Tense IN THE ABSTRACT type of information verb form (tense or commonly occurring verbs) examples giving background details present tense The industry is already well known for its efforts to improve the ecoefficiency of its processes describing the research activity simple past tense, present perfect tense The study focused on 2 main areas The framework for life cycle analysis has been developed describing the methods simple past tense (active or passive) We carried out a series of field tests A large number of samples were tested for fracturing reporting results simple past tense Results indicated that the problem is even more serious than previously predicted The third model proved to be more durable than the other four stating conclusions present tense verbs indicating tentativeness : is possible is likely appears seems might modal auxiliary verbs can may could might This indicates that there are , in fact, several factors contributing to the decrease It appears that the incidence of human error cannot be eliminated at any stage There might be a need for revising the list of criteria within the next 5-10 years TENSE USE IN THE INTRODUCTION facts present tense To stay ahead in their markets, manufacturers often seek to apply innovative design features and functions to their products. There is no current legislation which forces manufacturers to recycle used products general statements about the level of research activity present perfect tense (active or passive) Research has led to many accomplishments including a reduction in the use of energy. (active) Less is known about the possibilities offered by the new technique, although several studies have been published . (passive) weak author citations (several authors mentioned and authors names given in brackets) present perfect tense (active or passive) Some authors (Mattila 1995, Loots and Wolfson 2002 ) have suggested that the non-linear effects in the screening procedures are important in the calculations prominent author citations (the findings of authors in single studies) simple past tense, common verbs: found obtained showed introduced reported noted suggested proposed Koskela et al suggested a slightly different model Very recently, Lnnkvist et al introduced a model which has already gained some standing signalling the problem or our gap in knowledge present tense (active or passive) There are still very few publications in the scientific literature based on this processs There is an urgent need to define a suitable test method for these types of boilers Less is known about the possibilities offered by the TRF technique, although several studies have been published. (passive) purpose of the report present tense common verbs: discusses outlines describes considers deals with presents is concerned with investigates compares determines The present paper deals with the possibilities for modifying the codes This work compares three bleaching processes which can be used for pulp manufacture from recycled paper This paper looks at an area which has so far been given little consideration purpose of the research simple past tense or present tense The objective of this study was to compare the outcome of manual and automatic quality control procedures The main research objective of this investigation was to substantially reduce energy consumption The objectives of this project are to develop a powerful framework for life cycle analysis value of study modal auxiliary verbs: (which signal that author’s attitude is “tentative”) will (sure) would should can may might could (tentative) This project shows that the process can be significantly enhanced by incorporating two new technological developments Thus , it can perhaps be claimed as an innovation on a theor etical level As a result , successful short-term projects might be the key to incorporating long-term benchmarking in TENSE USE IN THE MATERIALS AND METHODS SECTIONS describing procedure simple past tense (passive voice) Screen-printed electrodes were fabricated using a model 247 screen-printer It took a shorter time than expected to dissemble the goods More than seven different types of antennae were investigated The compounds were tested at 25 0 C, in a buffer solution, to which the agents were added describing samples selected for this study or specially designed or chosen materials or equipment simple past tense All chemical s were of top grade The buffer solution had a pH value of 6.80 Many different metals were used and each device contained several tens of component s describing general populations from which the samples were taken or conventional material present tense More than 90% of all the computer appliances people use are selected by someone other than the user These users are typically under the age of 50. TENSE USE IN THE RESULTS SECTION locating diagrams present tense (active or passive) common verbs: illustrate show present give summarise Figure 1 illustrates the variations of the temperature over time Figure 3 shows the experimental procedure The results are shown in figure 3 Figure 1 above pictures the various levels of networking The material compositions of the components are given in figure 6 presenting the findings simple past (active or passive) The study showed that a number of the samples proved too viscous for use. The second model gave a better fit Considerable changes were noted in the market after the introduction of the second generation technology commenting on the results: comparing with other studies present tense The experiments give a value for M close to the values obtained in the simulation This last value is in good agreement with the results from on-site measurements commenting on the results: giving possible explanations modal auxiliary verbs: can may could might It seems that our experimental results can be explained by the consistent irregularities in signal strength The value differences may originate from magnetic variability commenting on the results: generalising from the results common verbs: may could appears seems is likely From these preliminary results, it appears that the FGC process is the most cost-efficient of the three techniques. Therefore, investments in renewable energy sources may never be made on a sufficiently large scale commenting on relationship between variables common verbs: was correlated (negatively) with was associated with was (not) (significantly) related to It appeared that the emission levels were not apparently related to the listed factors The tendency to fracture was correlated positively with the cooling time TENSE USE IN THE CONCLUSIONS AND SUMMARY SECTIONS referring to the purpose simple past tense I n this study, we concentrated on showing the interdependence of the variables involved restating the findings simple past tense The main conclusion was that modifications to the model were needed We also showed that the sensor sensitivity depended very little on the sensor diameter We finally obtained a curve showing the depth of penetration as a function of time explaining the findings present (general condition) simple past (restricted to your study) Filtration produces a satisfactory result (in general) Use of the web-based environment provided the greatest saving in staff time and cost to the company (in this study) limiting the findings a variety of expression is used!: the findings are restricted to... it cannot be determined from this data we cannot be certain... we are unable to determine... we acknowledge that this study is exploratory Our aim was to assess the current procedures, not to develop new ones Without further investigation, we are unable to determine the cause of this with any degree of certainty comparing findings present tense The results obtained in simulation show excellent agreement with the corresponding experimental data This is in discrepancy with the earlier conclusions of Jrvinen This corresponds to the findings of Eklund implications / generalisations verbs indicating tentativeness : is possible is likely appears seems might It is possible that these differences in quality will show up during prolonged use It is highly likely that this could occur again recommendations and applications common constructions: should be + -ed could be + -ed would be + -ed must be + -ed we recommend X is recommended it is hoped that.....X may... It should be noted that the security arrangements should be tightly controlled Longitudinal studies of company practices could also be set up It is hoped that benchmarking may become a higher priority within the institution Further study is recommended to compare results with types of plastics which were not included in this study http://cc.oulu.fi/~smac/TRW/tense_handout.htm
王应宽 Wang Yingkuan Beijing, China Mar 4, 2014 国际科技语言 VS.全国语法日 今天是美国全国语法日。 Happy National Grammar Day！ 刚看到今天（March Fourth) 是美国全国语法日，专门庆祝关于使沟通成为可能的语言的集会，提醒人们要学好用好语法，写得好，说得好。尽管很多人不喜欢甚至讨厌语法规则，但正因为语法奠定了相互沟通和理解基础。语法是人们相互交流的基本协议和规则，但规则也不是一成不变的。对我们学习外语的人来说，难的不是规则本身，往往是规则的例外。规则的例外太多，以致语法规则似乎不起作用了。There is no rule without exceptions, 说的就是“凡规则皆有例外”。而且这些规则的例外也经常考试的知识点。试想，如果没有语法规则，像美国佬这么崇尚自由，而不愿遵守语法规则，随心所欲，爱怎么说就怎么说，别人理解起来就困难了。对我们这些学英语(外语）的人挑战也就更大了。 平时交流中，大家也可能感觉到，美国人口语交流比较随意，不是太注重语法的规范性。我曾听说英国人批评美国人毁坏了他们女王的英语(Queen's English)!! 看来这个全国语法日很有必要，至少可以提醒那些Lazy and Poor Speakers and Writers注意一下他们的语言。 有趣的是，最近看到网上讨论现在世界的科技语言是什么？大家知道二战以前，科技的通用语言是德语。随着德意志帝国战败后，科技经济下滑，伴随美英的强大，英语成为了国际主流的科技语言。那么今天世界的科技语言是什么呢？有人调侃是糟糕的英语Bad English! 仔细一想，还觉得颇道理。咱们当英文学术期刊编辑的，每天收到世界各国的英文稿件，除了那些英语为母语的作者写的是Good English, 而大多数非英语国家的作者的英语在英语是母语的人看来都是Bad English。据估计，占全世界总人口15%的人讲英语，但英语为母语的人仅占世界总人口的5%( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_language )。随着科技全球化，为了国际交流，世界各国操着糟糕英语写作科技论文的人越来越多，而审稿专家、编辑又没有修改好没有一篇文章的英语，很多存在英文问题的文章进入学术传播体系，于是糟糕的英语就成了世界科技语言了！尽管兴起了很多英语学习培训机构和科技英语修改编辑服务公司，但这些努力似乎还不足以让Bad English成为当今国际交流的通用科技语言！ 在此调侃一下。虽然我一直很重视学习语法，但还是经常犯语法错误，或者在编辑加工中经常看不出或修改不好Bad English中的语法错误。借着山姆大叔的这个全国语法日，好好再学学语法吧。 资料链接： Grammar Day. http://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/grammar-day/ Celebrate Grammar Day by crossing your I’s, dotting your T’s, and making sure that you’re correctly punctuating and structuring your sentences. Watch those apostrophes! National Grammar Day Language is something to celebrate, and March 4 is the perfect day to do it. It's not only a date, it's an imperative: March forth on March 4 to speak well, write well, and help others do the same! See more at: http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/national-grammar-day#sthash.elojYLq9.dpuf http://expertedge.journalexperts.com/2014/03/04/happy-national-grammar-day/ Today is National Grammar Day in the United States. It’s a day to celebrate the conventions of language that make it possible to communicate with others. Although grammar “rules” can be quite annoying, they lay the foundations for mutual understanding. A basic protocol for writing enables all speakers of a given language to interact, but rules are not immutable. Things that were once considered incorrect are now frequent (such as the split infinitive or the singular they ). As with all things in life, moderation is key. So for today, march forth to write well and speak well! Take a moment to help your colleagues with their writing. Or just reflect on some terms and grammatical peculiarities that interest you or infuriate you.
