IntroductiontoJournalstylescientificwriting.docVIP

Introduction to Journal-Style Scientific Writing [ Table of Contents ] [ PDF Version ] | Get Your Thoughts Organized | Who is Your Audience? | Prose and Style | Abbreviations and Tense |First vs. Third Person | Use Active Verbs | References | Plagiarism Overview A critical aspect of the scientific process is the reporting of new results in scientific journals in order to disseminate that information to the larger community of scientists. Communication of your results contributes to the pool of knowledge within your discipline (and others!) and very often provides information that helps others interpret their own experimental results. Most journals accept papers for publication only after peer review by a small group of scientists who work in the same field and who recommend the paper be published (usually with some revision). The format and structure presented here is a general one; the various scientific journals, and oftentimes specific disciplines, utilize slightly different formats and/or writing styles. Mastery of the format presented here will enable you to adapt easily to most journal- or discipline-specific formats. While this guide (a others like it) is a necessary tool of learning the scientific writing style and format, it is not sufficient, by itself, to make you an accomplished writer. This guide will not teach you how to write in the English language, i.e., it is not a grammar book. You, the writer, must practice writing and thinking within this structure, and, learn by example from the writings of others; learning the nuances of this style and format will be enhanced as you read the scientific literature - pay attention to how professional scientists write about their work. You will see improvement in your own scientific writing skills by repeatedly practicing reading, writing, and critiquing of other’s writing. Top of Page The guide addresses four major aspects of writing journal-style scientific papers: (1) fundamental style considerations; (2