Biology Writing Manual - Wilmington Collegeplato.wilmington.edu/faculty/dburks/BIO231 2011 Writing Manual... · Biology Writing Manual By: ... 3 Late paper policy 3 ... APPENDIX I:

Biology Writing Manual

By:

Doug Burks

Kendra Cipollini

Don Troike

Doug Woodmansee

August 2011

2

Table of Contents

Topic Page Number

Introduction and use of writing manual

3

Late paper policy

3

Why writing is important

4

Plagiarism

5

Time management

7

Finding references

8

Reading primary literature

9

Paper Summaries

11

Citing sources

11

Research/laboratory reports

13

Research/laboratory reports grading rubric

17

Review papers

19

Review paper grading rubric

20

APPENDIX I: Format of the research paper/laboratory report

22

APPENDIX II: Format of the review paper

25

Notes

28

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Introduction and Use of Writing Manual

The biology professors at Wilmington College have agreed to coordinate writing

expectations and formats in order to enhance student learning. Each student taking a

course in biology must first acquire the text cited below, which is available for purchase

at the bookstore (or from on-line vendors) or is found on reserve in Watson Library. This

manual is a supplement to the text, providing additional details and grading rubrics in

particular. It is necessary that you read and use both this manual and the text when

completing writing assignments for biology professors. In addition, your professor may

give you additional instructions or clarifications for a writing assignment. Please do not

hesitate to contact your professor if you have any additional questions that are not

addressed in the manual and text. Ignorance is no excuse for not completing your writing

assignments correctly.

A grading rubric is a document that explicitly describes the criteria to be used in

evaluating a student’s work. It provides guidelines that state the dimensions to be

assessed and the characteristics that lead to the assigning of specific grades. It reveals the

specific strengths and weaknesses in a work. We provide the rubrics used by all biology

professors at Wilmington College in this manual. Besides being used as guide for our

grading, you should consult the rubrics as a guide to help you in writing your papers.

When turning in an electronic paper, use the following naming format: Course_Date (in

YY/MM/DD format)_Last name and first initial_Version number (in Arabic numbers).

So for example, if John Smith turns in a first version of his paper on September 15, 2007

in his ENV133 class, he would name his electronic document

“ENV133_07/09/15_SmithJ_ 1” and send this document to his professor.

Required text: Knisely, Karin. 2009. A student handbook for writing in biology, 3rd

edition. Sinauer Associates, Inc., Sunderland, MA. This text will be cited as Knisely

(2009) throughout this manual.

Late Paper Policy

Wilmington College biology professors have adopted a unified policy concerning late

papers. A paper is late any time after 4:00 PM on the assignment’s due date, unless

otherwise indicated. In addition, any incomplete, substandard assignment submitted at

the deadline just to “get something in” will be considered late.

It is our purpose to help you to become better writers and often this is done in part by

dividing the writing process into steps, each of which can be reviewed and critiqued by

the professor. For example, a scientific project may begin with a library assignment and

annotated bibliography of relevant sources used to plan the project. Later, a presumptive

title and introduction may be collected. Still later, a methods section may be submitted.

Finally a draft of the paper may be requested prior to the final paper. Failure to submit

each of these components by their deadlines will result in deduction of points from the

final paper, if they are not graded separately. It should be noted that early submissions

are drafts, not “rough” drafts. Drafts have been proofread for grammar, style and

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spelling; they only lack critical review by another knowledgeable person. Drafts are

complete works not lacking any section or information that would appear in the

final published work.

When preliminary papers are collected, you have the right to expect timely return with

appropriate constructive comments. It is our goal to return all preliminary drafts within

eight working days of the due date.

Submission of the final paper after the deadline will result in a 20% deduction of points

for each working day it is late. For example, if you hand in your late paper within one

working day of the due date, the highest score you can possibly receive is an 80%. If you

hand in your late paper within two working days of the due date, the highest score you

can receive is a 60%. If you hand in your paper within three working days of the due

date, the highest score you can receive is a 40%. Late papers will not be accepted after

three working days.

Exceptions to the late policy: With all exceptions it is expected that you will contact the

professor in advance or as soon as is reasonably possible. Contact the professor by

calling the professor’s office phone first. If the professor is not in, leave a message and

then follow up with an email. Documentation may be required.

• Serious illness prior to the due date, but not on the date, since it is assumed you

would have the paper done on that date. If you are off campus when ill, it is

expected you will make arrangements to email the paper.

• Unexpected death or serious injury/surgery of a family member or close friend.

• Weather conditions that close the highways or the College.

Why Writing is Important: Doug Burks

René Descartes said, Cogito, ergo sum, translated as, “I think therefore I am”. For any

professional in today’s world, perhaps a better statement would be “I write therefore I

am.” Writing is the cornerstone of professional activity. I doubt that there is a day in

which I don’t communicate with other professionals in writing in some way. It may be

simply writing an email or it may be at the other end of the spectrum where I am working

on a research paper for publication. Perhaps a list of the types of writing I do might help

demonstrate the importance of writing to a professional. In a typical year I will write

emails, letters of recommendations for students, lectures, class handouts, class

assignments, tests, comments on student tests and papers, reviews of textbooks, grant

proposals, grant reports, and research papers for publication. The importance of writing

can be seen in the report “Writing: A Powerful Statement from State Government” where

it was stated that:

State agencies frequently require writing samples from job applicants.

Fully 91 percent of respondents in states that “almost always” take writing

into account also require a writing sample from prospective “professional”

employees. Of these states, 50 percent also require writing samples from

clerical and support personnel. “Oral and writing skills are absolutely

essential in a service- and knowledge-based economy. This is a very

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different economy from one based on agriculture or industry,” said one

personnel director.

Writing is a more significant promotion consideration in state government

than in the private sector. In 2004, about half of all corporations in the

Business Roundtable survey reported taking writing into account in

professional promotion either “frequently” or “almost always.” More than

60 percent of state agencies do so. Said one state respondent: “At the

higher levels, we check for how well people can organize their thoughts

and respond to a complicated question.1

In a 1995 report in “The Journal of Quality Participation it was stated that “Modern

professionals now spend more time than ever wordsmithing on their PowerBooks, PC

laptops and Pentium PCs -- up to 70 percent of their day.”2 Writing is a fundamental skill

for all professionals. Professional success is dependent upon the ability to write

effectively and clearly. If you are preparing for your future in a career, time spent

developing the ability to write well is worth the investment.

