Technical Report Writing

& Communication Skills

English Grammar
Transformation of Sentences. Synthesis.
Substitution of words.

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Course Outline
HUM 364 TECHNICAL REPORT WRITTING & COMMUNICATION SKILLS

Technical Report Writing: Essay writing . Preparation of laboratory and other technical reports. Logical
presentation of facts and opinion in technical reports, Transformation of sentences. Synthesis. Idioms. Use of
punctuation in English composition. Substitution of words. Common mistakes and difficulties faced by the
students. Use of English language laboratory.

Communication Skills: Importance of effective communication, the process and principles of communication.
Planning, Organizing, editing before communication. Letter and memos, like direct requests, Persuasive
favorable/unfavorable replies etc. Special message etc., monthly/annual reports, conference report, progress
proposals reports, formal reports, project reports. Oral communication, business meeting, interpersonal and
non-written communication. Modern office technology for communication. Social and intercultural
communication.

 Recommended Books:

1. Bough L. Sue, (1999), '' How to write first class letters'' , Nte publishing group USA.
2. Pauly steven. E. (1979), ''Technical report writing today '' 2nd ED. USA: Boston.
3. Day, Robert A.. , (2006), How to write and publish scientific paper. 6th ED. UK: Cambridge university press.

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 SYNTHESIS OF SENTENCES

PICS - Punjab Institute of

Eng. M. Farhan Sabir Contemporary Sciences Lecture 4 – Slide # 3
 1. Subjects and Verbs

The basic building blocks of English sentences are subjects and

verbs. Every sentence has a subject and a verb. Who or what the
sentence speaks about is called the subject; what the sentence
says about the subject is called the verb.

Simple Sentences:
(the subject is underlined and the verb is in italic)
 The boy cried.
 The fish smells.
 Many people applied for the job.
 The show is a documentary.

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 Complex Sentences:

A sentence may have more than one verb, more than

one subject, or several subjects and verbs.

 Broken glass and empty cans littered the parking lot.

Class Activity:
Make a complex sentence by yourself and write on
your notebook.

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 Auxiliary/Helping Verbs:

Many verbs consist of more than one word. (The extra verbs are
called auxiliary, or helping verbs.) Here, for example, are some
of the many forms of the verb “work.”

Work Worked Should work

Works Were working Will be working

Does work Have worked Can work

Is working Had worked Could be working

Are working Had been working Must have worked

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 Use Of ‘To’ & ‘-Ing’ With Verbs:
A verb proceeded by to is never the verb of a sentence.

 At night, my son likes to read under the covers.

 Evelyn decided to separate from her husband.

An –ing word by itself is never the verb of a sentence.(It

may be the part of the verb, but it must have a helping verb
in front of it)
 They going on a trip this weekend.
(This is not a sentence.)
 They are going on a trip this weekend.
(This is a sentence.)

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Prepositional Phrase:
The subject of the sentence never prominent
within a prepositional phrase. A prepositional
phrase is simply a group of words that begins
with a preposition.
Common Propositions: (Read what are Prepositions yourself)

about at beside for like over

above before between from of through
across behind by in off to
among below during inside on / onto toward
around beneath except into with under
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Finding Out Subject of a Sentence:
Crossing out prepositional phrases will help you
find the subject or subjects of a sentence.
 A stream of cold air seeps in through the space
below the door.
 The people in the apartment above ours fight
loudly.

Words like not, just, never, only, and always are not
part of the verb, although they may appear within
the verb.
 Ruby has never liked cold weather.
 Our boss will not be singing with the choir this
year.
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 2. Fragments
Every sentence must have a subject and a verb and
must express a complete thought. A word group that
lacks a subject or a verb and does not express a
complete thought is a fragment.

Following are the most common types of fragments

that people write:
1. Dependent - word fragments
2. -ing and to fragments
3. Added - detail fragments
4. Missing - subject fragments
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 Dependent-word Fragments
Some word groups that begin with a dependent
word are fragments. Following are some examples:

after, although because before

how if /even if since until
When whenever whether while
Unless while which whose

Whenever you start writing a sentence with any of

such words, you must be careful that a fragment
does not result.
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Example:
1. After I cashed my paycheck. I treated myself to dinner.
(The dependent word After is fragment.)
(This is not correct sentence.)

