Guarantee

Writing is a very important part of science; it is used to document and

communicate ideas, activities and findings to others. Scientific writing can

take many forms from a lab notebook to a project report, or from a paper

in an academic journal to an article in a scientific magazine.

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 Contents
 Language
 Figures and Tables
 Literature (introduction, discussion)
 First draft
 Submitting draft to your tutor
 Manuscript
 Publishing your work

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Good scientific writing should be:
•clear - it avoids unnecessary detail;
•simple - it uses direct language, avoiding vague or complicated sentences.
Technical terms and jargon are used only when they are necessary for
accuracy;
•impartial - it avoids making assumptions (Everyone knows that ...) and
unproven statements (It can never be proved that ...). It presents how and
where data were collected and supports its conclusions with evidence;
•structured logically - ideas and processes are expressed in a logical order.
The text is divided into sections with clear headings;
•accurate - it avoids vague and ambiguous language such as about,
approximately, almost;
•objective - statements and ideas are supported by appropriate evidence
that demonstrates how conclusions have been drawn as well as
acknowledging the work of others.
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 Key Principles  Scientific and technical writing is
never a 'general purpose‘, but written
for a specific audience, i.e. the
community who read a particular
audience journal or study a particular subject.

 So you must adopt the style and level

purpose of writing that is appropriate for your
audience. Study them as they are
occasion manifested in a selection of highly
regarded papers and in the
"Instructions for Authors" for key
journals.
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 Scientists and engineers are called upon
to communicate in many different situations
Conferences
Lectures
Reports Meetings
Articles Posters
Proposals
Web Pages

specific general
technical technical non-technical
audiences audiences audiences
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 Use an outline to organize your ideas and writing.
 Break up large projects into small pieces and work on the pieces.
 Think about the structure of paragraphs.
 Do not use more words where fewer will do (also avoid long
words).
 Pay attention to tenses.
 Captions should not merely name a table or figure, they should
explain how to read it.
 When citing a reference, focus on the ideas, not the authors.
 Show us don't tell us.
 Do Not Turn in a First Draft!

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 Good writing doesn’t happen overnight; it requires planning, drafting,
rereading, revising, and editing.
 Learning and improvement requires self-review, peer-review, subject-matter
expert feedback, and practice.
 There are no shortcuts; practice makes perfect!
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•Plan your project before you begin drafting.

•Understand basic qualities of good technical writing; use the examples

presented to guide you in your writing and revising process.

•Good writing is a habit that takes time to develop; practice makes

perfect.

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 Title page
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Methods
 Results
 Tables/Figures
 Discussion
 Conclusions
 Acknowledgements
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 Title page
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Methods
 Results
 Tables/Figures
 Discussion
 Conclusions
 Acknowledgements
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 Introduction (brief literature review)
 Ghost Tables/Figures (analytic plan)
 Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 Abstract
 Title page
 Acknowledgements

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Clearly state the:
 Nature and significance of problem being investigated
 Background that explains the problem
 Reasons for conducting the research

 Summarize relevant research to provide context

 State how your work differs from published work
 Identify the questions you are answering
 Explain what other findings, if any, you are challenging or extending
 Specific research objectives and preplanned analyses
 Briefly describe the experiment, hypothesis(es), research question(s); general
experimental design or method

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 Paragraph #1/2: What we know

 Limit to only pertinent references

 Paragraph #3/4: What we don’t know.

 Last Paragraph: What we did to find out

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 Technical information
 Variable definition and measurement
 Reference well known procedures
 Briefly describe and reference less known procedures
 Describe in detail new procedures
 Apparatus: model number and manufacturer name

 Statistical/Analytic methods
 Provide enough detail for a knowledgeable reader
with access to original data to verify results
 Specific analytic methods
 Software
 Approach to bias/confounding
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 Provide the reader enough details so they can
understand and replicate your research
 Explain how you studied the problem and
identify the procedures you followed
 Explain new methodology in detail; otherwise
name the method and cite the previously
published work
 Include the frequency of observations, what
types of data were recorded, etc.
 Be precise in describing measurements and
include errors of measurement or research design
limits
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Purpose
 Concise display of info
 Provide several levels of detail
 Reduces length of text

Restrict tables/figures to explain argument and

assess report

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 Number consecutively in order of first citation in text
 Title should summarize data
 Give each column a brief/abbreviated heading
 Footnote explanatory matter
 Identify statistical measures of variation

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 Number consecutively in order of first citation in text
 Title should summarize data
 Give each column a brief/abbreviated heading
 Footnote explanatory matter
 Identify statistical measures of variation

Table 1: Different parameters for photoanode sensitization

Semiconducting Oxide Dye Solvent Impregnation Time
(Concentration) (hours)

