Scientific Writing - Basic Skills and Tools

1. Introduction
To Scientific writing
Dr Ahmed-Refat AG Refat
Professor; Community & Family
Medicine Department

2. Learning Objectives
By the end of this presentation , the students
will be able to:
1. Describe the main features of scientific
writing
2. Identify the elements of the scientific writing .
3. Discuss the function, structure and writing
style of each element of scientific paper
4. Respect the academic integrity, honesty and
ethics of scientific writing .

3. Characteristics
of scientific
writing

4. Characteristics of scientific writing
Good scientific writing is: (1)
• Clear - it avoids unnecessary detail;
• Simple - it uses direct language, avoiding
vague or complicated sentences.
• Avoid Technical terms and jargon are used
only when they are necessary for accuracy;

5. Characteristics of scientific writing
Good scientific writing is: (2)
• Neutral - 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;

6. Characteristics of scientific writing
Good scientific writing is: (3)
• 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;

7. Characteristics of scientific writing
Good scientific writing is: (4)
• objective - statements and ideas are
supported by appropriate evidence that
demonstrates how conclusions have been
drawn as well as acknowledging the work of
others.

8. Elements of
the Scientific
Paper

9. Elements of the Scientific Paper
1. Title
2. Abstract / summary
3. Introduction
4. Methods
5. Results
6. Discussion
7. Works Cited
8. Appendices

10. Poster Layout

11. 1- Title
Function:
Your poster should begin with a Title that
briefly describes the contents of the paper.
Format:
· The title should be centered at the top of the
poster

12. 1-Title -cont’
• Informative and specific
• Concise
• Understandable
• Has important words first
• Has no abbreviations

13. 1-Title -cont’
• Identify study variables and the relationship
between them
• Indentify population(s) used in research –if any
• Do not include the words "method and results"
(put them in the abstract)
• Do not have redundancies such as "study of" or
"an experimental investigation of" at the
beginning of a title
• Avoid using a "yes-no" question as a title

14. 1-Title-cont’
• The title is descriptive and concise
• All nouns are capitalized in the title
• The title is centered on the page
• Your names and date appear below
the title

15. 2-Abstract/ summary
• 1. Function: An abstract summarizes the major
aspects of the entire poster .
• 2- Style:
• The abstract is a one paragraph summary of the
work, including the question investigated, the
methods used, the principal results and
conclusions.
• Use the active voice when possible
• Write your Abstract using concise sentences.
• Use past tense.

16. 2-Abstract/ summary
• Contents
• Brief background/context
• Aim of study
• How you will go about the research
• The information the research will provide.

17. 2-Lay Abstract
• Lay summaries are short accounts of research
that are targeted at a general non-expert
audience.
• Begin writing the abstract/summary after you
have finished writing your paper
• Short, simple sentences. Sentences should be
less than 25 words long.
• Don’t use a long word where a short one will
do. Examples: endeavour… try, facilitate… help,
consequently… so, advantageous… helpful

18. 3-Introduction
The introduction is a brief
section designed to inform the
reader of the relevance of your
work and includes a relevant
background.

19. 3-Introduction -cont’
• Provide a clear statement of the
rationale for your approach to
the problem studied
• Outlines your main objectives.

20. 3-Introduction-cont’
• Introductions usually follow a funnel
style, starting broadly and then
narrowing.
• • Funnels from:
• Known (the big picture significance and
previous work) to…..<<<
• Unknown (the specific gap in
knowledge) to …..<
• Question (this should be important,
specific, and unresolved).

22. 4-Objectives / Study Question
• Several ways can be used to signal the
research question , e.g.,
• “To determine whether ………”
• “The purpose of this study was to …….”
• This study tested the hypothesis that ……”
• “This study was undertaken to ……”

23. SMART Objectives
SMART Objectives are
• Specific,
• Measurable,
• Achievable,
• Realistic
• and Time-bound

24. 5- Methods
1. Function:
In this section you explain clearly how
you carried out your study
The Methods section chronologically
describes the process you undertook
to complete the research.

25. 6- Results
Function:
The function of the Results section is to
objectively present your key results,
without interpretation, in an orderly
and logical sequence using both text
and illustrative materials
(Tables and Figures).

26. The Anatomy of a Table

27. When to use Tables

28. Guidelines for Tables :
• 1. The title clearly describes what the table is
about.
• 2. The column heads are descriptive and clearly
indicate the nature of the data presented.
• 3. The data is divided into categories for clarity.
• 4. It is self-contained.
• 5. Sufficient spacing is present between
columns and rows;
• 6. the layout is clean; and the font is legible.

29. The Anatomy of a Figure

30. When to use Line Graphs

31. When to use Bar Charts

32. When to use Pie Chart

33. When to use Drawings/ Photographs

34. Guidelines for figures:
• . Ensure image clarity:
• . A figure legend at the bottom draws the
reader’s attention to the graph's key points.
• . Label all important parts:
• . The informative title that immediately tells the
reader
•The axes are labeled clearly.
•A note at the bottom acknowledges the source.