Here, After I cashed my paycheck is a dependent statement. It

leaves us hanging. We expect to find out, in the same sentence,
what happened after the writer cashed the check. When a writer
does not follow through and complete a thought, a fragment
results. To correct the fragment, simply follow through and
complete the thought:

1. After I cashed my paycheck, I treated myself to dinner.

(This is correct sentence.)

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 Remember, then, that the dependent statements by
themselves are fragments. They must be attached to a
statement that makes sense standing alone.

Here are two other examples of dependent-word

fragments:

 I won’t leave the house. Until I hear from you.

 Rick finally picked up the socks. That he had thrown
on the floor days ago.

Until I hear from you is a fragment.

That he had thrown on the floor days ago is a fragment.

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 How to Correct a Dependent-Word fragment
In most cases we can correct a dependent-word
fragment by attaching it to the sentence that
comes after it or to the sentence that comes
before it.
• After I cashed my paycheck, I treated myself
to dinner.
(The fragment has been attached to the sentence that comes after it.)

• I won’t leave the house until I hear from you.

(The fragment has been attached to the sentence that comes before it.)

• Rick finally picked up the socks that he had

thrown on the floor days ago.
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(The fragment has been attached to the sentence that comes before it.)
 Another way of connecting a dependent-word
fragment is to eliminate the dependent word by
rewriting the sentence:
 I cashed my paycheck and then treated myself to dinner.
 I will wait to hear from you.
 Rick finally picked up the socks. He had thrown them on the floor
days ago.
Sometimes the dependent words who, that, which,
or where appear not at the very start but near the
start of a word group. A fragment often results.
• I drove slowly past the old brick house. The place where I grew up.
(The place where I grew up is not in itself a complete thought. Rewrite it to:)
 I drove slowly past the old brick house, the place where I grew up.
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 ing and to Fragments
When an –ing word appears at or near the start
of a word group, a fragment may result. Such
fragments often lack a subject and part of the
verb.
• Ellen walked all over the neighborhood yesterday. Trying to
find her dog. Several people claimed they had seen him only
hours before.
 We sat back to watch the movie. Not expecting anything
special. To our surprise, we clapped, cheered, and cried for
the next two hours.
 I telephoned the balloon store. It being the day. Before our
wedding anniversary. I knew my wife would be surprised to
receive a dozen heart-shaped balloons.
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 How to Correct –ing Fragments?

Attach the fragment to the sentence that comes

before it or the sentence that comes after it,
whichever makes sense. Item 1 could read
“Ellen walked all over the neighborhood yesterday
trying to find her dog.”

Add a subject and change the –ing verb part to the

correct form of the verb. Item 2 could read
“We did not expect anything special.”

Change being to the correct form of the verb be (am,

are, is, was, were). Item 3 could read
“It was the day before our wedding anniversary.”
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 Added-detail Fragments
Added-detail fragments lack a subject and a verb. They often
begin with one of the following words.

also, like, especially, including, except, such as,

for example:

 Before a race, I eat starchy food. Such as bread and spaghetti.

The carbohydrates provide quick energy.

 Bob is taking an evening course in auto mechanics. Also, one

in plumbing. He wants to save money on household repairs.

 My son keeps several pets in his room. Including hamsters

and mice.
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 How to Correct Added-Detail Fragments?
 Attach the fragment to the complete thought that precedes it. Item 1
could read

“Before a race, I eat starchy foods such as bread and spaghetti.”

 Add a subject and a verb to the fragment to make it a complete

sentence. Item 2 could read

“Bob is taking an evening course in auto mechanics. Also, he is

taking one in plumbing.”

3. Insert the fragment within the preceding sentence. Item 3 could

read

“My son keeps several pets,

including hamsters and mice, in his room.”

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 Missing-subject fragments

As the title suggests, these sentences have

fragments with missing subjects.

 Alicia loved getting birthday gifts. But hated

writing thank-you notes.

 Mickey has orange soda and potato chips for

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 How to Correct Missing-Subject Fragments?
1. Item 1 could read
“Alicia loved getting birthday gifts but hated
writing thank-you notes.”
(fragment attached to the preceding sentence)

1. Item 2 could read

"Then he eats more junk food, like cookies,
for lunch.”
(Add a subject which can often be pronoun
standing for the object in the preceding sentence.)

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