Course Identification

Fluency in English, or at the very least, reading comprehension at college level is a must.

Preliminary Syllabus

The instructor is a practicing scientist who happens to have a lifelong "love affair" with the English language. The course will cover three main subjects:

1. ASPECTS OF ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE (EFL)

English is an easy language to learn, but a difficult one to master. This follows directly from its nature:

- weak grammar, which eases initial learning but makes word order crucially important
- an enormous vocabulary from multiple rootstocks (both Romance and Germanic)
- highly idiomatic character: English probably has more idioms (fixed expressions) than any other language

We will focus especially on some aspects of English grammar, syntax, and usage that tend to present difficulties to native speakers of Hebrew and Russian.

2. THE CHEMIST'S ENGLISH

Formal scientific communication has its own conventions. Loosely following the textbook "The Chemist's English" by longtime Australian Journal of Chemistry editor Robert W. Schoenfeld, we will address some that are specific to the natural sciences in general and to chemistry in particular.

3. SCIENTIFIC COMMUNICATION

In this section, we will cover topics such as
* general types of scientific papers (rapid communication, full paper, note, comment, mini-review, full review, popular science article,...) and how to approach writing them
* how (not) to approach a referee's comments
* preparing scientific lectures
* common fallacies (logical errors)
* some suggestions for coping with "writer's block" and "stage fright"
* emerging scientific publishing media

* some suggestions for coping with "writer's block" and "stage fright"

ADDENDUM: SCIENTIFIC AND PUBLISHING ETHICS

Last but not least, we will devote some time to these subjects, which are (to the best of the lecturer's knowledge) not presently covered in any other course.

Upon successful completion of this course students should be able to:

1. Be more effective communicators in English, which is the lingua franca of the scientific world and will remain so for the foreseeable future.
2. Demonstrate practical knowledge and insights about the craft of scientific communication in general, and of scientific/technical writing in particular.

Primary Textbook: Steven Pinker, "The sense of style : the thinking person's guide to writing in the 21st century" (Penguin, 2015). Library Record at WIS [Dr. Pinker is a well-known linguist and neuroscientist who also writes books for a popular audience.]
Scondary Textbook: Robert W. Schoenfeld, "The Chemist's English", Wiley-VCH, 1989. Library record:
http://lib-phds1.weizmann.ac.il/vufind/Record/000087669 [The late Dr. Schoenfeld was the longtime editor of the Australian Journal of Chemistry.]

Suggested reading: material in (formal, college-level) English on any subject

For the lecture on scientific ethics, consider either or both of the following two books:
Alexander Kohn, "False Prophets" (Blackwell, 1986)
http://lib-phds1.weizmann.ac.il/vufind/Record/000003532

Broad & Wade, "Betrayers of the Truth" (Simon & Schuster, 1982) http://lib-phds1.weizmann.ac.il/vufind/Record/000019046