David B. Hannaway Professor of Crop Science & Forage Program Director Oregon State University

1. Fulbright Guest Lecture: Writing and Publishing English-language Journal Papers David B. Hannaway Professor of Crop Science & Forage Program Director Oregon State University 2012-2013 Fulbright Program ‘Distinguished Chair China’ Lecture materials adapted from: How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper 5th Edition by Robert A. Day ISBN10: 1573561657

2. Purpose….. To summarize information from Robert A. Day’s book “How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper” that will “help scientists and students …. to prepare manuscripts that will have a high probability of being accepted for publication and of being completely understood when they are published.” The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

3. Outline The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

4. Why is it necessary ? • The goal of scientific research is publication. • Scientists are measured, and become known (or remain unknown), by their publications. • A scientific experiment, no matter how spectacular the results, is not completed until the results are published. • A scientist must not only “do” science, but must also “write” science. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

5. What is a scientific paper? • A scientific paper is a written and published report describing original research results. • It must be written in a certain way and it must be published in a certain way. • A “valid publication” is a research report published in a primary journal. • Abstracts, theses, conference reports, etc. do not meet the test of a valid publication. • Nor do government report literature or conference literature. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

6. What is a scientific paper? (cont.) • A scientific publication is • the first publication of original research results, • in a form whereby peers of the author can repeat the experiments and test the conclusions, and • in a journal or other source document readily available within the scientific community (restated from the CBE Style Manual). The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

7. What is a scientific paper? (cont.) • It has specific Organization and sections • Distinctive and clearly evident component parts. • Each scientific paper should have, in proper order: Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, and Discussion. • “Good organization is the key to good writing.” The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

8. What is a scientific paper? (cont.) • Organization (continued) • What was the problem? Introduction • How did you study the problem? Materials and Methods • What did you find? Results • What do these findings mean? Discussion The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

9. What is a scientific paper? (cont.) • It has specific Language • A scientific paper is not “literature.” • “Grandiloquence has no place in scientific writing.” • Proper use of English is essential. • The best English is that which gives the sense in the fewest short words. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

10. What is a scientific paper? (cont.) • It has specific Language (continued) • “The Ph.D. in science can make journal editors quite happy with plain, unadorned, eighth-grade level composition.” (BioScience) The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

11. How to prepare the Title • The title will be read by thousands of people. • Few will read the entire paper. • What is a good title? “the fewest possible words that adequately describe the contents of the paper.” • Few titles are too short, many are too long. • Delete “waste words”: studies on, investigations on, observations on. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

12. How to prepare the Title (cont.) • What about: “Action of Antibiotics on Bacteria” ? • Is this a good title? • How would you change it? The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

13. How to prepare the Title (cont.) • What about: “Action of Antibiotics on Bacteria” ? • Did the study test the effect of all antibiotics on all kinds of bacteria? If not, is the title meaningful? • If only one or a few were tested, they should be listed. • If many, use a group name. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

14. How to prepare the Title (cont.) • What about: “Action of Antibiotics on Bacteria” ? • “Action of Streptomycin on Mycobacterium tuberculosis” • “Action of Various Antifungal Antibiotics on Candida albicansand Aspergillusfumigatus” Better ! The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

15. How to prepare the Title (cont.) • What about: “Action of Streptomycin on Mycobacterium tuberculosis” ? • Change “Action of” to more specific language ….. “Inhibition of Growth of Mycobacterium tuberculosis by Streptomycin.” Even Better ! (specific and clear) The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

16. How to prepare the Title (cont.) • The importance of syntax (word order). • Most of the grammatical errors in titles are due to faulty word order. • “Isolation of antigens from monkeys using complement-fixation techniques.” (What’s wrong with that title? Were the monkeys the ones using the lab techniques?) • Do not use abbreviations or jargon in titles. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

17. How to prepare the Title (cont.) • Avoid subtitles or hanging titles. (Example: “Studies on Bacteria. IV. Cell Wall of Staphylococcus aureus.”) The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

18. How to list the Authors • Sometimes this can be easy, sometimes not. • Issues of protocol and of promotion and tenure may be important. • No generally agreed upon rules or conventions. • In the past, the last position was reserved for the head of the laboratory (prestigious position). The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

19. How to list the Authors (cont.) • Now, the first, second, and third authors are important. • “Should” be in the order of the contribution to the work. • Include all who contribute “substantially” to the work. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

20. How to prepare the Abstract • A well-prepared abstract enables readers to identify the basic content of a paper and quickly and accurately determine its relevance. • The abstract should be a short description of the problem and its solution; not more than 250 words. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

