Technical Communication English Skills for Engineers

by Raman, Meenakshi; Sharma, Sangeeta

• ISBN13: 9780195695748
• ISBN10: 0195695747
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2009-03-30
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Adopting a direct, functional, and practical approach, the book presents an exhaustive treatment of the principles and advanced forms of technical communication, both oral and written. In addition to the language skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing, it covers the basics of English grammer. It also includes key topics such as technical reports, business correspondence, group discussions, interviews, and presentation strategies. With its up-to-date coverage and practical orientation, the book would prove to be an extremely useful text for students, while also serving as a ready reference for day-to-day communication.

Author Biography

Meenakshi Raman, Ph. D., is presently Chief of the Publications and Media Relations Unit and Group Leader of the Languages Group at BITS, Pilani. She has several years

Table of Contents

Preface	p. iii
Language and Communication
Focus on Language: Fundamentals of English Grammer	p. 3
Word Formation: Prefixes and Suffixes	p. 3
Synonyms and Antonyms	p. 8
Noun Phrases	p. 13
Gerunds and Infinitives	p. 15
Subject-verb Agreement	p. 20
Tenses	p. 22
Present Tense	p. 23
Past Tense	p. 26
Future Tense	p. 27
Impersonal Passive Voice	p. 30
Conditional Sentences	p. 32
Adjectives and Degrees of Comparison	p. 37
Types of Adjectives	p. 37
Comparison of Adjectives	p. 39
Conjunctions and Prepositions	p. 41
Conjunctions	p. 41
Prepositions	p. 43
Basics of Technical Communication	p. 52
Process of Communication	p. 53
Communication Cycle	p. 53
General and Technical Communication	p. 54
Language as a Tool of Communication	p. 55
Characteristics of Language	p. 56
Levels of Communication	p. 60
Extrapersonal Communication	p. 60
Intrapersonal Communication	p. 60
Interpersonal Communication	p. 61
Organizational Communication	p. 61
Mass Communication	p. 62
Flow of Communication	p. 63
Downward Communication	p. 63
Upward Communication	p. 64
Lateral or Horizontal Communication	p. 64
Diagonal or Cross-wise Communication	p. 65
Communication Networks	p. 65
Formal Network Models	p. 65
Informal Network Models	p. 67
Importance of Technical Communication	p. 68
Barriers to Communication	p. 69
Intrapersonal Barriers	p. 72
Interpersonal Barriers	p. 77
Organizational Barriers	p. 82
Language Skills for Communication
Listening and Speaking	p. 89
Types of Listening	p. 90
Implications of Effective Listening	p. 91
Dialogue Writing	p. 92
Sample Dialogues	p. 92
Skills Check	p. 94
Presentation Strategies	p. 96
Analysing Audience and Locale	p. 97
Organizing Contents	p. 99
Introduction	p. 100
Main Body	p. 101
Conclusions	p. 102
Preparing an Outline	p. 103
Kinesics	p. 103
Personal Appearance	p. 105
Posture	p. 105
Gesture	p. 106
Facial Expression	p. 106
Eye Contact	p. 107
Proxemics	p. 108
Paralinguistics	p. 109
Quality	p. 109
Volume	p. 110
Pace/Rate	p. 110
Pitch	p. 110
Articulation	p. 111
Pronunciation	p. 111
Voice Modulation	p. 112
Pauses	p. 112
Chronemics	p. 112
Understanding Nuances of Delivery	p. 113
Extemporaneous	p. 114
Impromptu	p. 115
Memorization	p. 116
Visual Aids	p. 117
Sample Speech	p. 119
Reading	p. 13
Predicting the Content	p. 131
Skimming the Text	p. 133
Understanding the Gist	p. 136
Topic Sentence and its Role	p. 139
Scanning	p. 141
Inferring Meanings: Lexical and Contextual	p. 143
Note-making	p. 147
Outline/Linear Method	p. 147
Sentence Method	p. 148
Schematic/Mapping Method	p. 149
Transfer of Information	p. 151
Visual Aids	p. 151
Interpreting and Transferring Graphical Information	p. 165
Understanding Discourse Coherence	p. 167
Sequencing of Sentences	p. 171
Writing	p. 185
Right Words and Phrases	p. 185
Use Familiar Words	p. 186
Use Concrete and Specific Words	p. 187
Use Abbreviations Sparingly	p. 188
Avoid Cliches	p. 189
Avoid Excessive Use of Jargon	p. 190
Avoid Foreign Words and Phrases	p. 191
Avoid Redundancy and Circumlocution	p. 191
