Unit – 5

‘How a Chinese Billionaire Built Her Fortune’ from the prescribed textbook ‘English for Engineers’ published by Cambridge University Press.

5.1          Technical Vocabulary and Their Usage

Technical Vocabulary is the specialized vocabulary of any field which evolves due to the need for experts in a field to communicate with clarity, precision, relevance and brevity. Prior to developing your technical vocabulary, to improve your general vocabulary in English is very essential. The thirst to learn new words, should be a continuous process; whenever you learn new words, try your best to use them while you communicate so that the words register in your mind.

There are different strategies you can adopt to learn the words. Learn by knowing their origin. A dictionary is an invaluable tool to build your vocabulary. Sometimes you infer the meaning of a word from the context; but the meaning may not be exact. Only the dictionary would provide with the exact meaning.

Below are some examples of technical words:

1. Arbitrary

Based on or subject to individual discretion or preference

The divisor of a fraction

The dividend of a fraction

The condition of belonging to a particular place or group by virtue of social or ethnic or cultural lineage

The number obtained by division

One of two or more integers that can be exactly divided into another integer

Involving an entity that produces an effect

Common to or shared by two or more parties

a polynomial in one variable

a declaration that is made emphatically

a whole formed by a union of two or more elements or parts

Unclearness by virtue of having more than one meaning

Give to several people

Break down into components or essential features

The set of facts or circumstances that surround a situation

Bring into existence

The words of something written

In a mechanical manner; by a mechanism

a round fastener sewn to shirts and coats

a representation of a person's thinking with symbolic marks

5.2          Common Errors in English

Spelling Errors

Commonly misspelt English words are some of the most used words that are unintentionally misspelt by users in day to day writing. Although it is difficult to determine which words are more prone to spelling mistakes, words with double consonants, multiple connected vowels, and long arduous words are more commonly misspelt compared to other words.

Below are some of the most commonly misspelt words in the English Language:

The first column represents the correct spelling of the word followed by the mistake commonly made by writers and the last column represents the misspelt form of the word used.

Errors in Pronunciation

There is a great difference in how the words are spelled and the way they are pronounced in the English language. Therefore, it is difficult to ascertain the correct pronunciation of a word by just looking at it the way it is spelled. This often results in mispronunciation. Only by hearing the correct pronunciation from a native speaker one can truly understand how words are supposed to be articulated.

For example, consider the following words – through, cough, though, rough, bough. In these words, the pronunciation of the letters –ough varies with each word.

Similarly read, need, believe, machine, receive, we, people, key, quay contain nine different spellings for the same vowel sound in the word “need”.

Below are some commonly made errors with respect to pronunciation and how to avoid them -

THE -ED SUFFIX ON REGULAR VERBS

The past tense of various verbs is formed by adding the suffix “-ed” to the base form of the verb. But Even though all regular verbs are formed the same way, they might be pronounced quite differently. Depending on the preceding syllable, the -ed suffix can be pronounced in three different ways: /id/, /d/, or /t/.

/ID/

This pronunciation is used when “-ed” is preceded by a “d” or a “t”.

Examples

Need   → needed

End      → ended

Start     → started

Want     → wanted

/T/

Regular verbs that end in a voiceless consonant sound have the /T/ pronunciation. Some common voiceless consonants include: /f/ /k/ /p/ /s/ /t/ /sh/ y /ch/.

Examples

/f/ laugh       → laughed

/p/ stop      → stopped

/sh/ wash       →washed

/k/ like       → liked

/s/ miss    → missed

/D/

Regular verbs having a voiced consonant sound have this pronunciation. Some common voiced consonants are: /b/ /g/ /v/ /z/ /m/ /n/ /l/ /th/ /r/.

Examples:

/b/ grab      → grabbed

/g/ beg      → begged

/n/ listen → listened

/l/ kill → killed

SILENT LETTERS

Silent letters are consonants that appear in a word but are not pronounced. It can be difficult for a non-native speaker to grasp which letters are silent in a word, therefore resulting in errors in pronunciation. For example, There are many English words where the “h” is not pronounced. The same applies to many other consonants. Let’s look at some examples.

Silent H

Although it should be kept in mind that the aspirated “h” in English is always pronounced. Here is a list of words that begin with a silent “h”.

Hour

Honour

Honest

Heir

Herbs

These words containing the silent 'h' usually have a vowel right after 'h' and the actual pronunciation begins from the said vowel.

Silent P

There are a number of words where the first 'p' is not pronounced leading to mispronunciation by non-native speakers. Here are those words:

Psychology

Psychiatrist

Pseudo

Pneumonia

Pneumatics

Psalms

Another commonly mispronounced word 'receipt', where the “p” is not at the beginning of the word, is followed by a consonant, but is not pronounced.

