Добавил:
ivanov666
Опубликованный материал нарушает ваши авторские права? Сообщите нам.
Вуз:
Предмет:
Файл:Learn the English of Science. Учебник
.pdf
How many phrases have you highlighted? Which of them do you find
most helpful in letter writing?
Here are some more examples of how to decline an invitation:
– Thank you for your invitation to … but I regret that I am unable to accept
it as … .
– I am sorry to decline your kind invitation … .
– It is with great regret that I have to decline your invitation to … .
– I regret to inform you that I am not in a position to accept your invitation
to … .
– I regret that I will be unable to attend the conference because of my illness.
– I regret to inform you that I will be unable to attend the conference due to
personal circumstances.
– I regret that I cannot … .
– I regret I must … .
– I am sorry to inform you that … .
TASKS:
1. Write a letter in which you:
a) express gratitude for the invitation to…;
b) express your regret for declining the invitation because of some
circumstances;
c) express hope for further cooperation.
2. Write a letter in which you:
a) inform the sender that you have received the letter of (the date);
b) express gratitude for the invitation to … ;
c) express regret as you have to decline the invitation (politely explain
the reason).
COMMUNICATIVE PRACTICE
TASK: You are a member of the Organizing Committee. Write a letter
inviting Prof. Brown from Cambridge University to participate in
the International Conference “Modern Problems of Microbiology
and Biotechnology” to be held in Moscow State University on
October 1–8, 2010.
71
Unit 3. Letters of Request
A request usually consists of a request phrase, a reason for the request and
an expression of gratitude.
TASK: Read the samples and highlight the phrases and sentences that
express a request.
Letter 1
Dear Professor …,
I would appreciate it very much if you could send us a 200-word
abstract of your article “Biological Nitrogen Fixation” for publication in
“Chemical Abstracts.”
We look forward to receiving this abstract in the not-too-distant future.
Yours sincerely,
Name
Editor-in-Chief
Letter 2
Dear Dr. …,
Recently I have read an abstract of your article published in “Chemical
Abstracts”, June 2010 “The Ultimate Control of Nucleotide Pattern in RNA”.
I would very much appreciate having a reprint of this paper and kindly ask
you to send it to me at your earliest convenience.
Yours faithfully,
Name
Letter 3
Dear Prof. …,
Would it be possible for you to help us collect samples of … We intend
to elaborate an entirely new system of classification based on the principles
of... . Your assistance in this undertaking would be of great service to us.
Yours sincerely,
Name
How many phrases have you highlighted? Which of them do you find
most helpful in letter writing?
Here are some more phrases used in making a request:
– Please acknowledge the receipt of the following publication (reprint) … .
72
– Please let me know whether I may have the text of my paper distributed
among the participants.
– Could you inform me about the conference agenda in more detail?
– I would appreciate further details about the symposium.
– I would very much appreciate information about accommodation, travel
and living expenses and the terms of financing them.
– We would like your permission to translate your reprint and submit it to
(publish it in) the Journal of Mathematics.
– I would like to ask you to … .
– Could you please ….
– I would be very grateful to you if you could … .
TASKS:
1. Write a letter expressing a request to exchange scientific information
between the Russian and German laboratories working on the problem
of ... . Explain why you are interested in such an exchange.
2. Write a letter requesting a reprint of the paper that was published in
“Chemical Abstracts,” December 19, 2007, under the title … .
3. Write a letter asking Dr…. to share with you his recent experimental
data on… . Explain why you need them.
3.1. Favourable Replies
TASK: Now read the following samples of a favourable reply to a letter of
request.
Letter 1
Dear Dr. … ,
I acknowledge the receipt of your letter of May 15, in which you ask me
to supply you with samples of … I have already instructed some of my coworkers to collect the following samples for you:
1.…
2.…
3.…
The elaboration of a new classification on the basis of … is exceedingly
interesting and useful, especially in our field of work. I hope to send you the
samples in a couple of days.
73
I am happy to be of assistance and wish you much success in your
undertaking.
Yours sincerely,
Name
Letter 2
Dear Sir,
I acknowledge receipt of your letter of April 5 and thank you very much for
the data you have sent. I particularly appreciate the time you took to explain
the investigation methods of your work. The results of your investigation
strengthened my desire to pursue a career with electrical systems.