在一个学英语的群里有人问到这个，顺手写了一堆例句，总结在这里吧。都是初中英语语法的内容。 用： 一般现在时，一般过去式，一般将来时，现在完成时这四个时态的肯定形式，否定形式，疑问形式，和被动语态形式造句 句子：Kimi吃苹果 一般现在时+肯定:Kimi eats apple. 一般现在时+否定:Kimi dosen't eat apple. 一般现在时+疑问:Dose Kimi eat apple? 一般现在时+被动:Apple is eaten by Kimi. 一般过去时+肯定:Kimi ate apple. 一般过去时+否定:Kimi did not eat apple. 一般过去时+疑问:Did Kimi eat apple? 一般过去时+被动:Apple was eaten by Kimi. 一般将来时+肯定:Kimi will eat apple. 一般将来时+否定:Kimi will not eat apple. 一般将来时+疑问:will Kimi eat apple? 一般将来时+被动:Apple will be eaten by Kimi. 一般将来时+肯定:Kimi will eat apple. 一般将来时+否定:Kimi will not eat apple. 一般将来时+疑问:will Kimi eat apple? 一般将来时+被动:Apple will be eaten by Kimi.
今早,打开爱机,收到邮件如下: Grammar undercuts security of long computer passwords Posted: 24 Jan 2013 09:35 AM PST When writing or speaking, good grammar helps people make themselves be understood. But when used to concoct a long computer password, grammar -- good or bad -- provides crucial hints that can help someone crack that password, researchers have demonstrated. 翻译如下: 语法让长密码的安全性降低 发布于: 太平洋标准时间 2013年1月24日 早上 09:35 当写作或者说话的时候，符合语法帮助人们被他人理解。但是研究者们已经证明：语法——无论好坏——都提供了关键的线索来帮助某些人破解那些长电脑密码。 全文链接： http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130124123549.htm
寻正 方舟子蒙倒了外国人，第一届John Maddox奖居然授予了全然是John Maddox反面的人物，为此一大批人进行了公开抗议，其中包括我。在日前，《自然》杂志编辑给我回信，表明他们正在调查，看来方舟子也未必就能心安理得地拿到这个奖。收到编辑回信，表明我们的公开抗议其实是有效的，即使不能使评奖委员会改变决定，也起码起到了揭露方舟子的作用。 针对我的公开信，一个叫什么“嵌段共聚物”的化名进行了公开点评，试图从英文角度来否认它的价值。对于中国观众来说，Maddox奖的最大收获就是揭示了经常以英文专家自居的方舟子的英文有多么臭，看着方舟子大着舌头象生孩子似地从嘴里挤出英文来，我终于明白了很多事情，原来方舟子在美国是过得那么凄惨，估计问个路都要逼出一身汗来，这么烂的英语交流水平，做博士后都不太可能长久的，因此，他虽然拿了绿卡，也不得不转内销回中国骗钱过日子。方舟子的英文烂，是我多次批判他的伪劣科普得到的印象，但没听过他讲英文，还真不知道他的Spbroken (spoken and broken) English会有这么烂。这么烂的英文居然在中国充了十多年的英文专家，真佩服他的胆量。 方舟子是一个三无人员，John Maddox奖不是中国式的评奖，这种奖会给获奖者足够的时间准备去领奖，为什么方舟子会缺席呢？听了他奇烂的英语，我就明白了，他虽然在美国呆了数年，拿到了博士学位，却不敢去领奖。去领奖就要跟讲英语的人交流，不到一分钟的获奖演讲都把方舟子逼得差不多要得肠胃炎了，他如果真去领奖，说不定授奖者当场就会怀疑他的学术身份，拒绝给他颁奖。方舟子不敢去领奖，才会找一个借口让人代领。 这位方粉估计是方舟子的化名，反正是同一个层次的人，自己英文奇烂，但毫无自知之明，偏要给我当导师。我的英文并不好，毕竟不是母语，无论是讲出来，还是写出来，语法错误是常见的，不过，我跟人进行英文交流或者用英文做项目报告，从来没有问题，只需要进行内容上的准备，而不需要进行语言上的准备。美国的MBA项目非常注重语言交流，不少课程明确要求学生的课堂参与，有的会在成绩比重上占到20%，从课堂参与角度来说，我常跟英语为母语的美国学生唇枪舌箭地争斗，从而让自己的参与成绩达到满分。我的英文写作速度跟一般美国学生不相上下，跟美国学生在一起，我仍然承担项目组的主要写作任务。 在工作中，我也会修改英语是母语的同事的语法或者句式，我的英文并不完美，但我所发生的错误，也常见于美国人的交流或者写作中。因此，我并不会因为这份公开抗议含有文法错误而羞愧，毕竟这不正式论文。如果是正式论文，我的工作机构有专门的英文编辑提供相关服务。 方粉吹毛求疵的点评的确有抓住我敲字或者文法错误的地方，但大多显示了此人的无知，在英文能力上，尚未达到进行英文思维的程度。方舟子攻击对手的特点就是首先看你抄了没有，没抄看你说法有漏洞没有，实在不行，就教训你英文能力差——尽管大多数时候是方舟子本人的英文成问题，但他借着裙带风霸占了舆论阵地，而中国人普遍英文不行，没有鉴别能力，于是乎大家都以为方舟子真是每天读一本英文书的天才，觉得他嘲笑别人的英文占了上风。这里我给予学习英文的人一个机会，试着回应方粉对我的挑衅。 我的抗议是为公众写的，并非针对Nature或者评奖委员会，所以采用的是进似于论文的形式，并在文章后面给出了交流方式，并非严格意义上的书信。方粉的点评纯粹是故意找茬。后面列出一些要点： 1） I was shocked...我知道方舟子得了奖是在数天前，故而用了过去式。 2） the very first...这都没见过啊？真是无知者无畏。Very在这里表达一种强调，跟一般人所知的“很，非常”之意不一样，比如He's the very man...他正是那个...人。在这里，我表达的是“就是第一次颁奖，就奖给了...”之意，意思是说Maddox奖开门黑，首次颁奖给骗子了。 3） Perfect insult...我在文章中强调的就是方舟子恰好是Sir John Maddox的反面，因此，他是一个完全的完美的针对Maddox的羞辱。缺乏英语口感的人，是读不出其中的味道的。方粉要用Shame替代Insult！真是无知至极。 4） Regards...建议方粉与方舟子多查查字典。它正是Perspective，aspect之意，但有较为正面的（positive）的含义。 5） To Sir John Maddox's honor...该奖是为了荣耀Maddox的名而建立的，要荣耀Maddox，因此，其奖一要有科学，二要有道义。这么粗浅的东西都读不懂，也能大言不惭给我改作业。 6） his foundation was a foundation in Chinese language...他的所谓基金是骗中国人的，英文叫机构（Organization），中文才叫基金，这是“方黑”嘲笑方骗子的经典段子。 7） I was forced to examine his character and work.这种说法跟上下文一致，表达一种被动语气，并不代表行为被动。多读读英文书吧，太常见了。 8） Internet where...呵呵，这儿恰恰是定语从句，Where指在因特网上。 9） to be very abusive verbally...又一个笑话，如果让方舟子咬着舌头说very verbally abusive，估计多逼一身汗，没语感害死人的。 10） Fang himself often demonstrate some level of restrain while his critics fall pray of abusive language of his supporters. 读不懂吧。这种无自知之明的水平怎么读得懂。译为：方舟子自己却表现得有所节制，而他的批评者往往成为其支持者脏言秽语的猎物。【这里指被批评者被激怒，拖入支持者对骂中，丧失风度，从而给人留下不良印象。】 11) There are many occasions that Fang himself failed to vent his abuse and threats through the preferred channel, revealing to public for who he really is.方粉觉得别扭，因为这是一个复杂句式，有语感的人一路读过来就明白，如果处处用汉语来翻译式地理解英语，就会觉得别扭。译：在许多场合中，方舟子也没有通过其优先途径来表达他的污言秽语以及威胁，从而让公众看清他的真面目。【回应前面怀疑他化名攻击对手】 12） Before you dismiss me and my critique arbitrarily...中文：在你轻易忽略我以及我的批评之时，（我要指出...）自己没语言能力，只能干叫“这词用的”。 13） Employed a strategy very successfully...见9，这人缺语感，这种说法跟employed a very successful strategy没区别，或者更强调成功，另外我的感觉是说出来不那么憋，strategy后面可以小停一下，让方舟子的大舌头喘一下气。 14） Make up lies...嗯，方粉的说法很“通”: His critics make up to disparage him.高度怀疑这是方舟子的化名。 15） Propagandist...我要说的是刘菊花是宣传干部，宣传干部为目的编辑事实，Journalist为事实而奋斗，她不配。 16） a greater than life and perfect image...方舟子大舌头把后面的话堵住了，当然就读不懂a greater than life了，哈哈，真逗。 17） Would...它可不仅仅是虚拟语气，字典说： used in auxiliary function to express custom or habitual action。即 表达惯常性动作。 18） Deserving individual...方粉觉得不对，但又不知道如果改，真逗。It's a perfect example that this person has poor English skills. It's a very common expression. I have read such a phrase thousands of times. 动词Deserve指配得上，加ing变形容词，这么简单的东西都不懂，也“配”也给我改作业？ =========It's too much hassle to ridicule this guy or gal of every stupidity of his/hers, I will focus on the funniest points for each of his pages thereafter.===========逐点嘲笑这位或男或女的蠢话实在是浪费时间，我下面针对其每页点评几点。 19） To set the records right, I am not one and many are not...“我不是一，许多人也不是”，没见过这么令人捧腹的笑料了。One这里是代词，代指的前面提及的为报复方而批评方的人，如果你要听全，I'm not one of those individuals，“我不是一”？方粉子，你是“一” ，一头笨猪。 20） While leaving friends alone...leave XXX alone，查查字典吧，这么常见的短语都不懂，也敢出来丢人，幸好用的是网名，这个短语你即使不知道，猜也能猜出意思来，就是放过某人或者不打扰某人之意。 21） His character...“扯性格干什么？”哈哈哈，真乐死我了，这么有喜剧性，是方舟子的化名的可能性大增。这里Character可不指性格，指的是人格、品格、品性。 22） Entertained the idea...“为了娱乐？”嗯，方粉子跳出来，我就为了娱乐。又一个常见短语，指“有趣地想”，或者，“试着猜想”，表达的是思维过程中提出假设，然后推断印证，表述的是比较不肯定的设想。 23） Apparently not...这里又是省略句式，恢复原句：Apparently they did not have unbiased information about Fang. Apparently no是不通的，典型的中式英语。 24) Would gradually dominate Fang's fraud-busting career...Gradually正好表明了这一句式是过去将来时，从那时开始，方肖私怨逐渐成为方舟子的打假生涯的主要活动... 25) ...at the moment before...现在的中国人幸运的是从西方学来了标点符号，以前中国文化人的基本功之一就是断句。方粉子没语感，所以不知从何断句，在有标点符号的年代仍然闹这种笑话，有意思。at the moment修饰的是前句，当时方舟子正式打假的对象，before修饰的是后半句，在他打开信封之前。打开信封之后，只要不是脑瘫，肯定明白自己虚惊了一场。 26） ...so he claimed...，...he so wrote...这是校为口话化的形式，是倒装句，他就是这么说的，他就是这么写的... 27） ...brief letter...不要以为Letter就是书信，方舟子的趣事臭事随便可以写上几十万字还不算长，当然是短文。 28） ...organizing and creating...“显然应该是先创建再管理”，笑死我了，NO,NO,NO，是先发动组织，再创建... 29) ...deliver at any time...原来在方粉子的观念中，Deliver是快递公司的特权，我们医疗机构天天谈service delivery，搞了半天，服务机构都成快递了... 30) ...This is when we call Fang a burglar who's interested in stealing garbage...这里时态的确用错了，应该说That was而非This is。从那时起我们就称方舟子为喜欢偷盗垃圾的窃贼。 31） ...It was like pulling teeth! “跟拔牙有什么相似的？”哈哈哈，这厮也太寡闻了一点吧！英文形容人固执，难得让他或者通过他办成事，就这么说，因为以前拔牙不是一件容易的事情。没麻药，病人不配合，拔起来又困难重重。以前能拔牙就差不多算牙医了。 32） ...Oh, yes, the...“这里来个yes干什么？”How about expressing something as expected? Oh, yes是连在一起的，更口语化地说，Oh,yeah, I know you would not understand. 33) ...extreme position...“什么叫‘极端的位置’？”极端立场给整成“极端的位置”，真有意思。 嘲笑完了，我必须给予这位义务导师应有的贡献认可，他的确挑出了一些语法或者敲字错误，我在原文进行了针对性修改。 【注】 方粉子的点评原文见： http://i.sohu.com/p/=v2=eZVh12aA2SdwHcal5WwuY29t/blog/view/245501599.htm
