Introduction II: Structural features of academic writing

1. Identification of paragraph connection

Work in pairs. Underline the connectives or expressions linking a paragraph to the

previous one. What type of relationship or progression binds the text together? (5
min)

Military aviation in Britain began with two pioneers. One was the flamboyant and publicity-
minded S.F. Buffalo Bill Cody. He was an American who constructed and flew man-lifting kites
for the army at the turn of the century. He built and flew British army Airplane No 1at
Farnborough. It made a hop on 16 May 1908 but, as it was taxiing along on the ground, it hit a
horse trough!

Five months later, on 16 October 1908, it flew 1,390 ft (424 m), and this is regarded as the first
airplane flight in Britain. The other pioneer was a serving officer, Lt. J.W. Dunne, who built
aircraft with swept-back wings. He tested his machines secretly on a private estate in Scotland,
and did much to educate the generals; he even persuaded the government to appoint a
committee to talk about airplanes.

An Air Battalion was finally formed on 1 April, 1911, and on 13 May 1912 the Royal Flying Corps
was formed. By comparison with some other countries, notably Germany, it was puny. Almost
all of its officers had learned to fly at their own expense and its equipment was a rag-bag of
mostly outdated machines. Besides, the British government got on the wrong foot with British
manufacturers from the start. It gave them no help and virtually no orders, so that no good
airplanes emerged.

Then, in 1912, when the RFC got going, government orders went mainly to France. Col. Seely,
Under-Secretary of State for War, said: “We cannot buy British machines at the cost of human
life”, and thus Britain was to fail to achieve the essential consistency in military procurement
that is the basis of airpower.

At that time the very concept of airpower was non-existent. It was left to individual officers,
often with no direction or authority from above, to find out what the airplane could do. In
other countries, however, most military pilots were beginning to receive formal instruction in
map-reading, reconnaissance observation and note-taking. Aerial photography was also
taught, although this demanded the use of the very few aircraft that could carry a passenger,
film plates and a camera.

In those days this was an enormous box demanding eleven separate operations in order to take
a single photograph, and with heavily-gloved or frozen hands this was no simple matter.
Leaning out could be dangerous, because safety harness was not used by the European
aviators and parachutes were discouraged.

In parallel with these first steps in military aviation, an even more exclusive group was
pioneering airpower at sea. Again, one of the first countries to take action was the USA.

(Adapted from Gunston, Bill. 1988. A Century of Flight. London: Brian Trodd Publishing House,
pp. 39, 41)

1
 GLOSSARY

Flamboyant (para. 1) = showy.

Publicity-minded (para. 1) = having the kind of mind indicated for publicity, conscious of the
value or importance of it.
To make a hop (para. 1) = to make a flight.
Swept-back (para. 2) = attached aircraft wings, so that they are at an acute angle to the axis of
the aircraft.
Puny (para. 3) = small and weak.
Rag-bag (para. 3) = varied collection, confused mass.
Procurement (para. 4) = supply(ing).
Reconnaissance (para. 5) = survey of an enemy’s position or whereabouts.
Film plates (para. 5) = sheets of glass coated with sensitive film for photography.
To discourage (para. 6) (things) = make them seem not worthwhile.
Airpower (para. 7) = airforce.

2. Recognition of textual progression

Work in pairs. Match each excerpt with its corresponding textual progression: SPATIAL,
CHRONOLOGICAL, PROBLEM-SOLUTION, INDUCTIVE, DEDUCTIVE, ARGUMENTATIVE, CONTRASTIVE, or
RELEVANCE. Underline the connectives and keywords that support your decision in
each case. (5-8 min)

