Research & Evidence

to confirm or give support to a statement, theory, or finding with additional evidence

证实；佐证

• Ice-core samples corroborate the temperature record reconstructed from tree rings.
• The witness's account was later corroborated by security-camera footage.

Collocations: corroborate a finding · corroborate an account · independently corroborated

to provide evidence that proves a claim or statement is true

证实；为……提供依据

• The company could not substantiate its claim that the supplement improved memory.
• Every figure in the report is substantiated by raw data in the appendix.

Collocations: substantiate a claim · substantiate an allegation · fail to substantiate

to prove that a statement, theory, or argument is wrong

驳斥；反驳

• A single well-designed experiment was enough to refute the older model.
• In her final chapter, the author refutes each objection in turn.

Collocations: refute a theory · refute an argument · decisively refuted

to reach a conclusion from evidence and reasoning rather than from an explicit statement

推断；推论

• From the wear patterns on the tools, archaeologists inferred that the site was occupied year-round.
• Readers are expected to infer the author's attitude from her choice of examples.

Collocations: infer from · reasonably infer · infer a conclusion

to regard something as being caused by a particular person, thing, or factor

把……归因于

• The decline in cinema attendance is often attributed to streaming services.
• She attributes her recovery to a change in diet rather than to the medication.

Collocations: attribute X to Y · widely attributed to · attribute the difference to

to show a mutual relationship in which one thing changes together with another

相关；与……相关联

• Hours of daylight correlate strongly with reported mood in the survey data.
• The two variables correlate, but that alone does not prove causation.

Collocations: correlate with · strongly correlated · positively correlate

so small or unimportant that it can safely be ignored

微不足道的；可忽略不计的

• The difference between the two treatments turned out to be negligible.
• Transport accounts for a negligible share of the product's total cost.

Collocations: a negligible effect · a negligible difference · statistically negligible

coming before the main part of something; early and not yet final

初步的；预备性的

• Preliminary results suggest the treatment is safe, but larger trials are needed.
• The committee released a preliminary report ahead of the full review.

Collocations: preliminary findings · preliminary results · a preliminary study

extremely thorough, careful, and exact

严谨的；严格的

• The journal is known for its rigorous peer-review process.
• Without rigorous controls, the experiment's results would be meaningless.

Collocations: rigorous analysis · rigorous testing · rigorous standards

not certain or fixed; proposed provisionally and subject to change

暂定的；试探性的

• The researchers drew only tentative conclusions from such a small sample.
• The two sides reached a tentative agreement that still requires approval.

Collocations: a tentative conclusion · a tentative agreement · tentative evidence

something that deviates from what is standard, normal, or expected

异常；反常现象

• The 2020 figures are best treated as an anomaly caused by the travel shutdown.
• Astronomers detected an anomaly in the planet's orbit that hinted at a hidden moon.

Collocations: a statistical anomaly · explain an anomaly · detect an anomaly

a difference between two things, such as figures or accounts, that should be the same

差异；不一致

• Auditors found a discrepancy between the reported and actual expenses.
• The discrepancy between the two datasets was traced to a change in measurement methods.

Collocations: a discrepancy between · explain a discrepancy · a significant discrepancy

an idea or explanation for something that is not yet proven, used as a starting point for further investigation

假设

• The researchers designed an experiment to test their hypothesis about sleep and memory.
• Her initial hypothesis was later confirmed by a much larger study.
• A good hypothesis makes a prediction that can be checked against evidence.

Collocations: test a hypothesis · propose a hypothesis · support a hypothesis

based on observation or experiment rather than theory alone

经验主义的；实证的

• The claim lacks empirical support and remains largely speculative.
• Empirical evidence from three separate trials pointed to the same conclusion.
• Good science combines theory with careful empirical testing.

Collocations: empirical evidence · empirical research · empirical data

seeming reasonable or probably true

似乎合理的；可信的

• The witness offered a plausible explanation for the delay.
• Not every plausible hypothesis turns out to be correct.
• A plausible alternative is that the decline is driven by demographics, not policy.

Collocations: a plausible explanation · highly plausible · seem plausible

close and careful examination

严格审查；细察

• The company's accounting practices came under intense scrutiny after the scandal.
• Any claim in an academic essay should be able to withstand scrutiny.
• Public spending deserves closer scrutiny from independent auditors.

Collocations: come under scrutiny · close scrutiny · withstand scrutiny

general agreement among a group of people

共识

• There is broad scientific consensus that global temperatures are rising.
• The committee failed to reach consensus on the new curriculum.
• Building consensus among stakeholders took nearly two years.

Collocations: reach consensus · scientific consensus · broad consensus

to repeat or reproduce something exactly

复制；重复进行

• Other laboratories were unable to replicate the original results.
• The pilot program was later replicated in twelve other cities.
• Replicating a study is one of the best ways to confirm its findings.

Collocations: replicate a study · replicate results · successfully replicated