English for Biomedical Scientists Ramón Ribes Palma Iannarelli Rafael F. Duarte

English for Biomedical Scientists Ramón Ribes Palma Iannarelli Rafael F. Duarte

Ramón Ribes Palma Iannarelli Rafael F. Duarte English for Biomedical Scientists

Ramón Ribes Palma Iannarelli Hospital Reina Sofia University College London Serv. Radiología Gower Street 14005 Córdoba London Spain United Kingdom WC1E 6BT Rafael F. Duarte Hospital Duran i Reynals Inst. Català d Oncologia Servicio de Hematología Clinica Av. Gan Via s/n km 2.7, 08907 Barcelona Spain ISBN: 978-3-540-77126-5 e-isbn: 978-3-540-77127-2 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-540-77127-2 Springer Dordrecht Heidelberg London NewYork Library of Congress Control Number: 2009926060 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2009 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilm or in any other way, and storage in data banks. Duplication of this publication or parts thereof is permitted only under the provisions of the German Copyright Law of September 9, 1965, in its current version, and permission for use must always be obtained from Springer. Violations are liable to prosecution under the German Copyright Law. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. Product liability: The publishers cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information about dosage and application contained in this book. In every individual case the user must check such information by consulting the relevant literature. Cover design: Estudio Calamar, F. Steinen-Broo, Pau/Girona, Spain Printed on acid-free paper Springer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com)

To my sister Carmen Ribes Bautista for always being there. Ramón Ribes To our son, who is a wonderful blend of our three cultures. Rafael F. Duarte & Palma Iannarelli

Preface Biomedical scientists wishing to improve their capacity to communicate effectively in scientific English can find a great abundance of texts on the topic, from standard textbooks on English grammar to more practical manuals on scientific writing. Why then, you may wonder, would anyone want to write yet another book about scientific English? The quick answer is that our book is the first one to be aimed at a different group of readers. Other books on scientific English are written exclusively by and for native English speakers. Even the books that have added occasional chapters or appendixes for the benefit of international readers take for granted that their readership s mother tongue is English. The reality is that this is not the case for virtually all international biomedical scientists working in non-english-speaking countries. Even so, they still need to communicate in scientific English on many occasions. Nor is it the case for a very significant percentage of biomedical scientists at early stages in their career training and working at leading universities and research centers in English-speaking countries. Our book is directed at all those international scientists who, in addition to developing their scientific skills, have to face the additional challenge of communicating and being competitive in a language that is not their own. Our book shares with you more than ten years of first-hand experience in various areas associated with the use of English for biomedical scientists. We, the authors, have faced the very challenge that the book describes in our own professional experience. The information contained in this book is as comprehensive as possible, but also presented in a practical, easy-to-read and understandable way with many examples. Some units cover somewhat more general topics on English grammar and English writing applied to biomedical sciences. Others deal with practical professional information such as résumé and cover-letter writing, attendance at international conferences, scientific presentations, or preparing for a successful job interview in English. Finally, there are units on technical aspects such as laboratory environment and writing, safety and biohazards, and animal work. This all-in-one comprehensive combination, with a focus on non-native-english-speaking scientists, makes this book unique. vii

viii Preface We welcome your comments and suggestions, critical or otherwise. They will form the basis for an improved next edition of this book. Write to us at englishbiomedscientists@yahoo.com Ramón Ribes Palma Iannarelli Rafael F. Duarte

Acknowledgments We would like to thank Rafael Duarte-Lesmes for the cartoons in Units XI and XIII. ix