There are many other silent letters in English and the only way to recognize them is by practicing their usage. By a general rule, they are consonants followed by other consonants. For example: doubt, subtle, assign, design, knife, knight.

THE STRESS ON DERIVED WORDS

Sometimes the stress passes from a later syllable to the first syllable in some derived forms of verbs. Their visual similarity can be misleading and therefore should be paid close attention to.

Examples

Implant (v) implant (n)

Project (v) project (n)

Upgrade (v) upgrade (n)

Some Other Common Errors

1. A While vs. Awhile
A while is a noun phrase consisting of a and while, whereas awhile is an adverb meaning “for a while.” A while usually follows the preposition for or in, whereas if you cannot put “for a while” into a sentence, you need to use a while.
•He went to the store for a while. (if you replace a while with for a while, it does not make sense -> He went to the store for for a while.)
•You should sleep awhile. (if you replace awhile with for a while, it makes sense -> You should sleep for a while.)

2. Advice vs. Advise
Advice is a noun, whereas advise is a verb.
•She took my advice and took out a loan.
•I advised her to take out a loan.

3. Alot vs. A Lot vs. Allot
First of all, the “word” alot does not exist! A lot is frequently misspelled as one word, alot, but it is actually two words.
Memory tip: Think of a lot as meaning, I want a whole lot full of something. (a lot meaning a parking lot, a large area)
The word allot is a verb meaning to distribute.
•I have allotted this money to the charity.

4. Among vs. Between
Among is used to express a loose relationship of several items. Between expresses the relationship of one item to another item.
•I found a pen hidden among the papers on the desk.
•I found a pen hidden between two sheets of paper on the desk.

5. Apostrophes
Compare the following phrases:
•The girls are at home.
•The girl’s home.
•The girls’ home.
The meaning in the above phrases is changed dramatically based on the placement, if any, of the apostrophe. When talking about more than one person or object, there is no apostrophe.
•chairs (more than one chair)
•boys (more than one boy)
•suitcases (more than one suitcase)
The apostrophe with an s is added to show possession.
•The girl’s home. (the home belonging to the girl)
•The student’s notebook. (the notebook belonging to the student)
Likewise, an apostrophe is added after a plural word to show possession of that plural noun.
•The girls’ home. (the home belonging to more than one girl)
•The students’ notebook. (one notebook belonging to more than one student)
•The students’ notebooks. (more than one notebook belonging to more than one student)

6. Assure vs. Ensure vs. Insure
Assure means “to tell someone that something will definitely happen.” Ensure means “to make sure of something.” Insure means “to buy an insurance policy.”
•She assured me that the house would not flood.
•She took steps to ensure that the house did not flood.
•She is glad the house was insured against flood damage.

7. Breathe vs. Breath
Breathe is a verb, and breath is the noun form of breathe.
•It seems that he breathed his last breath.
This also applies to the verb bathe and the noun bath.

8. Capital vs. Capitol
Capital can mean either an uppercase letter, the seat of the government, or money. Capitol is the actual building where the government sits.
•I would like to visit the Capitol in the capital of the United States, Washington, D.C.

9. Complement vs. Compliment
 A complement completes something else, whereas a compliment is something nice you say to someone.
•His black suit was a nice complement to his black shoes.
•She complimented him on his shoes.

10. Effect vs. Affect
This one is straightforward–effect is a noun, and affect is a verb!
Memory tip for affect: A is for action, and verbs are about action. Affect is a verb, and it starts with A.
Memory tip for effect: Think of the phrase “cause and effect.” “Cause” ends with an E, and a cause leads to an effect!

11. Emigrate vs. Immigrate
Emigrate method “to transport faraway from a city or us of a,” while immigrate means “to move into a country from elsewhere.”
•my father emigrated from venezuela.
•my mother immigrated to the united states.

12. Except vs. Accept
Besides is a preposition meaning “aside from,” and accept is a verb that means “to get hold of.”
•i don’t like all of my items, besides this one. (there is only one present that i love)
•why did i accept all of those gifts?

13. Further vs. Farther
Use farther for physical distance, and similarly for metaphorical distance.
•how a good deal farther do i need to drive?
•i would really like to enhance further in my profession.

14. Good vs. Well
The phrase accurate is an adjective, while the phrase nicely is an adverb.
•how are you today? I'm doing nicely.
•i sense properly these days.

15. Historic vs. Historical
Historical approach “famous,” whereas ancient way “related to history.”
•what a historical snowstorm!
•she determined to wear a ancient gown for the renaissance truthful.

