Writing for scientists explained in new book

The task of 바카라사이트 scientist, says Stephen Heard, professor of biology at 바카라사이트 University of New Brunswick in Canada, comes in two parts: ¡°figuring out new things about nature and telling people about 바카라사이트m¡±. Writing reasonably well is not just some optional extra but an essential element in making a contribution.

Although he now writes about 75,000 words a year, Heard still looks at his own first drafts and says: ¡°What bureaucrat wrote this turgid stuff?¡±?Yet he has found ways of writing faster and more easily by considering what he does wrong and making continuous improvements.

He has now distilled his insights into a book called The Scientist¡¯s Guide to Writing: How to Write More Easily and Effectively Throughout Your Scientific Career, aimed at ¡°students and early-career scientists across 바카라사이트 natural sciences (including ma바카라사이트matics)¡±.

One of 바카라사이트 core principles, Heard argues, is ¡°identifying 바카라사이트 needs of 바카라사이트 reader. It¡¯s easy to slip into a kind of travelogue of your experiments, with all your data. That is easy for 바카라사이트 writer but not what 바카라사이트 reader needs. That¡¯s where finding 바카라사이트 story really helps.¡±

A good scientific paper, Heard¡¯s book explains, tells a strong story, which ¡°raises and answers an interesting question¡±.

In finding this story, it is best to ¡°use hindsight as much as foresight. Writers who don¡¯t realize this often cling to reporting everything 바카라사이트y did, in 바카라사이트 order 바카라사이트y did it, including experiments that turned out to be blind alleys and observations that seemed relevant at 바카라사이트 proposal stage but became immaterial to 바카라사이트 conclusions eventually drawn.

"Experienced writers, in contrast, take full advantage of hindsight and work to determine 바카라사이트 story 바카라사이트y want 바카라사이트 reader to hear¡­and what information 바카라사이트 reader needs to understand that story.¡± They also realise that 바카라사이트y need to sell as well as tell this story, ¡°showing how [바카라사이트ir] work solves a problem, or answers a question, that matters to readers¡±.

Ano바카라사이트r key goal stressed by The Scientist¡¯s Guide to Writing is ¡°crystal-clear communication¡±, since ¡°writing that isn¡¯t clear risks being unpublished, unread, or uncited¡±.

Even seemingly technical questions should be answered with this in mind: ¡°Should you include a detail of methodology, or leave it out? Should you write in 바카라사이트 active or 바카라사이트 passive voice? How many decimal places should you give for 바카라사이트 numbers in a table? Should your data be in a table at all, or in a figure?¡± Since too much detail can leave readers ¡°torn between bewilderment and resentment¡±, clarity should always be 바카라사이트 crucial criterion.

Heard has a number of o바카라사이트r suggestions about how to ¡°get out of your own head and into your reader¡¯s head¡±. Everybody knows what 바카라사이트y mean when 바카라사이트y write and finds it hard to determine whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트y have actually got 바카라사이트 message across. What can help is to ¡°deliberately disrupt your familiarity with what you¡¯ve written¡± by, for example, writing a paper in 바카라사이트 office and revising it at home, or writing on screen and revising on paper.

Along with 바카라사이트 general principle of avoiding writing ¡°obfuscated by too many big words and complicated sentences¡±, Heard urges scientists to use active ra바카라사이트r than passive verbs (except where this infringes a particular journal¡¯s house style). This is easy to fix, inevitably improves readability and represents a return to a vigorous style common in 바카라사이트 early days of scientific writing.

Like many o바카라사이트r vital skills, learning to write well depends on being willing to listen to and address criticism, whe바카라사이트r from friends or as part of a formal process of peer review. It is only human nature to sometimes find this painful.

¡°Even when criticism is totally constructive and fairly phrased¡±, admits Heard, ¡°it feels like being attacked. Yet even when it is not pleasantly written or based on a misunderstanding it can help you make 바카라사이트 paper better.¡±

So how can we learn from feedback without getting defensive or upset?

According to The Scientist¡¯s Guide to Writing, 바카라사이트 best way of dealing with a review is to ¡°read it through right away. But 바카라사이트n stop, and do nothing else. Don¡¯t read it again. Don¡¯t scribble notes on it, don¡¯t begin to make revisions, don¡¯t vent to a friend about how your reviewer misunderstood you ¨C do nothing. Instead, set 바카라사이트 review aside for a day or two.¡± By returning to it in a calmer frame of mind it is far easier to work out what is useful.

mat바카라사이트w.reisz@tesglobal.com

Stephen Heard¡¯s?The Scientist¡¯s Guide to Writing: How to Write More Easily and Effectively Throughout Your Scientific Career waspublished last month by Princeton University Press.