Writing for MB351 Rick Keil (April 2004) Goal: write a clean, concise manuscript that is: easy for your target reader to understand (your target is not me, it is another scientist) contains a factual abstract and a brief introduction that competently introduces your topic explains what you did presents results cleanly and then… interprets the data and places it within the frame of other things that are known about your subject, both locally and globally.

Scientific Papers are… Of a unique genre –Convey new, original information –Unlike other writing, you can never have much experience with your topic because it is all new

Try to: Avoid cliches like the plague – they’re old hat. Be more or less specific about it. Never ever use repetitive redundancies, ever. Remember that exaggeration is a million-trillion times worse than understatement. Kiss Commas are a sign of weakness NO: Figure 1 shows… BE ORGANIZED

Top 10 Writing Flaws (Hansen and Hansen 1997) 1.Poor organization 2.Failure to support thesis 3.Misspellings, sloppy writing, typos 4.Inadequate citation of pertinent references 5.Confusing sentence structure 6.Sentence fragments 7.Run-on sentences 8.Incorrect word usage 9.Little evidence of research 10.Little evidence of understanding of topic

Paper organization Title, Your name, & Abstract Introduction Methods Results Discussion (you may blend results & discussion if necessary) References Tables Figures and figure legends Turn on the grammar and spell checkers

Abstract Describes the results rather than announcing them. “ Population densities ranged between 3.4 and 6.2 organisms per m -2 ” -vs- “Population densities were measured”. Contains brief methods Contains interpretations This is your hook to get people to read your paper

Introduction Identify and limit the problem. Motivate the reader and review the pertinent literature. Be precise and accurate. Reference the literature where possible. If not, spell it out in paragraph form - lists are not acceptable. Methods

Results & Discussion What are your principle findings? It is sloppy to mix results and discussion together… (but I’ll let you do it for this class) Most tables and figures are referred to in this section. Use the number of significant figures that matches the precision of your findings. No: Table 1 shows… No: 1-sentence paragraphs

Discussion Describe what your findings mean. How do your findings relate to what is known about the region or the topic? Do your findings imply anything for other studies? Perhaps for future studies? Reference to the appropriate literature. Compare your data to what others have seen before. Extrapolate to other seasons or places.

References On a separate page from discussion Listed alphabetically Comply with a general referencing format something like this: Williams, A.M., Sternberg M.R., and Straza T.R.A. (2003) Sympatric relationships between Orca whales and cryptic megafauna in foraging for salmon. Journal of the Pacific Northwest, 4:14-19

Tables The legend is with the table. Tables are simple: Table 1. Some results based on the stuff I did on the boat. stationdepthsalinity No. StationDepth (m)Salinity Yes

Figures A common cause of trouble…

Figures

Things to ponder 6 pages is enough! Cut through the crap to say something important. Don’t assume we know what you are thinking and don’t think your thoughts are ‘too simple’ Avoid making yourself plural:‘we’ or ‘our’ Resist the temptation to string boxcars Try to write in the Hemingway style Get informal review before submission –We are here for you When in doubt, leave it in Avoid pronouns ‘this, that’ If there are weak points, don’t try to hide them