2. Technical Writing
TECHNICAL WRITING is a broad term that encompasses a wide variety of documents in science, engineering, and the skilled trades.
The major types of documents in technical writing can be grouped into four major categories
Reports and communications in day-to-day business
Technical papers, magazine articles, books, and theses for purposes of education, teaching, and the sharing of information and knowledge
Patents
Operational manuals, instructions, or procedures

3. Spectrum of Technical Writings

4. Attributes of technical Wirtings
It pertains to a technical subject.
It has a purpose.
It has an objective.
It conveys information/facts/data.
It is impersonal.
It is concise.
It is directed.
It is performed with a particular style and in a particular format.
It is archival.
It cites contributions of others.

5. Excuses for NOT WRITING
Lack of Time. “I did not have time to write a report.” This is probably the most common reason given by technical people with a dislike for technical writing.
Nobody Reads Reports. Sometimes people have the perception that reports are not read by the addressees, so why write them?
Reduces Job Security. Some people feel that they should keep their jobs because nobody else can do them. They have some skills or knowledge that others do not have.
Trepidation. Some technical people lack confidence in their writing skills and do not opt to write technical documents for fear that they may contain writing errors that cause embarrassment. Some managers also do not know how to review a document
Is Sufficient. Even though is a useful tool, does not replace the need for formal or even informal reports.

6. Types of Technical Studies for Engineers

7. Problem Solving Reports and Study
Engineering projects almost always include: 1. State the problem (get all details) 2. Select one approach to solving the problem 3. Search literature and perform preliminary experiments 4. Perform refined experiments 5. Analyze data 6. Decide if problem is solved or more work is needed 7. Perform more studies 8. Analyze data 9. Write report

8. Proposing a Project—The Idea
The idea for a project comes from inspiration, research, observation, somebody’s comment—almost any place.
Technical talks, conferences, and trade shows can produce ideas for projects or studies.
Brainstorming sessions with team members are another way to come up with ideas.
Finally, ideas from projects and products can come from patent searches and thorough research of a subject
The idea can come from exploring the solutions of existing problems ……..?

9. Project Proposal
The average proposal contains about 30 typed pages, and most have the following format:
1. Identification and significance of problem
2. Background and technical approach
3. Technical objectives
4. Work plan
5. Commercial potential
6. Principal investigator and senior personnel
7. Consultants and subcontractors
8. Equipment, instrumentation, competitors, and facilities
9. Equivalent or overlapping proposal to other federal agencies
10. Current and pending support of principal investigation and senior personnel
11. Budget

10. Writing Strategy for Technical Report Writing

11. Analysis of Readers Readership is your intended audience.
The intention of your report determines readership.
The readership selected determines writing level.
The level of writing must be such that it is understood and is useful to all readers.
Selection of a circulation list (your readership) should respect organization hierarchy; include contributors, sponsors, and potential users of your work/recommendations.

12. Scope of Writing
Putting limits on what is included in a technical document involves consideration of the following factors:
Number of ideas/experiments/studies/subjects
Depth of writing
Level of detail
suitable scope statement in an introduction might be like the following:
This report describes the application of the loop abrasion test method to rank the abrasion resistance of six different test steels. They are candidates for P35 first form tools.

13. Number of Subjects
Most jobs that require written documentation involve multiple tasks.
The tasks that need to be addressed in reports must be identified
For example, a study of a tool failure may involve chemical analysis, surface texture measurements, hardness measurements, and optical microscopy of a metallographic cross section taken from the failed part. If the chemical analysis of the failed part indicates that the tool was made from the wrong steel, a decision needs to be made on whether the failure-analysis report should include the tests that were performed (even if you did not identify the rootcause of the failure)

14. Depth of Writing and level of details
Decide on the desired depth of technical discussions. How technical should you get?
Are you going to do a literature survey on your subject, discuss previous work, and compare theories in your technical document?
If you have limited knowledge on the subject in your planned document, it is usually advisable not to attempt an in-depth treatment of the subject.
An expert in a particular subject can go into great depth on it. However, the depth of coverage should be directly related to the intended purpose and objective of the document
Too much depth and unnecessary technicalities should be avoided, if at all possible
If it is not necessary, it may bore readers and end up eliciting a negative reader reaction

15. Propose and Objective
Purpose usually determines strategy. Purpose is more immediate.
You want something to happen as the result of your written document.
You may want more funding.
You may want to present the status of a project,
To present final results, or to introduce a problem or new design.

