Introduction to Scientific Writing

1. Lecture #1 Introduction to Scientific Writing 20 August 2007

2. Lecture schedule LectureDateTime 1. Introduction to scientific writing 8/20 9:00-10:20 2. How to write a scientific paper in English 8/20 15:00-16:20 3. Earth structure and plate tectonics 8/21 9:00-11:00 4. Circulation of the atmosphere 8/21 13:00-15:00 5. Water and ocean structure 8/22 10:00-11:00 6. Continental margins and ocean basins 8/22 13:00-15:00 7. Sediment 8/23 10:00-11:00 8. Marine resources 8/23 13:00-14:00 9. Circulation of the ocean 8/24 11:00-12:30

3. Introduction to Scientific Writing 1) Writing guides and websites 2) Why study English? 3) Sentence structure 4) Paragraphs 5) Sentences 6) General rules 7) The #1 rule to help improve your English Major problems Minor problems

4. Writing guides and websites Good books about writing scientific English: TITLE: Scientific English: A Guide for Scientists and other Professionals (2nd ed.) AUTHOR: Robert A. Day TITLE: How to Write & Publish a Scientific Paper (6th ed.) AUTHOR: Robert A. Day

5. Useful Web sites about writing: Writer’s Handbook: Scientific Reports http://www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/ScienceReport.html A guide to grammar and style http://newark.rutgers.edu/%7Ejlynch/Writing/contents.html Grammar, Punctuation, and Spelling http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/grammar/index.html Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary http://www.m-w.com/ A Dictionary of Units of Measurement http://www.unc.edu/%7Erowlett/units/index.html

6. Writing guides and websites Another helpful resource: StudyCom English for Internet <http://www.study.com> - free English classes!

7. Introduction to Scientific Writing 1) Writing guides and websites 2) Why study English?

8. Why study English? • English is the universal language, especially in science. • For scientists, • English is the only language.

9. Susumu Tonegawa Nobel Prize for Medicine - 1987

10. Why study English? After he won the Nobel Prize, Susumu Tonegawa wrote his colleagues in Japan and told them: “Learn English!”

11. Why study English? Susumu Tonegawa also wrote: “We should consider changing our thinking process in the field of science by trying to reason in English.” He feels that all scientists should communicate in English.

12. English is a complicated language with a large vocabulary. • English was originally a Germanic language, related to Dutch and German. • But after the Norman Conquest in 1066, many French and Latin words entered the language.

13. Origin of modern English words: • French 28.3% • Latin 28.2% • Anglo-Saxon, Old Norse, and Dutch 25% • Greek 5% • Proper names 3% • All other languages <1% But if you follow several simple rules, writing scientific English is not that difficult.

14. Introduction to Scientific Writing 1) Writing guides and websites 2) Why study English? 3) Sentence structure

15. Sentence Structure • Readers expect certain types of information to occur in particular places in a scientific paper. • One of the biggest problems in professional writing is misplacement of information in a sentence.

16. Sentence structure Subject – Verb – ObjectEnglish, Chinese, Thai English: I eatsquid. Thai: Pŏmtaanbplaa-mùk.

17. Sentence structure Subject – Verb – Object English, Chinese, Thai Subject – Object – VerbJapanese, Korean, Hindi 私はイカを食べます。 Sentence 私 は イカ を 食べます。 Words Watashi wa ika 　 o tabemasu. Romaji I squid eat Parts Subject Object Verb I eat squid. Translation

18. Sentence structure Subject – Verb – Object English, Chinese, Thai Subject – Object – Verb Japanese, Korean, Hindi These two patterns account for >75% of the world's languages.

19. Sentence structure Subject – Verb – Object English, Chinese, Thai Subject – Object – Verb Japanese, Korean, Hindi Verb – Subject – Object Gaelic, Tagalog, Hawaiian Verb – Object – Subject Malagasy, Fijian Object – Subject – Verb rare Object – Verb – Subject very rare

20. Sentence Structure • Two tips to help make your sentences clearer: • The verb should follow the subject as soon as possible. • Subject – Verb – Object

21. 1. The hawksbill turtle, after it lays eggs at the Similan Islands, returns to the sea. 2. The hawksbill turtle returns to the sea after it lays eggs at the Similan Islands.

22. Subject - Verb 1. The hawksbill turtle, after it lays eggs at the Similan Islands, returns to the sea. 2. The hawksbill turtlereturns to the sea after it lays eggs at the Similan Islands. #2 is better than #1.

23. 1. Scientists track sea turtles using satellite tags. 2. Scientists, using satellite tags, track sea turtles. 3. Using satellite tags, scientiststrack sea turtles.

24. Subject Verb Object 1. Scientiststracksea turtles using satellite tags. 2. Scientists, using satellite tags, tracksea turtles. 3. Using satellite tags, scientiststracksea turtles. #1 and #3 are better than #2. But what is the difference between #1 and #3?

25. Sentence Structure – Tip #2 Paragraph A: The Bay of Bangkok was my study area. Seven species of fishes were collected in the bay. Three types of zooplankton were fed on by the fishes. Copepods were the most abundant zooplankton prey. Paragraph B: My study area was the Bay of Bangkok . In the bay, I collected seven species of fishes. The fishes fed on three types of zooplankton. The most abundant zooplankton prey were copepods.

26. Sentence Structure Tip #2 Readers naturally emphasize the material that arrives at the end of a sentence. We refer to this location as the “stress position”. Thus, the writer should put new information at the end of the sentence.

