inform • December 2004 • Volume 15 (12) PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 761

How to write a
scientific paper
Scott Bloomer and Michael J. Haas

Y Get off the launch pad

Peer reviewers usually receive no more
ou have spent the last six months reward for their work than the satisfaction
wrestling with a difficult scientific that comes from advancing the frontiers of The great inertial barrier that you feel when
challenge and feel that it’s finally time to let scientific knowledge. However, the reward contemplating the authorship of a paper—
the world know what you have found out; of helping an author transform the manu- that feeling of being unable to sit down
it’s time to write the paper. How can all that script as submitted into a paper that is ready and begin writing polished paragraphs—is
work be distilled into a few pages that will for publishing is often enough! not a feeling unique to you alone. Many
clearly set forth how the work was done, what authors struggle with this.
was found, and why it is important? Scientific One way to overcome this situation is to
writing for peer-reviewed journals can be as
General principles of abandon the idea that perfect paragraphs must
challenging as the research itself. scientific writing flow onto the paper from the start. Some authors
The whole point of the writing is to find it best to begin by just getting their thoughts
Simplify, simplify, simplify. Never use ten
help people understand the wonderful dis- down on paper; they find that full sentences
words if five will do. Remember, much
coveries you have made—a void in the vast and then paragraphs can be readily built from
of your readership consists of very smart
network of human knowledge and the these. For others, a good strategy is to start
people for whom English is their second,
answers that fill that void. The best way to composing an outline of the paper; the full-
third, or fourth language. You want them
accomplish your goal is to write clearly and sentence version then follows.
to understand and appreciate your work,
convincingly so the author ‘disappears’ and not your vocabulary or flowery sentence
the readers are led to the conclusion that construction. Simple is elegant. Writing the paper
they themselves are very smart because After you write your first draft, let the An excellent place to start a manuscript is
they understand this profound new dis- document sit for a few days so that you get with the materials and methods section. You
covery. To achieve this, you need to go some distance from it. Then, go over it with will need to write it anyway, and it often
through the painful process of distancing a strict eye to condensing the wording, involves the least imaginative and compli-
yourself from your own work and approach- replacing long phrases with short efficient cated of the writing to be done. Starting here
ing the field from the perspective of the ones, and breaking run-on sentences into also serves as a valuable aid in focusing on
intelligent but uninformed reader—a very multiple short ones. Pretend you will be the paper, and can help build up the momen-
difficult thing to do. Thoughts must be charged for each word; this will help you tum that allows you to tackle other sections.
organized, choices must be made, and hours remove excess verbiage. The motto ‘well begun is half done’ is very
of writing lie before you. Rather than generalized phrases true in this situation.
(‘Renewable fuels are good for the envi- The materials and methods section must
Peer-reviewed journals ronment’) use words that convey informa- be written clearly and be sufficiently com-
tion (‘Relative to fossil-based diesel fuel, plete that other scien-
The research community does not establish biodiesel offers the envi-
research findings as fact until they have been tists, even those not
ronmental advantages of familiar with your spe-
peer-reviewed and published. The object of reduced particulate, car-
peer review is to ensure that the findings are cialty, could repeat the
bon monoxide, and sul- work. Assembling a sim-
novel, sound, and appropriate for a given fur emissions’). Simplify, ple collection of proce-
journal. Experts in the field who demonstrate
their qualifications as peer reviewers by the
Get a feel for the
style of the journal to
simplify, dural outlines makes a
good starting point; this
caliber of their own work carry out peer which your manuscript simplify. can then be turned into
reviewing on a volunteer basis. will be submitted by read-
The function of peer reviewing is to help prose. Remember, you
ing two or three recently are reciting what you did,
authors bring their manuscripts to a clear, published articles. There
crisp, and engaging account of important sci- so use past tense. Provide
are definite differences references; use refer-
entific research that easily allows the reader between journals in such things as the degree
to learn about the scientific advancements ences that outline a method, avoid those that
of detail in the materials and methods, the simply refer to another paper that does.
in the manuscript. Hopefully, the manuscript length and historical span of the introduc-
will inspire others to new insights and will Ask others not familiar with the proce-
tion, the size of a discussion, and the pres- dures to read through this section. It can be
serve as a building block for further scien- ence, form and size of a conclusion section.
tific advances. surprisingly easy to overlook an obvious fact
 762 PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT inform • December 2004 • Volume 15 (12)

