METM 2006: International Communication — Promising Practices 27-28 October 2006

Avoiding innocent plagiarism—the plagiarism of innocènciaby authors and their language consultants Mary Ellen Kerans Barcelona, Spain METM 2006: International Communication — Promising Practices 27-28 October 2006 IEMed – Barcelona - SPAIN

METM 06: International communication — promising practices

Authors’ misconceptions • Cite source only if you use exact words. • References go at the end of paragraphs. • Citation means providing a reference list. • Once you’ve cited a source, it’s OK to use its information in the rest of your text. • You cite the source where you read about the information. • If it’s on the Internet, it’s free to use. Rinnert C, Kobayashi H. (2005) Borrowing words and ideas: insignts from Japanese L1 writers. J Asian Pacific Communication 15(1); p. 15-29. For similar observations & a review: METM 06: International communication — promising practices

Authors’ misconceptions • Cite source only if you use exact words. • References go at the end of paragraphs. • Citation means providing a reference list. • Once you’ve cited a source, it’s OK to use its information in the rest of your text. • You cite the source where you read about the information. • If it’s on the Internet, it’s free to use. METM 06: International communication — promising practices

E2 writers & ME2* editor–translators share text management strategies. • Cut-paste (patch writing) • Vague notions of citing practices For a review of patch writing – see the introduction to: Shi L. (2004) Textual borrowing in second-language writing. Written Communication 21(2);171-200. *Users of medical English as a second language METM 06: International communication — promising practices

‘Chunking’ is a good-learner strategy for speakers – but not in writing? The next one spoke with a simpering precision of pronunciation that was irritating and said: "If ze zhentlemans will to me make ze grande honneur ....” He would have done well to have stopped there, because he had that much by heart and said it right off without making a mistake. But his self-complacency seduced him into attempting a flight into regions of unexplored English, and the reckless experiment was his ruin. Within ten seconds he was so tangled up in a maze of mutilated verbs and torn and bleeding forms of speech that no human ingenuity could ever have gotten him out of it with credit. Mark Twain – Innocents Abroad, chapter XIII METM 06: International communication — promising practices

‘Chunking’ is a poor strategy in writing. • Theme–rheme (flow) is altered. • Tone, voice, register change. • Information (data) history is confusing. • Leaves writer open to accusation of plagiarism. Editors are concerned. METM 06: International communication — promising practices

How to Handle Plagiarism Without Destroying the Author. WAME listserve discussion. February 14-18, 2005.http://www.wame.org/plagiarism.htm. Accessed 20 October 2006. ... After publishing an article, we heard from the author of a related paper. This person noted a striking similarity between the structure and some of the language of several paragraphs in the Discussion of his paper ... We verified his observation and then asked the dean of our author's medical school to investigate. ... – Hal Sox and Cindy Mulrow ... for authors who are not native speakers of English,.... Sentences may be plagiarized not for their contents but for their syntax. Because appropriation of proper syntax cannot be considered plagiarism, the author can honestly feel that he/she didn't do anything wrong at all.... much more than half of the world's scientists must write in a language that is not their own. – Roberto Refinetti, Editor-in-Chief, J Circadian Rhythms METM 06: International communication — promising practices

On ‘appropriation of proper syntax’ I know what it all means (muco=mucus, pyo=pus, mucocele = space filled with mucus) but I can't find the right term in English. (translator query)

A translator–editor-as-(prosthetic)author: shares responsibility for intertextuality All these results suggest that this phenotype is characterized by reduced pulmonary function, for example, reduced airway resistance or increased dynamic distention but not increased airway lability.17 These results suggest that a characteristic of this phenotype is altered pulmonary mechanics involving, for example, reduced airway resistance or increased dynamic compliance but not increased airway lability, as noted in areview of the subject.17

Shared responsibility for intertextuality These results suggest that a characteristic of this phenotype is altered pulmonary mechanics involving, for example, reduced airway resistanceor increased dynamic compliance but not increased airway lability, as noted in a review of the subject.17 • These resultssuggest that mechanical pulmonary characteristics, such as reduced airway resistance or increased dynamic compliance,11 play a role in transient wheezing, rather than increased airway lability .1 • Martínez, FA. (2002) Development of wheezing disorders and asthma in preschool children. Pediatrics. 109 (2) (Suppl);S362-7.

