Written communication- Exercise
NGEA01-2015
Ana Soares
Written communication 2015– overview
29/09
5/10
13.00 – 17.00
10.00 – 16.00
Lecture: Written communication
Preparation (assistance in the morning) + lecture ?
6/10
7/10
08.00 – 17.00
08.00 – 17.00
Project work
Project work- submit project plan (including aim)
8/10
8/10
08.00 – 13.00
13.00 – 17.00
Feedback on project plan and project work (assistance)
Project work (assistance)
20/10
21/10
09.00 – 12.00
16.30 – 17.00
Lecture: Oral communication
Project hand-in
23/10
09.00-17.00
Project presentation and feedback
Before the end of course Submit revised report based on the feedback given on the 23/10
Teachers: Ana Soares, Britta Smångs and Ladaea Rylander
Submit hand-ins by email to
[email protected] office 456
[email protected]
[email protected]
Opponent group
Assignment:
Biomes:
Write an academic report about a biome. The
report must include:
Equatorial tropical forests
Subtropical forests
Temperate forests
• An introduction that starts with a general
geographic description
• A specific research question / aim, which is
analyzed and discussed in the report
•The work is done in groups of about 3-4
people
•Each group will have an opponent group
deciduous and
coniferous
Savannas
Grasslands
Continental deserts
Coastal deserts
Taiga
Tundra
Antartica
Marine biomes - Coral reefs
Comment on all parts of classmate report
- Was the aim well formulated?
- Was the aim reached?
- Is the discussion well structured?
Marine biomes - Estuaries
Marine biomes - Oceans
Urban areas
Etc.
How to plan an academic assay
Topic of
interest
Review
previous
studies
Define aim
Delivered
latest 7/10
Collect
data
Design
approach
Data
analysis
Data
interpretation
Decide on
the
methods
Significance
What characterizes an academic assay?
• It has a logical and standard structure
• It is examined by colleagues / teachers and revised one or several times
before being published
• The reader is given the possibility of doing his/her own evaluation of the
study and its results
• Clarity, simplicity, impartiality
• New knowledge- should be reproducible
What characterizes an academic essay?
…knowledge contribution = something being said for the first time =
= new knowledge being produced
The aim must be achievable!
It investigates something,
what?
 The aim
A problem or unknown/open question:
clear, specific, of limited scope
It tries to get somewhere, to what?
 The conclusion
A solution to the problem/answer
to the question
http://epublishunum.com/2012/06/writing-publishing-science-based-books/
Elements of an academic assay
• I- Title
• II- Abstract
Most
important
element of the
introduction
Usually written at the end
• III- Introduction- Context/background, open question/problem, aim
• IV- Materials and methods- Experimental design, description of the
methods used
• V- Results
• VI- Discussion- Interpretation, conclusion, speculation and outlook
• VII- References, supplementary information
Aim
• A scientific problem to be resolved
• The aim must be reached within the report
• Limitations to scope clearly defined
Not suitable
Good
• Learn more about...
• Is there a relationship between x and y?
• Explore
• Is y affected by x; how?
• ‘To study how’...
• Has y experienced a decreasing trend
over time? Possible causes?
• Is a certain trend different in two
different geographical regions. Why?
Aim- examples of poorly formulated aims
The purpose of this paper is to examine the ice melting of the Arctic and
to learn more about the mechanisms underlying the increased melting.
The purpose of the report is to present the biome of Antarctica in terms
of geographic spread, climatic conditions, soil types, vegetation and
fauna.
The aim is to highlight the importance of climate change on Antarctica.
How would the unique wildlife of Antarctica be affected by climate
change?
Introduction
• Background; catch the interest of the reader
General
• Provide context to make the aim understandable
– Why are you doing this? Why is there a problem? Why
should this be studied?
• Explain why the topic is interesting
Narrower
Specific
• Introduce the aim
Should not
Should
• Interminable definitions of
indefinable terms
• Rise the interest of the readers
• More abbreviations than
necessary
•Literature references is used to highlight
the importance of the topic and to
identify a scientific problem
•Background texts without
clear relevance to the aim
Introduction
E.g.:
Nutrient regulation of freshwater plankton productivity is crucial
for the future development of lake ecosystems in face of land use
and climate change. By controlling phytoplankton primary…
Context
For example, studies on bioavailability from different aquatic
systems showed that a highly variable fraction of DOC can be
readily used by bacteria..