35. Poster is an illustrated abstract
• The success of a poster directly relates to the
clarity of the illustrations and tables.
• Self-explanatory graphics should dominate the
poster.
• A minimal amount of text materials should
supplement the graphic materials.
• Graphic materials should be visible easily from a
minimum distance of 5 feet.
• Restrained use of 2 - 3 colors for emphasis is
valuable; overuse is not.

36. 8- Discussion
• This section offers your interpretations and
conclusions about your findings.
• How do your results relate to the goals of the
study, and how do they relate to the results
that might have been expected from
background information obtained in lectures,
Demonstrate your ability to synthesize,
analyze, evaluate, interpret, and reason
effectively

37. 8- Discussion – cont’
• Interpret your results:
• Explain key limitations
• Discuss agreement or contrast with previously
published work
• Offer general conclusions,
• Recommend areas for future study .

38. 8- Discussion – cont’
Discussion
(like a good story)
has a beginning, middle,
and end.

39. 8- Discussion – cont’
• BEGINNING: States answer and
summarizes main findings.
• MIDDLE: Explains answer and how it fits
in with previous work.
• END: Gives final conclusion(s).

40. Conclusion
Two standard ways to conclude:
1) Restate answer and/or
2) Indicate importance of work by
stating implications, applications,
suggest future work.

41. 9- Referencing
• Importance of referencing :
1. to support your opinion
2. to add credibility to the information you
present
3. to enable the reader to trace the source you
used
4. to avoid possible accusations of plagiarism

42. 9- Citation and Referencing
• You should include a reference for all the
sources of information that you use when writing
• WHAT IS A CITATION?
• When you use another person’s work in your own
work, either by referring to their ideas,
• or by including a direct quotation, you must
acknowledge this in the text of your work.
• This acknowledgement is called a citation

43. Citationtypes
Citations can be of two basic types:
A- Information-prominent citations
B- Author-prominent citation

44. Writing Tips-1
Use Active Voice

45. Active vs Passive Voice -cont’
• The active voice emphasizes the
performer (or agent) of the action:
• The active voice is direct , clear, and concise.
• The reader knows who is responsible for the
action.
• Ex.
• Smith et al. investigated the relationship.
• We have analyzed the results.

46. • The passive voice, in contrast, emphasizes
the receiver (or product) of the action:
• The passive voice is and can be weak, awkward,
and wordy.
• Ex.
• The relationship was investigated [by Smith et al].
• The results have been analyzed [by us].
Active vs Passive Voice

47. • ACTIVE: "the mouse consumed oxygen at a
higher rate..."
• PASSIVE: "oxygen was consumed by the
mouse at a higher rate.."
• The clarity and effectiveness of your
writing will improve dramatically as
you increase the use of the active
voice.
Active vs Passive Voice

48. Writing Tips-2
Using Tenses
In Scientific Writing

49. Using Tenses In Scientific Writing
• Abstract
This usually refers to your
unpublished results and
uses the past tense.

50. • Introduction
• Include background information which is
generally accepted as fact. It is usually presented
in the present tense.
• Ex. Genomics provides crucial information for
rational drug design
• Present perfect tense to report research
• Ex. A great deal of research has been conducted
Using Tenses In Scientific Writing

51. •Methods
• Past tense to describe what was done
• In your methods section it is
customary to use a form of the simple
past tense to describe what you did in
your study.
Using Tenses In Scientific Writing-cont’

52. •Results
• Past tense for results obtained
• In the results section, use the past
tense to detail the results you
obtained
• Present tense to refer to figures,
tables and graphs
Using Tenses In Scientific Writing-cont’

53. •Discussion
• Present tense to explain significance
of results
• Past tense to summarise findings,
with present tense to interpret
results
Using Tenses In Scientific Writing-cont’

54. • Conclusion
• A combination of tenses to highlight past
research and future directions
• Ex.( Although the study found evidence of ….
Further studies are therefore necessary to
determine the effects of…… on ……...)
Using Tenses In Scientific Writing-cont’

55. •Citations
Using Tenses In Scientific Writing-
cont’

58. Thank You

59. Resources & further readings
1. Jenkins S 1995 How to write a paper for a
scientific journal. Australian Journal of
Physiotherapy 41(4): 285 – 289
2. Stanford University. Writing in Science
http://online.stanford.edu/courses.
3. Erren TC, Bourne PE (2007) Ten simple rules for a
good poster presentation. PLoS Comput Biol 3(5):
e102. doi:10.1371/journal.pcbi.0030102
4. Swales, J. M. & Feak, C. B. (2004). Academic
Writing for Graduate Students. (2nd ed.). Ann
Arbor: University of Michigan Press. .