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Science students are often, understandably, confused over how and when to use the passive voice. In their English and writing classes, teachers typically cite WiIlliam Strunk's advice to "use the active voice." But in their science classes, they encounter model lab reports full of passive constructions: "the samples were exposed to ..."; "the rats were dosed with ..."; or "it was found that ..." Some science students conclude that their "English teacher's rules" do not apply to them. Most leading authorities on style and usage appreciate that in science or technical writing, sometimes the passive voice is more appropriate than the active. Jack Lynch, in his popular Guide to Grammar and Style, writes: "In scientific writing... sentences are routinely written in the passive voice; the authors are therefore given less importance, and the facts are made to speak for themselves." But the sloppy overuse of the passive voice concerns many science and technology professors and professionals. Kevin Padian, Biology Professor at the University of California, Berkeley, acknowledges that the passive voice permeates unedited science writing, but he nevertheless advises, "write as we say, not as we do."
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