General Writing - Flow

1. General Writing - Flow • When writing doesn’t flow • Try rewriting • Do you have a topic sentence? • Did you have an outline? • Explain to the reader • “In this section we describe …” • “Now we address the issue of …” • Put in a (sub)section break

2. Examples Recent improvements in the capabilities of autonomous robots have led to robots that are capable of solving a range of problems. Recent improvements in autonomous robots’ capabilities have led to robots capable of solving a range of problems.

3. General Writing - Lists • Use lists • List of alternate methods • List of tested algorithms • List of conclusions • List, then describe each in detail • Same order • Leave none out • Lists don’t have to look like lists

4. General Writing - Lists We make controlled comparisons of several algorithms using the same data sets and parameters to determine which algorithm is the most efficient. Bubble sort is a sorting algorithm that consecutively orders each pair in the list. It makes repeated passes through the list until no changes are made. The Iris data set consists of measurements from 150 irises (flowers)… The E. coli data set … Quick sort … Heap sort …

5. General Writing - Lists We make controlled comparisons of three sorting algorithms (bubble, heap, and quick sort) using the same two data sets (Iris and E. coli) and the same parameters to determine which algorithm is the most efficient. Bubble sort consecutively orders each pair in the list. It makes repeated passes through the list until no changes are made. … Heap Sort … Quick Sort … The Iris data set … The E. coli data set …

6. General Writing - Lists • Assuming you summarize (list) the major results in abstract/intro. • Use the same terms (and order) in describing results • Use the same terms (and order) in conclusion

7. General Writing – Visual Cues • Sections • Subsections • Bold • Don’t overdo it