16. “I feel bad”
Isn’t feel a verb, so shouldn’t the phrase after it's an adverb, badly? The answer is, no! Sense is a linking verb, linking the difficulty to the adjective that describes it. Consequently, the word after sense need to, in fact, be an adjective. I feel bad is the appropriate sentence.
•the cake smells scrumptious. (smells is a linking verb; scrumptious is an adjective)
•their talking is loud. (is is a linking verb; loud is an adjective)

17. I.e. vs. E.g.
I.e. and e.g. are both abbreviations of latin phrases.
E.G. Is used to introduce a few examples, whereas i.E. Is used to intend “in different words.”
•after work, i’d like to test out the brand new supermarket, i.E., key food.
•after work, i’d want to go to a grocery store, e.G., key food or waldbaum’s.

.18. Into vs. In To
Into is a preposition showing what something is internal. In and to are two words that just show up to be next to every other occasionally.
•he were given into the teach. (into is one unit – a preposition)
•i dropped in to look you. (drop in is one unit on its very own, and to see is some other unit)
•log in to the website by urgent this button. (log in is a phrasal verb)
•what is your login? (login is a noun)
The regulations above practice to onto and on to as properly.

19. Less vs. Fewer
Fewer is for rely nouns, and less is for mass nouns. Test out our remember nouns & mass nouns look at sheet if you overlook the distinction!

20. Lie vs. Lay
Compare these two sentences:

• You lie down on the sofa.
• You lay the book down on the table.
  The second one has a direct object (book), whereas the first sentence does not.

HOWEVER:

• Last week, you lay down on the couch.
• Last week, you laid the book on the table.
• You have lain on the couch for a few hours.
• You have laid the book on the table.

It just so happens that the past tense of the verb to lie is the same as the present tense of the verb to lay. You just have to memorize it!

21. Loose vs. Lose
Loose is an adjective, and lose is a verb.

• This shirt is too loose on me.
• How did you lose your phone?!

22. Numbers
In english, numbers greater than a thousand and up to 10 thousand may be written in two methods:
•one thousand
•1,000
Numbers above ten thousand can be written by using a comma within the following way:
•10,000
•247,533
Decimals and cash amounts may be written with the aid of the usage of a length inside the following manner:
•7.24 = seven and twenty-4 hundredths
•2.14 =  and fourteen hundredths
•$1.37 = one dollar and thirty-seven cents
•$359.08 = 3 hundred fifty-nine dollars and 8 cents

23. Parallel Structure
One of the most common errors in English is disrespecting parallel structure.
Here is an example:

• I like hiking, swimming, and biking.
• I like hiking, to swim, and biking.

The second sentence disrespects parallel structure. Parallel structure means using the same pattern of words in a sentence.

• I was asked to write my report quickly, thoroughly, and accurately.
• I was asked to write my report quickly, thoroughly, and in an accurate manner.

24. Principal vs. Principle
When most important is a noun, it refers to someone in rate of an business enterprise; when it is an adjective, it way “most crucial.” a precept is a firmly held perception.
•what did the predominant want to talk to you approximately?
•the predominant reason she desired to look me changed into to talk about my current tuition price.
•it’s not that i don’t have the cash, it’s just a be counted of principle.

25. Stationary vs. Stationery
Stationary means “not moving,” whereas stationery refers to paper and writing materials.

• Of course the door will remain stationary if you don’t push it the right way!
• I love this stationery you printed your resume on!

26. Subject-Verb Agreement with Collective Nouns
If the sentence shows more individuality, you would use a plural verb; however, if the noun is acting as a unit, use a singular verb.

• The team is heading for practice.
• The team are eating with their families.

With a prepositional phrase, use a verb tense that corresponds to the subject.

• Nearly one in four people is Muslim. (one is the subject, so we use a singular verb, is)
• 25% of people are Muslim. (fractions and percentages can be singular or plural depending on the prepositional phrase that follows; people is plural, so we use are)

27. The “Bacon and Eggs” Rule
When we have  nouns which are used so often together we consider them as a unique concept, we use a singular verb.
•Viscount St. Albans and eggs became served at brunch.
•macaroni and cheese is delicious.

Likewise, we use a singular verb when we talk about quantities or quantities.
•a thousand greenbacks is a lot of cash.
•ten miles is simply too far to walk.

Expressions with “certainly one of” are accompanied by means of a singular verb.
•considered one of my college students is a gymnast.
•one in every of my buddies is going to africa this summer season.

28. Title Capitalization
Here are some basic rules about how to capitalize titles:

• Always capitalize the first and last word.
• Capitalize nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs.
• Do NOT capitalize articles, prepositions (shorter than five letters), or coordinating conjunctions.

Here are some examples:

• A Year in Paris
• Pride and Prejudice
• Cheaper by the Dozen

Of course, for every rule there are exceptions, so it is best to look it up if you are unsure of something.

