BIOL 1441-033 Tue 3:00 – 4:50 LS 207

BIOL 1441-030 Wed 11:00 – 12:50 LS 200

BIOL 1441-037 Fri 11:00 – 12:50 LS 200

 

Heath Blackmon LS 459

Office Hours: 10:30-12:00 Tue and Thu

heath.blackmon@mavs.uta.edu

Scientific Communication

Scientific Writing & Literature

Scientific Literature

Three basic types:

1. Primary

2. Secondary•Review papers•Compilations and Textbooks

3. Popular

Primary Literature

Popular Popular Secondary Literature

Scientific Literature

1. Primary:

• Reports original results of experiments or observations.

• Published in Scientific Journals or Conference Proceedings

• The best source for information on specific subjects because it is the initial report of findings.

Scientific Literature

1. Primary:

• Scientific Journals:•Usually published by a scientific society specializing in the specific subject•Peer-reviewed: manuscripts are sent to the editor, who sends it out to multiple scholars in the field that make comments. Those comments are than sent to the author(s) and they are addressed. The editor, with input from the reviewers, then decides if the manuscript is to be published or it is in need of additional revisions.

Scientific Literature

1. Primary:

• Conference Proceedings:•Published by the organization that organizes a conference or meeting•Includes the findings that were presented during that meeting.•May or may not be peer-reviewed

Scientific Literature

2. Secondary:

• Literature Review•A synopsis of recent or historical primary literature designed to draw comparisons or provide a better understanding of the subject.•Published in a variety of formats, including Scientific Journals, Proceedings, and Society Newsletters.•May or may not be peer-reviewed

Scientific Literature

2. Secondary:

• Compilations and Textbooks•Much like a Literature Review, but with a broader treatment of the subject.•Typically published in book form.•Not formally peer-reviewed, but open to criticism after publication. Most authors do submit their works to “friendly” peers prior to submission.•Typically a good source of knowledge on a subject, incorporating primary literature into the overall work

Scientific Literature

3. Popular:

• Magazines, Newspapers, Internet Blogs, etc.•Often a source of good practical information, but must be read with caution.•Almost never reviewed for content.•Good way to communicate scientific findings to laypersons who may not be as knowledgeable on the subject.•Is targeted at a different audience than others.•Utilizes a different style of writing than others.

Good Things Bad ThingsAmazing coverage No peer review

Many Languages Vulnerable to malicious editing

On average high accuracy You must determine validity and completeness

Do not use as a cited source! Instead use it as a resource to give you a basic understanding of the topic so you know were to go next.

Scientific Writing

General Rules:

• Be thorough• Be concise• Be descriptive, but avoid “fluff”• Label all figures and tables so that they can

“stand alone”

Scientific Writing

You must be proficient at writing so that you can properly and professionally convey your findings and views to members of your respective community.

Formats for written communication that are important to you:

• Letters and E-mail• Lab Reports and Scientific Papers• Essays and Short Answer Questions on Exams

Scientific Writing

LAB REPORTS:

• Will follow general form of a scientific paper• Must follow the “Instructions for Writing a Laboratory

Report” that is accessible from http://biology.uta.edu/introlabs/ .

• Must include at least two primary citation.–You will learn how to access and search databases online today.

• Must draw intelligent conclusions from the data.• No page number requirement, but should not exceed 10

pages.

• Pubmed • Google Scholar

Formatting:

The entire document should be double-spaced.

All text should be 12pt Times New Roman.

All margins should be set to 1”

Less than 10 Pages

The title should be centered and bolded.

The author’s full name should follow the title on a separate line.

Section headings should also be centered, bolded and on a separate line.

Sub-headings should be left justified, and on its own line.

Do not start a new page for each section.

The abstract should not have a heading.

Scientific Writing

LAB REPORTS:

• Components of a Scientific Paper:

1. Title

2. Abstract

3. Introduction

4. Materials and Methods

5. Results

6. Discussion

7. Literature Cited

Title is clear concise and short!

The abstract tells the reader exactly what was done and what was found, but does so very compactly again only what is needed no fluff! <250 words only one paragraph.

The introduction section will provide the background to your reader. Include any important definitions and history that make your experiment relevant. Your hypothesis should be clearly connected to the topic in your introduction and stated clearly.

The methods section should be written in the past tense and describe exactly what you did. No lists, no results, no figures in this section.

The results section is were you will report you findings… not your conclusion or interpretations. This is done in paragraph format, and you can and should make reference to your graphs and tables that will be in the appendix.

The discussion section is were you must discuss what happened in your experiment.-what do your result mean-what went wrong-what went right-future work or extensions-how could problems of been avoided-cite at least one primary source to show how your relates to the current research.

Graphs and tables must be clear and complete. No hand drawing, no crooked columns, no vertical lines in tables.

If you have multiple data sets you must use various shades or shapes so data is clear in black and white.

Scientific Writing

LAB REPORTS:

• Title–Simple, yet descriptive

• Abstract–A brief summary of your paper

• Materials and Methods–What materials did you use?–What were the methods of the experiment?–This section is what defines the experiment for repeatability. It is important that you are extremely thorough here

Scientific Writing

LAB REPORTS:

• Results–This is reserved simply for reporting results. No conclusions should be drawn from these results, yet.

• Discussion–This is where conclusions and predictions are made.–The “meat and potatoes” of the report

• Literature Cited–What references did you use?

Scientific Writing

LAB REPORTS:

• Literature Cited–How do I site a reference?

Different conventions depending on the field of study.

Typically, we place the name of the author and the year the article was published in parenteses.

Ex: ……may not reach previous densities until hardwood leaf litter is present (Watson, 2005).This would correspond to a citation in the Lit Cited section

Scientific Writing

LITERATURE CITED:

Articles:

Watson, Charles M. 2005. Post-burn substrate preference of the ground skink, Scincella lateralis, in East Texas. Herpetological Times 11(2). Pp 223-225.

Books

Soloman, Berg, and Martin. 2004. Biology, 7th ed. Brooks/Cole-Thompson Learning. Belmont, CA

Scientific Writing

Tables and Figures:

Must “stand alone”

If seperated from the report, it must be understandible as a document.

May be cited in text as (Figure 1.) or “Figure 1 shows that….”

Scientific Writing

Tables and Figures:

How to produce tables and figures in Excel:

Go over it in on computer.

* Today turn in web assignment one

* Next week turn in web assignment two