Lesson 10 (Nov. 17) Technical Statements in The Passive Form 1. The Passive and the Infinitive 2....

Lesson 10 (Nov. 17)

Technical Statements inThe Passive Form

1. The Passive and the Infinitive2. Too many passives can be bad

The Passive and the Infinitive

• Examples– Here is a simple statement:

The world population is 6.975 billion.

– Related information can be expressed differently, in passive form:

The world population is reported to be 6.975 billion.

The world population is expected to reach 7 billon.

This is a passive statement because

it has the form: be + past participle.

to + infinitive form of verb:to be

to reach

The Infinitive

• The to-infinitive is also called the full infinitive:

to be, to have, to represent, etc.

• Notice that the verb is in its unmarked form, i.e. not “conjugated”*:– it is not written in any tense;– it is not written in any person (I, you, he/she, it, they).

�⃰ To conjugate a verb is to ensure agreement with the subject and the time.�⃰ Be can be conjugated as: I am, you are, he was, they were, etc.

• Conjugation and the infinitive have no equivalent in Chinese.

The Infinitive

• Usage 1:– As a noun, describing an action in an abstract or

general way:

To err is human.

To err = to make mistakes. The result is an error.

犯錯是人之常情 . 他在判斷中犯錯 .

– In Chinese, verbs are not conjugated (no tense, no person), so we can say that Chinese verbs are always in the infinitive form.

– Hence, in Chinese we do not make a clear distinction between the meanings of the infinitive and other forms of the verb.

Conjugated: He has erred in his judgment.

The Infinitive

• Usage 2:– After a verb, describing a purpose or a goal:

I asked him to leave.我請他離開 .

I waited for him to leave.我等他離開 .

He agrees to go to the lab.他同意去實驗室 .

She promises to finish her work before 6 pm.她答應六點前完成作業 .

– In English, the distinction between the action (asked, agreed, promised) and the purpose (to leave, to go, to finish) is clear.

– In Chinese, no distinction is made between the two verbs.

The Infinitive

• To understand the need for the infinitive, it must be remembered that in English, one simple sentence cannot contain two verbs.

• The following are wrong:

I asked him left. I waited for him leaves. He agrees goes to the lab. She promises finishes her work.

I asked him to leave.

Whether he did leave or not is not implied by the statement.

The actual action carried out is “ask”.

The Infinitive

• Usage 3:– As an adjective or adverb to describe a purpose or

goal:

The voltage to supply must be at least 5 volts.

= The voltage we must supply must be at least 5 volts.

This is the team to beat.

= This is the team we must beat.

The Infinitive

• Usage 4 – in a passive statement:– To describe a purpose:

He was asked to leave.

A screw driver is needed to open the cover.

The oil is allowed to flow through a series of valves.

– To describe a state:

The world population is reported to be 6.975 billion.

The burst speed of these sharks is estimated to exceed 40 kilometers per hour.

I asked him to leave. (active)

I need the screw driver to open the cover. (active)

The pipes allow the oil to flow through a series of valves. (active)

The Passive and the Infinitive

• The verb defines the meaning of the statement:

The world population is reported to be 6.975 billion.

– … be thought to + {infinitive}– … be believed to + {infinitive}– … be said to + {infinitive}

– … be said to + {infinitive}

– … be estimated to + {infinitive}

– … be known to + {infinitive}– … be reported to + {infinitive}

– … be assumed to + {infinitive}

– … be shown to + {infinitive}

Refer to a general notion, idea, or belief that may be unconfirmed.

Refers to an approximate fact or value.

Refer to a confirmed fact.

Refers to an assumption.Refers to a fact that has just been proven.

Refers to a definition.

Workshop 1: Rewrite with the passive and infinitive

– The world population is 6.975 billion.The world population is reported to be 6.975 billion.

• China probably has a population of 1.3 billion.China’s population is estimated to be 1.3 billion.China is believed to have a population of 1.3 billion.

• A body is ‘in equilibrium’ if it remains at rest without the influence of external forces.If a body remains at rest without the influence of external forces, it is said to be ‘in equilibrium’.

• Smoking causes lung cancer (according to scientific data).

• Smoking has been shown to cause lung cancer.

Workshop 1: Rewrite with the passive and infinitive

• The world may have fossil fuel reserves for another 100 years.

• The world is believed to have fossil fuel reserves for another 100 years.

• The world’s fossil fuel reserves is thought to last another 100 years.

• This liquid is surely poisonous.This liquid is known to be poisonous.

• Consider this liquid poisonous unless we are told otherwise.This liquid is assumed to be poisonous.

• People have been saying that the President will step down tomorrow.

• The President is rumored to be stepping down tomorrow.

To many passives can be bad

• The following sentence is hard to read:Students are informed that full reports are required, must be labeled clearly and should be submitted on time.

• Do not get the wrong idea that the passive form must always be used.

• Very often, both the passive and active forms are used together.

• This is clearer:Students are informed that full reports are required, which they should label clearly and submit on time.

Workshop 2: Cross out the wrong choices

Potential energy uses/is used to refer to the energy

which a body contains/is contained because of its

position. For example, a weight hanging above the

ground possesses/is possessed potential energy.

When a body lifts/is lifted, work must do/must be

done. Some of this work wastes/is wasted, but

some of it remains/is remained inside the body as

potential energy. When the body drops/is dropped,

this stored energy sets/is set free and some of it

may use/may be used for doing work. The raised

weight, for example, can use/can be used to run a

clock.