Sponge-like
N719 (0.40 mM) Ethanol 2
ZnO
Flower-like
CT1 (0.25 mM) Acetonitrile 05
ZnO
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 Number consecutively
according to order cited
 High resolution images
 Letters, numbers and
symbols need to be clear
and of sufficient size
 Include titles and detailed
explanations in legend
rather than figure

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 Number consecutively
according to order cited
 High resolution images
 Letters, numbers and
symbols need to be clear
and of sufficient size
Figure 1: Schematic diagram of a Dye-
 Include titles and detailed sensitized Solar Cell based on ZnO
explanations in legend nanostructure. Arrow shows the path for
rather than figure electrons transport.

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 Number consecutively
according to order cited
 High resolution images
 Letters, numbers and
symbols need to be clear
and of sufficient size
 Include titles and detailed Figure 2: Schematic diagram of a Dye-
explanations in legend sensitized Solar Cell based on ZnO
rather than figure nanostructure.

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 Narrative should be same logical sequence as tables/figures
 Summarize rather than repeat all data from tables in text
 Include absolute numbers with percentages

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 Narrative should be same logical sequence as tables/figures
 Summarize rather than repeat all data from tables in text
 Include absolute numbers with percentages

Sponge-like ZnO
PCE= 6.67 %

10 µm 27
1 µm
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 20
(a) (b)
TiO2 nanoparticles TiO2 nanotubes

Current density (mA/cm2)

0.6
1.0
15
0.8
0.4
0.6
IPCE

IPCE
10
0.4
 Narrative should be same logical sequence as tables/figures
0.2

0.2

 Summarize rather than repeat all data from tables in text

0.0
5
0.0
400 500 600 700 800
400 500 600 700 800

 Include absolute numbers with percentages

Wavelength (nm) Wavelength (nm)
0
0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7
Voltage (V) Voltage (V)

(c) (d)
Sponge-like ZnO
8 Flower-like ZnO
Flower-like ZnO
1.0

Current Density (mA/cm )

2 PCE= 3.35%
0.5
0.8
6 0.4
0.6
IPCE

IPCE 0.3
0.4
4
0.2

0.2
0.1

0.0 2
400 500 600 700 800 0.0
400 500 600 700 800
Wavelength (nm) Wavelength (nm)
0
0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6
Voltage (V) 28
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 Conclusions should follow objectives
 Do not extend your conclusions beyond what is
directly supported by your results - avoid undue
speculation
 Outline the next steps for further study

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 Cite primary work over review articles
 Whenever you draw upon previously published work,
you must acknowledge the source
 Any information not from your experiment and not
‘common knowledge’ should be recognized by a
citation
 Avoid references that are difficult to find
 Avoid listing related references that were not important
to the study
 Check accuracy and formatting
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 Concise title that includes important info
 Study design
 Research question/finding
 Authors names and institutional affiliations
 Corresponding author: name, mailing address,
fax, email
 Sources of grant/support

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 Content or background
 Study purpose
 Basic procedures
 Selection of subjects
 Key variables
 Analytic methods
 Main findings
 Principal conclusions

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 3-10 words that capture main topics for indexing

e.g.
• Dye-sensitized Solar Cell
• Zinc Oxide
• Nanostructure

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 Only standard abbreviations
 Use full term, then abbreviation in parentheses
after first use

e.g.
• X-ray Diffraction (XRD)
• Dye-sensitized Solar Cells (DSCs)

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 Individuals who made essential contributions
 Funding source

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 Title and format of manuscript
 Brief summary of finding
 Statement of non-redundancy of submission of
publication
 Conflict of interest
 Read and approved by all authors
 Contact info for corresponding author

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 Substantial contribution to
 Conception and design, or
 Acquisition of data, or
 Analysis and interpretation
 Drafting and critical revision of manuscript for
intellectual content
 Final approval of submitted version

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 First author
 Design/conceive the study
 Writes first draft
 Partners with last author for subsequent drafts
 Last author
 Usually experienced investigator who partners with first author
in interpretation, analysis, and writing
 Second author
 Major contribution
 Third author
 Important contributions
 Middle authors
 Everyone else who qualifies for authorship

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 Usually first or senior author
 Submits manuscript
 Corresponds with publisher/editor
 Revision
 Gallies
 Receives subsequent correspondence from
outside investigators

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 Paper Submitted
Notification to Author
Confirmation Receipt

Revise Accept
Initial Decision by Editor

Revision Received
Rejection Decide to Review

Revision Checked
Assign Reviewers

Reviewers Accept Invite

Reviews Completed
Paper sent to Publisher

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