29. Who vs. Which vs. That
Who refers to people, whereas which and that check with agencies or items. That introduces an vital clause (which adds critical statistics to the sentence), while which introduces a nonessential clause (which adds supplementary, needless statistics).
•she is the only who drove me domestic the previous day. (who refers to someone)
•i do no longer like cereal that has chocolate in it. (we do no longer understand what type of cereal without the important clause)
•this cereal, which has chocolate in it, is not accurate for you. (we do not need the statistics in the nonessential clause)

30. Who vs. Whom
Who refers back to the issue of the sentence, while whom refers back to the item of a verb or preposition.
•who wants the remaining piece of pie? (who's the situation)
•whom do you agree with more? (you is the concern; whom is the item)
If you’re uncertain, attempt substituting who with he/she and whom with him/her to see in the event that they healthy.

5.3          Reading Comprehension – Exercises for Practice

Reading is the cognitive process of decoding symbols to derive meaning from them. It is the ability to understand text, decode its meaning and compare with what the reader already knows.

Knowledge of grammar and vocabulary are very essential to be a good reader. Attention span, the ability to understand the meaning of a word from context, the ability to co-relate thoughts and ideas, the ability to follow the flow of words, and the ability to identify various literary devices are the fundamental skills required for efficient reading.

We should make our pupil an efficient reader. An efficient reader is like a bus driver who knows when to go slow, when to accelerate speed, how to negotiate hair-pin bends on ghat roads etc. An efficient reader knows there are different levels of comprehension too as these are different reading materials. To become an efficient reader, one should be able to employ different study techniques Reading is an act of communication between writer and reader. It is an act in which the reader grasps the information the writer passes on to him.

Comprehension is the correct association of meanings with word symbols. It is the selection of the correct meaning suggested by the text It is a thinking process. It is thinking through reading. Students should lead and get complete meaning. There are two situations that arise while reading a passage. The pupils may find a reading comprehension passage difficult for them. The teacher should know about the difficulties beforehand and prevent their occurrence.

Some common difficulties are:

• Students are not able to concentrate on what they read.
• They are not able to recognize words. Noisy surroundings, inadequate lighting and uncomfortable seating arrangements.
• Unfamiliarity of the subject matter (eg) a child from a city may not understand a passage on farming and a village child about road signal systems.
• In effective questioning and answering techniques.
• Lack of appropriate guidance by the teacher Steps for the comprehension skills. These are various steps followed for the construction of comprehension.

Reading for the main idea:

Pupils should develop skills to identify the main idea or the central idea in what they read. This skill is necessary to get the main idea, identify the theme and get the implied meanings of the paragraph.

Activities to identify the main idea:

• Underlining key words.
• Selecting the topic sentence.
• Writing the title.
• Turning the sub heads or subtitles into a question (The answer to the question may give the main idea of the paragraph)
• Locating the function words that tie the sentence together. e.g then, therefore, but, etc.

Reading for detains:

Along with reading for and stating the main idea the pupils must learn to read for details.

Activities to accomplish reading for details ask the pupils to;

• Look at a picture and then describe what they see at the picture.
• Note the details in a paragraph after stating the main idea.
• Identify irrelevant sentences.
• Analyse the paragraph to make a formal outline.
• Carryout simple directions on how to do something.
• Respond to directions.
• Elicit answers concerning the details, develop chart, diagram or map of the sequence of events.

Reading for organization:

Good readers will understand the organisation of what is being read. They arrange the ideas in logical order. The key helps to recall the information is organization. Reading the content areas depends upon proficiency in organisation skills. A Good reader knows how paragraphs are organized.

Activities that help pupils learn in a logical order what they are reading:

• Organizing information about a given subject (eg) characteristics of animals)
• Grouping a series of details about a main idea.
• Developing an outline for a story with heading and subheadings.
• Arranging records, directions or ideas in sequential orders.
• Arranging various bits of information about a selected topic and grouping them into an information story.

Reading for summarising and outline:

Summaries help to pressure the essential facts and ideas in capsule form. They retain important information. So the pupils should develop summarizing skill. Outlining is another way of organisation. It is closely related to summarising activities to develop summarizing skills. Summarise a message to be sent as a telegram. Selecting the main idea from the choices you give them. Do exercise for writing an outline. Read a small poem and select the best summary from the choices you give them.

Exercises for Reading comprehension:

Read the following comprehensions and answer the questions:

In the 16th century, an age of great marine and terrestrial searching, Ferdinand Magellan led the first journey to sail around the world. As a young Portuguese noble, he worked for the king of Portugal, but he became involved in the quagmire of political conspiracy at court and lost the king’s good deed. After he was removed from service by the king of Portugal, he started to serve the future Emperor Charles V of Spain.

