K-CONNEX, Kobe University 14 March 2016 Trevor Lane, PhD Eri Kinoshita, PhD Author Success Workshop: Effectively Communicating Your Research
K-CONNEX, Kobe University
14 March 2016
Trevor Lane, PhD Eri Kinoshita, PhD
Author Success Workshop: Effectively Communicating Your Research
S
Be an effective communicator
Your goal is not only to publish, but also to be widely read and highly cited
Develop professional writing skills
Write your ideas clearly
Logically present your research
Section 1
Develop professional writing skills
Skills needed on the path to publication success
Preparation
Journal Selection
Writing
Submission
Peer Review
Publication Success
• Training in reading papers, ethics, writing, presenting
• Expert Scientific Review
• Expert Scientific Review
• Journal Selection & submission strategy
• Training in ethics, writing, presenting
• Revising • Editing • Reformatting
• Training in ethics, writing
• Editing • Abstract
Development • Cover Letter
Development • Reviewer
Recommendation
• Training in navigating peer review
• Review Editing • Point-by-point
checking • Response
Letter Development
• Reformatting
• Press release, news writing
• Media & presentation training
• Training for early career researchers
• Training in writing grant proposals
• Grant proposal editing
Professional writing skills
Start with your illustrations
Where to start?
Your findings form the basis of your manuscript
First step: logically organize your display items
Logic, then language
Figure 1
Figure 2
Table 1
Figure 3
Logical flow (Chronology, Most to least
important, General to
specific, Whole+parts)
Is anything missing?
? Additional analyses?
Professional writing skills Prepare an outline
I. Introduction A. General background B. Related studies C. Problems in the field D. Aims
II. Methods A. Subjects/Samples/Materials B. General methods C. Specific methods D. Statistical analyses
III. Results A. Key points about Figure 1 B. Key points about Table 1 C. Key points about Figure 2 D. Key points about Figure 3 E. Key points about Figure 4
IV. Discussion A. Major conclusion B. Key findings that support conclusion C. Relevance to published studies D. Limitations E. Unexpected results F. Implications G. Future directions
Write key ideas in bullet points, as IMRaD (=Introduction, Methods, Results and Discussion)
No need for full sentences Draft title/abstract; draft article by
IMRaD section Get feedback & revise each section Revise content/logic before language Get help: presubmission peer review
& editing by a native English speaker
When using information from other articles: Paraphrase with
citations!
Professional writing skills Manuscript structure
How does your study contribute to your field?
What did you find?
What did you do?
Why did you do the study?
Title/Abstract
Introduction
Methods
Results
Discussion
Professional writing skills
Title/Abstract
Introduction
Methods
Results
Discussion
Title/Abstract
Methods
Results
Discussion
Introduction
Abstract /Title
write
The ‘write’ order
Professional writing skills
1. You deserve the funding, but the study design is not perfect.
Which sentence suggests that you
will get funding?
2. The study design is not perfect, but you deserve the funding.
Academic English writing style
Professional writing skills
The study design is not perfect, but you deserve the
funding. The grant will be awarded in two stages.
Stress position
Topic position
The topic position introduces the idea of the current sentence
Readers focus at the end of the sentence to determine what is important.
The stress position can also introduce the topic of the next sentence
Academic English writing style
Professional writing skills
Almost all participants indicated a high level of satisfaction with the content, sequence and relevance of the ICT professional development program they attended. Only a few teachers reported that the duration of the professional development program was too short. However, the majority of the teachers reported that they developed an understanding of what TPACK is, and the way technology can enhance teaching and learning of difficult science concepts through the collaborative design of technology-enhanced science lessons in teams. “I developed an understanding of how TPACK can be applied in the design and teaching of a technology-enhanced lesson” said one of the pre-service teachers. A teacher from School C said if it was not the professional development he attended, he would not know how to use technology in teaching.
