Unit 7

The Internet

START-UP
1. Answer the questions.
1. How often the you use the Internet? Can you imagine your life without internet?
2. Make a list of both pros and cons of the Internet. Are there more advantages or
disadvantages?
3. Think of the Internet uses.

VOCABULARY
1. Match the words to their definitions.

1) broadband a) the act of starting to use a particular

plan, method

2) host b) to develop and change gradually over a

long period of time

3) transmission c) the place that someone is going to

4) to withstand d) to let someone do or have something

5) multiple e) a method of sending many electronic

messages at the same time, using a wide
range of frequencies

6) destination f) the process of sending out electronic

signals, messages etc.

7) adoption g) many, or involving many things, people

8) to evolve h) to move from one place to another

9) to allow i) to be strong enough to remain unharmed

by great heat, cold, pressure

10) to transfer j) the main computer in a network of

computers; any computer connected to the
Internet
READING
1. Scan the text and match the headings (a-c) with the paragraphs (1-3).
a. The origin of the net.
b. What the Internet is.
c. How the net works.

THE INTERNET
1. The Internet is a global network connecting millions of computers. The largest number of
Internet users is in China, followed by the United States and India. As of January 2021 there
were 4.66 billion active internet users worldwide - 59.5 percent of the global population. Of
this total, 92.6% (4.32 billion) accessed the internet via mobile devices. The number of
Internet users continues to grow. As of January 2023, there were 5.16 billion internet users
worldwide, which is 64.4 percent of the global population. Of this total, 4.76 billion, or 59.4%
of the world’s population, were social media users. In the early days, most people just used
the Internet to search for information. Today the Internet helps many people communicate,
work, learn, and have fun.
2. The Internet enables computers to send one another small packets of digital data. For that to
work, they use a common ‘language’ called TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol / Internet
Protocol). If you are on the net, you have an IP address, which is a way to identify a computer
on the Internet. Packets of Internet data are transmitted through a variety of cables, routers
and host computers on the way to their destination.
3. The Internet began in 1969 as ARPAnet, a U.S. Department of Defense project to create a
computer network that could withstand a nuclear war. During the next two decades, the
network that evolved was used mainly by universities, scientists and the government for
research and communications. The nature of the Internet changed in 1992, when the U.S.
government offered Internet access to the general public. The number of users grew rapidly
into the millions and then hundreds of millions. The main reasons for this massive increase
were the huge growth of the personal computer market, the invention of the World Wide Web
by Tim Berners-Lee in the early 1990s, and the widespread adoption of broadband in the
2000s.
Getting connected
To use the Internet you basically need a computer, the right connection software and a modem
to connect your computer to a telephone line and then access your ISP (Internet Service
Provider).
The modem (modulator-demodulator) converts the digital signals stored in the computer
into analogue signals that can be transmitted over telephone lines. There are two basic types:
external with a cable that is plugged into the computer via a USB port, and internal, an
expansion card inside the computer. A PC card modem is a different, more versatile option
for laptops and mobile phones,
At first most computers used a dial-up telephone connection that worked through the standard
telephone line. Now a broadband connection, a high data transmission rate Internet
connection, has become more popular: either ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line)
which allows you to use the same telephone line for voice and fast access to the Internet, or
cable, offered by most TV cable providers.
The basic equipment has changed drastically in the last few years. You no longer need a
computer to use the Internet. Web TV provides email and access to the Web via a normal TV
set plus a high-speed modem. More recently, mobile phones, tablets and PDAs also allow you
to go online with wireless connection.
Components of the Internet
The Internet consists of multiple data systems. The most popular and important systems are:
 WWW, the World Wide Web, a collection of files or pages containing links to other
documents on the Internet. Most Internet services are now integrated on the Web.
 E-mail, or electronic mail, for the exchange of messages and attached files.
 Mailing Lists are a combination of e-mail and discussion groups. Subscribe to a list and
messages are distributed to your e-mail box.
 Chat and instant messaging (IM), a system for sending public and private messages to
other users in real time over the Internet. You can chat privately with a friend, family member
or business colleague. The latest IM programs also incorporate telephone, video and file-
sharing facilities and are becoming an alternative to traditional video conferencing programs.
The most popular instant messaging services include WhatsApp, Viber, Telegram, etc.
 File Transfer Protocol (FTP), a system for transferring data files between computers via
the Internet.
 Newsgroups, where people send, read and respond to public bulletin board messages
stored on a central computer.
 Video conferencing, a system that allows transmission of video and audio signals in real
time, so users can exchange data, talk and see one another on the screen. Some services also
let you do video conferencing, such as Skype, Google Meet, Zoom, etc.
 VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol), or Internet Telephone, a system that lets people make
voice calls over the Internet.

