Because
of the literature explosion, papers more skimmed than read. Skimming involves
reading the abstract, and looking at the figures and figure captions. Therefore,
you should construct your paper so that it can be understood by skimming,
i.e., the conclusions, as written in your abstract, can be understood by
study of the figures and captions.The
text fills out the details more fully for the more interested reader.
Be
explicit.Use numbers where appropriate.
Answers
to these questions should be found in the abstract:
(1)What
did you do?
(2)Why
did you do it?What question were
you trying to answer?
(3)How
did you do it?State methods.
(4)What
did you learn? State major results.
(5)Why
does it matter? Point out at least one significant implication.
Page
#
List
of Figures
List
of Tables
Introduction
subheads
...?
Conclusions
Recommendations
Acknowledgments
References
Appendices
(3)researchers
working on the same interval of geologic time elsewhere in the world?
(4)all
other researchers using the same technique you have used
(5)if
your study encompasses an active process, did you include researchers working
on the same process in the ancient record?
(6)conversely,
if your study is based on the rock record, did you include people studying
modem analogs?
(7)people
writing a synthesis paper on important new developments in your field?
(8)are
there people applying earth science to societal problems (i.e. earthquake
hazard reduction, climate warming) that will try to understand your paper?
(9)did
you include potential reviewers of your ms. or your thesis committee?
What
else belongs in the introductory section(s) of your paper?
(1)A
statement of the goal of the paper: why the study was undertaken, or why
the paper was written.Do not repeat
the abstract.
(2)Sufficient
background information to allow the reader to understand the context and
significance of the question you are trying to address.
(3)Proper
acknowledgement of the previous work on which you are building.Sufficient
references such that a reader could, by going to the library, achieve a
sophisticated understanding of the context and significance of the question
you are addressing.
(4)Explain
the scope of your work, what will and will not be included
(5)A
verbal "road map" or verbal "table of contents" guiding the reader to what
lies ahead.
(6)Is
it obvious where introductory material (“old stuff”) ends and “new stuff”
(your contribution) begins?
Remember
that this is not a review paper.We
are looking for original work and interpretation/analysis by you.
Break
up the section into logical segments by using subheads.
(3)Description
of your materials, procedure, theory
(4)Calculations,
technique, procedure, equipment, and calibration plots
(5)Detail
limitations, assumptions, and range of validity
Could one accurately replicate the study (for example, all of the optional and adjustable parameters on any sensors or instruments that were used to acquire the data)?
Could
another researcher accurately find and reoccupy the sampling stations or
track lines?
Is
there enough information provided about any instruments used so that a
functionally equivalent instrument could be used to repeat the experiment?
If
the data is in the public domain, could another researcher lay his or her
hands on the identical data set?
Could
one replicate any laboratory analyses that were used?
Could
one replicate any statistical analyses?
Could
another researcher approximately replicate the key algorithms of any computer
software?
Citations
in this section should be limited to data sources and references of where
to find more complete descriptions of procedures.
Do
not include descriptions of results.
(2)Don't
overlay interpretation on top of data in figures.
(3)Careful
use of phrases such as "We infer that "
(4)Consider
intermediate interpretation sections.
(5)Don’t
worry if “results” seem short.
Why?
(1)Easier
for your reader to absorb, frequent shifts of mental mode not required.
(2)Ensures
that your work will endure in spite of shifting paradigms.
Do
not interpret results - save that for the discussion,
Lay
out the case as for a jury.Present
sufficient details so that others can draw their own inferences and construct
their own explanations.
Use
S.I. units (m, s, kg, W, etc.) throughout the thesis
Break
up your results into logical segments by using subheads
a.refer
to spatial and temporal variations
(2)relationships,
trends and generalizations among the results
(3)exceptions
to these patterns or generalizations
(4)likely
causes (mechanisms) underlying these patterns resulting predictions
(5)agreement
or disagreement with previous work
(6)interpret
results in terms of background laid out in the introduction – what is the
relationship of the present results to the original question?
(7)implication
of the present results for other unanswered questions in earth sciences
(8)multiple
hypotheses: There are usually a multiple of possible explanations for results.