1. Over the past years most scientists and people in the world have become concerned
about global warming. What leads to global warming is called the green house effect,
where the atmosphere builds up by gases, like methane and carbon dioxide, and keeps
heat from the sun in the atmosphere, which increases the temperature on Earth.
Many people think that global warming and the green house effect are the same thing,
but they are not. The greenhouse effect is the heat that comes from Earth so it may
care for the needs of all life on earth. Global warming, by contrast, is an issue because
the more gases that are produced by man the more gases will be in the atmosphere,
which upsets the natural balance.
As a result of global warming the polar ice caps are melting and this will lead
to a rise in sea levels causing flooding and coastal damage to many countries. The
increase in temperature means an increase in water temperature which will and has
continue to lead to extreme weather conditions, such as hurricanes. As a cause of the
temperature changes, it can lead to animals and insects migrating to other areas.
Taking disease with them that normally won't occur in other places. An example of
this is the mosquitoes that migrate from Africa can bring malaria to other areas of the
world.
There is no known solution to reverse global warming yet, but there are actions
that will help to prevent it from growing even more. For instance, recycling by using
recycling bins, composting, and other methods will help prevent the problem to
advance. Another way is to use compact fluorescent bulbs. By replacing three
frequently used light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs you save 300 lbs. of carbon
dioxide and $60 per year. By unplugging unused electronics, even if the electronic

2
 devices are turned off, they use energy. You save over 1,000 lbs of carbon dioxide and
$256 per year by unplugging them or switching them off. ____________________

(Adapted from http://www.studymode.com/essays/Global-Warming-A-Problem-

And-Solution-1285293.html)

2. A box camera is simply a box which will let in the correct amount of light for an image
to be recorded. At the front of the camera is a glass lens which projects or throws the
image onto a light-sensitive film which is stretched out at the other (back) end of the
camera. Just behind the lens is a metal shutter. This can be opened for a very short
period of time by pushing a lever called the ‘shutter release’. The shutter will let in only
the correct amount of light. The box camera is made so that no other light from any
other source can come onto the film.
At the top of the camera, there is a piece of glass called the ‘viewfinder’, which
is linked to a sort of small glass ‘window’ at the front of the camera, on the same side
as the lens. This means that by looking through the viewfinder, the photographer can
see what picture is going to be taken through the lens. After a photograph has been
taken, the film is wound on by turning the film winder knob at the side. When this has
been done, a fresh piece of film is ready to be exposed. ____________________

[Source: Adapted from ‘How a simple box camera works’, in Wallace, M.J. (1980). Study
Skills in English. Cambridge University Press, pp. 141-142]

3. Earth materials are often used as a construction material because they are the
cheapest possible building material. However, its engineering properties such as
strength and compressibility are often naturally poor, and measures must be taken to
densify, strengthen, or otherwise stabilize and reinforce soils so that they will perform
satisfactorily in service. Highway and railway embankments, airfields, earth and rock
dams, leeves and aqueducts are examples of earth structures, and the geotechnical
engineer is responsible for their design and construction. ____________________

[Source: Robert D. & W.D. Kovacs (1981). An Introduction to Geotechnical

Engineering. Englewood Cliffs-Prentice Hall, p. 2]

4. The first thing that most new users shifting from Windows find confusing is navigating
the Linux file system. The Linux file system functions differently than the Windows file
system. I will compare them to explore their differences and take you through the
layout input and output systems of both.

In Linux, there is only a single hierarchal directory structure. Everything begins from
the root directory, which is represented by the symbol / and then expands into sub-
directories. Windows includes various partitions and then directories under those
partitions. Another difference is that Linux places all the partitions underneath the root
directory by mounting them in specific directories, while Windows, in contrast, uses
letter C as its root directory.

