influence + on / of

For example:


Incubation time had no influence on pH. 

The results showed no influence of incubation time on pH.


... not influence to

technical and mechanical

In English, technical and mechanical are pronounced tek-ni-kal and me-ka-ni-kal. Clicking on the words will take you to a dictionary where you can hear the words pronounced.

There is never a soft "ch" in English, like in the German technisch or mechanisch. 

vary, varies, various

Vary rhymes with scary hairy Mary.

Clicking on the words will take you to a dictionary where you can hear the words pronounced.
The "y" sounds like "tree"... 

...not "try"

Varies and various sound like vary but with a "s" and "ous".


Origin of the confusion:

Variety is pronounced differently.

determine

"Determine" sounds like "in"...

...not "mine".

for vs since

Correct use:

Describe a length of time without referring to a specific date using "for".

For example:

You’ve been here for five years.

Describe a length of time with reference to a specific date using "since".

For example:

You've been here since 2007.

Here's a link to a great exercise.

E-mails and letters

How to start an e-mail:

Very formal: "Dear Mr. Smith,"

Formal: "Dear Mr. Smith,"
 
Unknown person: "Dear Sir/Madam,"
 
Known person: "Dear John,"
 
Friend: "Dear John," / "Hey John," / "Hi John,"

 
Avoid: "Hello John," / "Dear honourable Mr. Smith," / "Dear respected Sir,"


How to end an e-mail:

Very formal: "Yours sincerely,"
 
Formal: "Kind regards," / "Best wishes,"
 
Unknown person: "Yours sincerely," / "Kind regards," / "Best wishes,"
 
Known person (starting with most formal): "Kind regards," / "Best wishes," / "Regards," / nothing / "Love,"
 
Friend: "Love," / "Kisses," / "Lots of love,"


Avoid: Greetings


Note that these is no very very formal start to an e-mail in English!


"Thanks," or "Thank you," can also be used at the end of an e-mail if you are asking for a favour in the e-mail.

"Cheers," can be used at the end of an e-mail in an informal situation in place of "Thanks,".

at + small/large scale

For example:

The experiments were first carried out at laboratory scale, and then at pilot scale.

Also, small/large scale is not written with a hyphen (-) unless it comes directly before a noun.

For example:

The small-scale experiments were validated with experiments at full scale.

overview + of

For example:

The first chapter will give you an overview of current research in the field of environmental bioremediation.

... not overview on / to

subsequent vs following

Correct use:

Use "subsequent" when something happened next in the past, or will in the far future,

For example:

In a laboratory procedure:
The purification process starts with centrifugation. The subsequent filtration step removes the particles that were not removed by filtration.

In a scientific paper or report:
The molecule of interest was precipitated with ammonium sulphate. The subsequent centrifugation and re-suspension gave a final yield of 85%.

Use "following" for something that is about to happen, either in a text or in real life

For example:

In a text:
The following chapters will discuss the pros and cons of X.

In a presentation:
the following slides will give you an overview of X.


Origin of the confusion:

following and subsequent both translate as "folgend" in German, but do not have the same meaning.

How many sides does a house have?

Correct use:

A normal house has one front, one back, one left side and one right side.
A piece of paper has two sides. The one you are looking at, and the other side.
A page in a book has a front and a back.

For example:

Turn the page over to find the English version of the text. 
The English version can be found on the other side of the page.




Origin of the confusion:

In German, there is a "Hinterseite". In English, the "backside" means buttocks.

Houses and papers do not have a backsides!

In German, this is the difference between "hinten" and "Hintern", or "Hinterseite" and "Hinterteil".

hardly

Correct use:

Use the word "hardly" to mean almost not.

For example:

I hardly slept last night.


Origin of the confusion:

It sounds like it should be the opposite of "easily", but it isn't!
The best example of this is:

"I'm working hard" => I'm working a lot.
"I'm hardly working" => I'm almost not working.




Here are some examples of the opposite of "easily"

Some chemicals are easily degradable.
Some chemicals are hard to degrade.

I could easily run five kilometers.
You could run five kilometers, but with difficulty.

Master’s and Bachelor’s

This is my favourite English mistake.

Correct use

With an ’s

A "master’s thesis" is short for "master’s degree thesis". A "master's" is the degree you do to become a master.
master’s [degree], bachelor’s [degree],
master’s [degree] thesis, bachelor’s [degree] thesis
master’s [degree] presentation


Origin of the confusion and why it's wrong

Most other languages don't include the ’s, and because the word has an English origin, they assume it's the same in English.

