A typical (and very useful) construction of an introduction proceeds as follows: Open with two or three sentences placing your study subject in context. Examples "Echimyid rodents of the genus Examples "Echimyid rodents of the genus Proechimys (spiny rats) often are the most abundant and The purpose of the introduction is to provide essential background information, and to generate interest in your paper. Do not assume that people will automatically be curious to read your paper. It is up to you to spark the interest of the reader by writing a good introduction. Keep the use of jargon to a minimum. If you cannot avoid it, then explain jargon to readers who areFile Size: KB Writing the Scientific Paper. W hen you write about scientific topics to specialists in a particular scientific field, we call that scientific writing. (When you write to non-specialists about scientific topics, we call that science writing.) T he scientific paper has developed over the past three centuries into a tool to communicate the results of scientific inquiry. The main audience for scientific papers is extremely
WRITING A SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH ARTICLE
Table of Contents FAQs PDF Version. The scientific format may seem confusing for the beginning science writer due to its rigid structure which is so different from writing in the humanities. One reason for using this format is that it is a means of efficiently communicating scientific findings to the broad community of scientists in a uniform manner. Another reason, perhaps more important than the first, writing a scientific paper introduction, is that this format allows the paper to be read at several different levels.
For example, many people skim Titles to find out what information is available on a subject. Others may read only titles and Abstracts. Those wanting to go deeper may look at the Tables and Figures in the Resultsand so on. The take home point here is that the scientific format helps to insure that at whatever level a person reads your paper beyond title skimmingthey will likely get the key results and conclusions.
Top of page. Most journal-style scientific papers are subdivided into the following sections: TitleAuthors and AffiliationAbstractIntroductionMethodsResultsDiscussionAcknowledgmentsand Literature Citedwhich parallel the experimental process.
This is the system we will use. This website describes the style, content, and format associated with each section. The sections appear in a journal style paper in the following prescribed order:. Experimental process Section of Paper What did I do in a nutshell? Abstract What is the problem? Introduction How did I solve the problem? Materials and Methods What did I find out?
Results What does it mean? Discussion Who helped me out? Acknowledgments optional Whose work did I refer to?
Literature Cited Extra Information Appendices optional. Main Section Headings: Each main section of the paper begins with a heading which should be capitalizedcentered at the beginning of the section, and double spaced from the lines above and below. Do not underline the section heading OR put a colon at the end. Subheadings: When your paper reports on more than one experiment, use subheadings to help organize the presentation.
Subheadings should be capitalized first letter in each wordleft justified, and either bold italics OR underlined. Effects of Light Intensity on the Rate of Electron Transport. Function : Your paper should begin with a Title that succinctly describes the contents of the paper. Use descriptive words that you would associate strongly with the content of your paper: the molecule studied, the organism used or studied, the treatment, the location of a field site, the response measured, etc.
A majority of readers will find your paper via electronic database searches and those search engines key on words found in the title. Ducks Over-Winter in Colorado Barley Fields in Response to Increased Daily Mean Temperature. Ima Mallard, Ura Drake, and Woodruff Ducque Department of Wildlife Biology, writing a scientific paper introduction, University of Colorado - Boulder. The title is not a section, but it is necessary and important. The title should be short and unambiguous, yet be an adequate description of the work.
A general rule-of-thumb is that the title should contain the key words describing the work presented. Remember that the title becomes the basis for most on-line computer searches - if your title is insufficient, few people will find or read your paper. For example, in a paper reporting on an experiment involving dosing mice with the sex hormone estrogen and watching for a certain kind of courtship behavior, a poor title would be:.
Writing a scientific paper introduction is very general, and could be referring to any of a number of mouse behaviors. A better title would be :. The Effects of Estrogen on the Nose-Twitch Courtship Behavior in Mice. Because the key words identify a specific behavior, a modifying agent, and the experimental organism.
If possible, give the key result of the study in the title, as seen in the first example. Similarly, the above title could be restated as:. Estrogen Stimulates Intensity of Nose-Twitch Courtship Behavior in Mice. Strategy for Writing Title. Function : An abstract summarizes, in one paragraph usuallythe major aspects of the entire paper in the following prescribed sequence:.
Whereas the Title can only make the simplest statement about the content of your article, the Abstract allows you to elaborate more on each major aspect of the paper. The length of your Abstract should be kept to about words maximum a typical standard length for journals. Limit your statements concerning each segment of the paper i. purpose, methods, results, writing a scientific paper introduction, etc.
to two or three sentences, if possible. The Abstract helps readers decide whether they want to read the rest of the paper, or it may be the only part they can obtain via electronic literature searches or in published abstracts. Therefore, writing a scientific paper introduction, enough key information e. must be included to make the Abstract useful to someone who may to reference your work. How do you know when you have enough information in your Abstract?
