《材料应用和实践 Materials Applications and Practices》课程教学资源（阅读材料）How to write a paper.pdf_大学文库

2 THE MARKET-Who are your readers? Your market is your readers.Put yourself in their shoes:what,if you were they,would you wish to find? The readers of your thesis are your examiners.They expect details of all relevant parts of your research:why you did it,its background,your thinking,what you did,your conclusions and your views on where it is going.They don't want the irrelevant parts-details of how standard equipment works,for instance.Find out as much as you can about content and format from your supervisor and other students,and look at some recent(successful)theses to get a feel for the product this market expects. A paper is read by one or more skilled referees,and,if accepted,by a scientifically- informed audience.This manual focuses on writing papers.The pages that follow explain how this market should be addressed. A research proposal usually addresses two markets.One is the funding agency:the EPSRC,the EU,another Government Agencies,or a Charity.They will look for a match between their priorities and yours.The other is the referees that the funding agency will use; they are charged with judging quality,promise and relevance. Hardest to write is a popular article,addressing an audience who is intelligent-one should always assume that-but who may know nothing of your subject.Here style,always important,must be fine-tuned to meet their needs.More on style in Section 8. Make no mistake.Write poorly and you'll bore,exasperate and ultimately lose your readers.Write well,and they'll respond in the way you plan. Table 1:Markets for technical writing What writing？ Who are the readers？ How will they use it？ Thesis Examiners To judge and rank your work Paper Referees To check originality.quality,suitability Scientifically-literate public To extract information To judge if your aims match the priorities of the Research proposal The funding body and... funding body Its referees To judge quality and promise of the work Popular article Intelligent but un-informed To be introduced to a new field public To be entertained How to write a paper MFA,16/08/11

How to write a paper 4 MFA, 16/08/11 2 THE MARKET –Who are your readers? Your market is your readers. Put yourself in their shoes: what, if you were they, would you wish to find? The readers of your thesis are your examiners. They expect details of all relevant parts of your research: why you did it, its background, your thinking, what you did, your conclusions and your views on where it is going. They don’t want the irrelevant parts – details of how standard equipment works, for instance. Find out as much as you can about content and format from your supervisor and other students, and look at some recent (successful) theses to get a feel for the product this market expects. A paper is read by one or more skilled referees, and, if accepted, by a scientificallyinformed audience. This manual focuses on writing papers. The pages that follow explain how this market should be addressed. A research proposal usually addresses two markets. One is the funding agency: the EPSRC, the EU, another Government Agencies, or a Charity. They will look for a match between their priorities and yours. The other is the referees that the funding agency will use; they are charged with judging quality, promise and relevance. Hardest to write is a popular article, addressing an audience who is intelligent – one should always assume that – but who may know nothing of your subject. Here style, always important, must be fine-tuned to meet their needs. More on style in Section 8. Make no mistake. Write poorly and you’ll bore, exasperate and ultimately lose your readers. Write well, and they’ll respond in the way you plan. Table 1: Markets for technical writing What writing ? Who are the readers ? How will they use it ? Thesis Examiners To judge and rank your work Paper Referees Scientifically-literate public To check originality, quality, suitability To extract information Research proposal The funding body and … Its referees To judge if your aims match the priorities of the funding body To judge quality and promise of the work Popular article Intelligent but un-informed public To be introduced to a new field To be entertained

3 CONCEPT--Making a Concept-Sheet When you can't write,it is because you don't know what you want to say.The first job is to structure your thinking.Settle down comfortably with a cup of coffee (or better,beer)and an A3 sheet of paper in Landscape orientation as in Figure 2.Devise a tentative title for the paper and write it at the top.Then-in as orderly way as you can,but disorder is OK too--jot down what seem like sensible section headings,each in its own box.Sketch in anything that occurs to you that belongs in a section-paragraph headings,figures,ideas.Think of things that might be relevant to the section-a reference,a graph you might need,an idea that requires further development.Put each in a bubble near the box to which it applies,with an arrow showing where it fits in.This is the time to de-focus,forget the detail and think both longitudinally and laterally.What should be in the paper?What else might be relevant?What else might you need to do the job-a copy of X,a figure of Y,the reference Z?Put it all down. You realise that you need an extra section-squeeze it in.You see that the order of sections is not good-add arrows indicating the new order. All this sounds like a child's game,but it is not.Its value lies in the freedom of thought it permits.Your first real act of composition (this one)is to allow your thinking to range over the entire paper,exploring ways in which the pieces might fit together,recording the resources you will need and capturing ideas.That way,no matter which part you start drafting,you have an idea of the whole.Don't yet think of style,neatness or anything else.Just add,at the appropriate place on the sheet,your thoughts.This can be the most satisfying step of writing a paper.Later steps can take time,be hard work,sometimes like squeezing water out of stone. But not this-it is the moment to be creative in whatever way your ideas may lead.You can add to the sheet at any time It becomes a road-map of where you are going. Figure 3 shows,unexpurgated,the concept sheet I made while thinking about this manual.Some bits were already planned;most developed in the hour I spent making the sheet; a few were added later,after some sections had been drafted.It is a mess,notes to oneself,but it guides the subsequent,more tedious,part of the journey.It is possible that this starting point may not work for you,but try it more than once before you abandon it.It is the best way I know to break writers-block and launch the real writing of the paper. How to write a paper J MFA,16/08/11

