GSSE: Scientific Writing 1 Scientific Language and Readerships

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GSSE Scientific Writing 1Scientific Language
and Readerships

• Robert Blake

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Outline of Session 1 Scientific Language
Readerships

• Characteristics of scientific style and
  readerships-task analysis of texts
• Choosing an appropriate writing style- comparison
  of 2 versions reporting findings
• Ways of developing an impersonal scientific style

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1. Scientific Language and Readerships-
Introduction

• What are your expectations as scientists when
  reading texts about science in an academic
  setting?

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1 Scientific language and readerships-

• What are the characteristics of scientific/
  technical writing in university settings? e.g.

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Task Analysing scientific writing

• To fully answer these question using data- well
  look at several excerpts, all written about
  scientific topics. Well do this in 2 stages
• Stage 1 look at each excerpt Handout
• Is it acceptable as scientific or technical
  writing in an academic setting?
• Can you identify the source or type of source and
  the readership addressed?

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Analysing scientific writing excerpt 1

• Human breast tumours are diverse in their natural
  history and in their responsiveness to
  treatments. Variation in transcriptional programs
  accounts for much of the biological diversity of
  human cells and tumours. In each cell, signal
  transduction and regulatory systems transduce
  information from the cell's identity to its
  environmental status, thereby controlling the
  level of expression of every gene in the genome.
  Here we have characterized variation in gene
  expression patterns in a set of 65 surgical
  specimens of human breast tumours from 42
  different individuals, using complementary DNA
  microarrays representing 8,102 human genes. These
  patterns provided a distinctive molecular
  portrait of each tumour. Twenty of the tumours
  were sampled twice, before and after a 16-week
  course of doxorubicin chemotherapy, and two
  tumours were paired with a lymph node metastasis
  from the same patient. Gene expression patterns
  in two tumour samples from the same individual
  were almost always more similar to each other
  than either was to any other sample. Sets of
  co-expressed genes were identified for which
  variation in messenger RNA levels could be
  related to specific features of physiological
  variation. The tumours could be classified into
  subtypes distinguished by pervasive differences
  in their gene expression patterns.

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Analysing scientific writing excerpt 2

• Firstly what is AIDS? Acquired Immune deficiency
  Syndrome is label given to the conditions that
  arise from the breakdown of our immune systems
  caused by the infection of human Deficiency Virus
  HIV.
•  
• HIV viruses are found in most body fluids, so
  this is where the danger of infection arises,
  almost any exchange will transfer some HIV virus.
  It is because of this that one of the first
  groups to be hit were haemophiliacs who receive
  factor VIII contaminated with HIV. In France 1500
  were infected with HIV this way an 256 of them
  have died of AIDS so far.
• Because in the western world AIDS began as
  predominantly as a disease of the homosexual and
  drug using communities it was here that the first
  social changes could be seen. Information on drug
  use and its link with the transmission of HIV
  became easily available and needle exchange
  schemes began springing up in certain countries.
  This was greeted with ....

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Analysing scientific writing excerpt 3

• On the basis of our findings, it appears that
  ibuprofen is as effective as indomethacin in
  promoting ductal closure in premature infants.
  The rate of closure in the group assigned to
  indomethacin was similar to rates previously
  reported. In 15 of 21 infants with birth weights
  of less than 1750 g (71 percent) (30) and in 87
  of 113 infants with similar gestational ages and
  birth weights (77 percent), (5) a hemodynamically
  important patent ductus arteriosus disappeared
  after indomethacin treatment at the age of two to
  seven days. More recently, a hemodynamically
  important ductus arteriosus was closed after
  prophylactic treatment with indomethacin in 22 of
  31 preterm infants (71 percent). (31) Although we
  observed differences in the overall rate of
  ductal closure among the centers participating in
  our study, the efficacy of the two drugs remained
  similar in each of the centers.
• Ibuprofen has been shown to constrict the ductus
  arteriosus effectively in lambs. (11) Earlier,
  smaller studies suggested that ibuprofen might
  be 3 paragraphs omitted
• A limitation of our trial is the relatively small
  number of patients, which limited the power of
  the study to detect significant differences in
  other clinical effects that we observed --
  notably, those related to outcomes such as
  necrotizing enterocolitis, isolated bowel
  perforation, intraventricular hemorrhage, and
  periventricular leukomalacia. For the same
  reason, small differences in the efficacy of the
  drugs according to gestational age may not have
  become apparent.
• In summary, our data indicate that ibuprofen is
  as effective as indomethacin in promoting ductal
  closure on the third day of life in premature
  infants. However, ibuprofen is associated with
  significantly less impairment of renal function.
  No significant differences with regard to other
  side effects were observed. A lower gestational
  age (less than or equal to 26 weeks), antenatal
  indomethacin use, receipt of high-frequency
  oscillatory ventilation, and an elevated
  pulmonary-artery pressure increased the risk of
  treatment failure.