For a biologist an even more important reason that writing is important is that research

papers, monographs, and books are the record of what has been done and is known in the

discipline. It is the record of progress in understanding. That record is what enables

human knowledge to be progressive. For instance, I know what Charles Darwin did and

thought about evolution because I have read the Origin of Species. By looking at the

written record of his data and arguments I can judge the validity of the idea. I can also

discover new questions to pursue to enlarge our understanding of evolution. It is not

enough to do experiments and discover new knowledge. That information and

knowledge must be communicated. Your contributions to biology will be judged by what

you write.

Plagiarism: Doug Woodmansee

Academic plagiarism is, at its heart, taking credit for another person’s work. Sometimes

this is done deliberately, other times it is done more or less unwittingly. Either way, it is

serious misconduct that can have severe consequences. At Wilmington College, it can

result in a very bad grade for an assignment (or a whole course) and may trigger judicial

proceedings. In the world of work, it can result in poor performance reviews, job loss and

may even trigger a lawsuit. The biology professors have agreed to assign a grade of “0”

to any piece of student work that the professor believes to be plagiarized. If it is a second

offense at Wilmington College, you will receive an “F” for the entire course.

In an educational setting, the real problem with plagiarism is that you learn nothing from

doing it. The purpose of a college education is to build a knowledge base and a set of

intellectual skills that can serve you for the rest of your life. Plagiarism, even if you get

away with it, doesn’t help you do these things. When you leave college and get a job,

1 2005. Writing: A Powerful Statement from State Government. College Board. Page 5. 2 Egan, Michael, 1995. Total Quality Business Writing. The Journal of Quality Participation

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your employer may be disappointed to discover that you simply do not have the

intellectual skills that are expected of a college graduate.

Here is one common scenario for plagiarism. A student has a paper of some sort to write

and the student knows nothing about the topic. The deadline is looming. Something has

to go on the paper. What to do?

Google.

A page or two is found that seems to be what the professor is looking for. “Select”;

“Copy”; “Paste”. A little touch-up here and there and … “Print”. Sometimes a whole

paper is manufactured this way; other times the downloaded material is added to genuine

student work which clearly needed some propping up.

Deliberate plagiarism is not hard for a professor to detect or to deal with. It is usually

painfully obvious what the student has done and a quick Google search will usually

reveal the source document in a matter of seconds. If the student is clearly trying to

deceive, the professor’s response is usually frustration and disappointment. A grade of

“0” is assigned and a letter to the Dean’s office is produced in no time flat.

Much more difficult for everyone to deal with is that grey area between overt plagiarism

and really bad research. Sometimes students assume that if they reference their sources

then they can not be charged with plagiarism. After all, they are not claiming that the

words are their own. The problem with this reasoning is that the student has not learned

any more about the topic than the student who does not reference the source. The

professor knows that the student has not really engaged with the topic and has learned

little of value from the assignment. It sure feels like plagiarism to the professor but is it

really?

At this point in the story something interesting usually happens. The student who builds a

paper using the copy and paste method is almost always too harried or disengaged to do

the references correctly. Quotes are often attributed to sources in which they do not

appear, the actual source is either not listed at all or has something else attributed to it.

There is almost always something seriously wrong with the references. The paper now

meets the formal criteria for plagiarism and can be prosecuted as such, even though the

student didn’t intend to deceive the professor.

The key to avoiding both deliberate and inadvertent plagiarism is to have something of

your own to say on the topic at hand. You can only generate your own thoughts about a

topic if you have studied the topic to some extent. The more deeply you study the topic,

the more likely your thoughts will be interesting, novel and appropriate to the facts. In

other words don’t just select and copy the material you find; read it, understand it, think

about it, and intellectually engage with it.

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The best way to keep from paraphrasing a source is to write your draft not looking at

your sources as you write. You can go back and look at sources after writing the first

draft.

Obviously this process takes time (and a little effort too), which brings us to a recurring

theme in this manual. Don’t put off your assignments till the last minute. Give yourself

time to read, understand, reflect upon and internalize the information you find. The point

of college is to learn things, not to generate paper with ink on it. In all likelihood your

professor is interested in what you know about a topic, not what someone else knows

about a topic. The process of pasting information from one document to another bypasses

the ultimate goal of the assignment: your education.

Time Management: Doug Burks

William Penn said that “Time is what we want most, but what we use worst.”

Writing is hard work. It is a process that is done in several steps. Preparing a research

paper or laboratory report is a good example. In preparing a research paper, you will

need to read several scientific articles to use in your report. After performing

experiments, you will organize, analyze and interpret your data. You will now be ready

to write a first draft of the paper. In Chapter 4, Knisely (2009) suggests that writing a

first draft should be done over a two-day period. She next suggests that you proofread

and revise your first draft after taking a day’s break from the writing process. This draft

should be shared with a classmate for review, while you review their draft. From the

comments from your peer review, you then revise the paper again to produce a final copy

for turning into the professor. This process according to Knisely (2009) will take a

minimum of 7 to 8 days. Larger more important papers take longer. Knisely (2009)

encourages professors to request that not only the final paper be turned in but all drafts

done by the student. Clearly, writing effectively requires a lot of time.

There are few assignments in college that can be started the night before they are due

without a bad result. Developing good time management skills are critical to success in

college and even more importantly in a career.

We have several tips you might want to consider in terms of time management planning.

Tip 1: Start using a time management plan now (day 1). Too many students turn to a

time management system after they have fallen behind and then are madly trying

to catch up. You need to realize that is very easy to fall behind and next to

impossible to catch up even with the best efforts and time management.

Cramming is a sure path to failure.

Tip 2: Develop a time management system that you can follow. Here we suggest a

simple time management system. First, you should set goals for the semester.

Your goals should include all aspects of your life. This includes academics, work,

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social life and activities. Then set priorities. Be realistic! You need to include

fun time. As the semester and school year proceeds, re-evaluate your goals.

Develop sub-goals, which are things to be done in each major goal category.

Next, you should plan, plan and plan. We suggest that you plan in monthly

blocks. Using a calendar with months for the entire semester, place the due date

of all assignments as you receive them. List the dates of all tests on the calendar.

List the date of events you want to attend (field trips, parties, sports events, visits

home, holidays, etc.) With each assignment, now analyze how long it will take to

do. Start putting into the calendar check-points for assignments. For a lab report

you might have the date to finish your background research and reading, the date

to have the first draft done, the date for peer review, and the date to have the final

draft done. The more realistic you are about the time it takes to do a particular

project the better able you will be able to do high quality work. An important

component of planning is to keep track of how much time you are spending on

things. Falling behind and cramming is the road to failure and high anxiety.

Tip 3: Procrastination is your enemy. It is a powerful enemy, with over 50% of college

students listing this as a major personal problem. The old saying: “Don’t put off

what you can do today until tomorrow,” should become your mantra.

