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Effectively Communicating Your Research
Kyushu University Program for Leading Graduate Schools
Advance Graduate Course on Molecular Systems for Devices
9 January 2016
Andrew Jackson, PhD Trevor Lane, PhD Kate Harris, PhD
S
Be an effective communicator
Your goal is not only to publish, but also to be widely read and cited
Prepare well for academic publishing
Read effectively
Write your ideas clearly for your audience
Academic publishing
Section 1
Academic publishing Peer review process
Accepted—publication!
Editor Author
Peer review
Reject
Results novel? Topic relevant? Clear English? Properly formatted?
Revision • New experiments • Improve readability • Add information
Academic publishing How long does it take?
Submission Peer
review Revision Publication
~1 week 4–6 weeks 0–8 weeks ?
How can I make the process quicker?
3–12 months
• Seek language assistance • Follow author guidelines • Prepare cover letter • Recommend reviewers
• Fully revise manuscript • Contact editorial office if
there are any queries • Respond to all comments
• Evaluation • Finding
reviewers
Academic publishing
(over 2 years)
Increase impact
High quality research
What editors want
Impact factor
Number of citations
Number of citable items published
=
Academic publishing
Increase impact
High quality research
Logically organized; engages readership
Original and novel research
Well-designed, well reported,
transparent study News value, importance, timeliness
What editors want
High scientific & technical quality, sound
research/publication ethics
High readability & interest; clear, real-
world relevance
Academic publishing Meaning of journal impact
Conceptual results relevant to broad audience
Conceptual results relevant to specific audience
Small advance relevant to broad audience
Small advance relevant to specific audience
High Impact
Medium Impact
Low Impact
36.503
17.490
2.693
Check the journal’s Aims & Scope!
Activity 1
Please see Activity 1 in your Workbook
Evaluating the literature
Section 2
Reading strategies How often do you read?
Read often!
Learn how native English speakers write
Learn proper argument structure
Learn manuscript structure and style
Get new ideas, identify problems
Discuss with colleagues
Reading strategies Make time to read
Most researchers read 60–90 min per day
Spend 20–30 min every day reading abstracts
Spend 60 min 2 or 3 days a week reading papers
Join a journal club
Reading strategies What should I read?
What do you already know? understanding basic advanced
Primary literature Secondary literature
Tertiary literature
Author does the work Author summarizes work
Reading strategies What should I read?
What do you already know? understanding basic advanced
Primary literature Secondary literature
Tertiary literature
Encyclopedias Wikipedia Instruction manuals
Review articles
Research articles Thesis Dissertations Reports Conference proceedings
News magazine Text books Bibliographies
Reading strategies What should I read?
What do you already know? understanding basic advanced
Primary literature Secondary literature
Tertiary literature
Peer review often rarely
Reading strategies What should I read?
What do you already know? understanding basic advanced
Primary literature Secondary literature
Tertiary literature
Literature cited always rarely
Reading strategies What should I read?
What do you already know? understanding basic advanced
Understand a new topic
• Specific questions • Find a method • Compare your results
Latest developments
Primary literature Secondary literature
Tertiary literature
Reading strategies Searching literature
• Wide coverage • Ability to analyze citations
• Extensive coverage of chemistry-related topics
• Option to search by structure/reaction
• Less extensive coverage than SciFinder • Option to search by structure/reaction • Good for finding properties of materials
• Free • Extensive but uncurated coverage • May allow you to find full articles
Reading strategies Journal websites
Stay up to date with the latest
developments
Reading strategies Searching literature
Perform a complete literature search before you start a project
Choose appropriate keywords
Read tertiary and secondary literature
Synonyms Alternative spellings
Refine and narrow your search
Read abstracts
>10000 papers
~100 papers
Activity 2 (1)
Please see Activity 2 (1) in your Workbook
Reading strategies
Why should you use it?
Keeps your references organized
Simplifies in-text citations
Prepares the reference list in the “correct” format
Allows you change reference style easily if you change journals
Reference management software
Reading strategies Reference management software
EndNote Most established Styles easy to find on journal websites
Which one to use?
