Writing Scientific Report ( Topic 10)

1. Writing Scientific Report(Topic 10)

2. Meaning of Research Report: • Research report writing is the written presentation of the evidence and the findings in such detail and form as to be readily understood and accessed by the reader and as to enable him to verify the validity of the conclusions..

3. Characteristics of Good Report • Attractive • Clear Topic • Balanced Language • No repetition of facts • Statement of scientific facts • Practicability • Description of the difficulties and the shortcomings

4. Typical Report Structure • Executive Summary – “Aim” & “Audience” • Title page • Abstract/summary • Introduction • Methodology • Findings/results • Analysis and discussion • Summary and conclusions • Recommendations • References/bibliography • Appendices

5. Title • Describe contents clearly and precisely • Provide key works for indexing • Avoid wasted words • (i.e., “an investigation of”) • Avoid abbreviations and jargon • Convey subject seriousness; no “cute” titles

6. Abstract • Convey whole report in miniature, minus specific details • State main objectives • Describe methods • Summarize most important results • State major conclusions and their significance • Do not include references to figures, tables, or sources • Do not include info not in report

7. Introduction • What is the problem? • Why is it important? • What solution (or step toward a solution) do you propose? • Move from general to specific examples • Engage your reader / audience • Make the information links clear • Be selective about your citations

8. Methods • How did you study the problem? • What did you use? (materials) • How did you proceed? (methods/procedures) • Provide enough detail for study replication • Order procedures by type or chronology • Use past tense • Quantify when possible • Do not mix results with procedures

9. Results • What did you observe? • Briefly describe experiment • Report main result(s) supported by selected data • Order multiple results logically • (i.e., “most to least important; simple to complex; etc”.) • Use past tense • Do not simply repeat table data; select key info • Do not interpret results • Avoid extra words

10. Discussion • What do your observations mean? • What conclusions can you draw? • How do your results fit into a broader context? • Summarize the most important findings • Move from specific discussion to general • Make explanations complete • Do not over-generalize • Do not ignore deviations in your data • Avoid speculation that cannot be tested in foreseeable future

11. Appendices (Tables and Figures) • Tablesare referred to as “tables”, and all other items (graphs, photographs, drawings, diagrams, maps, etc.) are referred to as “figures” • Tables and figures are assigned numbers in the order they are mentioned in the text • Tables and figures are numbered independently of each other • (i.e., “Table 1 then 2; and Figure 1 then 2, regardless of Table / Figure order”)

12. Appendices (Tables and Figures) • Tables are labeled at the top and figures at the bottom. • Tables and figures may be placedat theend of the paper, or withinthetext as soon as possible after they are mentioned without interrupting the text • i.e., “at the end of a paragraph or section”. • Check with your supervisors for their preference.

13. Appendices (Tables and Figures) • Each table or figure MUST be introduced within the text, and the comment should point out thehighlights: • e.g., “The temperature increased on the third day (Figure 1)”. • All tables and figures MUST be numbered and have self-explanatory titles so that the reader can understand their content without the text: • e.g., “Table 1. Percent of soybean plants exhibiting visible injury after exposure to acid precipitation”.

14. Systematic Approach to Writing • Aim • Audience • Clarity of Writing • Supporting Material • Language and Style • Consistency of Format

15. Scientific Report Writing Overview Aim • The main purpose of a scientific report is to communicate • A report should convey essential information and ideas as concisely and effectively as possible • Precise formats vary by discipline and scientific journal; treat them as flexible guidelines that enable clear communication

16. Scientific Report Writing Aim • The main purpose of a scientific report is to communicate • A typical structure and style have evolved to convey essential information and ideas as concisely and effectively as possible • Precise formats vary by discipline and scientific journal, but always treat them as flexible guidelines that enable clear communication

17. Scientific Report Writing Overview Audience • Assume that your intended reader has a background similar to yours before you started the project • The reader has general understanding of the topic but no specific knowledge of the details • The reader should be able to reproduce whatever you did by following your report

18. Scientific Report Writing Audience • Assume that your intended reader has a background similar to yours before you started the project • The reader has general understanding of the topic but no specific knowledge of the details • The reader should be able to reproduce whatever you did by following your report

19. Scientific Report Writing Clarity of Writing • Good scientific reports share many of the qualities found in other kinds of writing • To write is to think; a paper that lays out ideas in a logical order will facilitate same kind of thinking • Make each sentence follow from the previous one, building an argument piece by piece • Group related sentences into paragraphs, and group paragraphs into sections • Create a flow from beginning to end

20. Scientific Report Writing Supporting Materials • Use figures, tables, data, equations, etc. to help tell the story as it unfolds • Refer to them directly in the text, and integrate the points they make into your writing • Number figures and tables sequentially as they are introduced • (e.g., “Figure 1, Figure 2, etc., with another sequence for Table 1, Table 2, etc.”)

