Unit 7

Task 1. Answer the following questions to the teacher:

1. How do you prefer to pay? In cash? With your credit/debit card? Have you ever used it?

2. What is your attitude to cashless ways of payment?

3. What are the advantages /disadvantages of using an ATM machine/cash point in comparison to using cash?

Task 2. Read the text and sum up in English its main ideas in 10 sentences (orally to the teacher).

Task 3. Express in English your own opinion of the text (orally to the teacher).

Technology evolution brings new ways to pay Cashless payments becoming quicker, more secure, more fun

The Associated Press

Updated: 1:12 p.m. ET June 25, 2005

DENVER - Quicker. More secure. More fun. Stores, credit card companies and banks are giving consumers new ways to pay in the latest evolution of cashless payments. Chase Bank recently rolled out¹ credit cards with "blink²" technology that lets users wave their cards near a computer reader instead of having to swipe them through³ a device. Cards never leave customers' hands.

Visa, MasterCard and American Express all have been exploring so-called contactless technology, whether with cards or keychain fobs. And companies using biometrics like BioPay and Pay By Touch are signing up customers who want to use their fingerprints to access checking accounts. For now, merchants accepting the Chase cards typically are conducting small transactions that don't require customers' signatures, raising the risk they may be accepting stolen cards. John Gould, director of bank card research for the consulting firm TowerGroup said the risk is minimal since most missing cards are reported quickly, banks and credit card companies pick up on unusual card use that can signal a stolen card, and thieves typically don't use stolen cards for small buys. Gould said he expects there to be tens of millions of cards with contactless technology next year. "In 2015, the magnetic stripe will be a piece of history," he said. Privacy groups like the Electronic Privacy Information Center are urging Congress to make sure safeguards are in place as technology evolves⁴. "In some cases biometrics can improve the authentication of individual users, but if that is compromised, then there are real problems," said Marc Rotenberg, executive director of the center.

Faster checkout lines?

Companies say contactless technology and biometrics will speed up checkout lines and tighten security to stay a step ahead of crooks. BioPay enrollees who have signed up for the system with a photo identification, a blank check from a bank account, and a scan of their index fingers can pay by punching in⁵ an ID number and scanning their fingerprints instead of using a card. In Colorado, Chase expects to have 1 million cards with "blink" technology in circulation in the next several months. Customers in Georgia also are getting the new cards. The cards have chips with radio-frequency identification tags, or RFID. A special reader picks up information from the card when it's within an inch. It's the same technology used in toll collection passes like E-ZPass and with product tags to help retailers track⁶ inventory⁷. The new card readers typically cost $150 to $200, said Tom O'Donnell, a Chase senior vice president. "It's all designed to get customers through lines faster," Jeffrey Green, editor of Cards&Payments magazine. Part of the speed advantage comes from not requiring signatures from customers, so it's possible a crook could get away with using a stolen card. The Bailey Co., a franchisee of Arby's, isn't concerned.

"Any transaction under $25, we don't take a signature. It's no different than it is now," operations controller Jeff Gordan said, noting most people report missing cards before they can be misused. The technology can shave ⁸ 10 seconds from the drive-through window experience, helping Arby's restaurants meet goals to get customers past the window in 60 seconds or less, Gordon said.

Because the cards with RFID never leave customers' hands, they also will solve the problem of people driving away without their cards. There are other benefits for companies to speed up transactions, besides giving consumers what Gould calls "the fun factor" of a new way to pay. "When someone uses a piece of plastic they spend more, so there's an uplift⁹," Gould said. "They're combining the uplift of credit with the speed and convenience of new technology." /3900/

© 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8335062/

Task 4. Read the text once again and write down in the notebook the translation of the underlined words from Russian into English. Write down in the notebook your own examples with them /situation /dialogue.

Task 5. Using English-English dictionary write down all the meanings of the following words, get ready to speak on them in the classroom.

1. To leave

2. To accept

3. To conduct

4. To sign, sign (noun)

5. To note, note (noun)

6. To miss

7. To compromise

Task 6. Find in the text and put down in the notebook English equivalents for the following Russian words and word combinations.

стать историей так называемый бесконтактный платеж выпустить проводить, делать перевод (денежный) пропавший скомпрометировать, подорвать репутацию

улучшение достичь цели проследить, отследить, контролировать решить проблему урезать, сократить, уменьшить в обращении сбежать, ускользнуть идти на шаг впереди

ввести, отметить опись, список, реестр убеждать, советовать, подгонять пошлина, сбор моргать, мгновение увеличить риск развиваться, появляться отпечатки пальцев

Task 7. Write down and be ready to ask your group mates 15 questions to the text.

Task 8. Using the underlined words get ready to discuss the following issues in the classroom and to retell the text. (If it is necessary make notes in your notebooks.)

1. What is your attitude to the contactless technology – is it good or bad?

2. What do you think is really more secure to use such cards? Why or why not?

3. How do you understand ‘blink’ technology?

4. What is RFID?

Unit 8

Task 1. Answer the following questions to the teacher:

1. What do you do more often read or use your computer? What is more important for you today books or digital information? Why?

2. How often do you use internet for your studies? Is it quite useful for you?

3. Do you think a laptop can help you in your studies?

4. Is it possible to replace books with laptops in our country? Will it be a good idea?

5. What are the main advantages of using hi-tech in studies?

Task 2. Read the text and sum up its main ideas in 10 sentences. Express your own opinion (orally to the teacher).