RefWorks Web-based Widely used
Mendeley Newer (and free!) Allows collaborations
Papers Easy-to-use interface (iTunes) Great for paper management
Reading strategies How to read an article
From start to finish?
Section by
section?
Not efficient!
What do you want to know?
Where can you find it?
Reading strategies
Self-assess knowledge of topic
Skim Title and Abstract first
Strategies for reading
Have you read similar papers?
Are you familiar with the terminology?
Do you understand the relevance of the hypothesis?
What information do you want?
Reading strategies
Skim Figures and then Results
What information do you want?
Skim Title and Abstract first
Skim reading
Skim Introduction to identify the research problem
Skim Experimental for methods
Skim Discussion for interpretation
Reading strategies Re-read critically
Over 5 days of reverse bias
reliability testing the current of
the devices increased from 32 μA
to 43 μA (Figure 2). This rise in
current may be explained by…
Is this information fact or opinion?
0
10
20
30
40
50
1 2 3 4 5Time (days)
Cu
rren
t (μ
A) Fact
Opinion
Reading strategies Re-read critically
Over 5 days of reverse bias
reliability testing the current of
the devices increased from 32 μA
to 43 μA (Figure 2). This rise in
current may be explained by…
Is the information true / false?
0
10
20
30
40
50
1 2 3 4 5Time (days)
Cu
rren
t (μ
A)
Multiple devices tested.
Where are error bars?
Reading strategies Re-read critically
Over 5 days of reverse bias
reliability testing the current of
the devices increased from 32 ±
10 μA to 43 ± 17 μA (Figure 2).
This rise in current may be
explained by…
Do you agree / disagree with the opinion?
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
1 2 3 4 5Time (days)
Cu
rren
t (μ
A)
What happens after 5 days? Is this real?
Activity 2 (2-3)
Please see Activity 2 (2-3) in your Workbook
Section 3
Presenting your work
Presentations When should you
present your work?
Before you publish
After you publish
Conferences, Seminars, Lab Meetings, Journal Clubs
Conferences, Seminars, Press Conferences, Media Enquiries, Media Interviews,
Social Media, Open Days, Public Education
Presentations Advantages of presenting
Before publishing
Identify new trends Meet similar researchers
Get advice Identify problems, gauge
interest
After publishing Actively promote your
article Advice on future
directions
Networking with researchers
Networking with journal editors
Poster presentations
Poster presentations
Benefits of poster presentations
Gives you the opportunity to interact with other researchers
Allows you to share pre-published results with your peers (don’t let them read!)
Allows you to discuss one-on-one with other researchers about your study
• More interactive than oral presentations • Improve discussing your research in English • Help build international collaborations
Poster presentations
Logo Short Descriptive Title of Your Research
Authors and Affiliations
Introduction
Acknowledgements
Methods
Fig. 1 Fig. 2
Fig. 3 Fig. 4
Poor poster layout
Results Discussion
Model
Poster presentations
Logo Short Descriptive Title of Your Research
Authors and Affiliations
Introduction
Acknowledgements
Results
Methods References
Discussion Results
Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 3 Fig. 6
Model
Aims
Good poster layout
Poster presentations Poster formatting
Colors
• 2–3 colors maximum, 300 dpi CMYK • Light background with dark letters
• Title: 85 pt • Authors: 50 pt • Headings: 36–44 pt • Text: 24–34 pt
• Read from 1.5 m • Use sans serif font
(e.g., Arial; not serif)
Font
Poster presentations Preparing your poster
Important points to include
Not necessary
Brief introduction General methodology Main results (specific
methods/findings in legends)
Brief discussion Put conclusion at eye
level!
Abstract Detailed methods Many references
Prefer pictures and bullets to text!