In Windows, various partitions are detected during the boot process and are assigned a
drive letter, whereas under Linux, the system must mount partitions and devices during
the boot process; otherwise it will be unaware of its existence. This might not seem

3
 very convenient to provide access to your partitions or devices, but it offers greater
flexibility. This is known as the unified file system in Linux, which offers several
advantages over the Windows file system. For example, let us examine the /usr
directory. This directory resides off the root directory and contains most of the system
executables. With the Linux file system you can choose to mount it off another
partition or even off another machine over a network connection. The underlying
system will not know the difference because /usr appears to be a local directory that is
part of the local directory structure. Also, if you were to move around executables and
data in Windows, you would have registry and system errors. For example, if you
attempted to move c:\windows\system to another partition or drive, you would
receive the errors just discussed. ____________________

(Adapted from http://www.studymode.com/essays/Compare-Contrast-Linux-Windows-

File-System-74412.html)

5. A piezoelectric effect occurs when certain materials are subjected to mechanical stress.
An electric polarization is set up in the crystal and the faces of the crystal become
electrically charged. The polarity of the charges reverses if the compression is changed
to tension. Conversely, an electric field applied across the material causes it to contract
or expand according to the sign of the electric field. The piezoelectric effect is observed
in all ferroelectric crystals and in nonferroelectric crystals that are asymmetric and
have one or more polar axes. This effect is important because it couples electrical and
mechanical energy and thus has many applications for electromechanical transducers.
____________________

[Source: Young, E.C. (1979). Dictionary of Electronics. Penguin Books, p. 426]

6. Space tourism is a natural extension of today’s worldwide tourism industry. Instead of

travelling around the world, tourists will go to space. This has not happened yet, but
many activities are nowadays taking place to make it come true. The reasons why
space tourism is important and desirable are several: firstly, there can be hundreds of
thousands of space tourists flying each year, creating a giant market. Secondly, through
the infrastructure between Earth and space that space tourism will generate, other
ventures will also be possible. And thus space will finally be opened up for business.
Thirdly, as there is practically no saturation limit to space tourism (unlike the growth of
theme parks and line cruisers all over the world), space tourism will be the only activity
that can support a higher number of flights, which is essential to bringing costs down.
Finally, the new launch vehicles taking tourists on regular tours will not only be every
time quicker and safer, but also easier to man—no astronaut training will be needed!
____________________

(Adapted from:
http://www.spacefuture.com/archive/space_tourism_and_its_effects_on_space_com
mercialization.shtml)

7. Society has advanced so much in this past decade that nowadays we use technology on
a daily basis, and perhaps we are getting too dependent on it.
Technology, no doubt, has its advantages in many ways and we all know firsthand how
powerful and convenient it is. Without technology we would have much trouble

4
 getting through our day. We would not be able to get a hold of someone as easy
without our blackberries and Iphones, for example. It is reassuring to know that if we
ever get stranded in the middle of a deserted road, we may have roadside assistance
on our phones to save us. We have everything we need in one little handheld device: if
we cannot define a word, we will just google it instead of pulling out a bulky old-
fashioned dictionary, when we are bored we get on the internet and start social
networking.

Technology is certainly one of the best things man has created, but at the same time
many are of the opinion that, the more technology advances, the more the younger
generations are becoming so incredibly dependent on it. They are losing their ability to
think with all these easy-search engines, which correct spelling for them and provide
them with answers to questions in no time. Teenagers are having trouble paying
attention in class because of all the distraction the internet and cell phones cause.
What happened to the old fashioned notebook and pencil? Instead we use laptops to
type down some notes and google any questions and researching for a class essay is
limited to surfing the Internet for a few items. In any case, the Internet has been and
continues to be a wonderful source of information and resources. It gives us the ability
to pay bills, do research, purchase items not available at our local store, and connect
with people from all over the world. ____________________

(Adapted from http://www.studymode.com/essays/Technology-Argumentative-Essay-

603819.html)

8. The first person who managed to understand the potential of aluminium in the
aerospace industry was the writer Jules Verne, who provided a detailed description of
an aluminium rocket in his fantastic novel ‘Journey to the Moon’ in 1865. In 1903, the
Wright Brothers got the first airplane off the ground, in which parts of the engine were
made of aluminium.

