Academic Grammar and Punctuation

Academic writing is a distinct genre of writing with its own rules and conventions. The areas widely covered in the textbooks available in Ukraine do not consider peculiarities of academic style of writing as far as there are no special rules lying outside English grammar in general.

Word order

While in Ukrainian there is no strict word order, a normal English declarative sentence has the following structure, with the subject preceding the predicate:

subject+predicate+object+adverbial modifiers

There are, however, additional rules. Most important of them are given below:

1. Adjectives are used before the noun that they modify in the following order: a) general description, opinion; b) size, shape, condition; c) colour; d) origin; e) purpose, type. For example:

A nice small brown French writing table.

Old red Spanish home-made wine.

2. Adverbs of manner (that answer the question "how") are usually placed after the verb in the final position. However, in academic style, the middle position is preferable.

GENERAL USE: He studied the problem thoroughly.

ACADEMIC USE: He thoroughly studied the problem.

3. Adverbs and conjunctions referring to the whole sentence are placed at the beginning:

Nevertheless, it turned out that the experiment failed.

Finally, I will consider the applicability of the obtained data.

The word order may be inverted (i.e. a word will be moved out of its usual position in a sentence) in the following cases:

1. In some negative sentences (clauses):

We do not assume that the necessary data will be obtained nor do we assume a priori that the experiment will be successful.

In no case does this offer imply any obligation.

2. In unreal conditionals:

Were the truth known, public opinion would change.

Had the data been thoroughly checked, the project would not have been declined.

3. For emphasis:

Much more impressive are the obtained numeric data.

Punctuation

When speaking, we can pause or change the tone of our voices to indicate emphasis. When writing, we use punctuation to indicate these places of emphases.

In English, commas are used much less frequently than in Ukrainian. The main rules of the use of commas that differ from the Ukrainian rules are as follows:

1. Do not separate with a comma (commas) identifying clauses (identify persons or things):

The water that we are using now is the very same water that the dinosaurs used millions years ago.

An online dictionary is useful for a student who needs to quickly check the meaning of unfamiliar words.

2. Separate with a comma (commas) non-identifying clauses:

The basic set of principles, which this book presents, allows the deviation of conclusions.

Dr. John Harris, who came on a research visit to our University, gave an interesting lecture.

3. Do not separate with a comma infinitival, participial, prepositional phrases, and adverbial clauses if they come at the end of the sentence:

You need the right kinds of food in the right amounts to have a healthy life.

The dominant culture sets the standards and norms for day-to-day living in many countries around the world.

4. Separate with a comma infinitival, participial, prepositional phrases, and adverbial clauses if they come at the beginning of the sentence.

To have a healthy life, you need the right kinds of food in the right amounts.

In many countries around the world, the dominant culture sets the standards and norms for day-to-day living.

5. Put a comma between two independent clauses if they are connected by and, but, or, nor, for, yet, so.

Lomonosov worked in many fields of science, but everywhere he brought something new and original leaving his century far behind.

6. Separate with a comma logical connectors at the beginning of the sentence:

For example, 148 million people worldwide are communicating across borders via Internet.

However, real language does not consist solely of questions from one party and answers from another.

7. Put a comma in case of enumeration in a series of 3 or more words and even if the last item is preceded by and:

Pollutants may be chemicals, industrial waste, and small particles of soil.

8. Put a comma after a person's family (last) name if it is written before the first name:

On a job application, one must write his/her last name first, e.g.: Roberts, David.

9. Put a comma in a direct quotation to separate the speaker's exact words from the rest of the sentence:

The widespread definition of clinical genetics is, "The science and practice of the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of genetic disease."

10. Full stops (periods) and commas should always be put inside the close of quotation marks (sometimes called inverted commas):

"Students," he writes, "should not be forbidden to study literature."

11. Use a comma in a date:

October 25, 1999

Monday, October 25, 1999

12. Use a comma in a personal title:

Pam Smith, PhD.

Mike Rose, Chief Financial Officer for Operations, reported the quarter’s earnings

13. Use a comma to separate a city name from the state (writing an address):

West Lafayette, Indiana

Dallas, Texas

Semicolon

1. Use a semicolon to join 2 independent clauses when the second clause restates the first or when the two clauses are of equal emphasis:

Road construction in Dallas has hindered travel around town; streets have become covered with bulldozers, trucks, and cones.

2. Use a semicolon to join elements of a series when individual items of the series already include commas:

Recent sites of the Olympic Games include Athens, Greece; Salt Lake City, Utah; Sydney, Australia; Nagano, Japan.

Colon

1. Use a colon to join 2 independent clauses when you wish to emphasize the second clause:

Road construction in Dallas has hindered travel around town: parts of Main, Fifth, and West Street are closed during the construction.

2. Use a colon after an independent clause when it is followed by a list, appositive (an appositive is a word that adds explanatory or clarifying information to the noun that precedes it), or other idea directly related to the independent clause:

I know a perfect job for her: a politician.

Julie went to the store for some groceries: milk, bread, coffee, and cheese.

3. Use a colon to separate the hour and minute(s) in a time notation:

12:00 p.m.

Dash

Dashes are used to set off or emphasize the content enclosed within dashes or the content that follows a dash:

Perhaps one reason why the term has been so problematic – so resistant to definition, and yet so transitory in those definitions – is because of its multitude of applications.

To some of you, my proposals may seem radical – even revolutionary.

Date: 2015-01-02; view: 1270