语法讲解：主谓一致 在英语句子里，谓语受主语支配，其动词必须和主语在人称和数上保持一致，这就叫主谓一致。寻其规律，大致可归纳为三个原则，即语法一致、逻辑意义一致和就近一致原则。 一、语法一致原则 语法上一致就是谓语动词和主语在单、复数形式上保持一致。 1. 以单数名词或代词、动词不定式短语、动名词短语或从句作主语时，谓语动词一般用单数形式；主语为复数时，谓语动词用复数形式。如： His father is working on the farm. / To study English well is not easy. / What he said is very important for us all. / The children were in the classroom two hours ago. / Reading in the sun is bad for your eyes. 注意：由 what 引导的主语从句，后面的谓语动词多数情况用单数形式，但若表语是复数或 what 从句是一个带有复数意义的并列结构时，主句的谓语动词用复数形式。如： What I bought were three English books. / What I say and do is （ are ） helpful to you. 2. 由连接词 and 或 both …… and 连接起来的合成主语后面，要用复数形式的谓语动词。如： Lucy and Lily are twins. / She and I are classmates. / The boy and the girl were surprised when they heard the news. / Both she and he are Young Pioneers. 注意：（ 1 ）若 and 所连接的两个词是指同一个人或物时，它后面的谓语动词就应用单数形式。如： The writer and artist has come. （ 2 ）由 and 连接的并列单数主语前如果分别有 no ， each ， every more than a （ an ） ， many a （ an ）修饰时，其谓语动词要用单数形式。如： Every student and every teacher was in the room. / No boy and no girl likes it. 3. 主语为单数名词或代词，尽管后面跟有 with ， together with ， except ， but ， like ， as well as ， rather than ， more than ， no less than ， besides ， including 等引起的短语，谓语动词仍用单数形式；若主语为复数，谓语用复数形式。如： Mr. Green ， together with his wife and children ， has come to China. / Nobody but Jim and Mike was on the playground. / She ， like you and Tom ， is very tall. 4. either ， neither ， each ， every 或 no + 单数名词和由 some ， any ， no ， every 构成的复合不定代词，都作单数看待。如： Each of us has a new book. / Everything around us is matter. 注意：（ 1 ）在口语中当 either 或 neither 后跟有 “of+ 复数名词（或代词） ” 作主语时，其谓语动词也可用复数。如： Neither of the texts is （ are ） interesting. （ 2 ）若 none of 后面的名词是不可数名词，它的谓语动词就要用单数；若它后面的名词是复数，它的谓语动词用单数或复数都可以。如： None of us has （ have ） been to America. 5. 在定语从句时，关系代词 that ， who ， which 等作主语时，其谓语动词的数应与句中先行词的数一致。如： He is one of my friends who are working hard. / He is the only one of my friends who is working hard. 6. 如果集体名词指的是整个集体，它的谓语动词用单数；如果它指集体的成员，其谓语动词就用复数形式。这些词有 family ， class ， crowd ， committee ， population ， audience 等。如： Class Four is on the third floor. / Class Four are unable to agree upon a monitor. 注意： people ， police ， cattle 等名词一般都用作复数。如： The police are looking for the lost child. 7. 由 “a lot of ， lots of ， plenty of ， the rest of ， the majority of + 名词 ” 构成的短语以及由 “ 分数或百分数 + 名词 ” 构成的短语作主语，其谓语动词的数要根据短语中后面名词的数而定。如： There are a lot of people in the classroom. / The rest of the lecture is wonderful. / 50% of the students in our class are girls. 注意： a number of“ 许多 ” ，作定语修饰复数名词，谓语用复数； the number of“…… 的数量 ” ，主语是 number ，谓语用单数。 8. 在倒装句中，谓语动词的数应与其后的主语一致。如： There comes the bus. / On the wall are many pictures. / Such is the result. / Such are the facts. 二、逻辑意义一致原则 逻辑意义一致就是谓语动词的数必须和主语的意义一致（因有时主语形式为单数，但意义为复数；有时形式为复数，但意义为单数）。 1. what ， who ， which ， any ， more ， all 等代词可以是单数，也可是复数，主要靠意思来决定。如： Which is your bag ？ / Which are your bags ？ / All is going well. / All have gone to Beijing. 2. 表示 “ 时间、重量、长度、价值 ” 等的名词的复数作主语时，谓语动词通常用单数形式，这是由于作主语的名词在概念上是一个整体，如： Thirty minutes is enough for the work. 3. 若英语是书名、片名、格言、剧名、报名、国名等的复数形式，其谓语动词通常用单数形式。如： “The Arabian Nights” is an interesting story-book. 4. 表数量的短语 “one and a half” 后接复数名词作主语时，其谓语动词可用单数形式（也可用复数。如： One and a half apples is （ are ） left on the table. 5. 算式中表示数目（字）的主语通常作单数看待，其谓语动词采用单数形式。如： Twelve plus eight is twenty. / Fifty-six divided by eight is seven. 6. 一些学科名词是以 –ics 结尾，如： mathematics ， politics ， physics 以及 news ， works 等，都属于形式上是复数的名词，实际意义为单数名词，它们作主语时，其谓语动词要用单数形式。如： The paper works was built in 1990. / I think physics isn‘t easy to study. 7. trousers ， glasses ， clothes ， shoes ， 等词作主语时，谓语用复数，但如果这些名词前有 a （ the ） pair of 等量词修饰时，谓语动词用单数。如： My glasses are broken. / The pair of shoes under the bed is his. 8. “ 定冠词 the + 形容词或分词 ” ，表示某一类人时，动词用复数。 三、就近一致原则 在英语句子中，有时谓语动词的人称和数与最近的主语保持一致。 1. 当两个主语由 either …… or ， neither …… nor ， whether …… or …… ， not only …… but also 连接时，谓语动词和邻近的主语一致。如： Either the teacher or the students are our friends. / Neither they nor he is wholly right. / Is neither he nor they wholly right ？ 2. there be 句型 be 动词单复数取决于其后的主语。如果其后是由 and 连接的两个主语，则应与靠近的那个主语保持一致。如： There are two chairs and a desk in the room. 注意： Here 引导的句子用法同上。
The Type 1 Conditional - Alternate forms （1） Future in both clauses Sometimes we use a future tense in both clauses . This is particularly common in polite requests. If you will marry me, I will love you forever. (More polite than 'If you marry me…') If you will wait for me, I will come with you. If you will help us, we will be grateful. Here will means ' is/are willing to' . In more polite requests we can use would . If you would help us, we will be extremely grateful. If you would come this way, I will take you to the theatre. Going to in result clause Going to often replaces will in the type 1 conditional. This is done to emphasize a certain result. If you skip your classes, you are going to fail. If you don't mend your ways, you are going to land in trouble. Going to can be used in the if-clause to mean 'intend to'. If you are going to skip school, you certainly won't pass your exams. Present perfect in if-clause Sometimes we use a present perfect, instead of a simple present , in the if-clause. This is to put an extra focus on the completion of an action. Compare: We will go to the movies if you have finished your work. (There is a focus on the completion of the action.) We will go to the movies if you finish your work. (There is no focus on the completion of the action.) Should in if-clause Should is sometimes used in the if-clause to imply that something is possible, but not very likely. If he should arrive , we will invite him along to dinner. (He will probably not come. But if he comes, we will invite