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S3 is more effective because it puts the topic ( service discovery ) in first position in
the sentence. Nothing in S3 is redundant, and it is around 30% shorter than S1.
However, if you are talking about goals that have still to become reality then S2
would be more appropriate – so only eliminate when doing so does not change the
meaning you intended.

8.5 Consider using bullets and headings

We tend to notice bullets (bulleted or numbered) more than blocks of text. So if your
journal’s style guide allows, occasionally use bullets to summarize important points.

You need to follow certain conventions when using bullets. The most important is
that each bullet begins with the same grammatical part. The OV below uses two dif-

ferent grammatical constructions, whereas in the RV the infinitive is used in both
bullets. This is a stylistic rule, but it also aids reader comprehension by presenting
the various elements of information in the same way.

original version (ov) revised version (rv)
Equation 2 is the main result of our study. Equation 2 is the main result of our study. It
It can be used: can be used to:

• in numerical codes to evaluate the • evaluate in numerical codes the impact

impact of the presence of anomalies of the presence of anomalies in the vari-
in the various samples taken ous samples taken
• for simple estimates when designing • make simple estimates for designing

experiments experiments

Your decision about whether to use standard bullets or numbered bullets will depend
on whether you will refer to the elements in the bullets in the following text. If you
have a list of three or more bullets, and you need to refer to them, then it is easier to
number them.

For more on the use of bullets, see 25.12 and 25.13 in English for Research:
Grammar, Usage, and Style .

If your journal allows, use subheadings to direct your readers’ attention to important
aspects of your work.