Avoid Discriminatory Writing	p. 192
Sentences	p. 193
Salient Points of Sentence Construction	p. 195
Prefer Short Sentences	p. 195
Break the Sentence	p. 196
Be Stringent with Words	p. 198
Prefer Right Ordering and Proper Emphasis	p. 201
Prefer Active to Passive Voice	p. 202
Avoid Ambiguous Sentences	p. 203
Paragraph Development	p. 204
Central Components of a paragraph	p. 205
Topic Sentence	p. 205
Coherence	p. 207
Coherence Devices in Action	p. 213
Unity	p. 214
Techniques for Paragraph Development	p. 214
Paragraph Length	p. 217
Kinds of Paragraphs	p. 219
Analysis	p. 219
Description	p. 219
Definition	p. 220
Comparison	p. 221
Contrast	p. 221
Comparison-contrast	p. 222
Focus on Language: Advanced English Grammer	p. 228
Voice and Tense	p. 228
Changing Active Voice into Passive	p. 230
Changing Passive Voice into Active	p. 230
When to Use Active Voice	p. 233
When to Use Passive Voice	p. 233
Reported Speech	p. 234
Change of Tenses	p. 235
Change of Pronouns and Possessive Adjectives	p. 236
Change of Words According to the Content	p. 236
Changing Interrogative Sentences	p. 237
Changing Imperative Sentences	p. 238
Relative Clauses	p. 238
Structure	p. 239
Choice of Relative Clauses	p. 239
Restrictive/Defining Relative Clauses	p. 240
Non-restrictive/Non-defining Relative Clauses	p. 241
Relative vs Appositive Clauses	p. 242
Adverbial Clauses of Time, Place, and Manner	p. 242
Cause-and-Effect Expressions	p. 244
Indicators of Purpose and Function	p. 245
Interviews and Group Communication
Interviews	p. 251
Objectives and Types	p. 251
Job Interviews	p. 254
Face-to-face Interviews	p. 254
Telephonic Interviews	p. 272
Group Communication	p. 278
Forms of Group Communication	p. 279
Group Discussion (GD)	p. 281
Organizational Group Discussions	p. 282
Brainstorming	p. 282
Nominal Group Technique	p. 283
Delphi Technique	p. 283
Group Discussion as Part of a Selection Process	p. 284
Characteristics	p. 284
Evaluation Components	p. 285
Approach to Topics and Case Studies	p. 290
Tips for Success in GDs	p. 292
Meetings	p. 292
Purposes	p. 293
Preparation	p. 294
Procedure	p. 298
Follow-up	p. 302
Conferences	p. 305
Significance	p. 307
Planning and Preparation	p. 308
Procedure	p. 309
Advanced Forms of Communication
Letters, Memos, and E-mails	p. 317
Business Letters	p. 317
Significance	p. 317
Purpose	p. 318
Structure	p. 318
Layout	p. 326
Principles	p. 328
Clarity and Conciseness	p. 332
Types and Samples	p. 339
Memos	p. 363
Classification and Purpose	p. 370
Structure and Layout	p. 371
Style	p. 376
E-mails	p. 381
E-mail Etiquettes	p. 381
Sample E-mail Messages	p. 385
Effectiveness and Security	p. 385
Reports	p. 397
Importance of Reports	p. 398
Objectives	p. 399
Characteristics of a Report	p. 400
Types of Reports	p. 401
Informative Reports	p. 401
Analytical Reports	p. 402
Periodic and Special Reports	p. 404
Oral and Written Reports	p. 405
Formats	p. 405
Memo Report	p. 406
Letter Report	p. 406
Prewriting	p. 408
Understanding the Purpose and Scope	p. 408
Analysing the Audience	p. 409
Investigating the Sources of Information	p. 411
Organizing the Material	p. 416
Making an Outline	p. 418
Structure of Reports	p. 422
Prefatory Parts	p. 423
Main Text	p. 430
Supplementary Parts	p. 434
Revising, Editing, and Proofreading	p. 441
Laboratory Report	p. 442
Samples	p. 442
Inspection Report	p. 448
Analytical Report	p. 449
Memo Report	p. 458
Letter Report	p. 459
Advanced Writing	p. 46
Writing Instructions	p. 468
Preliminary Steps	p. 469
Components	p. 470
Writing Style	p. 474
Illustrations	p. 475
Content Formatting	p. 475
Making Recommendations: Using Modals and Auxiliary Verb	p. 476
Preparation of Checklists	p. 479
Examples	p. 479
Common Errors: Usage	p. 483
Punctuation and Capitalization	p. 488
Words Commonly Misspelt	p. 494
Proofreading Symbols	p. 500
Acronyms and Abbreviations	p. 503
British and American Vocabulary	p. 505
Basic Sounds of English: Vowels and Consonants	p. 508
Model Test Paper I	p. 512
Model Test Paper II	p. 519
Model Test Paper III	p. 525
Model Test Paper IV	p. 530
Index	p. 534
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