him to dinner.) This use of should in the type 1 conditional is stronger than the type 2 conditional in which an imaginary or unreal situation is presented. Compare: If he arrives, we will invite him along to dinner. (Type 1 conditional - He is likely to come. And if he comes we will invite him to dinner.) If he arrived , we would invite him to dinner. (Type 2 conditional - I am sure he will not come.) If he studied, he would pass the exam. (Type 2 Conditional - I am sure the student will not pass.) If he studies, he will pass the exam. (Type 1 conditional - He will probably study. And if he does he will pass.) If he should study , he will pass the exam. (Type 1 conditional with should - The student will probably not study. But if he does he will pass.) Happen to/ should happen to We sometimes use happen to or should happen to in If- clauses. It suggests that something is unlikely, but if it happens, something else will happen. If they happen to come to town, we will meet them. (= They are unlikely to come. But if they come, we will meet them.) Should happen to has a similar meaning. If he should happen to get stuck in that town, he will be able to find a good hotel. Modals in result clauses We can use modals in result clauses to talk about future possibilities, permission and advice. If you finish your work, you can go out and play. You should see a doctor if you continue to feel bad. If I arrive early, I might give him a call. Provided (that), as long as Provided that and as long as can be used instead of if to say that a particular condition must be met in order for something to happen. Provided (that) he finishes his studies, he will find an excellent job. (= If he finishes his studies, he will find an excellent job.) As long as you pay off the loan, the house will be yours at the end of this year. (= If you pay off the loan, the house will be yours at the end of this year.) The Type 2 Conditional（2） Here we use a simple past in the if-clause and would + infinitive (bare form of the verb) in the result clause. If you asked, they would help you. If it rained, you would get wet. If you loved her, she would love you. If I had more money, I would buy a new car. If he studied more, he would pass the exam. If I were the President, I would lower taxes. The type 2 conditional refers to present and future situations. It is used to talk about unreal - impossible, improbable or imaginary - situations. It refers to an unlikely or hypothetical condition and its probable result. Type 1 or type 2 - What to use?Real and imaginary situations The type 1 conditional is often called the real conditional. It is used for real and possible situations. The type 2 conditional is used for unreal - impossible, improbable or imaginary - situations. Compare: If I become the President , I will give free electricity to farmers. (Said by a candidate, who may win the election - Type 1) If I win this race , I will... (- Said by the fastest runner - Type 1) If I became the President , I would give free electricity to farmers. (Said by a child - Type 2) If I won this race, I would... (- Said by the slowest runner - Type 2) Direct requests and suggestions In direct request or suggestions we use type 1 conditional. To make a request or suggestion more polite, we use type 2 conditional. Compare: I will be grateful if you lend me some money. (direct request - Type 1) It will be nice if you help me. (direct request - Type 1) It would be nice if you helped me. (less direct, more polite request - Type 2) I would be grateful if you lent me some money. (more polite request - Type 2) 原文来源： （1） http://www.perfectyourenglish.com/grammar/first-conditional-alternate.htm （2） http://www.perfectyourenglish.com/grammar/second-conditional.htm After sharing this article, I received many useful comments. Thank you very much indeed for that. To clarify some relevant points and to avoid further confusion, I have added some other information(pictures) quoted from "Advanced Grammar in Use, 2nd edition, Cambridge, 2005 "to the previous version as below:
我们知道，语句呈现的是线性的字符串，而语句 结构却是二维的。我们之所以能够理解语句的意思，是因为我们的大脑语言处理中枢能够把线性语句解构（decode）成二维的结构：语法学家常常用类似下列的上下颠倒的树形图来表达解构的结果（所谓 parsing）。 上面这个树形图叫作依从关系树形图（dependency tree，常常用来表达词或词组之间的逻辑语义关系，与此对应的还有一种句法树，叫短语结构树 phrase structure tree，更适合表达语句单位之间的边界与层次关系)。直观地说，所谓理解了一句话，其实就是明白了两种意义：（1）节点的意义（词汇意义）；（2）节点之间的关系意义（逻辑语义）。譬如上面这个例子，在我们的自动语句分析中有大小六个节点：【Tonight】 【I】 【am going to enjoy】 【the 【song】 Hero】 【again】，分解为爷爷到孙儿三个层次，其中的逻辑语义是：有一个将来时态的行为【am going to enjoy】，结构上是老爷爷，他有两个亲生儿子，两个远房侄子。长子是其逻辑主语（Actor） 【I】，此子是其逻辑宾语（Undergoer）【the song Hero】，父子三人是语句的主干（主谓宾，叫做 argument structure），构成语句意义的核心。 两个远房侄子，一个是表达时间的状语（adverbial）【Tonight】，另一个表达频次的状语（adverbial）【again】。最后，还有一个孙子辈的节点【song】，他是次子的修饰语（modifier，是同位语修饰语），说明【Hero】的类别。 从句法关系角度来看，依从关系遵从一个原则：老子可以有n（n=0）个儿子（图上用下箭头表示），而儿子只能有一个老子：如果有一个以上的老子，证明有结构歧义，说明语义没有最终确定，语言解构（decoding）没有最终完成。虽然一个老子可以有任意多的下辈传人，其亲生儿子是有数量限制的，一般最多不超过三个，大儿子是主语，次子是宾语，小儿子是补足语。比如在句子 “I gave a book to her” 中，动词 gave 就有三个亲儿子：主语 【I】， 宾语【a book】，补足语 【to her】. 很多动词爷爷只有两个儿子（主语和宾语，譬如 John loves Mary），有的只有一个儿子（主语，譬如 John left）。至于远房侄子，从结构上是可有可无的，在数量上也是没有限量的。他们的存在随机性很强，表达的是伴随一个行为的边缘意义，譬如时间、地点、原因、结果、条件等等。 自然语言理解（Natural Language Understanding）的关键就是要模拟人的理解机制，研制一套解构系统（parser），输入的是语句，输出的是语法结构树。在这样的结构树的基础上，很多语言应用的奇迹可以出现，譬如机器翻译，信息抽取，自动文摘，智能搜索，等等。 在结束本文前，再提供一些比较复杂一些的语句实例。我把今天上网看到的一段英文输入给我们研制的parser，其输出的语法结构树如下（未经任何人工编辑，分析难免有小错）。 说明：细心的读者会发现下列结构树中，有的儿子有两个老子，有的短语之间互为父子，这些都违反了依存关系的原则。其实不然。依存关系的原则针对的是句法关系，而句法后面的逻辑关系有时候与句法关系一致，有时候不一致。不一致的时候就会出现两个老子，一个是与句法关系一致的老子，一个是没有相应的显性句法关系的老子。最典型的情形是所谓的隐性（逻辑）主语或宾语。 譬如第一个图示中的右边那棵结构树中，代词「I」就有两个老子：其句法老子是谓语动词「have learned」，它还有一个非谓语动词（ING形式）的隐性的逻辑老子「(From) reading」，也做它的逻辑主语 (who was reading? I)。再如第二个图示中的语法结构树中，定语从句的代表动词「were demonstrating」的句法老子是其所修饰的名词短语「students」，但逻辑上该名词短语却是定语从句动词「were demonstrating」的主语（actor）。有些纯粹的句法分析器（parser）只输出句法关系树，而我们研制的parser更进一步，深入到真正的逻辑语义层次。这样的深层分析为自然语言理解提供了更为坚实的基础，因为显性和隐性的关系全部解构，语义更为完整。 我们每天面对的就是这些树木构成的语言丛林。在我的眼中，它们形态各异，婀娜多姿，变化多端而不离其宗（“语法”）。如果爱因斯坦在时空万物中看到了造物主的美，如果门捷列夫在千姿百态的物质后面看到了元素表的简洁，语言学家则是在千变万化的语言现象中看到了逻辑结构之美。这种美的体验伴随着我们的汗水，鼓励我们为铲平语言壁垒而愚公移山，造福人类。 