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英文摘要是科学家在现代科技交流中高速地输入和输出信息的重要手段。本文讨论了优秀英文摘要的基本要素，包括文摘的功能，文摘的种类，文摘的内容和文摘的风格。同时提供了简明的英文摘要写作指南。
文摘是长篇文献的缩影，它置于论文、技术报告、专论、和其他文献之前，概括总结和突出文献的要点.在科技文献急骤增加的信息时代，各种文献杂志和检索系统情报库应运而生，种类越来越多，覆盖面越来越广，信息量越来越大。文摘已成为科技人员输人和输出信息的重要手段，成为科学交流中传递科技情报的重要方式.为了促进国际交流，各国科技出版物都附有英文摘要.本文拟从英文摘要的功能、种类、内容和文体风格等方面对英文摘要的写法进行探讨。
英文摘要的功能
好的英文摘要应具备以下功能
1. 提供足够的信息，让读者迅速准确地了解文献的基本内容，帮助该专业读者决定是否查阅原文，帮助相关专业读者毋需阅读原文就能获得所需要的信息;
2. 帮助一次出版物的编辑人员缩短选稿进程，使他们一看文摘就能估计该文献的深度和创造性;
3. 减轻文献杂志等二次出版物的编辑工作，供他们直接采用或稍作加工就使用;
4. 帮助克服使用一次文献的语言障碍
英文摘要的种类
文摘可根据内容、目的、结构及作者等不同标准来分类。短的文摘只有一句话，甚至只有一个短语，放在标题之前或之后，点出文献的最精彩部分，类似于一个副标。例如：
This paper describes results of research in process on the feasibility of Pre-Earthquake for Post-Earthquake Rebuilding (PEPER)
长的文摘长达数百词，分成几段，类似一篇短的论文.有的文摘是由作者自己写的，置于一次出版物之前，称为作者文摘;有的则是由专门的文摘员或其他编辑人员写。目前，普遍根据内容特征把文摘分成资料性文摘(Informative Abstract)、指示性文摘(Indicative Abstract)和资料-指示性文摘(Informative-Indicative Abstract) 3 种。
资料性文摘概括地叙述文献的研究对象、性质、目的、范围、方法、过程、条件、结果和结论。它不但包括文献的基本思想和主要论点，同时也包括基本事实和主要论据，还包括所取得成果的技术性能、参数特征、使用范围、价值意义等。下面是一篇摘自『能量研究文摘』的资料性摘要。
Thee paper analyzes the petroleum-industry price and allocation controls that dominated US energy policy during the 1970s. It is emphasized that since controls on refined products tied maxilnuln prices to costs of production, the market effects of this regulatory system were quite unusual. The paper shows that controls induced firms to price refined products below marginal costs. In addition, the regulations tended to increase the degree of dispe rsion in prices charged by firms in the industry. Finally, in the context of multiple-product analysis, it is shown that the presence of effective ceiling prices for any of the products reduced the prices of all products below marginal costs.
这样的文摘包括了文献的实质内容，它可以独立存在，只要注明此摘要出自何处，就可供文摘杂志和各类情报库使用。这样的文摘有相当高的实用价值，绝大多数文摘杂志上的摘要都属这类资料性文摘。
指示性文摘仅列出一次文献所探讨的对象、目的、角度、方法和主要结论而无具体的实质性信息，读者不能从文摘中直接获取所需要的事实。一次文献上所附的文摘中有相当一部分都是这种指示性文摘，起指导阅读的作用。目前大多数学报均使用指示性文摘(请参阅本文的英文摘要)，目的在于吸引读者阅读论文全文。例如：
New methods for the synthesis of submicmn Tib 2 powders have be en found and experimentally demonstrated. Three reaction schemes are proposed that can give submicron Tib 2 powders as end product.Some properties of these powders are discussed.
文摘中仅仅提到合成粉末有 3 种反应技巧和讨论了粉末的性能，要想知道是哪 3 种反应技巧和讨论了粉末的哪些性能，读者必须阅读全文。
资料-指示性文摘综合了以上两种文摘的特点。例如：
The author examines eight major residential appliances in the US that currently consunle 8.9 quads/year, representing more than 12% of total 1984 US energy use. Expenditures on energy for these appliances totaled over $56 billion in 1984. Results indicate that improving the efficiency of all these appliances to economically optimal levels would reduce these annual expenditures by almost 30%, a savings of $17 billion per year. In steady state, the annualized additional investment cost to achieve this efficiency improvement is $7 billion. So the net savings is about $10 billion per year. This paper describes and analyzes energy efficiency choices for residenfial appliances and space conditioning equipment. The first section briefly illustrates historical trends in the average efficiencies of new appliances sold in the United States during the last decade. The second section shows results of the life-cycle cost analysis of eight major residential appliances. Results provide striking evidence that the market is not achieving economically optimal efficiency levels.