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Analysing scientific writing excerpt 4

• SPIDERS may hold the key to colonising space, say
  Australian scientists. They are blasting eight
  into space to see if their web-weaving skills can
  be used to help design huge new space stations.
• Orbiting "tin cans" like Mir and the new ISS can
  accommodate only a dozen astronauts.
• The scientists believe that the Australian orb
  weaver, which spins an almost perfect symmetrical
  web with silk tougher than steel, can teach man
  "spider technology" to use in constructing space
  stations miles wide and big enough to house
  thousands.
• The boffins at the Royal Melbourne Institute of
  Technology will monitor the spiders during their
  16-day space mission to see how they spin webs in
  a weightless environment.
• Space stations at present have to be constructed
  on Earth and flown up. This has limited their
  size. It is hoped the spiders will show how they
  can be built in space. The creatures - all female
  because they are more conscientious builders -
  will blast off on NASA's space shuttle Columbia
  next February.

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Analysing scientific writing excerpt 5

• AS A SPECIES, Cambridge physicists are not
  renowned for being excitable. Popular imagery has
  them leading solitary existences in small, stuffy
  rooms, where they ponder the finer points of
  life, the Universe and everything. For
  relaxation, there are the mugs of stewed tea,
  over which endless debates take place about the
  number of currants in the canteen buns.
•  
• But in the spring of 1989, the occupants of
  Cambridge University's Cavendish Laboratory were
  jolted from their deep deliberations on both
  cosmos and currants. The atmosphere glowed with
  speculation about a trio of researchers who had
  been spotted in hushed conversation. Rumours
  abounded of secret experiments, and there were
  ever-so-slightly envious whispers about the "P"
  word - patent. Something extraordinary seemed to
  have happened, and the question on everyone's
  lips was - what have they found?
•  
• At face value, something unremarkable. By chance,
  Jeremy Burroughes, Donal Bradley (now at the
  University of Sheffield) and Richard Friend had
  discovered that if you slapped a voltage across
  an ultrathin film of an exotic plastic known as
  poly(p-phenylene vinylene), or PPV, it glowed a
  pale yellow-green. "I was about six feet away,
  facing in the other direction, when I noticed
  this bright green light in the corner of my eye,"
  recalls Burroughes. "It was just pouring light
  out all over the place!
• So what was the big deal? After all, you can make
  almost anything glow with enough volts, although
  you will probably fry it in the process. But this
  was no inadvertent example

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Analysing scientific writing excerpt 6

• 6.7 Summary
• At the end of this chapter the following
  conclusions are made.
•        It is possible to construct trellis
  structures to meet the requirements in a
  quasi-synchronous adder
• channel. These trellises are modified versions of
  the synchronous cases and have improved the
  reliability of composite codewords.
•        A price paid for the improvement of the
  individual user is a reduction in the sum rate.
• In an M-choose T scenario, the
  identification process based on metric
  accumulation is shown to be reliable when using
  the modified decoders catering for each
  quasi-synchronous set

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Analysing scientific writing 2nd task

• Using the passages that you judge to be
  acceptable in academic scientific writing and,
  perhaps those passages that are for contrast, can
  you now identify some of the characteristics of
  scientific writing? Use the following headings
  table in slide 18
•   organisation
• style
• vocabulary and grammar
• visual presentation

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Expectations Of Readership

• Precise
• Explicit
• Analytical and critical
• Explanatory
• Objective
• Impartial
• Concise
• Responsible claims carefully made, supported
  where possible use of sources acknowledged
• Follows established conventions
• Above list adapted from Gillett 1999-2004
  Features of academic writing UEFAP
  http//www.uefap.co.uk/writing/writfram.htm

