Questions tagged [academia]
Questions related to academic English or English for academic purposes, i.e. the English used in higher education.
0
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2answers
42 views
“go too far” — suitable for academic writing?
I am revising the following sentence in an academic paper:
The de facto XXX seems to go too far and notably undermine the readability.
where XXX is a named of a new technique.
I feel like "go too ...
1
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1answer
79 views
Why do psychology researchers frequently misplace commas, in relationship to coordinating conjunctions? [closed]
If a comma belongs next to a coordinating conjunction, it should precede (see Should I use a comma before "and" or "or"?, https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/punctuation/...
0
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1answer
37 views
Past or present tense when reporting the views of another?
When reporting the views of another person, what tense should I use? Here are three fragments of a paragraph from a text I am currently writing:
"Another objection is that Friedman overestimates the ...
4
votes
4answers
406 views
Word describing multiple paths to the same abstract outcome
I am looking for a word I came across but forgot to note down. It describes that multiple pathways can lead to the same outcome — not in terms of physical paths but rather in terms of an abstract ...
0
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3answers
91 views
How to say “we thought about” in an academic way?
In the following sentence:
Since there are many row values at each step of the process, one approach we thought about is to aggregate all the row values into a single value
What is the alternative ...
2
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3answers
47 views
The term for caring more about problems that you see as directly affecting yourself
What is the term for the tendency to care more about problems that we perceive as directly affecting us? Or, relatedly, the tendency to show more empathy for people's problems when we perceive the ...
-1
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2answers
55 views
What is the best phrase to tell students that they should get a worksheet from the board? [closed]
I work as a teacher. I created several worksheets that I pinned to the board right across my door. I want students to pick up as many of them as they need so that they can study at home. What is the ...
0
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1answer
16 views
Word request: multi-context-type
I use "multi-context-type device" to name the "device" that works in different modes for different types of context. For example, type of context is like "classroom", "office", and context is like "...
0
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1answer
54 views
Academic word for “squabbler” [closed]
I'm looking for a word to use in an academic proposal that conveys the idea that the individuals are fighting, potentially violently, and immaturely (optional component of the meaning) and should be ...
1
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0answers
46 views
interplay between vs. among vs. of — best option?
In an academic paper, I would like to say that "I explore the interplay "between/among/of" (A) the representation of love in The Great Gatsby and (1) modern conceptions of love, (2) Biblical ...
0
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2answers
90 views
What does this sentence mean? “…in order to cope with the mass character of the gazes of tourists as opposed to the individual character of travel.”
Well, I read an article in terms of tourism and need to translate it but I have no idea what is this sentence is about.
A substantial proportion of the population of modern societies engages in ...
0
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1answer
74 views
Using the Latin phrase 'ante Christum natum' in an English sentence
The phrase ante Christum natum translates to 'before the birth of Christ,' and Wikipedia says it is the (likely outdated) Latin equivalent to BC, in the same way post Christum natum is the equivalent ...
2
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2answers
112 views
English equivalent of Greek “στο πτυχίο”
I am looking for a translation to the Greek "επι πτυχίω" or "στο πτυχίο". The meaning of the phrase is that an undergraduate student has completed the necessary semesters in order to graduate but ...
0
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1answer
26 views
Is pan-project a word?
In order to refer to something across all the sub-projects or areas of the project.
What else could be one-word or an efficient way of saying, "You are going to work pan-project"?
2
votes
1answer
90 views
“increase of” vs. “increase in” in connection with abstract quantities
I'm aware of two other questions with a similar title (here and here), but I'm not sure they answer my specific question.
An editor of a journal has changed
The observed increase of x ...
to
...
0
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2answers
856 views
“What is more”, “What's more” too informal for academic writing?
A coauthor of mine used the expression "what's more" in a scientific paper. My gut feeling was that this is not a commonly used expression in formal writing, but I could not find clear evidence for ...
0
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1answer
28 views
What are alternatives of “a better way” in academic writing?