The pre-service teachers had the opportunity to further develop learning about technology integration in teaching after the professional development program had finished. They were invited to use their TPACK knowledge in workshops organized by the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training…
Topic sentence
Stress sentence Topic sentence
Supporting sentences
Academic English writing style
Source: Kafyulilo et al. Educ Inf Technol. 5 May 2015; DOI 10.1007/s10639-015-9398-0
Professional writing skills
Academic English writing style
Logical connectors
Sequential
Causal
Adversative Although, Even though, Whereas, However, In contrast, Despite (+noun or verb -ing),…
Because (of), To (+verb), Owing to, So that, Therefore, Thus, Hence, Consequently,…
Until, After, Before, While, Since, When, Then, Next, First/Second/Third, Finally,…
Conditional If, Even if, Unless, Whether (or not), Except, Provided that, Until, Without, Otherwise,…
Professional writing skills
A is 4 times larger than B A is 4-fold larger than B A is 4 times as large as B
B is 4 times smaller than A
B is 75% smaller than A; B is 25% the size of A
A B
Write logical sentences
Professional writing skills
A is 4 times larger than B A is 4-fold larger than B A is 4 times as large as B
B is 4 times smaller than A
B is 75% smaller than A; B is 25% the size of A
A B
Comparing data, Method–Purpose, Condition–Effect, Reason–Result, Cause–Effect, Contrast, Similarity, Sequence, Addition, Concession, Exemplification
Write logical sentences
Professional writing skills
Keep it simple!
Use short sentences 15–20 words; one idea per sentence
Prefer simpler/shorter words
Use active voice Simpler, more direct, and easier to read
Most writing style guides and journals prefer it… “Nature journals prefer authors to write in the active voice”
www.nature.com/authors/author_resources/how_write.html
Modern scientific writing
Professional writing skills Use correct verb tense
Present simple
Present perfect
Past simple
Stating an accepted fact or current implications
Referring to past studies that are still relevant
Reporting an account of what you did/showed
Introduction Discussion
Introduction Discussion
Methods Results
“Graphene is a promising material for...” “Our findings have implications for…”
“Positivity has been reported to increase...” “In this study, we have shown that…”
“We examined the strength of concrete samples…” “Drug X prevented tumor growth...”
Professional writing skills
Correct verb tense – Case study
“Several pharmacophoric models for synthesis were
described.”
Introduction
“Several pharmacophoric models for synthesis have been described.”
Present perfect; present perfect passive: “So far”, Experience, News/announcing, Change topic/new paragraph
“We have taken the powder XRD patterns of…”
Results
“We measured the powder XRD patterns of…”
Professional writing skills
“This result suggested that these peaks…”
Discussion
“This result suggests that these peaks…”
“These Raman spectroscopy results confirmed that…”
“These Raman spectroscopy results confirm that…”
Signal words: Suggest, demonstrate, confirm, support
Correct verb tense – Case study
Professional writing skills After the first draft….
Format
manuscript
• Use journal template/style • Re-check word limits • Format references
Revise manuscript
• Get input from colleagues • Check Figures/Tables • Check consistency/logical
flow between sections • Edit for clarity, conciseness,
and accuracy • Have a rest! Then proofread
Please see Activity 1 in your Workbook
Logical writing
Write effectively 1
Section 2
Customer Service Effective writing
Nature’s guide to authors:
Nature is an international journal covering all the sciences. Contributions should therefore be written clearly and simply so that they are accessible to readers in other disciplines and to readers for whom English is not their first language.
www.nature.com/nature/authors/gta/index.html#a4
“I should use complex words to make my writing more impressive.”
Customer Service Effective writing
To ascertain the efficaciousness of the optional language program, we interrogated the optional
language program participants.
To determine the success of the program, we questioned the participants.
Improve readability
Customer Service Effective writing Avoid complex words
Preferred Enough Clear Determine Begin Try Very Size Keep Enough End Use
Avoid Adequate Apparent Ascertain Commence Endeavor Exceedingly Magnitude* Retain Sufficient Terminate* Utilization *OK in certain fields (magnitude of earthquakes, to terminate gene expression)
Customer Service Effective writing Delete unnecessary words
“A number of studies have shown that the charged group...”
“...as described in our previous study.”
“...at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min.”
“As a matter of fact, such a low-temperature reaction…”
“That is another reason why, we believe…”
“It is well known that most of the intense diffraction peaks...” “It is well known that Most of the intense diffraction peaks...”