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Organisation

• Structured for easy access to information e.g.
  headings sub-headings cohesive links across
  sentences e.g. however, The first measurement.
• Headings
• Use of forecasting and signposting
• Importance of introductions, conclusions and
  transitions
• Field specific patterns e.g. IMRaD
• Matrix or hierarchical structure structures to
  organise ideas
• Cross referencing in longer texts
• Paragraphs well structured begin with topic
  sentences etc

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Style, Vocabulary Grammar

• FORMAL OBJECTIVE STYLE
• 'I' or 'You are avoided in most writing
• Contracted verb forms avoided can't, doesnt
  cannot, does not
• Formal rather than colloquial English
  vague/imprecise words avoided stuff, things,
  loads, lots materials, issues, significant
  number/ large quantities
• Spoken negatives avoided there are not many
  ?few there is not much? little
• Attitudinal words are avoided in favour of
  objectivity really, actually, great,
  magnificently
• Word origin Nouns verbs with Latin/ Greek
  derivations are frequent. 2 part phrasal verbs-
  infrequent look about, look into, look up,?
  survey, examine, consult

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Style, Vocabulary Grammar

• VOCABULARY CHOICE
• Precise often abstract vocabulary issues,
  values, materials, specification
• GRAMMAR
• Fairly densely packed with information
  particularly nouns, noun groups/
  nominalisation. Avoidance of direct questions
  and standard negatives
• Common use but not overuse of passive Two
  specimens were then selected .. rather than I
  then selected 2 samples ..
• Complex sentence structure with more than 1
  clause to relate ideas and improve flow of
  ideas.
• Modals are important in making carefully weighted
  claims can, may, might etc

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Graphical Presentation

• Use of tables figures to present information
  clearly economically
• Clear, self-explanatory figure legends
  labelled axes clearly labelled with values
  clearly identified
• Tables figures referred to in text, and meaning
  and interpretation highlighted data commentary

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Style, Grammar and Vocabulary In Scientific
Writing

• The use of personal pronouns, I particularly
  you, is rare in scientific writing, where an
  objective or impersonal style is standard.
• Use of the passive is a common way to avoid
  using personal pronouns. Its discouraged in
  American academic writing, as the MS Word grammar
  checker, if turned on, shows you. However, its
  commonly used in British scientific writing.
• Overuse of the passive, can make writing heavy
  going for the reader.
• Slides 25-8 show ways of writing in an objective
  or impersonal style.

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Writing in an Impersonal Scientific Style The
Passive

• Using the passive is a way of removing the
  subject I, Andrew, the Msc students and
  prioritising the object e.g.
• Several samples (object) were (verb- to be)
  selected (past participle). by me (object
  deleted)
• This avoids the informal and subjective I
  (subject) selected (verb) several samples
  (object)
• Disadvantage it can remove agency, making it
  unclear who performed a particular action.

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Writing in an Impersonal Scientific Style The
Passive

• X is demonstrated by
• Z are based on
• X is provided by
• X is used
• X was evaluated
• It is expected that ..
• It was found that
• It was concluded that
• It is widely held
• To determine the effects of x,a series of
  measurements was taken.
• An increase in the range of 60 is anticipated
  as a result of y

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Writing in an Impersonal Scientific Style- Modal
Passives

• Modals e.g. can, could, may might, will, would
  have an important effect on varying the strength
  of a claim you are making about your data
• It can/could be seen/observed/concluded that
• It can be suggested that
• It can be tentatively accepted that
• x can be characterised
• This can be done by/carried out by
• x can be done by/measured by
• This would suggest that
• Attention should be given to

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Writing in an Impersonal Scientific Style
Sentences with It/There

• To avoid the passive, we can use impersonal
  constructions starting with It and There e.g.
• It is essential to
• It is important to
• It is necessary to
• It may be possible to
• It may be necessary to
• May reduces commitment
• There is general agreement that .
• There are a number of reasons for
• There is a strong possibility that .
• There seems to be
• There appears to be
• Seems/appears- reduce the strength of the
  proposition

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Writing in an Impersonal Scientific Style- Other
Forms

