Writing Papers in the Biological Sciences, 4 th ed

Writing Papers in the Biological Sciences, 4th ed.

McMillan, VE. 2006. Bedford/St. Martin’s: Boston, MA.

Relax. You don’t need to feel like this guy. We are here to help.

Jerk Bison

Don’t Procrastinate! If you haven’t started your paper, start today.

TitleSpecifies author’s major findings

Be specific. Be concise. Include appropriate taxonomic information. Avoid abbreviations or coined terms. Should not be

tricky or corny.Format:

Centered Single-spaced First word capitalized No page number on first page

Title Examples

Vague: Some changes during menopauseSpecific: Early menopausal changes in bone mass and sex steroids

Vague: Mating frequency in butterfliesVague: Mating frequency in PapilioSpecific: Mating frequency in butterflies of the genus Papilio

Author

Name, address, email Format: Left align Separate with commas

Example:C. Riley Nelson, Department of Biology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602 Email: nelsonbiology@gmail.com

AbstractSummarizes all major points of paper.

Including introduction, materials and methods, results, and discussion

Independent from rest of paper Must stand on its own and make sense

Be specific and conciseFormat:

Include “Abstract” as heading Indent One paragraph, ~200 words or less

Abstract ExampleAbstract

I studied the territorial behavior of male dragonflies (Plathemis lydia) at a small pond near Earlville, NY. Fifty-one males were marked with enamel paint on the abdomen and observed under natural conditions during June 2005. Males defended individual areas from male conspecifics and occasionally from males of other species. Aggressive interactions generally involved threat behavior rather than physical contact. Territory owners typically remained at the same area for at least two hours and returned to the same location on successive days. Territorial behavior in this species may be adaptive for males, enabling them to monopolize areas likely to be visited by females seeking mates.

Keywords~5 words a reader can use to search for your paper

Important aspects or topics of your paper Words not necessarily in title or abstract but relevant to

paperFormat:

Single-spaced Use colon after “Keywords” Separate words with commas

Example:Keywords: tropics, swallowtails, behavior

How would you search for this video? What are some keywords you would use?

Kats

Felis catus, fainting, myotonia congenita, kitten behavior, temporary paralysis

Electronic abstracts have the same deadline and must be submitted to nelsonbiology@gmail.com. Please submit as an MS Word document named:

<your last name then initials>NE f2011.doc

For example, I would submit: nelsoncrNE f2011.doc

In the subject line of your email, please put “nature experience f2011<your last name then initials>”. For example, nature experience f2011 nelsoncr

Abstracts will not be accepted at our other email addresses, such as your TA’s email.

Introduction--Setting the StageIntroduce key conceptsIt poses the problem and the proposed solution Explain important hypotheses or controversiesDefine specialized terms

The main question of your paperWhy you decided to write this paper nowWhy the reader should careUse citations for support

Introduction—Summarize Literature

Proceed from general to specific

Hawaii

Phedoile Megacephala

Explain Rationale for the StudyHow does your work fit in?What special problem does your study address?What NEW information have you tried to acquire?Why are you writing this paper?

Introduction is Active and Personal

Use pronouns such as we or our “I” is appropriate in this nature experience If the paper contains parts that are a collective effort

use “we”No passive voice in an Introduction -”Specimens were measured and weighed” (passive)-”We measured and weighed each specimen” (active)-Why is this important?

Stay on topic! Don’t start rambling about things unrelated

to your Nature Experiment

Turtles

Materials and MethodsReaders should be able to repeat study-precise, clear details -SPECIFIC!!NO Vague details“I observed some monkeys in a large outdoor enclosure and others in a small, individual indoor cages” (McMillan 2006).Specific details“I observed 13 monkeys in an outdoor enclosure (10x8x12m3) and 12 others in individual indoor cages (1x2x1m3)” (McMillan 2006).Organize information logicallyProse format-not a list!Leave out unrelated information

The details are very important, and inconsistency can be distracting

Editing

Materials and Methods--Have a balance between Passive

and Active voiceEmphasize active voice-Active voice-subject performs the action

ex. “I collected insects from the Provo River.”“I collected lizards from three different sites”

(McMillan 2006).-Passive voice- the subject receives the action

ex. “Insects were collected from the Provo River.”

“Lizards were collected from three different sites” (McMillan 2006).