‘Aircraft’ aluminium appeared for the first time in Germany in the early 20 th century. At
that time, it was just starting to ‘come into vogue’. The technology of its industrial
production had already been perfected, but the amounts of smelt metal were still
small. Many scientists then set themselves the goal to solve the task of aluminium
reinforcement. Among them was Alfred Wilm, a German physicist. During his
experiments on selecting components for aluminium reinforcement, unexpectedly for
himself and the entire scientific community, he discovered the ‘aging effect’ of the
aluminium alloy, which consists in the considerable improvement of metal strength
after its quenching for a long period. Alfred Wilm’s discovery was patented and
implemented in production at Duerener Metallwerke AG plant. In 1909, the plant
officially presented its products: the ultra-strong alloy, duralumin (aluminium, copper
1.3%, magnesium 2.8% and manganese 1%). In fact, this metal became the base for
development of aircraft alloys.

The advantages of Duerener ‘aluminium’ were appreciated by professor of Thermal

Dynamics, and Aircraft Manufacturer of Aachen University, Hugo Junkers. More than
once he attempted to assemble an all-metal airplane. On December 15 th, 1915, testing
of the J1 glider made of sheet iron was held at the military airfield of Deberitsa. But the
representatives of the military administration ‘rejected’ the airplane, calling it a ‘tin
donkey’: J1-too heavy, with a low climbing capacity and manoeuvrability, and did not
comply with the requirements of military aviation. Junkers understood that the major

5
‘culprit’ of the failure was metal. He needed an alternative to thick (up to 1 mm) iron
sheets. And this alternative was found!

Duralumin met all the requirements of Hugo Junkers: high strength, forgeability, and
the incredible lightness for a metal were very much to the point. As soon as in 1917,
the J7 fighter entirely built of the ‘light’ metal took off from Adlershof airfield. In the
same year, production of Junk J1 military airplanes was started; they were ordered by
the German Ministry of Defence for participation in the First World War campaigns.
During the military campaign, duralumin completely proved Junkers’ calculations: the
metal reliably protected the pilot from bullets and shells. Junk J.1 airplanes were
named ‘flying tanks’. There is a recorded case when duralumin sustained 480 bullet
shots on the wings and fuselage, and the airplane not only completed the combat
mission, but also successfully landed at base.

In 1918, on the insistence of the manufacturer A.N. Tupolev and professor of Moscow
State University N.E. Zhoukovsky, the Central Aerohydrodynamics Institute (CAHI) was
established, where development of new models of airplanes and metal alloy studies
were started. CAHI worked in collaboration with some smelters, which allowed them to
promptly receive and test new metals. However, for as many as four years the efforts
of the researchers were in vain: the created alloys could not pass the strength test.

At that time, developments of wooden airplanes were underway in Soviet Russia, many
of which were quite successful. The government of the country treated the idea of
launching metal into the sky half heartedly: aluminium was imported into the country,
and the German manufacturers devoutly guarded the secret of duralumin.

In spring 1922, a significant event happened at CAHI: the fuselage of a shot-down

Junkers D.I. fighter –a priceless trophy from the viewpoint of domestic aviation—was
delivered to the Institute. A separate ‘Material Testing Division’ group was organised, in
order to study the composition of the airplane metal covering. The researchers did not
just determine the formula of duralumin but managed to develop a stronger alloy
modification, able to compete with foreign developments. The results of their work
were sent to the Brass and Copper-Rolling Plant of Kolchougin Co. and the Leningrad
plant ‘Krasny Vyborzhets’.

The first to master the production of this domestic know-how were the metallurgists of
the Kolchougin plant: in late 1922, the plant started production of
‘kolchougaluminium’—the first Soviet high-strength alloy. And as soon as the following
year, Tupolev’s design department was provided with the complete ‘aircraft’ set: sheet,
corrugated, and shaped kolchougaluminium. Work was started to create a competitor
to Junkers, the Soviet airplane AN-2, which was presented on May 28, 1924.