16. Writing to Various Readers
The following list indicates the types of readers likely encountered in a technical writing situation:
Active participants
Customers • Peers • Teammates • Immediate supervisor
General interest
• Customer management • Potential customers
• Your management • Library
Public
• Technical journal • Book • Handbook • Trade magazine
• Presentation
This categorization is based on anticipated interest level.
The people involved with the subject of a document will probably have a high degree of interest.

17. Readership intention and writing levels for various documents
Intended readership
Intention
Writing level
Daily newspaper
Everyone who reads
Profit for shareholders
High school graduate
Time magazine
Adults
Profit for corporation
College graduate
Civil Engineering magazine
Civil engineers
Ph.D. thesis
College examinations board ( BASR)
Get degree
Technical journal
Research proposal Research
Reviewers and fund administrators
funding
Technical report, department
Suppliers of funding
requesting work Solve problem
Lowest reader level
Resumé
Companies with job openings
Get a job
High
school graduate
Field Test report
Customer supervisor
Answer question
Bicycle assembly instructions
World wide buyers
Get the bike assembled
No manual skills

19. Elements of style

20. Word Choice
The average person born in the United States knows about 21,000 English (U.S. modified) words
It takes about 500 words to fill a single-spaced typed page
Technical documents can be less than one page or more than 100
Most technical journals limit submissions to about ten pages or 5,000 words
21,000 word repertoire can be broken down by grammatical function into four categories:
Utility words like conjunctions (and, or, but, if, and so forth)
Substance words for action (verbs) or subjects (nouns)
Descriptive words that modify other words (adverbs, adjectives, clauses)
Contractions for people who do not have time to write out the real words

21. Spectra of words

22. Word Choices for Technical Reports
- etc. et cetera and so forth
- Ibid ibidem in the same place (cited previously)
- et al. and others
- per se by itself
- i.e. id est that is
-e.g. exempli gratia for example

24. By; Engr.Dr. Attaullah Shah
Technical Presentations Skills for Engineers Communication technical information to non technical people Technical Report Writing

25. Being engineers, we are Technical Communicator.
Engineering is a people-oriented profession.
Engineering verdicts are given more attentions
Engineers are exposed to relatively more public dealings.
Engineers not only develop technologies; they help people make use of technology.
Engineers must communicate with regulators, funding agencies, suppliers, clients, customers, the media, and sometimes the general public.

26. You must communicate your subject-matter expertise.
Engineers communicate their methods, results, conclusions, and recommendations so that information can be understood and used by a variety of people.
Engineers generate raw data and then turn them into information to help people solve problems.

27. For instance . . .
If you are deputed at a site Engineer for a construction project, you have to deal with a broad spectrum of clients:
With structural Engineer about detailed drawings and clearing ambiguities in the construction drawings
With procurement officer for timely supply of material
With Lab Engineer to timely arrange the tests
With sub contractor for timely availability of human resource.
Many more people in the line

28. For which audience is this table appropriate: supervisor or homeowner?

29. A picture might work best for a homeowner.
Residence
Service Station
As we have talked about, the idea of evaluating exposures involves determining if the chemical can move from the source area to the receptor
The fundamentals of behavior and movement of chemicals in the environment are important to our ability to make predictions about concentrations now and in the future at a point of exposure
As suggested in earlier lectures by Dr. Corsi we should think of the potential sources and therefore the potential for exposures in the broadest sense. Often in corrective action our thinking has been limited to only the release governed by the regulatory agency that is currently under scrutiny. The performance basis of the process requires that we all use good judgement in formulating the site conceptual model and documenting the basis for including or excluding exposure pathways.
There are two categories of potential exposures to be considered:
First, is there a potential for an exposure to a chemical?
Where is the source of the chemical with respect to the point of exposure
Is there a mechanism that will allow the chemical to be present at that point?
Second, if there is a potential for exposure then what is the acceptable concentration of that chemical at the point of exposure that is protective of human health and the environment?
Monitoring Well
Ground Water 5

30. Data alone are usually not useful.
Information is data made useful for other people.

31. Information life cycle
Data are what we record, observe, copy.
Information is data that have been synthesized, put in context, and made meaningful.
Knowledge is enough information to allow you or someone else to do something that produces new data or information.

