Here're my notes for coursera Writing in Science. The lecture provides detailed information on the whole process of academic writing.
Section 1: general ideas
- verbs drive sentences whereas nouns slow them down.(selection -> select)
- principles of effective writing
- cut unnecessary words and phrases
- use active voice (instead of passive voice)
- write with verbs: use strong verbs
- “it is well known" -> delete and replace by citation
- cut unnecessary things:
- dead weight words: it is known,
- empty words: important
- long phrase -> short
- unnecessary acronyms and jargon
- repetitive words: successful solutions
- adverbt: very, quite
- eliminate negative: dont like a-> like (una)
- eliminate there is/are :
- omit needless prepositions介词:
Section 2: general ideas(2)
- advantage of active voice:
- emphasize author responsibility
- improve readability
- reduce ambiguity
- use passive voice for when..
- what was done is more important than who did it (method section)
- we can use I and we:
- write with verb
- use strong verb: verbs make sentences live.
- e.g., report approximately -> estimate
- substitute to be verbs with more powerful words
- avoid turning verbs into nouns
- assessment, estimates, emphasis..
- don't bury main verb
- keep the subject and main verb close together at the beginning of the sentence
- use strong verb: verbs make sentences live.
Section 3: how to write a paragraph
- write strong paragraph
- use punctuation
- use colon to provide definition
- semicolon
- show 并列关系
- separate items that contain internal punctuation
- dash: add emphasis, insert an abrupt definition/description
- use punctuation
- rule of three: when the number of examples is arbitrary, three is a good choice.
- parallel structure:
- a do b and c do d. Keep consistent with same sentence structure
- paragraph level:
- a paragraph = 1 idea(not more)
- use short paragraph: 3,4,5 sentences in one para: more focused, provide white space
- give punchline first/early and details later
- logical flow of ideas:
- sequential in time,
- general -> specific(take home message first)
- logiacl argument: if a, then b; a therefore b
- how to edit a paragraph:
- take a big view: what the author want to say
- keep the key points and remove the clutter
- repetition
- ask whether we need the second expression or we can delete
- use reprted word is ok: repeat key words
- acronyms: only use standard acronyms like RNA
- define the acronyms IN EACH SECTION
Section 4: three steps for writing
- step in writing process
- prewriting
- collect,synthesizemorganize information
- brainstorm take-home information
- work out ideas away from laptop
- develop a outline/road map
- write the first draft
- put the facts and ideas together in organized prose
- revision
- read ouit loud
- get rid of clutter
- verb check
- get feedback from others
- prewriting
- pre-writing
- gather and organize the information before writing
- when reading, extract the useful things(statistics, details, idea, expression..) that I may use in draft into a single document, and then move the material around the document to organize it
- also, place all original sources in folder in case I need to find again
- when reading, extract the useful things(statistics, details, idea, expression..) that I may use in draft into a single document, and then move the material around the document to organize it
- develop a road-map
- whats going in each section/paragraph, arrange the key facts/citations into that road-map
- brainstorm away from the computer
- write on the go: while exercising, driving alone, waiting in line..
- tips about organization:
- similar ideas should be grouped (into one paragraph).
- gather and organize the information before writing
- writing first draft:
- dont be perfectionist
- focus on logical organization, take-home message, high level idea instead of sentence-level details
- write the first draft quickly and efficiently
- revise
- read writing loud
- verb check: strong verb, active, verb bury with noun
- cut the clutter word
- do an organizational review
- in the margin of paper, TAG each paragraph with a phrase/sentence of its main point
- move paras to improve logical flows, group similar paras tpgether
- checklist for revision
- check for consistency: of fact
- check for numerical consistency:
- check your references
Section 5: How to write a academic manuscript
- break your writing task into small and realistic goals: e.g., write 400 words today
- recommending orders for writing:
- table and figure: each table n figure should have a clear point. And together they should tell the story of your manuscript. -> figure out the story that ur table and figure tell
- result: follow the story of table and figure. Give a HIGH LEVEL SUMMARY of each table and figure
- method
- introduction
- discussion: most writing, most complex,
- abstract
- Table and figure
- reviewers may first look at table and figures -> Figures and tables should stand alone and tell a COMPLETE story.
