WEEK - 10

Writing Abstract

Video 1: Structure of Abstract

De nition of Abstract

• An abstract is a concise summary of a research paper, thesis, or dissertation.

• An abstract is
• An original and self-contained passage
• Written as a single paragraph of usually 250 - 300 words
• Brie y outlines the main areas of a research paper or thesis
• Usually written after the entire paper/thesis is completed

Purposes of Abstract

Structure of Abstract

• Introduction
• An abstract does not have a formal
introduction section
• It presents the main idea of the respective
research

• Purpose of study
• Presents the objective of the study

• Methodology
• A brief outline of the methodology adopted
to answer the research questions

• Results
• Mention of the research results

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 • Conclusion
• States the implications of the research

• Keywords
• Taken from the main paper

Video subtitle:
“So, rst part is the introduction of an abstract. Though an abstract doesn't have a formal
section of introduction because as I said, it's only 250 to 300 generally, so clearly, you can't
have one introductory paragraph and then followed by another paragraph or some like
that. But in the rst couple of sentences, it can present the main idea of the respective
research. So that's what the introduction part of any abstract, any ideal abstract does. And
then after that, the purpose of study, the introduction is followed by presenting the purpose
of the study. And that also you should clearly write in this particular sentence or section of
your abstract. Then the methodology part, the purpose of study is followed by a brief
outline of the methodology adopted to answer the research questions. But again, there's
something very precisely, very brie y, you will not go into a detail of the methods you used
and utilized or something like that. Just a very outlined kind of thing, what was the
methodology? And then followed by that will be the results section which is again, a brief
summary which would be including the important part of the research results. And nally,
coming to the conclusion part which states the implications of the research. So, this is all of
these things you are doing in that very concise, short paragraph. So, you have to be very
careful, very strategic in how to make things really to the point and precise and also
connecting the di erent parts of an abstract. And also maintaining a certain kind of
coherence or a ow of the kind of articulation argument you are designing or you're
presenting. And then abstract is generally followed by keywords in many cases which are
taken from the main paper. So, certain key ideas, certain terms depending on the discipline,
certain kinds of academic jargon and terms, technologies, which also you make part of that
keyword thing.”

Video 2: Components of Abstract

The Signi cance of Abstracts

• Submissions of research articles to academic journals for publication

• A thesis or a dissertation

• Apply for research grants

• Submission of proposals for conference papers

• Submission of proposals for research projects

Components of Abstract

• Purpose of writing
• States the purpose of the study
• Explains why the research is important and why it would be interesting to the readers

• Problem
• Presents the main argument of the thesis and outlines the scope of the respective study

• Methodology
• Brie y outlines the approaches used to answer the research questions
• Describes the tools used for the research

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 • Results
• Speci es the ndings of the respective research

• Conclusion
• States the contribution of the respective research to the existing body of knowledge on
the topic
• Provides the implications that the research ndings may have on future research

Contents of an Abstract

• Provides information on the background and context of a study

• Speci es the topic of the study
• States the central idea or the main argument that the study aims to address
• States the rationale and the goal of the study
• Mentions the methods adopted to conduct the research
• States the research ndings
• Provides a brief discussion on the implications of the ndings

Video 3: Language Used in Abstract

Types of Abstracts

• Critical Abstract
• Provides a critical evaluation of a study
• Provides information on the rationale and reliability of a research
• Usually, have 400-500 words as they include basic information and critical interpretation

• Descriptive Abstract
• Indicates the type of information found in the research
• Does not provide an evaluation of the research or the research results
• Includes keywords from the main text and may include the purpose, methods, and
scope of the research
• Usually, very short, 100 words, or less
• Written to a present a short outline of the of entire research

• Informative Abstract
• Provides basic information on the research
• Presents the main arguments of the main text
• Includes the evidence used o support the argument
• Informs about the research results
• Includes the conclusions and recommendations for further research
• Usually no more than 300 words in length

Language Used in Abstracts

• Pronouns
• Personal pronouns are written as s/he and she/he.
• They is preferred as a singular pronoun. a

• Voice
• Use of active voice is common.
• Many sentences are constructed in a passive structure.

