Parentheses In English For Science And Technology (EST)

English for Science and Technology (EST) has become a more and more important register in world today, where science and technology soar quickly. Thus, EST contributes a lot to the publicity of new trends in various fields of science and technology. Because of its own characteristics, EST materials are always regarded horrible in both reading and translation. As one of its leading features, parenthesis causes great trouble. Therefore, for a better understanding and translation of EST materials, the study of parenthesis is of much importance and value. Earlier work has either been somewhat superficial or fragmentary from one to two aspects.This thesis is attempted to make an overall investigation of parenthesis in EST from a functional as well as a pragmatic viewpoint respectively. It is also based on a qualitative study which makes it distinct from former pure quantitative description of this language phenomenon. The research mainly deals with the grammatical and pragmatic functions of parenthesis in EST. Based on the analysis, the functional and the pragmatic features are discussed in great detail.This dissertation aims to help appropriate understanding and translation of EST materials containing parenthesis. It may also serve as an assistant for classroom instructors to train the students in effective EST reading. It is furthermore hoped that it would arouse a growing interest in the study of the register of EST.