Contents Unit I Methodological Approach to English for Biomedical Scientists Introduction... 3 Your First Exercise in English for Biomedical Scientists... 4 Structure of the Book.... 6 Unit II English Grammar Usage Tenses.... 11 Talking About the Present... 11 Talking About the Future.... 14 Talking About the Past.... 16 Modal Verbs.... 22 Expressing Ability... 23 Expressing Necessity... 24 Expressing No Necessity... 24 Expressing Possibility... 25 Expressing Certainty... 26 Expressing Permission.... 26 Expressing Obligation or Giving Advice.... 27 Conditionals... 27 Main Types of Conditional Sentences... 28 In Case... 30 Unless.... 30 As Long As, Provided (That), Providing (That)... 31 Passive Voice... 31 Passive Forms of Present and Past Tenses.... 32 Have/Get Something Done... 33 Supposed To.... 34 xi

xii Contents Reported Speech... 34 Reporting in the Present.... 34 Reporting in the Past... 35 Reporting Questions.... 36 Reporting Orders and Requests... 37 Reporting Suggestions and Advice... 37 Questions... 37 Tag Questions.... 39 Infinitive/-Ing... 39 Verb + -Ing... 39 Verb + Infinitive... 40 Verb + Preposition + -Ing.... 42 Countable and Uncountable Nouns... 43 Countable Nouns... 43 Uncountable Nouns... 43 Articles: A/An and The.... 44 Word Order... 46 Relative Clauses.... 47 Defining Clauses... 47 Non-defining Clauses.... 47 Relative Pronouns... 48 Prepositions in Relative Clauses... 49 Relative Clauses Without a Pronoun (Special Cases)... 49 Adjectives... 50 Adjective Order... 51 Regular Comparison of Adjectives... 51 The Superlative... 53 Irregular Forms of Adjectives... 54 Comparatives with The... 54 As... 54 Like and As.... 55 So and Such... 56 Prepositions... 56 At/On/In Time... 56 For, During, and While... 57 By and Until... 57 In/At/On... 58 Ellipsis..................................................... 59 Unit III Usual Mistakes Made by Scientistis Speaking and Writing in English Misnomers and False Friends... 63 Common Grammatical Mistakes... 64

Contents xiii Common Spelling Mistakes.... 67 Common Pronunciation Mistakes... 68 Unit IV Writing a Manuscript Preliminary Work.... 76 Article Header... 77 Title... 77 Abstract... 77 Keywords... 80 Main Text... 80 Introduction... 80 Materials and Methods.... 81 Statistics... 83 Results... 84 Discussion... 85 Acknowledgments... 85 References... 86 Articles in Journals... 87 Books and Other Monographs... 89 Other Published Material... 91 Unpublished Material.... 91 Electronic Material.... 91 Additional Material... 92 Tables... 92 Figures... 92 Final Tips... 93 Unit V Writing Scientific Correspondence Submission Letters.... 97 Re-submission Letters... 99 Re-configuration Letters... 100 Letters of Thanks for an Invitation to Publish an Article in a Journal... 103 Asking About the Status of a Paper... 104 Other Letters... 105 Asking for Permission to Use Someone s Name as a Referee... 105 Postponing the Commencement of Duties.... 106 In Summary... 107

xiv Contents Unit VI Attending a Scientific Course or Conference Introduction... 111 Travel and Hotel Arrangements.... 112 Airport... 112 During the Flight... 114 In the Taxi (US Cab)... 115 At the Hotel... 117 Course Example.... 119 General Information.... 119 Registration... 121 Course Planning.... 122 Unit VII Giving Presentations for Biomedical Scientists Know Your Audience.... 127 Choose a Relevant Main Message... 128 Put Together Your Presentation: Structure and Delivery.... 129 The Dreaded Questions-and-Comments Section.... 135 Practice, Practice, Practice.... 140 Unit VIII Chairing a Scientific Discussion Usual Chairperson s Comments... 144 Introducing the Session... 144 Introducing Speakers... 144 Adjourning... 145 Finishing the Session... 145 Should Chairpersons Ask Questions?... 146 What the Chairperson Should Say When Something Is Going Wrong... 146 Behind Schedule... 146 Ahead of Schedule... 147 Technical Problems... 147 Lecturer Lacks Confidence... 148 Specific Scientific Chairperson s Comments.... 148

