English 12 Demo

Usually a reference to a historical or religious event.

Noun

allusion (plural allusions)

1. An indirect reference; a hint; a reference to something supposed to be known, but not explicitly mentioned; a covert indication.

Determining what the text says and why.

Noun

Analysis

analysis (countable and uncountable, plural analyses)

(countable) Decomposition into components in order to study (a complex thing, concept, theory...).

1. 2013 July-August, Philip J. Bushnell, “Solvents, Ethanol, Car Crashes & Tolerance”, American Scientist: 

   Surprisingly, this analysis revealed that acute exposure to solvent vapors at concentrations below those associated with long-term effects appears to increase the risk of a fatal automobile accident. Furthermore, this increase in risk is comparable to the risk of death from leukemia after long-term exposure to benzene, another solvent, which has the well-known property of causing this type of cancer.

A tendency to believe something.

Noun

bias (countable and uncountable, plural biases or biasses)

1. (countable, uncountable) inclination towards something; predisposition, partiality, prejudice, preference,predilection
   
   • 1748. David Hume. Enquiries concerning the human understanding and concerning the principles of moral. London: Oxford University Press, 1973. § 4.

     nature has pointed out a mixed kind of life as most suitable to the human race, and secretly admonished them to allow none of these biasses to draw too much

   • John Locke

     Morality influences men's lives, and gives a bias to all their actions.

Altering the natural order of biological processes.

Noun

bioengineering (uncountable)

1. The applications of the principles of engineering to any of the biological or medical sciences

Verb

cloning (countable and uncountable, plural clonings)

1. (biology) The production of a cloned embryo by transplanting the nucleus of a somatic cell into an ovum
2. (by extension) The production of an exact copy of an object

Adjective

connotative (comparative more connotative, superlative most connotative)

1. That implies or suggests something else.

General (often implicit) consent; practice based on this; accepted social behaviour especially if artificial or formal; accepted method of conduct used to convey information (Oxford Concise Dictionary)

A Guide to Reading and Analyzing Academic Articles, by Amanda Graham, 1997-2012, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

This activity is not limited to noting what’s wrong or bad about an article or accomplished by trying to justify your opinion of the article. Critiquing a piece of writing involves considering what the author has either told you or implies she or he is going to do (prove, explain, interpret) in the article and evaluating how well or not the author has done so. A critique can also serve to explain to its readers in what ways the article advances knowledge in the field (or not). In this context, it means an evaluative, thoughtful overview of literature (articles and books) in a particular field.

A Guide to Reading and Analyzing Academic Articles, by Amanda Graham, 1997-2012, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Noun

deduction (plural deductions)

1. That which is deducted; that which is subtracted or removed
2. A sum that can be removed from tax calculations; something that is written off

   You might want to donate the old junk and just take the deduction.

3. (logic) A process of reasoning that moves from the general to the specific, in which a conclusion follows necessarily from the premises presented, so that the conclusion cannot be false if the premises are true.
4. A conclusion; that which is deduced, concluded or figured out

   He arrived at the deduction that the butler didn't do it.

5. The ability or skill to deduce or figure out; the power of reason

   Through his powers of deduction, he realized that the plan would never work.

Noun

DNA (uncountable)

1. (biochemistry) A biopolymer of deoxyribonucleic acids (a type of nucleic acid) that has four different chemical groups, called bases: adenine, guanine, cytosine, and thymine.
2. (informal) That part of a person's character that has a genetic origin

Noun

etymology (plural etymologies)

1. (uncountable) The study of the historical development of languages, particularly as manifested in individual words.
2. (countable) An account of the origin and historical development of a word.

Adjective

explicit (comparative more explicit, superlative most explicit)

1. Very specific, clear, or detailed.

   I gave explicit instructions for him to stay here, but he followed me, anyway.

2. (euphemistic) Containing material (e.g. language or film footage) that might be deemed offensive or graphic.

   The film had several scenes including explicit language and sex.

For examples on Figurative Language

Adjective 

figurative (comparative more figurative, superlative most figurative)

1. Metaphorical or tropical, as opposed to literal; using figures; as of the use of "cats and dogs" in the phrase "It's raining cats and dogs."
2. Metaphorically so called
3. With many figures of speech
4. Emblematic; representative  

What we mean when we talk about implications in this context, is the larger meaning that the research or the idea the author has presented might have. When academics conduct and write about research, they intend it to make a difference, even if it’s only in a small way. What might a reader do with the results or the new knowledge presented in the paper?

A Guide to Reading and Analyzing Academic Articles, by Amanda Graham, 1997-2012, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Adjective

implicit (not comparable)

1. Implied indirectly, without being directly expressed 
   
2. Contained in the essential nature of something but not openly shown
3. Having no reservations or doubts; unquestioning or unconditional; usually said of faith or trust.
4. (obsolete) entangled, twisted together. 
   

Noun

induction (plural inductions)

1. An act of inducting.
   
   1. (logic) Derivation of general principles from specific instances

Noun

inference (countable and uncountable, plural inferences)

1. (uncountable) The act or process of inferring by deduction or induction.
2. (countable) That which is inferred; a truth or proposition drawn from another which is admitted or supposed to be true; a conclusion; a deduction.

Noun

innovation (plural innovations)

1. The act of innovating; the introduction of something new, in customs, rites, etc. 

The use of electronic communication technologies such as social media, especially Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, e-mail, and podcasts for various forms of activism to enable faster communication by citizen movements and the delivery of local information to a large audience. Internet technologies are used for cause-related fundraising, community building, lobbying, and organizing. 

Wikipedia

Noun

(countable and uncountable, plural logics)

1. (uncountable) A method of human thought that involves thinking in a linear, step-by-step manner about how a problem can be solved. Logic is the basis of many principles including the scientific method.
2. (philosophy, logic) The study of the principles and criteria of valid inference and demonstration.

