Unit 9: The post office - Reading

Exercise 1: Choose the word or phrase - a, b, c or d - that best fits the blank space in the following passage. A major revolution for the automated office is electronic mail. The customary (1) _______ system requires message written on paper to be (2) _______ physically from one location to another. With electronic mail, messages are converted (3) _____ electronic signals, transmitted (4) _____ in the world, and then changed back into the original written form, all in several seconds and minutes at (5) ______. Through the use of video screens in company offices, a single (6) ____ can be transmitted to hundreds of people in dozens of branch offices at the same time. Thus, electronic mail, along with (7) ______, can be an important asset in teleconferences. Furthermore, the use of electric mail in the form of a 'mailbox' (8) ______ to a telephone is also of great value. Since in offices many telephone (9) ______ go uncompleted on the first attempt, with electronic mail, two-way conversion is not essential, so it (10) ______ telephone use and saves time.

Exercise 2: Read the passage carefully, then choose the correct answers.  The last two decades have seen enormous changes in the way people's lives are affected by IT. Twenty years ago, few people had access to a computer whilst today most people use them at work, home or school and use of e-mail and the Internet is an every day event. These developments have brought many benefits to our lives. E-mail makes communication much easier and more immediate. This has numerous benefits for business, commerce, and education. The World Wide Web means that information on every conceivable subject is now available to us. Clearly, .for many people this has made life much easier and more convenient. However, not all the effects of the new technology have been beneficial. Many people feel that the widespread use of e-mail is destroying traditional forms of communication such as letter writing, telephone and face-to-face conversation. In addition, the huge size of the Web means it is almost impossible to control and regulate. This has led to many concerns regarding children accessing unsuitable websites. In conclusion, developments in IT have brought many benefits, yet I believe developments relating to new technology in the future are likely to produce many negative effects that will need to be addressed very carefully.