Contents xv Unit IX Curriculum Vitae, Cover Letters, and Other Professional Letters Professional Correspondence for Biomedical Scientists: General Tips... 153 Curriculum Vitae... 154 Cover Letter... 158 Other Professional Letters... 163 Job Acceptance Letter... 163 Declination Letter... 164 Resignation Letter... 165 Reference Letter.... 166 Unit X Getting Ready for a Job Interview in English You Are More Than Your Level of English.... 171 You Are More Than Your Résumé... 172 Find Out About the Employer and Interviewers... 173 You Must Prepare for Your Interview... 174 Practice, Practice, Practice.... 176 What Else Should You do on the Day of the Interview?... 177 The Day After: What to do After Your Interview?... 177 Questions and Answers... 179 Unit XI The Laboratory Environment Commonly Misused or Misunderstood Terms.... 185 Types of Biomedical Research Laboratories... 188 Rooms Within a Large Laboratory... 188 Laboratory Equipment and Consumables... 189 Glassware Commonly Found in a Laboratory.... 189 Commonly Used Laboratory Consumables.... 189 Commonly Used Laboratory Instruments... 192 Commonly Used Laboratory Equipment.... 193

xvi Contents Unit XII Laboratory Writing Scientific Protocols... 199 Lab Notebook Entries... 201 General Guidelines for Notebook Keeping... 201 Laboratory Reports... 204 Reagent Recipes.... 206 Short Notes.... 207 Unit XIII Laboratory Safety and Biohazards Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)... 212 Laboratory Safety Equipment... 213 Chemical Safety.... 215 Biological Safety... 217 Radiation Safety.... 218 Safety Quiz.... 219 Unit XIV Laboratory Animal Work What Is Animal Research?.... 225 Animal Work Licences.... 226 Animal Research Facility and Its Staff... 227 Space Description... 227 Holding Rooms... 227 Procedure Rooms.... 228 Service Rooms... 229 Record Keeping... 229 Permanent Marking to Identify Individual Animals... 230 Cage Cards.... 230 Data Record Form... 231 Transgenic Animals... 232 Administrative Techniques... 233 Management of Stress and Pain in Animals... 234 Signs of Stress and Pain in Animals... 234 Classifications of Drugs to Relieve or Control Pain and Stress.... 235

Contents xvii Humane Methods of Killing... 236 Ethical Considerations... 236 The 3Rs Principle... 236 Additional Resources.... 237 Unit XV Latin and Greek Terminology Introduction... 241 Plural Rules... 243 List of Latin and Greek Terms and Their Plurals... 245 Unit XVI Acronyms and Abbreviations Abbreviation Rules and Style Conventions in English... 270 General Abbreviations and Acronyms Used in Biomedical Research... 273 Methods and Techniques Used in Biomedical Research... 283 Radioactive Isotopes... 284 Cell Lines.... 284 Units of Measurement... 285 Unit XVII Conversation Survival Guide Introduction... 289 Greetings... 290 Presentations... 291 Personal Data... 291 Courtesy Sentences... 292 Speaking in a Foreign Language... 292 At the Restaurant... 293 Preliminary Exchanges... 293 Ordering... 293 Complaining.... 294 The Check (UK, The Bill)... 294 City Transportation... 294 Shopping... 295

xviii Contents Asking About Store Hours.... 295 Preliminary Exchanges... 295 Buying Clothes/Shoes... 296 At the Shoe Shop... 297 At the Post Office.... 297 Going to the Theater (UK, Theatre).... 297 At the Drugstore (UK, Chemist)... 298 At the Cosmetics Counter... 298 At the Bookshop/Newsagent s.... 299 At the Photography Shop.... 299 At the Florist... 299 Paying... 299 At the Hairdresser... 300 Cars... 301 At the Gas/Petrol Station... 301 At the Garage... 302 At the Parking Lot (UK, Car Park)... 302 Renting a Car... 302 How Can I Get to?... 303 Having a Drink (or Two)... 303 On the Phone... 304 Emergency Situations... 305 In the Bank.... 305 At the Police Station... 305