后记：When I showed the above trees to my daughter today, she was amazed, pretty! She asked, is this what you made the machine to do in diagramming sentences? Yes. Wow, incredible. I don't think I can diagram the sentences as nice as these. Can some day the machine be smarter than you the creator? Is the machine learning by itself? I said, it is not self-learning at this point and the self-learning system is too research oriented to put into a real life system now. But I do observe from time to time that the machine we made for parsing sometimes generate results of very complicated sentences way beyond our expectation, better than most human learners at times. This is because I encode the linguistics knowledge piece by piece, and machine is super good at memory. Once taught, it remembers every piece of knowledge we programmed into the system. Over the years of the development cycle, the accumulation of the knowledge is incredibly powerful. We humans are easy to forget things and knowledge, but machine has no such problems. In this sense, it is not impossible that a machine can beat his creator in practical performance of a given task. 回答： I don't think tree is the way my mind thinks １窃以为，句法树迄今仍是大脑黑箱作业的最好的模拟和理论 ２ does not really matter 作者: 立委 (*) 日期: 06/03/2011 04:30:20 As long as subtree matching is a handy and generalized way of info extraction. Tree is not the goal but a means to an end. The practical end is to extract knowledge or facts or sentiments from language. In practice, our goal is not to simulate the human comprehension per se , the practical goal is: Quote 在这样的结构树的基础上，很多语言应用的奇迹可以出现，譬如机器翻译，信息抽取，自动文摘，智能搜索，等等。 【相关博文】 《泥沙龙笔记：漫谈自动句法分析和树形图表达》 【 科普小品：文法里的父子原则 】 【立委科普：语法结构树之美（之二）】 《新智元：有了deep parsing，信息抽取就是个玩儿》 泥沙龙笔记：parsing 是引擎的核武器，再论NLP与搜索 乔氏 X 杠杠理论 以及各式树形图表达法 【 立委随笔：创造着是美丽的 】 【 科研笔记：开天辟地的感觉真好 】 【立委科普：美梦成真的通俗版解说】 【征文参赛：美梦成真】 【立委科普：自然语言parsers是揭示语言奥秘的LIGO式探测仪】 【置顶：立委科学网博客NLP博文一览（定期更新版）】
不管是说英文的外国人还是说中文的中国人，用英语进行写作都有很大的难度，因为写作是有规则的，违背这些规则就等于犯错。英文写得好不好，首先要看是不是符合语法，其次是看用词是否恰当，搭配是否合理。因此，如何用英语写作其实是一门高深的学问，一辈子学习都嫌不够。 我本人的英语写作刚入门，而且仅限于科技英语写作。在这里不想“班门弄斧”谈如何写作英语科技论文，只是根据自己的体会，总结一下在英语科技论文写作中的几个小窍门，仅供广大青年学子参考，恐令学者们见笑。 一、时态的使用 有人在一篇文章中时态的使用很混乱，前后不一致，可能是因为不能活学活用英语语法的缘故。虽然时态错用并不会严重影响读者对文章内容的理解，但体现了作者的写作手法不规范，表达不严谨。一般而言，在Introduction和Discussion中提到一些普遍的认知或常识时，应该用现在时，如Cancer is a disease that fails tocontrol cell division。如果提到别人的发现或报道，可以使用现在完成时，如Those authors have found that …、Someone has reported that …。在Materials and methods和Results中，若涉及动作，通常用过去时，如The wavelength was measured after 10 min。 二、从句的使用 过去分词短语可以放在名词后作定语，但当这个过去分词出现在作谓语的动词之前时，容易被误认为就是句中的谓语，此时宜将过去分词短语改用that引导的定语从句修饰，如There are isoprenoid products used in cancer therapy中的过去分词短语在下面的句子中宜改为that引导的定语从句：Isoprenoid products that are used in cancer cells have not been fully explored。又如：The enzymes that maintain tight control over the carbocation species will produce a single dominant product。 三、被动式的使用 众所周知，科技英语中多使用被动语态，以避免主观表述之嫌。但是，若分不清及物动词还是不及物动词就容易出错，如A fresh idea occurred to him容易误写成A fresh idea was occurred to him。 四、The的使用 何时用the、何时不用the是个最令人头痛的选择，而知道用the和不用the却最能体现英语水平的高下。一般来说，单数名词要用the，复数名词可省略the，但在动宾关系句里即使复数名词也要用the：We identify the relevant genes in the present study。以下复数名词前都加the：The enzymes often lack the characteristic aspartate-rich motifs，因为其中的the有those的含义。位于of之前的名词要用the，但当名词位于句首并有动宾关系时可省略the：Production of carbohydrates from carbon dioxide is achieved by photosynthesis。 五、选词 英语不喜欢重复，单词也是如此。这样就要求用英语写作时必须要有很大的同义词词汇量，否则就会“理屈词穷”。例如demonstrate、indicate、elucidate、reveal等用来引出某种客观结果，可以交替使用。 六、搭配 有主谓一致的问题，如200μl of the diluted cell suspension was placed at 37?C中的was应为were，也有动宾搭配的问题，如reply the question应为reply to the question。还有一些固定搭配，如pave the path、raise the question、share the homology等。 七、拉丁语 科技英语中经常使用拉丁语，一般用斜体表示，如动植物及微生物的拉丁学名、 in vivo （活体内）、 in vitro （试管中）、 in situ （原位）、 per se （本身）等。注意：这些外来词用来修饰名词时放在名词前，修饰动词时放在动词后。注意区分They haveintroduced the in vivo synthesis of vitamin D和Microorganisms are not ordinarily destroyed in vivo by bacteriostatic drugs。不过，有些拉丁词已被当做英语词汇使用，在文章中出现时不用斜体，如et al.和e.g.等。 八、专有名称 基因与蛋白质的名称一般用相同词汇表示，但基因名称要用斜体，蛋白质名称要用正体。大小写的规定似乎不严格，但基因名称用小写、蛋白质名称用大写较常见。另外，基因工程中的限制性内切酶名称要用斜体，而且第一个字母要大写，但表示菌株来源及酶编号的英文字母及罗马数字用正体，如 Eco RI、 Bam HI等。
最近这一个月，花了不少时间修改两篇英文论文，一篇是自己写的，另一篇是同事写的。这两篇之前都因为语言问题被Elsevier的期刊编辑退了回来。之前曾有在相同期刊发表英文论文的经历，所以投自己那一篇时认为过语言关应该没什么问题，所以也就修改了三稿。结果投稿3天后就被退了回来，说明自己的英语写作水平还需继续提高，远没有达到可以轻松通过的水平。在此补充一下，本人属于国内培养的博士，从未出过国，英语水平一般。 接连在Technical check上栽了跟头，让我不得不反思到底出了什么问题？甚至对自己产生了怀疑，到底能不能写出至少语言可以过关的英文论文？这时领导说，要不找几个公司帮助改一下吧。这是个很好的学习机会，从别人的眼光看一下论文。但最后想了想，对于内容最熟悉的还是我们自己，还是先自力更生吧！ 对于自己的论文，创新性自认为还是有的，主要是应用领域创新。逻辑上进行了大幅改动，调整了文章结构，增加了图表。内容确定之后，在语法上，花了几天时间，从头到尾细读了一遍，参考几篇偶像论文，进行了认真修改。再次投出，经过20多天的漫长等待，估计通过Technical check的可能性非常大。（注：今天咨询了Elsevier，确认已通过Technical check，正在主编手上，等待送审。9月9日，论文状态终于改为under review，用了一个半月啊。） 在出差的一周时间里，我也在想这个问题：感觉对自己文章的修改，还是停留在自己的一点经验上，能否有一套方法可循？在帮助同事修改论文的时候，我查了一些资料。检索了Elsevier的Technical check相关资料，初步总结出三点：创新-逻辑-文法，作为论文润色的步骤。 首先是 创新点 。创新点是论文的灵魂，虽然责任编辑不一定会对我们的创新点提出异议，但最终决定文章是否能发表的是创新点。创新点是统领全文的线索，必须从技术的细节中超脱出来，提炼出创新点，作为Introduction中分析出的空白点和全文落脚点，创新点的解决方案分解为Materials and methods的各种方法，Results中对方法进行分析验证，Discussion中对结果进行比较，升华创新点。这样文章的逻辑结构应该自然而生。 逻辑性 ，就是符合人们思维习惯的结构顺序。责任编辑对于文章的逻辑性，以及由之衍生的可读性非常重视。 从Elsevier网站上看到如下一句话 ： Technical Screening is not just a quick spell check. 'We do much more than simply identifying errors in language. We look at the manuscript as a whole to determine whether the write-up is logical and understandable. This information is fed back to the authors so they have concrete points to focus on for improvements,' says Egbert van Wezenbeek, Director, Publication Process Development.' http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/editorsinfo.editors/editors_update/issue25i 因此，要对逻辑性引起充分的重视，反复推敲论文的结构。 文法 。在创新点和逻辑结构确定之后，再考虑文法问题。我认为包括文体和语法。以前我只注重语法，对文体基本没有认识。最近看了号称英文论文写作圣经的The Elements of Style(《风格的要素》)，发现文体很重要，我理解文体就是对句子的排兵布阵。自己常犯的错误有：一是 有时会写一整段松散的句子，外加连词 and 、 but ，或者少量 who, which, when, where, 和 while 。 《风格的要素》指出， 如果写作者发现自己恰恰写了如前所述的散句，就应该重写，祛除单调，换成简单句、伴有分号的两个从句、圆周句、或三个不管松散或圆周的子句 只要 所改的句子能够最大程度上反映出写作者的真实意思就行。二是要 删除冗词、冗句。简洁就是美。总结发现，为什么对于语言有问题的论文，退回来的速度特别快，只有几天时间？估计编辑不一定看完全文，可能只是看完题目、摘要，如果发现较多的语法 错误（曾看到有个编辑说法是6个），就认为剩下的文章语法也不会好到哪里去。这个判断虽然武断，但也成功率颇高。因此要高度重视题目和摘要的撰写，当然其它部分也要认真写喽！ 以上仅为个人体会，敬请各位老师和同学批评指正！