Poster presentations Example poster
Clear title
Concise Introduction
Schematics
Graphical Methods
Large figures with clear
figure legends
Bullet point Conclusion with model
Contact info
Oral presentations
Oral presentations
Younger/ Broader
• More introduction • More graphics (e.g., methodology) • Simpler explanation of results • Clearer/broader implications
Experienced/ Specialized
• Less introduction • More data and figures • Detailed implications • Future research directions
Match experience level and area of expertise
Keep your audience in mind
Tell a story…Beginning, Middle, End
Oral presentations Beginning
Brief introduction
Background information
Aims of your study
Use pictures and diagrams
Oral presentations Middle
Methods
Flow chart or schematic
Figures
Important results, organized clearly
Oral presentations End
Conclusions
Summary and implications
Future directions
How is this being further developed?
Oral presentations Slide layout
Font
• Sans serif (e.g., Arial, not serif) • 40 pt for titles • 30+ pt for major points • 24+ pt for minor points
Layout
• Limit 8 lines of text per slide • Use bullet points, not sentences • Organize and align clearly • 72 ppi, RGB
Well-designed slides show that you care about the presentation
Oral presentations Bullet points
You should never write complete sentences like this on your slides. Therefore, try to use bullet points instead to
communicate your ideas to your audience. Bullet points are also a great way to list the main points for your
audience on the slide. However, it can also be boring for them as well. If this happens, you can quickly lose the
attention of your audience. As we discussed earlier, once you lose the attention of your audience, your
presentation is essentially over and you have not communicated the significance or relevance of your work to
them. Another problem with bullet points is that it might suggest hierarchy in the list that you are sharing with
your audience, which can be misleading for your audience. They may assume that the first point is more
important that the last point, when this may not necessarily be the case. Lastly, having one large block of text to
read takes more time for your audience and can be more difficult, especially for non-native English attendees.
Serif font style (Times New Roman)
Font is too small (14 point)
Full sentences (unnecessary text)
Written as paragraph
Oral presentations Bullet points
Advantages
• Are easier to read than sentences • Are a good way to list information
Disadvantages
• Can be boring – Can lose your audience’s attention
• Can suggest hierarchy • Can still be difficult to read
• Sentence fragments
• Parallel grammar
• 2 levels of bullets
• 26/32 point font; bold
• Color
Oral presentations
Don’t let the audience read ahead
Focus the attention of your audience
Animate simply: appear, fade, wipe
Don’t distract from your information!
Animation & graphics
Contrasting colors, easy to read
Simple and organized
For information, not decoration
For pictures, use compressed images
Presentation skills
Presentation skills Before you present…
Most important thing you can do…
Practice
Learn your presentation, don’t read it
Don’t memorize, these are your ideas
Practice alone and with others, record yourself
Practice builds confidence!
Presentation skills
Presentation tips – Appear confident
Non-verbal
Use hand gestures
Make eye contact Always face
your audience
Smile!
Stand upright
Don’t be stiff, move naturally
Presentation skills
Presentation tips – Speaking style
Verbal
Avoid filler words
Pause for emphasis
Speak slowly
Show enthusiasm
Vary tone and pitch
Don’t talk to the screen
Presentation skills
Start positive and get their attention early
Never read your title slide
Start with what is important about your talk
Say what the implications are Keep your audience in mind! For long talks: make an Agenda or Goals list
(sets direction; activates prior knowledge)
Never apologize for your English or for being nervous!
Presentation skills Start positive
Introduction
Thank the organizers
Opening comments
Start your presentation
“I would like to thank [organizer] for kindly inviting me here today.”
“I’m very happy to be able to speak to you today.”
“Today, I would like to talk about...”
Presentation skills Develop your story
Body of presentation
Introduce the sections
Start the sections
Summarize each section
“This is how I will discuss...” “As you can see, my presentation
is divided into four sections.”
“First, I would like to discuss...” “In this section, I will show that…”
“I’d like to summarize the main findings from this section.”
“…So that’s what we found when...”
• It is well known that… • It has been reported
that… • It has been found that… • In this method, it is
important to note that…
Presentation skills
Figures – Guide the audience
Describing data/figures
Introduce the figures
Talk about the data
Focus on important information
“Now, I’d like to show you data from our recent experiments.”