Be careful to consider all of these rather than simply pushing your favorite
one. If you can eliminate all but one, that is great, but often that is
not possible with the data in hand. In that case you should give even treatment
to the remaining possibilities, and try to indicate ways in which future
work may lead to their discrimination.
(9)avoid
bandwagons: A special case of the above. Avoid jumping a currently fashionable
point of view unless your results really do strongly support them.
(10)things
we now know or understand that we didn't know or understand before the
present work
(11)include
the evidence or line of reasoning supporting each conclusion
(12)significance
of the present results: why should we care?
This
section should be rich in references to similar work and background needed
to interpret results.However, interpretation/discussion
section(s) are often too long and verbose.Is
there material that does not contribute to one of the elements listed above?
If so, this may be material that you will want to consider deleting or
moving.
Break
up the section into logical segments by using subheads.
Include
the broader implications of your results.
Do
not repeat word for word the abstract, introduction or discussion.
(2)direct
quotes without quotation marks, with attribution
(3)concepts/ideas
without attribution
(4)concepts/ideas
with sloppy attribution
(5)omitting
or fabricating data or results
Check
references carefully and reread reference works prior to publication.The
first time you read something, you will consciously remember some things,
but may subconsciously take in other aspects.It
is important to cross check your conscious memory against your citations.
See
also:
D.
Kennedy, 1985, On Academic Authorship
Sigma
Xi, 1984, Honor in Science
Yale
University pamphlet on plagiarism
(3)financially
Cite
single-author references by the surname of the author (followed by date
of the publication in parenthesis)
...
according to Hays (1994)
...
population growth is one of the greatest environmental concerns (Hays,
1994). Cite double-author references by the surnames of both authors (followed
by date of the publication in parenthesis)
e.g.
Simpson and Hays (1994)
Cite
more than double-author references by the surname of the first author followed
by et al. and then the date of the publication
e.g.
Pfirman, Simpson and Hays would be:
Pfirman
et al. (1994)
Do
not use footnotes
List
all references cited in the text in alphabetical order using the following
format for different types of material:
Hunt,
S. (1966) Carbohydrate and amino acid composition of the egg capsules of
the whelk. Nature, 210, 436-437.
National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (1997) Commonly asked questions
about ozone.http://www.noaa.gov/public-affairs/grounders/ozo1.html,
9/27/97.
Pfirman, S.L., M. Stute, H.J. Simpson, and J. Hays (1996) Undergraduate research at Barnard and Columbia, Journal of Research, 11, 213-214.
Pechenik,
J.A. (1987) A short guide to writing about biology. Harper Collins Publishers,
New York, 194pp.
Pitelka,
D.R., and F.M. Child (1964) Review of ciliary structure and function. In:
Biochemistry and Physiology of Protozoa, Vol. 3 (S.H. Hutner, editor),
Academic Press, New York, 131-198.
Sambrotto,
R. (1997) lecture notes, Environmental Data Analysis, Barnard College,
Oct 2, 1997.
Stute,
M., J.F. Clark, P. Schlosser, W.S. Broecker, and G. Bonani (1995) A high
altitude continental paleotemperature record derived from noble gases dissolved
in groundwater from the San Juan Basin, New Mexico. Quat. Res., 43, 209-220.
It
is acceptable to put the initials of the individual authors behind their
last names, e.g. Pfirman, S.L., Stute, M., Simpson, H.J., and Hays, J (1996)
Undergraduate research at ......
Calculations
(where more than 1-2 pages)
You
may include a key article as appendix
If
you consulted a large number of references but did not cite all of them,
you might want to include a list of additional resource material, etc.
List
of equipment used for an experiment or details of complicated procedures
Figures
and tables, including captions, should be embedded in the text and not
in an appendix, unless they are more than 1-2 pages and are not critical
to your argument
Figures
and Tables
The
actual figures and tables should be embedded/inserted in the text, generally
on the page following the page where the figure/table is first cited in
the text.
All
figures and tables should be numbered and cited consecutively in the text
as figure 1, table 1 etc.
Include
a caption for each figure and table, citing how it was constructed (reference
citations, data sources, etc.) and highlighting the key findings.
