Didn't English only become the lingua franca of science since WWII? Before then, French and German was more the norm. So the increasing number of non-native English speakers contributing to this pool of literature analyzed could have something to do with it.
Technical English is much more restricted in its vocabulary (within each field) and conforms to predictable patterns that are markedly different from colloquial English, which was used as a reference for readability. It is this technical English that foreign language scientists pick up and publish in, so perhaps the conclusions are not surprising.
Technical English is much more restricted in its vocabulary (within each field) and conforms to predictable patterns that are markedly different from colloquial English, which was used as a reference for readability. It is this technical English that foreign language scientists pick up and publish in, so perhaps the conclusions are not surprising.