【英語論文の書き方】第37回 同じ種類の名詞が続くとき冠詞は付けるべき?!

2017年3月9日 12時21分

前回の第36回では  
(1) %と℃は数値との間にスペースは必要か、不要か。
(2) ”the middle of”と"mid-”ではどちらがよりふさわしい表現か? 
(3) ”X or more”と ”more than X”の違い

を取り上げました。

今回の3つのテーマは…
(1) When should we repeat the article when referring to a series of items?
同じ種類の名詞が続くとき、冠詞はくりかえし付けるべきか?

(2) Take care not to use the slash mark when the meaning is “and.”
and の意味でスラッシュマーク(/)は使えません!

(3) Some informal expressions and their more formal equivalents
くだけた表現とより形式的な表現。論文でふさわしい表現を知っておきましょう。




 

QUALITY REVIEW (Issue No.27)

The first topic we cover in this issue is related to the difficult subject of articles; specifically, the use of articles when referring to a series of items. We then look at the correct use of the slash mark, and conclude with some examples of informal expressions together with their formal equivalents that are more appropriate in scientific writing.

(1) When should we repeat the article when referring to a series of items?

As you probably know, when referring to a series of items, we generally only use an article once, before the first item (e.g., “an X, Y, and Z”; “the X, Y, and Z”). There are exceptions to this rule, however. If the individual items are accompanied by descriptive expressions or the sentence is complicated, we might repeat the article each time to improve the clarity of the sentence.
Here are some examples to illustrate this point:
(a) “We studied the temperature, air pressure, and humidity in January.”
— In this simple series of items we only use the once, before the first item.
(b) “We studied the temperature in January, the associated air pressure, and the humidity for the same month.”
— Here, the items each have their own individual description, which makes the sentence slightly complicated. In order to ensure that the meaning is clearly expressed, it's better to repeat the article before each item.
 
If the items in a series need to be preceded by an indefinite article (a or an), because the items are being mentioned for the first time, etc., we use the appropriate article before the first item only. For example:
(c) “Buildings 1, 2, and 3 were designed to accommodate a high-, intermediate-, and low-pressure turbine, respectively.”
Here, we use a before high-, and this article is applicable to all three items despite the fact that we would normally use an before the word intermediate.
 
However, if a mixture of definite and indefinite articles is required, it’s better to insert the appropriate article before each item. For example:
(d) “We tested the conventional material, a newly developed material, and the control material.”
In this case, we can assume that the reader already knows about the conventional and control materials (so they are preceded by the definite article, the), but that the newly developed material is being mentioned for the first time and it is not defined in the context (so it is preceded by an indefinite article, a). 

(2) Take care not to use the slash mark when the meaning is “and.”

The slash (/), also known as the virgule, slant, solidus, or diagonal, is a punctuation mark that has various functions in English. Among these functions, one of the most important is to indicate “or.” For example:
  • up/down (meaning “up or down”)
  • on/off (meaning “on or off”)
Here is a sentence containing these expressions:
“Check the direction of the arrow (up/down) and select the power setting (on/off) accordingly.” In this type of expression, since it is impossible for something to be both up and down or both on and off at the same time (except perhaps in the field of quantum physics), the slash means “or.”
 
One problem that frequently appears in English scientific papers written by Japanese researchers is that the slash is incorrectly used to indicate “and.” If the meaning is “and,” a hyphen should be used instead of a slash. Here are two examples:
  • “The sample tray is designed to facilitate up/down movement.” (The meaning here is “up and down,” so a hyphen should be used instead of a slash; i.e., up-down.)
  • “This phenomenon occurs in the Kuroshio/Oyashio mixed water region.” (Water from the Kuroshio and Oyashio currents mixes together in this region, so a hyphen should be used instead of a slash here as well; i.e., the Kuroshio-Oyashio mixed water region.)
 
To summarize this point, when the intended meaning is X or Y, use a slash (e.g., the up/down direction, which indicates a state of being either up or down). On the other hand, when the intended meaning is X and Y, use a hyphen (e.g., up-down movement, which indicates a state of moving up and down in succession).

(3) Some informal expressions and their more formal equivalents

From time to time we review expressions that, while perfectly acceptable in informal contexts, are not suitable in scientific writing. Listed below are some further examples of such expressions together with their more formal equivalents. The informal expression is listed on the left in each case, and the arrow indicates the more formal equivalent expression(s) for use in scientific writing.
 
  • as for → with regard to, with respect to, etc. (e.g., “With regard to the other samples, we intend to study them in greater detail in the future.”)
  • pay(s) attention tofocus(es) on, examine(s), discuss(es), present(s), explore(s), report(s) on, etc. (e.g., “This article focuses on possible applications of the newly developed material.”)
  • quicklyrapidly (e.g., “The specimen was rapidly cooled.”)
  • stay(ed)remain(ed) (e.g., “Part of the substrate remained soft.”)
  • kind(s)type(s), variety/ies, form(s), etc. (e.g., “We examined various types of software available for this purpose.”)
  • choose/chose select(ed) (Both words are fine, but select has a slightly more sophisticated feeling; e.g., “We selected the magnet with the highest coercivity.”)
 
 
Sincerely yours,
 
Bob Gavey
For World Translation Services, Inc.

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第1回 if、in case、when の正しい使い分け:確実性の程度を英語で正しく表現する
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigoronbunwriting-1/index.html
 
第2回 「装置」に対する英語表現
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigoronbun-equipment/index.html
 
第3回 助動詞のニュアンスを正しく理解する:「~することが出来た」「~することが出来なかった」の表現
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigoronbun3/index.html
 
第4回 「~を用いて」の表現:by と with の違い
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigoronbun-writing4/index.html
 
第5回 技術英文で使われる代名詞のitおよび指示代名詞thisとthatの違いとそれらの使用法
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第7回 原因・結果を表す動詞の使い方:その2 結果→原因
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigoronbun-kekka/index.html
 
第8回 受動態の多用と誤用に注意
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigoronbun-writing8/index.html
 
第9回 top-heavyな英文を避ける
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigoronbun-topheavy/index.html
 
第10回 名詞の修飾語を前から修飾する場合の表現法
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigo-ronbun10/index.html
 
第11回 受動態による効果的表現
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigo-ronbun11/index.html
 
第12回 同格を表す接続詞thatの使い方
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigo-ronbun12/index.html
 
第13回 「技術」を表す英語表現
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigo-ronbun13/index.html
 
第14回 「特別に」を表す英語表現
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigo-ronbun14/index.html
 
第15回 所有を示すアポストロフィー + s ( ’s) の使い方
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第17回 寸法や重量を表す表現
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http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigo-ronbun19/index.html
 
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第24回 理由を表す表現

http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigo-ronbun24/index.html

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第26回 「研究開発」を表す英語表現
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigo-ronbun26/index.html

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第28回 「時制-現在形の動詞の使い方」
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigo-ronbun28/index.html

第29回  then, however, therefore, for example など接続副詞の使い方
​http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigo-ronbun29/index.html

第30回  まちがえやすいusing, based onの使い方-分詞構文
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第31回  比率や割合の表現(ratio, rate, proportion, percent, percentage)
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigo-ronbun31/index.html

第32回 英語論文の書き方 総集編
http://worldts.com/english-writing/eigo-ronbun32/index.html

第33回 Quality Review Issue No. 23 report, show の時制について
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第34回 Quality Review Issue No. 24 参考文献で日本語論文をどう記載すべきか
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