Previous
Works
Most studies on nutrient availability conducted in humic-rich
waters have neglected this complexity, focusing on either on
total inputs…
Problem
Based on the synthesis of bioavailable estimates obtained
from different methods…
Basis for
the aim
We hypothesized that bioavailability increases from C to N
and…
Aim
Methods
• Analyses based on own measurements (materials, measurements and
analysis)
• Analysis of quantitative data from other studies (’meta-analysis’)
• Qualitative analysis based on different types of data
– Analysis of previous conclusions
– Analyses of interviews
Less good
• ‘We used "View Shed" in
ArcGIS to calculate the slope
index’..
• RMSE is calculated as...
• RMSE = 2.3
Excellent
• Literature references are used to justify
study design and specific methodology
• It is explained why selected methods
represent the best way to resolve the
scientific problem and reach the aim
• RMSE (root mean square error),
calculated according to (ref), = 2.3
Methods- example
• “A detailed explanation of data collection in one of the more
important sources follows: the data was obtained between
1960 and 2000. All of the measurements had been done by
underwater photography using SCUBA and then followed
by image analysis (Crabbe et al., 2002 and Crabbe and
Smith, 2002) and by remote underwater photography using
a video ray explorer remote operated vehicle (ROV)
(Atlantas Marine Ltd…).”
Why is this incorrect?
Results
• Results should speak for themselves
www.eremedia.com
• Should not be a repetition of what it is said in the
tables, figures
• Keep the results short
• Reader should be able to interpret the results
Specific
Discussion
• Interpretations of the results
Narrow
General
• Position statements (should be avoided) if included must
be justified by facts
• Conflicting data/results should be highlighted and
discussed
• Discussion should be transparent about limitations of the
study
• Draw conclusions
• Free to speculate
Title
• The most read part of the work
accountablescience.com
• Should have the fewest number of words possible but still
comprehensible
• Shall not be too short either- e.g.- “Study of bacteria”.
• Should not contain abbreviations, chemical formulas, jargon
• Hanging titles commoly used:
e.g.: ” Cryptic wetlands: integrating hidden wetlands in regression
models of the export of dissolved organic carbon from forested
landscapes”
“First impressions are strong impressions; a
tittle ought therefore to be well studied, and
to give, so far as its permit, a definite and
concise indication of what is to come.”
- T. Clifford Allbutt
Abstract
• Miniature of the work
– Background information
– Problem identification
– Attempt to solve the problem- “In this study”, “Here we
show”
– Method (optional; if included should be a very short
description)
– Results and conclusions
– Zoom out, speculation, implications
Abstract poorly formulated e.g.
It should contain
background information
instead highlighting the
relevance of this topic.
“This scientific report gives an insight into the marine biome,
with a closer look at coral reefs and their ecosystem. The
main objective of this study was…”
Writing advice and tips
Well written text
• Correct format and structure
• The purpose / aim is the focus of the title,
abstract and all the essay parts
- Redundant passages deleted
• It is concise- brief without being unclear
• It is interesting without being improper
- Sensationalism may lead to loss of
academic credibility
Headings
Headings
• Main headings (Introduction, Materials and
methods, Results, Discussion, Conclusion,
References)
• Avoid too many levels of heading: 2 is
sufficient in most cases
• Headings increase the readability and improve
the text structure, but they can also have a
negative effect by chopping the text into
isolated sections
• Tips: Try deleting all headings. If the text still
has a nice flow and the different sections are
well linked to each other, then the essay is well
structured. Re-insert the headings.
Figures and tables
Every figure, table, equation, appendix, etc. must be cited in the
text paragraphs
• Normally done by using brackets (Fig. 1)
• Alternatively, it is emphasized that, e.g. ’Figure 1 shows…’
Figures and legends
Reference
from text
Legend always below figure
Tables and table texts
Reference
from text
Table text always above table
Clarifications can be put below, e.g., explanation of
abbreviations
Common referencing mistakes
• Do not use URL in the text
Nutrient regulation of freshwater plankton productivity is crucial for
the future development of lake ecosystems in face of land use and
climate change (www.naturewebsite.com).
