4. The use of optical character reader (OCRs) should cut down the number of problems with the U.S. mail service.
5. Researchers have found out that this drug has serious side effects.
6. Building a nuclear power plant will not get rid of the energy problem completely.
7. Researchers have been looking into this problem for 15 years now.
8. This issue was brought up during the investigation.
9. Engineers can come up with better designs using CAD.
10. The emission levels have been going up and down.
VI. Audience
Task 6. Consider the following statements. For whom were they written? What are the differences between the two?
1a. Thermal system is a very broad field involving many separate fields of engineering.
1b. Thermal system is an interdisciplinary field which involves the traditional disciplines of thermodynamics, mass transfer, and chemical kinetics.
Now consider the following. For whom were these written? What are the differences between the two?
2a. Inflation is an abnormal increase in available currency and credit, resulting in a rise in price levels.
2b. An abnormal increase in available currency and credit, resulting in a rise in price levels is called inflation.
Now write a one-sentence definition of a term in your field for two different audiences: one will be students in a totally unrelated field, while the other consists of fellow-students in your own program. Discuss in class how your definitions differ.
VII. Structure
Task 7. Match the question with a title.
VIII. Spelling
Task 8. Find the mistakes.
I have a spelling checker,
It came with my PC.
It plainly marks four my revue
Mistakes I cannot sea.
I’ve run this poem threw it,
I’m sure your please to no.
It’s letter perfect in it’s weigh,
My checker tolled me sew.
(Source unknown)
Task 9. Consider eleven pieces of advice from the list below. Place a check mark (V) before the five most important of them (in your opinion) for a writer of academic texts.
1. Use correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
2. Write in an objective, neutral manner.
3. Accurately use the terminology of your discipline.
4. Ensure that your language is rich enough.
5. Write in an academic style, avoid colloquial language, jargon, and slang.
6. Arrange your ideas in a strict logical order.
7. Pay special attention to the introduction of your text.
8. Incorporate visual support (tables, diagrams, graphs) for your ideas.
9. Cite leading papers in your field.
10. Think about the general presentation (chapters, sub-chapters, paragraphs, etc.) of your text.
11. Pay special attention to the conclusion of your text.
Task 10. Here is a list of ten features characteristic of academic writing, five of them are relatively prominent in Anglo-American research texts. Try to find these features in the list.
1. Impersonal style of writing (i.e., without using the personal pronouns "I" or "we").
2. Intensive use of logical connectors (words like "therefore" or "however").
3. Heavy load of terminology and specialized jargon.
4. High degree of formal text structuring (i.e., division of the text into sections and subsections with appropriate headings).
5. Tendency to cite and to include into the lists of references the most recent publications in the field.
6. Frequent occurrence of the phrases which provide reference to the text itself (e.g., "This paper discusses …").
7. Use of long sentences with complicated grammar.
8. Strong emphasis on generalizations and highly theoretical issues.
9. Frequent use of footnotes and long remarks in parentheses.
10. Tendency to follow a certain pattern of textual organization (e.g., problem-solution).
Home assignment:
Academic Vocabulary in Use Unit 1.
Lesson 2. Noun
There are many more nouns than any other part of speech. Since nouns are numerous types in English, you are constantly having to make decisions. For example, you may have to decide if a noun requires a capital letter or not. You may also have to decide if a noun should be in the plural form, and if so, how to form the plural. Most important, in English, you will have to decide if a noun can be counted or not. This distinction can affect of the grammar of a sentence, including which quantity words can occur with a noun.
A. Nouns can be classified as follows:
B. Proper Nouns and Capitalization
1. Use proper nouns for the names of specific people or things, including names of countries, languages, nationalities, cities, oceans, rivers, lakes, MI mins, parks, buildings, stores, schools, religions, historical periods of events, styles of art and architecture, months, holidays, and days of week.
2. Always use a capital letter with a proper noun.
My birthday is і a June.
Henry Wright went to Columbia University last September to study French.
Д When a proper noun is accompanied by the definite article the, do not capitalize the article unless it is the first word of the sentence or the first word of a title, such as the title of a book or movie.
The Thames runs through London, past the Houses of Parliament.
3. Use a capital letter with adjectives derived from proper nouns.
She is wearing a sari made of Indian silk.
Capital letters are not used for areas of study (unless you name a specific course), relatives (unless you name a specific person), seasons, or centuries.
He finds biology fascinating. She is taking Biology 101 this semester.
My uncle met me after school. I saw Uncle Jack in the diner.
I can't wait for spring.
She was born in the middle of the twentieth century.
4. Nouns that do not name unique one-of-a-kind places, people, or objects are called “common nouns" Do not use a capital letter with a common noun unless іt is the first word of a sentence. Most nouns arc common nouns. Here are some typical common nouns: bird house happiness essay computer history'
Do not use a capital letter to emphasize a common noun or to suggest that it is important.
My Boss. Mr. Morris, Is giving his Assistant a big Raise.
Task 1. In the following sentences adapted from The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language, find the proper nouns and capitalize