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Embedded Clauses and Complex Sentences.

Literacy

Scientific writing is littered with complex sentences, many of

which contain embedded clauses. Complex sentences are Interlocking
sentences that contain more than one idea. These ideas are definitions
linked together with connectives which are discussed in the Technical taxonomies
section on connectives and in the section on Special expressions
pronouns.
Lexical density
Embedded clauses introduce additional difficulty for readers, Syntactic ambiguity
for a number of reasons. They function as a form of apposition
which can cause ambiguity. This is discussed above. Consider Grammatical
the sentences below: The embedded clauses are in bold type: metaphor

Semantic
discontinuity
• Electricity travels from the power source, such as a
battery, around a series of conductors back to the
power source. The use of active and
• Most cells, including plant cells, have a nucleus, a passive voice
cell wall and ctoplasm.
The use of pronouns
• Opaque material, including wood, metal and
stone, do not let light pass through them. Complex sentences

The use of
Embedded clauses are included in sentences because they connectives
ensure brevity. Also, they tend to embellish the information in
the main part of the sentence by clarifying information, giving examples or providing information
which it is not essential to include.

What these embedded clauses means for a reader is that they have to stop, mid-sentence, and
realise it is 'extra information', then understand how it is relevant to the main sentence and,
finally, finish the sentence by connecting the first clause and the final clause or clauses. This
would be a formidable task for most young readers.

Looking back at the seven areas identified by Halliday, we realise that many are endemic to
scientific writing. We realise that scientific writing is not difficult because it contains a large
amount of jargon and fancy words. The grammar is what makes it difficult and it is this 'special'
grammar that was developed to be able to meet the requirements of scientific knowledge.
Therefore, if we want students to understand science they must be able understand scientific
language - the two go hand in hand. Also, we do not just meet the features identified by Halliday
in the field of traditional disciplines of Biology, Physics and Chemistry, they are found, to some
extent, in almost all types of writing, so much so, that we can consider 'scientific writing' to be
the norm. Consider the randomly- selected sentences below: (The source of the information is in
brackets after each sentence.)

• As with other mobile radio-transmitting equipment, users are advised that for the
satisfactory operation of the equipment and for the safety of personnel, it is
recommended that the equipment should only be used in the normal operating position
- held to your ear with the antenna pointing over your shoulder. (From a manual
relating to the use of a mobile phone)
• Needless to say, we cannot say this about the retinol stimulation, nor, I have argued,
about the higher vector codings of sensory properties where it is true that the most one
can say is that they sometimes result in conscious experience (and, perhaps, that the
abstract sttructure of the phenomenal field of experience will be mirrored by the vector
space within the brain that encodes the sensory information - though this will be no
surprise if we start with the phenomenal structure as our guide). (From a modern
philosophy book.)
• Take our Daughters to Work Day, the annual event that aims to open girls' eyes to the
practicalities of working life and the whole gamut of possibilities ahead when they quit
the classroom, celebrates its tenth anniversary on March 18th. (from a newspaper)

Unfortunately, much of the material produced to help students learn science and some
of the material produced to advise teachers on the teaching of scientific literacy recoils
from confronting the difficulties it poses. However, there are ways of helping students
engage with and understand scientific writing which will be discussed in the section -
"How can we help readers to understand written scientific language?

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