Reading Comprehension - Information Technology
Develop your reading skills. Read the following text and do the
comprehension question
Information Technology
In the beginning computers were human. Then they took the shape of metal
boxes, filling entire rooms before becoming ever smaller and more widespread. Now
they are evaporating altogether and becoming accessible from anywhere.
That is about as brief a history of computers as anyone can make it. The
point is that they are much more than devices in a box or in a data centre. Computing
has constantly changed shape and location—mainly as a result of new technology,
but often also because of shifts in demand.
The first “computers” were indeed people. The word originally meant an
individual who solved equations, often using a mechanical calculator. Hundreds
of them were employed by big companies that needed to do a lot of number-crunching,
such as aeroplane manufacturers. It was only around 1945 that the word came to
describe machinery.
But even after that, computing kept undergoing mutations—or, in the
jargon, platform shifts. The mainframe, the original computing platform, was
dethroned by minicomputers, which in turn gave way to personal computers, which
are now being pushed aside by hand-held devices and smartphones. With each step
the architecture—the underlying structure of computing—became more distributed.
Now, computing is taking on yet another new shape. It is becoming more
centralised again as some of the activity moves into data centres. But more
importantly, it is turning into what has come to be called a “cloud”, or
collections of clouds. Computing power will become more and more disembodied
and will be consumed where and when it is needed.
The rise of the cloud is more than just another platform shift that gets
geeks excited. It will undoubtedly transform the information technology
industry, but it will also profoundly change the way people work and companies
operate. It will allow digital technology to penetrate every nook and cranny of
the economy and of society, creating some tricky political problems along the
way.
Comprehension:
- Information technology is changing principally because of:
a. the
changing needs
b. new
technological advances
- According to the author the first computers were:
a. calculators
b. humans
- Platform shifts are:
a. advances
in computing systems
b. development
of machinery in general
- Computing systems are taking the form of clouds means:
a.
computers have become smaller
b. computing
power will be disembodied.