Shared responsibility for intertextuality • Transient Early Wheezing • ...The lower level of pulmonary function seems to track along individual growth curves, and it remains low at age 6.10 Of interest, however, is that children younger than 3 years of age with transient early wheezing had no increased prevalence of methacholine hyperresponsiveness or positive peak flow variability at age 11.1These results suggest that mechanical pulmonary characteristics, such as reduced airway resistance or increased dynamic compliance,11 play a role in transient wheezing, rather than increased airway lability.1 • Martínez, FA. (2002) Development of wheezing disorders and asthma in preschool children. Pediatrics. 109 (2) (Suppl);S362-7.

Shared responsibility for intertextuality • ... Pulmonary function continues to be impaired in these children at the age of 6, and despite improving slightly at the age of 11, it continues to be lower than that of healthy controls at 18.14Another characteristic of this phenotype is that methacholine does not cause bronchial hyperresponsiveness and bronchial variability is not observed on the flowmeter (peak expiratory flow) when measured at 11 years of age.15,16These results suggest that a characteristic of this phenotype is altered pulmonary mechanics involving, for example, reduced airway resistance or increased dynamic compliance but not increased airway lability, as noted in a review of the subject.17 • Castro-Rodríguez J. (2006) Assessing the Risk of Asthma in Infants and Pre-School Children. Arch Bronconeumol. 42;453-6.

‘To translate this any other way’ It would be very difficult – for a translator ... or field expert (i.e. doctor) – to translate this any other way than as written in the original text! (translator comment) Se produce depósito de amiloide en el intersticio y a lo largo de la íntima y media de las arteriolas y vénulas y en la membrana basal alveolo-capilar. Amyloid is deposited in the interstitium and along the intima and media of the arterioles and venules and in the alveolar-capillary basement membrane. http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0984/is_n2_v112/ai_19731477 METM 06: International communication — promising practices

‘To translate this any other way’ The amyloid may be deposited in the interstitium and along the intima and media of arterioles and venules and in the alveolar-capillary basement membrane. Leu CY, Lynch DA, Chan ED. (1997) The case of the torpid thoracic tumor-amyloidoma. Chest. 112;535-7. Amyloid is deposited in the interstitium and along the intima and media of the arterioles and venules and in the alveolar-capillary basement membrane. METM 06: International communication — promising practices

‘To translate this any other way’ Diffuse interstitial amyloidosis typically occurs in the setting of systemic amyloidosis associated with primary amyloidosis or plasma cell dyscrasia.[9] The amyloid may be deposited in the interstitium and along the intima and media of arterioles and venules and in the alveolar-capillary basement membrane. Leu CY, Lynch DA, Chan ED. (1997) The case of the torpid thoracic tumor-amyloidoma. Chest. 112;535-7. METM 06: International communication — promising practices

‘To translate this any other way’ Se produce depósito de amiloide en el intersticio y a lo largo de la íntima y media de las arteriolas y vénulas y en la membrana basal alveolo-capilar • Amyloid deposition occurs in the interstitium, along the intima and media of arterioles and venules, and in the alveolar-capillary basement membrane. • Such deposits(deposition) are(is) found in the intertitium.... METM 06: International communication — promising practices

Summary (1) • E2 writers and ME2 editor–translators share a penchant for patch writing. • ‘Chunking’ is good speaking — patch writing is bad. • It’s a small step from corpus research on terms & collocation patterns to plagiarism. • This is a true problem — not something to be soft on in the name of cross-cultural respect. METM 06: International communication — promising practices

Summary (2) • Editor–translators need to • reflect on the part we play in ‘innocent’ plagiarism, and • learn more about • managing intertextuality in genres and • dealing with the many forms of ‘borrowing’ in a useful way. 3 MET Workshops: Righting citing Handling plagiarism—management & author–editor dialog Practical Tools for Improving Text Flow: focus on information ordering (theme–rheme)

METM 2006: International Communication — Promising Practices 27-28 October 2006