“What we did here was…”
“Here, you can see...” “The top graph shows…”
“Here’s…”, “On this axis is...”
“I’d like to draw your attention to...” “There are three things to note…”
• It can be seen that… • It is clear from these
experiments that… • It seems that… • It was found that…
Presentation skills
Finishing your presentation
Conclusions
Conclusion & Implications/Future
Thank people
“In conclusion, the main findings of this study are...”
Thank the audience: “Thank you for your attention today.”
Acknowledge assistance: “I’d like to thank the people who
were involved in this project.”
“I’d now be happy to answer any questions that you may have.”
Invite questions
• It can be concluded that…
• It can be implied that… • It is expected that…
Presentation skills Answering questions
1. Thank the audience member
2. Understand the question
3. Repeat/rephrase the question
4. Answer the question (be concise!)
5. Ensure you have answered the question
6. Thank the audience member again
Gives you time to think
of the answer!
Activity 3
This activity will be explained in class
Publication Ethics
Section 4
Customer Service Publication ethics
Always follow ethics guidelines
Good publication ethics
State conflicts of interest
No plagiarism or redundancy
Clear author contributions
No fabrication or falsification
Committee on Publication Ethics, COPE
Customer Service Publication ethics Four criteria for authorship
1. Significantly involved in study design, data collection/analysis
2. Writing and revising the manuscript
3. Approval of final version
4. Responsible for the content (accuracy and integrity)
http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/roles-and-responsibilities/defining-the-role-of-authors-and-contributors.html
Customer Service Publication ethics Gift/ghost authorship
Making someone an author when they do not deserve it (friends, colleagues, etc.)
Gift authorship
• Try to make paper more prestigious by adding a “big name” • Adding the department head to every paper from their department • Thanking someone for a contributed material
Not making someone an author when they do deserve it
Ghost authorship • Hide conflict of interest by excluding an author (e.g., company
employee); hide contribution by junior members (e.g., students) [People who helped write the paper should be included in the Acknowledgements or else they are “ghost writers”]
Customer Service Publication ethics
Acknowledgements
Nugraha et al. Biomaterials. 2011; 32: 6982–6994.
Thank those who have made positive contributions
Funding agencies (some journals have a
separate Funding section)
Customer Service Publication ethics
What are they?
Conflicts of interest (COIs)
Financial or personal relationships that may bias your research
Being objective is essential in scientific research
Customer Service Publication ethics
Personal COIs
You are researching a new drug, and your spouse works for the drug company
Biased for personal reasons
You are writing a review on animal research, and you are an active member of PETA*
*People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
Customer Service Publication ethics
Financial COIs
You are researching a new material, and…
• an author works for the company making the material
• the company funded your study
• an author owns stock in the company
Biased for financial reasons
Customer Service Publication ethics
A company is funding your research
Avoiding conflicts of interest
What should you do?
• State the company’s role in the study design • State the company’s role in data analysis • State the company’s role in manuscript writing • Should be disclosed in the cover letter
Some journals will ask you to include a statement such as: “I had full access to all of the data in this study and I take complete responsibility
for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis”*
*http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/roles-and-responsibilities/ author-responsibilities--conflicts-of-interest.html
Customer Service Publication ethics
An author works at the company
Avoiding conflicts of interest
What should you do?
• Ensure study design not unfairly manipulated • Ensure author is blinded during data analysis • Restrict role of the author in manuscript writing • Should be addressed BEFORE study begins! • Should be disclosed in the cover letter
Customer Service Publication ethics Does disclosing COIs lead to rejection?
No! It makes the journal editor aware of the COIs and confident that you were not biased in your study
Not declaring a COI during submission may lead to the rejection or retraction of your paper
Journal editors may or may not publish these COIs along with your article
Customer Service Publication ethics
Sequential submissions
Author Editor Reviewer 1 wk
4 wks 2 wks
Total ~2 months
3 journals = over 6 months!
