Introduction > Writing Scientifically > Using Scientific Language > The Third Person

The Third Person Traditionally, scientific writing always used the third person. This means not using: I, me, my, we, us, our, mine (all of which are the first person) or you, your (second person). You can, however, use: he, his, him, she, her, it, they, their. Although it's becoming more acceptable to use the first and second person in some scientific writing, check with your University or supervisor as to what's expected of you. The most difficult section to write in the third person is Materials and Methods, where it's more natural to discuss what you did in the first person - "I did this" or "I did that". Similarly, it can be difficult not to write "I found that ... " in the Results section. If you're not used to this way of writing, it can be difficult to use the third person effectively. When you're starting out, it's a good idea to write the sentence as you would normally and then think how to phrase it differently. For example, in the Materials and Methods section: "I applied the treatments at two day intervals from 3rd July until 9th September" can be re-written as "The treatments were applied at two day intervals from 3rd July until 9th September". Exercise If you're struggling to use the third person, see if you can convert these sentences from the first person to the third person

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