• Do not reference wikipedia
Wikipedia is not a scientific reliable source
The project- further instructions
General introduction:
Start the introduction with a brief general description of the biome,
with regard to:
• geographic distribution
• climatic conditions
• soil type
• vegetation types
• fauna and flora
Specific question/aim:
End the introduction by introducing a specific
study aim, where two or more different
geographical areas are compared.
The comparison can be made with respect to a
specific property of the biome, e.g., related to
vegetation, wildlife, environmental threats,
climate change, human impacts etc.
Possible aims:
Biome: Savannas
Aim: How does the African savanna differ from savannas in South America with
respect to the abundance of large animal grazers? What are the causes?
Biome: Tropical forests
Aim: How have humans affected the biodiversity of tropical forests in South
and Central America during the past 100 years? What similarities and differences
exist between the two regions? Possible causes?
The aim also can be even more specific than the
above examples, for example focusing on a single
species
Start by:
1. Select biome
2. Search literature about the biome
- For general description of biome
- For possible specific questions to address
3. Formulate aim
Write a project plan
1.
Definition and short description of biome.
2.
Formulate aim using 1-2 sentences. As concise and limited in scope as possible.
3.
Select 5 references (e.g., books) that will be the basis of the report
Send to:
Ana ([email protected]) and
Britta ([email protected])
...on the 7th of Oct 17.00 hours at latest
Structure of the report
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Title
Abstract
Key words
Contents
Introduction
Materials and methods
Results
Discussion
Conclusion
References
Abstract
= a short summary of the study.
Is written as one paragraph, consisting of about 200-250 words.
Should contain:
• Indication of aim and scope (not misleading)
• Short information about the method that has been used
(e.g., qualitative literature analysis)
• The most important conclusion
Grammatical tense: Past
Introduction
• Get from project plan
• Start with a broad general description of the biome
(geographic span, climatic conditions etc.)
• Narrow down and approach the aim
• Formulate the aim
• Method: It is allowed to inform short that this is a literature
study, but avoid detailed descriptions of methods
Grammatical tense = Present (not aim ’was’, aim ’is’!!)
Materials and methods
1.
Explain how the aim was reached (through literature study). If
necessary, develop and clarify aim / study question
2.
Describe the scope of the study, i.e., what geographical areas that
were targeted, what specific aspects that were covered by the
study question etc.
3.
Describe how data / information was acquired, e.g. through
literature search in a library catalogue using certain keywords.
Describe and justify the selection of books and other possible
source materials.
4.
Something else of importance for reaching the aim?
Grammatical tense = Past. One has performed the search
for literature, the data has been collected etc.
Results
Neutral reporting of what the literature showed.
Focus on what is relevant to the aim / study question,
but draw no conclusions or add own values​​.
• Present information that is relevant to the study
question, but make no explicit attempt to
answering the question, or interpreting the
reported texts
• Strong results should come first
• Smallest number of figures possible
Grammatical tense: Past
Example: Andersson et al. (2010) reported…
Discussion
The information from the previous chapter is used to
answer the study question (aim)
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
What processes are important for the aim?
Analyze, how can the study question be answered?
Is there ambiguous information, e.g., sources that are in conflict?
Error? Can the sources be trusted? What are the weaknesses?
Present your own interpretations, but make sure that they are
well justified.
Finally, what could be done to improve the study, e.g. other
analytical methods? Can new research questions for future
studies be identified?
Most important comes first
Past and present tense interchangeable. Past when the
discussion looks back at the results, but present when an
interpretation is made.
Conclusion
• Present the main findings, i.e. summarize the
most important thing from the discussion. Brief
and clear.
 Clear answer to research question
Try putting the aim and the discussion in a bigger
perspective
NOTE! This is a short chapter. Most often only
one paragraph. Avoid repeating the aim other
parts of the introduction!
Grammatical tense = Present
Further reading
Day, A. Robert, and Barbara Gastel. 2006. How to Write and Publish a
Scientific Paper. 6th ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Davis,
Martha. 2005.