Tip 4: An excellent site to visit is Muskingum College’s time management page at

http://www.muskingum.edu/~cal/database/general/time.html

Finding References: Kendra Cipollini

There are different types of references that can be used in biological writing. As stated

by Knisely (2009), primary literature is “journal articles, dissertations, technical reports,

or conference papers in which a scientist describes his or her original works.” To identify

a primary reference, it is a good rule of thumb to look for a “Methods” section.

Generally, if it has a Methods section, it is primary literature. Secondary literature

includes encyclopedias, textbooks and review articles. A third type of literature can be

called “science journalism,” and includes articles in newspapers and magazines. Usually,

you will be required to use primary literature for the most part. However, even if you

cannot use secondary or tertiary literature for your actual paper, this type of literature can

provide important background if you are having difficulty understanding the primary

literature. It can also lead you towards interesting and relevant primary literature sources,

especially in the case of review articles. Internet sources are considered secondary

literature or science journalism and must be read with skepticism. As internet sources are

not peer-reviewed, many of your professors will not accept internet sources. The internet

is a great place to find very basic information or to find more primary sources, but be

certain to validate any information gathered on the internet. It is important to note that

some journals, which are considered primary literature, are published only on the

internet, which causes some confusion. Only peer-reviewed on-line journals are

considered primary literature. It is important to note that many references can be

accessed using the internet to find electronic versions. These are not internet sources;

they are simply electronic versions of published journals and other resources. Please

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contact your professor if you are having trouble distinguishing between different types of

resources.

Wilmington College’s Watson Library is in a consortium of Ohio college and university

libraries, known as “Ohiolink.” Ohiolink is one of the nation’s top library systems and it

offers a wealth of information. You can find and get library resources from around the

state, if you give yourself enough time to track them down.

Watson Library itself has a wealth of resources, with journals, texts, and databases in

both electronic and paper forms. The Watson Library can be visited online at

http://www.wilmington.edu/academics/watson-library.cfm. OPAL is the on-line database

which tells you what resources Watson Library has and provides links to electronic

resources. OhioLink is the on-line database of the consortium of Ohio colleges and

universities, which tells you what resources are available state-wide. OhioLink also has

important databases you can use to perform your literature search. Some databases that

you may find helpful are MedLine, Agricola, Biosis. ISI Web of Science, and Annual

Reviews. Once you find an article using these databases, you can then use the “Find it!”

function to find out where you can get a copy of the paper, either electronically or in

hardcopy. If Watson Library does not have it (either in hardcopy or in electronic copy),

you have two choices. First, you could use the Interlibrary Loan to request a hardcopy to

be sent to you. Another choice is to physically visit another college’s library to find the

article. Your barcode for other colleges and universities is 9 digits, 3 zeros followed by

your 6-digit CARS ID number. Wright State University, University of Cincinnati and

Ohio State University have extensive collections and are fairly convenient to Wilmington

College.

Please keep in mind that an effective library search takes many hours to perform. You

cannot simply type in two keywords and then use the first ten papers that you find for

your writing assignment. You may have to perform many different searches in many

different databases to find the papers most relevant to your topic of interest.

The library staff at Watson Library is very helpful; do not hesitate to ask anyone for

additional assistance.

Reading Primary Literature: Doug Burks

Honestly, reading primary literature is hard work. This is true even for professionals. A

single reading is not sufficient to lead to understanding. You will likely need to read

some parts of the paper several times. Reading a scientific research report is not like

reading a newspaper, novel or even a textbook. It is a written form that is information

dense. It is a terse and concise style in which almost every sentence is critical to

understanding the whole. To be successful, you will need to develop unique strategies

and approaches to reading.

In approaching the reading of a research paper, remember that research papers are written

by experts in the field for other experts in the field. The number of terms and ideas that

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will be unfamiliar might be almost overwhelming. The first advice is that, when reading

a research report on a topic that you are unfamiliar with, reviewing general concepts in a

textbook or going to the internet is a good idea. As you read, it is also helpful to be near

a computer connected to the internet, to be able to look up words, terms and ideas that

you don’t know. In reading a research paper you can’t skip or gloss over words that you

don’t know. Remember that in a research paper most sentences are important in

understanding the whole.

Research papers are written in discrete sections and one doesn’t necessarily read them

from beginning to end in a linear fashion. We suggest that you read and analyze the

paper by following the steps below.

1. Read the Title, Abstract, Introduction and Conclusions of the paper. After

reading these sections you might to write down what question is being asked in

the paper, what are the hypotheses being tested, what data supports the

hypotheses and what is the major conclusion.

2. Read the Materials & Methods. From this you should be able to explain what

experiments are being performed to test the hypotheses, i.e., answer the questions

being asked.

3. Read the Results section. In reading the results section first skim the narrative

text. Then analyze each figure and table in depth. In each figure or table

identify the dependent and independent variables, control groups, experimental

groups, and determine the main findings being revealed in each figure. Finally go

back and read the Results narrative a second time.

4. Read the Discussion/Conclusion section again. This time focus on the argument

by the authors to convince you that their conclusions about the hypotheses

are correct. Pay particular attention to the data from results section that they

point to as evidence for their conclusions.

5. List the evidence in support of the conclusions and to go back and analyze the

data to see if you agree with conclusions.

6. Set aside time to visit a biology professor if you have questions when you read a

paper. Even, we as professors go to colleagues with questions when we struggle

with a paper. Remember that reading a scientific research paper is hard work.

This is as true for us as for you. Seeking help and the insight form others is

wisdom that all of us have learned over time.

7. Finally, in about two paragraphs you should write a personal summary of the

paper in which you describe the question being asked and the hypotheses

proposed and in which you describe the major experimental evidence that either

supports or negates the hypothesis being tested. You need to be able to describe

the experiments and results of experiments in your own words to demonstrate that

you really understand the paper. This step describes the beginning of what is

typically called an annotated bibliography. Preparing an annotated bibliography

is an important step in writing either a research and review paper. The next

section describes in detail how to write a formal annotated bibliography.

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As we said at the beginning of this section, this is hard work. However, we also believe

that is rewarding work. Research reports are the way that new knowledge is conveyed in

biology. It is nascent knowledge at the cutting edge of our understanding.

Summary of a Scientific Article: Doug Burks

Read the article and re-read the article so that you understand the question that was asked

in the study and that you understand the experimental data that leads to the answer the

authors conclude. The goal of your reading is to critically analyze the paper to judge if

the authors answered the question asked. You should be able to explain the article in

plain English without referring to the paper to peers.

