Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Saya menulis makalah pendek tentang penggunaan sensor di mobil tanpa sopir. - I write a short paper about the use of sensors in driverless cars.

Saya sudah menulis makalah pendek... – I have (already) written a short paper...
Saya sedang menulis makalah pendek... – I am writing a short paper...
Tadi saya menulis makalah pendek... – Earlier I wrote a short paper...
Besok saya akan menulis makalah pendek... – Tomorrow I will write a short paper...

So menulis is “tenseless,” and time is shown by other words, not by verb endings.

How do I clearly say “I am writing / I wrote / I will write a short paper about the use of sensors in driverless cars” in Indonesian?

Using the same base sentence, you can add aspect/tense markers:

Present continuous:
- Saya sedang menulis makalah pendek tentang penggunaan sensor di mobil tanpa sopir.
  = I am writing a short paper...
Simple past / completed:
- Saya sudah menulis makalah pendek tentang penggunaan sensor di mobil tanpa sopir.
  = I have written / I wrote a short paper...
Future:
- Saya akan menulis makalah pendek tentang penggunaan sensor di mobil tanpa sopir.
  = I will write a short paper...

Without sedang / sudah / akan / time expressions, context must tell you the time.

Why is it Saya and not Aku here? What’s the difference between them?

Both Saya and Aku mean “I / me”, but they differ in formality and typical use:

Saya
- Neutral and polite.
- Used in most situations: with strangers, colleagues, in class, in writing, in presentations, etc.
- Fits academic or formal contexts (like writing a paper).
Aku
- More informal / intimate.
- Common with close friends, family, in songs, in diaries, in casual speech.
- Sounds too casual or emotional in a formal academic sentence.

So in this sentence about writing a paper, Saya is the more natural and appropriate choice.

What exactly does makalah mean? Is it the same as “essay” or “article”?

Makalah is usually:

a short academic paper, seminar paper, or written assignment,
often for school, university, conferences, or training sessions.

It is not just any article. Compare:

makalah – an academic/structured paper (for class, conference, etc.).
artikel – an article (in magazines, newspapers, online).
esai – an essay (often literary, reflective, or argumentative).
karangan – a composition (school writing exercise; broader, often for younger students).

In many learning or academic contexts, makalah = “term paper / short academic paper.”
So makalah pendek fits “a short paper” in a school/university setting.

Why is it makalah pendek and not pendek makalah? What is the rule for adjectives?

In Indonesian, adjectives normally come after the noun:

makalah pendek – short paper
mobil baru – new car
rumah besar – big house

So:

makalah = paper
pendek = short

→ makalah pendek = short paper.

Putting the adjective before the noun (pendek makalah) is not grammatical in standard Indonesian (except in some fixed expressions or poetic language). The default rule is Noun + Adjective.

What does penggunaan mean and how is it formed?

Penggunaan means “use / usage / utilization”.

It comes from the root guna (use) and the verb menggunakan (to use). Indonesian often forms nouns from verbs with the peN- … -an pattern:

menggunakan (to use) → penggunaan (use, usage)
mengajar (to teach) → pengajaran (teaching, instruction)
mengelola (to manage) → pengelolaan (management)

So:

penggunaan sensor = the use of sensors / sensor usage.

In the sentence, tentang penggunaan sensor = about the use of sensors.

Why is it tentang penggunaan sensor and not tentang menggunakan sensor? Are both possible?

Both structures can be used, but they differ slightly:

tentang penggunaan sensor
- tentang
  - noun phrase.
- More nominal / abstract: “about the use / usage of sensors.”
- Sounds more formal and more academic.
tentang menggunakan sensor
- tentang
  - verb (gerund-like).
- More like “about using sensors.”
- Grammatical, but feels a bit less compact or slightly less formal in an academic title or topic.

For a paper topic, tentang penggunaan sensor is very natural and sounds appropriately academic:
“I wrote a short paper about the use of sensors …”

Is sensor singular or plural here? How do you say “sensors” clearly?