Customer Service Publication ethics
Multiple submissions
Author Editor2 Reviewer2
3 journals = ~2 months!
Editor1 Reviewer1
Editor3 Reviewer3
You can submit your manuscript to only one journal at a time
Customer Service Publication ethics
Why is it unethical?
Wastes editors’ time & resources
• After first acceptance, have to withdraw submission from the others
• Damages your reputation with publishers
Duplicate publication • It will be noticed in the field; copyright problems • One or both articles may be retracted • Wastes time and damages your reputation with both
the publisher and your peers
Customer Service Publication ethics
You can submit to another journal only if:
You have been rejected by the first journal You have formally withdrawn the submission
When can you submit to another journal?
Customer Service Publication ethics Can you publish a paper translated into English?
What do you need to do?
1. Obtain permission from the first publisher
2. Tell journal editor of English journal: – You already obtained permission to re-publish – Why necessary to publish in English
3. Cite the original publication
Note: many journal editors will not be interested in publishing non-original articles
Customer Service Publication ethics
Salami publishing
Don’t slice your research to increase your
publication output!
One study
4 publications
Why unethical? Readers will not have access to all the relevant information to
critically evaluate the study
Customer Service Publication ethics
Salami publishing
One study
4 publications
Same sample population Same controls Experiments concurrent Dependent results
Distinct populations Different controls Experiments sequential Independent results
One larger paper will have more impact in the field and more citations!
Customer Service Publication ethics
Makes readers think others’ words or ideas are your own
Copying published text (even with a citation)
Stating ideas of someone else without citing the source
Plagiarism
Customer Service Publication ethics
Copying text that you have written and published before into your manuscript
Self-plagiarism
May violate copyright
Makes readers think you are presenting something new
Customer Service Publication ethics
Expressing published ideas using different words
Paraphrasing
Tips on paraphrasing:
• Write the text first into another language, and then later translate back into English
• Verbally explain ideas to a colleague • Name a published method and cite it • Consider text location
– Introduction vs. Discussion
Customer Service Publication ethics Paraphrasing 1
“The magnitude of the change in carbon storage is dependent on how physical, chemical, or biological processes are altered temporally under different land
uses.”
24. Li et al. PLoS ONE. 2013; 8: e68372.
Use synonyms
Customer Service Publication ethics Paraphrasing 2
“The magnitude of the change in carbon storage is dependent on how physical, chemical, or biological processes are altered temporally under different land
uses.”
The size of the change in carbon storage is dependent on how physical, chemical, or biological processes are changed temporally under different land uses.24
24. Li et al. PLoS ONE. 2013; 8: e68372.
Use synonyms
Customer Service Publication ethics Paraphrasing 2
The size of the change in carbon storage is dependent on how physical, chemical, or biological processes are changed temporally under different land uses.24
The size of the change in carbon storage depends on how physical, chemical, or biological processes are changed over time under different land uses.24
24. Li et al. PLoS ONE. 2013; 8: e68372.
Change word class
• Nouns verbs • Adjectives nouns • Adverbs prepositional phrases
Customer Service Publication ethics Paraphrasing 3
The size of the change in carbon storage depends on how physical, chemical, or biological processes are changed over time under different land uses.24
Changes in chemical, biological, or physical processes over time under different land uses affect the size of the carbon storage change.24
24. Li et al. PLoS ONE. 2013; 8: e68372.
Change vocabulary and word order
A depends on B
B affects A
Please see Activity 4 in your Workbook
Activity 4: Paraphrasing
Effective writing
Section 5
Effective writing Language requirements
Journals are clear regarding their English requirements
American Chemical Society: Manuscripts with grammar or language usage deficiencies are handicapped during the scientific review process and may be returned to the author for rewriting before peer review or before acceptance.
Royal Society of Chemistry: A manuscript may be returned to the author(s) without external review if…the quality of the English in the manuscript is so poor as to render the science presented unclear.
