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There etc

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There.  "There is / are" structures.

As a general rule, these structures use more words, and are often considered as a mark of clumsy writing.  In S&G, they should be eliminated.  In almost every case, a sentence with there is or there are can be re-written without to appear cleaner and provide greater clarity.  It is easy to write without 'there'; the writing is better; the sentences are easier to understand; and the general quality increases.  It is also more reader friendly, and generally you save space.

Please eliminate there is and there are from your ms; pls do this right from the start, when you submit v1.  So please make sure that this is done completely before sending your ms.  With all the examples below, no excuse can be given for not doing it thoroughly.

If you quote material (from other articles, including your own, or from informants, subjects, participants, etc), in which there is a there is/are (!), then keep the there from the original.

Below left are examples of real instances of
'there' as seen in ms submitted to S&G
, and

on the right possibilities of how they should have been written;
other ways could, of course, been used.

Examples of sentences containing there, taken from ms submitted to S&G. Suggestions to improve the style.  Other wording is often possible (and may indeed be better).  If you have other suggestions, please send them.
Avoid: Instead:
There are many different forms that written debriefing can take. Written debriefing can take many different forms.
there seems to be a general feeling that wargames are complicated it is generally felt that wargames are complicated
There were also differences in atmosphere. In addition, we noticed differences in atmosphere.
   
, there was little difference between having one guild leader, a group of guild leaders, or no guild leader little difference was detected among one guild leader, a group of guild leaders, or no guild leader
there is an overall downward trend in  leadership an overall downward trend occurs in leadership
There appears to be no clear relationship between self-ratings of workplace No clear relationship appears between self-ratings of workplace

 

 
There is certainly evidence that differences exist We certainly find evidence that differences exist.
There were three overarching questions that we sought to address in this work: We sought to address three overarching questions in this work
There are several ways to measure the quality of We used several ways to measure the quality of
   
?? To determine whether or not a significant difference existed in the proportions

There were three aspects of social loafing that we looked at more closely, including gaze,

We looked more closely at three aspects of social loafing, including gaze,
There was a higher proportion of this science talk coming from students in A higher proportion of this science talk came from students in
   
when there was a disconnect between the game’s organization and science content when a disconnect arose between the game’s organization and science content
there was a mismatch between  
there were no dramatic differences after only one gaming session no dramatic differences occurred after only one gaming session
   
... showed me that there was much more to effective teaching than lecturing and quizzing. ... showed me that effective teaching involved much more than lecturing and quizzing
There are many ways that simulation participants might utilize the constraint-based resource utilization approach Simulation participants might utilize the constraint-based resource utilization approach in many ways
There are many ways that simulation participants might utilize the constraint-based resource utilization approach in complicated product input and pricing settings.   In complicated product input and pricing settings, simulation participants might utilize the constraint-based resource utilization approach in many ways.  
   
Preliminary analyses indicated that there were no statistically significant differences across condition except for gender. Preliminary analyses indicated no statistically significant differences across condition except for gender.

There will not be a change in performance-approach goal orientation.

Performance-approach goal orientation will not change.

There were 8 males and 18 females in the cinematic condition while there were 13 males and 12 females in the control condition. 

The cinematic condition contained 8 males and 18 females, and the control condition had 13 males and 12 females. 

   
Wait-and-see is a useful strategy when there are short lags between the detection of a problem ... Wait-and-see is a useful strategy when short lags exist between the detection of a problem ...
There may be other variables (sometimes called auxiliaries or converters) that represent intermediary values. Other variables (sometimes called auxiliaries or converters) may represent intermediary values. 
There are two main reasons for using the free-to-play model. The free-to-play model offers two main advantages.  
   
In addition to learner considerations, there is a lot of room for improvement in the simulation community regarding instructional design and facilitation practices In addition to learner considerations, much room for improvement exists in the simulation community regarding instructional design and facilitation practices
While there is some truth in both of these characterizations, they offer ... Although we may find some truth in both of these characterizations, they offer ...

Although both of these characterizations contain some truth, they offer ...

While there are reliable individual differences in preference/ability for these Although reliable individual differences exist in preference/ability for these
   
In short, experience is all there is In short, experience is all we have
We contend there has been a persistent conceptual conflation of simulation and imitation at the heart of claims for the power of learning through game-based simulations. We contend that a persistent conceptual conflation of simulation and imitation has been at the heart of claims for the power of learning through game-based simulations.
There were obvious political and financial advantages to be attained by obtaining as full and complete a census count as possible for all cities and schools.

Obtaining as full and complete a census count as possible for all cities and schools had obvious political and financial advantages

   
There was a significantly greater frequency of participants who decided to preserve A significantly greater frequency of participants decided to preserve
There were ten participants who had enough money in their treasury to Ten participants had enough money in their treasury to protect
..., indicating that there was more between –as opposed to within- group variance in responses.

..., indicating that between-group response variance was greater than within-group variance.

