Feb 10, 1998 

fixed:    subject   verb    complement 
variable: character action 

first is grammatical level; second story level of a sentence
We judge sentences to be clear 
when subjects of sentences are agents of actions,
and those actions are verbs. 

When abstract nominalizations function as main characters,
use few other nominalizations.

Don't hesitate to use a passive when the agent is obvious. 

The president was relected with a small majority. 
Don't hesitate to use a passive if it lets you replace a 
long subject with a short one. 
This decision was supported by research that demonstrated...

Don't hesitate to use a passive if the passive gives you 
a coherent and appropraite sequence of subjects. 

Don't avoid an active verb if it is a metadiscourse verb.

Metadiscourse: Writing about writing 

writers referring to their own acts of thinking and writing
or to the reader's acts of reading and understanding 

Examples: 
--rhetorical:  explain, summarize, argue, expand, ...
--parts of discourses: first, second, to begin, finally 
--logical connections: therefore, consequently,  if so
--hedges or emphasis: it seems, perhaps 
--guide for reader: recall, imagine, consider now


Noun+Noun+Noun: compound noun phrases

Incomplete factor preconditioners 
Plant safety standards committee 
computer human cognition simulation games 

reverse the nouns: link nouns by prepositions,  then 
shcange nominalizations into verbs 

games simulation cognition human computer
computer games that simulate human reasoning