writing a scientific review pal General point Try to make your research paper an integrated synthesis of the literature, rather than a jumbled regurgitation of facts Give yourself enough time! For a 10-20 page paper it ideally takes a month to carry out the library searches and to collect the necessary materials (interlibrary loans etc) Start out with a clear idea of the question you are trying to answer in the paper Write it somewhere and show it to an advisor to see if it makes sense is "do-able etc. In general a simple, specific idea is easier to research and to write about Equally it must be interesting and inclusive enough to ensure there's enough material available to review Get to know the library a.s. a.p. Make sure you are familiar with all the resources available to help you locate references. Using the library well will save you hours of work and days of frustration Take notes, including full citations(authors' names, journal, date and page number)from each paper as you read it. Use index cards or a word processor Index cards are nice in that you can shuffle them around color code ideas on them, highlight etc. The advantage of using a word processor is that you will later be able to use your notes to cut and paste together the first draft, plus you'll have all your citations there already which saves time when building your citation list Organize your notes. " Where did I read that? is the plague of all writers. The better organized your notes the less this is a problem Outline your paper before setting pen to paper for anything else! This will help you to organize your thoughts and will markedly improve the overall quality of your final product Don't be afraid to write your ideas down before they are perfectly formed. If you can get them down on paper, you can place them in a logical sequence and develop them into a flowing presentation later Use the draft system: Write a first draft. Leave it for a day or two. Come back to it and revise it as much as you can, then let someone read it. Once they have read it revise the paper again. Respond to your reviewer's comments and also clarify any passages that seemed to confuse them. Expect that your paper will need revisions and don't feel bad when that turns out to be true Don't write in the first person(I think). This reduces your credibility. Write with authority (It is, they do) What goes into a review paper? When writing a review paper your job is to present what is known about a specific topic and to synthesize all the unconnected threads of the individual studies into an integrated State of the Science"type of review. In your paper you will outline the overall picture of your topic area it is currently understood by scientists in that field. Your paper should clearly outline any problems that are currently being addressed, and explain the basis ofWriting a scientific review paper: General points: • Try to make your research paper an integrated synthesis of the literature, rather than a jumbled regurgitation of facts. • Give yourself enough time! For a 10-20 page paper it ideally takes a month to carry out the library searches and to collect the necessary materials (interlibrary loans etc). • Start out with a clear idea of the question you are trying to answer in the paper. Write it somewhere and show it to an advisor to see if it makes sense, is "do-able" etc. In general a simple, specific idea is easier to research and to write about. Equally it must be interesting and inclusive enough to ensure there's enough material available to review. • Get to know the library a.s.a.p.! Make sure you are familiar with all the resources available to help you locate references. Using the library well will save you hours of work and days of frustration! • Take notes, including full citations (authors' names, journal, date and page number) from each paper as you read it. Use index cards or a word processor. Index cards are nice in that you can shuffle them around, color code ideas on them, highlight etc. The advantage of using a word processor is that you will later be able to use your notes to cut and paste together the first draft, plus you'll have all your citations there already which saves time when building your citation list. Organize your notes. "Where did I read that?" is the plague of all writers. The better organized your notes, the less this is a problem. • Outline your paper before setting pen to paper for anything else! This will help you to organize your thoughts and will markedly improve the overall quality of your final product. • Don't be afraid to write your ideas down before they are perfectly formed. If you can get them down on paper, you can place them in a logical sequence and develop them into a flowing presentation later. • Use the draft system: Write a first draft. Leave it for a day or two. Come back to it and revise it as much as you can, then let someone read it. Once they have read it, revise the paper again. Respond to your reviewer's comments and also clarify any passages that seemed to confuse them. Expect that your paper will need revisions and don't feel bad when that turns out to be true. • Don't write in the first person (I think). This reduces your credibility. Write with authority (It is, they do) What goes into a review paper? When writing a review paper your job is to present what is known about a specific topic and to synthesize all the unconnected threads of the individual studies into an integrated "State of the Science" type of review. In your paper you will outline the overall picture of your topic area it is currently understood by scientists in that field. Your paper should clearly outline any problems that are currently being addressed, and explain the basis of