A papal decree of 1493 had allocated all land in the New World west of 50 degrees W longitude to Spain and all the land east of that line to Portugal. Magellan afforded to provide evidence that the East Indies fell under Spanish power. On September 20, 1519, Magellan set sail from Spain with five ships. More than a year later, one of these ships was searching the landscape of South America looking for a water route across the continent. This ship sank, but the outstanding four ships searched along the southern peninsula of South America. Lastly they found the passage they wanted near 50 degrees S latitude. Magellan called this passage the Strait of All Saints, but today it is recognized as the Strait of Magellan.

One ship abandoned while in this passage and came back to Spain, so fewer sailors were advantaged to look at that first panorama of the Pacific Ocean. Those who stayed back crossed the meridian now identified as the International Date Line in the early spring of 1521 after 98 days on the Pacific Ocean. During those long days at sea, many of Magellan’s men died of hunger and disease.

Later, Magellan became worried in an insular disagreement in the Philippines and was murdered in a tribal battle. Only one ship and 17 sailors under the authority of the Basque navigator Elcano survived to finish the westward voyage to Spain and thus show once and for all that the world is round, with no cliff at the border.

1. The 16th century was an age of large ______ exploration.

1. Cosmic
2. Land
3. Mental
4. Common man
5. None of the above

2. Magellan lost the favour of the king of Portugal when he became involved in a political ________.

1. Entanglement
2. Discussion
3. Negotiation
4. Problem
5. None of the above

3. The Pope separated New World lands between Spain and Portugal along with their location on one side or the other of an made-up physical line 50 degrees west of Greenwich that extends in a _________ direction.

1. North and south
2. Crosswise
3. Easterly
4. South east
5. North and west

4. One of Magellan’s ships searched the _________ of South America for a passage across the continent.

1. Coastline
2. Mountain range
3. Physical features
4. Islands
5. None of the above

5. Four of the ships sought after a passageway along a southern ______.

1. Coast
2. Inland
3. Body of land with water on three sides
4. Border
5. Answer not available

6. The passage was found near 50 degrees of ________.

1. Greenwich
2. The equator
3. Spain
4. Portugal
5. Madrid

7. In the spring of 1521, the ships crossed the _______ now called the International Date Line.

1. Imaginary circle passing through the poles
2. Imaginary line parallel to the equator
3. Area
4. Land mass
5. Answer not available

5.4          Technical Reports – Introduction – Characteristics of a Report – Categories of Reports

Introductions

The success of a business or industrial organization lies in doing its job for this purpose, gathering information and passing it on to those who need it is important. In the broader collection and transfer of information is happening all the time in every area of ​​formal life. So scientists, working brokers, testers, journalists, and various professionals, government and private organizations are asked to write and report to their management on important topics at the institution or the person involved.

Reports can be as short as a few sentences and as long as a few large pages. Although reports can be verbal and informal, here we are concerned with written and formal reports.

Characteristics of a Report:

• The Audience:
  When organizing and preparing your reports you need to know who your audience is and whether or not your content meets their interests and needs.

• Conciseness:
  Legitimacy has to do with how easy or readable it is. As most reports in normal cases type, all meetings with good typing should be followed. If there are handwritten reports, special attention should be given to writing clearly and clearly. Any departure from the above requirement will prove displeasing to your audience.

• Readability:
  Clarity, durability and systematic presentation of readable content. The concept is summarized better than the following:
  The author does a lot by giving his reader a lot of information and taking away from him a little time.
  In this regard the following five goals are met:

• Clarity:
  Just like unwanted fat in the body, padding, prolixity and repetition violates the respect of good writing, not to mention the respect they wrote for you. So 'agree' and 'prefer' will be more acceptable than pompous 'agree with' and 'prefer'. As such, why use 'at that point in time' and at a time when we have the best and most economical holdings at that time 'and' when '. Viewed from the point of view of the report, or requested for the report, a good report will contain four important details, an analysis of the information, conclusions and recommendations. It should always be remembered that effective reporting requires special attention to the needs and expectations of the reader. It means that the author of the report has to 'snap a picture', he must think and understand himself.

Format:

1. Title Page

The title page includes the main title of the report, it must be short and concise. You can also include the word counts of your summary and main body.

B.     Table of Contents

Help your reader quickly and easily find what they are looking for by using informative headings and careful numbering of your sections and sub-sections.

For example:

C.    Introduction

The introductory part of the report comprises of statement of the objectives of the report and how the report should be treated by the readers. It should indicate towards the problem that is going to be addressed in the main body. It should be catchy and interesting to grasp the attention of the reader from the very start.

D.    The Body

The main body consists of the central theme or the main idea of the report. It can be divided into a number of sections and subsections to separate your research and subsequent findings in a logical order.

E.     Figures, Graphs, Formulae and Tables

This section consists of the statistical representation of the data you have collected. Ideas should be conveyed in the form which is most suitable to the reader and easily understandable by the reader. Excessive use of these tools should be avoided.

