Chapter function: Technical explanation, data commentary, and public science communication. With the permit application filed, Diego and Camila now need to summarize an environmental-impact report for their client, who must understand what the data means without a technical background. This chapter develops the specialized tense-aspect control, clause conventions, and connected multi-paragraph writing already active since Chapter 6 into the register of data commentary and technical explanation, while activating scientific and technological vocabulary as a new productive domain and recycling discourse deixis and superlatives from Chapter 8.
The municipal office has approved the permit, but the client's engineer has sent over a short environmental-impact report full of data and technical terms, and the client wants a plain explanation before the project moves forward. This chapter teaches learners to summarize findings, comment on data and trends, and explain technical concepts to a non-specialist audience — the everyday task of a translator, consultant, or informed citizen moving between expert and public registers. No new grammar paradigm is introduced; instead, the tense-aspect precision, clause architecture, and paragraph-level writing skills developed since Chapter 6 are extended into scientific and technological content.
Camila has just finished reading the engineer's report and is explaining the key points to Diego before their meeting with the client.
Camila: Ya leí el informe completo. En resumen, el impacto ambiental del proyecto es mínimo, pero hay un par de datos que debemos explicarle bien al cliente.
Diego: ¿Qué tan grave es lo del ruido? Esa fue la parte que más me preocupó.
Camila: Según los datos, el nivel de ruido aumentará levemente durante la construcción, pero disminuirá en cuanto termine la obra. Eso es completamente normal en proyectos de este tipo.
Diego: ¿Y la tecnología que van a usar para reducir las emisiones?
Camila: Es bastante innovadora. El informe explica que se ha probado en proyectos similares y que ha reducido las emisiones muchísimo. Dicho esto, todavía se necesita monitorear los resultados durante el primer año.
Diego: Entonces, ¿cómo se lo explicamos al cliente sin usar tanta jerga técnica?
Camila: Con ejemplos concretos. Lo anterior es exactamente lo que vamos a preparar para la reunión.
This chapter activates a new productive vocabulary domain — scientific and technological terms for describing findings, data, and processes — building on the specialized registers developed in Chapters 6 through 8.
| Palabra / expresión | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| el hallazgo | finding | masc.; from hallar, "to find"; common in research and reports |
| el dato | a piece of data, a fact | masc.; frequently plural, los datos ("the data") |
| la investigación | research, investigation | fem.; context determines "research study" vs. "police investigation" |
| la muestra | sample | fem.; from mostrar, "to show"; not to be confused with la prueba (test, proof) |
| el impacto ambiental | environmental impact | masc.; fixed technical collocation |
| sostenible | sustainable | invariable for gender; pairs with la sostenibilidad |
| la emisión | emission | fem.; frequently plural, las emisiones |
| aumentar / disminuir | to increase / to decrease | regular -ar and irregular -ir (like construir pattern); core verbs for describing trends |
| el porcentaje | percentage | masc.; used with un... por ciento for specific figures |
| monitorear | to monitor | regular -ar; recognizable cognate, safe for production |
| la jerga técnica | technical jargon | fem.; useful for talking about register itself |
No new sound system is introduced. This section develops intonation and phrasing for presenting a data point clearly — pausing before and after a number or percentage, and using a falling tone to signal that a finding has been fully stated, as a presenter would when reporting results aloud.
Exercise 9.1 — Reading data aloud
Read the following sentence aloud, pausing briefly before and after the percentage: "El nivel de ruido aumentará un quince por ciento durante la construcción." Practice until the number stands out clearly without being over-emphasized.
This chapter develops the specialized tense-aspect usage, clause conventions, and connected multi-paragraph writing already active since Chapter 6, and applies discourse deixis and superlatives — activated in Chapter 8 — to the task of commenting on data and summarizing technical findings for a non-specialist audience.
