Writing Summaries: Science and Technology

📘 Referenzleitfaden: Zusammenfassungen schreiben (zum Nachschlagen)

Present tense — summaries of written texts are written in the simple present, even if the article uses the past.
Example: "The article explains that..." (not "explained")

Reporting verbs — use verbs like states, argues, suggests, claims, points out instead of "says".
Example: "The writer argues that ambition has changed shape."

Objectivity — summaries report the writer's ideas, not your own opinion.
Example: Avoid "I think..." or "In my opinion..."

Umbrella sentences — group several specific details under one general statement.
Example: Instead of listing three examples, write: "The article gives several examples of this trend."

Conciseness — cut examples, repetition, and rhetorical flourishes; keep only the core content.

Übung 1 · Kernaussagen erkennen

Read the article. Classify each sentence below as a Main Idea, a Supporting Detail, or Irrelevant for a summary.

The Machines We Made to Think: Living With Artificial Intelligence

Adapted from a science and technology feature

Fifty years ago, a computer that could hold a conversation belonged firmly to science fiction. Would anyone in 1975 have believed that a machine could one day write poetry, diagnose illness, and argue philosophy — all before breakfast? Today, that machine sits quietly in millions of pockets.

Consider Dr. Amara Okafor, a radiologist in Toronto. Last year, an AI system flagged a tumour on one of her scans that she herself had missed on first review, and she has not looked at a scan the same way since. For her, artificial intelligence is no longer a futuristic curiosity — it is a colleague she did not choose but has come to rely on.

The scale of the shift is difficult to overstate. One recent industry report estimates that AI tools now assist in over 30% of medical diagnoses made in leading hospitals worldwide. What began as an experiment in laboratories has quietly become infrastructure.

Yet for every efficiency gained, a question is raised. We taught machines to see patterns we could not; now we must decide how much of our judgement we are willing to hand over in return. Optimists see a future of longer, healthier lives. Sceptics see a slow erosion of human expertise and accountability.

Both camps agree on one thing: the technology is not coming — it has already arrived. The only real choice left is not whether artificial intelligence will shape our future, but how wisely we choose to shape it back.

Übung 2 · Oberbegriffe bilden (Umbrella Sentences)

For each set of specific details, choose the best "umbrella sentence" that summarises them as one general statement.

📄 Read the article again

Consider Dr. Amara Okafor, a radiologist in Toronto. Last year, an AI system flagged a tumour on one of her scans that she herself had missed on first review.

One recent industry report estimates that AI tools now assist in over 30% of medical diagnoses made in leading hospitals worldwide.

Optimists see a future of longer, healthier lives. Sceptics see a slow erosion of human expertise and accountability.

The only real choice left is not whether artificial intelligence will shape our future, but how wisely we choose to shape it back.

Übung 3 · Zeitformen korrigieren

Choose the grammatically correct version for a summary. Remember: summaries use the simple present tense.

Übung 4 · Formell vs. informell

Choose the more formal, objective option suitable for an academic summary.

Übung 5 · Vollständige Zusammenfassung schreiben

Write a full summary of the article (100–120 words) in your own words, using the present tense and a formal, objective style.

📄 Read the article again

Fifty years ago, a computer that could hold a conversation belonged firmly to science fiction. Today, that machine sits quietly in millions of pockets.

One recent industry report estimates that AI tools now assist in over 30% of medical diagnoses made in leading hospitals worldwide.

We taught machines to see patterns we could not; now we must decide how much of our judgement we are willing to hand over in return. Optimists see a future of longer, healthier lives. Sceptics see a slow erosion of human expertise and accountability.