Page 168 - English for Writing Research Papers
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8.14 Consider avoiding the use of phrases containing note
and noting
A typical device authors use in the hope of attracting attention, is to use phrases
such as It is interesting to note, it is worth noting, it should be noted that etc.
Such phrases are generally located at the beginning of a phrase and tend to do the
exact opposite of what the author intended. What they say next will in fact lose its
impact.
The beginning of the sentence should be reserved for important, or at least concrete,
information ( 3.4 ). If you frequently begin sentences or paragraphs with such phrases
you will annoy your readers, especially if they don't actually find what you have
written to be interesting .
If you insist on using such phrases, then limit them to once in the entire paper and
make sure that i) what you say is interesting, ii) you explain why it is interesting.
Consider simply saying Note that …
8.15 Be explicit about your findings, so that even a non-
expert can understand them
Your paper may not only be read by people working in exactly the same field as you.
In order to acquire funding to continue working in research, some researchers have
to change from their field into a more financially retributive field. This means that
some people who are not completely familiar with your field may need to read your
paper.
S1 is the last sentence of an abstract dealing with the effect of Panama disease on
bananas.
S1. Results obtained have management implications and suggest that there is a high degree of
improbability that sound fruit will be subject to an infection process by Panama disease and
wounds have an inherent tendency towards a phenomenon of infection susceptibility with
regard to bananas, therefore, necessary steps should be taken to set in place various guar-
antees so that bananas are handled in an adequately careful manner in order to undertake a
strategy of lesion prevention.
The findings have huge implications with anyone involved in banana production
and sales, yet their importance is difficult to decipher from S1.