这一阵有点不在状态， 英语写作中总出现语法错误。知道某个词，但是用法不对。也许是很久没有考过英语了，可也不至于如此，说到底还是自己不够用心。 一定要用心点，再用心点。 还要多看看任老师的那本书或博客 http://www.sciencenet.cn/m/user_index1.aspx?typeid=4170userid=38899 。 使用 LaTex 写作虽然免去了Word 排版之烦，但是也带来了一些不便。一是语法难以自动纠正，二是不便于他人修订，再就是曾经使用Word ，有一些不好的习惯一时难以改过来，因为 LaTex 不是所见即所得，所以每写完一句话总想看看效果如何，其实我根本就不必看， 就是所想即所得， 这个习惯以后坚决改正。 但是，话说回来，采用 LaTex 写作自有其妙不可言之处，我还是要坚持，并且必要之时还可以转换成Word。 2009.11.17 静言思之，不能奋飞，不如好好总结一下。 incorporate with v. 混合, 合并 introduce into v. 引进 It was not until 1912 did China introduce into the western concept of lawyer. 直到1912年，现代意义的律师才正式在中国出现。 Finding an innovative product to introduce into the market is often a remote goal . 找到一个具有创新性的产品，并将其引入市场经常是一个很遥远的目标。 introduce to v. 将某人介绍给另一个人 I shall like to introduce to you the gentleman whom I spoke of the other day. 我想把前些天与其谈话的那位绅士介绍给你。 I have the honor to introduce to you the general manager of our company. 我很荣幸地向您介绍我们公司的总经理。 consider doing sth.. 考虑做某事 connect with 与......相连 consider doing sth 考路做某事 consider sb as/to be 认为......;把某人看做 devided by During his visit in New York Monday, Wen recited a line of poetry to describe his feeling about the split between mainland China and Taiwan devided by the 160?kilometer wide Taiwan Strait. 温家宝星期一访问纽约时，朗诵了一首诗，描述他对中国大陆和台湾被160公里宽的台湾海峡分割的乡愁。 despite prep. 不管,尽管 v.憎恨，轻视 She managed despite everything to preserve her sense of humour. 她不管遇到什麽情况都竭力保持著幽默感。 Despite all the talk around them, the principals in the saga remain quiet. 不管他们说什么,我们的第一主角却依然保持沉默. Despite all our efforts we still lost the game. 尽管我们尽了全力，我们还是输掉了比赛。 He came to the meeting despite his illness . 尽管生病，他还是来参加会议。 Despite a lot of difficulties, he managed to finish the work within three weeks. 译文：尽管有许多困难，他还是在三个星期内成功地完成了工作。 Despite the failure of his early experiment, the scientist persevered in his research. 尽管最初的试验失败多次，但科学家仍坚持研究。 despite all that.. 尽管如此 Despite all that you say, I think we'd better is careful about it. 尽管您这么说，我认为我们最好是小心从事。 Despite all that, Evigan says dancing in the rain wasn't as difficult as she assumed it would be. 尽管如此，伊维根说在雨中跳舞并没她想象的那么难。 link n. 环节,联系 v. 连接,联系 link with: Old friends are a link with the past. 老朋友是联系往昔的纽带。 in $\pi$ plane We are looking forward to more business link with new partners from overseas . 我们期待着更多的商业联系新的合作伙伴来自海外。 以后要做到以下几点： 1. 写作中可以借鉴各种句型，但是一定把句子写完整。 2. 划分长句子的成分。 3. 写完以后要默读几遍。 2009.11.21
Overcoming the language barrier: writing in English for non-native authors 在本帖中， 理文编辑 学术总监Dr. Daniel McGowan将向大家展示克服语言障碍，非英语母语科研人员如何写作? Journal editors, overloaded with quality manuscripts, may make decisions on manuscripts based on formal criteria, like grammar or spelling. Don't get rejected for avoidable mistakes; make sure your manuscript looks perfect (quote from a senior executive at a large international publishing house). Scientific writing is difficult enough for many authors who have English as their first language; for non-native English-speaking authors, writing a paper in English represents a massive challenge that can make or break their papers chances of publication. With increased pressure on publication space and increased demands on editors time many journals are introducing language screening protocols to check submissions before they reach the editors desk; some editors simply choose to overlook papers that are too poorly written to consider or send for review in the knowledge that, among the submissions they receive, will be well written studies containing interesting and robust science. However, all is not lost for non-native English-speaking authors: by being aware of some of the most common scientific writing language errors and how to avoid them, you can improve the quality of your paper and increase its chances of being accepted. It is helpful to think of the writing process in the same way that you think about performing experiments; that is, the language needs to be easily and accurately understood by the reader, without multiple possible interpretations arising. In experiments, we use controls to rule out alternative hypotheses. In language, we must avoid ambiguities and unnecessary text (such as repetition and redundancies) to get our message across clearly. Scientific writing should possess what I call the three Cs: clarity, conciseness and correctness (accuracy). The key to achieving this is to be as brief and specific as possible without omitting any details that might be essential for the reader to fully understand your meaning. In other words, say no more than you need to accurately convey your message. Although writing that fails to meet this standard is sometimes described as sloppy or lazy writing, authors are frequently unaware that what they have written is unclear and ambiguous. Thus, attention to detail and an appreciation of how your writing could be misinterpreted are essential. What follows is just a small selection of error types that, when present in large numbers, could result in your paper going straight to the rejected pile. Articles/Plural vs singular Articles (a/the) are adjectives that modify nouns. Where they are used incorrectly the reader can be left wondering if you are referring to a specific thing or to a non-specific item or category. Worse, they could interpret the text incorrectly and make a wrong assumption. Incorrect use of articles can also lead to confusion relating to singular vs plural senses. The word the should be used in conjunction with a noun referring to a particular item or group of items (it can be used with both plural and singular nouns); for example, the sections were/the section was then stained with HE implies that the sections you had referred to in recent sentences were stained. By contrast, a should be used in conjunction with non-specific nouns; for example, a section was then stained infers that a single section, any section, was stained. A should only be used to refer to a single item or category, and should not be used in conjunction with plural nouns; that is, a sections would be incorrect. Asian authors frequently leave articles out of sentences making them sound awkward and unnatural, which would be the case when omitting the the in adenovirus was injected into the fourth ventricle. The antibody was injected into the hippocampus (articles required to specify a particular antibody, presumably already referred to in the text, and a specific hippocampus, belonging to a subject already described). A new method of extraction was devised (a used rather than the because this statement introduces this method to the reader; therefore it is non-specific