2. Read the text again and decide if the following statements are true or false.
1. The largest number of Internet users is in the UK.
2. Computers need to use the same File Transfer Protocol to communicate with each
other.
3. ADSL and cable are two types of dial-up connections.
4. Every computer connected to the Internet is given a unique address or IP number.
5. The Internet began as a military experiment.
6. The huge growth of personal computer market was one of the reasons for rapid
growth of Internet users.
7. Tim Berners-Lee invented a broadband technology in the early 1990s.
8. Mailing Lists are based on programs that send messages on a certain topic to all the
computers whose users have subscribed to a list.
9. Many IM services now offer audio and video capabilities.

3. What Internet system from paragraph 4 should these people use?

1. I don’t want to spend too much money on international phone calls, so I’ve found a
cheaper way to talk to my friend from Canada.
 2. I like receiving daily updates and headlines from newspapers on my computer.
3. I want to read people’s opinions about current sporting events and express my views.
4. I’d like to check my students’ draft essays on my computer and send them back with my
suggestions.
5. I have designed a web page and want to transfer the data to my reserved web space.
6. I’d like to avoid flying to Hong Kong to attend the meeting but I want to see what’s
going on there.

4. Complete the sentences with the words in bold from the text. You may have to change
some words slightly.
1. By clicking on a ___, you might be taken to another website.
2. Traditionally, telecoms companies make most of their profits from ___.
3. It’s possible to store a lot more ___ on a DVD.
4. The ___ will connect your computer to the Internet via your phone line.
5. With the e-mail we received some ___.
6. Most public libraries provide free ___ to the Internet for library members.
7. With ___, you can watch live news and sport, download and share large files quickly.
8. In order to be able to connect to the Internet a computer needs an ___.

THE WORLD WIDE WEB

What the Web is
The World Wide Web, Web, or WWW is a network of documents that works in a hypertext
environment, i.e. using text that contains links, hyperlinks to other documents.
The files, web pages, are stored in computers, which act as servers. Your computer, the
client, uses a web browser, a special program to access and download them. The web pages
are organized in websites, groups of pages located on the Web, maintained by a webmaster,
the manager of a website.
The Web enables you to post and access all sorts of interactive multimedia information and
has become a real information highway.
How to surf the Web
To surf or navigate the Web, access and retrieve web pages or websites, you need a computer
with an Internet connection and a web browser. After you have launched it, you must type the
website address or URL (Uniform Resource Locator), which may look like this:
http://www.cup.org/education/sample.htm
http:// indicates the type of protocol that the server and browser will use to
communicate. Here it is Hypertext Transfer Protocol.
www. shows that it is a resource on the World Wide Web.
cup.org is the domain name of the web server that hosts the website.
education is the path, the place where a web page is located.
 sample.htm is the filename or name of a single web page.
The different parts are separated by full stops (.), and forward slashes (/). When we say a
URL, we say dot (.) and slash (/).
To find interesting sites you can use search engines, where the website information is
compiled by spiders, computer-robot programs that collect information from sites by using
keywords, or through web indexes, subject directories that are selected by people and
organized into hierarchical subject categories. Some web portals – websites that offer all
types of services, e.g. email, forums, search engines, etc. – are also good starting points.
The most relevant website addresses can be stored in your computer using the bookmarks or
favourites function in your browser.
Websites usually have a beginning page or home page. From this starting point you can
navigate by clicking your mouse on hyperlinks in texts or images.
What you can do on the Web
The Web is an open door to a universe of multimedia resources that people use in many
different ways. Here are just a few:
- In my weblog, an electronic journal I maintain on the Web, you can read and post
opinions in chronological order. In my role as blogger, the manager of a blog, I can
promote this new type of discussion.
- E-learning, education via the Web, is a great opportunity for people like me who
haven’t got time to attend classes.
- Online shopping, i.e. cybershopping or e-commerce, saves you time and gives you the
comfort of buying from your personal computer. The goods are then sent to you, so
it’s very easy.

