遣词用句

下面是哈佛科学写作网站上介绍的用词上的注意事项，比如不要用“very”，不要用“prove”，不要“拟人”，不要用被动语态，等等，都非常实用。

下面是原文：

使用简单准确的语言

DO

• 使用更简单的词，除非它们缺乏精确性 [2]

  • For example, “use” instead of “utilize,” “support” instead of “substantiate,” “agree” instead of “in accordance with,” etc.

• 了解 “between” 和 “among” 的区别

  • Use “between” for two things.

  • Use “among” for three or more things.

• 了解 “fewer” and “less” 的区别

  • Use the word “fewer” when you are describing a discrete quantity.

    There are fewer participants in Study 1 than Study 2.

  • Use the word “less” when you are describing a continuous quantity.

    There is less water in solution A than solution B.

DON’T

• Don’t use “who” and “whom” to refer to animals; use those terms only for people.

• Don’t use “though” as the informal short form of “although.” [2]

使用直接陈述（direct statement）并避免模棱两可（ambiguity）

DO

• 尽可能使用主动语态。 [6]

  • NO: “It was observed that the solution turned red.”
  • YES: “The solution turned red.”

  • YES: “We observed that the solution turned red.”

  • NO: The force is counteracted by gravity.
  • YES: Gravity acts to counteract the force.

• 使用 “only” 时，仔细考虑它在句子中的位置。“only” 应尽可能靠近它所修饰的单词或短语。

  • For example: “I only study at the library” means you do not do anything other than study at the library (“only” modifies “study”). “I study only at the library” means you do not study anywhere else (“only” modifies “at the library”).

  • Compare the two statements below: “This asymmetry could mean that only one active site has optimal contacts to the ATP×Mg2+ …” “This asymmetry could only mean that one active site has optimal contacts to the ATP×Mg2+ …”

  • In the first example, which is from Procko et al. (2006), the authors explain that the asymmetry might mean that there is just one rather than many active sites with optimal contacts. In the second example, which is not actually in the article, the authors would appear to be expressing with great confidence that there is just one explanation for what the asymmetry means.

DON’T

• “this” 后面一定要跟一个名词。所指对象必须始终清晰。 [6]

  • NO: “This leads us to conclude”

  • YES: “This observation leads us to conclude”

• 不要让比较不完整。 [6]

  • NO: “The yield was higher using bromine.”

  • YES: “The yield was higher using bromine than chlorine.”

• 不要使用 “very” 这个词，因为 “very” 是不可量化的。 [5]

• 不要使用 “attempt（尝试）” 这个词，因为它听起来好像你不确定自己在做什么。 [5]

  • 在研究论文中，你做事（do thing）。 “You might be more or less successful at doing those things, but don’t weasel-word it.”

避免使用信念、夸张或引用来进行说服 （Avoid Using Beliefs, Exaggerations, Or Quotes To Persuade）

DON’T

• 除非您绝对需要准确地（exactly）捕捉（capture）一位作者的原话，否则不要引用。

  • 只有在极少数情况下，您可能会引用。比如您需要提供精确定义（precise definition），或需要记录（document）您打算挑战的一个挑衅性的陈述（provocative statement）或特定的解释（specific interpretation）。 [See: Paraphrasing]

• 不要使用“prove（证明）”这个词。 [2]

  • 在科学中，你不能“prove（证明）”一个假设。您是在测试（test）假设，数据或者支持，或不支持该假设。

• 不要撰写社论（editorialize）或使用情绪化的（emotionally-laden）术语；相反，让事实说话（let the facts you present speak for themselves）。 [2]

  • NO: The author’s claim is ridiculous.

  • YES: The findings were not significant and, thus, do not support the author’s claim.

  • NO: Unfortunately, the two groups were not significantly different.
  • YES: The two groups were not significantly different.

避免个性化和拟人化 （Avoid Personalization & Personification）

DON’T

• 不要使用隐喻（metaphors）或华丽的（flowery）语言，这可能会混淆（obscure）你的意思并使读者感到困惑。

  • NO: If the object is denser than the medium, it sinks like a stone. If it is less dense than the medium, it rises like a balloon.

