2 English for Information Technology A2-B1 Vocational English Teacher’s Book

monitor and screen are often used  

 

interchangeably, technically, the screen is the  

 

front part of the monitor on which the picture  

 appears. 

• The 

power supply unit (PSU) is the box 

 

inside a computer which converts mains 

 

electricity into the appropriate voltages for the 

 

internal components.  

 

Activity 3 shows a photo of a motherboard, which is 

the main circuit board inside a computer. Items that 

plug into the motherboard are:  

• CPU (Central Processing Unit) or processor: 

 

the ‘brains’ of the computer, which carries out 

 

the instructions that the software gives it. 

 

CPUs may be single-core, dual-core or more. 

 

CPUs have a speed (‘clock speed’), which is 

 usually 

expressed 

in