“As a matter of fact, such a This low-temperature reaction…”
“A number of studies have shown that The charged group...”
“That is thus another reason why Therefore, we believe…”
“...as described previously in our previous study.”
“...at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min.”
Customer Service Effective writing Delete unnecessary words
Avoid At a concentration of 2 g/L At a temperature of 37C In order to In the first place Four in number Green color Subsequent to Prior to Future plans; past history
Prefer At 2 g/L At 37C To First Four Green After Before Plans; history
Customer Service Effective writing Active voice
Sentences written in the active voice are:
simple direct clear easy to read
The mechanisms regulating cement rigidity were investigated.
Passive
We investigated the mechanisms regulating cement rigidity.
Active
Customer Service Effective writing Active voice is preferred
“Use the active voice when it is less wordy and more direct than the passive”.
“Use the active voice rather than the passive voice…”.
“As a matter of style, passive voice is typically, but not always, inferior to active voice”.
“In general, authors should use the active voice…”
ACS Style Guide
APA Style
Chicago Style Guide
AMA Style
“Use active voice. The use of active rather than passive voice produces clearer, more concise writing”
SPE Style
“Wherever possible, use active verbs that demonstrate what is being done and who is doing it…”
ASCE Style
“Use active voice by default; research shows readers comprehend it more quickly than passive voice…”
IEEE
Customer Service Effective writing Avoid reader confusion
Is this sentence in the active or passive voice?
In this study, a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode for molecular sensing applications was synthesized using electrospray deposition.
Customer Service Effective writing Avoid reader confusion
Is this sentence in the active or passive voice?
In this study, a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode for molecular sensing applications was synthesized using electrospray deposition.
Customer Service Effective writing
In this study, a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode for molecular sensing applications was synthesized using electrospray deposition.
Tunn et al. developed electrospray methods to enhance sensitivity.3
Avoid reader confusion
Part of the Introduction
Customer Service Effective writing
In this study, a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode for molecular sensing applications was synthesized using electrospray deposition.
Tunn et al. developed electrospray methods to enhance sensitivity.3
Avoid reader confusion
Part of the Introduction
Who did the work in this study?
The author ? Tunn et al. ?
Customer Service Effective writing
Tunn et al. developed electrospray methods to enhance sensitivity.3
Avoid reader confusion
Part of the Introduction
In this study, we synthesized a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode for molecular sensing applications by using electrospray deposition.
/ In this study, we used electrospray deposition to synthesize a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode for molecular sensing applications.
Customer Service Effective writing Avoid reader confusion
Fix stacked and misplaced modifiers
The final analyzed sample only appeared blue temporarily because we had added the especially
prepared reagent that we were testing slowly.
The final sample that we analyzed appeared blue only temporarily, because we had slowly added the
test reagent.
Customer Service Effective writing
30 words
Economists considered Tanaka Industries, a large Japanese trading corporation founded in 1916 outside of Nagoya by Ichiro Tanaka, to be a model in the development of modern employee conditions worldwide.
Use short sentences
Customer Service Effective writing
Economists considered Tanaka Industries to be a model in the development of modern employee conditions worldwide. This large Japanese trading corporation was founded in 1916 outside of Nagoya by Ichiro Tanaka.
16 words
15 words
One idea per sentence
Use short sentences
Customer Service Effective writing
Readers expect…
verbs to closely follow their subjects heavy ends (not starts) of clauses
Subject
The new theory that the researchers formulated after examining all the pseudo-colored images contradicted current thinking about neutrinos.
The researchers formulated a new theory after examining all the pseudo-colored images. This theory contradicted current thinking about neutrinos.
Verb
Write clear sentences
Customer Service Effective writing
Avoid nominalizations
Use strong verbs instead of converting a verb into a noun
Estimate Estimation
Decide Decision
Assess Assessment
We made a/an… We conducted a/an…
Extra, weak verb
We decided… Clear, short, and direct
Use strong verbs
Customer Service Effective writing Clarify the subject
“Titania (TiO2) has been extensively investigated because of its practical prosperities for a diverse range of applications including pigments, photocatalysts, solar cells... It has three primary polymorphs in nature…”
“Titania (TiO2) has been extensively investigated because of its practical prosperities for a diverse range of applications including pigments, photocatalysts, solar cells... TiO2 has three primary polymorphs in nature…”
?