• Tense
• Past tense: To write about the background, purpose, methods, and results of a study.
• Present tense: To refer to facts and general truths.

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 • Modality
• Modal verbs are used to strengthen a claim.
• Can, could, may, might, must, and should.

• Reporting verbs
• Describe, demonstrate, study, observe, provide, mention, discuss, and focus.

• Use speci c words, phrases, concepts, and keywords from the main text
• Write in a clear, precise, and descriptive manner
• The point of view is objective
• The writing is concise but constructed with complete sentences
• Avoid using jargon and acronyms, without adequate explanation

Writing an Abstract

• Some important points to remember while writing an abstract:

• Every important word from the title of a research paper should be included

• Must be edited carefully within the required word count

• Avoid lengthy background or extensive contextual information

• Must avoid unnecessary use of adverbs and adjectives, repetitive information, and
redundancy

• Avoid using ellipses [i.e., ending with “..”] or incomplete sentences

• Must not comprise any sort of image, illustration, gure, or table, or references to them

Video 4: Writing Abstract for Science and Engineering Disciplines

Abstract in the Field of Science/Engineering

• Set the context in which a new technology or methodology may be used

• Attract readers by mentioning what innovation you/your team bring to the eld
• Concisely explain the scienti c problem and why other research or existing technology
does not solve the problem
• For interdisciplinary research, logically link various domains in the abstract

Abstract: Example
People interact with online systems all the time. In order to use the services being provided,
they give consent for their data to be collected. This approach requires too much human
e ort and is impractical for systems like Internet-of-Things (loT) where human-device
interactions can be large. Ideally, privacy assistants can help humans make privacy
decisions while collaborating with them. In our work, we focus on identifying and
representing privacy requirements in loT to help privacy assistants better understand their
environment.

Video subtitle:
“So as you can see, it rst starts with the setup of the research, so the eld in a certain way,
and it talks about a little bit about what is there. And then it speci cally focuses on what this
particular speci c research is all about and what are the importance or signi cance
or relevance of the particular research in the respective eld and then you add a little bit of
line, so to make it furthermore interesting for the readers in how you mapped the research
ndings or research in the speci c eld. So that's what we do in this particular kind of an
abstract. So the points to keep in mind.”

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Points to Ponder

• Follow the word limit mentioned by the journal/publication

• Keep the abstract short, concise, and simple
• Mention the exact name of software or technology used per the o cial documentation or
website
• Make examples speci c
• Use only well-known jargon or domain-speci c vocabulary

Video subtitle:
“So the abstracts usually have a word limit mentioned by the journal and publication or like
any other kind of publication. So, you should keep that word limit in mind because they are
generally not so much exible in terms of accepting a paper which is too long or too
short so you should keep that thing in mind. Keep the abstract short, concise, and simple
so as to attract readers who may not be familiar with your domain. So we can always think
of an audience or a reader which is from your discipline, but who will primarily reading or
referring your work and then there could be always a kind of a group of readers which may
not be so much familiar with your discipline. So you can also keep that reader section in
your mind and you be as simple as possible when you write your abstract. Mention the
exact name of software or technology used without changing the spelling, capitalization,
or punctuation given in the o cial documentation or website. So whenever you use LaTeX
or something like that, you make it very, very much speci c that you're using the right
way, you're writing and spelling it in the right way. And when if you're using an example,
also make them very, very speci c and not writing anything randomly or even not in the
right way. So you should be very careful about those technologies and the name of the
software technology or other kind of things. And then use of jargon or domain speci c
vocabulary must be done only if it is well known. So you should also be very careful when
you use those kind of a jargon which is speci c to that particular domain. So these are the
kind of key points which should keep in mind when you structure, you abstract for
computer science discipline.”

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 Writing Statement of Purpose

Video 1: Introduction, Format, and Tips for writing SOPs

Statement of Purpose: An Introduction

• A statement of purpose
• Announces the scope
• Builds the direction of the thesis paper
• Tells the speci c focus and what to expect in the paper

Video subtitle:
“It should be accurate, speci c, and indicate the range of thrust of the analysis or
arguments. Don't include things which are not so much relevant or pertinent to your
research questions and ndings and just make it up very lengthy and elaborate without a
proper reason of that. Research and organizations are the supporting information is also
something important as part of your SOP.”