21. Scientific Report Writing Supporting Materials (continued) • Provide captions with complete information and not just a simple title • Label all axes and include units • Insert a figure or table after the paragraph in which it is first mentioned, or, gather all supporting material together after the reference section (before any appendices)

22. Scientific Report Writing Language and Style • The report should be grammatically sound, with correct spelling, and generally free of errors • Avoid jargon, slang, or colloquial terms • Define acronyms and any abbreviations not used as standard measurement units • Most of the report describes what you did, and thus it should be in the past tense, but use present or futuretense as appropriate. • Employ the active rather than passive voice to avoid boring writing and contorted phrases

23. Scientific Report Writing Consistency of Terms • Within the report, the exact format of particular items is less important than consistency of application. • i.e., “if you indent paragraphs, indent them all” • “use a consistent style of headings throughout” • “write "%" or "percent”, do not mix them, etc.” • Establish a template and stick to it. • Consult real journal papers for examples.

24. Author behaviour Want to publish more Peer review essential Other journal functions crucial Wider dissemination Reader behaviour Want integrated system Browsing is crucial Quality information important Want to read less Author versus Reader Behaviour

25. Structure of thesis Generally, a research report, whether it is called dissertation or thesis 1) The Preliminary i.e. preface pages 2) The text of the report / Main body of the report 3) The Reference material.

26. Preliminary Section • Title page • Certification • Candidate Declaration • Preface including Acknowledgements • Table of Content • List of Tables • List of figures • List of Abbreviation

27. Chapter 1- Introduction 1.0 Introduction 1.1 Background of the study 1.2 Problem Statement 1.3 Purpose and objective of the study 1.4 Research Questions 1.5 Significant of the study 1.6 Conclusion

28. Writing prompts for the introduction • What kind of problem did you work on? • Why did you work on this problem? • What should the reader know or understand when he/she is finished reading the report?

29. Chapter 2: Literature Review 2.0 Introduction 2.1 Body of the literature 2.1.1 General area of research 2.1.2 Underlying theory 2.1.3 Variables used from previous literature 2.2 Theoretical Framework 2.3 Hypotheses 2.4 Conclusion

30. Chapter 3 – Research Methodology 3.0 Introduction 3.1 Research Design 3.2 Variable and Measurement 3.3 Questionnaire design 3.4 Population and Sample 3.5 Scope of the study 3.6 Data analysis method 3.6.1 Goodness of data 3.6.2 Inferential analysis 3.7 Conclusion

31. Writing prompts for methods • How was the experiment designed? • On what subjects or materials was the experiment performed? • How were the subjects/materials prepared? • What machinery/equipment was used? • What sequence of events did you follow as you handled the subjects/materials or as you recorded the data?

32. Chapter 4- Data Collection, Data Analysis 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Goodness of Measure 4.2.1 Representativeness of data 4.2.2 Validity test 4.2.3 Reliability test 4.3 Inferential analysis 4.3.1 Descriptive analysis 4.3.2 Test of difference 4.3.3 Test of relationship • Correlation analysis • Hypothesis testing 4.4 Conclusion

33. Writing prompts for Results • What are your results? • Is the data presented so results are clear, logical and self-explanatory? • What is the main point – what ties results together?

34. Chapter 5-Discussion & Conclusion 5.1 Recapitulation of major findings 5.2 Discussion 5.3 Implication 5.3.1 Theoretical Implication 5.3.2 Practical Implication 5.4 Limitation 5.5 Recommendation for future research 5.6 Conclusion

35. Writing prompts for discussion section • Analysis • What do the results indicate clearly? • What are the sources of error? • How do the results compare to the theory/hypothesis? • Interpretation • What is the significance of the results? • How do you justify that interpretation? • Suggested improvements for future research?