Customer Service Effective writing
Respectively is used for corresponding list items
The two values were 143 and 21, respectively.
The values for groups A and B were 143 and 21, respectively.
The two values were 143 and 21.
Avoid mistakes 1
Customer Service Effective writing
Compared with is for saying how things are different
The toxicity of the new scaffold was reduced
compared to the previous scaffold.
The toxicity of the new scaffold was reduced compared with that of the previous scaffold.
The toxicity of the new scaffold was lower than that of the previous scaffold.
Avoid mistakes 2
Customer Service Effective writing Avoid mistakes 3
Use parallel terms
The values were higher in group 1 than for group 2.
The values were higher in group 1 than in group 2. The values were higher for group 1 than for group 2.
Writing involves many skills: planning, preparing, drafting, and you need to check carefully.
Writing involves many skills: planning, preparing, drafting, and careful checking.
Customer Service Effective writing
Don’t use numbers to start a sentence
506 samples were prepared.
We prepared 506 samples. / In this study, 506 samples were prepared.
Five hundred and six samples were prepared.
Avoid mistakes 4
Customer Service Effective writing
Don’t use new words; use “that” for defining terms
Some of the data from the last 2 years, which we
inputted into the analysis, impacted on the overall calculation.
Some of the data from the past 2 years that we entered into the analysis affected the overall
calculation.
Avoid mistakes 5
Please see Activity 2 in your Workbook
Activity 2: Effective Writing
Methods, Results, and Display Items
Section 3
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Methods/Experimental
How the study was done
• General methods • Specific techniques – Discuss controls
• Quantification methods • Final models/equations • Statistical tests
What/who was studied
• Samples or participants • Materials/databases
– Where purchased
How data were analyzed
Consult a statistician!
What did you do?
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
Established techniques
• Cite previously published studies • Briefly state modifications • Use flow chart/table if needed
• Explain purposes; justify choices • Give enough detail for reproducibility • Use Supplementary Information
Organization • Arrange in (titled) subsections • Keep parallel to the display items • Use topic sentences
New techniques
Methods/Experimental
Check: “…using a design we proposed previously / previously proposed by some of us”; “…using a previously proposed design”
Methods might be at end, or brief+online, or brief+legends
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Flow of methods
A mixture of PVA and water (10 mL, 1:1 v/v ratio) was combined with titanium and niobium powder (Ti:Ni 4:1, 2 g) to form a mixed paste. The paste was dried overnight at 25°C to form a dry body, which was heated at 450°C for 8 h to give the implant.
The PVA and water were mixed to form a PVA solution. The PVA solution and titanium and niobium powder were mixed to form a mixed paste. The mixed paste was dried overnight at 25°C to form a dry body. The dry body was heated at 450°C for 8 h to give the implant.
Avoid describing a single method in each sentence
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Results
1. Initial observation 2. Characterization 3. Application
Logical presentation
What did you find?
Example:
1. New method of assessing expertise of people who share knowledge online
2. Comparison with existing methods
3. Case study, comparing simulation with known scores
Modified from: Shen and Kwak. ICT Express. 2015;1:22–25 .
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
1. Initial observation/synthesis 2. Characterization/development 3. Application
Each (titled) subsection corresponds to one figure/method
What you found, not what it means; refer to each figure!
Use Supplementary Information Data accessibility
Logical presentation
Subsections
Factual description
What did you find?
Results
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Combined Methods–Results
Method Results
Figure 1
Method Results
Figure 2
Method Results
Figure 3
Method Results
Figure 4
Initial observation
Logical presentation
Characterization
Application
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
Treatment A reduced soil lead levels by 32.7% and increased soil pH by 12.3%. Treatment B reduced soil lead levels by 22.3% and increased soil pH by 15.6%. Treatment C reduced soil lead levels by 38.1% and increased soil pH by 6.9%.
Describe relationships among your results
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
Treatment C reduced soil lead levels (38.1%) more effectively than treatments A (32.7%) and B (22.3%). However, treatment B increased soil pH levels (15.6%) more effectively than treatments A (12.3%) and C (6.9%).