27. Short, simple, familiar OLD INFORMATION Long, complex, new NEW INFORMATION . • Sentence Structure Tip #2 • Begin sentences with information familiar to your readers. • End sentences with new/complicated information you want the reader to emphasize. Put new information at the end.

28. Where is the new information in each sentence? PARAGRAPH A The Bay of Bangkok was my study area. Seven species of fishes were collected in the bay. Three types of zooplankton were fed on by the fishes. Copepods were the most abundant zooplankton prey.

29. Where is the new information in each sentence? PARAGRAPH A The Bay of Bangkok was my study area. Seven species of fishes were collected in the lake. Three types of zooplankton were fed on by the fishes. Copepods were the most abundant zooplankton prey. PARAGRAPH B My study area was the Bay of Bangkok . In the bay, we collected seven species of fishes. The fishes fed on three types of zooplankton. The most abundant zooplankton prey were copepods.

30. PARAGRAPH B My study area was the Bay of Bangkok . In the bay, we collected seven species of fishes. The fishes fed on three types of zooplankton. The most abundant zooplankton prey were copepods.

31. “Scientists track sea turtles using satellite tags.” “Using satellite tags, scientiststrack sea turtles.” Which is better?

32. Example 1: Scientists use electronic tags to study animal migration. One type of tag now used is called a “satellite tag”. A or B. A. Scientists track sea turtles using satellite tags. B. Using satellite tags, scientists track sea turtles. ?

33. Example 1: Scientists use electronic tags to study animal migration. One type of tag now used is called a “satellite tag”. A or B. A. Scientists track sea turtles using satellite tags. B. Using satellite tags, scientists track sea turtles.

34. Example 1: Where is the new information? Scientists use electronic tags to study animal migration. One type of tag now used is called an “satellite tag”. A. Scientists track sea turtles using satellite tags. B.Using satellite tags, scientists track sea turtles.

35. Example 2: Some sea turtles migrate long distances. These migrations are being tracked by scientists around the world. A or B. A. The scientists track sea turtles using satellite tags. B. Using satellite tags, the scientists track sea turtles. ?

36. Example 2: Some sea turtles migrate long distances. These migrations are being tracked by scientists around the world. A or B. A. The scientists track sea turtles using satellite tags. B. Using satellite tags, the scientists track sea turtles.

37. Example 2: Where is the new information? Some sea turtles migrate long distances. These migrations are being tracked by scientists around the world. A. The scientists track sea turtles using satellite tags. B. Using satellite tags,the scientists track sea turtles.

38. Introduction to Scientific Writing 1) Writing guides and websites 2) Why study English? 3) Sentence structure 4) Paragraphs

39. Paragraphs • The paragraph is an essential way of organizing ideas in English. • If a paper is not well structured with paragraphs, it can be very hard for the reader to follow the flow of ideas. Paragraph comprises two parts: Issue + Discussion

40. The Issue is analogous to the topic. • It is usually 1-3 sentences long. The Discussion explains or supports what the writer stated in the issue. • Readers will feel that a paragraph is coherent if they can read a sentence that specifically articulates its point. • topic sentence • In scientific writing, this sentence should come at the beginning of the paragraph • usually at the end of the Issue

41. Here is a paragraph about fisheries management (Pikitch et al., 2004). Note how the topic sentence summarizes the paragraph: Fisheries management to date has often been ineffective; it focuses on maximizing the catch of a single target species and often ignores habitat, predators, and prey of the target species and other ecosystem components and interactions. The indirect social and economic costs of the focus on single species can be substantial. For example, over 90% of the annual mortality of white marlin, a species petitioned for listing under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, occurs through incidental catch in swordfish and tuna longline fisheries. This threatens a recreational fishing industry worth up to U.S.$2 billion annually.

42. How long should a paragraph be? • it can be as short as one sentence or as long as it has to be. Just remember that each paragraph should contain only one developed idea. One paragraph = One idea/topic. When you change topics, start a new paragraph.

43. Introduction to Scientific Writing 1) Writing guides and websites 2) Why study English? 3) Sentence structure 4) Paragraphs 5) Sentences

44. General rules 1. Verb tense In scientific writing, three tenses are normally used: 1) present tense 2) past tense 3) present perfect tense The use of present or past forms of verbs has a very special meaning in scientific papers.

45. 1) Use present tense when a fact has been published. Streptomycin stops the growth of tuberculosis (Smith, 1980). Several reports describe similar findings (Jones et al. 2005).  Larger cod females produce larger eggs (Kjesbu, 1989).

46. 2) Use the past tense for unpublished results. Fish larvae grew best at 21oC. But if you are citing the results of a previous study, use present tense: Fish larvae grow best at 21oC (Smith, 1978).

47. 3) Use present perfect tense for repeated events Nesting behavior has been studied under many environmental conditions. These drugs have been shownto produce significant elevations in blood pressure.

48. 4) Use present tense to refer readers to your figures and tables Figure 1 showsthat … Table 1 shows that … Summary 1) Established knowledge – present tense 2) Results of your paper – past tense 3) Presentation – present tense

49. This means that you will use both past and present tense in your paper 1) Abstract – past tense 2) Introduction – present tense 3) Methods – past tense 4) Results – past tense 5) Discussion – both past and present

50. 2. Agreement of subject and verb. • The number of the verb must agree with the number of the subject. • INCORRECT: An evaluation of the experimental results, as well as the clinical findings, aredescribed. • CORRECT: An evaluation of the experimental results, as well as the clinical findings, is described.