Format of the summary

1. Complete citation for the article

2. Background � general information on the topic

3. Statement of the question being asked

4. Description of the experiments and results

5. Conclusions and how data supports conclusions

6. Strengths and weaknesses in paper

Writing strategy. First write the summary without looking at the paper using your own

words without referring directly to the paper. Next, write a second draft referring to the

paper for key specific data that supports conclusions drawn. Finally, make final revisions

without using the paper. This approach will help you to write in your own voice and to

not plagiarize by paraphrasing from the source.

Citing Sources: Doug Woodmansee

Citing sources can be one of the most vexing parts of scientific writing. The process is

difficult on multiple levels. The first problem is, “What sources are appropriate and

where do I find them?” Most writing assignments in biology at Wilmington College will

require you to use sources drawn from the scientific literature. These sources include

primary scientific literature (peer-reviewed research papers), secondary scientific

literature (review articles) and occasionally, science textbooks. Encyclopedias,

dictionaries, and common web sites are not usually acceptable sources (if they are, your

professor will make that clear). It is also not appropriate to “cite citations,” meaning that

if you find an interesting tidbit in a paper and the tidbit has obviously been drawn from

another paper, you need to look at the paper in which the information was originally

published. While at Wilmington College, you will be trained in the use of databases to

help you locate appropriate literature (see chapter 2 in this manual).

The second question is usually “Which of the sources that I have found do I use?”

Figuring out which sources are the best requires you to critically evaluate the sources that

your literature search has uncovered. Professional scientists take this process to the

extreme, making a deliberate attempt to find, read, understand and evaluate everything

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that has ever been written (in the peer-reviewed scientific literature of course) about the

topic. Only then can they be sure that the information they pull into their own papers is

the most up-to-date, trustworthy and applicable information available. It is not unusual

for a review article on a complex topic to have 200 to 300 references and, yes, the author

has read every single one of them. In a research report, 10 to 20 references is more

common but rest assured that the author has read far more papers than are cited. The cited

references are, in the author’s opinion, the subset of the relevant scientific literature

(perhaps hundreds of papers) that is most appropriate for the current work.

Undergraduate students are rarely held to the professional standard. You are after all, just

now learning how science works. But undergraduate students are expected to utilize

current and relevant source material. Whether you have been given the source material as

part of the assignment, or you have been asked to track material down yourself, there is

an expectation that you will work with sources the way a professional scientist does:

scouring the sources for information that enhances your paper by providing background,

context, corroboration and the like, placing that information in the appropriate places in

your paper and clearly indicating to the reader the source of the information.

Once you have decided what information from outside sources to put in your paper and

where in your paper it is to go, you must cue the reader to the source of that information.

You use two tools to do this: in-text references and the Literature Cited section. There are

a variety of in-text reference and Literature Cited styles and style you are to use should be

specified in your assignment.

For assignments where you are reporting data that you have generated in an experiment

of some sort, your biology professors have agreed to use the name-year system described

in Chapter 4 of Knisely (2009) for most of our writing assignments. For assignments

where you will be reviewing and analyzing a set of papers, you will probably be asked to

use the citation sequence system. Tables 4.4, 4.5, and 4.6 (on pages 78 – 81) of Knisely

(2009) provide a summary of both systems. The selection of these styles by the biology

professors does not mean that these styles are “right” and other styles are “wrong.” If

you are preparing a manuscript for publication in a scientific journal, it is essential that

you acquire a copy of that journal’s “Instructions to Authors” document. In it you will

find the citation style required by that journal and you MUST use that style if you intend

to publish in that journal. Sadly, the hundreds of scientific journals currently being

published have never been able to agree on a uniform reference style. Therefore, there is

no one “correct” reference style; the “correct” style is simply the style that your professor

or journal editor asks for.

Believe it or not, punctuation matters in a Literature Cited section. During your college

years, your professors may choose to grade the punctuation pattern more or less strictly

but you should be aware that the editors of real journals are always very strict. If the

format asks for a comma and you put in a period, then a journal editor will demand that

you fix it or your paper will not be published. It is a good idea to get into the habit of

proofing Literature Cited carefully while you are still a student. If you become a

professional scientist, it will become a way of life.

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Even more important than the style is the basic concept that each piece of information

you pull in from the scientific literature must be tagged with an in-text reference and a

corresponding Literature Cited entry. Conversely, every entry in Literature Cited must

connect back to a piece of information in the text of your paper. Knisely (2009) says it

but it bears repeating here; Literature Cited is NOT a list of things you read while

working on the paper and it is NOT a list of “recommended readings.” Literature Cited is

a tool that readers can use to trace a piece of information in your paper back to its original

source.

For example, let’s say that I include the following sentence in a paper: “Infection of the

human brain by Toxoplasma gondii was first described by Sabin (1941).” The reader sees

“Sabin (1941)” and knows that there will be a corresponding entry in Literature Cited. It

will look like this:

Sabin A. 1941. Toxoplasmic encephalitis in children. J. Amer. Med. Assoc. 116:801-807.

Notice that the journal’s title is abbreviated. The easiest way to find the official

abbreviation for a particular journal is to go to http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez and

search the “Journals” database using the journal’s name as keywords.

The reader now has all of the information required to find and read Albert Sabin’s

original account of the first well studied case of cerebral toxoplasmosis in humans. The

reader could then decide for themselves if Sabin’s paper was described accurately.

Remember, the in-text references and Literature Cited sections are tools to direct readers

to the original sources of the information. The entries must be complete and accurate.

Imagine what would happen to the reader’s attempt to track down the paper if there was

an error and the paper had been published in 1931 instead of 1941!

In summary, study the scientific literature on your topic. Every idea or fact that you find

in the scientific literature and choose to include in your paper must be tagged with an in-

text reference and a Literature Cited entry. Use the name-year system described in

Chapter 4 of Knisely (2009) unless you are specifically told to use a different style.

Make sure your entries are accurate and that they are punctuated precisely as Knisely

(2009) stipulates. Direct quotes are seldom used in scientific writing. One should avoid

direct quotes and a work should have one or two direct quotes at most. Citations are

essential to the serious reader and a critical tool for the advancement of science as a

whole.

Research Paper/Laboratory Report: Doug Burks

The scientific research paper, or laboratory report, is a report in which the author

communicates information about the results of a scientific investigation, which was

performed to answer a question. The scientific paper is the record of outcome of research

and experimentation that becomes the reference for future scientific questions and

comparison. It provides to the reader what was done, why it was done, the observations

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made, information obtained, and the significance of the results. It provides information

that enables other researchers to repeat experiments to validate the results and that

enables other researchers to extend the work presented. Foremost, it is written to

persuade others to accept or reject a hypothesis presented in the study. It presents new

ideas that the author believes should become part of the body of scientific knowledge. It

is the source document in which all new scientific knowledge is found today in scientific

communities.

