JAZYKOVÁ KOMPETENCE I Session II Grammar and vocabulary for academic writing Task 1 Passive voice In academic writing the passive is often used to maintain the focus on the topic of the essay or article. Using the passive sounds more natural when the focus is on the action, idea, or event being described, rather than who or what carries it out. Compare: Active: We often refer to poorer countries as ´developing countries´. Passive: Poorer countries are often referred to as ´developing countries´. Task: Rewrite the sentences using the verb phrases in italics in the passive: 1. We can illustrate the idea by the situation of local club managers. …………………………………………………………………………… 2. Many people think of professional sport as an attractive domain. ……………………………………………………………………………. 3. We can find examples of gender inequality in many sports. …………………………………………………………………………….. 4. You should note that vegetarian diet does not necessarily mean healthy diet. ………………………………………………………………………………. 5. They should take into account social conditions as well as the economic situation. ……………………………………………………………………………….. 6. They have discovered a new anti-inflammatory drug. ………………………………………………………………………………. 7. Researchers developed a new technique for data processing. ……………………………………………………………………………….. 8. Researchers are developing a new technique for data processing. ………………………………………………………………………………… Task 2 Countable and uncountable nouns Countable nouns can be "counted", they have a singular and plural form. For example: a student – two students. Many, few, a few, those, these students. The students are interns. Uncountable nouns have only one form. This means you cannot make them plural by adding -s, because they only have a singular form. It also means that they do not take a/an or a number in front of them. For example: information – some information, a piece of information, a little/ little, much, this, that information. The information is accurate. Please, notice that some uncountable nouns are countable in Czech and so they will cause special difficulty. Here are some of the most common ones: Absence Advice Equipment Evidence Experience Information Knowledge Money News Permission Research Please notice also that some words in English form irregular plural, for example a means – means a species – species a series – series a phenomenon – ……………………. an analysis – …………………… hypothesis – …………………… Some nouns end in –s but are uncountable and take a singular verb, for example: Gymnastics is difficult. Maths is a compulsory subject. A) Study the following examples and notice the use of nouns, either uncountable or irregular. Some people have the perception that scientific knowledge equates to 'the truth'. This information has many implications in the field of neurology. Advice regarding foot care should be provided to reduce disease progression. We are worried about the child´s lack of progress in learning. There are many ways of teaching coaches to deal with problem behaviour. Recent research shows that babies in the womb can be influenced by music. Can you give us any more evidence? This evidence is not very reliable. The Internet is an effective means for finding qualified job applicants. These phenomena occur during early foetal development. It was a series about a hospital. The news is very hopeful. They believe that much of our unhappiness as a species can be seen in the increasing rates of many psychological disorders. (sentences adapted from the British Academic Written English Corpus) B) Choose the correct form of the verb. 1. Our knowledge of the subject is / are limited. 2. The new research is / are based on reliable data. 3. The money is / are insufficient. 4. Results of the investigation is / are surprising. 5. Advice for parents is / are needed. 6. First-hand experience in a hospital is / are invaluable. 7. The phenomena she studied is / are very complex. 8. The analyses is / are very detailed. 9. This species is / are threatened with extinction. 10. Athletics is / are slightly more popular than physics. Task 3 Academic vocabulary A) Explain the difference between the sentences in each pair. 1. Graig´s article supports Park´s theory. Graig´s article challenges Park´s theory. 2. Describe the new tax regulations. Discuss the new tax regulations. 3. Lodhi provides new data. Lodhi considers new data. 4. Titova conducted four sets of experiments. Titova examined four sets of experiments. 5. Lee established why such changes occur. Lee investigated why such changes occur. 6. Okaz assumed that the data were reliable. Okaz proved that the data were reliable. (McCarthy, M.; O´Dell, F. Academic Vocabulary In Use. Cambridge University Press, 2008.) B) Complete the two thesis statements with suitable verbs: 1. Firstly, I ………………………….. the social and economic reasons why it is important to teach traditional subjects at university. 2. This essay ………………………… the importance of science, medicine, and technology in today´s globalised economy. C) Collocations Read all the sentences in each section and choose a word from below which best collocates to every sentence in the group. factor research area theory performance Group 1. _______________ She was able to maintain a high level of … over the last ten years. The author explains how sports science support can help to improve athletic … The team put in an excellent … at the Olympics. We achieved the highest … rating of three stars from the Healthcare Commission. The use of …. – enhancing drugs is commonly referred to as doping. Use a sport test to measure and track your…! Group 2 ___________ Addictions affect various …s of a person´s life. The study of Sport Science traditionally incorporates …s of physiology, psychology, motor control and biomechanics, but also includes topics such as nutrition and diet, sports technology, anthropometry and performance analysis. All instructors are well qualified to teach their …s of expertise. The evaluation also identified specific …s where further development was required. The course covers two main subject … s. There 's also a play … for the children in the facility. Group 3 ________________ They are carrying out original .. into the psychological and intellectual effects of physical education upon the total development of the child. Dr. Elliott's groundbreaking … on NFL hamstring injuries has recently been published by the American Journal of Sports Medicine. Recent scientific …has shown a link between poor oral health and other conditions such as heart and lung disease. It can be seen that both quantitative and qualitative methodologies do have strengths for sports fan … Most … in the field has concentrated on the effects on adult athletes. One paper based on … conducted at Oxford suggested that the drug may cause brain damage. Group 4 _____________ Penalty kicks are the new deciding … in football matches. Studies have established that smoking is a risk … for cancer.. Look for the common …in all these cases. The outcome will depend on a number of …. The findings of this study add value to the field by identifying …s contributing to coaching effectiveness. Orthopedics Medical Article: Behaviour, the Key … for Sports Injury Prevention. Group 5 ___________ Dr. Smith put forward the popular … of madness. She draws a distinction between … and practice. In … these machines should last for ten years. Data that challenges the original … forces the researcher to re-consider their position. The germ … has been refuted by many researchers. Having completed task C fill in this table with collocations for the nouns listed. verb adjective noun athletic performance to carry out research to put forward theory a specific area a contributing factor