• By making the study/experiment/paper/report the
  subject
• This study shows
• This report gives
• Section 1 covers
• The results obtained..
• The measurements obtained in this
  study/experiment
• The results section gives detailed data for ..
• The results of this experiment were inconclusive
• X allows y to
• One way of measuring the output of
• By measuring the interference from

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Choosing a scientific writing style

• Read the 2 passages in the next 2 slides.
• Which scientist communicates more efffectively?
• Give reasons for your choice using the headings
  below
• style
• grammar
• structure overall
• sentence structure
• readability
• Materials in slides 30-32 Adapted from Turk and
  Kirkman (198917-18) materials by Ian Saunders
  (2000) http//www.lancs.ac.uk/depts/celt/sldc/mate
  rials/science/writing.htm

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Choosing a scientific writing style- Browns
version

• In the first experiment of the series using mice
  it was discovered that the total removal of the
  adrenal glands effects reduction of
  aggressiveness and that aggressiveness in
  adrenalectomized mice is restorable to the level
  of intact mice by treatment with corticosterone.
  These results point to the indispensability of
  the adrenals for the full expression of
  aggression. Nevertheless, since adrenalectomy is
  followed by an increase of adrenocorticotrophic
  hormone (ACTH), and since ACTH has been reported
  Brain 1972), to decrease the aggressiveness of
  intact mice, it is possible that the effects of
  adrenalectomy on aggressiveness are a function of
  the concurrent increased levels of ACTH. However
  high levels of ACTH, in addition to causing
  increases in glucocorticoids (which possibly
  accounts for the depression of aggression in
  intact mice by ACTH), also result in decreased
  androgen levels. In view of the fact that animals
  with low androgen levels are characterised by
  decreased aggressiveness the possibility exists
  that adrenalectomy, rather than affecting
  aggression directly, has the effect of reducing
  aggressiveness by producing an ACTH- mediated
  condition of decreased androgen levels.

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Choosing a scientific writing style- Smiths
version

• The first experiment in our series with mice
  showed that total removal of the adrenal glands
  reduces aggressiveness . Moreover, when treated
  with corticosterone, mice that had their
  adrenals taken out became as aggressive as intact
  animals again. These findings suggest that
  adrenals are necessary for animals to show full
  aggressiveness.
• But the removal of adrenals raises the levels of
  adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) and Brain
  1972 found that ACTH lowers the aggressiveness of
  intact mice. Thus the reduction of aggressiveness
  after this operation might be due to the higher
  levels of ACTH which accompany it.
• However, high levels of ACTH have two effects.
  First, the levels of glucocorticoids rise,
  which might account for Brians results. Second
  the levels of androgen fall. Since animals with
  low levels of androgen are less aggressive, it is
  possible that removal of the adrenals reduces
  aggressiveness only indirectly by raising the
  levels of ACTH it causes androgen levels to drop.

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Choosing a scientific writing style

• From a sample of 1580 scientists from academia
  industry,
• almost 70 preferred Smiths version as more
  stimulating, interesting, credible
• 75 also considered Smith better organised
• Yet the order is the same as is the use of
  technical terms 5 undefined technical words
  (adrenal, androgen, corticosterone,
  glucocorticoids and hormone).
• The main difference is the use of ordinary
  language in Smiths, fewer unfamiliar words
  convoluted constructions. Use of active rather
  than the passive.
• Browns version is more taxing to read, with
  longer sentences more than 1 clause more
  formal grammar e.g. passive, more difficult terms
  e.g. adrenalectomized

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Further reading ( available for photocopying)

• Successful scientific writing a step-by-step
  guide for biomedical scientists. 1996. Janice R.
  Matthews. Cambridge University Press,
• Writing Successfully in Science. Maeve OConnor
  E FN Spon 1991
• Effective Writing Improving Scientific,
  Technical and Business Communication. (Second
  edition) Turk and Kirkman 1989
• Scientific Style and Format The CBE Manual for
  Authors, Editors, and Publishers. Style Manual
  Committee, Council of Biology Editors. 6th ed.
  Cambridge University Press, 1994.
• Scientists Must Write by Robert Barras (2002).
  Aimed more at postgraduate and professional
  scientists. It has some useful checklists.
• The Craft of Scientific Writing (1995) Second
  edition) Michael Alley. Springer

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