At your request I have enclosed my design project which includes a
design, cost breakdown, and complete thermodynamics analysis of a
plutonium-core reactor. I believe that this project is a good representation
of not only what I have learned in my Engineering Physics curriculum, but
also what I can produce for electrical systems
I would appreciate it very much if you continue sending me experimental
data as I need additional information on the problem investigated.
Thank you for your consideration, and please feel free to contact me with
any further questions. I look forward to further cooperation with you.
Yours fairthfully,
Name
Letter 3
Dear Sir,
We acknowledge the receipt of your letter of April 5 and thank you for
the abstract you have sent. We would appreciate it if you could send us
other abstracts published in “Physical Review”.
Yours sincerely,
Name
Editor-in-chief
How many phrases have you highlighted? Which of them do you find
most helpful in letter writing?
Here are some more examples of favourable responses to a request:
– I am happy to be of help to you.
– I am pleased that I can offer you this help.
74
– If I can be of any further help please do not hesitate to contact me (to let
me know) at once.
– If you require further information on …, I will be happy to help you … .
– The only help (advice) that I can offer (give) you is … .
– I am glad that I can help you in this matter.
– I assure you that such an exchange of publications will be to the mutual
benefit of our laboratories.
– As for your request, let me assure you that when the book comes off the
press I will be delighted to send you a copy.
TASKS:
1. Write a letter in which you:
a) acknowledge the receipt of the letter;
b) respond to the request in a favourable way;
c) offer your help if it is needed in the future.
2. Write a letter in which you:
a) inform Prof. B. about the receipt of his letter;
b) express gratitude for the materials of the conference Prof. B. has
sent to you;
b) respond to the request, expressing your pleasure to be of help in
organizing a workshop on ... in Moscow.
3.2. Unfavourable Replies
TASK: Read the samples and highlight the phrases that express an
unfavourable reply to a letter of request:
Letter 1
Dear Dr. …,
In reply to your letter of May 15 I am very sorry to inform you that I am
unable to help you in your undertaking as there are no samples available in
our laboratory at present.
We are planning an expedition for July-August and hope to collect
enough samples for both laboratories.
Again, I wish to express my regret.
Yours sincerely,
Name
75
Letter 2
Dear Professor …,
I have just received your letter of May 12 requesting a contribution to
Physical Review. I am extremely grateful for your kind invitation. However
I am afraid I shall have to decline it, as only a small part of my work covers
the subjects your journal deals with.
I express my regret once again.
Yours sincerely,
Name
Letter 3
Dear Prof. …,
In reply to your letter of January 3, I regret very much to inform you
that I cannot provide you with the reprint you asked me about as I do not
have any extra copies. The only suggestion I can make is that you write
directly to the Journal of Biological Chemistry. Perhaps they will be able to
send you a copy.
Best wishes and regards,
Yours sincerely,
Name
How many phrases have you highlighted? Which of them do you find
most helpful in letter writing?
Here are some more samples of unfavourable responses to requests:
– I very much regret/I am sorry that I am unable to help you in any way.
– I regret very much that I am not in a position to … .
– I regret that it has not been possible for me to help you.
– Unfortunately I am unable to … .
– I very much regret that I have to decline your request to contribute to … .
– I am very sorry that I cannot … .
– I am very sorry to be unable to … .
– I regret to inform you that I am not able to … .
– I must apologize to you for not having to … .
76
TASKS:
1. Write a letter in which you:
a) confirm the receipt of a letter;
b) express regret at being unable to comply with the request regarding
the reprint of the paper …;
c) state the reason why you cannot do it.
2. Write a letter in which you:
a) apologize for taking a long time to answer;
b) express regret that you are not in a position to deliver a series of
lectures on … as circumstances confine you to your work in your
laboratory;
c) ask to convey your apologies to Dr. … for … .
COMMUNICATIVE PRACTICE
TASK: Write a letter to James Smith, MTI postgraduate, USA in which
you acknowledge the receipt of his letter, apologize for not sending
the reprint he asked about until now. Explain the reason (you were
away on business) and enclose the copy of the reprint. Express
hope for further cooperation.
Unit 4. Letters of Inquiry
A letter of inquiry asks a person to supply certain information or knowledge.
