This is intended to become an extensive list of errors/areas for improvement when writing technical papers. It is not well structured yet, but it will grow over time
- If you mention a technical device used, name it. Do not hide behind terms like "a commercial device", a paper must be precise and clear at each sentence
- Check for German/English pitfalls. Use tools like "grammerly" if you do not feel comfortable. A list of typical German/English pitfalls
- Wrong usage of "have" in the sense of "haben/hat/hatte" which usually changes to simple past in English like: "The authors have reviewed ..." → "The authors reviewed"
- Reduce length of sentences! It is not good in German neither, but in English it is a no-go. Split sentences which are longer than two lines. Don't tell me that it does not work. It works in 95% of cases.
- Improve your skills in technical English. Typical technical-english specialities:
- use "ing" (continous) form instead of which (or similar) terms. "The product was good, which lead to...." → "The product was good leading to a .... "
- Avoid filling words and complicated references, sharpen your sentences:
- "...desribes a setup which is shown in fig. 2. and ... " → "describes a setup shown in fig. 2 and ..." → or even better "describes a setup (fig. 2) and ..."
- "A voltage bandpass , see schematics in fig. 3, that attenuates the main frequency..." → "A voltage bandpass (fig.3) attenuating the main frequency..."
Add Comment