2.7  Learning Activities

Now that you have put your knowledge of writing scientific papers to the test, try your hand at these learning activities.  

A1 — Select a paper and analyze its abstract in light of the structure proposed in this unit. For each sentence (or perhaps each clause within a sentence), determine what it conveys: context, need, task, object of the document, findings, conclusions, and/or perspectives. Check whether these components are presented in a logical order, and note which components (if any) are missing.

A2 — As a follow-up to activity A1, rewrite the abstract to improve it. If some components are missing, look for the missing information in the Introduction and Conclusion of the paper. If this information is not there either, use your own knowledge of the field to make an educated guess.

To make activities A1 and A2 directly useful, carry them out on the draft paper of a colleague, then share your analysis (A1) and rewriting (A2) with him or her.

A3 — Each time you read a scientific paper from your field, look for the verbs that express a research action and create a list of them. Be critical, however: Only add specific verbs such as measure, compare, or simulate, not generic verbs such as do, perform, or carry out.

A4 — Each time a scientific paper frustrates you by not including information you wish to have (for example, by not explaining an abbreviation or by failing to clarify the motivation for the work), ask yourself what, exactly, is missing and why it is important to you as a reader. Remember these frustrations: They will give you a better idea of what readers wish to find in a paper. Then, when you are writing a paper of your own, remember to provide this type of information to your readers.

A5 — When you receive corrections on your writing in English, learn from them. Make sure you understand the problem and the rule or principle behind the correction. If you do not understand, ask. If you do understand the problem but cannot easily spot it when proofreading your text, try to turn it into something you can search for with the Find function of your text processor. Maintain your Find list actively. After a while, you may notice that you can remove some searches because you now use the correct form spontaneously and systematically.