• Usually appears toward the end of the introduction

• Highlights the development of the argument
• Does not preview the conclusion that the writer has drawn

Format of Statement of Purpose

• Topic statement
• Meets the writing and topic goal

• Development of precise opinion

• O ers the reader's comprehension of the goal of the essay

• Formulate blueprints of reasons

• Determines the shape of the thesis paper

Sample SOP

The goal of this paper exams the e ect of the country's agrarian reform that currently
a ects the lives of rural peasants. The nature of the topic dictates the usage of comparative
analysis and chronological scrutiny of the peasants' life at numerous points during the
reform period.

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 Tips for Writing SOP

• Avoid informal language

• Satisfy the requirement of the topic
• Express in an entire paragraph or several sentences
• Be speci c while developing the thesis statement
• Maintain coherence in the research process

Video 2: Components of Statement of Purpose

Writing a Statement of Purpose

• The statement of purpose clearly de nes:

• Reasons
• Goal
• Research directions

• The major components include:

• Motivation
• That drives the writer's dissertation

• Research signi cance

• That the writer plans to carry out

• Research questions
• That the writer will address in the thesis

• It should draw and keep the reader’s attention throughout the academic writing piece

Creating a Statement of Purpose for Academic Writing

• The writer must adhere to the following factors:

• Clearly de ne the course of action of the research in the thesis

• Clarify the place where the research will take place
• Discuss the matters on which the writer intends to research
• De ne the study in aspects of qualitative and quantitative

De ne Your Purpose

• De ne the purpose
• While doing research for the academic writing

• The aim of the research

• Graduate writing prowess and perfect their academic writing skills

Video subtitle:
“SOP is a place that you should be very precise, very clear, yet including all the important
factors which should be there. That is a thing you should keep in mind that you will not be
too detailed and too elaborate, yet you will be covering on the important part or aspect of
the statement of purpose. These are the important things to keep in your mind, or the
components of your statement of purpose when you design one for your future research.”

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 Video 3: SOP: Writing Strategies, Checklists, and Language Features

Writing Strategies for Statement of Purpose

• Avoid copying templates

• Video subtitle:
• “ First thing is avoid copying templates. Sometimes it might look like an easier way
out that use Google search for, a certain name or a template of SOP and then you get
some 10s or 20s or 30s of SOPs. Then you'll get an idea, this is how to do that
thing. But that may not be helpful for you because sometimes that main purpose, the
template you get, may not serve your purpose when you are writing your statement of
purpose. Rather, let's invest more and then write your own statement of purpose. That
would sound a unique thing coming from you, rather than sounding the same, similar
thing which have been already done to that thing. You should avoid copying
templates.”

• Maintain coherence while writing the statement of purpose

• Avoid the use of redundant words

• Video subtitle:
• “Avoid the use of redundant words. Things and words which are not very relevant for
your report, for your research. Just don't use them. We only stick to the report and
words and structure which are relevant and central to your research question and
research nding. Rather than including everything in your statement of purpose.”

• Use a formal tone while writing the purpose statement

Checklist for Statements of Purpose

• Use descriptive language and storytelling method

• Video subtitle:
• “Sometimes it could be a good idea to use a language which is descriptive and
building on a storytelling method. By being descriptive and storytelling mode, I don't
necessarily mean that you will be writing a lot of information, which would be very
exciting or something like that, but the thing is when you take up this mode and also
describe your research the things are a little clearer for the reader, so they get an idea
from where you start and from where you are going towards and how you're building
up your research question.”