that is well known in your laboratory but You may find that several new observations
unknown in others. It can also be surprising can be added to those already made. Jot them
when writing this section how often it is nec- An excellent place down for thought and possible inclusion
essary to investigate details of materials and to start a manu- in the results and discussion section.
steps used in the methods. This is a good After describing the methodology used,
time to set aside a sheet of paper so that you script is with the most authors tend to concentrate on the
can write down new observations about the materials and paper to such an extent that they are burst-
experiments, as well as ideas for future work, ing with interpretations and observations
since these will start to flourish as the paper methods section. that they want to capture in the results
develops. and discussion section.
You may have learned that readers Start by drafting the results statement.
should be able to completely replicate your List the findings and observations, and then
work from the description of your techniques. having to search repeatedly through your group them into an outline. Often, excit-
Providing every detail can lead to an overly manuscript to find the figure legends page.) ing new questions (in the form of gaping
long methods section. Many contemporary Also, provide a full explanation of sym- holes in the knowledge) will appear at this
journals struggle to stay within a fixed annual bols used for each figure. Busy readers may stage. You may wish to return to the labora-
printed page limit, and all strive to present turn away from the paper if they need to “refer tory to gather new data for addition to the
results, not recipes. The likely fate of an back to Figure 1 for an explanation of sym- manuscript at hand, or to use these new ques-
extensive methods section could be severe bols used.” tions as the basis for future research.
condensation or omission during revision. Be sure to number your figures. Figures A serious consideration of the proper
Far worse, it could contribute to the rejec- that are not numbered force an individual logical order of data presentation needs to
tion of the paper. It is best to cite precedent reading the manuscript to spend time veri- be completed at this stage. Presenting the
texts or publications when they basically fying the identity of your figures. data in chronological order may not be the
describe the techniques that you have under- Ask yourself if the data are presented best way to communicate the story. When
taken. When appropriate, it is acceptable simply enough. Is there a better way of you have completed all the figures and tables,
to use phrases along the lines of ‘(Your tech- presenting? Are there enough data, or too ask yourself if there is a better way to pres-
nique here) was conducted according to the much? Repeating data in more than one fig- ent the data. A well-written manuscript leads
methods of (give precedent), with minor ure or table must be avoided at all costs. If the reader along an easily trodden path.
modifications.’ Given that publications con- an uncommon type of data presentation or When drafting the text of the results sec-
tain the e-mail address of at least one of the form of graph is used, provide a sufficient tion, it is essential to point out the most
authors, a curious reader looking to exactly explanation to allow the unfamiliar reader significant findings in each figure and table,
duplicate your techniques can readily con- to grasp the important facts. and explain why those findings are signifi-
tact you for the details of your procedures. Informative figure legends are crucial cant. If there is nothing exceptional in a fig-
for holding the attention of the reader who ure or table, cut it from the manuscript!
Try to devote a paragraph to each fig-
Figures, tables, graphics is browsing through a journal. A legend must
ure/table/scheme. If it is not worth four or
be economical in word use, but sufficiently
After the materials and methods section is five sentences, are you sure it is important?
complete that the figure can be understood
written, construct the figures, tables, and Start each paragraph by pointing out the log-
without digging through the text. That is, fig-
reaction schemes. The figures and tables ical first result from each figure or table, or
ures, as well as tables, should ‘stand alone’
present the heart of the findings, and each the most important result. Then add sup-
and be read and understood out of context.
figure must present one or more unique aspects porting information and point out the other
If possible, let the figure legends and
of the research. Sometimes the order of fig- significant findings shown in the
table titles summarize the illustrations. Instead
ures is dictated by the progress of the research, figure/table/scheme. Point out anomalies and
of “Results of time/temperature study,” which
but it is always necessary to ask yourself if things you didn’t expect. This is the time to
is vague and doesn’t tell the reader anything
there is a non-chronological order that would be your own worst critic, testing your hypothe-
about what is most important in the figure,
better present the findings. ses and observations. Remember, in writing
try “Dependence of reaction rate on time at
Refer to the style guide or instructions this section you are reporting something that
various temperatures.” Here, it is obvious
for authors of the target journal at this point has already been done, so use the past tense.
that the reaction rate is the most important
to avoid redrawing figures later. Preferred At this point it is worth reviewing the mate-
information in the figure, and the reader will
symbols are circles, then squares. Open cir- rials and methods section to ensure that it
be able to grasp that more quickly.
cles and squares are preferred for controls lists required information in the order adopted
and solid (filled) ones for experimental vari- in the results section.
ables. If allowed by the journal you have cho- Back to the writing
sen, an inset box that identifies each symbol After the figures and tables are drafted, the
can save the reader of your article from hav- paper may seem to almost write itself. The
Conclusions
ing to repeatedly consult the legend of the scientific advances can be clearly outlined With half of the drafting work finished, com-
figure. (Figure legends are usually assem- by closely examining the figures and tables pose the conclusions and either integrate
bled on a separate page in the manuscript and answering a few simple questions: What them into the results/discussion section, or
when it is in the form for submittal to a jour- do the figures tell you? How does this com- set them in the conclusions section if writ-
nal. Therefore, adding such text boxes to the pare to what you expected? Where are there ing for a journal that calls for such. This is
figures themselves also simplifies the lives holes in your hypotheses/interpretations? where the most important findings are high-
of editors and reviewers, saving them from How strong are alternative interpretations? lighted. Explain why they are important and
 inform • December 2004 • Volume 15 (12) PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 763

