Page 190 - English for Writing Research Papers

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S2 gives exactly the same information as S1, but the first part of the sentence makes
the author seem more modest in her claim and protects her from anyone in the future

who might find that her results do not constitute an important finding. In other

words the phrase These results suggest that is like a safety net for the author.
But S2 also qualifies as a ‘highlighting sentence’ because it is still a short (10 words)

and simple sentence, which will attract the reader’s attention. It also retains ‘dynamic
language’ – very important .

S1 would be fine if you were discussing someone else’s findings. It may even be accept-

able if you use this to talk about your own work, provided that you then immediately

explain why it is an important finding (i.e. you don’t just tell readers that something is
important, you show them as well). Without such an explanation S1 could sound arro-
gant. Also, you should only use such a strong declaration once or twice in an entire
paper, otherwise it will lose its effect in addition to sounding arrogant.

The same is true for the use of adverbs such as interestingly and surprisingly . Such
adverbs can be used in a sentence that both highlights and hedges.

S3. Interestingly, these results prove that X is fundamental in producing Y.
S4. Interestingly, these results suggest that X is fundamental in producing Y.

There is no real difference in meaning between S3 and S4, but the use of suggest
rather than prove simply protects the author from any future contrasting fi ndings or
conclusions by other authors. In both S3 and S4, interestingly attracts readers’
attention. Again, the key is not to use such words more than once or twice.

The skill is in finding the right balance of highlighting and hedging, and also in

knowing how to hedge so that referees and readers perceive you as being sincere.

Sections 10.4 – 10.7 focus on how to tone down (i.e. reduce the strength of) various
grammatical parts of a sentence to a degree that most referees would consider to be
a more appropriate level of assertiveness, confidence and certainty.

10.4 Toning down verbs

There are some verbs that leave no room for doubt, for example: is / are, means,
equals, demonstrates, proves, manifests.

S1. This factor is responsible for the increase in…
S2. These results demonstrate the importance of…
S3. These fi ndings are conclusive proof that x = y.
S4. This problem manifests itself in …
S5. This means that x = y.