TASK: Read the samples and highlight the phrases that express inquiry.
Letter 1
Dear Colleagues,
Our Institute is running a series of experiments on … According to our
preliminary data we have come to the conclusion that … .
Professor … , who works in your Institute, was kind enough to inform
me of the results obtained in his laboratory. He also mentioned that you
were experimenting on … .
I would like very much to compare our data with those obtained by
you. Would you be willing to inform me how satisfactory they proved to be.
I am particularly interested in the following issues:
…………………………………………………………………………….
77
I shall appreciate any information you can possibly provide and look
forward to the opportunity to return the favour.
Thank you in advance for a favourable reply to my inquiry.
Yours sincerely,
Name
Letter 2
Dear Professor …,
Our laboratory intends to start a research centered on X-ray structural
analysis of different biological substances. We are planning to investigate
the influence of particle additions on the polypeptide crystal structure.
Meanwhile, we have started collecting publications on this subject. With
this purpose in mind we are writing to inquire whether you would be able to
provide us with a list of references or with any information available.
I would very much appreciate it if you consider my request. We would
like to maintain scientific collaboration with your laboratory and exchange
data and information on research results.
We hope you will also be interested in such contacts. Please accept my
apologies for any inconvenience I have caused you.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely yours,
Name
Chief of the Sander’s Laboratories
Letter 3
Dear Dr. …,
In the journal … I’ve read your paper entitled …. The results obtained
are interesting, and the investigation methods are excellent. I would like to
follow your methods in my work, but there are some steps that are not quite
clear to me. I am writing to inquire whether it would be possible to visit
your laboratory, so that I could work there, say for a month, and learn
about your techniques in more detail. In return, it would be a great pleasure
to invite you to work in my laboratory for an equal period of time or longer.
I look forward to hearing from you soon.
Yours sincerely,
Name
78
How many phrases have you highlighted? Which of them do you find
most helpful in letter writing?
Here are some phrases and sentences to make an inquiry:
– May I inquire why … .
– I wish to inquire about … .
– I would like to ask if … .
– I hope you will give attention to my inquiry on …
TASKS:
1. Write a letter of inquiry in which you:
a) present the subject and the purpose of your inquiry;
b) make an inquiry;
c) express your appreciation for the information you hope to receive.
4.1. Favourable Replies
TASK: Now read the samples and highlight the phrases that express a
favourable reply to an inquiry:
Letter 1
Dear Mr. Smith,
I am very glad to know that you are also doing experiments in … It
gives me great pleasure to send you the data I have obtained. We have
chosen these stimulants for several reasons:
…………………………………………………………………………..
I hope you find this information useful. In return I would much appreciate
it if you send me your reprint of … .
If I can be of any further assistance, please do not hesitate to write to me.
With best wishes,
Name
Letter 2
Dear Dr. …,
Returning to your letter of April 7, we have the pleasure to inform you
that we have received two copies of the proofs of your paper.
Yours sincerely,
Editor-in-chief
79
How many phrases have you highlighted? Which of them do you find
most helpful in letter writing?
Here are some more samples of favourable replies to inquiries:
– In reply to your inquiry of (date) I am glad to inform you that … .
– It gives me great pleasure to send you… . If I can be of any further help,
please do not hesitate to contact me.
– In accordance with your inquiry of …, I am delighted to send you a list of
references and data on … .
TASKS:
1. Write a letter in which you:
a) acknowledge the receipt of the letter of (date);
b) provide information about the inquiry;
c) express hope that the sender of the inquiry is satisfied with the
information provided;
d) express your willingness to be helpful in the future.
4.2. Unfavourable Replies
TASK: Read the samples and highlight the phrases that express an
unfavourable reply to an inquiry:
Letter 1
Dear Colleagues,
Your letter of November 12 has reached me only today. I very much
regret to inform you that I am unable to provide the information you
requested. Our laboratory stopped experimenting in … three years ago. If
you are interested in the results of our work, please consult the Physiological
Review, v. 36, No. 3, July 2009.
Furthermore, I received a reprint from Dr. M. who deals with … and if
you wish you may use my name when writing to him.
If I can be of any help to you in the future, do not hesitate to contact me.
Yours sincerely,
80
Соседние файлы в предмете [НЕСОРТИРОВАННОЕ]