Effective writing High readability
Your reader should…
Understand your logic immediately
Not have to read slowly
Only have to read once
Effective writing
Readers expect…
verbs to closely follow their subjects heavy ends (not starts) of clauses
Subject
The device leakage current on transistors fabricated on SiO2 with different self-assembled monolayers decreased by two orders of magnitude after annealing.
The transistors were fabricated on SiO2 with different self-assembled monolayers. The device leakage current decreased by two orders of magnitude after annealing.
Verb
Write clear sentences
Effective writing
In this study, a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode for molecular sensing applications, having a high surface area and uniform porous structure, was synthesized by using electrospray deposition.
Readers become confused when the subject and verb are separated by too much content
Subject-verb placement
What is the subject of the sentence?
What is the verb of the sentence?
Effective writing
In this study, a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode for molecular sensing applications, having a high surface area and uniform porous structure, was synthesized by using electrospray deposition.
Readers become confused when the subject and verb are separated by too much content
Subject-verb placement
Effective writing
In this study, a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode was synthesized using electrospray deposition for molecular sensing applications. The electrode had a high surface area and uniform porous structure.
Readers become confused when the subject and verb are separated by too much content
Subject-verb placement
Effective writing
In this study, a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode was synthesized using electrospray deposition for molecular sensing applications. The electrode had a high surface area and uniform porous structure.
Readers become confused when the subject and verb are separated by too much content
Subject-verb placement
?
?
Effective writing
In this study, we used electrospray deposition to synthesize a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode for molecular sensing applications. The electrode had a high surface area and uniform porous structure.
Readers become confused when the subject and verb are separated by too much content
Subject-verb placement
Active > Passive Subject-verb closeness Heavy end > heavy start Method – Purpose logic
Effective writing Active voice
Sentences written in the active voice are:
simple direct clear easy to read
The mechanisms regulating substrate rigidity were investigated.
Passive
We investigated the mechanisms regulating substrate rigidity.
Active
Effective writing
Avoid reader confusion
Is this sentence in the active or passive voice?
In this study, a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode was synthesized using electrospray deposition for molecular sensing applications.
Effective writing
Avoid reader confusion
Is this sentence in the active or passive voice?
Passive voice
In this study, a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode was synthesized using electrospray deposition for molecular sensing applications.
Effective writing
In this study, a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode was synthesized using electrospray deposition for molecular sensing applications.
Tunn et al. developed electrospray methods to enhance sensitivity.3
Avoid reader confusion
Part of the Introduction
Effective writing
In this study, a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode was synthesized using electrospray deposition for molecular sensing applications.
Tunn et al. developed electrospray methods to enhance sensitivity.3
Avoid reader confusion
Part of the Introduction
Who did the work in this study?
The author ? Tunn et al. ?
Effective writing
Tunn et al. developed electrospray methods to enhance sensitivity.3
Avoid reader confusion
Part of the Introduction
In this study, we synthesized a titanium dioxide nanoparticle electrode using electrospray deposition for molecular sensing applications.
Effective writing Journals prefer the active voice
“Use the active voice when it is less wordy and more direct than the passive”. (3rd ed., pg. 42)
“Use the active voice rather than the passive voice…”. www.apastyle.org/learn/faqs/effective-verb-use.aspx
“As a matter of style, passive voice is typically, but not always, inferior to active voice”. (15th ed., pg. 177)
“In general, authors should use the active voice…”. (10th ed., pg. 320)
ACS Style Guide
APA Style
Chicago Style Guide
AMA Manual of Style
“Nature journals prefer…the active voice…” (http://www.nature.com/authors/author_resources/how_write.html)
Nature
Effective writing Use strong verbs
…estimation?
…decision?
…confirmation?
We made a…
Subject Verb
Still no idea what this sentence is about! …cake?