To become a good scientist it is important that you develop the ability to write and

produce a good scientific research paper. It is the bread-and-butter form of

communication for the scientist. Doing good research is not enough to make one a good

scientist. It is essential that a scientist be proficient at communicating and convincing

others the results of their research are providing new scientific insight. It is important to

develop the ability to communicate the what, how and why of your research to others. A

poorly written scientific research paper can lead others to reject or ignore what might be

good scientific work.

The research paper is a distinctive style of writing. Its purpose is to convey information

and to persuade the reader of the validity of conclusions. It has a unique form which

must be rigidly followed. It has defined sections which include the title, abstract,

introduction, materials, methods, results, discussion/conclusions, and references. Each

section of the research paper has a specific purpose and information content (Please see

Box 1 for a description of sections of the research paper). Though there is a need to

follow the format exactly, one should not forget that it is how information is presented

that will persuade the reader of the validity of conclusions.

One can get lost in following style and not do a good job of conveying their data, ideas

and conclusions. The rigidity of style and need for effective persuasive writing make the

scientific research paper one of the most difficult forms of writing. However, producing

a well-written convincing research paper is one of the most satisfying writing experiences

we know. We hope this will become true for you.

15 | P a g e

Box 1. Description of the sections of a scientific research paper. Title

A title should be short and to the point. It should accurately convey the scope and purpose of the paper. In

many cases, a good title includes the dependent variable(s), the independent variable(s) and the scientific

name of the organism studied. Please refer to page 76 of Knisely (2009).

Abstract The abstract is a one to two paragraph that provides a summary of the report. It highlights the findings

made by the scientist and why they are of importance and interest to the scientific community. It

gives the major conclusions of the research performed. Your audience will use the abstract to decide if

they will finish reading the paper. Make the abstract good.

The abstract should contain a statement of the question being asked; the hypothesis being tested; the results

obtained; and the major conclusions from the study. Please refer to page 75 of Knisely (2009).

Introduction An introduction gives the reader the background necessary to understand the study. It should include a

description why you are interested in asking the question, a description of any previous studies that led to

the study, background information necessary to understand the study, a description of the specific purpose

of the study, a description of the hypothesis being tested and a brief summary of the experimental strategy

being used. Please refer to pages 74-75 of Knisely (2009).

Materials and Methods

This section describes the materials used to perform the experiment and the specific procedures used in

performing the experiment.

You should include a description of the experiments that were performed. The description of the

experiments should be detailed and precise enough to enable another to repeat the experiment and to obtain

the same results. Any specific equipment, chemicals and organisms should be mentioned and their source

described. Materials and methods are described in a narrative paragraph form.. Please refer to pages 52-

55 of Knisely (2009).

Results The results should contain the outcome of experiments and any statistical analysis of the results performed.

Scientific papers seldom-present raw data. You should think about how to present your results. You may

want to present them as tables or graphs. You should highlight any data that will be important in drawing

conclusions. However, you should not draw conclusions in the results section. Please refer to pages 55-74

of Knisely (2009).

Discussion This is the section where you draw conclusions and present your interpretation of the results. In this

section you should state what your results mean and to relate your results to other studies and findings.

The last paragraph should be a statement of your main conclusions. (Please refer to page 74 of Knisely

(2009).

References

In this section you should cite sources used in performing and writing the report.

(Please refer to pages 77-89 of Knisely (2009).

16 | P a g e

A biology lab report checklist is provided on pages 120-121 in Knisely. In Chapter 6,

Knisely (2009) provides a sample student laboratory report. It is an excellent model of an

ideal paper. Also in this chapter on page 132-135, Knisely provides a list of common

laboratory mistakes and shorthand marks your professor may use in grading reports you

prepare.

17 | P a g e

Research papers/laboratory reports will be graded using the following rubric. Research Paper Grading Rubric

Components Outstanding Good Average Below Average

Title • Is descriptive of question and

work performed

• Includes dependent variable,

independent variable and organism studied

• Gives a general

description of question and work performed

• Missing one of the following: dependent

variable, independent

variable and organism studied

• Is present

• Missing two of the following: dependent

variable, independent variable and organism

studied

• Not present

Abstract • States clearly question being

asked

• Gives hypothesis being tested

• Highlights most important findings with enough information

to understand experiments

• States major findings and

conclusions

• Is a concise summary of question

and findings

• Is missing one

component of good abstract

• Abstract is not well organized or concise

• Is missing two

components of a good abstract

• Does not give an overview that leads

directly to the reader

being able to state the major findings of the

study

• Is missing three or

more components of a good abstract

• Is not written in a scientific style

Introduction • Provides the reader with the necessary information to

understand the present study

• Piques the readers interest and makes the importance of the

question real

• Gives appropriate information to

previous studies that has an impact on the current study

• Does not contain superfluous

information and/or is not wordy

• Gives a description of the

specific purpose of the study, a description of the hypothesis

being tested and a brief summary

of the experimental strategy being used at the end of the

introduction

• Gives a description of the study system and why it is appropriate

to use it to answer hypothesis

• Contains some superfluous information

• Does not pique the interest of the reader

• Is missing some needed background information

• Gives too much

information--more like a summary

• Has all the components of a good introduction

but some parts may be

difficult to understand

• Gives a description of

the study system with some comment on its

appropriate use

• Is missing one or two components of a good

introduction

• Contains significant superfluous

information

• Gives a description of

the study system

• Is missing needed information to

understand the present

study

• Is missing a

description of the specific purpose of

the study, a

description of the hypothesis being

tested and/or a brief

summary of the experimental strategy

being used at the end

of the introduction

• Contains no

information about the study system

Materials

and Methods

• Is written in paragraph form in

past tense

• Describes how the experiment

was performed with sufficient detail to enable another scientist

to repeat the experiment and

obtain the same results

• Presents easy-to-follow steps

which are logical and adequately detailed without including

standard procedures that all

scientist know how to do

• Specific chemicals and

equipment are mentioned along

with their source (not as a list)

• Is written in paragraph

form in past tense

• Describes how the

experiment was performed with

sufficient detail to

enable another scientist to repeat the experiment

and obtain the same

results

• Most steps are

understandable but some lack detail or are

confusing

• Most specific chemicals and equipment are

mentioned along with

their source (not as a list)