Aluminium played an important role during the Second World War. The invaluable
contribution in establishing the defence power of the Soviet Army was made by the
Urals Aluminium Smelter (UAZ). The first stage of UAZ was commissioned in September
1939. On the eve of the war, 36% of aluminium produced in the country was produced
there. High-strength duralumin sheets and slabs served as the main material for
airplane covering. Complex-preformed blocks were produced from them to make
component parts of airplane engines, propellers, the chassis, and the fuselage frame.
Soft low-alloy duralumin and aluminium-magnesium alloys were used for rolling wire
for rivets, covering connective elements; sheets of aluminium-manganese alloy were

6
 used for welding fuel tanks. Without magnesium and aluminium powders, it was
impossible to produce bombs, shells, and flares.
At present, aluminium is used in the aviation industry everywhere in the world. From
two thirds to three quarters of a passenger plane’s dry weight, and from one twentieth
to half a rocket’s dry weight accounts for the share of aluminium in airborne craft. The
casing of the first Soviet satellite was made of aluminium alloys. The body casing of
American ‘Avantgarde’ and ‘Titan’ rockets used for launching the first American rockets
into the orbit, and later on-spaceships, was also made of aluminium alloys. They are
used for manufacturing various components of spaceship equipment: brackets,
fixtures, chassis, covers and casing for many tools and devices.

Engineers and manufacturers never cease to study the properties of aluminium,

developing more and more new alloys for construction of aircraft and spaceships. Who
knows, maybe, what the modern science-fiction books write about will be realized very
soon. ____________________

(Adapted from http://www.aluminiumleader.com/en/around/transport/aircraft)

3. Identification of the topic sentence of a paragraph

In pairs, underline the topic sentence of each of these paragraphs. (5-8 min)

a. Digital systems have substituted analog systems in many new personal technologies.
Although analog systems are more reliable and accurate than digital ones, the fact that
digital systems are cheaper, smaller and faster makes them very suitable for many
personal technologies. Thus, while analog systems are more adequate to technologies
that require extreme accuracy as for instance precision-sensor systems, digital systems
fit better those technologies that need speed and easy-to-use information such as
computers. Computers are a common example of personal technology that has
allowed to process huge amounts of information in fractions of time thanks to the
digital system they use. So the advantages of digital systems and their multiple
applications are what make them so valuable.

b. First-generation computers had distinctive features. They appeared just on the onset of
the Second World War and were characterized by the fact that operating instructions
were made-to-order for the specific task for which the computer had to be used. Each
computer had a different binary-coded program called “machine language” that told it
how to operate. This made the computer difficult to program and limited its versatility
and speed. Another characteristic of the first generation computers was the use of
vacuum tube magnetic drums for data storage.

(Source: Bombardó Solés, C; Aguilar Pérez M. et al. 2007. Technical Writing. A Guide
for Effective Communication. Barcelona: UPC, pp. 89, 94)

c. Compared with a coal-fired power plant, nuclear power plants are a dream to come
true from an environmental standpoint. Well-constructed nuclear power plants, in
effect, have an important advantage when it comes to electrical power generation:
they are extremely clean because, when functioning properly, they actually release
much less radioactivity than a coal-fired plant. A coal-fired plant, by contrast, also

7
 releases tons of carbon, sulphur and other elements into the atmosphere. Another
important point to take into account is the fact that coal-fired plants need large
amounts of coal to generate electricity because only 40 percent of the thermal energy
in coal is converted into electricity. The advantages of nuclear power plants over coal-
fired power plants are indeed many.

(Adapted from: Bombardó Solés, C; Aguilar Pérez, M. et al. 2007. Technical

Writing. A Guide for Effective Communication. Barcelona: UPC, p. 95)

4. Paragraph reconstruction

Work in pairs. Put these scrambled paragraph sentences in the right order and
identify the topic sentence among them. Then combine them using linking words
where appropriate to build a good paragraph. (8-10 min)

a. Weather forecast satellites use a rich variety of observations from which to analyze the
current weather patterns.

b. The launch of the first weather satellite in 1960 made possible global observations,
even in the remotest areas.

c. Satellites are essential in weather forecast.

d. Nowadays, it is possible to make a short-term weather forecast (5 days) and even a

long-term forecast (3 months).

e. These forecasts are extremely useful to predict cyclones, big storms and other
catastrophes.

