Writing the Research Paper

1. Writing the Research Paper notes from: Cathy Wrenn and Laura Enstrom for Mrs. Ditkowsky’s Chemistry Classes.

2. Plagiarism • Copying someone’s words or ideas, without giving credit to the person to whom credit is due.

3. You are writing new insights about your experiences. You are using an editorial from your school’s newspaper with which you disagree. You use some info. from a source without ever quoting it directly. You have no other way of expressing the exact meaning without using the original source verbatim. You mention that many people in your discipline belong to a certain organization. You want to begin your paper with a story that one of your classmates told about her experiences in Bosnia. The quote you want to use is too long, so you leave out a couple of phrases. You really like the particular phrase somebody else made up, so you use it. You found a chart on the Web and add it to your science paper. You are adding information that you think your readers already know. no yes yes yes no yes yes yes yes no When do you cite references? This is your own idea. This is includes information which is not your own idea. This is not your own idea. This is not your own idea. This is your own idea. Unless you use hard data. This is your own idea. Unless you use hard data. This is your own idea. Unless you use hard data. This is your own idea. Unless you use hard data. This is your own idea. Unless you use hard data. This is your own idea. Unless you use hard data.

4. Sources: • You must reference any source that is not your own original ideas or common knowledge. • If someone else said or wrote it, reference it!

5. Intro-Paragraph A = Attention Grabber  Question (How? Why? What?) ex: How can mold, which is disgusting, be so important?  Description (Set the scene) ex: The green fuzzy substance clumped on top of the bread…. ex: The electrons flow quickly over the surface of the iron atoms, flitting gracefully past the positively charged nuclei.  Quote CHOOSE ONE for the first sentence or two. B = Background  Brief History (2-3 sentences max) Give the facts so the reader can understand your paper. Clear Thesis = In one sentence, what are you going to talk about? Put your own personality into this! Intro Paragraph should be 5 – 7 sentences.

6. Example: How does coffee affect your blood pressure? • Attention Grabber: • Everyone needs a cup of Jo in the morning. • Background information • What are the active ingredients of coffee. • What is caffeine, and how does it affect the body/people. • What is blood pressure • Clear Thesis statement • Main subject + opinion • Coffee is bad for you because it increases your heart rate.

7. Sample Paragraph Attention Grabber. Shocking information. Americans spend seven billion dollars per year on bottled water. Is this money well spent? Bottled water is labeled as cleaner and healthier. However, consumers have no way to determine if this is fact or fiction. This paper will investigate the contents of bottled water versus the validity of the manufacturer’s label. It is hypothesized that bottled water is nothing more than expensive tap water. The following three literature reviews attempt to demonstrate and support the hypothesis. Background This is the point of the essay. The thesis! This is optional.

8. How should you organize the rest of the essay? • Importance • Chronological • Cause and effect. Most important information first followed by other interesting information. Oldest information first Causes first, followed by effects. Choose one, stick to it.

9. Conclusion • You need to conclude: • What did the research tell you. • How does this focus you for your experiment. • What did you learn….