Effective writing Use strong verbs
We estimated…
We decided…
We confirmed…
We made a…
Subject Verb
Still no idea what this sentence is about! Clear and direct
Please see Activity 5 in your Workbook
Activity 5: Effective writing
Effective writing
Nature’s guide to authors:
Nature is an international journal covering all the sciences. Contributions should therefore be written clearly and simply so that they are accessible to readers in other disciplines and to readers for whom English is not their first language.
www.nature.com/nature/authors/gta/index.html#a4
“I should use complex words to make my writing more impressive.”
Effective writing
To ascertain the efficaciousness of the program, we interrogated the participants upon completion.
Simple language
Effective writing
To ascertain the efficaciousness of the program, we interrogated the participants upon completion.
To determine the success of the program, we questioned the participants upon completion.
Simple language
Effective writing Complex words to avoid
Prefer Enough Clear Determine Begin Try Very Size Keep Enough End Use
Avoid Adequate Apparent Ascertain Commence Endeavor Exceedingly Magnitude* Retain Sufficient Terminate* Utilization *OK in certain fields (magnitude of earthquakes, to terminate gene expression)
Effective writing
Avoid At a concentration of 2 g/L At a temperature of 37C At a wavelength of 340 nm In order to In the first place Four in number Green color Subsequent to Prior to
Prefer At 2 g/L At 37C At 340 nm To First Four Green After Before
Unnecessary words
Effective writing
In the first place, in order to determine the critical point of the material, we incubated it at a
temperature of 95°C until it became black in color.
In the first place, in order to determine the critical point of the material, we incubated it at a
temperature of 95°C until it became black in color.
First, to determine the critical point of the material, we incubated it at 95°C until it became black.
28 words
18 words
Unnecessary words
Effective writing
“A number of studies have shown that the charged group...”
“...as described in our previous study.”
“...at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min.”
“As a matter of fact, such a low-temperature reaction…”
“That is another reason why, we believe…”
“It is well known that most of the intense diffraction peaks...”
Unnecessary words
“A number of studies have shown that the charged group...”
“...as described previously in our previous study.”
“...at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min.”
“As a matter of fact, such a This low-temperature reaction…”
“That is another reason why Therefore, we believe…”
“It is well known that most of the intense diffraction peaks...”
Effective writing
Data is the plural form of datum
Don’t forget: “Data” is plural
The data was analyzed...
The data were analyzed…
Effective writing
Compared with is for saying how things are different
The accuracy of the new program was reduced
compared to the previous program.
The accuracy of the new program was reduced compared with that of the previous program.
The accuracy of the new program was lower than that of the previous program.
Avoid mistakes
Please see Activity 6 in your Workbook
Activity 6: Effective writing
Effective writing Stress position
Readers focus at the end of the sentence to determine what is important.
1. You deserve a raise, but the budget is tight.
Which sentence suggests that you
will get a raise?
2. The budget is tight, but you deserve a raise.
http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/flow/
Effective writing
The budget is tight, but you deserve a raise. Your salary
will increase at the beginning of next year.
http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/flow/
Stress position Topic position
The topic position introduces the idea of the current sentence
The stress position also introduces the topic of the next sentence
Stress position
Effective writing
TiO2 surface modification of the scaffold considerably
improved its catalytic efficiency. The increased efficiency was
prominent early in the reaction but decreased over time. The
lack of long-term effects of TiO2 surface modification was likely
due to the reaction being conducted in an aqueous
environment. Evaluating additional solvents to improve the
catalytic efficiency over time is currently being investigated.
idea idea idea idea
Topic link
sentence
Academic English writing style
Effective writing
One method of producing carbon fibre precursors, with the potential of commercial applicability, is electrospinning. It has previously been demonstrated that electrospinning can successfully produce precursor fibres that can be converted into high quality carbon fibres with controlled fibre diameters and morphologies. The majority of electrospun carbon fibre precursors reported in the literature are PAN-based. The high cost of PAN, depleting petroleum resources and the toxicity of its solvent, dimethylformamide, has motivated research to look into alternative electrospinnable materials to produce cheaper and more environmentally friendly carbon fibres. Because petroleum-based carbon resources exhibit negative environmental impacts and are of limited availability further motivates research towards green carbon fibres.