F.     Conclusion

The conclusion is a kind of summing up of all the points you have stated in the main text. It should be a definite solution to the problem introduced during the introductory part of the report. The conclusion must be short and to the point.

G.   Summary

Summarize all the key points stated in the report including your research, your findings and your conclusion. The summary should feel like a brief overview of your investigations and outcomes. The summary should be constructed in such a way that it can be called a stand-alone document on its own.

H.    References

References must include detailed information of all your citations and the sources of material quoted in your texts. It can also include bibliography for further reading.

I.       Appendices

This is the last element of a report. It refers to any material which can be useful in the detailed understanding of your subject. It is not meant for the casual reader but for readers who are highly interested in the subject.

Types of Reports

Memo Report

A memo report or memorandum is an internal and informal form of communication which is written to inform and to call to action. It is normally used for communicating policies, procedures or other information within the organisation.

Unlike Interpersonal communication a memo report is presented to a large number of people. A memo has to be concise and concrete in terms of providing information.

One of the instances where you could be asked to write a memo report is in a lab. Here the audience for your memo report is your professor who has asked you to conduct an experiment and supply him with appropriate results.

All memo reports consist of two parts: the heading and the body

The Heading

The heading part follows the format given below:

TO:              (The name of the receiver and their designation)

FROM:           (Your name and designation or title)

DATE:             (Current Date)

SUBJECT:           (The purpose of writing the report)

The Body

The body of a memo report, like any technical report, should be concise and to the point. It needs to be properly structured and organised. It should consist of the following elements:

Opening:

This section should consist of 2 to 3 sentences and should state the main purpose of the memo. It should include the main problem with which the memo is concerned with and how it is going to be addressed. A good way to start the opening statement would be “The purpose of this memo is to inform you regarding the recent changes….”

Findings:

While writing a technical report it is crucial to include a summarized version of your findings regarding the concerned topic. It should include key points so that the reader can understand the purpose of the memo immediately. This section can also be labelled as “summary” or “recommendations”

Discussion:

This is the longest section in the memo which deals with all the information and evidences you have collected to support your arguments. This section can be subdivided into four subsections namely, Methods (any experiments or calculations involved), Analysis (the analysis of collected data), Results (summary of results obtained from methods and analysis) and Commentary (your objective views on your findings)

Conclusion:

After discussing your research, you should summarize the main elements of your finding in 2 or 3 sentences that should reiterate all the implications in the memo.

References:

All citations and bibliography are to be mentioned in the references section.

Progress Report

A progress report is a type of report which is written in order to inform a supervisor, associate, or customer about progress you’ve made on a project over a certain period of time.

A progress report must answer the following questions:

• What percentage of the work is complete?
• Which part of the work is currently being performed?
• Which sections of the work are yet to be completed?
• What unexpected problems have arisen in the project?
• What is the overall status of the project?
• How much more time will be required to complete the work?

A progress report can be structured in three different ways:

a)     Memo – An informal memo report to be sent to someone within the organization.

b)    Letter – An informal or formal letter to be sent to someone outside of the organization.

c)     Formal Report – A formal report to be sent to someone outside the organization

You should choose the type of progress report depending upon your requirements.

A progress report has no specific structure but should always include the following elements:

• The title and the words “Progress Report” on top of the document
• Section headings to simplify the reading process.
• The name of the writer along with their designation and the receiver’s name and designation.
• The opening should be titled “scope and purpose” where the introduction defines the purpose of the report.
• Two sections titled “Progress….” And “Remaining work” should always be included. The former defining how much work has been successfully completed and the latter describing what part of it is yet to be done.
• A section projecting results and the tentative timeline of completion should also be included.
• The paragraphs should be short and concise and the tone respectful.

Status Report

A status report is an informative piece of writing which keeps the clients, project managers, supervisors and team members up to date regarding a certain project.

It comprises of the efforts, progress and risk associated with a project. A project status report can be a weekly, monthly or quarterly formulated report.

A project status report may be used to:

• Streamline communication efforts across the organization and stakeholders
• Make it easier to gather and disseminate information about key elements of the project
• Ensure stakeholders have all necessary information for decision-making
• Amplify key messages and goals around the project
• Act as a logbook for past key events and actions

What is included in a status report:

• Summary of Work Completed
• A Plan for What Comes Next
• Updates on Budget and Timeline
• Any Action Items/To-Dos
• Report on Risks, Issues, and Mitigation

Below is the format of a status report:

1. Project Name / Client Name

This section should contain the title of the project along with the name of the client. Make sure you record WHO the report is for and WHAT the report entails (ie. What project).

2. Project Vision

Here the main objectives of the project are to be listed in a clear and to the point manner. This is the only static unchanging section of a status report.