Include
an index figure (map) showing and naming all locations discussed in paper
You are encouraged to make your own figures, including cartoons, schematics or sketches that illustrate the processes that you discuss.
Examine your figures with these questions in mind:
(1)Is
the figure self-explanatory?
(2)Are
your axes labeled and are the units indicated?
(3)Show
the uncertainty in your data with error bars.
(4)If
the data are fit by a curve, indicate the goodness of fit.
(5)Could
chart junk be eliminated?
(6)Could
non-data ink be eliminated?
(7)Could
redundant data ink be eliminated?
(8)Could
data density be increased by eliminating non-data bearing space?
(9)Is
this a sparse data set that could better be expressed as a table?
(10)Does
the figure distort the data in any way?
(11)Is
the data presented in context?
(12)Does
the figure caption guide the reader's eye to the "take-home lesson" of
the figure?
Figures
should be oriented vertically, in portrait mode, wherever possible.If
you must orient them horizontally, in landscape mode, orient them so that
you can read them from the right, not from the left, where the binding
will be.
(1)the
data support the textual statement,
(2)the
data contradict the textual statement,
(3)the
data are insufficient to prove or refute the textual statement,
(4)the
data may support the textual statement, but are not presented in such a
way that you can be sure you are seeing the same phenomenon in the data
that the author claims to have seen.
Editing
Your Thesis
Even
a rough draft should be edited.
(4)check
your grammar: punctuation, sentence structure, subj.-verb agreement (plural
or singular), tense consistency, etc.
(5)give
it to others to read and comment
(4)Do
not use double negatives
(5)Do
not use dangling participles (i.e. phrases with an "ing" verb, in sentences
where the agent performing the action of the "ing" verb is not specified:
" After standing in boiling water for two hours, examine the flask.").
(6)Make
sure that the antecedent for every pronoun (it, these, those, that, this,
one) is crystal clear. If in doubt, use the noun rather than the pronoun,
even if the resulting sentence seems a little bit redundant.
(7)Ensure
that subject and verb agree in number (singular versus plural).
(8)Be
especially careful with compound subjects.Be
especially careful with subject/verb agreement within clauses
(9)Avoid
qualitative adjectives when describing concepts that are quantifiable ("The
water is deep." "Plate convergence is fast." "Our algorithm is better.")
Instead, quantify. ("Water depths exceed 5km")
(10)Avoid
noun strings ("acoustic noise source location technique")
(1)Use
tables for repetitive information.
(2)Include
only sufficient background material to permit the reader to understand
your story, not every paper ever written on the subject.
(3)Use
figure captions effectively.
(4)Don't
describe the contents of the figures and/or tables in the text item-by-item.Instead,
use the text to point out the most significant patterns, items or trends
in the figures and tables-
(5)Delete
"observations" or "results" that are mentioned in the text for which you
have not shown data.
(6)Delete
"conclusions" that are not directly supported by your observations or results.
(7)Delete
"interpretation" or "discussion" sections that are inconclusive.
(8)Delete
"interpretation" or "discussion" sections that are only peripherally related
to your new results or observations.
(9)Scrutinize
adjectives! adverbs and prepositional phrases.
Although
it varies considerably from project to project, average thesis length is
about 40 pages of text plus figures.This
total page count includes all your text as well as the list of references,
but it does not include any appendices. These generalizations should not
be taken too seriously, especially if you are working on a labor-intensive
lab project.If you have any questions
about whether your project is of sufficient scope, consult one of us early
on.
(3)the
main sections are: background to the argument (intro); describing the information
to be used in the argument, and making points about them (observations),
connecting the points regarding the info (analysis), summing up (conclusions).
(4)outline
the main elements: sections, and subsections
(5)begin
writing, choosing options in the following hierarchy - paragraphs, sentences,
and words.
Here
is another approach.
(1)Write
up a preliminary version of the background section first. This will serve
as the basis for the introduction in your final paper.
(2)As
you collect data, write up the methods section. It is much easier to do
this right after you have collected the data. Be sure to include a description
of the research equipment and relevant calibration plots.
(3)When
you have some data, start making plots and tables of the data. These will
help you to visualize the data and to see gaps in your data collection.