Recently, a wide range of renewable resource-based materials have been investigated for the fabrication of carbon materials. Among them, lignin has been looked at as a very promising candidate…
Schreiber et al. J Mater Sci. 2014; 49: 7949–7958.
Topic sentence
Stress sentence Topic sentence
Supporting sentences
Sentence and paragraph structure
Please see Activity 7 in your Workbook
Activity 7: Effective writing
Choosing the right journal
Section 6
Journal selection
1. After you have written your manuscript?
2. Before you write your manuscript?
When should you choose a journal?
Journal selection Choose your journal first!
Author guidelines • Manuscript structure • Word limits, referencing • Procedures, copyright
Aims and scope • Topics • Readership • Be sure to emphasize
Relevant references Writing style
Journal selection Novelty
Incremental advance Conceptual advance
Blouin, N.; Michaud, A. et al. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2008, 130, 732-742. Umeda, T.; Hashimoto Y. et al. Synth. Met. 2005, 152, 1-3, 93-96
IF: 11.444 IF: 2.222
Journal selection Factors to consider when
choosing a journal
Aims & scope, Readership
Publication speed/frequency
Online/Print, Open access
Indexing, Rank, Impact factor
Acceptance rate/criteria
Article type / evidence level
“Luxury” / Traditional / Megajournal
Online first, Supplemental materials, Cost
Fast track
Journal selection Aims & Scope
Discusses the research topics that are published by the journal
Aims & scope The Journal of Physical Chemistry A publishes studies on kinetics and dynamics; spectroscopy, photochemistry, and excited states; environmental and atmospheric chemistry, aerosol processes, geochemistry, and astrochemistry; and molecular structure, quantum chemistry, and general theory.
Journal selection Readership
Discusses the types of researchers that read the journal regularly
Readership Material scientists, chemists, physicists,
ceramicists, engineers, metallurgists
Journal selection Publication models
Subscription-based
• Mostly free for the author • Reader has to pay
Open access • Free for the reader • Author usually has to pay
Hybrid • Subscription-based journal • Has open access options
Journal selection Open access myths
Open access (OA) is expensive and low quality
• Not all OA journals charge a fee
• Many research grants and universities pay for OA fees
• Journals may offer waiver for authors who cannot afford it
• OA journals are peer reviewed
• Impact factors may be lower partly because they are newer
Journal selection Predatory journals
Some Open Access journals are not good
Easy way to get money from authors
• Promise quick and easy publication • Often ask for a “submission/handling” fee • May copy name of real journal; false IF • May not exist, or may be of low quality • Beware of spam e-mails!
If you are ever unsure, please check Beall’s List of Predatory Publishers
http://scholarlyoa.com/2015/01/02/bealls-list-of-predatory-publishers-2015/
Journal selection
a
Reputable publisher Springer, Elsevier, Wiley, PLoS, etc.
Editorial board International and familiar
Indexed Indexed by common databases
Authors Do you recognize the authors?
Fees Paid only after acceptance
Trustworthy journals
Journal selection
THINK Trusted and appropriate?
SUBMIT Only if OK
thinkchecksubmit.org
CHECK Do you know the journal?
Trustworthy journals
Journal selection Journal Selector www.edanzediting.com/journal_selector
Insert your proposed abstract or keywords
Journal selection
Matching journals
Filter/Sort by: • Field of study • Impact factor, SCI • Open access • Publishing
frequency
Journal’s aims & scope, IF,
and publication frequency
Journal Selector www.edanzediting.com/journal_selector
Journal selection
• Author guidelines • Journal website
Are they currently publishing similar articles?
Similar published articles
Have you cited any of these articles?
Shows the editor that your study builds on research
already published in their journal
Journal Selector www.edanzediting.com/journal_selector
S
Be an effective communicator
Your goal is not only to publish, but also to be widely read and cited
Prepare well for academic publishing
Read effectively
Write your ideas clearly for your audience
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