Examples:

Drive qualified customers to “purchase” mobile devices based on an improved UI.

With this project, we hope to increase online sales through the implementation of a drip email marketing campaign.

Launch a website by June 2018 that allows customers to purchase the highest quality & best-tasting product in its category.

3. Project Health

Here the health status of the project can be highlighted. The use of colours could be very helpful for notifying the health status for example, green for successful, yellow for a few complications and red for issues requiring immediate and critical attention. A note to support is always helpful.

Examples:

Green: We’ve obtained approval on drip email designs. No budget concerns at this time.

Yellow: The drip email designs need significant revisions, therefore the final delivery date has been delayed by 1 week.

Red: The drip email campaign has drastically shifted direction since starting. We need to set-up a meeting to establish a wants/wishes for the project.

4. What We Completed This TIMEFRAME

These should be listed in bullet format. Keep these short & simple. Don’t explain the “how” just what.

Example:

Obtained approval for 3 drip email designs

5. What We Plan to Complete Next TIMEFRAME

This section should include what is planned in clear and precise bullet points.

Example:

Develop the three emails

Perform internal QA & testing

Pass off to client QA & testing

6. Issues/Roadblocks

This is where you can raise any red flags or obstacles keeping you from moving forward.

Example:

If we do not obtain client feedback by 06/02, we will be in jeopardy of not being able to send the email to consumers the same day as the product will be available in stores.

7. Upcoming Tasks & Milestones

This should include a set of goals to be achieved in the near future. Is there anything that the viewer should review? and what’s coming up next?

Examples:

Dd/mm: Client QA & Testing

Dd/mm: Email Deployment

Survey Report

A survey report is a document which elaborates the findings of a survey in an objective manner. Survey reports usually consist of detailed statistical analysis of the surveyed data divided into various sections. A survey report has no specific format and is curated as per the requirements of the surveyor.

Surveys can be conducted by means of questionnaires, door to door information gathering or by using internet surveying facilities. A survey report may be presented in factual form (numbers, percentages and proportions) along with its implications.

Like other reports, a survey report can also be broken up into several headings namely,

• To
• From
• Survey
• Date
• Purpose
• Introduction
• The Body
• Conclusion

Below is a basic survey report sample:

To: Mrs Joanna Brown

From: Liam Black Subject:

Survey "Ban on using and selling fireworks".

Date: 1st January 2008

Purpose

The aim of this report is to present results of the survey carried out to find out what is people's opinion on public displays and selling fireworks. That will help to decide if using and selling fireworks should be banned. The survey was carried out among people aged 25-50.

Ban on public displays of fireworks

Seventy-two per cent of people asked if there should be a ban on public display of fireworks were of the opinion that public displays should not be banned five per cent were for banning public displays of fireworks while three percent were not sure of their opinion. The facts stated above suggest that people do not mind public displays of fireworks and they would not want any limits on them.

An overall ban on sale of fireworks

The majority of people asked if there should be an overall, ban on sale of fireworks replied 'yes'. One fifth of interviewed said 'no'. One out of ten reported that they would rather ban sale of fireworks while a small portion of people (5 per cent) answered that they would rather not ban the sale of fireworks. Seven per cent did not have any opinion on the subject. It shows that over half of viewers are for banning sale of fireworks.

Children buying and using fireworks

A significant percentage of people (eighty-three) asked if they would allow their children to buy and use fireworks responded "no". The rest of interviewed said "yes". That shows that there should be absolute ban on selling fireworks to children as it may be very harmful and dangerous for them.

Conclusion On the basis of the findings above, it would seem that majority of people find fireworks dangerous and they would claim a definite ban on selling them, especially to children. People also do not trust displays of fireworks which should be banned. They also suggest that government should take some actions to restrict laws associated fireworks and sale of fireworks.

Trip Report

A trip report is an informative document provided to one’s supervisor after their business travel. It includes the collection of events during the trip, the expenditure accrued during the trip and information regarding the purpose of the trip.

A trip report should be curated with the following elements in mind:

1. Purpose: The purpose of a trip report is to justify the purpose of the trip and the money that was spent by the travelling individual. Because trip reports provide proof of expenses, it is imperative that they are accurate and provide a clear explanation of the trip.

2. Audience: Trip reports are targeted towards one's immediate supervisor; however, the report may become a portion of a larger report, or it may be forwarded to other managers, accountants, and even CEOs. Trip reports eventually provide company accountants with information for yearly reports, projected annual budgets, and crucial information for tax filing.

3. Mode: While trip reports can be written as a letter, memo, or e-mail, you should remember that trip reports are official documents that should always be written in a formal tone. Whichever mode of communication that you choose or that you are instructed to use as a means for providing your information, you should plan, organize, and write your report following the convention of business genre and following correct writing conventions (grammar, punctuation, and usage).