Data commentary in Spanish moves between three time frames: the present for general facts and ongoing patterns, the present perfect for what a study or report has already shown, and the future for a projected change. Choosing the right tense signals whether a claim describes the current situation, an established finding, or an expected outcome.
| Time frame | Function | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Present | general fact or stable pattern | La tecnología reduce las emisiones de manera significativa. |
| Present perfect | a finding already established by research | Los estudios han demostrado que esta tecnología funciona en proyectos similares. |
| Future | a projected or expected change | El nivel de ruido aumentará levemente durante la construcción. |
Technical explanation depends on connecting ideas precisely. This chapter develops connectors already available from earlier volumes into a more deliberate explanatory pattern, useful for moving from a technical source to a plain-language summary.
| Function | Connector | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Cause | debido a (que), ya que | El ruido aumentará debido a la maquinaria pesada. |
| Consequence | por lo tanto, como resultado | La tecnología ha reducido las emisiones; por lo tanto, el impacto ambiental es menor. |
| Contrast | sin embargo, aunque | El ruido aumentará durante la obra; sin embargo, disminuirá al terminar. |
The discourse-deixis expressions and superlatives activated in Chapter 8 are especially useful for summarizing a technical source in plain language: esto and eso let a speaker refer back to a finding just mentioned, and superlatives let a speaker highlight the most important point without repeating every detail.
| Expression | Example in this context |
|---|---|
| esto / eso | El nivel de ruido aumentará un quince por ciento; esto es normal en esta etapa del proyecto. |
| lo anterior | Lo anterior explica por qué el informe recomienda monitorear los resultados. |
| absolute superlative | La reducción de emisiones ha sido altísima en comparación con proyectos anteriores. |
| comparative superlative | Este es el hallazgo más importante del informe. |
Ser and estar continue to distinguish classification from current condition, now applied to data, findings, and technical processes.
| Context | Example |
|---|---|
| Classifying a finding | El impacto ambiental es mínimo, según el informe. |
| Describing the current state of a process | El monitoreo todavía está en curso. |
| Describing a result state | Los resultados ya están confirmados por un segundo estudio. |
Cliente: Entonces, ¿qué tan preocupante es el aumento en el nivel de ruido?
Camila: No es preocupante. El informe indica que el ruido aumentará levemente durante la construcción, pero disminuirá en cuanto termine la obra. Esto es normal en proyectos de este tamaño.
Cliente: ¿Y qué hay de las emisiones?
Diego: Ahí está el hallazgo más importante del informe: la tecnología que van a usar ha reducido las emisiones muchísimo en proyectos similares. Los datos muestran una reducción altísima, comparada con métodos anteriores.
Cliente: Suena bien, pero no entiendo mucho de la parte técnica.
Camila: No se preocupe, para eso estamos aquí. En resumen: el proyecto es sostenible, el impacto ambiental es mínimo y, debido a la nueva tecnología, las emisiones serán mucho menores que en construcciones anteriores. Lo anterior es, en pocas palabras, lo que necesita saber para tomar su decisión.
Cliente: Perfecto. Muchísimas gracias por explicármelo con claridad.
Exercise 9.2 — Choose the correct time frame
Complete each sentence with the present, present perfect, or future form of the verb in parentheses, according to the function indicated.
Exercise 9.3 — Connect the ideas
Combine each pair of sentences using the connector that best expresses the relationship indicated.
Exercise 9.4 — Ser or estar?
Camila y Diego resumen el informe para un colega antes de la reunión con el cliente. Camila: "El informe tiene tres hallazgos principales. Primero, el impacto ambiental del proyecto es mínimo. Segundo, el nivel de ruido aumentará levemente durante la construcción, pero esto es temporal; disminuirá en cuanto termine la obra." Diego: "Y el tercer punto es el más importante: la tecnología que van a usar ha reducido las emisiones muchísimo en proyectos similares. Los datos muestran una reducción altísima." Colega: "¿Y hay algo que debamos vigilar después de que empiece la construcción?" Camila: "Sí, se necesita monitorear los resultados durante el primer año. Dicho esto, en general, el proyecto es bastante sostenible."
Exercise 9.5 — Listening for findings and connectors
Exercise 9.6 — Explaining a finding to a non-specialist
With a partner, take the roles of a consultant and a client. The consultant explains one technical finding (about noise, emissions, sustainability, or a technology of your choice), using at least one scientific/technological vocabulary item, one cause-consequence or contrast connector, and one discourse-deixis expression. The client asks at least one follow-up question in plain language.
Solo-study alternative: Record yourself explaining a technical finding of your choice to an imaginary client (30–40 seconds), using at least one connector of cause, consequence, or contrast and one superlative. Listen back and check that a non-specialist listener could follow your explanation without technical background.