Part of the academic experience involves coming up against new or unfamiliar terms or words. The best way to expand your grasp of the subject you’re studying is to look things up in dictionaries, textbook glossaries or encyclopedias. Believe me, there is no shame in using a reference book or site. It’s an accepted, and expected, academic activity. It may be helpful to develop a personal glossary as you read; keep a list of words or concepts you’ve looked up.

A Guide to Reading and Analyzing Academic Articles, by Amanda Graham, 1997-2012, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

maligned

1. simple past tense and past participle of malign

Verb

malign (third-person singular simple present maligns, present participle maligning, simple past and past participle maligned)

1. (transitive) To make defamatory statements about; to slander or traduce.  
2. (transitive, archaic) To treat with malice; to show hatred toward; to abuse; to wrong. 

Modern Language Association

An academic style guide widely used in the United States, Canada, and other countries, providing guidelines for writing and documentation of research in the humanities, especially in English studies; the study of other modern languages and literatures, including comparative literature;literary criticism; media studies; cultural studies; and related disciplines (but not disciplines like history, philosophy, and theology, which follow The Chicago Manual of Style).

Wikipedia

I’m using this term to mean those sources of information that have generally not been considered “appropriate” by most academics. This is becoming a matter of great concern, especially in the social sciences and such multidisciplinary fields as Women’s Studies, First Nations Studies, or Northern Studies. In these fields, personal histories, oral testimony, biographies, even the researcher’s own thoughts and experiences of the research are now being used more and more, leading to debate about the “quality,” “bias” or “appropriateness” of such sources.

A Guide to Reading and Analyzing Academic Articles, by Amanda Graham, 1997-2012, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Noun

objectivity (countable and uncountable, plural objectivities)

1. The state of being objective, just, unbiased and not influenced by emotionsor personal prejudices

Remember, just because you put it in your own words doesn't mean you're not plagiarizing.

Noun

plagiarism (countable and uncountable, plural plagiarisms)

1. (uncountable) The act of plagiarizing: the copying of another person's ideas, text or other creative work, and presenting it as one's own, especially without permission.

Facts and details that have been drawn from documents rather than from other, more recent, explanatory articles or books. The main distinction is that primary materials are the documents or other non-text evidence (incl., newspapers, media programs, interviews, coins, etc.) that are produced at the time. (Also often referred to as “primary sources.”)

A Guide to Reading and Analyzing Academic Articles, by Amanda Graham, 1997-2012, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Information that has been drawn from other articles, magazines, or books rather than from the original documents, often located in archives. The usual distinction is that secondary evidence usually involves someone’s interpretation of primary sources. There is a potential complication, however: Depending on how an author uses the evidence, articles, books, newspapers, radio or TV programs can be either primary or secondary sources for an article.

A Guide to Reading and Analyzing Academic Articles, by Amanda Graham, 1997-2012, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Noun

setting (plural settings)

1. The time, place and circumstance in which something (such as a story or picture) is set; context; scenario.

For the context of this course we will be using the terms Social Networks and Social Media interchangeably. 

Computer-mediated tools that allow people to create, share or exchange information, ideas, and pictures/videos in virtual communities and networks.

Wikipedia

Manner in which a building or other complete whole [like an academic paper] is constructed, supporting framework or whole of the essential parts of something (the structure of a poem, sentence, etc.) (Oxford Concise Dictionary).

A Guide to Reading and Analyzing Academic Articles, by Amanda Graham, 1997-2012, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Refers to the way a writer expresses his or her ideas. Oxford Concise Dictionary: “manner of writing, speaking, or doing, in contrast to the matter to be expressed or thing done; collective characteristics of the writing or diction or way of presenting things.”

A Guide to Reading and Analyzing Academic Articles, by Amanda Graham, 1997-2012, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Adjective

summary (comparative more summary, superlative most summary)

1. Concise, brief or presented in a condensed form

Noun

theme (plural themes)

1. A subject of a talk or an artistic piece; a topic.
2. A recurring idea; a motif.

According to The Writer’s Brief Handbook, a thesis is “a controlling idea.” The authors (Rosa, Eschholz and Roberts) explain that “The thesis is often expressed in one or two sentences called a thesis statement” (13). An article’s thesis statement is usually in the first or second paragraphs, after some description or discussion of the article’s context or the gaps in the discipline’s knowledge the article is addressing.

A Guide to Reading and Analyzing Academic Articles, by Amanda Graham, 1997-2012, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Noun

tone (plural tones)

General character, mood, or trend.

I’m using this term to mean the expected sources of information agreed upon by the discipline. As an example, historians are expected to use documents from the time (letters, diaries, government documents, newspapers, etc.). Social scientists draw from a different tradition and often use data generated by large, anonymous surveys as evidence. There is, of course, no real limit to such evidence. In general, “traditional evidence” is evidence (data) that is thought of as somehow value-free, which the author then interprets or explains.

A Guide to Reading and Analyzing Academic Articles, by Amanda Graham, 1997-2012, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Refers to different revolutions and protests, all of which were coordinated using the social networking site Twitter to plan the protests, mobilize the demonstrators and update the news to all around the world.

Wikipedia

Noun

validity (countable and uncountable, plural validities)

1. The state of being valid, authentic or genuine.

A component of style that refers to choices of words and sentence structures that create the “sound” of the author’s speech in your mind when you read; using some slang words may create a conversational tone. Sticking to more impersonal and formal vocabulary and complete sentences results in a lecturing or explaining tone.

A Guide to Reading and Analyzing Academic Articles, by Amanda Graham, 1997-2012, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.