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Writing A Scientific Paper

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Trà Giang Nguyễn Thi
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3 views

Writing A Scientific Paper

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Trà Giang Nguyễn Thi
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Writing a Scientific Paper:

Basics of Content and Organization

Barbara Gastel, MD, MPH


Texas A&M University
[email protected]
Main Source
How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper,
6th edition, by Robert A. Day and Barbara
Gastel (Greenwood Press/Cambridge
University Press, 2006)
Overview
• Definition of a scientific paper
• The IMRAD format
• Front matter: title, author(s), abstract
• Core of the paper: introduction, methods,
results, discussion
• Tables and figures
• End matter: acknowledgments, references
• A suggestion
• Sources of further guidance
Definition of a Scientific Paper
(Council of Biology Editors, as adapted by Day)

• The first publication of original research


results
• In a form whereby peers of the author can
repeat the experiments and test the
conclusions
• In a journal or other source document
readily available in the scientific
community
Some Types of Journal Content
Other Than Scientific Papers
• Review articles (summarize the literature
on a topic)
• Case reports
• Editorials
• Book reviews
• Essays
• Letters to the editor
Comment
Writing a scientific paper: largely a matter of
organization
The IMRAD Format
for Scientific Papers
• Introduction: What was the question?
• Methods: How did you try to answer it?
• Results What did you find?
• Discussion What does it mean?

• A format used in some journals: IRDaM


• People read sections in various orders.
The Front Matter
• Title
• Authors
• Abstract
Title
• The fewest possible words that adequately
indicate the contents of the paper
• Important in literature searching
• Should not include extra words, such as “a
study of”
• Should be specific enough but not overly
narrow
Authors
• Those with important intellectual
contributions to the work
• Often listed largely from greatest
contributions to least
• Head of research group often is listed last
• Important to list one’s name the same way
from paper to paper
Abstract
• Summarizes the paper
• Widely read and therefore important
• Commonly organized in IMRAD format
(may be structured abstract, with headings
corresponding to the various sections)
• Content must be consistent with that in the
paper
• Normally should not include figures,
tables, references
The Core of the Paper
• Introduction
• Methods
• Results
• Discussion
Introduction
• Provides background needed to
understand the paper and appreciate its
importance
• Identifies the question the research
addressed
• In general, should be fairly short
• Typically should be funnel-shaped, moving
from general to specific.
Methods
• Purposes: to allow others to replicate and
to evaluate what you did
• Should describe the study design
• Should identify (if applicable)
– Equipment, organisms, reagents, etc used
(and sources thereof)
– Approval of human or animal research by an
appropriate committee
– Statistical methods
Methods (cont)
• May include tables and figures
• An issue: level of detail in which to
describe
– Well-known methods
– Methods previously described but not well
known
– Methods that you yourself devised
• Helpful to use papers published in the
same journal as models
Results
• The core of the paper
• Often includes tables, figures, or both
• An issue: how much the information in the
text should overlap with that in the tables
and figures
• Should present results but not comment
on them
Discussion
• Often should begin with a brief summary
of the main findings
• Should answer the question stated in the
introduction
• Some other items commonly addressed:
– Limitations of the study
– Relationship to findings of other research
– Other research needed
Discussion (cont)
• Typically should move from specific to
general (opposite of introduction)
Tables: A Few Suggestions
• Use tables only if text will not suffice.
• Design tables to be understandable
without the text.
• If a paper includes a series of tables, use
the same format for each.
• Be sure to follow the instructions to
authors.
Figures: A Few Suggestions
• Use figures (graphs, diagrams, maps,
photographs, etc) only if they will help
convey your information.
• Avoid including too much information in
one figure.
• Make sure any lettering will be large
enough once published.
• Follow the journal’s instructions.
End Matter
• Acknowledgments
• References
Acknowledgments
• A place to thank people who helped with
the work but did not make contributions
deserving authorship
• Permission should be obtained from
people you wish to list
• Sometimes the place where sources of
financial support are stated
References
• Functions:
– To give credit
– To add credibility
– To help readers find further information
• Importance of accuracy
• Existence of various reference formats
• Availability of citation management
software (examples: EndNote, Reference
Manager)
A Suggestion
Start by drafting whatever part of the paper
you find easiest to prepare. (Many people
find it easiest to start with the methods
section.)
Sources of Further Guidance
• How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper, 6th
edition, by Robert A. Day and Barbara Gastel
(Greenwood Press, 2006)
• Fundamentals of Writing Biomedical Research
Papers, 2nd edition, by Mimi Zeiger (McGraw-
Hill, 2000)
• Preparing Scientific Illustrations: A Guide to
Better Posters, Presentations, and Publications,
2nd edition, by Mary Helen Briscoe (Springer,
1996)

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