32. Information Life Cycle
Data
Knowledge
Information

33. Necessary Skills for Engineers
Manage information
Write technical information for many audiences -- often with conflicting needs
Design graphics for technical information
Elicit expert information – interview others
Present information verbally
Work collaboratively -- write collaboratively!

34. Engineering documents you may be involved in writing
Progress reviews and reports
User manuals -- software and hardware
Training materials
Guidelines and reports
Safety policies and instructions
Technical proposals
Technical reports
The last two types bridge the gap between the workplace and the academy.

35. and technical presentations
Academic writing
dissertation proposals
theses
dissertations
journal papers
and technical presentations
oral presentations
posters
as well as proposals and reports.

36. Audiences Academic audiences other researchers faculty students
supervisor – now only!
Even academic audiences have varying degrees of expertise and knowledge. And everyone is busy and reads fast!

37. Research Audiences Experts Executives/Managers Technicians Regulators
Funding Agencies
General public
Combination
Now your audience is “expert,” but later to whom may you have to present results?

38. Business Audiences Your message here Inside the organization:
Management
Colleagues
Support staff
Salespeople
Technicians
Outside the organization
Customers
Regulatory agencies
Financial institutions
Suppliers/vendors
News media
Your message here

39. Communicator’s Triangle
Audience
(most difficult)
Subject

40. Multiple Audiences
Different parts of the document are geared toward different audiences
Abstract – technical public
Introduction – interested public
Bulk of paper – researchers and subject-matter experts

41. Writing Process and Planning:
You organize for yourself (outlines, etc.), and you organize the document for the reader.

42. First, organize for yourself.
Feel like a tiny child when it comes to writing?
Most people do. Here’s how to help yourself.

43. 1. Recognize that writing is problem-solving
As a product, writing solves problems for your audience
As a process, it solves problems for you!
The document you produce is a product intended to help solve problems, either by convincing the reader(s) to pursue some course of action or by providing information needed by the reader to formulate a course of action. If your writing and presentation are clear, you help your reader do what he/she needs to do.
The process of writing can also help you solve the methodological and other problems inherent in investigating solutions and presenting them. If you use the process of writing to clarify your thoughts and strengthen your argument( or build in better information), you help yourself.

44. You can use writing to help answer many critical questions:
What is it you really want to say?
What will convince your audience?
What data or information do you still need to collect?
When you explain your methodology, what gaps are still there?
Writing will help you solve your own composition and presentation problems only if you treat it as a process, happening over time and proceeding in spiral fashion.

45. 2. Recognize that writing is a process.
Defining objectives
Planning
Drafting
Evaluating
Revising
The major steps are listed here. Managing any project and producing results (a new design, a revised process, a list of requirements) involves these five steps.
These stages occur in more or less sequential order, but there can be lots of loop-backs between any two steps. The “drafting” stage, for instance, results in a test document you can and should ask others’ to critique. If your evaluators cannot understand the purpose of the document, you may need to go back to the Planning stage to brainstorm about how to highlight the purpose better. You may even need to go back to the Objectives, to determine whether you are clear about the purpose.
Learn to separate these stages!

46. You cannot collapse these stages together!
You can’t get it right the first time around!

47. Manage the writing process.
Start early
Manage your time
Learn to draft – avoid need for perfection at this stage
Learn to separate the creative and critical parts of your personality.

48. Managing the Process of Writing
Defining objectives
Planning
Drafting
Evaluating
Revising
Pre-Writing
(Outlining)
Peer Review
You might start by doodling or making lists or jotting down notes. The first two steps involve only the most informal kinds of writing -- you are doing it for your sake. Your audience won’t see anything but the final product.
Evaluating works best when you are not the only one doing it. Ask your peers to look over your drafts.
This is worth repeating: remember that the process is not entirely linear. But some steps have to happen before others: you must analyze your audience and define the objectives of your communication before you can even begin planning the document.

49. 3. Realize that writing activities are incremental and iterative.
Move back and forth between doing research/engineering work and doing writing.
Writing helps you understand what you really know and what you are still unsure about. Helps you plot direction.

50. Sequence of Drafting Revise Introduction Write draft of Introduction
Revise middle three chapters
Revise Conclusions
Write Abstract
Write draft of Introduction
Write draft of Methods
Write draft of Literature Review
Write draft of Results
Write draft of Conclusions

51. But I still have a hard time beginning to write!!

52. Planning your Document: Organizing for Yourself
Most people begin planning their document by creating an outline.
Don’t be trapped by your outline! Any outline evolves constantly until the document is sent or published.