• Maintain the ow of the content while providing a proper structure to the sentence

• Usage of proper vocabulary is imperative

• Avoid using jargons (don’t use jargons unnecessary)

• Precise usage of the grammatical components to bring out the actual meaning

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 Language Feature of Statement of Purpose

• Need not make the thesis sound complex and di cult

• The writing should be clear and concise

• While writing a statement of purpose:

• Consider factual, accurate, and concise language
• Choose words carefully and precisely
• Acknowledge the subject matter for critical analysis a and a new perspective on the
subject
• Have an objective and explicit statement of purpose (SOP)

Video 4: Writing SOP for Science and Engineering Discipline

SOP in the Field of Science

• Mention speci c details related to your domain

• Subjects/courses that you have studied
• Real-life experiences
• Research papers/books you have read

• List out academic accomplishments

• Projects, internships, eld/industry visits, in-plant training, and certi cations

• Mention some extracurriculars

• Volunteer work to develop soft skills such as teamwork or problem-solving

• Link all the above details together

• State your short-term and long-term goals
• Demonstrate how the university or funding body may contribute to it

Some Points to Keep in Mind

• Address the university's or funding organization’s SOP-speci c questions carefully.

• Video subtitle:
• “Then most universities are funding organizations in the eld of science or engineering
provide prompts or speci c questions that they want to be addressed in your
SOP. Address this speci cally so you make sure that you are not missing out on any of
the questions they are looking forward to. Then you should also answer them properly
in that particular text, which is your statement of purpose.”

• When applying in a non-English speaking country, ensure the language is very simple.

• When switching to a di erent eld, mention how your experience will contribute to the
pursuit

• Video subtitle:
• “If you're trying to switch into a di erent eld such as management or business
after education or professional experience in science and engineering, mention how
your experience will contribute to the pursuit. Your interest in that particular eld you
are applying and your past experience, which is from a di erent eld, but how that
could also help the application, that could also help you as a researcher and also
to the institute you are applying which you should be very clear about.”

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• Research about the department/organization
• Identify their work areas
• See how your knowledge can contribute

• Video subtitle:
• “Do some research on the department or the organization that you're applying to and
identify their areas of work and see how your knowledge of science can contribute to
them. You also do a research on that particular place you are applying for and to know
what are the speci city, what are the entry search like the primary they are invested
with and then how your particular research proposal could be useful for that particular
institute or a school, or the department.”

• Use one basic outline and modify it with respect to the recipient's projects or interest
areas.

• Video subtitle:
• “Do not send the exact same SOP to each recipient. Use one basic outline and modify
it with respect to the projects and areas of interests of the recipient. Because you're
applying to many places, when you are designing your statement of purpose always
keep in mind where you are applying to. Depending on that you should make the
connection. They are ways of a certain research which they are expert in and how
your expertise in the eld or your proposal could be useful or an important addition
or contribution to their particular department or school. You shouldn't use the same
SOP for everywhere you're applying.”

• Mention experience from other domains of science/technology

• Focus on the domain you are applying to

• Video subtitle:
• “While it may be bene cial to mention past experience in the domain of science and
technology, focus should be placed on the domain you are applying to. The key is,
again, you should be very speci cally talking about certain things and the other ideas
and statements or other kinds of things which could come as a supporting
statement for your statement of purpose. But your focus should be the research goal
you have. That should be the center. That should be the key part of your statement of
purpose. This is something you should always keep in mind. That's how you can
just apply for di erent places and keep this a key concerns or components of your
statement purpose when you plan to apply.”

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 How to Publish Research

Video 1: Writing for Journals

Each Research Article/Paper Should Have a Story

• Do have something to share with the respective academic community?

• Video subtitle:
• “First thing you ask a question to yourself, do I have something to share with the
respective academic community and what is it? If it's just summarizing of what has
already been talked about, researched upon, then we just give it a second
thought, and when you really feel there's something really new or unique, you're
coming from yours, like outside your research and report, then you decide maybe you
can try for a publication.”

Each Research Article/Paper Should Have a Story

• Develop and present the argument in a logical manner

• Video subtitle:
• “Develop an argument, and present the argument in a logical manner. Because the
thing is, you are talking about a larger, broader, wider audience of which may not
be familiar with the research you took and the ndings you got so you should be very
clear when you reach an argument and it should be convincing to your reader.”

