+++ title = "passive voice" +++ Avoid the passive voice as much as reasonable. When you say the data is converted, for example, your writing will be clearer if it is more specific about who or what does the conversion: the system, the algorithm, the user, the server, the authors, etc.
An imperfect way to tell whether a sentence is in the passive voice is to try adding …by space aliens to the end. If that works, you probably want to add a subject for your verb. (Credit to Melissa O’Neill for this trick.)
Sometimes, rewriting a sentence to avoid the passive voice makes it worse. Give it an earnest try, but give up if the alternative seems bad.