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THESIS WRITING
PROF. ABD KARIM ALIAS
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Abd Karim Alias@2010 [[email protected]]
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What is a Thesis?
A written work resulting from
original research, especially one
submitted for higher degree in a
university
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Why write a thesis? Science aims to find pattern, trends,
and structurein the experiment Good scientific writing aims to bring
forward in the text
structure
organization of scientific knowledge
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Whats in thethesis?
Addresses a problem or series
of problems
Describes what was known
about the problem(s)
What you did to solve theproblems
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Whats in thethesis?
What you think the results means
How further progress can bemade
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Structure of a Thesis
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Getting started
Break the thesis into chapters; list the
major sections in each
1. Prepare a thesis outline
2.Discuss with your supervisor
Assemble all the data, tables, figures
Organise them into a sensible sequence
3. Prepare a chapter outline
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Getting started (cont)
Do a section at a time
Start with something easy
4. Write
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Thesis title
Title reflects content of the thesis
Use concise but informative title
Example
Physicochemical and Functional
Properties of Ozone-Oxidized Starch
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Thesis title
Be specific & accurate
Avoid phrases such as A study
of..., An investigation of...
Avoid jargon and acronym
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Chapter 1 - Introduction"The purpose of the Introduction should be
to supply sufficient background
informationto allow the reader to
understand and evaluate the results ofthe present studywithout needing to refer
to previous publications on the topic. The
Introduction should also provide the
rationalefor the present study. Choosereferences carefully to provide the most
salient backgroundrather than an
exhaustive review of the topic." (R.A. DAY)
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Chapter 1 - Introduction
A description of the general
problem followed by a statementof the specific problem and the
motivation for the study
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What to write in the Introduction?
What do we know about the topic? Provide comprehensive & critical review of the
major findings in the area
What we dont know (gap in knowledge) Identifying what the gaps in our current
understanding of the field are, and why it is
important that these gaps be closed
What we are now showing
A clear statement summarizing whats known,
what needs to be learned, and what your paper
aims to accomplishThursday, February 24, 2011
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Writing Good Introduction
The first paragraph should provide a briefbackground in present tense to establish
context, relevance, or nature of the problem,
question, or purpose (what is known) The second paragraph may include the
importance of the problem and unclear issues
(what is un-known)
The last paragraph should state the ratio-nale, hypothesis, main objective, or purpose
(why the study was done).
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Writing Good Introduction
...Alkalisingagentsareimportantinthe
preparationofmanytraditionalstarch-basedfoodproducts. Examplesincludetheuseoflimeinthe
productionoftortillasandkansui(amixtureof
sodiumandpotassiumcarbonate) inthe
preparation
of
Chinese
wheat
noodles
and
waxy
ricedumplings
Start by giving a general background
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Writing Good Introduction
.Despitetheage-oldusageofalkalisingagents,
thereisstillmuchwhichisnotknownconcerning
thee!ectsofthesereagentsonstarchproperties.
Althoughtheabilityofaqueousalkaliininducing
starchswellingiscommonknowledge,mostof
theworkhasbeencentredonNaOHinsystemscontainingrelativelylowstarchconcentrations
(
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Writing Good Introduction
.. Theinfluenceofalkalisingagents(especially
kansui) onthethermalpropertiesofstarcheshasyet
tobestudiedinanygreatdetail. Therefore,the
specificobjectivesofthepresentstudywere:
Todi!erentiatethee!ectsofsodiumcarbonateonthethermalprofilesassociatedwith
gelatinisationofstarch;
Toquantify...
Tocharacterize...
Connecting the problem statement to the objective (reasonfor undertaking the study)
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Abd Karim Alias@2010 [[email protected]]
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Abd Karim Alias@2010 [[email protected]]
a systematicmethod for
identifying, evaluatingand interpretingthework produced by researchers,
scholars and practitioners.
What is literature review?
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Abd Karim Alias@2010 [[email protected]]
What is literature review?
Literature is about telling a
storykind of a chain story whereeach writer starts with a partial story
created previously by others and
expand on itthe existing literature is
the story so far
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Abd Karim Alias@2010 [[email protected]]
Literature review is
an interpretation and synthesis
of published work- Merriam (1988:6)
What is literature review?