I want to say "A better way to analyse the .. is to understand its underlying structure". What are the alternatives to saying a better way?
2
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0answers
183 views
How to say “In order to keep a smooth reading” in a good academic way? [closed]
I'm currently writing my (math) thesis. Some properties of the objects I'm studying are used often and are relatively elementary. So, I would like to state them once and then avoiding referring to ...
1
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0answers
351 views
How to describe 'Mutual Benefits' in academic terms in the following?
I am writing a proposal for a joint collaboration with a University in Singapore. I aim to use their facilities to gain hands-on experience.
In the following, the excerpt from my proposal is ...
0
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3answers
329 views
What is the better way of saying “a few dozens of seconds”?
I want to say "wait for about 30 to 40 seconds and then execute the command", in an academic context. I'm using this sentence now but I think it is not good.
after a few dozens of seconds activate ...
0
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1answer
31 views
“…is checked if it is…” [closed]
I'm writing a scientific thesis in English but I'm not a native speaker.
I think this sentence is correct, but I am not sure (that's why I ask this here rather than in "Writing") and I think it does ...
0
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0answers
47 views
Semantics of “a criminology of X”?
I want to know if my understanding of the semantics is correct here.
Normally, criminology is the study of crime, as a sub-field of sociology (and other areas) which is the study of society. If you ...
0
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0answers
25 views
Should I write “a n-tuple” or “an n-tuple” [duplicate]
While writing a math paper, I have met many places to determine which indefinite articles should I use before a math symbol. Another example is "a/an f-exceptional divisor", here f is a math symbol ...
2
votes
6answers
194 views
What is the adjective to describe research approaches lacking theory proof?
When I write an academic paper and describe one of the previous researches, I found that the method is only based on the authors' own claims and lacks theory proof.
I am looking for a weak and ...
0
votes
1answer
31 views
Can a faculty be based on area1 and area2?
I've been writing a motivation letter for a grad school. The faculty I'm applying to is a "The Faculty of Computer Science and Mathematics". I want to emphasize that it is an interdisciplinary faculty ...
1
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1answer
57 views
Scientific Writing: Acceptance of “one does”?
Essentially what the title says: Are formulations like "To determine the unknowns one employs the following conditions" acceptable for scientific writing? My professor insists that sentences like this ...
0
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1answer
22 views
empathetic eye or the eye of an insider? [closed]
I am a student going abroad from a developing country to study in a developed one for 2 years already. Now i am looking for research job in the developed countries. Regarding migration of labor, can I ...
0
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0answers
44 views
Is “top-of-the-line” or specific forms of compound adjective colloquial? Any general rule?
I am asking this question in the context of writing an academic paper. I am thinking if there exists a general rule regards to judging whether a compound adjective is colloquial, and, in this instance,...
0
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1answer
49 views
Does this sentence sound correct?
I'm unsure if this sentence is grammatically sound and successfully conveys what I intend to say. I am particularly unsure about the use of the word "Which" and "malice. The clause where I talk about ...
1
vote
0answers
61 views
Can I end a sentence with “is”? [duplicate]
I am writing a research paper and intend to write this sentence :
Even a cursory reading of the news reveals how grossly inaccurate that assumption is.
Is that an accurate and appropriate ...
-1
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1answer
16k views
Other word for negative impact [closed]
Can anyone give me a scholarly term that describes "negative impact"? It's for a title: the negative impact of colonialism on mentality
0
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0answers
56 views
Necessary to include abbreviation for really common terms
I am in the process of writing an academic paper in the field of corporate finance. I am wondering if it is necessary to introduce the abbreviation EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, ...
1
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0answers
95 views
Use of numbered lists in running text [closed]
I am reviewing a doctoral thesis/dissertation where the author has a tendency to make statements where several different alternatives are given:
... These processes may occur in two different ways: ...
2
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2answers
441 views
Is it proper to use iff to denote if and only if in academic writing (papers)?
if and only if (shortened iff) is a biconditional logical connective between statements. Is it proper to use iff to denote if and only if in academic writing (papers)?