   
..., there is no central authority that is able to decide ..., no central authority is able to decide
it soon became apparent that there was insufficient support for a gaming simulation approach.  it soon became apparent that a gaming simulation approach attracted insufficient support.
There is little known about the effects on Little is known about the effects on
   
for each of these engagement dimensions exists a volitional counterpart for each of these engagement dimensions a volitional counterpart exists
there were clear differences in the design and application of game mechanics described by our participants. our participants described clear differences in the design and application of game mechanics.
For several years, there has been a growing interest of computer-supported education practitioners in digital game-based learning. For several years, computer-supported education practitioners have shown a growing interest in digital game-based learning.   
   
there exists an argument between an argument exists between
there were relatively few comments on the issue raised they made relatively few comments on the issue raised
but because there exist alternative terms used for similar or overlapping concepts, but because alternative terms exist for similar or overlapping concepts,
   
There remain questions in the literature about Questions in the literature remain about whether
there was very little evidence for a relationship among little evidence appeared for a relationship among
There was a positive relationship between mouse action and presence measures We found a positive relationship between mouse action and presence measures
   
however, there are usually multiple attributes that keep players engaged however, multiple attributes usually keep players engaged
There was a wide range of response with respect to how much time students spent playing games outside of school, We fouind a wide range of response with respect to how much time students spent playing games outside of school,
There was no bias towards platform We found no bias towards platform As part of this study,
   
however, there are usually multiple attributes that keep players engaged however, multiple attributes usually keep players engaged
There was a wide range of response with respect to how much time students spent playing games outside of school, We fouind a wide range of response with respect to how much time students spent playing games outside of school,
There was no bias towards platform We found no bias towards platform As part of this study,
   
As part of this study, there was no formal debriefing process As part of this study, no formal debriefing was undertaken.
The authors hypothesize that there would be an optimal balance of challenge to skill in a learning or training situation that would represent a middle range of intrinsic load We hypothesized that we would identify an optimal balance of challenge to skill in a learning or training situation that would represent a middle range of intrinsic load.
Results from four one-way analysis of variances (ANOVA) indicated that there were significant main effects between Results from four one-way analysis of variances (ANOVA) indicated significant main effects between
   
There were no significant differences between We found no significant differences between
This rise in germane load helps explain why there was no significant difference in overall This rise in germane load helps explain the lack of significant difference in overall
The Frustration condition participants might, however, have high enough intrinsic load that there was neither the headroom nor inclination to increase germane load. In the Frustration condition participants might, however, have high enough intrinsic load that they experienced neither the headroom nor inclination to increase germane load
   
if the task load is too high, there remain no additional working memory resources available if the task load is too high, no additional working memory resources remain available
There was an opening interview to explore participants’ We conducted an opening interview to explore participants’
For WOW play, there were interviews after one hour, ten hours, and 20 hours For WOW play, we did interviews after one hour, ten hours, and 20 hours
   
In combination with the rising appeal of digital games, there has been an increasing amount of academic interest in games and learning and how we may use games for educational purposes Along with the rising appeal of digital games, we have seen increased academic interest in games and learning and how we may use games for educational purposes
There have been several attempts to classify informal learning Several attempts have been made to classify informal learning
garding how people learn from games, there were three distinct ways of doing so  
   
Additionally, there were also several references to how games helped Additionally, we found several references to how games helped
even single-player play (e.g. if there is an audience), even single-player play (e.g. if an audience is present),
Moreover, while researchers often use engagement as a way of representing that learning has taken place, and there might be an intuitive connection might exist between the two concepts, little robust evidence Moreover, although researchers often use engagement as a way of representing that learning has taken place, and point to a possible intuitive connection between the two concepts, little robust evidence
   
When engagement is constructed in its behavioural sense (i.e. participation and behaviour) there is a strong link between engagement and student achievement When engagement is constructed in its behavioural sense (i.e. participation and behaviour), we see a strong link between engagement and student achievement
There is evidence that a relationship exists between scores in We have evidence that a relationship exists between scores in
Researchers have also shown a link between intrinsic motivation and learning ... but at present, there simply is not enough robust evidence to be able to make definite claims for other forms of engagement Researchers have also shown a link between intrinsic motivation and learning ..., but at present, we have insufficient robust evidence to be able to make definite claims for other forms of engagement
   
but even with the cleverest design, there can never be a guarantee that this is the case. but even with the cleverest design, we can never guarantee that this is the case.
Second, there is a lack of robust evidence that engagement, in its many forms, has a direct relationship with learning. Second, we have little robust evidence that engagement, in its many forms, has a direct relationship with learning.

researchers need to be wary of assuming a link between the two without first establishing what forms of engagement they are considering (and what forms of learning) and whether there is compelling evidence that a relationship exists. 

researchers need to be wary of assuming a link between the two without first establishing what forms of engagement they are considering (and what forms of learning) and whether we have compelling evidence that a relationship exists. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   


there and misplaced subject

In comparing how the participants worked through the control or game version of the Mine the Lake scenario, there were significant differences on one reasoning-related skill (“assessment of another character’s personhood”) (see Table 9

Using Fisher’s Exact Test, there were significant differences on two reasoning-related skills

Based on the data, Hypothesis 1 was fully supported by the findings, as the game condition