Describe relationships among your results
Note: Don’t use “significantly” without relevant statistics!
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
Present large amount of data quickly and efficiently
Keep it simple: use separate panels if necessary
Must be able to stand alone: clear labels and
figure legends
Usually the first thing readers will look at
Figures, graphs & tables
Display items
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
SEM images of Bentheimer sample 1 before and after damage (10 g/L barite). (a) and (b) show the undamaged plug, only quartz crystals can be seen, (c) and (d) show the sample after damage, adhesion between quartz (gray) and barite (white) can be seen, (e) and (f) show the adhesion between barite particles in the damaged plug. The black arrows point towards barite-quartz and barite-barite interfaces.
Figures
Clear figure legend
Al-Yaseri et al. J Petrol Sci Eng. 2015; DOI 10.1016/j.petrol.2015.01.018.
Title of the experiment
Key findings
Clear indicators
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Tables vs. graphs
Type A Type B Type C
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Aluminum
Gold
Figure 1. Efficiency of various solar cell types using aluminum and gold electrodes
Effi
cien
cy (
%)
Which electrode gives a more efficient solar cell?
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Tables vs. graphs
Figure 1. Efficiency of various solar cell types using aluminum and gold electrodes
Type A Type B Type C
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Aluminum
Gold
What is the highest efficiency achieved?
?
Effi
cien
cy (
%)
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Tables vs. graphs
What is the highest efficiency achieved?
Table 1. Efficiency of solar cells using aluminum and gold electrodes
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
Independent variables
Table formatting
Raj et al. PLoS ONE. 2014; 9: doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0106210.
Symbols defined
Dependent variable;
N numbers given
Table 1. Demographic profiled of ever-married women aged 20–24 years for most recent Demographic Health Survey data from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan.
Clear and concise table title
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Line graphs
Zhu et al. Sci Rep. 2013; 3: 3163.
Quantized water transport: Ideal desalination through graphyne-4 membrane
The uniaxial stress-strain curves of graphene sheet (GR), as well as graphyne-1 to graphyne-6, along (a) the reclined chair direction, and (b) zigzag direction.
Dependent variable
Independent variable
Use colors and shapes to differentiate lines
Define abbreviations
Activity 3: Results
Please see Activity 3 in your Workbook
Introductions and Discussions
Section 4
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Introduction
Current state of the field
Background information
Specific aim/approach/contents Aim
Problem in the field
Previous studies
Current study
General
Specific Importance/hypothesis
Worldwide relevance? Broad/specialized?
Recent, International Not too many self-cites
Why is your study needed?
Extra sections afterwards? Background, Related work, Concepts, Theory/Calculation
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Writing the Introduction
The objective of this study was to employ information theory to quantify the amount of information contained in common laboratory tests, the extent of redundancy between consecutive days of sampling, and the redundancy associated with pre-specified pairs of ICU lab tests.
In the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), likely the most data-rich environment in the hospital, enhanced monitoring and frequent testing are common. Repeated bloodwork can lead to patient harm in a number of ways…
Problem in the field
Lee and Maslove. BMC Med Inform Decis Mak. 2015; 15: 59.
Study aims
Your aims must directly address the problem
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
Common mistakes in the Introduction
Ideas are not logically organized
Important topics in the Introduction are not mentioned again in the Results/Discussion
Important topics in the Results/Discussion are not mentioned in the Introduction
Cited studies are not up-to-date
Cited studies are geographically biased
Why study needs to be done?
Keep focused
Write last
<5 years
International
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Discussion
Summary of findings
Relevance
Conclusion
Similarities/differences Unexpected/negative results Limitations (validity, reliability)
Implications
Previous studies
Current study
Future studies
Specific
General
How do you advance your field?
