interaction between hi-tech and trad itional technology. The latter relies on the former or improvement while the development of the former is based on the latter. In this light, to be at home with hi-tech, we should equip ourselves first with basic knowledge, like mathematics, English, etc Background Information 1. Telecommunications Telecommunications. from Greek. means "communications at a distance Telecommunications through voice, data, and image communication is chang ing the world. The ease of accessing information and people anywhere at anytime is having major impacts on society, business, and finance. Two major trends have occurred in the technology that is applicable to telecommunications The first trend has been the incredible increase in the processing power of digital computers, namely, dramatic decreases in physical size along with equally dramatic increases in complexity, speed, and capacity. The second trend has been the explosive growth in transmission capacity through the widespread use of optical fiber across continents and under oceans. These two trends have had impressive long-term consequences for telecommunications around the world. The Internet and the World Wide Web have already created a global system for the access of information It has become popular that people check flight, weather, and hotels before traveling to a foreign country. E-mail makes it easy to keep in contact instantly with colleagues and friends around the globe. But many of the peoples of the world do not even have a telephone, much less access to the Internet and the information. The hallenge to the telecommunications industry is to bridge the digital gap and extend the availability of telecommunications to all parts of the planet 2. Optical fiber Optical fiber (orfiber optic") often refers to the medium and the technology associated with the transmission of information as light pulses along a glass or plastic wire or fiber. Optical fiber carries much more information than conventional copper wire and is in general not subject to electromagnetic interference and the need to Most telephone company long-distance lines are now of optical fiber. Transmission on optical fiber wire requires repeater at distance intervals. The glass fiber requires more protection within an outer cable than copper. For these reasons and because the installation of any new wiring is labor-intensive, few communities yet have optical fiber wires or cables from the phone companys branch office to local customers (known as local loop ). Sing le mode fiber is used for longer distances multimode fiber is used for shorter distances 3. Information Age When we say that we live in the information age, we mean that we live in a time when information is very important and easy to get. The information age is an era o fundamental and global change in intellectual, philosophical, cultural and social terms Today' s information age began with the telegraph. It was the first instrument to transform information into electrical form and transmit it reliably over long distances New techniques of encoding and distributing digital information are pacing the spread of the information age throughout society Global Readinginteraction between hi-tech and traditional technology. The latter relies on the former for improvement while the development of the former is based on the latter. In this light, to be at home with hi-tech, we should equip ourselves first with basic knowledge, like mathematics, English, etc. Background Information 1．Telecommunications Telecommunications, from Greek, means “communications at a distance”. Telecommunications through voice, data, and image communication is changing the world. The ease of accessing information and people anywhere at anytime is having major impacts on society, business, and finance. Two major trends have occurred in the technology that is applicable to telecommunications. The first trend has been the incredible increase in the processing power of digital computers, namely, dramatic decreases in physical size along with equally dramatic increases in complexity, speed, and capacity. The second trend has been the explosive growth in transmission capacity through the widespread use of optical fiber across continents and under oceans. These two trends have had impressive long-term consequences for telecommunications around the world. The Internet and the World Wide Web have already created a global system for the access of information. It has become popular that people check flight, weather, and hotels before traveling to a foreign country. E-mail makes it easy to keep in contact instantly with colleagues and friends around the globe. But many of the peoples of the world do not even have a telephone, much less access to the Internet and the information. The challenge to the telecommunications industry is to bridge the digital gap and extend the availability of telecommunications to all parts of the planet. 2．Optical fiber Optical fiber (or “fiber optic”) often refers to the medium and the technology associated with the transmission of information as light pulses along a glass or plastic wire or fiber. Optical fiber carries much more information than conventional copper wire and is in general not subject to electromagnetic interference and the need to retransmit signals. Most telephone company long-distance lines are now of optical fiber. Transmission on optical fiber wire requires repeater at distance intervals. The glass fiber requires more protection within an outer cable than copper. For these reasons and because the installation of any new wiring is labor-intensive, few communities yet have optical fiber wires or cables from the phone company’s branch office to local customers (known as local loop). Single mode fiber is used for longer distances; multimode fiber is used for shorter distances. 3．Information Age When we say that we live in the information age, we mean that we live in a time when information is very important and easy to get. The information age is an era of fundamental and global change in intellectual, philosophical, cultural and social terms. Today’s information age began with the telegraph. It was the first instrument to transform information into electrical form and transmit it reliably over long distances. New techniques of encoding and distributing digital information are pacing the spread of the information age throughout society. Global Reading