If time permits, you should go back and fill in the gaps. You are finished
when you have a set of plots that show a definite trend (or lack of a trend).
Be sure to make adequate statistical tests of your results.
(4)Once
you have a complete set of plots and statistical tests, arrange the plots
and tables in a logical order. Write figure captions for the plots and
tables. As much as possible, the captions should stand alone in explaining
the plots and tables.Many scientists
read only the abstract, figures, figure captions, tables, table captions,
and conclusions of a paper. Be sure that your figures, tables and captions
are well labeled and well documented.
(5)Once
your plots and tables are complete, write the results section. Writing
this section requires extreme discipline. You must describe your results,
but you must NOT interpret them. (If good ideas occur to you at this time,
save them at the bottom of the page for the discussion section.) Be factual
and orderly in this section, but try not to be too dry.
(6)Once
you have written the results section, you can move on to the discussion
section. This is usually fun to write, because now you can talk about your
ideas about the data. If you can come up with a good cartoon/schematic
showing your ideas, do so. Many papers are cited in the literature because
they have a good cartoon that subsequent authors would like to use or modify.
(7)In
writing the discussion session, be sure to adequately discuss the work
of other authors who collected data on the same or related scientific questions.
Be sure to discuss how their work is relevant to your work. If there were
flaws in their methodology, this is the place to discuss it.
(8)After
you have discussed the data, you can write the conclusions section. In
this section, you take the ideas that were mentioned in the discussion
section and try to come to some closure. If some hypothesis can be ruled
out as a result of your work, say so. If more work is needed for a definitive
answer, say that.
(9)The
final section in the paper is a recommendation section. This is really
the end of the conclusion section in a scientific paper. Make recommendations
for further research or policy actions in this section. If you can make
predictions about what will be found if X is true, then do so. You will
get credit from later researchers for this.
(10)After
you have finished the recommendation section, look back at your original
introduction. Your introduction should set the stage for the conclusions
of the paper by laying out the ideas that you will test in the paper. Now
that you know where the paper is leading, you will probably need to rewrite
the introduction.
(11)You
must write your abstract last.
Double-spaced
using 12-point font
1-inch
margins
Double-sided
saves paper
Include
page numbers
(4)Consider
including a location map, either as a separate figure or as an inset to
another figure. If your paper involves stratigraphy, consider including
a summary stratigraphic column--in effect, a location map in time.
(5)Use
shorter sentences. Avoid nested clauses or phrases.
(6)Make
sure that the antecedent for every pronoun is clear.
(7)In
some languages, a pronoun used as the subject of a sentence is required
to refer to the subject of the previous sentence. In other languages, a
pronoun is required to refer to the most recently occurring noun. In English,
either usage is permitted, which leaves ample room for confusion.
(8)Use
words that have cognates in other languages; usually these are Latin-derived
words.
(9)Many
givers of advice on writing suggest that you favor short, simple, Anglo-Saxon
words over fancier words derived from Latin ("speed" vs. “velocity"; “height"
vs. "altitude"). I disagree with this advice for writing intended for an
international audience, because the Latinate English words have cognates
in many European languages.
(10)Avoid
idioms. Favor usages that can be looked up in an ordinary dictionary.
(11)"Take
the beaker out of the oven immediately..." rather than "Take the beaker
out of the oven right away..."
(12)Many
English words have many different meanings. Avoid using words in their
more obscure meanings.Most English
dictionaries list the multiple meanings of words in order from most common
to least common. Try to stick with the first few meanings. The less common
meanings may not occur in the translation dictionary that your reader may
be using.
(13)Avoid
using nouns as adjectives.For example:
"mudslide advisory panel." This construction is not allowed in some languages;
in other languages the ending of the noun is changed to indicate that it
is being used as an adjective.
(14)Avoid
words that sound similar in different languages but have subtly different
meanings: "actual", "actuel" (French and German): French and German word
means "of the present time, contemporary ." The primary meaning of the
English word is "existing in reality; not merely possible, but real. "
Start
writing as soon as possible, background, methods, results, discussion/interpretations
... as you write you will get ideas about what you need to do and if you
wait too long to write things up, you'll not have time to finish.