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Combined Results–Discussion
Results Interpretation
Figure 1
Results Interpretation
Figure 2
Results Interpretation
Figure 3
Results Interpretation
Figure 4
Initial observation
Logical presentation
Characterization
Application
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Combined Methods– Results–Discussion
Methods & Results Interpretation
Figure 1
Methods & Results Interpretation
Figure 2
Methods & Results Interpretation
Figure 3
Methods & Results Interpretation
Figure 4
Initial observation
Logical presentation
Characterization
Application
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
Table 2 presents an analysis of vulnerabilities in Cloud Computing. This analysis offers a brief description of the vulnerabilities, and indicates what cloud service models (SPI) can be affected by them. Some of these vulnerabilities are the following:… … Cloud Computing leverages many existing technologies such as web services, web browsers, and virtualization, which contributes to the evolution of cloud environments. Therefore, any vulnerability associated with these technologies also affects the cloud, and it can even have a significant impact. We can conclude that data storage and virtualization are the most critical features, and an attack to them would do the most harm. Attacks to lower layers would have more impact to the other layers.
Introduce display item
Interpretation
Conclusion/ implications
Modified from: Hashizume et al. J Internet Serv Appl. 2013;4:5.
Factual description
Factually describe and interpret your findings 1
Combined Results–Discussion
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
The three classification models show the same level of
performance based on their F1-scores, where the scores all take a
value of 0.85. With the help of the receiver operating characteristic
curves (Figure 5), it is clear to see that all three models performed
quite well for testing data that have high posterior probability. A
posterior probability of a testing data point, A, is estimated by the
classification model as the probability that A will be classified as
positive, denoted as P(+|A). As the probability gets lower, the Naïve
Bayesian classifier model outperforms the Support Vector Machine
classifier model , with a larger area under curve. Hence, in general,
the Random Forest model performs the best.
Describe finding
Interpretation
Conclusion/ implications
Modified from: Hashizume et al. J Internet Serv Appl. 2013;4:5.
Mention display item
Factually describe and interpret your findings 2
Combined Results–Discussion
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
Cloud Computing is a relatively new concept that presents a good number of benefits for its users; however, it also raises some security problems which may slow down its use. Understanding what vulnerabilities exist in Cloud Computing will help organizations to make the shift towards the Cloud…. We have presented security issues for cloud models: IaaS, PaaS, and IaaS, which vary depending on the model. As described in this paper, storage, virtualization, and networks are the biggest security concerns in Cloud Computing....
Re-introduction
Conclusion
Writing the beginning of a long Discussion
State the major conclusion of the study
Problem
Modified from: Hashizume et al. J Internet Serv Appl. 2013;4:5.
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
Modified from: Ketola & Hiltunen. Ecol Evol. 2014; 4: 3901–3908.
Compare your findings with those published by others
Writing the middle of your Discussion
Comparison with previous studies
Current finding
Potential reasons
Our observations suggest that fluctuating growth conditions did not select for generalism at the tested salinity levels. This finding is in contrast to several studies where evidence for an evolved generalism was found to be the consequence of fluctuating environments (Buckling et al. 2006, Ketola et al. 2013, 2014; Condon et al. 2014). One explanation for the lack of expected adaptation in fluctuating environments in the current study could be that our salinity fluctuations were too coarse-grained…
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
Describe limitations and negative results
Why?
Reporting transparency
• Allows complete evaluation of your study • Prevents others from repeating those experiments • Allows others to modify those experiments • Prevents funding agencies from wasting money
Data repositories
Writing the middle of your Discussion
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
Readers use sentence structure to determine emphasis
• Stress position • Main clause vs. subordinate clause • Clause length
Useful in the Discussion Vary emphasis of your interpretations
Contrasting ideas
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Contrasting ideas
Main vs. subordinate clause
Although the study design is not perfect, you deserve funding.
Subordinate Main
Linking word
• Although • Even though • While • Whereas
Subordinate clauses say 2 things:
• Idea may not be important • There is a contrasting idea coming
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Discussing limitations
Although this study was limited by its small sample size, our results demonstrate that people using customizable news aggregation pages give high user experience scores.
Although our results demonstrate that page customization is useful, the study was limited by its small sample size.
