Alas, is it informal or formal? Can it be used in formal writing?

Question title is enough. Can I use alas in formal writing , especially in scientific writing?

I do not remember seeing it a lot in scientific articles but dictionary references does not say anything about it informal.

Solution 1:

It's neither formal nor informal. It's a word.

As to its usage, it is a fairly old-fashioned sounding word. The usage has been in steady decline since the 19th century (according to the graph in the Google definition).

As a general rule, you can use this word in scientific writing, but I don't know that you would want to. Scientific writing doesn't lend itself to the emotional handwringing that alas conveys.

Alas, the data did not support the conclusion.

vs

The data did not support the conclusion.

The first introduces a strange sense of emotion to the analysis. The second reports the facts in an appropriately sterile manner.

I think the big picture is that emotional assessments play little role in proper scientific writing. Even in the conclusion, I think the word unfortunately would be more appropriate.

Unfortunately, we were unable to power the study to determine the specificity of this outcome.

Solution 2:

Though alas is a formal adverb, I' d rather use 'unfortunately' in a scientific article.