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Seminar II

Seminar II. 242-702 , Semester 1 , 2014-2015. Objective s tips on improving writing style and the look of the report. 3. Writing Tips. 1. Figures and Tables. Every figure/table must have a caption Every figure/table must be explained.

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Seminar II

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  1. Seminar II 242-702, Semester 1, 2014-2015 • Objectives • tips on improving writing style and the look of the report. 3. Writing Tips

  2. 1. Figures and Tables • Every figure/table must have a caption • Every figure/table must be explained. • Figure/tables must be located just after the paragraph where they are explained.

  3. Example

  4. Format of a Figure • 1. One sentence before the figure. • 2. The figure, with a one-sentence caption: Figure 1. This is a Capitalized Caption. • 3. Several sentences after the figure, explaining it all.

  5. In the text, always explain every figure. • use "Figure 1", not "fig1", "F1", etc. • The figure diagram must be big enough, and clear enough, to read all the text on it. • it's best to draw figures yourself • use PowerPoint, then paste into Word

  6. A Bad Figure Diagram

  7. 2. Grammar and Spelling • Always check your own writing. • Ask a friend to look at your writing. • Your supervisor will read your report • do not expect your supervisor to correct all the errors in your writing

  8. Their is know hope offrecovered your stolen bicycle hole. There is no hope of recovering your stolen bicycle whole. wrong right • Spell checkers • very useful but not 100% reliable, e.g.: • Grammar checkers • a bit useful, poor reliablity

  9. Helpful Books • A English-Thai/Thai-English dictionary • A bigger English dictionary • to look up hard words • A thesaurus • to find alternative words

  10. 3. Writing Style • Use simple (plain) language/grammar. • Use familiar words. • Write short, simple sentences.

  11. Un-Plain Language Each person to whom this request is herein addressed is henceforth solicited to submit, or to have his or her department representative submit, to the appropriate Minister’s office as described above, a comment on whether the proposed plan, in his or her considered view, meets the requirements of the new law. Two (2) or more suchpersons may join in a single comment.

  12. Better: • You may wish to comment on whether the proposed plan meets the requirements of the new law. • Even Better: • Does the plan agree with the law?

  13. Use Familiar Words • Bad: • Please utilize the correct operational parameters to complete the task. • Better: • Please follow the directions.

  14. Eliminate Repetition • Bad: • Workers will be able to add two additional workers to help the three previously hired workers who make up the workers’ team. • Better: • Workers will be able to add two additional employees to help the three previously hired members who make up the team.

  15. Omit Boring Adverbs • Try to avoid the adverbs: • very • quite • definitely • completely • really

  16. Example • Bad: • Brokers are quite certain that these stocks are completely safe. • Better: • Brokers are certain that these stocks are safe.

  17. Avoid 'story' Style • Bad: • After we'd worked a long, hard eight hours in the lab, we realized... • We were so happy to make the discovery early one morning... • Better: • We realized... • We discovered...

  18. Other Style Issues • Do not start with "Nowadays...". • Do not start a sentence with "Because..." or "And..." • Write complete sentences, not Powerpoint bullets.

  19. 4. Jargon (technical words) • Only use jargon from textbooks and refereed articles. • not from computer magazines and web sites • If you use any unusual jargon, define it when you first use it.

  20. 5. Acronyms • Only use very common acronyms • e.g DVD, IBM, OS • Explain every unusual acronym when you first use it. • Do not invent your own acronyms. • Write acronyms in upper-case.

  21. IR is about searching a large collection of documents for those that are most relevant to a particular user query. IR is the basis of web search engines such as Google. A FAQ about IR is why so many search results are irrelevant. The basic answer to this FAQ is that relevance is a difficult concept for users to express and for computers to process efficiently. Information retrieval (IR) is about searching a large collection of documents for those that are most relevant to a particular user query. IR is the basis of web search engines such as Google. A frequently-asked question about IR is why so many search results are irrelevant. The basic answer to this question is that relevance is a difficult concept for users to express and for computers to process efficiently. bad better Example

  22. 6. Avoid Slang • Bad: • John asked his friend to mellow out. • Better: • John asked his friend to relax.

  23. 7. Avoid Clichés • Clichés are overused expressions (for native speakers). • Bad: • We had reached the end of our rope. • Better: • We had to stop.

  24. 8. Report Formatting • Use Times New Roman, 12pt font for text. • Use New Courier , 10 pt font for code • Headings should be in bold. • Number the pages.

  25. Each section should be numbered • e.g 2. Literature Review • Each sub-section should be numbered • e.g. 2.1. Information Retrieval • Do not number the "References" section.

  26. There must always be text between a section heading, and a sub-section. • Bad: 2. Literature Review 2.1. Information Retrieval • The text in between will be an overview or introduction to the sub-sections.

  27. A paragraph should be defined to have 6pt spacing after it's end • do not use a blank line to separate paragraphs • Each sentence must be separated by one blank space. • Each sentence must start with a capital letter.

  28. Avoid tabbing/indenting of text. • Write complete sentences, not bulletted points. • Do not "copy and paste" • Spell check at the end

  29. Never use underlining. • Very rarely use italics. • A title contains: • the title, your full name, e-mail address, date, your supervisor

  30. 5. Image Tools I Use • MS Picture Manager • export to PNG, clipping, resizing • MS Paint • erasing, basic touch-up • MS Powerpoint • drawing diagrams, grouping pictures into one • export a single slide as PNG

  31. PicPick (http://www.picpick.org) • taking screenshots, regions, basic editing • GIMP (http://www.gimp.org/) • advanced stuff (a free version of Photoshop) • selecting/cutting complicated shapes • adding transparency to PNGs

  32. Office Equation Editor • Alternative is MathCast (http://mathcast.sourceforge.net/home.html) • works with "doc" • a bit 'flakey' (in 2013)

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