ELEC-L0902 - Introduction to Doctoral Studies D, Lecture, 24.8.2021-15.10.2021

Write a one-page summary of the current trends in your field of research (state of the art). Aim to use a maximum of five paragraphs that are properly structured and provide cohesion to your summary. Write something to awaken the attention of the reader.“Writing Short Articles that Engage the Reader” is some guidance material that will help with cohesion and structuring of the one-page summary, so that it is accessible to wider audiences. Please familiarize yourself with the following useful resources and hints for academic writing to guide you how to produce high quality academic articles/publications. For instance, the University of Manchester’s academic phrase bank provides all that an author needs to be a competent writer without the need for understanding lots of tedious grammar. The University of Toronto’s writing guide is excellent on bringing cohesion to scientific writing through, for instance, the use of topic sentences. It is advised that you utilize these resources for your text. Submit your work as a pdf with your name and student number included. Mention your name and student number in the text and also name the file with your last name.

1. RESOURCES FOR ACADEMIC WRITING
University of Manchester
http://www.phrasebank.manchester.ac.uk/
University of Toronto
http://advice.writing.utoronto.ca/

2. A SIMPLE REVIEW CHECKLIST

A. ORGANIZATION & COHESION
- Clearly formulated thesis statement?
- Topic sentences?
- Paragraph clarity?
- Transitions?
- Focus of introduction and conclusion on main point(s)?

B. DEVELOPMENT & SUPPORT
- Do main ideas receive attention and explanation?
- Is supporting material convincing/persuasive?
- Are references adequate?

C. STYLE
- Is topic and level of formality appropriate for target audience?
- Are sentence structures varied?
- Is use of expressions varied?

D. GRAMMAR & MECHANICS
- Grammar issues identified?
- Punctuation and spelling issues?

3. STRUCTURING SCIENTIFIC WRITING

A. INTRODUCTION
- Present background information (establish knowledge and main research question)
- Review related research (limitations of previous research)
-Present new research (reference to purpose and main research procedure)

B. MATERIALS & METHODS
- Describe data collection procedure (sources, size, criteria for collection)
- Experimental procedure (identify main research apparatus, describe experimental process)
- Data analysis procedure (define terminology, give process of data classifications)

C. RESULTS
- Give consistent observations (overall observations, specific observations, account for observations
made)
- Give non-consistent observations

D. DISCUSSION
- Give overall research outcomes (state the outcome, identify significance and limitations of
outcome)

E. CONCLUSIONS
- State research conclusions (give implications of research, prompt further research)

4. SOME TRANSITIONS TO USE

ADDING
(additionally, also, besides, further, furthermore, in addition, in the same way, likewise, moreover,
similarly)

CONTRASTING
(at any rate, even so, however, in contrast, in spite of that, instead, nevertheless, on the contrary, on
the other hand, otherwise, still)

CONCLUDING
(accordingly, as a result, as a/in consequence, consequently, in conclusion, for this reason, hence,
therefore, thus, to conclude)

COMPARING
(by/in comparison, equally, in the same way, likewise, similarly)

ADDING MORE DETAIL
(as an illustration, for example, for instance, indeed, in fact, in other words, in particular,
specifically, that is)

SUMMARIZING
(briefly, in a word, in brief, in short, in summary, to summarize)

INDICATING SEQUENCE
(first(ly), second(ly), third(ly)..., next, finally, last(ly), then, above all, in conclusion, to illustrate,
that is)

EXPRESSING OPINION
(actually, apparently, certainly, (un)fortunately, of course, undoubtedly)

INDICATING SEQUENCE IN TIME

SAME TIME
(at the same time, concurrently, simultaneously)

EARLIER TIME
(before that, earlier, first, formerly, previously)

NOW
(at this time, at present, now, nowadays, these days)

LATER TIME
(after that, afterwards, in the future, later, next, soon, subsequently, then)

5. FORMALITY LEVELS FOR ACADEMIC WRITING
(Adapted from C B Norris: 'Academic Writing in English')

Avoid:                Choose from:
a bit                    a little, slightly, somewhat
a couple of         a pair of, two
a lot, lots of        several, many, multiple
anyhow              in any case, nevertheless, nonetheless
anyway               although, thus, however
besides, too       also, in addition, likewise, furthermore, moreover
enough              sufficient (insufficient, if not enough)
fix (verb)            arrange, manage, handle OR repair, recondition
give (verb)         supply, furnish, offer, provide, yield
gone, none        lacking, absent, missing
hard                  difficult, demanding, time-consuming, challenging
let (verb)           allow, permit, give permission for
little (=few)       few, insufficient, lacking, rare, scarce, sparse

6. USEFUL HINTS FOR SCIENTIFIC WRITING

- Develop an effective writing routine that suits your personal preferences (time of day, lighting
level, noise level, different writing locations)

- Keep your main writing space free of clutter to stay focused and avoid distractions

- Be sure NOT to lose ideas/insights as they pop to your mind when you least expect, capture your
ideas when they flow (post it notes, note pad, beer mats)

- Avoid plagiarism by paraphrasing ideas when taking notes from published sources

- Focus mostly on cohesion, structure and flow (transitions); don't create a barrier to writing by
seeking grammatical perfection in the early stages of thesis writing

- Follow the golden rule: write for the reader and not for yourself

The above selection of materials providing guidance on academic writing has largely been compiled by
Will Martin from materials gathered together by Kate Moore entitled ‘Academic Writing in English’