Writing a Science Paper

1. Writing a Science Paper Martin van Bommel No tale is so good that it can’t be spoiled in the telling. Proverb

2. Science in General • Science is a system for accumulating reliable knowledge • Observations • Hypothesis • Experimentation or proof • Describe results in a paper to add to existing scientific knowledge

3. Why write? • Communicate new results or opinions • Must persuade others of relevance and correctness • Describe position of idea within body of scientific knowledge • Formally state the idea, often as a theory or hypothesis • Explain what is new about the idea • Show paper’s contribution • Justify the theory

4. Organization • Abstract - shows relevance of work • Single paragraph giving summary of • Aims • Scope • Conclusions • Introduction • Expanded version of abstract • Motivate reader to read on

5. Organization (con’t) • Survey or background • Describe existing knowledge and how it is extended by the new results • Points to references for reader who is not expert in the field for further reading • Definitions (before or after survey) • Provide necessary background and terminology

6. Organization (continued) • Results • Explain chain of reasoning • Details of proofs or experiments • Summary • Draw together topics discussed • Concise statement of results • Future work?

7. Selecting a Topic • Choose one that • interests you, not just your supervisor • has not been researched to death • broad enough to have enough available background material • specific enough so that you can focus on a reasonable amount of material • has interesting applications or a specific use (easier to motivate)

8. Preparation • Establish an objective • Identify the readers • What do you want readers to know or be able to do? • Determine the scope or coverage of your work or project

9. What kind of material? • Let’s assume Object-Oriented DB • Google search gives us: • OODB articles and products • Problems? • OODB Management Systems • Problems? • Object database - Wikipedia • Problems? • Where else should we search?

10. Organization • Outlining • Breakdown into manageable parts • Add illustrations • Methods of development • Chronological or sequential • Order of importance • General to specific • Cause and effect

11. Writing • Always write from your own notes • Never read from a reference work while writing unless quoting • Plan the section before writing it • Write section in one sitting – makes it flow better • Do not stop writing to check something – check later

12. Visual (WYSIWYG) vs Compiler • Visual (e.g. Microsoft Word) • Great for immediate use documents • Poor for revisions and mathematics • Focus on style • Compiler (e.g. LATEX) • Better for revisions and mathematics • Produce professional-looking documents • Make style changes easily • Focus on content

13. Summary • Determine • What you want to say • Who is going to be reading it • How it is best organized • Do you find the result interesting • Any Questions?