STRATEGY 1: Use Synonymous Repetition

 
First-aid for: 'given-new' and organising flow
Place 'given' information into 'topic position' as the grammatical subject using either identical wording, synonyms, or superordinate terms related to the ‘given’ concept.
 

IDENTICAL WORDING

Because academic writing requires precision in the use of terms, it is not surprising that direct repetition of the same term is the most common means of keeping the focus on a particular topic. Unlike the use of pronouns (it, they, them, this, these) which can easily refer back to more than one item in the text, repetition ensures that your reader cannot misinterpret which item you are referring to. However, direct repetition has one drawback. It becomes monotonous and boring if overused. Thus, you should try to vary your strategy using other techniques listed on the following pages. Note how all the examples below require the definite article 'the' to signal that this is 'given' information. This is an important grammatical clue that helps your reader determine whether you are introducing a new topic or simply referring to a previous topic.

Example:

Catalytic hydrocracking is a refining process that uses hydrogen and catalysts at relatively low temperatures and high pressures to produce high-octane gasoline, jet fuel, and/or high-grade fuel oil. The process uses one or more catalysts, depending on product output, and can handle high sulfur feedstocks without prior desulfurization.

 

SYNONYMS

One way to introduce some variation into your text while maintaining topical focus is to use synonyms for your topical information. English is rich in synonyms derived from Latin and French. For example, after the first mention of the word 'idea', you could thereafter refer to this as the 'concept', 'notion', 'thought', 'belief', 'view', or 'opinion'.

Example:

The European Mars Express space probe has sent back highly detailed images of the surface of the Red Planet. The pictures, taken with its High Resolution Stereo Camera, show craters, a volcano and features thought to be created by flowing water.

 

SUPERORDINATE TERMS

Superordinates are words that describe a class of objects. For example, the superordinate term for bicycle, car, bus, airplane, and train is 'vehicle', while the superordinate for cat, dog, horse, tiger could be animal. Superordinates are also important for writing definitions (e.g., The cat is an animal that hunts at night.) and when listing examples (e.g., Cats, dogs, and other animals)

Example:

The Mars Exploration Rovers are six-wheeled robotic vehicles that will be used to explore the surface of Mars. The rovers, powered by solar panels, are robotic "field geologists" that will examine Martian rocks and soil for signs of the presence of liquid water in Mars' past. The top speed of the vehicles, which are about the size of a golf cart, is five centimeters (2 inches) per second.

 

CLOSELY-RELATED CONCEPTS

Another way to keep your readers' attention on the topic is to integrate your 'topic' into closely related terms. In science and technology, this is primarily achieved using three strategies:

  1. 'Piling up' nouns to create noun compounds (e.g., carbon dioxide concentrations)
  2. 'of'-genitive forms (e.g., concentrations of carbon dioxide )
  3. Postmodification by relative clauses (e.g., carbon dioxide (which has been) created by humans) .

Note in the example below how 'carbon' is the concept that binds these sentences together as a whole.

Example:

Records from Antarctic ice cores indicate that the carbon cycle has been in a state of imbalance for the past 200 years, with emissions of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere exceeding absorption. Consequently, carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere have been steadily rising. According to the IPCC, before 1750, the atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration was around 280 ± 10 parts per million for several thousand years. The IPCC goes on to say that the present carbon dioxide concentration has not been exceeded during the past 420,000 years, and likely not during the past 20 million years.

 

 

 

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