Exercise 9.7 — Reading a short technical report
"Resumen técnico: Según los datos recopilados en la muestra analizada, el nivel de ruido aumentará aproximadamente un quince por ciento durante la fase de construcción, debido al uso de maquinaria pesada. Sin embargo, este aumento es temporal y disminuirá una vez finalizada la obra. En cuanto a las emisiones, la tecnología propuesta ha demostrado, en proyectos similares, una reducción altísima en comparación con métodos convencionales. Los estudios muestran que esta es la tecnología más eficiente disponible actualmente para este tipo de construcción. Por lo tanto, el impacto ambiental general del proyecto se considera mínimo. Dicho esto, se recomienda monitorear los resultados durante el primer año para confirmar estas proyecciones."
Task: Write a two-paragraph plain-language summary (120–150 words) of the technical report in Exercise 9.7, addressed to a client with no technical background. Your summary must use at least three scientific/technological vocabulary items, at least one connector of cause, consequence, or contrast, at least one discourse-deixis expression, and at least one superlative.
Stage 1 — Plan
Identify the two or three findings the client most needs to understand, and decide which technical terms need a plain-language gloss.
Stage 2 — Draft
Write your summary in two paragraphs: one on the findings, one on what the client should expect going forward.
Stage 3 — Revise
Check that technical terms are explained rather than simply repeated, confirm that your connectors correctly express cause, consequence, or contrast, and verify that your discourse-deixis expression clearly points back to a finding you actually stated.
Interpretation-awareness checklist
Public science and technology communication varies across Spanish-speaking countries in how directly technical findings are shared with the public, how much government agencies publish in accessible language, and how much responsibility falls on journalists, consultants, or educators to translate expert findings for general audiences. What is broadly useful for a learner is the underlying skill of moving between an expert register and a plain-language register — recognizing which vocabulary needs no explanation and which needs to be reframed — rather than assuming any single country's science-communication practices apply everywhere.
This chapter extended the specialized tense-aspect control, clause conventions, and connected multi-paragraph writing developed since Chapter 6 into scientific and technological communication: describing findings, commenting on data and trends, and explaining technical processes to a non-specialist audience. Learners activated a new productive vocabulary domain for science and technology, and recycled the discourse deixis and superlatives introduced in Chapter 8 to summarize and emphasize findings. Practice moved through a client-facing dialogue, a short technical report, and a plain-language written summary, all built on grammar already consolidated in earlier volumes and applied to a new specialized domain.
Exercise 9.8 — Cumulative self-check
Task: Present your Section 12 written summary aloud as if explaining the report to the client, either to a partner or by recording. Then answer one follow-up question your partner (or you, on playback) asks, using at least one connector of cause, consequence, or contrast.
| Criterion | What to check |
|---|---|
| Scientific/technological vocabulary | At least three items are used accurately and glossed in plain language where needed. |
| Connectors | At least one connector of cause, consequence, or contrast is used correctly. |
| Discourse deixis and superlatives | Both are used correctly and refer clearly to stated ideas. |
| Ser/estar accuracy | Findings and process states are distinguished correctly. |
| Oral delivery | The explanation is clear enough for a listener without technical background to follow. |
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| el hallazgo | finding |
| los datos | data (plural) |
| la muestra | sample |
| aumentar / disminuir | to increase / to decrease |
| debido a / por lo tanto / sin embargo | cause / consequence / contrast connectors |
1. han demostrado (established finding, present perfect).
2. aumentará (projected change, future).
3. reduce (general fact, present).
1. El ruido aumentará debido a que se usará maquinaria pesada.
2. La tecnología ha reducido las emisiones; por lo tanto, el impacto ambiental es menor.
3. El ruido aumentará durante la obra; sin embargo, disminuirá al terminar.
1. es (classification).
2. está (ongoing process).
3. están (result state).
1. The environmental impact is minimal; noise will temporarily increase during construction; the technology has greatly reduced emissions in similar projects.
2. Because the increase is temporary and will decrease once construction ends.
3. "esto es temporal" refers back to the fact that noise will increase during construction.
4. "altísima", from the base adjective alta.
1. Approximately fifteen percent, due to the use of heavy machinery.
2. It has shown a very high reduction in emissions compared to conventional methods.
3. "Por lo tanto" connects the technology's effectiveness to the conclusion that the overall environmental impact is minimal (consequence).
4. "la tecnología más eficiente disponible actualmente" compares the proposed technology to all other technologies currently available for this type of construction.