【英語論文の書き方】第53回　By 2020とup to 2020の違い論文翻訳・英文校正　研究者専門の翻訳会社　ワールド翻訳サービス

【英語論文の書き方】第53回　By 2020とup to 2020の違い

2018年2月6日 10時00分

第52回は次の３つのテーマ、
(1) Present vs. past tense in mathematical expressions
数式を含む文章は現在形と過去形を
どのように判断して使い分けるとよいか？
(2) Tenses when describing scenarios, modeling processes, projections, etc.
（1）に引き続き、概要やモデリングプロセスを記述する場合、
現在時制、過去時制、現在完了時制はどのように使い分けるのがよいか？
時制に対して苦手意識をお持ちの方も多いのですが、この記事ですっきりと頭の中を整理していただくことができると思います。
(3) Some informal expressions that should be avoided in scientific writing
科学論文では避けるべき表現をいくつかご紹介しました。論文としてふさわしくない表現をいくつも使ってしまっていると、それだけで読み手に与える印象が変わってしまいます。知っておけば避けられるものですので、ぜひ、チェックしておいてくださいね。

第53回の今回は
(1) By 2020 or up to 2020? Expressions related to years.
「年」にまつわる表現です。
By 2020 と up to 2020の違いにふれながら、「年」にまつわる表現を
ご紹介します。これは意外と多くの日本人が知らないポイントです。ぜひ、ご覧いただきたいと思います。

(2) Other expressions denoting periods of time or durations
期間を表す表現をいくつかご紹介します。
こちらも正しく使い分けることができないと紛らわしい誤解を招いてしまうことになるかもしれません。正確な表現の仕方を知っておくととても便利です。

(3) Techniques to avoid using a numeral at the beginning of a sentence
原則として英語の場合、文頭に数字を持ってくるべきではありません。
文頭に数字を持ってきたい場合、どのようにするとよいかをご紹介します。

QUARTERLY REVIEW (Issue No. 08)

In this review, first we look at various expressions related to years, then we turn our attention to other expressions related to periods or durations of time. We conclude with some suggestions about techniques to avoid using a numeral at the beginning of a sentence.

(1) By 2020 or up to 2020? Expressions related to years.

Expressions related to years occur frequently in scientific writing, especially in papers dealing with modeling or forecasting of future scenarios. Many Japanese researchers tend to write expressions such as in the year 2020. However, it is actually not necessary to write the year here, unless you feel that there might be some ambiguity in the text if the year were omitted.

Now let’s look at the different nuances created when we use various prepositions, which are often a cause of mistakes when writing about years.

(a) in
When we use the preposition in with a year, we are usually only talking about something occurring during that year itself. Take care not to use in when you really mean up to or by. For example:
“The model shows that CO₂ emissions will increase in 2020.”
This sentence looks wrong because it is extremely unlikely that a particular event will increase CO₂ emissions specifically in 2020. What the writer is probably intending to say is “up to 2020.”

(b) up to
This implies something occurring from the present time (or continuing from before the present time) that will probably stop occurring during or after the year mentioned. For example:
“The model shows that CO₂ emissions will increase up to 2020.”
The nuance created by using up to here is that the increase will no longer occur after 2020; that is, emissions will level off or perhaps decline in 2020 or from 2021 onward, unless an expression such as “and beyond” is added.

(c) by
The use of by usually indicates some form of target or deadline. The nuance that is often expressed when by is used is that something desirable will occur between now and the year mentioned, or that something undesirable will stop occurring. For example:
“The model shows that [the increase in] CO₂ emissions will level off by 2020.”

(2) Other expressions denoting periods of time or durations

Next, we examine some examples of expressions denoting a period of time or a duration during which something occurs.

(a) from . . . to . . .
The use of from … to . . . indicates that the occurrence being referred to will start (or continue to occur) in the first year mentioned, and will stop (or no longer be predictable or measurable) by the second year mentioned. For example:
“The model shows that CO₂ emissions will increase from 2020 to 2050.”
Hence, there is an emphasis on the beginning and ending points.

(b) between . . . and . . . / during the period . . .-. . .
When either of these two expressions is used, there is more emphasis on the overall period of time, rather than on the specific beginning and ending points. For example:
“The model shows that CO₂ emissions will increase between 2020 and 2050 / during the period 2020-2050.” (Note that we usually omit from in the latter expression; i.e., “the period 2020-2050,” not “the period from 2020-2050.”)
In this example, the increase might begin in, say, 2022 and level off by, say, 2049, so the beginning and ending years are not necessarily as specific as in the case of from … to . . . . However, it is also possible that the increase will, in fact, begin in 2020 and level off (or turn to a decrease) in 2050, so there are many cases in which expressions (a) and (b) are interchangeable.

(c) Expressions requiring extra care
The hyphen used in an expression such as 2020-2050 actually means to. Therefore, it would be incorrect to write “between 2020-2050,” because between is always used with and; we never say “between . . . to . . . .”
As regards the preposition during, I recommend using it only with an expression such as the period; e.g., “during the period 2020-2050.”
Although some language purists object to using in when referring to a whole period, most writers feel that such usage is acceptable; e.g., “in 2020-2050.”
My own preference in scientific texts is to use an expression such as “during the period 2020-2050” the first time the period is mentioned, then “in 2020-2050” thereafter.

(3) Techniques to avoid using a numeral at the beginning of a sentence

In principle, a sentence should not begin with a numeral. Therefore, if you want to begin a sentence by mentioning a year or a period, this is a situation in which you will need to write, say, “The year 2020” or “The period 2020-2050.” In cases other than years or periods, the number could be written in words instead of numerals; e.g., “Seventy-four percent of the respondents stated that. . . .” Alternatively, the order of the words could be changed so that the number appears in the middle of the sentence rather than at the beginning; e.g., “Among the respondents, 74% stated that. . . .”

As always, I hope that these hints are helpful to you. Keep up the good work!

Sincerely yours,

Bob Gavey
For World Translation Services, Inc.

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【英語論文の書き方】第53回 By 2020とup to 2020の違い 論文翻訳・英文校正 研究者専門の翻訳会社 ワールド翻訳サービス