2
votes
3answers
58 views
Adjective for combining some lower dimensional objects to form a higher dimensional object
Are there some English words that describe the dimension of objects changed, by combining some lower dimensional objects to form a higher dimensional object. For example, from the lower dimensional ...
0
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1answer
196 views
Using imaginary word “Hamletian” in AP Engish Literature annotated bibliography [closed]
I was considering creating the word "Hamletian," meaning "of Hamlet," for use in an annotated bibliography, because I like the sound of "Hamletian criticism" much more than "criticism of Hamlet." It ...
0
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1answer
98 views
Does the word “teacher” sound childish at university?
There is a distinction between the way students refer to teachers in high school and at university in my country and the former way sounds very childish. So, I was just wondering if it is the same in ...
0
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3answers
56 views
Adjectives for when there is a lot writing or very little writing on a topic [closed]
When talking about "a literature" or a body of research, what are adjectives to contrast a literature with lots of work, versus one with little work?
I'm thinking of something like "a broad ...
2
votes
2answers
44 views
Correct formatting of quote which includes a description of speaker and where quote was spoken [closed]
I am trying to begin a paper with a quote but the person is really only known to people within a certain background so I want to include more information than: person + where quote was spoken.
Just ...
2
votes
2answers
207 views
What do you call someone who studies Russia?
This is my first post and I was wondering what do you call someone who studies Russia For a living like has an academic researcher or Scholar. A sentence would be I work has a -word-. Thanks in ...
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0answers
1k views
“novel findings” vs. “new findings” in academic paper
I quite often read academic papers that report "novel findings" or "novel insights". But I wonder how this differs from simply writing "new findings" or "new insights".
Is the word somehow more ...
1
vote
2answers
987 views
Comma or semicolon before “see [reference]”
Motivated by this question on [academia.se]: a copy-editor changed the semicolon in
This can be proved via the method of Gauss; see [1].
to a comma.
Is the version with a comma grammatically ...
1
vote
2answers
8k views
Formal way to say “from scratch”?
I want to write something along the lines of:
For the purposes of this study, X was developed from scratch.
But the "scratch" here doesn't sound very formal, does it?
Is "from the ground up" any ...
5
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4answers
3k views
Passive voice in academic writing; why is it not recommended? [duplicate]
When writing academic papers in English I use three different spelling and proofreading tools: Word, Grammarly, and Ginger. In the settings of all these tools, I specify that the document is an ...
-4
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4answers
270 views
Digestibly Explain Academic Literature Concept: A “message” is “relationship between 2 sets” where 1 set must be “ordered,” and the other “unordered” [closed]
I am trying to convert some pretty dense academic literature into a way that anyone could understand. I'm stuck on this one way in which they describe how a message works. Or how a language is used. ...
4
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4answers
625 views
Academic name for graphs which curve like a bridge
These are the images of the graphs I want to know the academic names:
I've googled and learnt that their names are Concave Down Curve and Concave Up Curve. However, I want to know if there are ...
45
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8answers
7k views
Why do the titles of scholarly works sometimes begin with the word “on”?
For example, one of the articles in volume 183 issue 1 (January 2016) of Annals of Mathematics is titled "On the fibration method for zero-cycles and rational points". Why not just call it "The ...
1
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1answer
692 views
Position of 'above' in a sentence [duplicate]
Context
I am writing a technical document about some piece of mathematics, the tone of which is intended to be formal and academic.
Question
Directly after a computation comes a sentence, in which I ...
0
votes
1answer
288 views
Is the expression “bring to light” considered cliché in academic | scientific writing? [closed]
I'd like to know if the expression "bring to light" used to mean to discover or reveal (http://www.dictionary.com/browse/bring--to--light) is considered cliché - or even tacky - in scientific writing?
...
4
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4answers
917 views
What does “business optional” mean?
A recent question at Academia SE elicited an answer that used the term "business optional":
In the corporate work environment it is quite common for things to not really be entirely optional. A ...