- Acronyms have to be defined.
- experimental details need to be defined.
- each table/figure should say a clear point and u should know whats that and stick to that.
- use the FEWEST figures/tables needed to tell the story -> concise
- dont present same data in both a table n a figure
- use figure to highlight the most important result -> visually appealing
- table format:
- be consistent, and repeat key terms
- follow the requirement/other paper for the conference
- if the figure is too complex, try to transfer it into table
- reviewers may first look at table and figures -> Figures and tables should stand alone and tell a COMPLETE story.
- result
- summarize what the data show:
- simple relationship,
- describe big-picture trend
- only cite the number that is important
- if long results, subsections and with heading
- give precise values not available in figure
- complement the information in table
- results section is about what data 'show'(the basic finding); discussion section is about what data 'mean'(interpretation of finding)
- verb tense:
- past tense for completed action(experiment, find..
- present tense: assertions that continue to be true(the table show/believe/suggest..)
- use active voice
- summarize what the data show:
- method
- give a clear overview of what was done
- give enough information to replicate the study
- break into subsection
- cite commonly used method
- display in a flow diagram or table
- who, what, when, where, how, why of the paper
- who maintain the records?(data)
- what method was used
- when was it done
- where were the records kept
- material part: data that recreation will need
- be creative
- verb tense:
- report methods in past tense: we measured
- present tense to describe how data are presented
- introduction
- three paragraphs long(recommend range: 2~5)
- should shpae the whole introduction around the specific research question/hypothesis
- cone structure of introduction
- background, known knoledge
- knowledge gap, unknown information: what's the flaws of present methods
- hypothesis, question, purpose statement:
- approach, proposed solution: how it fills the gap
- keep each paragraph short
- write for a GENERAL audience: clear, concise, non-technical
- step by step: known -> unknown -> our hypothesis (reviewers will scan the introduction to find the hypothesis)
- in introduction, give only high level of previous research, broadly with their problems
- discussion
- give you the most freedom, most challenging to write
- structure: invert the cone:
- answer the question asked in the end of introduction
- support your conclusion with your data and others' data(how your results fit into context of the literature)
- defend your conclusion(anticipate criticism and against them)
- give the big-picture take-home message: impart what your results mean and why people should care(implication)
- a detailed template:
- key finding: we found that .., then explain what data mean, state if the findings are novel
- key secondary findings: similar pattern
- context:give possible mechanism, compare with others result, discuss how my finding support/challenge paradigm,
- strength and limitation: anticipate readers question-> explain why results are robust
- whats next: (future study) recommended confirmatory studies('need to be confirmed'), point out unanswered question
- "so what", implication,speculate, recommend: give big picture implications of biasic science finding, why people should care
- (strong conclusion: give a final take-home message)
- discuss based on your data, dont travel too far away from your data
- a good weakness is a mark of good paper: acknowledge the critical limitation
- make take-home message clear and consistent(with the data)
- verb tense:
- past: study details, results, analyses, backgorund research
- present: data suggest
- abstract:
- overview of the main story
- give highlight from each section of paper
- limited length(100~300 words typically)
- stand on its own
- structure:
- background: one sentence. give context
- question/aim/hypothesis: we hypothesis/ask.. (restate the introduction question)
- experiment: quick summary of key materials and method
- results: key results found, minimal raw data(prefer summary)
- conclusion: the answer to the question asked/take-home message
- implication, recommendation
Section 6: ethical issues
- plagiarism
- you must understand the material well to put it in your own words
- work from your memory, never start with someone else's text
- mimic the original author's sentence structure or re-arrange the words is still plagiarism
- use google to detect plagiarism
- self-plgairism: recycle own writing in different paper as new result
- authorship:
- think about authorship before you write
- take the responsibility of its content
- acknowledgement: funding source, contributors who didnot get authorship
- submission process
- identify a journal for submission(before writing)
- follow the online instruction for authors for writing and format
- submit manuscript online
- get results
- resubmit: resubmit with cover letter addresses the critiques point by point
- peer review:
1.