53. Planning Tools: Many kinds of outlines and lists
Doodles and lists of keywords
Topic Outline
Can become headings for your document. Eventually, becomes the Table of Contents.
Sentence Outline (helps connect topics)
Helps writers refine ideas and link them together:
“Transistors have been around a long time.” --eventually that sentence becomes a heading: History of Transistors

54. Brainstorm Outline: how it works
Draw an oval
Write document’s central purpose in center
Think of all related ideas, facts, descriptions
Write these in spokes around oval
Don’t prioritize or sequence ideas until later
Discard later what you don’t need.

55. The Elements of a Successful Technical Proposal

56. # 1:The title
Choose a title that conveys information about your project.
Avoid acronyms that have negative connotations.
Make it Brief

57. # 2: The abstract
This is the first (and could be the only) part of the proposal that a busy reviewer will see.
The abstract should be a map of the rest of the proposal.
Write the abstract last to make sure it reflects the final version of the proposal.

58. # 3: Problem statement
Provide a clear objective statement of the problem.
Describe the factors that have contributed to the problem.
Describe what has and has not worked in the past.
Indicate what needs to be done (by you) now.

59. # 4: The rationale Never assume the proposal reviewer
knows what you know.
Convince the reviewer
that the problem is
IMPORTANT!

60. Persuasive rationales
Describe how the project will…
Resolve theoretical questions
Develop better theoretical models
Influence public policy
Improve teaching/learning
Improve the way people do their jobs in a particular field
Improve the way people live

61. #5: Literature review
Display your awareness of the problem or need as well as the contributions that have been made by others—some of whom may be reviewers of your proposal!

62. Show you understand the problem!
Use the Funding Agencies “Terms” and “Vocabulary” to Describe the Problem.
Provide the most recent data and/or information about the problem.
Describe the gaps and contradictions that currently exist.

63. Show you know the solution!
Describe a solution to improve the situation.
Back up your solution with data if possible.
Quote or cite well known authorities on the topic.

64. Goals, Objectives and Activities Should Always Relate to One Another
# 6: Project design
Goals, Objectives and Activities Should Always Relate to One Another

65. Program elements Goals: Broad Statements of Intent Objectives:
Measurable Outcome Statements
Activities:
Implementation Steps

66. Well written objectives
State Who is Responsible
State What is to be Accomplished.
State When the Objective should be Accomplished
State a Criterion for Success

67. Well written activities
Focus on How the objective is to be accomplished.
Use “Action” words, e.g., recruit, analyze, evaluate, disseminate

68. Research methods State your research questions clearly
Choose an appropriate research design
Detail all procedures
Control for validity and reliability
Describe limitations
Answer reviewers’ questions before they are asked!

69. # 8: Key personnel
Describe the people that will help to make decisions in how the project is carried out.
Provide a description of their background, training, and expertise.
Highlight everyone’s accomplishments—this is not the time to be modest!

70. # 9: Facilities & resources
Describe where the project will be conducted.
Describe any special equipment or resources you will have access to.
Describe any special capabilities or experiences possessed by your agency to carry out the project.

71. # 10: Budget
Ask for the funds that you need to be successful, but do not pad your budget.
Be aware that proposal reviewers know how much things cost!
If you ask for too little money to do the work you propose, you will appear naïve and inexperienced.

72. # 11: Time lines
Sponsored project activities can take longer than anticipated.
Do not propose to do too much in any given project period.
Develop a time line for the reviewer.

73. #12: Evaluation
Describe how you will find out if your project is working.
Describe how you will know if you have succeeded when the project is over.
Describe how you will adjust your procedures and timelines to deal with real life events.
Tell the proposal reviewers who will conduct the evaluation and review the information collected.

74. #13: Dissemination
Inform the proposal reviewers of the dissemination strategies that you will use and the audiences that will receive information on your findings.
Information about your project can be disseminated via articles in peer reviewed journals and presentations at professional conferences.

75. #14: Continuation funding
Sponsored Projects are of limited duration, e.g., 1 to 3 years
Plan your next project before the current project ends!

76. #15: Follow through
Keep your program officer in mind: send copies of all publications and media coverage related to your project.
Network with others: Look for ways to collaborate on future projects.