21. How to prepare the Abstract (cont.) • The abstract should : (i) state the principal objectives and scope of the study, (ii) describe the methodology employed, (iii) summarize the results, and (iv) state the principal conclusions. • The abstract should never give any information or conclusion that is not stated in the paper. • References must not be cited. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

22. How to write the Introduction • Begin writing the paper while the work is still in progress (often the title and abstract are written last). • Start the writing while the experimental apparatus and materials are still available. • Write up the work while co-authors are still available for consultation. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

23. How to write the Introduction (cont.) • A good introduction should: (i) present first and with all possible clarity, the nature and scope of the problem, (ii) review the pertinent literature to orient the reader, (iii) state the method of the investigation and why it was chosen, (iv) state the principal results. • The introduction must gain the reader’s attention (why you chose that subject and why it’s important). • Cite previously published or related works. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

24. How to write the Materials & Methods Section • The Introduction stated the methodology employed. • The Materials and Methods section must give the full details to allow a competent worker to repeat the experiments. • The cornerstone of the scientific method requires that your results, to be of scientific merit, must be reproducible. • Specific sources, qualities, and capabilities of reagents must be presented. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

25. How to write the Materials & Methods Section (continued) • Precise descriptions of quantities used, measurements required, and temperatures observed must be given. • The usual order of presentation is chronological. • Pertinent references should be provided. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

26. How to write the Results • The purpose of the results section is two-fold: • To give an overall description of the experiments, providing the “big picture”, and • To provide the data resulting from application of the methods described earlier. • Present representative data, not endlessly repetitive data (“The fool collects facts; the wise person selects them”; John Wesley Powell, 1888). The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

27. How to write the Results (cont.) • It often is good to state what was not found under the conditions of your experiments (“…absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.”; Carl Sagan, 1977). • Present meaningful statistics and avoid redundancy. • Results section should be short and without verbiage [e.g. Nocillin inhibited the growth of N. gonorrhoeae (Table 1)]. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

28. How to write the Discussion • The Discussion section should show the relationship among observed facts: • Present the principles, relationships, and generalizations shown by the results. • Point out any exceptions or lack of correlation and define any unsettled points. • Show how your results and interpretations agree with or disagree with previously published works. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

29. How to write the Discussion (cont.) • Discuss any theoretical implications or practical applications of the results. • Reaffirm the major conclusions or findings. • Summarize the evidence for each conclusion. • End with a short summary of the significance of the work. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

30. How to cite the Literature • The paper should cite only significant, published references. • Other resources, if considered essential, should be used parenthetically or as a footnote in the text. • Check all parts of every reference against the original publication. • Never cite references from other works. • Obtain and study carefully every citation used in a publication. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

31. How to cite the Literature (cont.) • Far more mistakes occur in the Literature Cited section of the paper than elsewhere in papers. • Write out references in full (on 3X5 cards or electronically), then use the needed information for the journal being targeted. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

32. Summary • Why Is It Necessary? • The goal of scientific research is publication. • What Is a Scientific Paper? • A scientific paper is a written and published report describing original research results. • How to Prepare the Title • What is a good title? “the fewest possible words that adequately describe the contents of the paper.” The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

33. Summary (continued) • How to List the Authors • In order of importance to the experiments. • How to Prepare the Abstract • Short description of the problem and its solution; not more than 250 words. • How to Prepare the Introduction • Present the problem (nature and scope) • Review the pertinent literature • State the method of the investigation • State the principal results The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

34. Summary (continued) • How to write the Materials and Methods Section • Give the full details to allow a competent worker to repeat the experiments. • Give specific sources, qualities, and capabilities of reagents. • Provide precise descriptions of quantities used, measurements required, and temperatures observed. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

35. Summary (continued) • How to write the Results • The Results section should: • Give an overall description of the experiments, providing the “big picture.” • Provide the data resulting from application of the methods described earlier. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

36. Summary (continued) • How to Write the Discussion • The Discussion section should: • Show the relationship among observed facts. • Present the principles, relationships, and generalizations shown by the results. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

37. Summary (continued) • How to Cite the Literature • List only significant, published references. • Check, recheck, and recheck every reference against the original publication. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.

38. Selected References Day, Robert A. and Barbara Gastel. 2006. How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper, 6th Edition. ISBN10: 0313330409. Day, Robert A. 1998. How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper, 5th Edition ISBN10: 1573561657. Gary Dillard. The Scientific Paper. http://bioweb.wku.edu/courses/Biol398/Paper/paperText.html The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.