In Indonesian, nouns usually don’t change form for singular vs. plural.

So sensor here can mean:

a sensor, the sensor, or
sensors, the sensors,

depending on context.

If you want to make it clearly plural, you can use:

beberapa sensor – several sensors
banyak sensor – many sensors
berbagai sensor – various sensors
sensor-sensor – sensors (reduplication marks plurality, but can sound a bit heavy or “emphatic” in some contexts)

For a general academic topic, penggunaan sensor di mobil tanpa sopir is naturally understood as “the use of sensors in driverless cars” (plural).

What does di mobil tanpa sopir mean exactly? Is it “in,” “on,” or “for” driverless cars?

di is a preposition of location, usually translated as “in / at / on”, depending on context.

di mobil – in the car / in cars
tanpa sopir – without a driver

So di mobil tanpa sopir naturally means:

“in driverless cars” (i.e., located in them).

Possible alternatives and nuances:

di dalam mobil tanpa sopir – more explicitly “inside driverless cars”
pada mobil tanpa sopir – more formal/technical “on/in/for driverless cars” (often used in writing for “on vehicles,” “on systems,” etc.)
untuk mobil tanpa sopir – “for driverless cars” (emphasis on purpose rather than physical location)

In everyday style, di mobil tanpa sopir is fine for “in driverless cars.”

Why say mobil tanpa sopir and not some other expression? Are there synonyms?

Mobil tanpa sopir literally means “car without a driver” and is a common way to say “driverless car / self-driving car.”

Synonyms / near-synonyms include:

mobil tanpa pengemudi – car without a driver (more neutral/formal word for “driver”)
mobil otonom – autonomous car
kendaraan otonom – autonomous vehicle (more technical, broader than just cars)
mobil swakemudi – lit. “self-driving car” (more formal/technical; less common in daily speech)

In a general sentence for learners, mobil tanpa sopir is clear and easy to understand. In a very technical or formal paper title, people might prefer mobil otonom or kendaraan otonom.

Why is there no word for “a” or “the” before makalah or mobil?

Indonesian does not have articles like a / an / the.

makalah can mean: a paper / the paper / papers (depending on context).
mobil can mean: a car / the car / cars.

If you really need to emphasize “one” as a countable item, you can use sebuah:

sebuah makalah pendek – a (single) short paper
sebuah mobil tanpa sopir – a (single) driverless car

But in many sentences, Indonesians simply omit any article. So:

Saya menulis makalah pendek...

naturally corresponds to “I wrote a short paper...” in English, even without a word like a or the.

Can I say Saya menulis sebuah makalah pendek tentang penggunaan sensor di mobil tanpa sopir? What does sebuah add?

Yes, that sentence is grammatical and natural.

sebuah is a classifier/quantifier often glossed as “a / one (piece of)” for many inanimate objects.

So:

Saya menulis makalah pendek... – I wrote a short paper...
Saya menulis sebuah makalah pendek... – I wrote a short paper (one specific paper).

In many contexts, the meaning difference is small. Sebuah slightly emphasizes one discrete paper; it can sound a bit more precise or a bit more “bookish,” but it’s very common and acceptable.

Could I use pada instead of di: penggunaan sensor pada mobil tanpa sopir? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can say:

...tentang penggunaan sensor pada mobil tanpa sopir.

Both di and pada are possible, but there is a nuance:

di – location: “in / at / on” (more concrete, everyday)
pada – often more formal / abstract / technical, used in written Indonesian for relations like “on/in/for (systems, concepts, groups, etc.)”

In technical or academic writing, you will often see pada with technologies or systems:

penggunaan AI pada kendaraan otonom – the use of AI in autonomous vehicles
efek kebijakan baru pada industri otomotif – the effect of the new policy on the automotive industry

So pada mobil tanpa sopir can sound a bit more formal/technical than di mobil tanpa sopir, but both are correct.