• Is written in

paragraph form in past tense

• Describes how the experiment was

performed with some

critical details are lacking

• Most steps are understandable but

some lack detail or

are confusing

• Most specific

chemicals and

equipment are mentioned along with

their source (not as a

list)

• Is lacking several

critical details so that it is impossible to

repeat the

experiments described

• Many steps are

missing in describing steps in an experiment

• Chemicals and equipment are in a list

or are not described

18 | P a g e


Results • All pertinent data is described

• Raw unprocessed data is absent

• Results presented as both

narrative text and in figures and tables

• Data presented in a logical manner to enable the reader to

draw conclusions

• Important data is highlighted

• No conclusions are present

• All tables and figures have appropriate legends

• All tables and figures are described in the narrative text

• All pertinent data is

described

• Raw unprocessed data is

absent

• Most results presented as both narrative text and in

figures and tables

• Most data presented in a

logical manner to enable the reader to draw

conclusions

• Most important data is highlighted

• All tables and figures have appropriate legends

• All tables and figures are described in the

narrative text

• Most pertinent data is

described

• Raw unprocessed data

is absent

• Most results presented as both narrative text

and in figures and tables

• Most data presented in a logical manner to

enable the reader to

draw conclusions

• Most important data

is highlighted

• Most of the tables and

figures have

appropriate legends

• Most tables and

figures are described in the narrative text

• Raw unprocessed data

is present

• Some results

presented as both

narrative text and in figures and tables

• Data not clearly presented

• Important data not highlighted

• Data in tables or

figures not described in narrative form

Discussion/

Conclusions

• Question and hypothesis restated

• Conclusions are stated clearly

with explicit reference to the data that support a conclusion

• Argument for conclusions well

organized

• Importance of conclusions

discussed

• Conclusions related to other

studies and put into a context of current knowledge

• Clear differentiation between speculations and conclusions

• Final paragraph states the major

finding of the study (the take home message)

• Conclusions are stated clearly with explicit

reference to the data that

support a conclusion

• Argument for

conclusions is generally well organized

• Importance of conclusions discussed

• Conclusions related to

other studies and put into a context of current

knowledge

• Final paragraph states the major finding of the

study (the take home message)

• Conclusions are stated clearly with reference

to the data that

support a conclusion

• Argument for the

conclusions can be understood but

difficult to follow

• Final paragraph states the major finding of

the study (the take home message)

• Conclusions are stated but without sufficient

reference to the

results that support it.

• Lacking several of the

characters of a good discussion

References • All cited sources present

• No references not cited in the

body present

• In the required format

• All cited sources present

• In required format

• Most cited sources present

• Generally in required format

• Many sources absent

• Inappropriate format

Grammar

and

mechanics

• Paragraphs well organized

• Sections with logical

organization of paragraphs

(especially introduction, results and conclusions)

• Few grammatical errors, typos and misspellings

• Appropriate word selection

• Correct use of scientific terms

• Most paragraphs well organized


organization of paragraphs (especially

introduction, results and

conclusions)

• Several grammatical

errors, typos, and misspelling Some

misappropriate word

useage errors (effect vs. affect)

• Some misuse of scientific terms

• Many paragraphs well organized


errors, typos, and misspelling may be

present

• Paper lacks well organized paragraphs

• Sections do not

contain information presented in a logical

order

• Many grammatical errors

• Many misappropriate word useage errors

(effect vs. affect)

• Many misuses of

scientific terms

Format

• All components in the

appropriate format

• Author name displayed

• Paper stapled

• Most components of the

required format followed


• Paper stapled

• An attempt made to

follow required format


• Paper stapled

• No evidence of

required format or

• Author name missing

• Paper not stapled

Overall

Evaluation

19 | P a g e

Review Papers: Doug Burks

The literature review paper is one which summarizes the current state of knowledge on a

topic. It leads to an understanding of the topic by discussing the findings in appropriate

recent research reports. A review paper presents a synthesis of several recent primary

literature papers to provide a coherent idea or argument about the topic. It is not just a

summary of several papers that you have found. The Writing Center at the University of

North Carolina states that:

A summary is a recap of the important information of the source, but a

synthesis is a re-organization, or a reshuffling, of that information. It

might give a new interpretation of old material or combine new with old

interpretations. Or it might trace the intellectual progression of the field,

including major debates. And depending on the situation, the literature

review may evaluate the sources and advise the reader on the most

pertinent or relevant.” 3

You should be able in a sentence or two describe the idea. You are presenting evidence

for an idea about a topic that you have developed by studying a field. In presenting

evidence you need to focus on describing the experimental data you found that support or

refutes the view you are presenting. You need to provide a description of both the data

and experimental techniques to the reader so they can judge your conclusions.

A well written literature review must do these things:

a) be organized around and related directly to the thesis you are developing

b) describe, analyze and evaluate the data that supports or refutes the thesis of

the review

c) synthesize results into a summary of what is and is not known

d) relate sources cited to the topic discussed

e) identify areas of controversy in the literature

f) formulate questions that need further research

3 2005. The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/literature_review.html

20 | P a g e

Review papers will be graded using the following rubric.

Review Paper Grading Rubric


Introduction • State your idea (thesis)

• Make it brief (~1/5 of the paper’s total length)

• Grab the reader's interest

while introducing the topic

• Explain the "big picture"

relevance

• Provide the necessary

background information

• States thesis clearly

• Grabs the reader’s interest

• Provides some background

material

• Is not brief

• States thesis but difficult to understand

• Provides some background information

• Is lacking a thesis or main idea

• Does not explain the big picture

• Lacks appropriate background information

The Body • Experimental Evidence: Describe important results

from recent primary literature articles and

• Explain how those results shape our current

understanding of the topic

• Mention the types of experiments done and their

corresponding data, but do not

repeat the experimental procedure step for step

• Point out and address any controversies in the field

• Use figures and/or tables to present your own synthesis of

the original data or to show

key data taken directly from the original papers

• Relates the evidence to the

thesis

• Uses quotes sparingly, if at all

• Experimental Evidence: Describe important results

from recent primary literature articles

• Mention the types of experiments done and their

corresponding data, but do not

repeat the experimental procedure step for step

• Use figures and/or tables to

present your own synthesis of the original data or to show

key data taken directly from

the original papers

• Experimental Evidence: Describe important

results from recent primary literature

articles and

• Use figures and/or tables to present your own

synthesis of the original data or to show key data

taken directly from the

original papers.