Ideally there should be a mixture of mostly active and little passive voice

Using active voice takes ownership of your work

Materials and Methods What to include

Materials include:-Taxonomic information-Description of tools used, including brand names of equipmentMethods include:-Procedure in DETAIL-Location and Time period-Less familiar statistical methods

Materials and Methods Examples

Materials & Methods“Cladosporium fulvum race 4 was obtained from Dr. George Watson, Department of Biology, Colgate University, Hamilton, NY. Stocks were maintained in sterile soil at 4°C and were increased on V8 juice agar at 25°C in the dark…”(McMillan 2006).“The study was conducted during June and July 2005 at Bog Pond, 3km northwest of Barrow, West Virginia. The general habitat of this pond has been described elsewhere (Needham 1967; Scott 1981). The pond is permanent and contains floating and emergent vegetation (mostly sedges, rushes, and algae)…” (McMillan 2006).

McMillan, V.E. 2006. Writing Papers in the Biological Sciences. 4:78-83.

1. Summarize your data, emphasizing important patterns or trends

2. Illustrate and support generalizations with explanatory details, statistics, examples of representative cases, and using charts and figures

Style tip: use past tense, since you’ve already gathered all your data.

RESULTS

What not to include:

1. Do not interpret the data or draw major conclusions.

2. Do not compare your findings to those of other researchers (that’s for the discussion)

3. Avoid speculating about the causes of your findings (also for discussion)

Integrating data (text vs charts/figures)

Refer to each chart or figure in the text of this section, explaining what it indicates.

Also be sure to EXPLAIN your figures and tables in your results!

Example: “The 15 caterpillars in Group 3

averaged 2.1 cm in total length (range =1.0; Fig. 1).”

Although you may be reluctant to part with any of your data, it’s important to distinguish what information is relevant or not to your question.

Check: Ask yourself, does this piece of information prove or disprove my hypothesis? If it does, then include it. If not, then do not write about it.

Omit peripheral information and unnecessary details.

(Most scientists gather much more data than they ever will present to their readers, even for short projects.)

What would you be studying in order for this video to contain pertinent information?

Bear

This would be pertinent if you were studying the physics of bears falling, the strength of a trampoline, or the effect of tranquilizers on bears.

This wouldn’t be pertinent if you were studying why bears live in trees or which type of trampoline is best for jumping

Figures and Tables

Put at end of paper Cite in Text […(Table 1). Or …(Fig. 1).]

Figures consecutively numberedTables consecutively numbered separately No lines in middle of table

Figures and Tables

If use a picture for a figure, must teach something

DiscussionInterpreting your Results

Purpose of the Discussion SectionInterpret your Results Results section reported data and Discussion section tells what the

results mean Did results support hypothesis? Why or why not?

Support your Conclusions with Evidence Use the research of others (5 primary sources minimum). Compare

your research to other researchers – broader framework Can use the internet to get to databases – don’t source general websites How do your results fit into the big picture?

Keys to an Effective Discussion SectionDo not present every conceivable explanation Swamps the reader

Recognize the importance of “negative” results Don’t fight the data, explain the conclusions that they support It is still ok to have “negative results” (results that do not show a significant

difference)

Write with confidence and authority Trust your data! Don’t disregard what you found! Show that you are knowledgeable about your subject Use coherent, logical organization Move from specific to general information Draw attention to major findings with minimal repetition Discuss causes for major trends and explain unexpected results

What’s important is that you talk about what you found, not what the findings of others are. You’re blazing new territory, don’t be scared to make new conclusions that are supported by your evidence

Malk

AcknowledgementsShortIncludes:

List of sources of funding for the project Thanks anyone who assisted with the research or

preparation of the paperThis section of the paper is not appropriate or necessary for every paper. If the above points are not true, don’t acknowledge anyone. You’re just taking up space if you do.

The literature cited section is sometimes hard to do because of the strict formatting guidelines. Don’t let it be a wall stopping

you from getting a good grade

Wall

Literature CitedOnly includes sources that are cited in the paper (even if the sources were good background reading). This includes secondary sources!!Consistent and detailed in formatAll the information for every source is accurate and completeIn-text citations are correct for the format used. If more than 2 authors, list them and then write “et al.” at the end of the citation.

Literature Cited

Do not use MLA or APA format.See example in NE handout. Alphabetical by author Porter, S. D. and D. A. Savignano. 1990. Invasion of polygyne fire ants decimates native ants and disrupts arthropod community. Ecology 71: 2095-2106.

Grammar/Spelling

Use formal writing. No contractions This is a scientific paper-make it sound like

one! Have someone peer-review your paper! Bring a draft in to the TA’s!

You will get a better grade if you do this!

Don’t be slow, turn your paper in on time.

Remember: Nature Experiences due Monday, 21st of November 2011, due in class. Or late after 6pm to TA’s or outside my laboratory and office, Room 123 Widtsoe Building!

Late penalties:If Tuesday, 22 November 2011, 10% penalty.If Monday, 28 November 2011, 20% penalty.

Turn it in on-time!