• Decide the type of research paper

• Review paper
• Data-driven research paper

• Video subtitle:
• “Decide the type of research papers. Is it a review paper or is it data-driven research
paper? Depending on that, you need to structure your paper. Depending on the type
of research paper, develop your argument. When you're doing a review paper or
something like that, then you are building up your argument on a set of scholarship or
journal articles which are available there, you are taking up the argument and then you
are developing your own argument. Whereas in a data-driven research, what your
ndings will be something will be primary things to engage with and you develop your
document with that. You will be using the other scholarship, but primarily you are
talking about your data-driven research.”

• Review the literature and analyze the data as the essential component of a research paper

• Video subtitle:
• “Developing your argument or a point of view by reviewing the literature, analyzing the
data is an essential component of a research paper. Somewhere you are like
contextualizing your research, your report, and you are intervening in the knowledge
discourse. There's an existing knowledge base, there's an existing knowledge
platform, the literature in that knowledge platform, you are reviewing them and then
you're saying, this is where the gap is and this is where you are intervening with your
ndings, your research.”

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 Increase the Chance of Getting Published

• Read the previously published papers in the target journal

• Video subtitle:
• “Read the previously published paper in the journal, you want to get published. In that
process, you will get an idea of what are the publications they prefer over other
publications. You get an idea, this is what the journal is primarily looking for. Maybe
you can also write, you can also read what is written in the guideline if they had some
website or something like that to get an idea what a kind of research report they're
looking for.”

• Choose the relevant journal and be clear about its scope

• Understand the scope of the journal and the editor's instruction
• Develop your argument through substantiation

Points to Remember

• Follow the style sheet and instructions provided by the journal editor
• Give yourself enough time to develop the argument of the paper
• Take peer feedback for your article before submitting
• Proofread and edit your writings before submitting
• Keep the international readers in mind while writing the paper
• Be open to criticism
• Do not react but respond to reviewers’ comments with data
• Be patient, publishing a research article is a long process

Video 2: Identifying Journals for Publication

How to Find a Right Journal?

• Does the journal publish papers related to the topic or eld of study?
• A good journal follows a blind peer-reviewing process

• Identify the type of articles published by the journal

• Review papers
• Data-driven papers
• Case studies
• Theorems

• Reputation of the journal in the study eld

• Editor and editorial board should include well- known academicians from the eld

• What is the Impact factor of the journal?

• A measure to understand the performance of the journal

• Journals' contribution to the eld of study

Di erent Ways to Access the Quality of Journals

• Web of sciences (Independent global citation database)
• Scopus (Citation database which provides journal rankings)
• SJR (SCImago Journal Rank)
• Journal Citation Reports by Clarivate Analytics
• Eigenfactor
• Article In uences

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 Why to Avoid Predatory Journals?

• Predatory journals are academic journals that do not follow academic standards and
ethical procedures to publish a research paper.

• How to identify predatory journals:

• Demand publication or processing fees

• Do not follow the standard peer review process
• Not listed in Scopus, Web of Science, and other rankings
• Have fake ISBN No and journal metrics like impact factors
• Have made up names on the editorial board

Video 3: Using Search Engines

Role of Search Engines in Academic Research

Video subtitle:
“Search engines help us to serve speci c article with title and author name. Sometimes we
know the particular author and who has a list of work but then to get a full list of related
work he or she has, it might be useful if you just put that name in the search engine
and then the search engine shows the entire body of work like he or she has done, which
will be helpful for your research. To explore the research publication in the eld of
research. If you search with certain keywords, certain terms, which is there in your research
and you are looking for the related or the relevant body of research work, you can search
with that particular terminologies, concepts, terms, rhetoric, jargon, and you will again be
getting a list of articles which may be relevant for your eld of studies. To nd related
research articles in the eld of study. You are working on some certain things which is
obviously you are doing in a way which is new and novel, but they're related work. There
may be related work which may be also helpful in terms of the methods they used or certain
background they're providing. They are also helpful when you look for them on the search
engine. To check citations for the research articles. This is also another part on an important
factor when you use the search engines. To access the link for the full texts. Many times the
search engines also has the link for an article. You follow that link, you click that link and
you'll get full access to the particular article or research report you are looking for. To
download the reference list. This is also another important role of search engines. To export
citation in di erent formats prescribed by a di erent style guide. It also may be relevant
depending on what research report you are working on.”

