A course of modern english lexicology

Official documents archaic words: on behalf of, hereinafter referred to as, in accordance with, in all respects, yours faithfully dreams abbreviations: et al., Ltd., CIF, MP

2. SCIENTIFIC PROSE STYLE

The aim of a scientific work is to prove a hypothesis and to describe scientific laws and new phenomena.
The main features of this style are:

1. 
   the obligatory use of terms belonging to a branch of science, all other words are used in their direct meaning to avoid any ambiguity;
   
2. 
   a complete absence of dialectical and colloquial words;
   
3. 
   the selective use of pronouns. The first person plural (we) is preferred to the first person singular (I), the second person is hardly ever used at all (you);
   
4. 
   a logical sequence of clauses, complex sentences and a developed system of connectives (thus, hence, however, therefore, whereas);
   
5. 
   passive constructions and impersonal sentences are more favoured than the active constructions (it should be pointed out, it should be assumed).
   

An abstract is usually required for research publications in scientific journals. An abstract is a condensed version of a longer piece of writing that highlights the major points covered, concisely describes the content and scope of the writing, and reviews the writing's contents in abbreviated form.
As a rule, the main objectives to be reached in an abstract are as follows:

1. 
   tell readers what information the report, article, or paper contains;
   
2. 
   include the purpose, and methods of the report, article, or paper;
   
3. 
   provide results, conclusions, or recommendations;
   
4. 
   be short – from a paragraph to a page or two, depending upon the length of the original work being abstracted; usually informative abstracts are 10% or less of the length of the original piece;
   
5. 
   allow readers to decide whether they want to read the report, article, or paper.
   

The first one or two sentences of an abstract should provide a context for the specific study being presented.
A good approach is to briefly describe the larger scientific issues or questions that are motivating scientists to conduct his or her research.
Following a one or two sentence introduction, one should clearly and explicitly state the purpose of the study.
This can be done in a variety of ways, e.g., “The purpose of the study was…” , “This study attempted to answer the following questions… to test the hypothesis…”, “This study focused on the…”, “To better understand the mechanism of…” or “The aim of this study was to…”.
Following the statement of purpose, the general methodological approach should be described (if possible in one or two sentences).
In other words what major techniques did you use to find the results. Do not explain the how but rather the what. Major results should also be summarized in one or two sentences.
The abstract should conclude with at final sentence or two in which the significance or ramifications of the findings are briefly stated.
These final sentences should connect the findings with one or more of the larger ideas stated in the opening two sentences.