Course Title: Seminar

Dr. Sajal Biring

Office: E303 Phone: #4895
Office hours: Thursday (15:00 17:00)

Dated: 22.09.2016

Grading
Project report

50%

Test on paper writing

20%

Classroom performance

20%

Attendance

10%

Total

100%

Papers that report experimental work are often structured chronologically in five sections:
first,Introduction; thenMaterials and Methods,Results, andDiscussion(together,
these three sections make up the paper's body); and finally,Conclusion.
TheIntroductionsection clarifies the motivation for the work presented and prepares
readers for the structure of the paper.
TheMaterials and Methodssection provides sufficient detail for other scientists to
reproduce the experiments presented in the paper. In some journals, this information is
placed in an appendix, because it is not what most readers want to know first.
TheResultsandDiscussionsections present and discuss the research results,
respectively. They are often usefully combined into one section, however, because readers
can seldom make sense of results alone without accompanying interpretation they need to
be told what the results mean.
TheConclusionsection presents the outcome of the work by interpreting the findings at a
higher level of abstraction than theDiscussionand by relating these findings to the
motivation stated in the Introduction.
(Papers reporting something other than experiments, such as a new method or
technology, typically have different sections in their body, but they include the
sameIntroductionandConclusionsections as described above.)

The introduction

First, provide some context to orient those readers who are

less familiar with your topic and to establish the importance
of your work.
Second, state the need for your work, as an opposition
between what the scientific community currently has and
what it wants.
Third, indicate what you have done in an effort to address
the need (this is the task).
Finally, preview the remainder of the paper to mentally
prepare readers for its structure, in the object of the
document.

The list below provides examples of verbs that express research actions:

apply

We applied Laklter's principle to . . .

assess

We assessed the effects of larger doses of . . .

calculate

We calculated the photoluminescence

spectrum of . . .

compare

We compared the effects of . . . to those of . . .

compute

We computed the velocity predicted by . . .

derive

We derived a new set of rules for . . .

design

We designed a series of experiments to . . .

determine

We determined the complete nucleotide

sequence of . . .

develop

We developed a new algorithm to . . .

evaluate

We evaluated the efficacy and biocompatibility

of . . .

explore

We explored the relationship between . . .

implement

We implemented a genetic algorithm for . . .

investigate

We investigated the behavior of . . .

measure

We measured the concentration of cadmium

in . . .

model

We modeled the diffraction behavior of . . .

The list below provides examples of verbs that express communication actions:

clarify

This paper clarifies the role of soils in . . .

describe

This paper describes the mechanism by which . . .

detail

This paper details the algorithm used for . . .

discuss

This paper discusses the influence of acidity on . .

.

explain

This paper explains how the new encoding

scheme . . .

offer

This paper offers four recommendations for . . .

present

This paper presents the results of . . .

proposes

This paper proposes a set of guidelines for . . .

provide

This paper provides the complete framework

and . . .

report

This paper reports on our progress so far . . .

summarize

This paper summarizes our results for 27 patients

with . . .

Adapted from Nature 465, 305-310 (2010)

Adapted from Nature Physics 6, 448-454 (2010)

Adapted from Nature Physics 6, 448-454 (2010)

Adapted from Nature Photonics 4, 320-322 (2010)

Adapted from Nature 466, 591-596 (2010)

Adapted from various publications by the Nature publishing group

Instead of

Write

Make an examination of . . .

examine

Present a comparison of . . .

compare

Be in agreement . . .

agree

Perform an analysis of . . .

analyze

Produce an improvement in . . .

improve

Past tense

Present tense

Work done
Wecollectedblood samples from . . .
Groves et al.determinedthe growth rate of . . .
Consequently, astronomersdecidedto rename . . .

General truths
Microbes in the human guthavea profound
influence on . . .
The Reynolds numberprovidesa measure of . . .
Smokingincreasesthe risk of coronary heart
disease . . .

Work reported
Jankowskyreporteda similar growth rate . . .
In 2009, Chupublishedan alternative method to . .
.
Irarrzavalobservedthe opposite behavior in . . .
Observations
The mice in Group Adeveloped, on average, twice
as much . . .
The number of defectsincreasedsharply . . .
The conversion ratewasclose to 95% . . .

Atemporal facts
This paperpresentsthe results of . . .
Section 3.1explainsthe difference between . . .
Behbood's 1969 paperprovidesa framework
for . . .
Future tense
Perspectives
In a follow-up experiment, wewill studythe role
of . . .
The influence of temperaturewill bethe object of

Teach/learn

Experience/experiment

Remember/remind

Make/do

Less/fewer

I teach quantum mechanics to first-year students.

I learned this material from two Nobel laureates.
I learned a lot from experience. (I am an experienced researcher.)
To test our hypothesis, we performed three experiments (according to our group's
standard experimental procedure).
I must remember to send her a copy of my paper.
Please remind me to do so.
If I make a mistake, I will have to do the experiment all over again.
(Usage for make and do is complex. When in doubt about your planned use, look it
up in the dictionary or verify usage through a discerning Web search.)
In less time, I will be able to complete fewer experiments.
(Time is uncountable, experiments are countable. The same comment applies to the
use of much [uncountable] and many [countable].)

A1 Select a paper and analyze its abstract in light of the structure proposed in this unit. For each sentence (or perhaps
each clause within a sentence), determine what it conveys: context, need, task, object of the document, findings,
conclusions, and/or perspectives. Check whether these components are presented in a logical order, and note which
components (if any) are missing.
A2 As a follow-up to activity A1, rewrite the abstract to improve it. If some components are missing, look for the missing
information in the Introduction and Conclusion of the paper. If this information is not there either, use your own knowledge of
the field to make an educated guess.
To make activities A1 and A2 directly useful, carry them out on the draft paper of a friend, then share your analysis (A1) and
rewriting (A2) with him or her.
A3 Each time you read a scientific paper from your field, look for the verbs that express a research action and create a list
of them. Be critical, however: Only add specific verbs such as measure, compare, or simulate, not generic verbs such
as do, perform, or carry out.
A4 Each time a scientific paper frustrates you by not including information you wish to have (for example, by not
explaining an abbreviation or by failing to clarify the motivation for the work), ask yourself what, exactly, is missing and why it
is important to you as a reader. Remember these frustrations: They will give you a better idea of what readers wish to find in
a paper. Then, when you are writing a paper of your own, remember to provide this type of information to your readers.
A5 When you receive corrections on your writing in English, learn from them. Make sure you understand the problem and
the rule or principle behind the correction. If you do not understand, ask. If you do understand the problem but cannot easily
spot it when proofreading your text, try to turn it into something you can search for with the Find function of your text
processor. Maintain your Find list actively. After a while, you may notice that you can remove some searches because you
now use the correct form spontaneously and systematically.