Research Methods and Techniques Lecture 8 Technical Writing 1 © 2004, J S Sventek, University of Glasgow

18 November 2004RMaT/Technical Writing 12 Reminders/Notices Web site: Course director: Prof J S Sventek Assignment due Thursday, 9 December 2004 Annotated bibliography – topic “Redundant Arrays of Inexpensive Disks”

18 November 2004RMaT/Technical Writing 13 Annotated Bibliography Assignment Conduct a literature survey on the topic of “Redundant Arrays of Inexpensive Disks” Each paper that you review needs to appear in the References section of your final document, with an annotation taken from the “Abstract” of your 1-page summary; if you are using bibtex, you should use the “annotation” bibliographystyle. Your final document starts with a title (“Annotated Bibliography”), your name, and the date (“9 December 2004”). This is followed by text describing the top ten citations from the bibliography, giving a reason why each cited paper belongs in the top ten. This is followed by the complete, annotated bibliography.

18 November 2004RMaT/Technical Writing 14 Annotated Bibliography Assignment (cont) The assignment handout gives you a template LaTeX file and shows a sample document.. If you choose not to use LaTeX and bibtex, you must replicate this structure in your document. The bibliography elements are numbered, and sorted by surname of the first author. N.B. for bibtex users, I recommend that you construct the key for an entry using the following format: FirstAuthorSurnameYYYYSubjectOfPaper e.g. sventek2001effectivemulticast You annotated bibliography should contain a minimum of 20 references. You must argue coherently why your top 10 are the top 10. All of the references should be to refereed, published papers.

18 November 2004RMaT/Technical Writing 15 Your Research Career Success in your research career will depend upon: Your technical knowledge and research skills Your ability to convey your results verbally and via the written word How well you are known!

18 November 2004RMaT/Technical Writing 16 Technical Writing Doing the best research in the world in a particular topic is useless if you are unable to convey the results to others in the field Primary mechanism for communicating research results is through journal articles, conference papers, workshop extended abstracts, book chapters, and books (research monographs). Your submissions to these publication channels are peer-reviewed before publication. You must write your submissions so that they survive the peer- review process and are published.

18 November 2004RMaT/Technical Writing 17 Characteristics of a good research paper Clear statement of The problem the paper is addressing The proposed solution[s] The results achieved Describes clearly What has been done before on the problem What is new The paper must provide an easily-followed line of argument.

18 November 2004RMaT/Technical Writing 18 Characteristics of a good research paper (cont) A paper should focus on Describing the results in sufficient detail to establish their validity Identifying the novel aspects of the results – i.e. what new knowledge is reported and what makes it non-obvious Identifying the significance of the results; what improvements and impact do they suggest?

18 November 2004RMaT/Technical Writing 19 Questions to ask yourself while you are writing the paper (taken from Are the ideas in the paper new? Can you state the new ideas concisely? What exactly is the problem being solved? Are the ideas significant enough to justify a paper? Is the work described significantly different from existing, related work? Is all related work referenced, and have you actually read the cited material?

18 November 2004RMaT/Technical Writing 110 Questions (cont) Are comparisons with previous work clear and explicit? Does the work comprise a significant extension, validation, or repudiation of earlier but unproven ideas? What is the oldest paper you cited? The newest? Have you cited similar work at another institution? Have you cited technical reports, unpublished materials, personal communications?

18 November 2004RMaT/Technical Writing 111 Questions (cont) Does the paper describe something that has actually been implemented? If the system has been implemented, how has it been used, and what has this usage show about the practical importance of the ideas? If the system hasn’t been implemented, do the ideas justify publication now? What have you learned from the work? What should the reader learn from the paper?

18 November 2004RMaT/Technical Writing 112 Questions (cont) How generally applicable are the lessons? What were the alternatives considered at various points, and why were the choices made the way they were? Did the choices turn out to be right, and if so, was it for the reasons that motivated their choice in the first place? What are the assumptions upon which the work is based? Are they realistic assumptions?

18 November 2004RMaT/Technical Writing 113 Questions (cont) How sensitive is the work to perturbations of these assumptions? If a formal model is presented, does it give new information and insights? Does the introductory material contain excess baggage not needed for your main development? Do you include just enough material from previously published work to enable your reader to follow your thread of argument? Are the ideas organized and presented in a clear and logical way?

18 November 2004RMaT/Technical Writing 114 Questions (cont) Are terms defined before they are used? Are forward references kept to a minimum? Have alternate organizations been considered? Was an abstract written first? Is the paper finished? Is the writing clear and concise? Are words spelled and used correctly? Are the sentences complete and grammatically correct? Are ambiguity, slang, and cuteness avoided?