list new avenues of research or industrial The first sentence should present the Finally, when submitting the manu-
application opened up by these findings. problem investigated and, if brief enough, script pay some attention to choosing and
Indicate how the findings answer the ques- the key findings. Subsequent sentences should suggesting appropriate peer reviewers. Who
tion you set out to answer. In many jour- present other key findings and discuss why is most qualified to review your paper? To
nals, such as JAOCS, mentioning potential the findings are important or relevant. suggest as a reviewer an individual who
industrial applications is a valuable addi- might be biased in favor of approving your
tion to the paper. manuscript without giving it an objective
Am I done yet? examination is to expose yourself to a mul-
Congratulations! After all that work and writ- titude of other readers who lack such a bias,
Introduction ing, you have a… rough draft! It is tempting and who will form opinions about your
After writing about what you did in your to get discouraged that more work remains, research skills based on what they read under
research it is time to write the introduction. but celebrate the progress and, if possible, your name.
It should pique the reader’s interest in the take a break of a few days to allow your-
research that you are about to present and self some distance from the writing.
put your work in context by describing the Then, assemble the parts and read through When to stop
relevant research publications that preceded the manuscript, with an eye toward whether It is easy to continue to find fault and polish
the current study. Seminal work in the field the approach makes sense and the writing a manuscript, but at some point you need
should be mentioned. It is also appropriate style flows well now that you are coming at to let it go. Remember the words of that pro-
to bring up your own earlier work that laid it anew. Most papers require two to six revi- lific author, Winston Churchill:
a foundation for the present paper. sions before they are ready. It is crucial to “Writing is an adventure. To begin with,
Published work is presented in the pres- have another scientist who can understand it is a toy and an amusement. Then it becomes
ent tense; it has been through peer-review the work read the manuscript critically and a mistress, then it becomes a master, then it
and become an established and accepted provide you with comments. He or she will becomes a tyrant. The last phase is that just
fact of science. Past tense is appropriate in be able to point out oversights or inconsis- as you are about to be reconciled to your
certain constructions, for example, tencies, and perhaps suggest improvements servitude, you kill the monster and fling him
“Schickelgoober alleged that …” Most jour- in the writing. to the public.”
nals have guidelines about how many cita- If you are writing in English and it is
tions are desired. It is important to not your first language, find someone qual-
demonstrate that you are conversant with ified to review the paper to ensure proper
Acknowledgment
the important work in the field, but the intro- English usage. Spelling can be corrected We appreciate the comments Robert Moreau
duction should not be an exhaustive review by most computer programs, but improper and Harold Farrell made during the drafting
of the entire field, either. language usage is much more difficult to of this article.
Sometimes it is necessary to bring up recognize. Sometimes improper usage can
work by scientists with whom you dis- make a sentence unintelligible, or even Scott Bloomer is with Archer Daniels
agree. If you mention this, put on your best make it say the exact opposite of the author’s Midland Co. Contact him at: James R.
professional manners and be very respect- intention. Randall Research Center, 1001 N Brush
ful. It is less painful later if you find out Check the manuscript against the instruc- College Rd., Decatur, IL 62521 USA;
that you misunderstood their findings tions for authors. Popular mistakes include e-mail: [email protected].
or, worse still, that you were wrong and improper divisions into sections, incom- Michael J. Haas is with the U.S. Department
they were right! pleteness, and errors in references. Reviewers of Agriculture’s Eastern Regional Research
Finish the introduction by answering and editors do notice if an author followed Center. Contact him at: 600 East Mermaid
these questions: What is the hole in knowl- the instructions. Double-check references Lane, Wyndmoor, PA 19038, USA. ■
edge you are filling? What is the question for accuracy and completeness. Check your
you have set out to answer? abbreviations.

References
After these main sections are written, it is
a simple matter to draft the reference list. Submit your paper for publication
This is also an easy place to make a mis- Target a journal to submit your paper for
take, so keep the instructions for authors publication then follow the writing tips
close at hand. Check and double-check for in this article to boost your chances
accuracy, completeness, and adherence to of acceptance.
the journal’s style. AOCS publishes three peer-
reviewed journals that would be
excellent choices for your manuscript:
Abstract JAOCS, Lipids, and the Journal of
Finally, draft the abstract. This paragraph Surfactants and Detergents (JSD) . Visit
can be properly drafted only when you have the AOCS Press website (netlink: www.aocs.
the whole paper in mind. You have here org/press) for author guidelines and to
but a few sentences to communicate the submit your paper.
important findings and capture the attention
of a busy reader.