WHAT IS GOOD SCIENTIFIC
WRITING?
What Makes Scientific Writing Good?
1. Good science (of course)
2. Simplicity - Say it as simply and directly as
possible
3. Clarity - Know what you want to say and
say it clearly
4. Organization - Know when to say it
Old school
But whether or not this adaptation is in most cases
very close, we have evidence with some few plants,
of their becoming, to a certain extent, naturally
habituated to different temperatures; that is, they
become acclimatised: thus the pines and
rhododendrons, raised from seed collected by Dr.
Hooker from the same species growing at different
heights on the Himalaya, were found to possess in
this country different constitutional powers of
resisting cold. -Charles Darwin, On the Origin of Species (1859)
New school
Astroglia from the postnatal cerebral cortex
can be reprogrammed in vitro to generate
neurons following forced expression of
neurogenic transcription factors, thus opening
new avenues towards a potential use of
endogenous astroglia for brain repair.
Simplicity!
Science is inherently complicated. Don’t make it more
complicated with your writing.
Impress readers with your science, not your writing.
Aim for transparency
Simplicity!
Everything should be made as
simple as possible, but no simpler.
-Albert Einstein
Word Choice
• Keep it formal but not overly so:!
• Avoid contractions!
• Avoid starting a sentence with “but” or “and”!
• Academic Word List (Coxhead)
Choose the simplest word that accurately
expresses what you mean
utilize
use !
commence
begin!
peruse
read!
functionality
function
Avoid excess words
It is relevant to mention here that...!
It is most interesting that...!
..., according to Jones (1995). !
has the capability of
a sufficient number of!
can!
! enough
Don’t overuse adjectives and adverbs
slightly inhibited
weakened, slowed
completely inhibited
abolished, eliminated
a great many many
Avoid imprecise words
The short-circuit current remained increased for several
hours.!
!
The addition of the compound changed the activity of the
enzyme.
Avoid nominalizations
There was a modification of the reaction rate in the
presence of the cofactor.
The cofactor modified the reaction rate.
The addition of the cofactor had a strong effect on !
the reaction rate.
The cofactor strongly affected the reaction rate.
A prolongation of the cell cycle occurred in the mutant cells.
The mutation prolonged the cell cycle.
The verb should convey the action of the
sentence
An increased rate of replication was observed when
compound XYZ was administered to cells.
Administering compound XYZ to cells increased the rate of
replication.
The results show that the animals exhibited a decreased level
of activity in response to compound Z.
Compound Z lowered the activity level of the animals.
Clarity
Clear writing requires clear thinking
It should always be clear why something is being said; !
what is the point?
Give the conclusion or point immediately
Ask yourself: What do you want to say?
Once you figure it out, write it down.
Make the point clear as soon as possible
• From this analysis, many testable predictions can be made
regarding the roles of specific gene products identified in
the phagocytosis screen. For example, an unstudied
transmembrane protein with predicted Ser/Thr kinase
activity interacts with bCop and therefore may be directly
involved in vesicle transport. A second example covers the
target of rapamycin (TOR) kinase signaling pathway.
Avoid multiple modifiers
• membrane!
• cell membrane!
• neuronal cell membrane!
• embryonic neuronal cell membrane!
• rat embryonic neuronal cell membrane!
• wild type rat embryonic neuronal cell membrane
Avoid multiple modifiers
wild type rat embryonic neuronal cell membranes
neuronal cell membranes from wild type rat embryos!
membranes from neuronal cells from wild type rat embryos!
Don’t hesitate to repeat words
• Digitalis increases the contractility of the mammalian
heart. This change in inotropic state is a result of changes
in calcium flux through the muscle cell membrane. • Digitalis increases the contractility of the mammalian
heart. This increased contractility is a result of changes in
calcium flux through the muscle cell membrane.
The Reader Expectation Approach (Gopen)
• Reader Energy!
• Readers expect to find certain types of information in
specific parts of a sentence!
• Most important parts of a sentence: the beginning and the
end.
What happens when a reader reads a sentence?
• When a reader starts a new sentence, he or she does two
things: looks for a connection to what came before, and
looks for what the sentence is “about”.!
We recently reported a novel strategy to reduce the ethanol
yield in yeast based on cofactor engineering (Heux et al,
2006). An H20-forming water NADH oxidase was expressed
in S. cerevisiae, leading to a marked decrease in the
intracellular NADH pool, in this approach.!
In this approach, an H20-forming water NADH oxidase was
expressed in S. cerevisiae, leading...
There should be a “backwards” link near the beginning
of the sentence.
• for example!
• therefore!
• moreover!
• however!
• these results
The subject is what the sentence is “about”
Bees distribute pollen!
!
Pollen is distributed by bees.
The stress position
• Fred is a nice guy, but he beats his dog.!
• Fred beats his dog, but he is a nice guy.!
• Although Fred is a nice guy, he beats his dog. !
• Although Fred beats his dog, he is a nice guy.
Changing the order of the information
A first complex, containing Extra-sex-comb (ESC) and the
methyl transferase protein Enhancer of Zeste (E(Z)), seems
to be involved in the trimethylation of lysine 27 on histone
H3 !
The trimethylation of lysine 27 on histone H3 seems to be
accomplished by a complex containing Extra-sex-comb
(ESC) and the methyl transferase protein Enhancer of
Zeste (E(Z)).!
Extra-sex-comb (ESC) and the methyl transferase protein
Enhancer of Zeste (E(Z)) are present in a complex that is
involved in the trimethylation of lysine 27 on histone H3.
How long should sentences be?!
• Sentences can be short or long, as long as they have
one coherent idea.
• In scientific articles: the average is about 15-20 words.
• Varying sentence lengths leads to more dynamic writing.
Examples of sentences: too long. !
Together, these data show that ectopic expression of En
before cell division is able to misroute axons, whereas En has
no effect when expressed after the division of the GMC (as
assessed with elav-GAL4), suggesting that En action on
axonal pathfinding occurs at pre-mitotic stage.
Together, these data show that ectopic expression of En
before cell division can misroute axons, whereas En has no
effect when expressed after the division of the GMC (as
assessed with elav-GAL4). This finding suggests that the
action of En on axonal pathfinding occurs at the pre-mitotic
stage.
Examples of sentences: too long
Cytoplasmic SOX9 is expressed in both sexes during early
gonadal embryogenesis and is male-specifically translocated
into the nucleus of pre-Sertoli cells whereas its expression is
rapidly turned off in females.
Cytoplasmic SOX9 is present in both sexes during early
gonadal embryogenesis. While in males the protein is later
translocated into the nucleus of pre-Sertoli cells, its
expression is rapidly turned off in females.
Examples of sentences: too short
p16Ink4a and p19ARF are important players in the Rb (pRb/
pInk4a/CycD1) and p53 (pArf/mdm2/p53) pathways. These
pathways are the two main cell cycle control pathways.
p16Ink4a and p19ARF are important players in the Rb (pRb/
pInk4a/CycD1) and p53 (pArf/mdm2/p53) pathways, the two
main cell cycle control pathways.
Examples of sentences: too short
Phagocytosis is important in the suppression of microbial
infections by pathogens such as Candida albicans.
Therefore, we wanted to find genes that are involved in
phagocytosis.
Because phagocytosis is important in the suppression of
microbial infections by pathogens such as Candida
albicans, we wanted to find genes that are involved in this
process.