• Uses quotes sparingly

• Relates the evidence to the thesis

• Describes little experimental evidence

from the literature

• Does not relate the

papers discussed to the thesis

Conclusion/

Discussion

• Succinctly summarize your major points

• Points to major data supporting the thesis

• Point out the significance of these results

• Discuss the questions that

remain in the area

• Suggest future research

questions


• Point out the significance of these results


• Discuss the questions that

remain in the area



• Point out the significance of these

results

• Lacks a coherent discussion of the points

supporting the thesis

Literature

Cited

• Has the appropriate literature

to address the thesis (papers

are on topic and all the important papers)

• Is complete (necessary number of references)

• Has most of the appropriate

literature to address the thesis

(papers are on topic and all the important papers)


• Has many of the

appropriate literature to

address the thesis (papers are on topic and

all the important papers)


• Has few of the

appropriate literature to

address the thesis (papers are on topic and

all the important papers)

• Is incomplete (necessary number of

references)

21 | P a g e

Grammar

and

mechanics


• Sections with logical organization of paragraphs






• Sections with logical organization of paragraphs





• Most paragraphs well

organized


organization of paragraphs (especially

introduction, results and

conclusions)



present

• Some misappropriate word usage errors (effect

vs. affect)

• Some misuse of scientific terms

• Many paragraphs well

organized



present

Format • Follows correct formatting for paper, including fonts and

margins

• Name and date are displayed

• Citations are in correct format

• Paper is stapled

• Very minor formatting errors only


• Citations are in correct format


• Follows correct formatting for the most

part


• Citations are in correct format for the most part


• Fails to meet formatting guidelines

• Name and/or date are missing

• Citations in incorrect format for the most part

• Paper is not stapled

Overall

Evaluation

22

APPENDIX 1: Format of the research paper/laboratory report

Text except as noted taken directly from the Ohio Journal of Science

Changes to instructions made by Wilmington College are in italics

The Ohio Journal of Science Research Reports are those papers which are longer than 2 pages

or contain more than one illustration. Specific length requirements may be set by a professor at

Wilmington College.

All manuscripts will be organized as follows:

Page 1 - Title, Author(s), Running Head, Abstract

Page 2 and remainder, in this order - Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion,

Acknowledgments, Literature Cited, Tables, Figure Legends, Figures.

STYLE. Manuscripts should be typewritten using 1 inch margins on 8.5 x 11 inch paper. Text

should be left-justified using elite print (twelve characters per inch). Manuscript should be

double-spaced throughout, including the title and abstract. Arabic numerals should be used in

preference to words when the number designates anything that can be counted or measured (7

samples, 43 species). One exception to this use is that numerals are not used to begin a sentence

(Twenty-one species were found in . . .). The 2nd exception is when 2 numeric expressions are

adjacent in a sentence. The number easiest to express in words should be spelled out and the

other left in numeric form (The sections were divided into eight 4-acre plots.).

TITLE, AUTHOR(S), AFFILIATION(S). The first page of the manuscript should contain the

title, author(s) name(s), the affiliation of the author(s) at the time the research was carried out, a

shortened title (running head), and the abstract. The title must be typed in upper and lower case

letters as it will appear when typeset. Name(s) of the author(s) should be typed in capital letters

below the title. The address (department, institution, city, state, postal code, country if not USA)

should appear below the name of the author(s). If more than one institution is to be credited, they

should appear in the order of the authors' affiliation. A running head of not more than 38 letters

and spaces should be typed in capital letters between the address and the abstract.

ABSTRACT. The abstract should summarize the main conclusions and any new methods or

procedures critical to the results of the study. It should be 250 words or fewer.

INTRODUCTION. The introduction should describe the knowledge that gave rise to the

question examined by, or the hypothesis posed for the research. A statement of the question

being posed in the study and hypotheses should appear as the last paragraph of the Introduction.

MATERIALS AND METHODS. This section should describe the research design, the

methods and materials used in the research (subjects, their selection, equipment, laboratory or

field procedures), and how the findings were analyzed.

23

RESULTS. The text of the results should be a descriptive narrative of the main findings, of the

reported study. This section should not list tabulated data in text form. Reference to tables and

figures included in this section should be made parenthetically in the text.

DISCUSSION. This section should compare and contrast the data collected in the presented

study with that previously reported in the literature. Unless there are specific reasons to combine

the two, as explained by the author in the letter of transmittal, Results and Discussion should be

two separate sections.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. Colleagues and/or sources of financial support to whom thanks are

due for assistance rendered in completion of the research or preparation of the manuscript should

be recognized in this section rather than in the body of the text.

LITERATURE CITED. Please refer to Knisely (2009) and use the Name-Year System

beginning on page 77.

TABLES. Tables must be typed double-spaced, one table to a page, numbered consecutively,

and placed in the manuscript after Literature Cited. Since tables must be individually typeset,

consolidation of data into the smallest number of tables is encouraged. A horizontal double

underline should be made beneath the title of the table, and single underlines should be made the

width of the table below the column headings and at the bottom of the table. Do not use vertical

lines, and do not place horizontal lines in the interior of the table. Footnotes should be used to

clarify possible questions within the table, and should be noted by asterisks, daggers, or other

symbols to avoid confusion with numerical data.

FIGURES. All illustrations are referred to as "Figures" and must be numbered consecutively.

Figures may be photographs, hand-drawn or computer generated drawings in black ink. Each

figure should be identified along the top edge with the name of the author(s) and figure number,

and on the back with name of author(s) and manuscript title. Illustrations other than those

generated by the author(s) must bear permission for use and credit to the originator. ORIGINAL

ARTWORK WILL NOT BE RETURNED UNLESS SPECIFICALLY REQUESTED AT TIME

OF SUBMISSION. Each figure must have a complete legend. The legend should not be placed

on the figure, but should be typed in order, double-spaced, on a separate sheet which precedes

the figures in the manuscript. Figures should be referred to parenthetically in the text, for

example (Fig. 1). The size and proportion of each illustration should be suitable for reduction.

Excessive white space should be avoided. Illustrations will be reduced to one column width (3

and 3/8 inches) or two column width (7 inches) at the discretion of the editor. Lettering should

be done of a size to ensure that it can be read after reduction. On maps and other illustrations

where original size is a concern, a graphic scale should be incorporated into the figure.

FOOTNOTES. Text footnotes should not be used with the following exceptions. A footnote to

the title will be added editorially to state the dates of manuscript submission and revision. A

footnote to name(s) of author(s) may be used to indicate present address different from that at

which the research was done, or to indicate the author to whom inquiries should be directed. All

other material or comments must be incorporated into the text. Literature Cited should not be

inserted as footnotes. Footnotes to tables are permissible, and are encouraged to promote clarity.

24

Papers are not acceptable unless the directions above are followed exactly. Any questions which

are not answered by these instructions should be addressed to your professor.

