How to write research papers

The structure of a research paper

A research paper has a more closely defined structure than an article or essay. There are normally
sections in a research paper or scientific report, and these tend to follow each other in a fixed
sequence. Obviously these may vary, depending on the nature of the research done. Each element
is further described and explained in Chapter 2 Composition.

Title
It must precisely describe the report’s contents
Name and address of authors

Abstract
A brief overview of the report

I. Introduction
Includes the purpose of the research
States the hypothesis
Gives any necessary background information
Provides a review of pertinent literature
II. Methods and materials (Experiment)
Provides a description of material, equipment and methods used in the research
III. Results and Discussions
Results
States the results of the research. Visual materials are included here.

Discussion
Evaluation and interpretation
Was the hypothesis supported? If so, how? If not, why not? Relevant results are cited in
support.
IV. Conclusion
Conclusions to be drawn from the results Conclusions about the hypothesis Implications of the
research and results Additional research proposed

Acknowledgement

References
A list of the references cited
Include references to any works cited in the review of literature in the introduction. Use the
documentation style required by your specific field.

Abstracts
Abstracts are called ‘summaries’ by some journals, though strictly speaking the terms are not
exactly the same.
A summary restates the main findings and conclusions of a paper and is written for people who
have already read the whole thing.
An abstract is a shortened version of the paper written for people who may never read the full
version. Since abstracts are often reprinted in abstracting journals separated from the original
paper, they need to be self-explanatory.
An abstract normally appears at the top of the page in front of the actual paper it outlines. The
purpose is to inform readers as concisely as possible what is in the article so that they can decide
whether to read it in detail.
What types of abstracts are there?
There are two kinds of abstract:
Descriptive abstract: this provides a kind of ‘contents list’ of what will be in the paper; what the
writer will deal with or attempt to prove in the article, rather than a synopsis of the actual results.
Since it contains general statements, it is more appropriate for longer papers, such as review
articles, and can be written before the paper itself is drafted.
Informative abstract: this does not simply describe what will be in the paper, but also gives a
summary of the main factual information, such as your methods and materials, results and
conclusions. This type of abstract is more suited to papers or reports about original research. It is
usually better to write an informative abstract when the writing of the complete paper is finished.
The type of abstract depends on the requirements of journal.
How long should an abstract be?
There is no fixed length. It is important to write enough for what the reader needs to know rather
than summarizing everything in the paper. A typical length is between 100 and 250 words, or
between 5% and 10% of the original.
What should an informative abstract contain?
The informative abstract will contain a selection of these elements, depending on how you
perceive the reader’s needs
Normally you would NOT include in your abstract:
-any information that is not in the paper itself
-tables and diagrams
-citations from other people’s work
How is an abstract structured?
Rather than following the sequence of sections in the paper itself, it is often a good idea in an
abstract to put the most significant ideas first, whether it be the method, the results, your
recommendations, or whatever. In this way, readers who are short of time will at least know your
main point even if they only read the first sentence.
Is there any difference in style between a descriptive and an informative abstract?
Both types of abstract must communicate ideas effectively, preferably with direct, active
statements in short, simple sentences. There can be a difference in the use of verb tenses:
*use the present tense when you make general statements of fact, or say what your paper does (as
in a descriptive abstract)
*use the past tense when you explain what you actually did or found out in your piece of research
(as in an informative abstract)
The descriptive abstract will make more use of generalized vocabulary and phrases, while the
informative abstract will have more precise, specific language, including numbers.
What are ‘keywords’?
These are the most important words in your paper that are specifically related to your topic. Your
editor may want you to identify these so that they can be printed at the end of the abstract (or
sometimes after the title in the journal’s contents list).
Summary Writing
A summary is a condensation of the main ideas in an article or in a section of someone else's
writing. A summary may stand alone, for example as a similar piece of writing to an abstract. Or
it may simply form a section within a longer piece of your writing. The aim of a summary is to
give your readers a clear, objective, accurate and balanced account of an article they may, or may
not, have not read, and to put it into the context of your own work.
Summarising therefore is a skill that involves picking out the key ideas in someone else's writing
and linking them up in your own words.

Introductions to research papers

The introduction to a research paper should involve the reader by answering these questions:
-What was your reason for doing the research? What in general was the research attempting to
find out?
- What was your hypothesis or thesis? What specifically was the research attempting to prove?
- What background information is pertinent to an understanding of the paper?
-What literature is pertinent? What other studies have explored the subject? (Note that all
literature must be fully documented.
Sample phrases you can use in introductions
Stating your purpose
In this paper, it will be shown that …
 In this paper, … will be discussed / are considered.
The present paper examines / presents …
In this article, we report on …
Our / My intention here is to highlight …
In the following pages, we shall propose …
This article will concentrate / focus on the arguments …
The key question that this article will address is whether …
This paper will report on work already carried out in this area.
Relating your paper to current work
In recent years, … has become a topic of lively debate.
The issue of … has become controversial recently.
The question of … has been thoroughly researched over the last few years.
Indicating the structure of your paper
The article has (6) main sections.
Firstly, we shall examine the question of … The next section briefly outlines …
After a short discussion of …, an overview of … will be given. This will be followed by …
The final section will present …
I / We shall then go on to suggest …

Methods and Materials (experiments)

- In this section the researcher cites all the specifics of the work done. Every detail needs to be
included. The reason that this section must be completely documented is so that other
researchers can duplicate the studies and hopefully duplicate the findings. Variables matter and
need to be detailed. The failure to list pertinent particulars will throw all of the research and
conclusions into question.
- Methods and Materials answers the following questions:

Where? Location of the work, if relevant.

What? What equipment and other materials were used in the research. They need to be
thoroughly specified.
How? The procedures and methods used in the research. Every detail should be included.

Results and Discussions

Results
-This section follows Methods and Materials.
-In this section you present the precise data and findings from the research, often using visuals
to provide the information.
-Data may be effectively presented in charts, tables, graphs, diagrams and photographs.
These should be accompanied by explanatory text to highlight and interpret significant facts.
Discussion
-This section follows Results.
-In this section you write about your interpretation of your findings and your evaluation of the
research.
-In particular, you give your opinion as to whether the work supported and proved your
hypothesis, or whether it did not.
-You can also explore
*the success or failure of various research methods
*how the studies might have been done differently to investigate the problem better
Questions to be answered in the Discussion section
Did the research support the hypothesis? If not, why not? (Be specific, cite examples)
What interpretations can be made from the results? (Be specific, cite evidence)
Where the research methods adequate? If not, why not? (Be specific, cite evidence)
How could the research be done differently to cross check the findings? (Be specific)
Describing Tables and Graphs
Probably, the most important thing to keep in mind when describing graphs and tables are how
to convey the information properly and accurately. Surprisingly, relatively few key words or
grammar elements are needed when describing trends or movements. The following
vocabulary items can be used:
 Research paper conclusions

In a research paper 'Conclusions' is a separate section, as is the Introduction. It is clearly labelled

Conclusions, and follows the sections Methods and Materials, Results, and Discussion.

In most ways the Conclusion section of a research paper is easier to write than that of an essay or
article. It must contain four straightforward elements:
-Conclusions about the hypothesis posed in the introduction
Did the hypothesis prove to be correct or incorrect? How? Why? How may the problem be
rehypothesized?
-Results of the research – and their theoretical implications
What did the research actually reveal? What was observed? Not only what do the findings
indicate about the research done, but also what broader aspects might they reveal and
explain?
-Possible hypotheses raised by the results
What questions do the results raise? What possible answers or explanations can be
hypothesised?
- Specific lines of additional research raised by the results; At each step of the research new
questions arose; how might they be answered or explained?
How these conclusions are presented depends on the research done and the demands of the
Style sheet for the particular field.
Sample phrases you can use in conclusions
Summarizing what you have done
In conclusion, we can say that …
In this paper, we have seen that …
This research paper has clearly shown that …
The discussion in this article has given an overview of …
This paper has provided a systematic study of …
From the research that has been carried out, we can conclude that …
The aim of the present paper was to examine whether … and this has now been achieved.
Finally, it is worth pointing out that …
Indicating the limitations of your own work
This article has only been able to touch on the most general features of …
Even a preliminary study, such as the one reported here, has highlighted the need for …
Looking to the future and further research
Clearly, further studies are needed to understand / prove …
In order to validate the work we have carried out, a more in-depth investigation into … is
needed. The results of this research could assist policy makers to …
Points to check in your own writing
-Can the reader understand the gist of your paper by reading only the introduction and the
conclusion? If not, re-write them.
- Have you merely re-stated what you said in the introduction? If so, think how you might
present it somewhat differently in the light of the supporting evidence in the main body.
-Do you conclude with an emphatic finish? Do you leave the reader with a strong impression?

Referencing
Reference to a book. Information to include:
Author, date, title, place, publisher
Example: Brown, S., et al. (1996) 500 tips for research students, London, Kogan Paul
Reference to an article from a journal. Information to include:
author(s), title, journal volume, (date) pages
example: Hartley, J. Tabling information, American Psychologist 46 (1991)655-6559
Reference to an unpublished work. The information would appear as follows:

Author, date (if known), title, source / availability

Example: Reese, R.A., (unpublished), Survey of postgraduate student writers' use of computer
software, Paper available from the author, Computer Centre, Hull University
Reference to material from electronic media and the Internet. Information to include:
Author, title, producer, address, date accessed
Example:
Middlebury, Citing electronic sources, MLA, http://www.middlebury.edu/~lib/citing.mla.html,
(July 1999)
Appendix
I. LANGUAGE FUNCTIONS
1.1 Agreeing and Disagreeing
Agreeing and disagreeing are typical elements of spoken English but may also appear in
scientific writing. When writers want to compare their findings with those of other scientists,
they may have to express their agreement or disagreement. For example:
* These results agree with the findings of X's research …
Other contexts in which phrases expressing agreement appear in scientific literature include
making assumptions or conclusions:

Assumption It is generally agreed that …

Conclusion In the previous chapter, we agreed to …
What language can I use to express agreement?
The following verbs and phrases express varying degrees of agreement. Verbs such as agree
are normally used in the active form with a personal subject (except in the examples given
above).
* We entirely agree with his views on …
* We are in complete agreement with …
* We would (strongly) endorse X's opinion on …
* Our findings support those of …
* We would agree with X in principle, but …
* By and large, we accept what X says, but …
How can I express disagreement?
There are a variety of verbs and other phrases for expressing disagreement. In particular,
some phrases are useful when refuting, or arguing against, another scholar's findings.
* We completely disagree with X on this point.
* We are in total disagreement with …
* (Regretfully), we are unable to accept X's conclusion that …
* We are not at all convinced by X's argument that …
* We have to say that X's argument is somewhat unconvincing.
Some linking phrases for contradicting what someone else has written:
* In actual fact, …
* In point of fact, …
* On the contrary, …
Here are some phrases for expressing partial or tentative disagreement:
* We agree with X's findings up to a point, but …
* X may be right in certain respects, but our findings show that …
* We respect X's work in this area, but our initial conclusions indicate that …
1.2 Classifying
Classifying means allocating an object or term to a class of objects or terms which has
already been established. The items to be classified are first considered with respect to an
essential feature, then compared, and finally grouped in a class according to their respective
similarities and differences.
What language can be used in classifications?
The following prepositional phrases are very useful when talking about the feature used for
classification

xxx can be classified by size

according to weight
according to whether composition
on the basis of etc.
with respect to
with regard to
The following sentence patterns can be used to explain the way in which something can be
classified:
 A… is grouped commercially into …
(superordinate can be divided technically into (nouns indicating
term) may be classified electrically as the subordinated
made … up of categories)
broken down into

A… is classified electricall as …, …, …, according to …

(superordinat can be grouped y (nouns on the basis of (feature
e term) may be technically indicating used for
…
the classificatio
subordinate n)
For example: d
Classification of cast steels categories)
Commercially, steel castings are classified as
follows: (a) low-carbon steels (carbon content
below 0.20)
(b) medium-carbon steels (carbon content between 0.20 and 0.50%)
….
1.3 Comparing and Contrasting
Similarity
When you want to emphasise the similarity between two things, you can use the following
sentence patterns:

A is/ are (about / almost / roughly / essentially the B

should be same asto
similar
like
equal to
no different from
can be compared directly to

A and B are identical in every respect

the same in most respects
alike in that …
similar

The following linking words and phrases may also be used to express similarity:
like …; as well as …; both … and …; just as …; In the same way,
…Similarly,…
Dissimilarity
Dissimilarity basically means that one phenomenon is either more or less than another in one or
several respects. The following structures can be used:

much
far
substantially adjective + -er
is somewhat more + adjective than
A rather less + adjective B
slightly
almost as + adjective
is not quite so + adjective as

Example sentence:
So even though it's non-porous, much thicker and far more reliable than gold plating, we can
almost always offer our glad connectors for less than you would pay for an ordinary
connector. In general, the dependence of the open-loop gain on temperature is of less
importance than the thermal behaviour of the amplifier frequency response.
Superiority and inferiority
This means saying how something is better or worse than something else, with regard to
particular features. Phrases you can use include:
in a certain way
from a certain point of
view with regard to …
as regards …
A is superior to B in being
inferior to in that it is more + adjective
less + adjective
inasmuch as it
is giving more + noun
in showing greater + noun
exhibiting less + noun
Example sentences:
* The reciprocating pump is superior to the rotary pump in being more efficient.
* The yarn strength of air-vortex spun yarns is somewhat inferior to that of rotor-spun yarns, a
5% difference in strength being reported.
Proportionality and disproportionality
When two objects, X and Y, are considered in relation to each other, the variability of certain
of their features or characteristics can be compared. The comparison may produce either a
proportional or a disproportional result. You can use the following sentence structures:
with
changes as a change in
A feature of X varies inversely according to a variation in a feature of Y
in accordance with
is proportional to

changes so does
As
a feature of X varies so a feature of Y + verb
The (better) the (better)

Example sentences:
* The higher the velocity of steam, the greater the turbine speed.
* Data input rise and fall times reduce as driver output impedance increases.
* The critical twist value, after which strength decreases, is lower for the former, but
increases with increasing yarn linear density, which is the reverse of the effect found for
conventional yarns.
* During expansion, the pressure varies inversely to the volume.
Contrasting
Contrasting is a specific kind of comparison. Whereas in comparing you normally look for at
least one feature that the two or more objects have in common, in contrasting you aim to identify
the differences between them.
Here are some useful sentence structures:

It is common to distinguish between A and B

useful to differentiate
valuable to make a distinction

A differs from B in a certain respect

is different from in the fact that …
in that it is …
can be distinguished from by its … (a certain characteristic)

Unlike B, A is + adjective
In contrast to As has + noun
opposed to As
distinct from As
against
Some common conjunctions and sentence linkers for expressing contrast:
While …, … Whereas …, …
On the other hand, …
Example sentences:
* The RAM differs from the ROM in that it can be written into as well as read from.
* It is useful to differentiate between a blower and a liquid.
* The engine, as distinct from the earlier one, has six cylinders.
* Unlike discrete-component designs, however, the microprocessor is not programmed using …
* These differences are ascribed to the fact … most fibres have both ends spun in, whereas in
the case of ring-spun yarns one fibre end frequently protrudes from the yarn.
* A hot engine will run on a weak mixture. On the other hand, a cold engine requires a
richer mixture.

1.4 Defining
In science and technology, there are generally two kinds of definitions:
The real definition, that is a definition that explains precisely the essential, intrinsic
characteristics of an object.
The nominal definition, that is one that helps to determine the meaning of a term, such as a
word, sentence or symbol, e.g. in a mathematical language.
What language can I use for real definitions?
Real definitions include these functions:
Defining an object

A is B = (noun with attribute)

is equal to (noun without attribute)
equals (noun + genitive)
is equivalent to (noun + preposition + object)
corresponds to
is said to be
may be said to be

By A is meant
we mean

Example sentences:
* Geometry may be said to be a study of the properties of geometric figures.
* By a set of real numbers we mean an aggregate or class of numbers.
Defining an object by assigning it to a category and specifying it
A is B + specification:
is called termed (relative clause)
may be thought of as (prepositional phrase)
referred to as (to + infinitive)
defined as participle clause (-ing / -ed)
participle clause + to infinitive / for + gerund
By A is meant
we mean

Example sentences:
* A pyrometer is an instrument for measuring high temperatures.
* Milling is a machining process in which a rotary cutter equipped with a number of teeth is
rotated rapidly while the work is fed under it.
* Roughly speaking, a surface is a configuration of points having a two-dimensional character.
* Brittleness may be defined as the absence of the ability to deform plastically.
* A key is the information required to locate a record within a DASD file declared with the
attribute
DIRECT.
What language can I use for nominal definitions?
Here are some of the sentence patterns you can use:

said to be
called
then it is referred to as
If A satisfies certain conditions then it can be expressed as Z
expressed in the form
of termed
then we call it

is called
defined by … is said to be
A is expressed as Z
determined by …
is expressed in the form of
is termed
Example sentences:
* A curve is called smooth if two conditions are satisfied: (1) …. (2) ….
* A function f(s) defined by f(s) = ƒ ……. is called the Laplace transform of the function f(t).
* The term computer normally refers to a general-purpose, high-speed, programmable
machine that is designed to handle a wide range of computer problems.
1.5 Emphasizing
In your writing you will be making statements that vary in importance. You will therefore
need to make sure that the most important ones are given more emphasis than the less
important ones. Details in your argument have to be presented in such a way that readers
understand their relative significance.
How can I use language to emphasize points?
In spoken English, you can emphasize parts of a sentence simply by using stress on important
words. In writing, of course, we cannot do this. Instead, we can emphasize particular words or
phrases by putting everything into a kind of relative clause except the words we want to
emphasize. These structures are called cleft sentences.
It was …who / that …
Röntgen discovered X-Rays in 1895. (no emphasis)
It was Röntgen who discovered X-Rays in 1895. (emphasis on the person)
It was in 1895 that Röntgen discovered X-Rays. (emphasis on the date)
It was not until 1895 that Röntgen discovered X-Rays. (emphasis on the fact that it wasn't
earlier than this)
It was X-Rays that Röntgen discovered in 1895. (emphasis on what Röntgen discovered)
Other cleft sentence structures:
What … was …
The reason why … is that …

no emphasis emphasis
Einstein showed that space-time and What Einstein showed was that space-time and
gravitational forces are profoundly related. gravitational forces are profoundly related.
The southern hemisphere shows little response The reason why the southern
to eruptions in the north because it is dominated hemisphere shows little response to
by oceans that damp down any change. eruptions in the north is that it is
dominated by oceans that damp down
You can draw attention to the new information that anyyou
change.
want to present by changing the
sequence of the parts of a sentence, using such structural forms as:
One / The only … is / was …
One erasable system that is being considered by developers like IBM and 3M is a technology
called magneto-optic recording.
The only time this effect has been reported was in 1995.
You can add emphasis by starting your sentence with a negative expression or one including
only. Note that with these structures the subject and the main verb in the sentence have to be
inverted, or changed round.
negative expressions such as Never…, Seldom…, Rarely…; Under no circumstances…, At no
time…, In no way…
no emphasis emphasis
He did not allow his assistants to be absent Under no circumstances did he allow his
under any circumstances. assistants to be absent.
He had never managed to use his deductive Never had he managed to use his deductive
skills so well as in this experiment. skills so well as in this experiment

We will know the next steps to take when Only when the report has been carefully
the report has been carefully analysed. analysed will we know the next steps to
take.
Scientists have recently discovered a cure for Only recently have scientists discovered a
certain types of leukemia. cure for certain types of leukemia.

You can also add emphasis by using balancing or parallel structures in a sentence, e.g. not
only … but (also) …; just as … so …

Not only was Röntgen's discovery of X-Rays important in itself, but it led directly to the
discovery of radioactivity.
Just as Avogadro saved his idea that equal volumes of gases contain equal numbers of
molecules by introducing a new idea, so Kekulé rescued his idea that carbon is tetravalent by
inventing the carbon- carbon bond.
Points to check in your writing

Have I given the right degree of emphasis to my important points?

If not, how can I highlight them better?
Can I make more, or better, use of visual techniques to make important points stand out?
e.g.
* tables, charts, graphs
* page layout
* using bullet points
* positioning ideas in paragraphs
Do I need to change the grammatical structure of sentences to give more emphasis to
important points?
1.6 Generalizing
Your writing will probably consist of a mixture of both general statements and specific
statements and it is important to distinguish between the two. Generalizing means making an
overall statement, for example in the form of a conclusion, on the basis of supporting statements
that provide the details or the evidence.

Are there any generalizations I should avoid?

Yes. For example:
The 'sweeping' over-generalisation, in which you say something is true in every situation.
Your statement may have some element of truth but cannot be treated as valid because there
are so many exceptions and it is unsupported by evidence.
Boys are better at science at school than girls.

expressing your own viewpoint as if it were a generally accepted truth

X is obviously the most highly regarded physicist of his generation.
making non-statements that are either so obvious that they need not be stated or so vague that they
have no real meaning.
After recognising problems with the solar mirrors, we carried out some corrective procedures.
If this sentence stands alone without supporting information, it is far too general. It raises
more questions than it answers: What were the problems with the mirrors? How many
mirrors were involved? What precisely were the corrective procedures taken?
What language can I use when making general statements?
The main principle is to tone down your statements, make them less absolute. For more ideas
about this, see hedging.
verbs and verb phrases
* tend (not) to …, have a tendency to …
* be inclined to …
* seem to …, appear to …
* It appears / seems to / that …
* It would seem / appear to / that …
adverbs of frequency: avoid absolutes like always / never
* usually, normally, generally
* regularly, often, frequently
* sometimes, occasionally, at times, now and again
* rarely, seldom, hardly ever

modifying adverbs
* mainly, primarily, principally, chiefly, above all, overall
* in general, on the whole, as a rule, largely
* for the most part, mostly
* especially, particularly, notably
* clearly, obviously, evidently, distinctly, plainly, noticeably
* significantly
* relatively, comparatively
* somewhat, rather, fairly, quite
* slightly
Points to check in your own writing
Have I made any sweeping or over-generalizations that I need to cut out?
Are all my general statements, e.g. 'topic' sentences in paragraphs or conclusion, backed up the
right evidence and examples?
Have I used the right hedging language to give the tone I want to my general statements?
1.7 Paraphrasing
Paraphrasing means expressing the thought, meaning and attitude of another author in your own
words, in a clear and straightforward way. It is therefore similar to quoting, but it is done
indirectly, without using the original writer's actual words or speech marks. With paraphrasing,
you avoid continuous strings of direct quotations and are able to maintain your own style and
tone of writing. However, as with direct quoting, it is essential that you do proper referencing
for all your paraphrases.
With a paraphrase, your aim is to relate what the author has said to your own piece of work,
and this often requires you to provide an interpretation, or gloss, on their ideas in some way, to
make them fit into your argument. A paraphrase is not just a simple re-wording of the original.
What language changes do I make when paraphrasing?
vocabulary.
* keep the specialised terms that are related to the topic, or those for which there are no
synonyms, e.g calcium, neutron, protein
* do not change proper nouns (e.g. names of countries and organisations), numbers,
formulae
* for the rest of your text, use different vocabulary whenever possible, especially simpler
phrases and more common synonyms and expressions. Using your own words makes your
paraphrase fit in with the style of the rest of your text.
grammar
* the grammar of the original needs to be changed, so that the points you are reporting on
fit in with the grammatical flow of your text
* if your paraphrase is summarising and thus shortening the original, this will involve
reducing perhaps 3 or 4 sentences (or more) down to one. This will require you to use a
variety of subordinate clauses and adverbial or participle phrases.
Language to use to introduce paraphrases
You can use the same 'reporting' verbs for paraphrasing as are given in Section 4.8 on Quoting.
In particular, verbs that reflect the original writer's purpose or attitude towards his/her subject
are useful when paraphrasing, e.g.

X identifies … as …
X defends his position by arguing that ….
X attacks his opponents with his statement that … X
affirms his opinion that …

Note that the 'reporting' verb can be followed by that … (or this can be omitted).
Punctuation: there is no comma before or after that:

Fred Hein explains that each person's heredity is unique, except for identical twins.

The normal grammatical rules for writing indirect speech apply:

* When the reporting verb is in the past tense, the verb tense in the reported clause, together
with pronouns and time phrases may also have to be changed to indicate the correct time
references.

MacSpratt (6) found that when sheep were deficient in nitrogen, the rate of mitosis in wool
follicles was 63% of normal and concluded that nitrogen is essential to normal growth of wool.

Note that the last verb is is in the present tense: this is because the writer is generalising, or
making a conclusion about what he regards as a general truth. If the writer knows that later
work found this conclusion to be false, he would use was instead.
You can also use the other introductory phrases given in the section on quoting. These in fact
are more commonly used with indirect quotations than with direct ones.
With indirect quotations, you can also simply put the name of the source at the end of the
paraphrase, without any 'reporting' verb or introductory phrase:
Changes in the surface heating of the earth will result in changes in the heating of the
atmosphere which in turn can affect the climate (Cohen, 1994).

1.8 Quoting
When writing a research paper or report, it is normal to include references and quotations
from the work of others. This is for one or more of the following reasons:
to cite evidence or opinions from an authority on the subject in support of your argument
to put forward someone else's viewpoint that you intend to argue against
to show the range of source materials you have used to support or challenge your own ideas
to acknowledge that your arguments derive from the work of others and thereby put them into
their academic context
What kinds of quotation are there?
Quotations in your text can either be
direct: that is, you use the actual words of the original writer, or
indirect: that is, you paraphrase what the original source says by putting the ideas in your own
words.
In general, it is preferable to use the indirect, or paraphrasing, method since this incorporates the
other author's ideas better into the flow of your own text. However, there are occasions when
direct quotations are better:
when the author expresses an idea in a particularly succinct or memorable way that it is
impossible to improve on it
when the writer is such an important authority on the subject that his/her actual words are
significant
when you want to avoid any ambiguity about the quoted
How long should direct quotations be?
In principle, you should keep quotations as brief as is necessary for them to make their point.
Avoid using long quotations in case they detract from your own argument; only quote longer
passages if you intend to analyse the writer's argument in detail.
Language to use to introduce quotations
There are a wide variety of 'reporting' verbs and verb phrases that you can use to
introduce a quotation. Here are some of the more common ones

acknowledge … admit … allege … argue …

assert … assume … believe … claim …
conclude … contend … demonstrate … describe …
emphasise explain … imply … indicate …
make the point … observe … point out … postulate …
predict … propose … prove … report …
say … show … state … suggest …
think … write

Be careful about the verb tenses of these verbs:

* If you use MLA Style, you should put the verbs in the present tense both for personal
comments and for quotations.
* If you use APA style (more common for the natural sciences), you should put the verbs in
the past tense for citations, and only use the present tense for generalisations and statements
about unchanging facts. (See the example quotations above).

You can introduce your citation with any of these longer phrases:

According to X, …
As X has shown, …
For X, …
In X's view, …
By this, X meant …
X was of the opinion that …
X distinguished between … and …
X characterised / considered / defined / recognised / referred to / regarded … as … X
illustrated his / her argument by saying / stating / showing that …
X laid particular emphasis on …
X makes the following claim / point / statement: …
X put forward the theory that …
Referring to …, X said / stated / showed …