34 Science Research Writing 1.4.1 Vocabulary for the Introduction 1. ESTABLISHING SIGNIFICANCE (a) basic issue economically important (a) central problem (has) focused (on) (a) challenging area for a number of years (a) classic feature for many years (a) common issue frequent(ly) (a) considerable number generally (a) crucial issue (has been) extensively studied (a) current problem importance/important (a) dramatic increase many (an) essential element most (a) fundamental issue much study in recent years (a) growth in popularity nowadays (an) increasing number numerous investigations (an) interesting fi eld of great concern (a) key technique of growing interest (a) leading cause (of) oft en (a) major issue one of the best-known (a) popular method over the past ten years (a) powerful tool/method play a key role (in) (a) profi table technology play a major part (in) (a) range (of) possible benefi ts (a) rapid rise potential applications (a) remarkable variety recent decades (a) signifi cant increase recent(ly) (a) striking feature today (a) useful method traditional(ly) (a) vital aspect typical(ly) (a) worthwhile study usually
Introduction — Vocabulary 35 (an) advantage well-documented attracted much attention well-known benefi t/benefi cial widely recognised commercial interest widespread during the past two decades worthwhile Here are some examples of how these are used: • A major current focus in population management is how to ensure sustainability of... • Numerous experiments have established that ionising radiation causes... • Low-dose responses to radiation have generated considerable recent research interest. • Analysis of change in the transportation sector is vital for two important reasons: ... • PDA accounts for over 95% of all pancreatic cancers. • It is generally accepted that joints in steel frames operate in a semi- rigid fashion. • Nanocrystalline oxide fi lms are attracting widespread interest in fi elds such as... • Th e importance of strength anisotropy has been demonst rated by... • Convection heat transfer phenomena play an important role in the development of... • For more than 100 years researchers have been observing the stress- strain behaviour of... • Much research in recent years has focused on carbon nanotubes.