Introduction to Scientific Writing COM 116 MH Rajab

Introduction Writing a term paper, proposal or a scientific article is different from writing a short story or an essay as you used to do in the UPP. It takes time, training and effort.

Introduction Scientific writing, e.g., writing a term paper, proposal or an article, is quite different from writing a short story. It has special formats attached to it It takes time, training and effort.

Why most research proposals fail? Most experts say they fail because of poor writing, formatting and presentation than because of blemished science. So, how do you write for reviewers or readers makes a BIG difference. In all what you do position yourself to succeed.

Strategy… When you write, try to be: concise, and right to the point. precise, concise, and right to the point.

Hints Every word must be chosen carefully. Every sentence must be written to convey the message you’re planning to convey. Every paragraph must flow logically out of the ones that have preceded it.

Remember… Readers and reviewers rarely take the time to interpret poorly written text.

Hints Use clear, simple, and reasonably short sentences. Using a comma “,” or a period “.”, to break sentences up into smaller ones is a good habit. Avoid weak words like, if, hope, might, and replace them with ‘expect”. Use correct words when there is a choice between two (since vs. because, alternate vs. alternative, principal vs. principle, etc…)

Hints, continued… If you can’t find the right word the first time, do not let it bother you. Write down whatever comes to mind at the time and continue Most likely you’ll find the inspired wording later- during the rewrite.

Components of a Scientific Paper Title List of authors, affiliation, date Background and Significance Objectives/hypothesis Methods Results & Discussion Conclusion(s) References

How to Create a Title for Your Proposal? It is the first impression of your application “You may never get a second chance at making a first impression.“ It should stress the product of the research Make it as interesting and informative Make a list of several candidates and seek help from your colleagues to choose the best.

Writing “the Objectives” Section It is the template or the master plan for your research plan. An example: “ The objective of this research proposal is to identify risk factors that will predict renal dysfunction in adult patients with type II diabetes.”

Significance Subsection It helps to justify the need for the proposed research Should be brief, i.e., about 1/3 of a page max Place it at the beginning or at the end of the Background and Significance Section.

Significance Subsection, continued… Indicate that there is a gap in the knowledge or unmet need and its continued existence is an important problem. Follow by a sentence or two explaining why this project is significant, why it’ll fill that gap. Validate your statements by listing benefits that could be expected as a result of applying the new knowledge.

Reference SW Russell and DC Morrison. The Grant Application Writer’s Workbook. 2008