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5
Filtering &sortingthe essentials from the irrelevant
Abd Karim Alias@2010 [[email protected]]
See the wood for the trees
Image source: http:// sciencebhakta.wordpress.com
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Abd Karim Alias@2010 [[email protected]]
Skills for digesting the literature
Select, differentiate,
break up
Integrate, combine,formulate, reorganize
Understand, distinguish,
explain
Define, classify, describe
Dissecting data into their constituent part.
Rearranging the elements derivedfrom analysis to identify relationship.
Interpreting & distinguishing betweendifferent types of data , theory &argument to describe the substance of
an idea
Describing the principles, uses, &function of rules, method, etc.
ANALYSIS
SYNTHESIS
COMPREHENSION
KNOWLEDGE
Adapted from Hart, 1998
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Abd Karim Alias@2010 [[email protected]]
Any critical review should incorporate
An assessment of the strengths & weaknesses
of some of the theories
A clear understanding of the topic A citing of all key studies in the subject
territory
A clear indication of how the review linkstoyour research questions
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Abd Karim Alias@2010 [[email protected]]
Any critical review should incorporate
A definition of the boundariesof your
research
A selection & synthesisof existing argumentsto form a new perspective
Through gradual refinement, a clear
demarcationof the research problem
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Abd Karim Alias@2010 [[email protected]]
Scope & length of lit. review
Be selective
State the current state of the theory
How far back?(Masters ~10 years; PhD further back)
Avoid verbosity
Demonstrate ability to synthesise the body ofliterature brief but focused.
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Abd Karim Alias@2010 [[email protected]]
Components of lit. review
Background information
Introduce topic
Describe scope & organization
Review past & present literature
Clarify purpose
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Abd Karim Alias@2010 [[email protected]]
Components of lit. review
Theory
All research has a precedent
Integrate key points & make appropriate
inferences
Be aware of relationship to your topic
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Abd Karim Alias@2010 [[email protected]]
Components of lit. review
Critical appraisal/synthesis
Not jus a list of the work of others
Identify issues highlighted
Highlight differences & similarities
Identify consensus
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Materials & Methods section
Provide detailed methodology used toconduct the experiment
Provide sufficient detailsbut it is notexpected to be written like alaboratory manual!
Describe controlused Highlight critical steps or precaution
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Results section
It contains all of the data to support (orrefute) the hypothesis that was
proposed in the introduction section
It serves to weave a coherent storyand must communicate the findingsto
the reader in a logical, transparent
manner.
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Results section
Data presentation - Graph or Table?
Tables can be used to display
precise numeric values
Figures are better for conveyingtrends or proportions
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Results section
Data presentation
Clear, succinct graphs, charts,
photographs, and drawings canquickly convey the primary findings of
research
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Results section
The figure legends should provide adetailed description of the corresponding
figure
Explain each symbol in the figure (typicallyarrow heads, arrows, asterisks)
Label should be clear (e.g., scale bar onSEM)
Data presentation
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Results section
Tables shoud be self-explanatory
Textual description should summarise
& highlight table content (not to
repeat)
Data presentation
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Results section
Arrange data in logical manner (in table)
Cross-check reference to figures/tables
in the text
Give proper credit to figures/tables takenfrom other sources
All statistical analyses, where appropriate,should be described
Data presentation
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Describe results succintly
...Inhighermoisture(1:4) systems,thepresence
ofNa2CO3appearedtosignificantly(p
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Results section - Common pitfalls
The same data are presented in figure(graph) and table
Data presented in the table are simply
stated (without describing the trend,
making comparison, highlighting
anomaly, etc.)
Unusual trend in data is ignored (nothighlighted)
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Discussion section
To communicate the significance of
your findings
To indicate how they support (orrefute) the experimental hypothesis
To describe how these results
advance the field of study
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How to Discuss?
Have the main point to emerge from the
results been picked for discussion?
Are there links made to the literature?
Is there enough evidence in your data to
attempt at theory building or
reconceptualization of the problems?
How thorough is your discussion &interpretation?
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How to Discuss?
Are there speculations? Are they well
grounded (can be substantiated with your
own data)?
How thorough is your discussion &interpretation?