I can't tell you how funny I find it when people tell me "I'm doing my master". This implies you're having sex with someone who dominates over you.
"I want to do a bachelor at the University" -> You want to have sex with a single student.
"I did my master in Spain" -> You called him Maestro.

A "master thesis" would be the thesis that is the lord over all other theses.

It’s fine to say “I’m doing my M.Sc., B.Sc. or Ph. D.”.
It's also fine to say, "I'm doing my doctorate", but don't say "I'm doing my doctor" unless you are actually having sex with your doctor.

on the one hand

There is some confusion around the phrase "on the one hand this, on the other hand that". In German it seems that you can use it in many different situations, but in English you can only use it one way.

Correct use:

The English phrase "on the one hand this, but on the other hand that" is used for two opposing statements related to one topic. It is often used to describe advantages and disadvantages.

For example: 

Statement 1 (disadvantage):  This mobile phone is expensive.
Statement 2 (advantage):  This mobile phone has a lot of useful functions.

I can't decide whether or not to buy this mobile phone. On the one hand, it's expensive, but on the other hand, it has a lot of useful functions.

This phrase can not be used for two statements agreeing statements related to one topic.

Origin of the confusion:

The German phrase that translates as "on the one hand this, on the other hand that" is somethimes used for two statements supporting the same conclusion.

For example:

Statement 1: Vegetable dishes taste good.
Statement 2: Eating less meat is good for the environment.

Here, you can not use "on the one hand".

You could say "Limiting your meat consumption is good because not only do vegetable dishes taste good, but eating less meat is good for the environment."

constructed in house or homemade vs self-made

Correct use:

"Assembled in house" or "constructed in house" is a phrase you use in science to say that your lab made something that you can't buy or order anywhere.

For example:

The filtration unit was constructed in house.

The bioreactor was assembled in house using glassware from Duran, Germany, and an impeller from Carl Roth, Germany.

"Homemade" means 

- something that you made 

- something someone made in their home

- something that was not made in a factory

For example: 

I brought a homemade cake to work. 

I'm wearing a homemade scarf, my mum knitted it for me. 

Origin of the confusion:

The German term "selbstgemacht" sounds confusingly like "self-made" in English, and this mistake is widespread in the German-speaking world.

The English term "self-made" is only used in one context: 

His parents were poor but he worked two jobs till he saved enough money to start his own business. Now he is a millionaire. He is a self-made man.

If you say "a self-made cake", it means the cake baked itself. A "self-made bioreactor" assembled itself.

American or British English?

Both American and British English are acceptable for scientific writing.

The most important thing is to decide which one you will use before you start writing, and then stick to it. Do not mix American and British English in one text.

As a general rule, write in British English in Europe and in American English outside of Europe.

For an overview of the differences, see here

Writing a CV

There are some important differences between German and English CVs.

German CVs include some things that other nations find really, really strange!


The following things should not be in English CVs:

1) The words "Curriculum Vitae" or CV at the top of the page. I have never understood this. If it isn't obvious from looking at the page that it's a CV, you're doing something wrong. The title should be your name.

2) Marital status. Not only is it not relevant to your job qualification, it's wrong for the employer to give you the job based on your marital status.

3) Place of birth. Unless this is really relevant to the job (for example, because the job is in that location), this isn't important information. Same goes for nationality (unless it is related to the job because of visas, job location, or to highlight language knowledge).


Some general tips:

- Always tailor your CV to the job, and imagine who's reading it.
- Start with the most relevant information and/or the most recent activity.
- There are some good websites with advice and model CVs, e.g. http://www.kent.ac.uk/careers/cv/cvexamples.htm

There are two main types of CVs, both are good, and you can even do a combination of both.

1) Chronological CVhttp://www.kent.ac.uk/careers/cv/cv1.htm 
http://www2.open.ac.uk/students/_data/documents/careers/mohammed-hafiz-cv.pdf?go=1
http://www2.open.ac.uk/students/_data/documents/careers/daniel-rossi-cv.pdf?go=1
Personally, I think if you have a motivation letter, you don't need a personal statement.

2) Skills-based CV
http://www2.open.ac.uk/students/_data/documents/careers/elizabeth-page-cv.pdf?go=1
http://www.kent.ac.uk/careers/cv/maturecv.htm

English for foreign scientists

As a native English speaker working abroad, I get a lot of requests to translate, proof-read and copy-edit texts, as well as give advice on how to write international CVs and letters of motivation. 
I thought I could put together some general tips on:

- scientific writing for non-native speakers
- English language CVs
- letters of motivation
- common language mistakes to avoid

Most of the things mentioned here will be related to mistakes native German speakers typically make.

Disclaimer: I also make English mistakes!