(Source: Bombardó Solés, C; Aguilar Pérez M. et al. 2007. Technical Writing. A Guide
for Effective Communication. Barcelona: UPC, p. 97)

5. Cause-and-effect markers to link sentences

5. 1 Complete these split sentences of cause and effect by matching each part with its
corresponding ending. (8 min)

1. _____Turbofan engines are quieter than jet engines because…

2. _____The effect of the passing of hot section gases through the turbine blades is…
3. _____The flow of hot exhaust gases through turbine blades causes…
4. _____Cumulonimbus clouds produce severe turbulences, therefore…
5. _____The reduction of the volume of air made by the compressor results in…
6. _____Piston engines may prove more expensive than jet engines in the long run
because of…

a. … the creation of thrust.

8
b. … they must be avoided.
c. … their need for more maintenance and their poor performance.
d. … the cooler fan air shrouds the hot exhaust.
e. … them to turn.
f. … pressure production.

5.2 Complete these sentences with connectives of cause and effect from the box. (8
min)

1. __________ there is a squall line, a cold front is expected.

2. The heavy winds, rain and turbulences pilots are experiencing today have been
__________ the cold front.
3. A warm front __________ low clouds and poor visibility.

4. The flight was delayed __________ an approaching squall line.

5. The pilot missed the approach __________ the weather was below minimums.

6. Good weather usually appears __________ the high atmospheric pressure

following a cold front.

7. Many airports in the area are below landing minimums __________ ground fog.

CAUSED, SINCE, CAUSED BY, AS, BECAUSE OF, DUE TO, AS A RESULT OF, BECAUSE

GLOSSARY

Minimums = weather condition requirements established for a particular

operation.
Ground fog = condensed moisture particles that form an obscuring cloud on or near
the ground.
Squall line = line of thunderstorms that usually precedes a cold front.
Warm front = an advancing edge of a warm air mass.

9
 6. Connectives to link sentences and paragraphs

Work in pairs. Fill the gaps in the text with suitable linking words from the box. (12
min)

DEMAND FOR SPACE TOURISM IN AMERICA AND JAPAN,

AND ITS IMPLICATIONS
FOR FUTURE SPACE ACTIVITIES
(INTRODUCTION)

In considering the feasibility of space tourism, __________, the potential market must be
assessed, in order to obtain information on the potential scale of the demand at different
service prices. North America is the largest single consumer market in the world, and
__________ data on the potential demand for space tourism services in the USA and Canada is
of great interest.

In 1993, the first market research on demand for space tourism was carried out in Japan,
supported by the National Aerospace Laboratory (NAL). That survey of 3030 Japanese people
across all age groups revealed a surprisingly strong popular wish to visit space: more than 70%
of those under 60 years old, and more than 80% of those under 40 years old stated that they
would like to visit space at least once in their lifetime__________, some 70% of these said that
they were prepared to pay up to three months salary for such a trip.

__________ the fact that the authors of the Japanese survey urged other countries to do
similar research, no US survey was performed in the following two years. __________, NAL
took steps to have a comparable survey carried out in the USA and Canada during August and
September 1995. __________ estimates have been published before, this is the first actual
market research of its type to be conducted in America. The results illustrate that interest in
travelling to space is also very high among North Americans.__________, 60% of the people
surveyed were interested in travelling to space for a vacation.

These results have significant implications for the future of space activities in that the resulting
estimates of the potential size of the civilian space travel market far exceed estimates for any
other commercial space market. ___________, many of the current vehicle designs for future
space transportation systems may need significant design adjustments.

FURTHERMORE OVERALL DESPITE CONSEQUENTLY FIRST AND FOREMOST

AS A RESULT ALTHOUGH THEREFORE

(Adapted from:
http://www.spacefuture.com/archive/demand_for_space_tourism_in_america_and_japan.sht
ml)

10