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Discuss results succintly
. Thesignificantincreasesingelatinisation
transitiontemperaturesinthepresenceofNa2CO3
orNaOH(Table1andTable2) suggestan
enhancementofstarchgranulestability,probably
throughelectrostaticinteractionsbetweenNa+
ionsandhydroxylgroupsofstarch...
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Discuss results succintly
. Thesignificantincreasesingelatinisation
transitiontemperaturesinthepresenceofNa2CO3
orNaOH(Table1andTable2) suggestan
enhancementofstarchgranulestability,probably
throughelectrostaticinteractionsbetweenNa+
ionsandhydroxylgroupsofstarch...
Give supporting evidence/information fromprevious works
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Discuss results succintly
. Onepossibleinterpretationoftheresults
showninFigure...includethepossibilitythat...
...TheresultsshowninFigure5arein
contradictiontotheworkofKarimetal. (2000)...
Thesedatasuggestthat...
Incontrast,Williamsetal. (1998) reportedthat...
Use phrases such as...
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How to write a conclusion?
What is the strongest and most important
statement that you can make from your
observations?
Refer back to problem posed, and describe
the conclusions that you reached from
carrying out this investigationSummarize new observations, new
interpretations, and new insights that have
resulted from the present work.
Should include the followings:
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How to write a conclusion?
What are the contributions of new
knowledge that your thesis makes Does your work suggest any interesting
further avenues?
Are there ways in which your work could
be improved by future researchers?
What are the practical (broader)implications of your work?
Should include the followings:
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How to write a conclusion?
Inconclusion,gaseousozonesuccessfully
oxidizedthethreetypesofstarchesstudied,but
theoxidationmechanismappearedtodi!erfrom
thatofchemicaloxidation. Ozoneoxidation
introducedmorecarbonylgroupsthancarboxyl
groupsinthestarchgranules. Underidentical
conditions,theextentofstarchoxidationvaried
amongdi!erenttypesofstarch...
Example:
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How to write a conclusion?
Usingozoneasanoxidizingagento!ers
severaladvantagesoverhypochlorite. During
ozoneoxidation,starchisoxidizedinadrystateandintheasismoisturecontent
condition,whereashypochloriteoxidation
requiresuseoforganicsolvents. Thedry
oxidationprocessusingozoneissimplerthan
thehypochloriteoxidationprocess,andit
o!ers100%productrecoverycomparedto
hypochloriteoxidation.
Example:
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Writing and effective abstract
Identify the major objectives and
conclusions
Identify phrases with keywords in the
methods section
Identify the major results from the
discussion or results section
Assemble the above information into asingle paragraph
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Writing and effective abstract
State your hypothesis or method used in
the first sentence
Omit background information, literature
review, and detailed description ofmethods
Remove extra words and phrases
Revise the paragraph so that the
abstract conveys only the essential
information
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Writing and effective abstract
Check to see if it meets the
guidelines
Make sure no grammar or spelling
errors!
Give the abstract to a colleague
(preferably one who is not familiar
with your work) and ask him/herwhether it makes sense
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Writing and effective abstract
Start out the Abstract by telling exactlywhat you did and how you did it. Focus on
the rationale and ideas of the study and why
it's important in the first two sentences
The effects of oxidation by ozone gas on some
physicochemical and functional properties ofstarch (corn, sago, and tapioca) were investigated.
Starch in dry powder form was exposed to ozone
for 10 min at different ozone generation times
(OGTs).
Example:
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Writing and effective abstract
In the next few lines, focus on the materialsand methods, and the data generated from
the study (results). Tell the reader how the
data were collected, compiled, and state
statistical significance(s).
Carboxyl and carbonyl contents increased markedly
in all starches with increasing OGT. Oxidation
significantly decreased the swelling power of
oxidized sago and tapioca starches but increased
that of oxidized corn starch.
Example:
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Writing and effective abstract
The end of the Abstract is just as important
as the beginning! State the implications of
your studies to the field of scholarship in
which you are working.
These results show that under similar conditions of
ozone treatment, the extent of starch oxidation
varies among different types of starch.
Some examples:
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Writing and effective abstract
State the implications of your studies...
!
Binding of water to starch films influences theirthermo-mechanical properties
!In general, tortillas prepared with hydrocolloids hada lower tendency for retrogradation than control
tortillas; it is important to consider this to obtaintortillas with better texture and lower RS content.
Some examples: