180 likes | 327 Views
Lab Safety in SAFS. Exits Eyewash and safety shower Proper clothing Emergency situations Behavior in lab and on field trips Animal Use Certification Clean workspace. Reading & Writing Scientific Papers. FISH 210. Lab Overview. Paper writing
E N D
Lab Safety in SAFS • Exits • Eyewash and safety shower • Proper clothing • Emergency situations • Behavior in lab and on field trips • Animal Use Certification • Clean workspace
Reading & Writing Scientific Papers FISH 210
Lab Overview • Paper writing - What is the purpose of scientific writing? - Basic components of a scientific paper? - Common mistakes - Paper guidelines for Fish 210 • Using the library - Resources available at UW - How to find primary literature • Paper review - Discussion on how to be critical of a paper - Review an assigned paper in groups
What is the purpose of scientific writing? • Create a concise manuscript that cleanly presents & interprets your research. • Relay how findings are both unique & important. • Clearly define scope of work (You are not trying to win the Noble Prize with your undergradute or graduate thesis paper) • What is scientific literature? - peer reviewed papers, not popular literature, theses, textbooks, internet sites (typically), etc.
Title Abstract Introduction Materials & Methods Results Discussion Literature Cited Typical format of most peer reviewed journals. However, some do not follow this format! Basic Components of Scientific Papers
Title • Descriptive, informative & short (10-12 words). • Make objective of study clear & include key words • titles used by library search engines & retrieval systems. • Should NOT confuse reader with knowledge in your field (like these guys).
Abstract • Provide enough information to enable reader to determine: • What you did • How you did it • Your major results • The significance of results • People read quickly to assess relevance & quality of paper. • Difficult to write & should be written after the rest of the paper.
Introduction • Provides a context for your research • Motivate the reader & review the relevant literature • End Introduction with clearly defined hypothesis being tested & focused objectives of study • (<-- Avoid this man)
Materials & Methods • Should make research reproducible • Detail experimental design • Describe equipment used • Define formulas and symbols • Identify statistical approach • Do not simply list your protocol, write it out if possible
Results • Introduce the principle findings. • Present tables and figures in this section. • Include descriptions of important numbers, as well as the results of any statistical tests. • Example: “There was a significant difference in the volume of the mascot animals (t = 2.21, p = 0.001). West Coast mascots were twice as large as East coast mascots (Fig. 1).” • Do NOT mix Results & Discussion
Discussion • Structured like pyramid. • Specific findings to broader context • Describe meaning of findings • What is the story of data? • Interpret, draw conclusions from, & discuss significance of results • Acknowledge speculation • Mention additional hypotheses developed from results & suggestions for future studies
Literature Cited • This section should list references • only those used in paper • mostly in introduction & discussion. • Cite articles within body of paper in two ways: • 1) Jones et al. (1987) found strong evidence for a relationship between depth and diet. • 2) A relationship between depth and diet has been demonstrated in several pelagic fishes (Jones et al. 1987).
Common MistakesSignificantly erode the quality of your paper • Avoid cliches like the plague - they are old hat. • Parenthetical remarks (however appropriate) are (usually) unnecessary. • Also too, never use repetitive redundancies. • No sentence fragments. • Do not be redundant; do not use more words than you have to; it is highly superfluous. • Don't use no double negatives. • One word sentences? Eliminate. • Eliminate commas, that are, not necessary. • Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement. • And finally, proffread carefully to see if you any words out.
Paper Guidelines for Fish 210 • Format paper after Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (CJFAS). • Minimum of 10 pages, typed, double-spaced text • NOT including title pages, figures, tables, references, etc.). • Minimum of 10 relevant references, NOT including e-reserve. • mixture of peer-reviewed primary research and grey literature articles. • Limit abstract to 200 words. • Figures & tables NOT embedded in the text. • Literature Cited formatted as in CJFAS. This title is available online. • Generally, use the past tense when writing scientific papers. • If you have ANY questions, ask us instead of writing a poor paper.
Recommendation for Success Robert Day’s book “How to write and publish a scientific paper” Oryx Press, 5th edition
Paper Review • Discussion on how to be critical of a paper • Review the assigned paper in groups • Reconvene as group to discuss