Page 136 - English for Writing Research Papers

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6.18 Referring backwards and forwards: the dangers
of above , below, previously, earlier, later
When making reference to things that are mentioned earlier or later in your docu-
ments do not give readers generic locations.

S1. * As mentioned above / before / earlier / previously , these values are important when …
S2. * These points are dealt with in detail below / later …

If readers are interested in these things, then they need an exact location, for exam-

ple: see Sect. 1.1 / see the above paragraph / see points 4–5 below .
The term previously is often ambiguous because the reader may be not sure if you mean:

• at some point earlier in this paper

• in another of your papers

• in someone else's paper

It is acceptable to say as mentioned above or as mentioned before when you don’t
want the reader to go back to what you said before, but simply to reassure them that
you are aware that you are saying the same thing again. However, ask yourself if the
reader really does need such reassurance.

6.19 Use of respectively to disambiguate

Respectively is a very useful word for clarifying how items are related to each other.
In S1, a basic knowledge of geography makes it clear that London is associated with
England, and Paris with France.

S1. London and Paris are the capitals of England and France.

But such connections are not always so obvious, as in S2:

S2. *… where X is the function for Y, and f1 and f2 are the constant functions for P and Q.
Are f1 and f2 constant functions for both P and Q? If so:

S3. … and f1 and f2 are the constant functions for both P and Q.

Or is f1 for P and f2 for Q? If so, use respectively :

S4. … and f1 and f2 are the constant functions for P and Q, respectively .
Most style books recommend placing respectively at the end of the phrase. It is best
to put a comma before respectively .