  • YES: “The object sinks down if it is denser than the medium, and rises up if it is less dense.” [6]

• 如果进行生物学的科学写作，不要拟人化分子或细胞（Don’t personify molecules or cells.）

  • NO: The ligand grabs hold of the receptor.

  • YES: The ligand binds with the receptor.

  • NO: The growth factor tells the cell to divide.
  • YES: The binding of the growth factor initiates cell division.

• 在提及分子或细胞时不要使用所有格。

  • NO: the gene’s sequence; the protein’s structure
  • YES: the gene sequence; the protein structure

提供准确、具体和可量化的信息（Present Accurate, Specific, And Quantifiable Information）

DO

• 仅在你想要在真正的统计意义上表达时，才使用“significantly”一词。 [4]

  • If you do mean statistically significant, then you need to back it up quantitatively.

• 使用“我（I）”表示单个作者的作品，使用“我们（we）”表示两个或多个作者。[5]

• 首次使用首字母缩写词和符号（acronyms and symbols）时，给出定义。 [4]

  • 在定义它们之后，在论文的其余部分只使用首字母缩略词和符号。

• 确保所有数字都有单位。 [4]

• 报告数量时，在整篇论文中保持一致。 [4]

  • 例如，不要在一个地方显示一个数量的精确版本，然后在另一个地方将该数量四舍五入到最接近的 100。

DON’T

• 不要使用“insignificant”一词来描述在统计上不显着的发现。

  • 相反，写下这个发现是 “not significant.”

使用正确的格式和词性（Use Correct Formatting & Parts Of Speech）

DO

• 拼出 10 以下的数字，除非它是带单位的数字。

  • YES: Model variables fell into four major groups.

  • YES: Cells were incubated in blocking buffer for 2 hr.

• 拼出句子开头的任何数字。 [2]

  • YES: Twenty-four participants completed the survey.

  • YES: “Five mM EDTA was added to the buffers.”

  • 注意：第二个例子看起来有点别扭，所以当你有一个带有单位的数字时，最好想办法改写句子，使它不以数字开头。例如，“EDTA (5 mM) was added to the buffers.”

• 写出学名（scientific names）时使用正确的格式。

  • 生物的学名由两个词组成：属名和种名。属名总是大写，种加词从不大写。这两个词都是斜体。例如， Homo sapiens, Cavia porcellus, Streptococcus pyogenes, and Toxicodendron radicans.

DON’T

• Don’t use the “editorial we” to refer to people in general; instead specify the meaning of “we.”

  • NO: “When we have a growth mindset …”

  • YES: “When college students have a growth mindset …”

• Don’t use “we” to avoid using “I” to refer to yourself.

  • YES: Use “I” if you are the only author on the paper. “I hypothesized that …”

  • YES: Use “we” in your papers if you are referring to you and your collaborators. “We investigated the behavior …”

• Don’t use nouns as adjectives. [6]

  • NO: “ATP formation; reaction product”

  • YES: “formation of ATP; product of the reaction”

参考文献

[1] Carson, S. H., Fama, J., Clancy, K, Ebert, J., & Tierney, A. (2012). Writing for psychology: A guide for psychology concentrators. Harvard University.

[2] Gaudet, R. (n.d.). General writing advice [Course handout]. Harvard University.

[3] Hoffman, J. E. (2019). How to write a paper and format it using LaTex [Course handout]. Harvard University.

[4] Morris, J., Jehn, T, Vaughan, C., Pantages, E., Torello, T., Bucheli, M., Lohman, D., Lue, R. (2007). A student’s guide to writing in the life sciences (2nd ed.). Harvard University.

[5] Seltzer, M. (n.d.). 101 (or thereabouts) of Margo’s pet peeves in the writing of research papers. 网页链接

[6] Whitesides, G. M. (2004). Whitesides’ group. Writing a Paper. Advanced Materials, 16(15), 1375-1377.

参考链接

• 做与不做（dos & donts）, 网页链接