In many scientific/technical applications, it was the standard for describing experiments: “the mixture was refluxed at x temp for 2 hours, after which it was filtered and allowed to cool to room temperature. A white precipitate formed…”
Replies
Good point! We were taught* to write up science experiments like that at school. *heh.
jul 24, 2025, 11:37 pm • 0 0 • view
As Fearless Leader noted, it’s often the correct way to go when you want to draw attention to The Thing Being Done more than to The Person Doing The Thing…
jul 24, 2025, 11:41 pm • 2 0 • view
When I moved into management from my technical position, my company enrolled me in a business writing class. The teacher took one look at my writing sample and said “oh, you’re a good technical writer. Just learn to use the active voice and maybe cut down on the semicolons, and you’ll be fine.”
jul 24, 2025, 11:42 pm • 2 0 • view
(She probably also said something about my overuse of commas, but I’d already been ignoring that for some 20 years by that point…)
jul 24, 2025, 11:43 pm • 2 0 • view
In sci/tech papers there's a move towards writing with active voice there too. Bc science doesn't just happen, it is caused to, by people. It's important to recognize that it's not some amorphous infallible force. "We combined the ingredients and placed them on a hotplate..." is no less objective.
jul 24, 2025, 11:54 pm • 1 0 • view
Okay so coming from a totally different thread (about Tom Lehrer, satirical music legend, passing away) I'm reminded of Patty Matzonger and her dog Galadrial -- told she couldn't use first person in a paper, she added a second person so she could use "we."
jul 29, 2025, 6:05 pm • 1 0 • view
I’ve been a Tom Lehrer fan for some four decades now, and croaked out many of his songs in my piano bar days…
jul 29, 2025, 6:49 pm • 2 0 • view