1. Solve the cues and complete the puzzle with words from the text:

1. The WWW is also called the information __________

2. A link in a webpage.
3. A website that offers a variety of services.
4. The first page of a website is the ______ page.
5. A person who keeps a blog.
6. The manager of a web page is its web ________.
7. An animal closely linked to the Web.
8. Another word for directory.
9. Another word for bookmark.
The hidden word is _________, text with links.
 2. Complete these instructions about how to navigate with the words in the box.
Client web page surf web browser
Search engine web server website URL
1. Start up your computer and connect to the Internet.
2. Open your _________.
3. Type the ________ to access a website.
4. Your web browser sends the request to the correct ________ __________.
5. The server looks for the document and sends it to the ________ computer.
6. Your web browser displays the selected _______ _______ on the screen.
7. From the home page of the _________ you can ___________ to other pages by
clicking on hyperlinks.
8. If you want to find more websites, use a _________ __________.

3. Some students accessed the websites below. What did they use the Web for?

4. What are the main parts of this URL? How would you say the URL?
LANGUAGE FOCUS

WORD BUILDING: PREFIXES

We can form new words by using prefixes and suffixes,
e.g. micro-process-or
prefix + root+ suffix
Prefixes come before the root word and usually change its meaning.
Here are some common ones in IT.

Study the ‘Prefixes of location’

Prefix Meaning Examples

trans- = across transmission, transfer

inter- = between interconnected, interactive

intra- = within intranet

extra- = beyond extramemory, extranet

= outside
= in addition to

tele- = over a distance teleconferencing,

teleworking

1. Use the words from the table ‘Prefixes of location’ to complete these sentences and
make any necessary changes.
1. Data ___ can be wired or wireless.
2. An ___ is a private network restricted to a company’s internal use.
3. The Internet consists of millions of computers ___ in a global network.
4. ___ enables users in different places to talk to and see each other.
5. ___ (e.g. ROM or flash memory) is able to hold data when switched off.
6. ___ is increasing, so more and more people have an office at home and aren’t commuting
to an office.
7. ___ is a network that allows communication between a company and the customers it deals
with.
Study the ‘Prefixes of size’

Prefix Meaning Examples

multi- =many multimedia, multitasking

mega-, giga- =large megabyte, gigabyte

super- =large, great supercomputer

micro- =very small microbrowser

semi- =half, partly semiconductor

Use the words from the table ‘Prefixes of size’ to complete these sentences and make any
necessary changes.
1. ___ is a web browser designed for small screens or hand-held devices.
2. A ___ equals approximately one million bytes.
3. ___ is an action when you have more than one application open at the same time.
4. The introduction of ___ technology revolutionized the computer industry.
5. A ___ is a powerful computer that can process large amounts of data very quickly.
6. Each memory module contains a ___ of RAM, or 1024 megabytes, to be precise.
7. The next generation of computers will be ___ machines that allow users to control and
manipulate sound, video, text and graphics.