at that time. Once introduced to the reader, the new method of extraction should be used to refer to that method in the specific sense). Nouns are used in the plural sense by adding an s to the end (in most cases). In the absence of an article, it can sometimes be unclear if the wrong sense (plural vs singular) has been used. For example, in the sentence Acetyl group was added, the reader is not clear whether the author means An acetyl group was added or perhaps Acetyl groups were added. Thus, when referring to multiple items, the plural sense should be used to avoid potential confusion. This is commonly forgotten when describing figures (use arrowheads rather than arrowhead where there is more than one in the figure; likewise, use solid bars rather than solid bar when referring to a bar chart with multiple bars). A biopsy wa s obtained (describing a single biopsy). Biopsies were obtained from eight patients (no article necessary unless these biopsies had already been introduced to the reader, in which case they would need to be referred to in the specific sense The biopsies were obtained). Commas, hyphens and which Used incorrectly these three elements of writing can introduce ambiguities, and the potential for subsequent misunderstanding, into your writing. For example, in the sentence Because A42 levels were elevated in 75% of AD patients in studies using our method , it is critical to obtain fresh samples, moving the comma after method to follow the word patients (or addition of a new comma there) would completely change the meaning. Similarly, in the phrase calcium-induced calcium release, omission of the hyphen completely changes the meaning of the sentence. When the hyphen is present calcium-induced is a compound adjective modifying the noun calcium release; when the hyphen is absent, induced is a verb describing the effect of calcium on calcium release. Thus, it is critically important to use hyphens with such compound adjectives to avoid misunderstandings. However, no hyphen is required to combine an adverb and an adjective; for example highly intense staining and high-intensity staining are both correct, but highly-intense staining is not. Glutamate receptors mediated synaptic plasticity (tells the reader that Glu receptors are involved in the development of synaptic plasticity). Glutamate receptor -mediated synaptic plasticity (identifies synaptic plasticity involving Glu receptors as the subject of the sentence; note the change from plural to singular because receptor is being used in a general sense and not to refer to a single receptor). The word which, when used incorrectly, can also induce considerable confusion. It is often used incorrectly instead of that. Both introduce clauses that modify nouns, but that should be used to introduce defining or restrictive clauses and which should be used to introduce non-defining or non-restrictive clauses. For example, in the sections that were positive for GFP were subjected to cell counting procedures, the that introduces a defining clause that defines exactly which sections were subjected to cell counting. By contrast, in the sections, which were positive for GFP, were subjected to cell counting procedures, the sections that were subjected to cell counting are rather loosely defined, possibly referring to sections that have been described in the previous or recent sentences. The clause about GFP positivity provides the reader with additional information, but is not essential to understand the meaning of the sentence; that is, it is disposable. Because which is used in this way, writers need to ensure that it is absolutely clear what the which is actually referring to, possibly whatever immediately precedes it (most commonly) or possibly the main subject of the sentence. For example, the sentence microglia migrated to the site of the lesion, which was associated with increased levels of ED-1 is somewhat vague, because it is unclear if the which is referring to the lesion or to the migration of microglia. If there is ever any doubt about such a sentence, it is best to rephrase it completely; for example migration of microglia to the site of the lesion was associated with increased levels of ED-1 or microglia migrated to the site of the lesion, and immunohistochemical analysis revealed increased levels of ED-1 at this site, both of which are unambiguous. Data were normalised to the housekeeping gene actin, which was used as an internal reference (here, the which refers to actin, which is therefore the subject of the following clause). Data were normalised to the internal reference housekeeping gene actin, revealing increases in the levels of (to refer to the analyzed data in a subsequent clause, which would be inappropriate and introduce an ambiguity). Respectively The word respectively is frequently misused by native and non-native English-speaking authors alike, and, as with the other elements described above, its misuse can lead to confusion and ambiguities. It is often clearer not to use this term at all, but it can be useful to economise on words where there are two corresponding lists. For example, it is quite useful in the sentence The latencies to withdrawal from a painful stimulus in control and transgenic mice were 3 s and 2 s, respectively, meaning that control mice withdrew after 3 s and transgenic mice withdrew after 2 s. If describing something much shorter than The latencies to withdrawal from a painful stimulus, for example average weights, respectively is not necessary; Control mice weighed 203 g and transgenic mice weighed 172 g is better than Control mice and transgenic mice weighed 203 g and 172 g, respectively, which contains one additional word. Note that respectively can only be used to refer to two corresponding lists at one time, and cannot be used to refer to more. Thus, the sentence The latencies to withdrawal from 5 g and 10 g painful stimuli in control and transgenic mice were 3 s and 2 s, respectively is incorrect and impossible to understand. The proportions of monocytes positive for CD163, CD7 and CD11a were 45%, 63% and 70%, respectively (the respectively makes clear that the three percentages refer to each of the three markers in the same order). Comparisons