排版 | AiBrain 编辑团队
Iain C. Bruce教授祖籍英国，现任Neuroscience Bulletin（NB）执行副主编（2011年8月至今），北京大学分子医学研究所客座教授，曾任浙江大学医学院教授、江南大学访问教授、香港大学副教授。从事生命科学英文论文写作教学30余年，在香港大学、台湾成功大学、浙江大学和北京大学开设生物学专业英文论文写作课程，并著有《生命科学论文写作指南》一书，广受好评。2006年以来，他为北京大学和浙江大学科研人员修改润色生命科学论文数百篇；为NB修改润色论文1400余篇，为保障NB文章的发表质量，做出了突出贡献。
2023年，时值Iain C. Bruce教授担任NB执行副主编12周年，NB编辑部特邀请他整理出他多年的工作心得，以“NB卓越论文写作技能提升”栏目在NB微信订阅号“神经小灵通”系列发表。其内容为生命科学英文论文撰写中的常见错误纠正等，专门针对中国生命科学界的青年学者和研究生。
希望此栏目能对大家的英文论文写作技能提升有所助益，敬请大家持续关注。
目
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往期：
本期：
NB卓越论文写作技能提升-7︱detect还是measure?
NB卓越论文写作技能提升-8︱这些名词请使用单数！
Iain C. Bruce 课堂
DETECTING OR MEASURING?
（检测还是测量？）
When you try to detect something, the result can only have one of two values; it is present or it is absent. For example, you may use two-dimensional electrophoresis to detect the presence or absence of a protein under different conditions. However, if you then proceed to use densitometry to measure its relative abundance, you are no longer detecting but measuring, assessing, evaluating, quantifying… Detection is digital, measurement is analog.
EXAMPLES
“So it is interesting to detect subcellular localization of these proteins.” (worse)
So it was of interest to determine the subcellular localization of these proteins. (better)
“…full genome microarray was used to detect gene expression changes…” (worse)
…full genome microarray was used to quantify the changes in gene expression … (better)
“Fluorescence emission of CFP (470-500 nm) and YFP (526-600 nm) were detected before and after bleaching.” (worse)
The fluorescent emission of CFP (470-500 nm) and YFP (526-600 nm) was measured before and after bleaching. (better)
[Note that fluorescence is a noun and fluorescent is its adjective.]
“After the histopathological detection of grafts…” (worse)
After the histopathological assessment of grafts… (better)
✦+
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知识点总结
1、detect是通过检查察觉或发现，尤其指“处于隐秘状态的事物本身”，所以结果只能是存在或者不存在；
2、measure是指与指定的标准相比，物质的数量、大小、重量等，来衡量或测量事物；
3、detection类似于数字信号，是二进制码，“0”和“1”，有或无；而measurement类似于模拟信号，是一种不断变化的物理量；
4、fluorescence是名词，其形容词形式为fluorescent。
Iain C. Bruce 课堂
EQUIPMENTS, RESEARCHES, EVIDENCES...
（设备、研究、证据......）
One of the many odd things about English is the fact that some words do not get an s added to them when there is more than one. The explanation I found involves the idea of countability: a fact is a thing that can be counted, so you can have two facts; evidence is a thing that cannot be counted, so you cannot have two evidences; what you have is two pieces ofevidence. This rule also applies to two items of equipment and two areas of research.
Equipment, evidence, and research are always singular. Other such words that occur often in biomedical papers are advice, information, literature, progress [when used as the plural of the noun progress; as a verb it is OK, i.e. as the disease progresses], and work [as above, works works as a verb, as in the method works, but not as a noun].
EXAMPLES
“… development of novel manufacturing equipments…” (worse)
… development of novel manufacturing equipment… (better)
“Previous studies provided evidences that…” (worse)
Previous studies provided evidence that… (better)
“However, still other researches indicate that…” (worse)
However, still other research indicates that… (better)
“We thank Profs. A, B, and C for advices on…” (worse)
We thank Profs. A, B, and C for advice on… (better)
“…have been mentioned in some literatures.” (worse)
…have been mentioned in the literature [or in some reports]. (better)
“With the development of this technique research has made many progresses.” (worse)
With the development of this technique research has made much progress. (better)
“Many works have been made about this problem.” (worse)
Much work has been done on this problem. (better)
✦+
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知识点总结
1、作为名词使用时，equipment、evidence以及research总是使用单数形式；
2、同样地，作为名词，advice、information、literature、progress以及work也总是使用单数形式；
3、作为动词使用时，progress和work后可以加es。
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