Focus on language

1. Read the sentences and determine relationships between the parts in each sentence.

• Innumerable benefits include not only new materials, food additives, and pesticides, but also new analytical tools for the study of living matter.

• The scientists have made the progress that has provided unforeseen power, which enables us to change our lives, our world as well as our future.

• Because of its precision, mathematics is an essential tool for all of the sciences.

Showing relationships between ideas

To connect words and phrases that have the same grammatical function in a sentence we use conjunctions, prepositions and adverbs.

• conjunctions*

e.g.: The twentieth century saw much momentous change that either brought enormous

benefits to human beings, or threatens the very existence of the human species.

Both … and …

when connects two subjects require plural verb

Not only … but also …

Either … or …

Neither … nor …

when connects two subjects, the latter determines whether the verb is singular or plural

* The same grammatical form should follow each word of the pair.

Neither … nor …is already negative in meaning so doesn’t require negative form of a

verb

• prepositions

e.g.: Apart from large-scale research programmes, scientific research with little short-

term economic profit may be called into question.

Because of … Due to …*	are followed by an object noun	show cause and effect
Apart from … Except for … In addition to …		show contrast
		continue the same idea

Due to … in formal writing is followed by a noun clause introduced by the fact that

• adverbs

e.g.: The chemical sciences developed new analytical tools for the study of living matter

as well as the environment.

As well as

is usually followed by an object noun

indicates addition