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Popular Search Engines

• Google scholar
• Research articles and patents

• BASE
• Academic web resources

• Microsoft Academic
• Research works

• CORE
• Open access research articles

• ScienceGov
• Access the materials of U.S federal agencies

Other Search Engines and Academic Networking

• ResearchGate
• Academic social networking with content database

• Lexis Web
• Database for legal topics

• ERIC
• Education related research works

• Wolfram Alpha
• Answer factual questions

• DataElixir
• Database for open datasets

Video 4: Using Technology for Writing

Technology for Writing

• Includes software and applications to make the writing process easier or more organized

• Video subtitle:
• “Technology for writing, which includes software and applications that are made to
make the writing process easier or more organized. But do make sure rst you know
how the process works, how certain citation rules and stylesheets and particular rules
works in a research, writing, report writing and then maybe to save your time, you can
use some of this technology. But it's always advisable to learn it rst and then only to
save time, you just use the technology, but don't be blinded relying upon technology
for writing your research report.”

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 • Help improve productivity by speeding up or simplifying the process

• Video subtitle:
• “But sometimes using technology can help improve productivity by speeding up or
simplifying the process. Or sometimes if you're engaged with the research which really
needs some massive data to be put in certain way and then is to be organized and
ordered and structured in certain way, then obviously, taking a help of technology will
improve research quality. Because the technology will be doing certain things, certain
parts of the research report and in that time, you can invest your time, which is more
speci c to the research ndings and speci cally about the core research that you
have been contacting.”

• Multiple alternatives available with di erent functions and features

• Choose di erent software based on style and process of writing

• Video subtitle:
• “Based on your individual style and process of writing, you may try di erent software
to identify the ones that suit your needs best. Don't just go for anything
and everything which is available and accessible to you. You think about them
whether actually using this particular technology like a software or something will be
helping you, will be improving your research, then go for it. But don't just go for it
because certain things are available and accessible to you.”

Note: These may not be completely error-free and will require you to proofread and edit
your writing.

Applications of Technology for Writing

• Word Processors

• Software for input, output, editing, and formatting text.

• Examples: Microsoft Word, Google Docs, etc.

• Grammar and Spell-Checks

• System that checks for correct use of grammar and spelling.

• Examples: Grammarly, Hemingway, etc.

• Plagiarism Checks

• Checks for plagiarism in a given document and generates a report.

• Examples: Turnitin, ProWritingAid, etc.

• Note-Making

• Creating and maintaining notes digitally often on cloud-based storage.

• Examples: Evernote, Notion, etc.

• Bibliography Management

• Used to manage citations and references.

• Examples: Zotero, Mendeley, etc.

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 • Typesetting or Document Preparation Systems

• Applications used in document preparation for printing or digital distribution in a set

format.
• Examples: LaTeX, Markdown, etc.
• Graphic Design Tools

• Used to create visuals, charts, infographics, etc. to represent data.

• Examples: Canva, Adobe InDesign, etc.

• Spreadsheets

• Application used to compute, organize, analyze, and store, data in tabular form.
• Examples: Google Sheets, Microsoft Excel, etc.

Points to Remember:

• Use technology to simplify or improve the writing process

• Avoid using illegally procured software

• Use free or open-source alternatives if available

• Use free trials or freemium for short-term projects

• Change language settings in the software according to your requirements.

• Video subtitle:
• “Ensure that you make changes to language settings in the software according to your
requirements. For example British language spellings are commonly used in India
rather than the American ones, so you should be careful while deciding on certain
writing technologies; technologies which helps you to write your report.”

Video ending subtitle:

“That's what we used in this video. How to use technology for writing to improve your
research ndings and reports, and particularly the nal report or nal academic article which
you produce and how to be little wise and select on certain things and looking for certain
things when you choose one particular software or other help and not blindly follow what
is there in your accessibility or availability.”

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