English for chemists

Scction I
Ex. 1. Practise your reading.
Used in the design and interpretation of chemical experimentation arc various statistical methods.
Ex. 2. State what parts of speech the following words belong to:
act, actual, actually, action, interaction, acting, activc, activity, activist, reactivity, reaction, counteraction, actor, activate, activation
Ex. 3. Define the meanings of the word extent in the following sentences:

1. 
   The extent of the accuracy of the instrument is rather limited.
   

2. 
   Mercury undoubtedly dissolves to a certain extent in the water. 3. If water is added to ether, solution will not occur to an indefinite extent.
   

4. 
   The concentration of iodine molcculcs must decrease to a greater extent than that of iodine atoms. 5. In liquids, the extent to which molcculcs can move is more restricted than in gases. 6. The discovery of the clcctron stimulated to some extent the development of an electronic theory.
   

Ex. 4. Analyse the following sentences:

1. 
   Statistical methods can never be a substitute for scicntific judgement.
   

2. 
   Never can statistical methods be a substitute for scientific judgement.
   

Text 34 A

Statistical Methods in Analytical Chemistry
Statistical methods, as used in the design and interpretation of chcmical experimentation, arc not a substitute for common sense or for what scientists refer to as scicntific judgement; they rather constitute an objective aid to judgement. In view of the mcticulousncss exhibited by scicntific workers in the purely technical aspects of their experiments it seems appropriate to devote some thought to two further and no less important aspects of experimentation: its design and the final interpretation of its outcome. Very often the experimenter designs the experiment as it proceeds, acting on a moment’s intuition. Similarly, the interpretation or a rudimentary study of data, the latter consisting in many cases in ranking studied cfTccts in accordancc with their observed disturbances caused by experimental and systcmctic errors. Naturally, even the most experienced worker is subjcct to an occasional intuition. Therefore natural, and actually borne

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out by the facts, is the assumption that many experiments could have resulted in more conspicuous and sharper constructed plan.

In taking cognizancc of the unavoidable experimental eirors, rather than in ignoring them or dismissing them as negligible, and in attempting a mathematical study of the avoidance or the correction of systematical errors, statisticians have succccdcd, to a ccrtain extent, in offering some objective criteria which arc invaluable in these situations. One of the important by-products of these methods is an estimate of the quantity of experimental work that is ncccssary for obtaining sufficient factual proof for a scientific hypothesis, such an estimate being more objective than the guessing technique often used. But among the most important contributions of statistical methodology to scicntific experimentation is the possibility of clearly separating the effects of various variables under study as well as the interactions of these variables with regard to the measured quantities, from the data resulting from a complex experiment. Hardly can it be denied that this requires careful planning. Even before the experiment is started, the various possible types of results must be hypothetically considered from the point of view of the questions under study.

Words and Word-Combinations to Be Memorized
aid, by-product, common sense, construct, construction, contribution, correction, criterion, data, design, error, experienced, the extent to which, mathematics, negligible, objective, occasion, offer, point of view, possibility, proof, refer to as, statistical, statistics, substitute, succeed (in), sufficient, sufficiently, in view of
Ex. 5. Give the Russian equivalents for the following:
be a substitute for, an aid to judgement, in the purely technical aspects, it seems appropriate, the design of the experiment, act on a moment’s intuition, be subject to, ignore experimental errors, the correlation of errors, an objective criterion, obtain sufficient factual proof, guessing technique, result from a complcx experiment, require careful planning, consider from the point of view of
Ex. 6. Give the English equivalents for the following:
здравый смысл, ввиду многих ошибок, объяснение результато» эксперимента, планировать эксперимент по мерс его протекания, изу­ чение данных, в соответствии с наблюдаемыми фактами, опытный исследователь, естественное предположение, приводить к экспери­ ментальной ошибке, избегать систематических ошибок, статистикам удалось сделать, быть бесценным, предложить объективные крите­ рии, один из побочных продуктов, изучаемые переменные, взаимо­ действие переменных, до начала эксперимента, рассматривать с точ­ ки зрения

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Ex. 7. Fill in the blanks with articles where ncccssary.
1. Statistical methods arc not... substitute for... common sense. 2. Two important aspects of ... experimentation arc its ... design and ... final interpretation o f ... results. 3. Very often ... experimenter acts on ...

moment’s intuition. 4. Experimental work is ncccssary for obtaining ...

sufficient factual proof for... scicntific hypothesis. 5. Before... experiment is started it is ncccssary to consider ... various possible results hypo­ thetically.
Ex. 8. Give the synonyms for the following:
help, show, more, facts, supposition, take noticc of, amount, demand, begin, kind
Ex. 9. Give the antonyms for the following:
first, the former, contrary to, incxpcricnccd, regular, take into account, insufficient, the same, simple, after, finish
Ex. 10. Translate the sentences into Russian.
1. Students of chcmistry have to perform a number of experiments studying the properties of any substancc and so do students of geology. 2. Considered as isotopes arc atomic spccics having the same number of neutrons but different mass numbers. 3. Not only docs chlorinc unite with free hydrogen, but it has the ability to take hydrogen from hydrocarbon compounds. 4. Only upon heating above 500°C docs zinc 'burn with a greenish flame, yielding zinc oxide. 5. No sooner is a solid brought into contact with liquid in which it can dissolve than a ccrtain amount of it passes into solution. 6. The first phase consists of cxccss of phenol and a small quantity of water, so docs the second one. 7. One liquid layer docs not contain water, nor docs the other. 8. Included in this table arc densities of liquid and vapour. 9. Not until 1869 was this theory put forward. 10. Neither should wc forget to chcck the purity of the substanccs to be handled. 11. Nowhere is it so important to have skilful hands as in a chcmistry laboratory. 12. Never is it so important to think about style as in writing a textbook. 13. Never has more accurate result been obtained. 14. He was always ready to answer any question and so was his friend. 15. Hardly had wc heated the test-tube several minutes when an explosion suddenly happened. 16. Important for this conclusion is the arrangement of atoms in the molcculcs. 17. Correlative with the hypothesis arc the results of the latest series of experiments. 18. Great arc differences in selectivity between intermediates. 19. Plotted in Figure 5 is the variation of selectivity.
Ex. 11.Translate the sentences into English without using a dictionary.
1. Очень важными в аналитической химии являются статистичес­ кие методы. 2. Едва ли можно сказать, что планирование экспсри-

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мента — простое дело. 3. Объяснить конечный результат реакции бывает непросто и опытному химику. 4. Ученым удалось выработать некоторые методы, чтобы избежать ошибки при проведении экспе­ риментов. 5. Объективными критериями правильности научной ги­ потезы можно считать только факты.
Ex. 12. Answer (he following questions:
1. In what fields of analytical chcmistry can statistical methods be used? 2. What important aspects of experimentation should be taken into account? 3. What is the role of intuition in experimentation? 4. What must be the attitude to errors? S. What is regarded as the most important contribution of statistical methodology to scicntific experimentation?