How to write a paper 5 MFA, 16/08/11 3 CONCEPT -- Making a Concept-Sheet When you can’t write, it is because you don’t know what you want to say. The first job is to structure your thinking. Settle down comfortably with a cup of coffee (or better, beer) and an A3 sheet of paper in Landscape orientation as in Figure 2. Devise a tentative title for the paper and write it at the top. Then – in as orderly way as you can, but disorder is OK too -- jot down what seem like sensible section headings, each in its own box. Sketch in anything that occurs to you that belongs in a section – paragraph headings, figures, ideas. Think of things that might be relevant to the section – a reference, a graph you might need, an idea that requires further development. Put each in a bubble near the box to which it applies, with an arrow showing where it fits in. This is the time to de-focus, forget the detail and think both longitudinally and laterally. What should be in the paper? What else might be relevant? What else might you need to do the job – a copy of X, a figure of Y, the reference Z? Put it all down. You realise that you need an extra section - squeeze it in. You see that the order of sections is not good – add arrows indicating the new order. All this sounds like a child’s game, but it is not. Its value lies in the freedom of thought it permits. Your first real act of composition (this one) is to allow your thinking to range over the entire paper, exploring ways in which the pieces might fit together, recording the resources you will need and capturing ideas. That way, no matter which part you start drafting, you have an idea of the whole. Don’t yet think of style, neatness or anything else. Just add, at the appropriate place on the sheet, your thoughts. This can be the most satisfying step of writing a paper. Later steps can take time, be hard work, sometimes like squeezing water out of stone. But not this – it is the moment to be creative in whatever way your ideas may lead. You can add to the sheet at any time It becomes a road-map of where you are going. Figure 3 shows, unexpurgated, the concept sheet I made while thinking about this manual. Some bits were already planned; most developed in the hour I spent making the sheet; a few were added later, after some sections had been drafted. It is a mess, notes to oneself, but it guides the subsequent, more tedious, part of the journey. It is possible that this starting point may not work for you, but try it more than once before you abandon it. It is the best way I know to break writers-block and launch the real writing of the paper

what follows.State what you will do that has not been done before (new experimental approach?new data?new model?new interpretation?)Keep it as brief as you can whilst still doing all this. Start with a good first sentence-see Section 8 for examples. 4.5 METHOD Experimental paper:equipment,materials,method Modeling paper:assumptions,mathematical tools,method Computational paper:inputs,computational tools,method Explain what is especially different about your method. Give sufficient detail that the reader can reproduce what you did. Don't mix Method with Results or Discussion-they come next. This should be an easy section to write:just say what you did,succinctly.Use "we"but do so sparingly:too many "we's"sounds like a child's day out:"first we did this,then we did that.” Build up a reference list as you go.See Section 4.10 for the way to deal with references. It is one of the principles of science that a paper should contain sufficient detail to allow the work to be repeated by someone else.Provide this but no more.Keep the results for the next section. 4.6 RESULTS.Present the output of the experiments,model or computation. .Don't mix Results with Discussion.It belongs-all of it-in 4.7. This,too,should be an easy section to write.Report your results simply,without opinion or interpretation at this stage.Define all symbols and units.Present data in a form other people can use.Give emphasis in the text the most important aspects of the tables,graphs or figures. Give error-bars or confidence-limits for numerical or graphical data.Statistics should be meaningful:avoid confidence-eroding statements such as "33.3%of the samples failed:33.3% survived;the third sample was unfortunately misplaced." Aim for a concise,economical style. Poor:It is clearly shown in Figure 3 that the shear loading had caused the cell-walls to suffer ductile fracture or possibly brittle failure. Better:Shear loading fractures cell-walls (Figure 3). 4.7 DISCUSSION.Extract principles,relationships,generalizations. Present analysis,model or theory. Show relationship between the results and analysis,model or theory How to write a paper 9 MFA,16/08/11