Bad news = Subordinate clause at the start
Bad news = Main clause in stress position
“Downtone” bad news = Subordinate clause at start “Boost” good news = LONG main clause in stress position
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
In this paper, we have developed two resource allocation algorithms FAA and PAA under two regimes, as solutions of network utility maximization formulations. We have demonstrated in detail the effects of quality of service parameters and channel conditions on the resource allocation decisions via numerical experiments. In particular, our results indicate that both FAA and PAA will be able to achieve larger improvements when quality of service requirements are heterogeneous as opposed to when channel conditions differ. For future work, we aim to investigate the practical applications and implementation of the algorithms in IEEE 802.11n/ac wireless networks.
Conclusion
Implications
Future directions
What do you want people to remember?
Key findings
Writing the end of your Discussion
Modified from: Memis et al. EURASIP J Wireless Commun Networking. 2015,2015:217.
May be a separate section
May be a “Future work” section
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
Common mistakes in the Discussion
Do not restate your results (or introduce new data)
Perceived relational benefits had a significant positive influence on intra-organizational information sharing in the software companies (γ = 0.232, t = 2.831, p < 0.01). This finding suggests that improving relations between all members of software companies may increase future information sharing.
We found that perceived relational benefits are important in promoting intra-organizational information sharing in software companies. This finding suggests that improving relations between all members of software companies may increase future information sharing.
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
Do not overgeneralize your findings
We found that perceived relational benefits are important in promoting intra-organizational information sharing in software companies. This finding demonstrates that improving relations between all companies will increase future collaboration.
We found that perceived relational benefits are important in promoting intra-organizational information sharing in software companies. This finding suggests that improving relations between all members of software companies may increase future information sharing.
Common mistakes in the Discussion
Hedging: Might, could, may, can, should, would, must, will…; probably, possibly, probable, possible, likely
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure Link your ideas
General background
Aims
Methodology
Results and figures
Summary of findings
Implications for the field
Relevance of findings
Problem in the field
Current state of the field Introduction
Methods
Results
Discussion
Solution
Situation/Problem
Evaluation/Comment
Coverage and Staffing Plan Manuscript
structure
It can be of fundamental importance to intelligence analysts to find out what a person writes and who the physical person behind some pieces of online texts really is.
In this article, we have presented the idea that a user’s timeprint (which can be extracted from the publishing times of a large number of social media services) can be useful for identifying users who make use of multiple aliases.
Problem
Conclusion
Discussion
Introduction
In this article, we explore various time features of online publishing (timeprints) to find out how successfully they can be used for author identification and alias matching.
Objective
Modified from: Johansson et al. Secur Inform. 2015;4:7.
Link your ideas
Activity 4: Manuscript structure
Please see Activity 4 in your Workbook
Attract your readers through titles and
abstracts
Section 5
Attract your readers Title and abstract
First impression of paper: clear/concise/convincing
Importance of your results
Validity of your conclusions
Relevance of your aims
Your title & abstract should attract readers
It sells your work: Readers judge your style & credibility
Often first or only part that is read by readers/reviewers
Attract your readers Title and abstract
Title
Important points
Only main idea/s Accurate, simple Population/model Include keywords Fewer than 20 words Include method/
study type
Avoid
Unneeded words (“A study of”) Sensationalism, journalistic style Complex word order Abbreviations, jargon “New” or “novel”
Attract your readers Title and abstract
Interrogative Want to scale in centralized systems? Think peer-to-peer
Indicative/ Descriptive
Network performance of multiple virtual machine live migration in cloud federations
… + Approach (subtitle)
Teaching cloud computing: A software engineering perspective
Assertive/ Declarative
Health literacy does not narrow the education-based e-health gap / Education-based e-health gap not narrowed by health literacy
Title
Modified from: J Internet Serv Appl; J Med Internet Res; J Syst Software
Attract your readers Structured abstracts
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Results Most important findings
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Usability is a core construct of website evaluation and inherently defined as interactive. Yet, when analysing first impressions of websites, expected usability, i.e., before use, is of interest. Here we investigate to what extent ratings of expected usability are related to (a) experienced usability, i.e., ratings after use, and (b) objective usability measures, i.e., task performance. 57 participants submitted expected usability ratings after the presentation of website screenshots in three viewing-time conditions (50, 500, and 10,000 ms) and after an interactive task (experienced usability). Additionally, objective usability measures (task completion and duration) and subjective aesthetics evaluations were recorded for each website. The results at both the group and individual level show that expected usability ratings are not significantly related either to experienced usability or objective usability measures. Instead, they are highly correlated with aesthetics ratings. Taken together, our results highlight the need for interaction in empirical website usability testing, even when exploring very early usability impressions. In particular, user ratings of expected usability may not be a valid proxy for objective usability or for experienced website usability.