A simple rule-of-thumb is to imagine that you are another researcher doing an study similar to the one you are reporting. If your Abstract was the only part of the paper you could access, would you be happy with the information presented there? Style : The Abstract is ONLY text. Use the active voice when possible, but much of it may require passive constructions.
Write your Abstract using concise, but complete, sentences, and get to the point quickly. Use past tense. Maximum length should be words, usually in a single paragraph. Strategy : Although it is the first section of your paper, the Abstract, by definition, must be written last since it will summarize the paper. To begin composing your Abstract, take whole sentences or key phrases from each section and put them in a sequence which summarizes the paper. Then set about revising or adding words to make it all cohesive and clear.
As you become more proficient you will most likely compose the Abstract from scratch. Check your work : Once you have the completed abstract, check to make sure that the information in the abstract completely agrees with what is written in the paper. Confirm that all the information appearing the abstract actually appears in the body of the paper. Quite literally, the Introduction must answer the questions, " What was I studying?
Why was it an important question? What did we know about it before I did this study? How will this study advance our knowledge? Style : Use the active voice as much as possible, writing a scientific paper introduction. Some use of first person is okay, but do not overdo it. Structure : The structure of the Introduction can be thought of as an inverted triangle - the broadest part at the top representing the most general information and focusing down to the specific problem you studied.
Organize the information to present the more general aspects of the topic early in the Introduction, then narrow toward the more specific topical information that provides context, finally arriving at your statement of purpose and rationale. A good way to get on track is to sketch out the Introduction backwards ; start with the specific purpose and then decide what is the scientific context in which you are asking the question s your study addresses.
Once the scientific context is decided, then you'll have a good sense of what level and type of general information with which the Introduction should begin. Top of Page. This section is variously called Methods or Methods and Materials. Writing a scientific paper introduction : In this section you explain clearly how you carried out your study in the following general structure and organization details follow below :.
Organize your presentation so your reader will understand the logical flow of the experiment s ; subheadings work well for this purpose. Writing a scientific paper introduction experiment or procedure should be presented as a unit, even if it was broken up over time. The experimental design and procedure are sometimes most efficiently presented as an integrated unit, because otherwise it would be difficult to split them up.
In general, provide enough quantitative detail how much, how long, when, etc. about your experimental protocol such that other scientists could reproduce your experiments. You should also indicate the statistical procedures used to analyze your results, writing a scientific paper introduction, including the probability level at which you determined significance usually at 0.
Style : The style in this section should read as if you were verbally describing the conduct of the experiment. You may use the active voice to a certain extent, although this section requires more use of third person, passive constructions than others. Avoid use of the first person in this section. Remember to use the past tense throughout - the work being reported is done, and was performed in the past, not the future.
The Methods section is not a step-by-step, directive, protocol as you might see in your lab writing a scientific paper introduction. Strategy for writing the Methods section. Describe the organism s used in the study. This includes giving the 1 source supplier or where and how the orgranisms were collected2 typical size weight, length, etc3 how they were handled, fed, and housed before the experiment, 4 how they were handled, fed, and housed during the experiment.
In genetics studies include the strains or genetic stocks used, writing a scientific paper introduction. For some studies, age may be an important factor. For example, did you use mouse writing a scientific paper introduction or adults? Seedlings or mature plants? FOR FIELD STUDIES ONLY : Describe the site where your field study was conducted, writing a scientific paper introduction.
Writing the Introduction to your Research Paper
, time: 9:40Guide: Writing the Scientific Paper
Writing the Scientific Paper. W hen you write about scientific topics to specialists in a particular scientific field, we call that scientific writing. (When you write to non-specialists about scientific topics, we call that science writing.) T he scientific paper has developed over the past three centuries into a tool to communicate the results of scientific inquiry. The main audience for scientific papers is extremely A good way to get on track is to sketch out the Introduction backwards; start with the specific purpose and then decide what is the scientific context in which you are asking the question(s) your study addresses. Once the scientific context is decided, then you'll have a good sense of what level and type of general information with which the Introduction should begin Write clearly. 1. Write at a level that's appropriate for your audience. "Like a pigeon, something to admire as long as it isn't over your head." Anonymous. 2. Use the active voice. It's clearer and more concise than the passive voice. Instead of: An increased appetite was manifested by the rats and an increase in body weight was measured
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