How to write a paper 9 MFA, 16/08/11 what follows. State what you will do that has not been done before (new experimental approach? new data? new model? new interpretation?) Keep it as brief as you can whilst still doing all this. Start with a good first sentence – see Section 8 for examples. 4.5 METHOD • Experimental paper: equipment, materials, method Modeling paper: assumptions, mathematical tools, method Computational paper: inputs, computational tools, method • Explain what is especially different about your method. • Give sufficient detail that the reader can reproduce what you did. • Don’t mix Method with Results or Discussion – they come next. This should be an easy section to write: just say what you did, succinctly. Use “we” but do so sparingly: too many “we’s” sounds like a child’s day out: “first we did this, then we did that.” Build up a reference list as you go. See Section 4.10 for the way to deal with references. It is one of the principles of science that a paper should contain sufficient detail to allow the work to be repeated by someone else. Provide this but no more. Keep the results for the next section. 4.6 RESULTS • Present the output of the experiments, model or computation. • Don’t mix Results with Discussion. It belongs – all of it – in 4.7. This, too, should be an easy section to write. Report your results simply, without opinion or interpretation at this stage. Define all symbols and units. Present data in a form other people can use. Give emphasis in the text the most important aspects of the tables, graphs or figures. Give error-bars or confidence-limits for numerical or graphical data. Statistics should be meaningful; avoid confidence-eroding statements such as “33.3% of the samples failed: 33.3% survived; the third sample was unfortunately misplaced.” Aim for a concise, economical style. Poor: It is clearly shown in Figure 3 that the shear loading had caused the cell-walls to suffer ductile fracture or possibly brittle failure. Better: Shear loading fractures cell-walls (Figure 3). 4.7 DISCUSSION • Extract principles, relationships, generalizations. • Present analysis, model or theory. • Show relationship between the results and analysis, model or theory

Here you are seeking to extract principles,relationships,or generalisations from the results. Sometimes the results speak for themselves. The novel heat-treatment described in Section 2 gives steels which are 10%stronger and 20% tougher than those heat-treated in the normal way. could be all you need.Most of the research we do aims at why materials behave as they do,and this requires ideas about mechanisms,models and associated theory.The function of the Discussion is to describe the ideas,models and theories and lead the reader through a comparison of these with the experimental or computational data.Bring out the most significant conclusions first;develop subsidiary conclusions after that. Be clear and concise;a Discussion is not a license to waffle.See Appendix for examples of waffle and what to do about it. 4.8 CONCLUSION.Draw together the most important results and their consequences List any reservations or limitations. The reader scanning your paper will read the Abstract and the Conclusions,glance at the Figures and move on.Do not duplicate the Abstract as the Conclusions or vice versa.The Abstract is an overview of the entire paper.The Conclusions are a summing up of the advances in knowledge that have emerged from it.It is acceptable to present conclusions as a bullet- pointed list. 4.9 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.Thank people who have helped you with ideas. technical assistance,materials or finance. Keep it simple,give full names and affiliation,and don't get sentimental.A formula such as this works well: I wish to thank Prof.L.M.Brown of the Cavendish Laboratory,Cambridge,for suggesting this review,and to acknowledge my debt to the books listed below. or: The authors wish to thank Professor A.G.Evans of Harvard University for suggesting the approach developed in section 4.3:Mr A.Heaver for his technical assistence throughout the project and Mrs Jo Ladbrooke for proof-reading the manuscript.The research was supported by the EPSRC under grant number EJA S67,by the DARPA-ONR MURI program under contract number N00014-1-96-1028,and by a Research Fellowship from the National Research Council of Canada. How to write a paper 10 MFA,16/08/11

How to write a paper 10 MFA, 16/08/11 Here you are seeking to extract principles, relationships, or generalisations from the results. Sometimes the results speak for themselves. The novel heat-treatment described in Section 2 gives steels which are 10% stronger and 20% tougher than those heat-treated in the normal way. could be all you need. Most of the research we do aims at why materials behave as they do, and this requires ideas about mechanisms, models and associated theory. The function of the Discussion is to describe the ideas, models and theories and lead the reader through a comparison of these with the experimental or computational data. Bring out the most significant conclusions first; develop subsidiary conclusions after that. Be clear and concise; a Discussion is not a license to waffle. See Appendix for examples of waffle and what to do about it. 4.8 CONCLUSION • Draw together the most important results and their consequences. • List any reservations or limitations. The reader scanning your paper will read the Abstract and the Conclusions, glance at the Figures and move on. Do not duplicate the Abstract as the Conclusions or vice versa. The Abstract is an overview of the entire paper. The Conclusions are a summing up of the advances in knowledge that have emerged from it. It is acceptable to present conclusions as a bulletpointed list. 4.9 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS • Thank people who have helped you with ideas, technical assistance, materials or finance. Keep it simple, give full names and affiliation, and don’t get sentimental. A formula such as this works well: I wish to thank Prof. L.M. Brown of the Cavendish Laboratory, Cambridge, for suggesting this review, and to acknowledge my debt to the books listed below. or: The authors wish to thank Professor A. G. Evans of Harvard University for suggesting the approach developed in section 4.3; Mr A. Heaver for his technical assistence throughout the project and Mrs Jo Ladbrooke for proof-reading the manuscript. The research was supported by the EPSRC under grant number EJA S67, by the DARPA-ONR MURI program under contract number N00014-1-96-1028, and by a Research Fellowship from the National Research Council of Canada