Study the ‘Negative prefixes’

Negative prefix Meaning Examples

un- unmagnitized
in- incomplete
im- =not impossible
il- illegal
ir- irregular
non- non-programmable
mis- =bad, wrong misuse, misunderstand
mal- malfunction
dis- =opposite action disconnect
de- =reduce, reverse decode, decrypt, debug
down- =to show that sth is bad or downtime, downgrade
to make sth less important

Study other common prefixes in IT

 Positive prefix Meaning Examples
re- =do again reorganize, reboot
co-/ com-/ con- =with connect, compatible
over- =too much overload
up- =at or to a higher level of update, upgrade, upload
activity
e- =electronic e-book, e-learning
cyber- =things related to cyberspace, cybercriminal
computer world

2. Match the prefixes in column A to the correct endings in column B.

3.
column A column B
DOWN- -reader, -commerce, -mail
RE- -time, -load
E- -crime, -space, -slacking
UP- -write, -boot, -set, -usable
CYBER- -grade, -date, -load

4. Complete these definitions with the words from Exercise 3.

1. ___ is to modify data in a file so that it has the most recent information.
2. ___ is the buying and selling of products and services over the Internet.
3. ___ is when a network or a computer is not working or unavailable for use.
4. ___ is to start the computer again.
5. ___ is the environment in which communication over computer networks occurs.
6. ___ is to add or replace hardware or software in order to expand the computer’s power.
7. ___ is using a company’s Internet access for activities which are not work-related, e.g.
emailing friends, playing games, etc.
5. Fill the gaps with the correct prefix.
ir- , in- , up-, re- , dis- , down-, de- , con-
1. The printer was not working because someone had ___ connected it by mistake.
2. As the results are ___ regular, the program will have to be ___ written.
3. Flash drives are ___ expensive and ___ usable.
4. Once you finish your program, you will have to test it and ___ bug to remove all the
mistakes.
5. If your mobile device has an Internet ___ nection, you can ___ load apps directly onto it.
6. Did you buy a full version of the OS or just an ___ grade?
7. If your computer crashes, you may have to ___ boot it.
Inventor of World Wide Web says it must change (14th March, 2019)
The World Wide Web is now thirty years old. Its inventor, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, has spoken
about his creation on its 30th anniversary. He said he was worried about how people are using
the Internet and its two billion websites today. He also said he is concerned about the future of
the Web. He wrote a letter saying he knew many people felt unsure about whether the Web
was a force for good. He believes it can be a force for good and can empower billions of
people. He wrote that he believed governments and companies must work together to build a
better Internet. He said: „If we give up on building a better Web now, then the Web will not
have failed us, We will have failed the Web.“
Sir Tim had three main concerns about the WWW. The first was criminal behaviour, like
state-sponsored hacking and online harassment. He described it as a „mirror of humanity“
where you will see „good and bad“. He said governments must pass laws to keep people safe.
A second thing that worried Berners-Lee is how social media is used to spread
misinformation. The past few years have seen a rise in fake news. In particular, how people
were tricked during the 2016 US presidential election and the UK Brexit vote. Berners-Lee is
also worried about people’s privacy and personal information. He stressed the importance of
fighting for a better and safer Web.

MULTIPLE CHOICE QUIZ

1. How old is the WWW?
a) 50
b) 20
c) 40
d) 30
2. How many websites did the article say was on the World Wide Web?
a) 200,000,000
b) Two billion
c) 2 million
d) 2,000,000
3. What are people doubting the WWW is a force for?
a) Communication
b) Power
c) Good
d) Change
4. What does Sir Tim Berners want government to build?
a) a better web
b) more internet cables
c) communities
d) a giant website
5. How many concerns did Sir Tim Berners-Lee have?
a) 2
b) 3
c) 4
d) 5
6. What did Sir Tim describe the Web as a mirror of?
a) News
b) Life
c) Social media
 d) Humanity
7. What did Sir Tim say social media spread?
a) Misinformation
b) Good news
c) Photos of cute cats
d) Everywhere

SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

1. Inventor a) unlawful
2. Worried b) thought
3. Unsure c) deceived
4. Believed d) conduct
5. Build e) concerned
6. Criminal f) lies
7. Behaviour g) construct
8. Misinformation h) creator
9. Tricked i) without charge
10. Free j) undecided