The Corpus of English Life Sciences Texts and representativeness : An information and documentation analysis of Late Modern English scientific Texts

Abstract

[Abstract] It is my aiin in this chapter to address the broad and complex issue of representativeness with respect to the Corpus of English Life Sciences Texts ( CELiST) (Lareo et al. 2020). To this end, empirical quantitative data will be analysed to assess the variability and reliability of the corpus. Toe qualitative principles goveming CELlST will also be examined. Although the compilers of the Coruña Corpus of English Scientific Writing ( CC) have repeatedly claimed that their overall corpus is representative of the Late Modern English scientific register, my research question here is to ask specifically whether CELiST is indeed representative. Toe primary objective, then, is to study CELiST systematically by means of ReCor, a tool used to analyse quantitative data. Since CELiST has been compiled following strict qualitative criteria, we might expect that it would also be quantitatively representative. Here, I will address issues of quantitative representativeness by focusing exclusively on the lexicon, leaving aside syntax, rhetorical patterns and any other linguistic aspects. The chapter is structured as follows. First, I will discuss corpora in general, and CELiST in particular, in terms of representativeness as a distinctive attribute of corpora. Next, my methodological approach will be described, followed by a presentation of findings, a discussion of these, and sorne concluding remarks.