we, them, managed, parcel, lost, address, i.e., as, new. one, a, since, from, my, she, is, long, yesterday, Sue, brother, letter, she long, it, hasnt, such, the received, as.

COMPREHENSION II
& Read the text below and comment upon it taking account of the suggestions given: The world hierarchy has been generally used by systems theorists because it connotes a graded succession of levels that can be diagrammed in the branching tree image. A hierarchy with its built-in, self-regulatory safeguards is a stable affair. It is capable of variation and change, but only in coordinated ways and only in limited directions. It receives information from the environment, which modifies the process in the internally active system. But no modification takes place randomly: each change is governed by fixed rules, which, however, leave room for flexible strategies guided by feedbacks. (adapted from J. S. Snaps, Hollonomy: A Human Systems Theory, Intersystems Publications)

UNIT 6 Module III

Is society hierarchically structured? What is the role of information in an economy/a society? What does it bring about? What is the role of fixed rules within a system? What does feedback consist in in a society/an economy? Give some examples of strategies and explain why strategies should be flexible?

147

Translate into English: A) 1. Noi aprovizion\m majoritatea cantinelor din zon\. 2. ~ntotdeauna au cheltuit peste posibilit\]ile lor. 3. Av>nd `n vedere s\r\cia mijloacelor materiale ale angaja]ilor no[tri, ne sim]im obliga]i s\ ne exprim\m dezacordul fa]\ de opinia voastr\/punctul vostru de vedere. 4. Asta este singura modalitate de a-l contacta. B) Sistemul, const>nd `ntr-o suit\ de p\r]i/elemente corelate, este un tot unitar ale c\rui caracteristici [i comportament sunt determinate de acelea ale p\r]ilor componente. Totu[i nici caracteristicile, nici comportamentul sistemului nu sunt reductibile la acelea ale p\r]ilor. A[adar un sistem este mai mult dec>t o sum\ de elemente: este un ansamblu (un `ntreg) complex [i dinamic.

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UNIT SIX
MODULE III KEY PRACTICE I

Business Issues

2.1. a) 1. P; 2. S; 3. S; 4. P; 5. P; 6. S; 7. S; 8. p. b) 1. provisions; 2. supply; 3. s; 4. p; 5. s. 2.2. 1. N; 2. K; 3. I; 4. I; 5. N; 6. K; 7. M; 8. i; 9. N; 10. i; 11. K; 12. M; 13. N; 14. K. 2.3. 1. is (rather) poor; 2. theres no way/its impossible to; 3. with the help of; 4. (tried to) slow off; 5. I owe my success to ; 6. a rich man; 7. not in the least; 8. through/througin/due to; 9. way; 10. the money; 11. chef matter/problem; 12. had an argument/did not agree upon.

PRACTICE II
3.1. a) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. a The the The, the, an The, the, the, the b) 1. 4. 7. the. 10. the 13. an. 16. 2. the. 5. the. 8. 11. A. 14. 17. the 3. 6. 9. 12. the 15. the

3.2. 1. No sooner had he ; 2. In vain did they try ; 3. Hardly had she had ; 4. Not only did the experts demand ; 5. Not until later did we discover ; 6. Only in this way can they ; 7. Never before has his integrity been ; 8. So much does she want it . 3.3. 1. My brother did want to become ; 2. It is an expert in that my brother wanted ; 3. It is last year that he became ; 4. It is at the Faculty that he became 5. It is there that he 6. It is even among that 7. It is he who wrote 8. It is as a systems science that cybernetics 9. It is to the General Systems Theory that cybernetics 10. It is not with systems sciences in general that cybernetics 11. It is a particular case of the that cybernetics studies. 3.4. In modern communication-theory information means any input which informs the organism, i.e., reduces its uncertainty. Feedback is generally defined as the coupling of the input to the output. Though she always does her best, she seldom succeeds in finishing whatever she enthusiastically begins. We sent them the parcel last Wednesday, i.e. as soon as we had managed to find their new address. It is long since Sue hasnt received such a long letter from my brother.

a) b) 1. 2. 3.