It is essential to organise and structure the trip report into different headings and subheadings so as to make it easily readable.

4. Formatting and Elements of the Report:

A. Subject line: On the subject line, you should include the destination, purpose, and date of the trip.

B. Statement of purpose: The first line of the text of your report should be your statement of purpose or the purpose of the trip—be specific. Depending upon your position in the company, it may be necessary to include the name of the person who approved the travel.

C. Introductory summary: The summary can be divided into sections, depending upon the reason for the trip. In each section, you should elaborate so that your company will have information for a follow-up trip.

I. Contains the reason for the trip.

II. Who you met. You should always provide full names, titles, and conversations

That related to your trip.

III. What you accomplished. A work trip is planned for achieving a specific task which should be mentioned in detail.

D. Summary of actions: A description of the events that took place on the trip.

E. Depending on the report, you may be asked to provide recommendations based on your findings from the trip.

F. Outcomes: Describe any results of the trip.

G. Spreadsheet: Provide a detailed list of expenditures, and photo copied receipts. (Do not highlight the receipts. Highlighting can impair the quality of the copy.)

Complaint Report

Many companies encourage the use of complaint reports as the proper method of formally stating a complaint. These reports are usually used to address unsatisfactory transactions or conditions concerning a company. Writing a complaint report properly is key to getting your concern heard and the problem remedied.

A complaint report consists of the following elements:

The Heading

The heading part follows the format given below:

TO:              (The individual or company to whom the complaint is addressed)

FROM:           (The individual registering the complaint)

DATE:             (Current Date)

SUBJECT:           (The main purpose summed up in one sentence)

The Body

The body must contain an introduction where you should write the purpose of your report and what is the primary concern of the report. It should then include the main subject, in this case the complaint. The issue at hand should be properly discussed and you should try to provide reasonable solutions to the problem. The tone should not be aggressive at it would make it more difficult to find a suitable resolution to your grievances. The concluding sentence should sum up the report in 2-3 sentences, try to reiterate the key points you have mentioned earlier and try to suggest a few measures that would help in solving your issue.

Joining Report

A joining report is a report written to the immediate supervisor or manager in the event of returning to work after a leave or vacation. These reports are the shortest kinds of report only intimating the supervisor of one’s return to the job. A joining letter on the other hand refers to a letter written by an individual to confirm his position where he is newly appointed to work at an organisation.

There is no set format for a joining report but it can follow the template given below:

JOINING REPORT

I hereby report myself for duty after returning from leave from this day on ……………….. (forenoon/

Afternoon).

I have availed the following kinds of leave.

Earned leave for ……………………….. Days (from ……………… to ………… )

Half Pay leave for ……………………… days (from ……………… to ………… )

Commuted leave (MC) for ……………... Days (from ……………… to ………… )

EOL (with/without MC for …………days (from ……………… to ………… )

With permission to prefix/suffix holidays on ……………………..)

Signature: ……………

Name in block letter:

Designation: ………….

Laboratory Report

A laboratory report is a formal, analytical and concise record of an experiment. The discussion of the experiment, the various procedures and the subsequent results obtained should be clear and specific enough that a reader could easily replicate the experiment. One of the main purposes of writing a laboratory report is to communicate the work done in the laboratory to the management on a regular basis. Another reason for writing a laboratory report is to record an experiment for the future and archive it.

Format

Although most laboratory reports will include the following sections, some experiments will require a

Different format. All reports should be tailored so as to meet the requirements laid down by the experiment.

Abstract: The abstract should contain a brief informational synopsis of your experiment. It is advisable to keep the abstract under 200 words. While writing the abstract, assertive or declarative sentences should be used rather than writing a long descriptive prose.

Introduction: Here the background of the experiment which is to be undertaken is explained in a few lines. The introduction should explain the objectives you hope to achieve from the experiment. When appropriate, the background should indicate theoretical predictions.

Procedures (or Methods): This section includes a detailed set of instructions of how the experiment is ought to be conducted. Each instruction should be so precise that the reader should be able to replicate it if he so desired. There should be no ambiguity and error when it comes to numbers and quantities. All statistical information should be well organised.

Results and Discussion (sometimes presented as separate sections): This section must convey results relevant to the goals of the experiment. Here the analysis of the results obtained from the experiment must be carried out along with its implications. All possible sources of error should be acknowledged with potential solutions if any. Results can also be presented in the form of graphs and tables if the experiment needs it.

Conclusions: Here you should place the specific results acquired into the context of the experiment as a whole. The discussion section should serve as sufficient conclusion if the experiment and report is short. Remember to evaluate the results you obtained in light of the objectives stated in the introduction.

Appendices: This section must include the information which is too extensive or tangential to warrant inclusion in the main body of the report, but necessary as procedural or analytical evidence.