Comparisons are frequently made in the results sections of papers, and it is especially important to compare like with like. One common error made by non-native authors is overlooking this simple rule and leaving the reader to make an assumption about what is being compared. At best, the language will appear unnatural but the meaning clear; at worst, the wrong meaning can be imparted. As an example, the sentence Expression levels of p53 in smokers were compared with non-smokers should actually be Expression levels of p53 in smokers were compared with those in non-smokers. Another frequent error with comparisons is the use of relative terms (for example, higher, greater, more) without a reference. In the sentence transgenic mice showed higher levels of cortisol it is unclear what these levels were higher than; thus, a than clause, such as than control mice, is required. The reader might make this assumption automatically, but in some cases alternative inferences will be possible; the goal of accurate scientific writing has to be the removal of all assumption. Because comparisons of results are critical to their interpretation and, ultimately, their significance, it is critical that you convey to the reader exactly what is being compared. Finally, the word between should be used for comparisons of two findings, but among should be used for comparisons of three or more. The levels of ubiquitinated proteins were higher in patients than in control subjects (the than clause provides a reference for the term higher). The levels of ubiquitinated proteins in patients were higher than those in control subjects (unlike the first example, where patients and controls are both on the same side of the comparing term, that is, they are both mentioned after higher, here, patients and controls appear either side of the comparing term; therefore, it is necessary to add than those to compare like with like). There was no significant difference in the levels of ubiquitinated proteins between patients and controls (between is appropriate here for a comparison of two groups). There were no significant differences in the levels of ubiquitinated proteins among AD patients, PD patients and controls (among is appropriate for comparisons of more than two groups; note the change to the plural differences because more than one type of difference is possible with more than two groups). Protein and gene nomenclature One very common cause of confusion is use of the incorrect nomenclature to describe changes in the levels of genes, their mRNAs or the proteins that they encode. Constant changing from describing gene expression levels to protein levels and back again can also add to the confusion, especially because the names are often the same. Therefore, it needs to be completely clear to the reader exactly what level you are talking about. Nomenclature differs among species, but generally gene names should be described in italics and protein names in normal font. Case (upper vs lower) is often used to distinguish between species: generally, for mouse, rat and chicken, gene names are spelt with an upper case first letter and the rest in lower case; for humans, primates and some domestic species, gene names are spelt with all capital letters. Descriptions of mRNAs generally use the gene name (for example, levels of p53 mRNA) or you can refer to the mRNA for a given protein (for example levels of the mRNA for p53). The word expression is usually used to describe gene expression and can induce confusion when used to describe protein and mRNA levels; in most cases referring to proteins the word expression can simply be replaced with the word level (or levels). Be aware of the correct nomenclature for your species of subject and ensure that everywhere you refer to a protein, gene or mRNA by name in the text it is completely clear which of those you are referring to. Expression of the Igf1 gene was increased in our transgenic mice (use if italics and the word gene ensure that no confusion is possible here). The levels of IGF1 mRNA were elevated in our patient group (correct nomenclature for human genes). The serum IGF1 levels were elevated in the transgenic mice (here, it is clear that the protein is being referred to; capitals are appropriate in this case, even though the species is mouse, because it is the correct nomenclature for the mouse protein). Summary These are just a few of the most common errors made by non-native English-speaking authors in their scientific writing. There are of course many more that cant be dealt with here, but they all have the same result: a loss of clarity and/or introduction of ambiguity. If you apply the three Cs when writing your next paper, with an awareness of some of the traps that can lead to ambiguities or a loss of clarity, you will automatically improve your chances of getting your study published. If you also focus on removing any repetition and redundancy, and apply attention to detail to ensure that your meaning is clearly conveyed in each sentence, you will increase them further. As a general rule, it is a good idea to keep sentences simple, using shorter expressions wherever possible, rather than long, complicated and confusing. The slogan for the Beijing Olympics was One world, One dream; when it comes to scientific writing you should think One sentence, One idea. The simplest solution is always the best. Exercise Look at your most recent paper written in English and try to identify some of the errors described above. Post these examples on the forum as well as your suggested solutions to them. I look forward to seeing your efforts to correct these problems by applying the three Cs, and will offer comments on your solutions as well as offering a few of my own. Good luck! 练习 请各位检查一下近期自己写过的英语论文，回顾文中是否存在上述列举的错误。欢迎各位积极贴出典型的错误例句以及建议的修改方法，也期待大家应用上面说到的三C标准来纠正这些错误。我将逐一对大家修改好的例句进行回复，并列举出我自己遇到的此类问题。祝各位好运！ 在这里还需提请各位注意，Dr. McGowan 的母语是英语，无法阅读中文，因此请大家尽量使用英文回帖，如有任何需要与他沟通的学术和语言问题也请使用英语，Dr. McGowan 会及时回复大家的。 Dr. Daniel McGowan 曾任 Nature Reviews Neuroscience 副编辑，负责约稿，管理和撰写期刊内容。于2006年加入理文编辑（Edanz Group） 并从2008年起担任学术总监。Dr. Daniel McGowan 有超过十年的博士后和研究生阶段实验室研究经验，主要致力于神经退化疾病、分子及细胞生物学、蛋白质生物化学、蛋白质组学和基因组学。
标签: 语法
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