The phrase "insufficient by itself" is a correct and usable phrase in written English.
It can be used when something is not enough on its own to achieve a desired outcome. For example: "This single step to reduce poverty in the country is insufficient by itself, we need a more comprehensive approach."
This incident shows that while the peer-review process is necessary, it's insufficient by itself to filter out all erroneous research.
The appeals court treated Missouri's claim of a compelling interest "in avoiding the corruption or the perception of corruption brought about when candidates for elective office accept large campaign contributions" as insufficient by itself to satisfy strict scrutiny...
The expression of Agl12 is sufficient to promote an organization of suspension cells into globular parenchyma-like aggregates but is insufficient by itself to induce complete morphological root differentiation.
Commitment by local politicians to regeneration in their cities may be insufficient by itself to push things forward.Lille, once famous for textile manufacturing, provides an example of what can be achieved by a national heavyweight.
For all the summer angst among Democrats over their fears that the Republicans were turning Obama's skills against him, last night was a reminder that the candidate's eloquence - though insufficient by itself - brings a level of transcendence to this campaign with few recent historical parallels.
Officials acknowledged that the compromise accord is insufficient, by itself, to prevent global temperatures from rising by more than 2 degrees C above pre-industrial averages, an increase that many scientists believe is the maximum amount of warming the planet can sustain without massive disruptions in natural ecosystems.
However, d-Ala: d-Ala depletion is also induced by LCS and is therefore insufficient evidence by itself to define Ddl as the primary target of DCS.
Therefore, urinary protein loss may contribute to a lower fructosamine level and, therefore, a higher G-Gap; however, this is likely to be insufficient to explain by itself the association between macroproteinuria and G-Gap level.
The announced US target itself was viewed insufficient by China, which in turn rejected binding and ambitious targets for its economy.
Nonetheless, appealing to the utility of science is a good start: it is the right sort of reason, even if it is, by itself, insufficient.
This also reiterates the fact that while geometrical shape is a useful property to characterize molecules; it sometimes is by itself insufficient to provide a clear discrimination.