Modified from: Thielsch et al. Peer J Comp Sci. 2015;1:e19.
Attract your readers Unstructured abstracts
Conclusion Taken together, our results highlight the need for interaction in empirical website usability testing, even when exploring very early usability impressions. In particular, user ratings of expected usability may not be a valid proxy for objective usability or for experienced website usability.
Results The results at both the group and individual level show that expected usability ratings are not significantly related either to experienced usability or objective usability measures. Instead, they are highly correlated with aesthetics ratings.
Aim Here we investigate to what extent ratings of expected usability are related to (a) experienced usability, and (b) objective usability measures.
Context Usability is a core construct of website evaluation and inherently defined as interactive. Yet, when analysing first impressions of websites, expected usability, i.e., before use, is of interest.
Implications Modified from: Thielsch et al. Peer J Comp Sci. 2015;1:e19.
Methods 57 participants submitted expected usability ratings after the presentation of website screenshots in three viewing-time conditions (50, 500, and 10,000 ms) and after an interactive task (experienced usability)….
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Attract your readers Specialist abstracts
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Results
Conclusion
Why the study was done
Your objective/hypothesis
Techniques, models
Most important findings
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A model has been developed to predict growth kinetics of the intermetallic phases (IMCs) formed in a reactive diffusion couple between two metals for the case where multiple IMC phases are observed. The model explicitly accounts for the effect of grain boundary diffusion through the IMC layer, and can thus be used to explore the effect of IMC grain size on the thickening of the reaction layer. The model has been applied to the industrially important case of aluminum to magnesium alloy diffusion couples in which several different IMC phases are possible. It is demonstrated that there is a transition from grain boundary-dominated diffusion to lattice-dominated diffusion at a critical grain size, which is different for each IMC phase.
Modified from: Wang et al. Metall Mater Trans A. 2015; 46: 4106–4114.
Specialist abstracts
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Consider your audience
For interdisciplinary audiences, include background and conclusion
Identify journal editor preference
What the journal requires
Specialist abstracts
When should you include background and conclusions?
Attract your readers Graphical abstracts
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Carbon-layer protected cuprous oxide nanowire arrays for efficient water reduction
Zhang et al. ACS Nano. 2013;7:1709–1717.
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Carbon-layer protected cuprous oxide nanowire arrays for efficient water reduction
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Triple Modular Redundancy verification via heuristic netlist analysis
Beltrame. Peer J Comp Sci. 2015;1:e21.
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Carbon-layer protected cuprous oxide nanowire arrays for efficient water reduction
Bullet points in online Table of Contents Help readers quickly identify suitable articles
Identification of dynamic displacements and modal frequencies of a medium-span suspension bridge using multimode GNSS processing
Source: Yu et al. Engineering Structures. 2014;81:432–443.
• We monitored a suspension bridge with global navigation satellite system (GNSS) and accelerometer sensors.
• We monitored bridge dynamic responses using network real-time kinematic technique.
• Multimode adaptive filter – multimode adaptive filtering was proposed to process GNSS data.
• The dynamic displacements of the bridge were accurately derived from GNSS data.
• The modal frequencies of the bridge were accurately identified from GNSS data
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Identify 7–8 keywords (try to use standard terms*)
Use 2 in your title; 5–6 in the keyword list
Use 3 keywords 3–4 times in your abstract
Use keywords in headings when appropriate
Be consistent throughout your paper; include some synonyms
Cite your previous publications when relevant
*Standard terms from PsycINFO, BIOSIS, ChemWeb, ERIC Thesaurus, GeoRef, INSPEC, MeSH, etc
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Activity 5: Titles and abstracts
S
Be an effective communicator
Your goal is not only to publish, but also to be widely read and highly cited
Develop professional writing skills
Write your ideas clearly
Logically present your research
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