One type-written hard copy and, if requested, one electronic copy (as a Microsoft – Word 2003)

document must be submitted by the due date. If electronic copies are emailed to the professor as

an attachment the file must be named (see page Please see policy on late papers.

25

APPENDIX II: Format of the review paper

Text except as noted taken directly Current Opinion in Cell Biology

Changes to instructions made by Wilmington College are in italics

The review The aim of the manuscript is to review recent articles, with particular emphasis on those articles

published in the past two years. In addition to describing recent trends, you are encouraged to give

your subjective opinion of the topics discussed, although you should not concentrate unduly on

your own research. Your review should be approximately 5000 words (not including references or

reference notes), or number or words requested by the professor, with at least 10 and no more

than 20 (or number of sources requested by the professor) references and, as such, the review is

intended to be a concise view of the field as it is at the moment, rather than a comprehensive

overview. Our audience ranges from student to professor, so articles must be accessible to a wide

readership. Please avoid jargon, but do not oversimplify: be accurate and precise throughout.

Occasionally, unpublished data can be referred to, but only when essential and should never be

used to substantiate any significant point.

Please ensure that the document is typed in the following order in a single document including

tables, boxes and figure legends (12 pt, double-spaced Times New Roman) with numbered pages.

1. Title The title should be short and enticing (eight words or fewer), and should not contain abbreviations.

Please feel free to suggest your own title. You should include a truncated form of the title (~4

words) that will be used at the top of each page of your article.

2. Author(s) Please provide the names of all authors in full, including first name. No more than five authors

should be listed (only those who contributed to the actual writing of the manuscript, rather than

members of the laboratory contributing to primary work). Anyone else who contributed to the

article can be thanked in the acknowledgements section.

3. Addresses Include addresses for all authors, including e-mail addresses, Pyle Center Box #, Wilmington

College, Department of Biology, Wilmington, Ohio 45177.

4. Summary of recent advances All reviews should be prefaced by a summary of 100-120 words. The summary is important: it

should contain sufficient information for the reader to be able to appreciate the relevance of the full

article when read alone. It should contain a clear statement of the thesis or idea that organizes the

review. Summaries are used by abstracting services and many users of these services read only the

summary. It should include background information and specific examples of recent advances,

rather than promises that a particular subject 'will be discussed' - the scope of the review should

instead appear at the end of the introduction. References should not be included and abbreviations

should be avoided as far as possible.

26

5. Introduction The introduction should be accessible to a wide variety of scientists by avoiding the use of jargon

and concepts not familiar to non-specialists. It should outline the time period covered and the scope

of the review, including the importance of and rationale behind your article. The introduction

should include only a few background references.

6. Main text of review Use concise, logical subheadings to provide clear links between the different sections and guide the

reader through your review. Please write all abbreviations in full on first use, and use the

abbreviation thereafter. Any algebra should be > 14pt, with variables in italics and vectors in bold.

7. Conclusions The conclusions section should summarize the topics discussed and describe future directions,

including the author's opinions, as appropriate.

8. Acknowledgements In addition to any acknowledgement of help in the production of the manuscript, funding bodies

should also be mentioned (please give full names rather than abbreviations), together with any

relevant grant numbers.

9. Ethics in Publishing: General Statement Ethics The Editor(s) and Publisher of this Journal believe that there are fundamental principles

underlying scholarly or professional publishing. While this may not amount to a formal 'code of

conduct', these fundamental principles with respect to the authors' paper are that the paper should:

i) be the authors' own original work, which has not been previously published elsewhere, ii) reflect

the authors' own research and analysis and do so in a truthful and complete manner, iii) properly

credit the meaningful contributions of co-authors and co-researchers, iv) not be submitted to more

than one journal for consideration, and v) be appropriately placed in the context of prior and

existing research. Of equal importance are ethical guidelines dealing with research methods and

research funding, including issues dealing with informed consent, research subject privacy rights,

conflicts of interest, and sources of funding. While it may not be possible to draft a 'code' that

applies adequately to all instances and circumstances, we believe it useful to outline our

expectations of authors and procedures that the Journal will employ in the event of questions

concerning author conduct.

10. References and annotations The reference list should not be exhaustive - simply alert the reader to the number of sources given

by your professor and that provide the most innovative recent papers and key reviews. Use the

Citation-Sequence System as described in Knisely (2009) on page 82 and Tables 4.5 and 4.6 on

pages 80-81.

11. Figures Figures should be prepared on separate pages and attached to the end of the submission. Please

think carefully about how to illustrate your article; you are encouraged to include up to four

additional elements in your review (i.e. a combination of Figures, Tables and Boxes). You should

include at least one figure to summarize the main concepts discussed, and all figures should help to

27

explain the concepts discussed in the text. All illustrations should be labeled as figures, and figures

should be cited in the main text of the review in numerical order. The figure should have a title, and

the legend should describe the figure in full, without further reference to the main text. All

abbreviations used in the figure and not in the main text should be defined at the end of the figure

legend. More detailed figure submission instructions are found on page 4. Please note that it is the

responsibility of the authors to obtain permission to reproduce copyrighted material (figures that

have been published before) from the original authors and publishers (see also SUBMISSION)

Captions Ensure that each illustration has a caption. Supply captions separately, not attached to the figure. A

caption should comprise a brief title (not on the figure itself) and a description of the illustration.

Keep text in the illustrations themselves to a minimum but explain all symbols and abbreviations

used.

Line drawings The lettering and symbols, as well as other details, should have proportionate dimensions, so as not

to become illegible or unclear after possible reduction; in general, the figures should be designed

for a reduction factor of two to three. The degree of reduction will be determined by the Publisher.

Illustrations will not be enlarged. Consider the page format of the journal when designing the

illustrations.

Do not use any type of shading on computer-generated illustrations.

12. Tables and boxes Tables should be prepared on separate pages and attached to the end of the submission. You can

include up to four additional elements to enhance your review (i.e. a combination of Figures,

Tables and Boxes). Tables should be used to tabulate data discussed in further detail in the review.

Boxes should be used for additional explanatory material that, although essential, interrupts the

flow of the text. In addition, you can include a glossary box to describe/define terms or

abbreviations used in your review. Tables and boxes should always be referred to in the main text

of the article and should have an appropriate title. Please use the template in MS Word to create

your tables. All such text boxes will be included in the main text word count, and must be cited in

the text in numerical order.

28

NOTES:

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Documents

Biology Writing Manual - Wilmington Collegeplato.wilmington.edu/faculty/dburks/BIO231 2011 Writing Manual... · Biology Writing Manual By: ... 3 Late paper policy 3 ... APPENDIX I: