薬学英語のコンピューター利用による統計的研究

抄録

Nonnative English speakers writing technical papers in English are challenged by the perplexing usage and expressions of English common to scientific journals. This paper will focus on the use of articles, the position of adverbs, the expressions related to 'cause and reason', and the use of prepositions. Unlike peer literature intended to facilitate nonnative's technical English writing ability, the author has developed a highly practical, quantitative approach to technical or pharmaceutical English. Computer technology was applied to statistically analyze the frequency and the probabilities of English usage and expressions found in the Journal of Biological Chemistry (J.B.C.), 1994 and the Journal of Organic Chemistry (J.O.C.), 1987. Expressions and usage used more frequently indicate greater acceptance and generality for technical English writing, while the degree of probability characterizes English usage. Comparing the attributes of English between the two journals revealed considerable similarities and appreciable differences inherent in each scientific specialty. It is proposed that the quantitative method developed for this study can contribute to various fields of English language research.