Exercise 1. Read and translate in writing the text using a dictionary.

Many of the standard principles of industrial design were known to pre-industrial societies. If one looks first at the most primitive societies one sees that their tools are typified both by fitness for use, and by the way a particular problem could be solved. Paleontologists measure man's evolution partly through the changes in flint implements, the earliest of all found in the Olduvai Valley Gorge in Tanzania. These tools are roughly made, but they show a clear understanding of the nature of the substance from which they are formed, and of the way in which it can be shaped by flaking. There is a narrow range of types - hand-axes, scrapers and pounders - but each type is already adapted to do a different job. In fact, the whole of industrial design is already there in embryo.

More sophisticated flint tools show unsurpassed elegance and control of form. Standardization and even a kind of industrial production were understood by the civilizations of the Ancient World, and particularly by the Romans. A more complex example of standardization is Roman weaponry. Rome relied on the power of her armies, and her soldiers were outfitted to a series of standard patterns. The magnificent Praetorian Guard did not wear outfits chosen according to their own fancy, but were equipped with identical shields, helmets and swords. Uniformity of weapons and equipment was essential to Roman military tactics, which assumed that a large body of men could be deployed as a single mass.

It is particularly interesting to examine the European Middle Ages for evidence of proto-industrial thinking. Among the Greeks and Romans, there existed a high degree of standardization. Many of the English imperial measures were already fixed at this period, for example, the English foot was exactly the one now in use, giving three feet to a yard, six to a fathom, and 16 to a rod, pole or perch. Naturally this affected the shapes and proportions of buildings and the sizes of many standard household articles. The tile industry was even more highly organized than the potteries.

Medieval artisans, like the Roman potters, knew the convenience of the casting process when it came to making things in series and at the same time repeating the form exactly, and molds for making all kinds of objects have survived, among them the mold for making seals. In a society which was still partly illiterate seals were of great importance for verifying documents, and it was convenient to have a supply of identical blanks, ready for engraving when either a replacement or a new design was needed. This is in fact a simple example of design logic applied to a particular type of production. Medieval attitudes towards design were still very much present in the workshops of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

Eighteenth-century design philosophy was in many respects very close to that professed today. Designers excelled in devising plain but practical forms, with just enough ornamental detail to prevent dullness The George II walnut commode is basically a plain rectangular box. But its rectangularity is relieved both by the waist molding under the top drawer and by the bracket feet.

Metalwork in precious metals could be extremely ornate for reasons of ostentation and to show how much the craftsman-designer appreciated the fine quality of the material he was using. Yet a great deal shows extreme functional simplicity. The first English teapot, which dates to about 1670, is made of silver and looks more like a coffee-pot to twentieth-century eyes. But it shows an admirably direct use of material. A kettle on a stand, of about 1710-20, is almost equally plain. It is only in the curving cast feet of the stand that a little Baroque exuberance breaks out.

Eighteenth-century concern with visual style led to the issue of numerous pattern-books for the guidance of furniture-makers and their patrons. It would, however, be idle to pretend that there are no differences between eighteenth- century design attitudes and our own. The eighteenth-century household possessed many fewer machines than a contemporary one, and these machines were often of a type now completely obsolete.

Eighteenth-century designers produced a wide range of precision instruments for various purposes. They were of considerable complexity. They were sometimes unable to restrain an exuberant feeling for decoration, especially when the instrument in question was produced for an important patron.

Anyone interested in the pre-history of design must be prepared to look beyond Europe, simply because so many of the leading designers of our own day have drawn inspiration from non-European sources. Islamic art, for example, has been laid under contribution by many leading designers, from the mid-nineteenth century onwards. The powerful forms of some Ottoman metalwork foreshadow what leading modern designers have tried to achieve, and do it perhaps better than they, because the shapes are less self-conscious. Islamic manipulation of abstract pattern has been especially influential.

An even more profound contribution to modern design philosophy has been made by the peoples of the Far East. Chinese and especially Japanese tools and implements of all kinds seem to have achieved functional perfection through a long period of evolution, without the conscious intervention of a designer. These tools continue to be manufactured in precisely the same form at the present day because nothing better for the intended purpose has been discovered. Certain of them - the Japanese pull-saw is a case in point have become increasingly popular in Europe, as craftsmen discover their superior qualities. When trying to trace the sources of modern design, one must also be prepared to think in cross-cultural terms.

Exercise 2. Find in the text English equivalents for the Russian words:

Exercise 3. Use one of the nouns given in the box to fill in each gap:

1. Paleontologists measure man’s evolution partly through the changes in flint _____________.

2. Many of the standard principles of ______________ were known to pre-industrial societies.

3. Much Greek and Roman ____________ was made by methods which are recognizable industrial, and which must have involved the intervention of a designer.

4. A more complex example of standardization is Roman _______________ of weapons and equipment was essential to Roman military tactics.

5. Among the Greek and Romans, there existed a high degree of _______________.

6. Medieval _____________, like the Roman potters, knew the convenience of the casting process.

7. Eighteenth-century design ______________ was in many respects very close to that professed today.

8. Eighteenth-century concern with visual style led to the issue of numerous pattern-books for the guidance of furniture-makers and their ____________________.

9. Eighteenth-century designers produced a wide range of ______________ instruments for various purposes.

10. And even more profound _____________ to modern design philosophy has been made by the peoples of the Far East.

Exercise 4. Decide whether the following statements are True (T) or False (F) according to the text:

1. Many of the standard principles of industrial design were known to pre-industrial societies.

2. Paleontologists measure man’s evolution partly through the changes in flint implements, the earliest of all found in the Olduvai Valley Gorge in Tanzania.

3. Flint tools are roughly made and show little understanding of the nature of the substance from which they are formed.

4. There is a narrow range of tools, but each type is already adapted to do a different job.

5. Standardization was not understood by the civilizations of the Ancient World.

6. The medieval maker was perfectly capable of the kind of structural logic, economy and ingenuity.

7. The tile industry in the Middle Ages was less organized than the potteries.

8. Medieval attitudes towards design were not present in the workshops of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

9. Eighteenth-century designers produced a wide range of precision instruments for various purposes.

10. Many of the leading designers of our own day have drawn inspiration from non-European sources.

Exercise 5. Translate the sentences into Russian.

1. The higher the price of the goods, the fewer people are ready to buy them.

2. The more money I get, the more things I can buy.

3. The bigger the house is, the more money it will cost.

4. The longer the text, the longer it takes me to translate it.

5. The more work he has, the happier he is.

6. The older you get, the more difficult it becomes to find a job.

7. The longer the journey is, the more expensive the ticket is.