Transcript Slide 1

Technical Writing
for Engineers
by
Dr. Aly N. El-Bahrawy
Faculty of Engineering, Ain Shams University
Engineers and Writing
• Engineers write a lot
• Engineers write many kinds of documents
• Successful engineers require strong
writing skills
• Engineers can learn to write well
No one can be a good writer –
only a good rewriter
Noise and the Communication Process
Noise possibilities
Message
Encoder
(sender)
Channel
(speech,
writing,
etc.)
Decoder
(receiver)
Noise possibilities
Anything that causes reader to hesitate due to
uncertainty, confusion or frustration
is noise
Message
Technical Writing Process
Planning
Drafting
Reviewing
Mechanics
Purpose
Grammar
Readers
Style
Research
Initial
Draft
Outline
Content
Guidelines
for Good English Writing
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Why you are writing?
Your readers
To the point
Document specifications
Accurate information
Logical material
Clear expression
Guidelines
for Good English Writing
•
•
•
•
•
Efficient wording
Accessible ideas
Information lists
Page formatting
Time management
Why you are writing?
• Purpose
– Inform
– Request
– Instruct
– Propose
– Recommend
– Persuade
– Record
Your Readers
Consider their
• Needs
• Interests
• Level of expertise
• Possible reaction
They can be your
• Peers
• Supervisors
• Subordinates
Bridging the Gap
Ask yourself questions
• Knowledge
– Different field, different audience
• Ability
– Level and vocabulary, unreasonable
expectations
• Interest
– Purpose, level of detail, attitude
Document Specifications
• Length of document
– Brief memo, specs, RFP
• Topic
• Editor requirements
– No of words, format
To the Point
• Most important at the beginning
• Managers need the ‘bottom line’
• Kind of document
– Letter (opening sentence)
– Memo (subject line)
– E-mail (concise subject heading)
– Report (informative title, executive summary)
Accurate Information
• Errors make readers lose confidence
• Examples of errors
– Incorrect reference, inaccurate directions,
claims true under certain conditions
• Difference between fact and opinion
Logical Material
• Chronological
– progress of trip report
• From most to least important
– no of points
• Order of familiarity or difficulty
– Text book
• From general to specific
– memo
Clear Expression
• Engineering is a precise discipline
• Sentence must convey a single meaning
with no room for interpretation
or misunderstanding
• Pitfalls to avoid
– Ambiguity, vagueness, coherence, directness
Clear Expression
• Ambiguity
– Point to more than one referent in a sentence
• Vagueness
– Words causing no useful meaning to reader
• Coherence
– Paragraphs and documents should stick together and
be focused on subject
• Directness
– Access to information should be quick and easy
Example of Ambiguity
• Before accepting material from the new
subcontractors, we should make sure they
meet our requirements.
• We should make sure the materials
from the new contractors meet our
requirements before accepting them.
Example of Vagueness
• The Robotics group is several weeks
behind schedule.
• The Robotics group is six weeks
behind schedule
Example of Coherence
• A significant advantage of the 125-H CRT is its high
power consumption. The tube requires substantial
power to produce the high voltages and currents that are
necessary to drive and deflect the electron beam. The
125-H is inefficient – only about 10% to 20% of the
power used by the tube is converted into visible light at
the surface of the screen. The 125-H is poorly suited for
portable display devices that run on batteries, where
lower consumption is necessary. We should consider
other options before committing to purchase the 125-H.
Example of Coherence
• A significant advantage of the 125-H CRT is its high
power consumption. This tube requires substantial
power to produce the high voltages and currents
that are necessary to drive and deflect the electron
beam. In addition, the 125-H is inefficient – only
about 10% to 20% of the power used by the tube is
converted into visible light a the surface of the
screen. Thus, the 125-H is poorly suited for portable
display devices that run on batteries, where lower
consumption is necessary. Because of this
drawback, we should consider other options before
committing to purchase the 125-H.
Example of Directness
• After the long and difficult development
cycle due to factory renovation, the
infrared controller will be ready for
production in the near future.
• The infrared controller will be ready for
production March 4. Its development
cycle was slowed down by the factory
renovation.
Efficient Wording
• Cost to produce one written page (15-20$)
• Wordiness
– Simplest and plainest word
‘Never utilize utilize when you can use use’
– Let your writing ‘cool off’ for a while, then
come back to edit later
Example of Wordiness
• You may often find that there are a number
of words contained in your writing that can
be safely eliminated without any kind of
danger to your meaning whatsoever
• Can you fix it?
Example of Wordiness
• You may often find that there are a number
of words contained in your writing that can
be safely eliminated without any kind of
danger to your meaning whatsoever
• You may find words that can be eliminated
without danger to your meaning
Examples of Wordiness
• I regret to say that at this point in time I basically
do not have access to that specific information.
• I do not know.
• It is our considered recommendation that a new
computer should be purchased.
• We recommend buying a new computer.
Wordiness Table (words)
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
commence
compel
comprises
employ
endeavor
fabricate
finalize
Initiate
optimal
prioritize
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
start
force
is
use
try
make
end
begin
best
rank
Wordiness Table (phrases)
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
a large number of
at this point in time
come in contact with
exhibits the ability to
in the event of
in some cases
in view of the fact that
in the neighborhood of
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
many
now
contact
can
if
sometimes
because
about
Efficient Wording
• Redundancy
– Using words that say the same thing
(e.g. basic fundamentals, connected together)
• Turning verbs into nouns
– Wanting to write in the passive rather than the
active voice
(e.g. made a selection – selected,
investigation was undertaken – investigated)
Table of Redundancy
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
alternative choices
actual experience
completely eliminate
Just exactly
exactly identical
prove conclusively
rectangular in shape
12 noon
very best
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
alternatives
experience
eliminate
exactly
identical
prove
rectangular
noon
best
Accessible Ideas
• Subdivision into sections and sub-sections
– Hierarchical headings
FIRST
Second
(indent) Third
– Numbered headings
1.0
1.1
1.1.1
– Paragraph length
Under 12 lines or less, avoid orphans and
widows
Information Lists
• Numbered
– Order of importance, ≤ 7 items
• Checklists
– All items must be tended to (usu. in order)
• Bulleted
– No specific order
Information Lists
• Punctuation
– Lead-in ends with a verb, use no colon
• Some of the main concerns of environmental
engineering are
– air pollution
– solid waste disposal
– public water supply
– Lead-in is a complete statement, use colon
• Some of the main concerns of environmental
engineering are as follows:
Information Lists
– Items are complete statement, use period.
Otherwise, use no punctuation
• The group accomplishments are as follows:
– Logic design was completed.
– Final simulations were run.
– Test patterns were debugged.
– Consistent capitalization
•
Grammatical parallelism
– Same beginning (verb, noun, etc.)
Page Formatting
• Readers like visually pleasing print
• Margins
– One inch all around, ragged right-hand
margin, extra left margin for binding
• White space
– Provides ‘breathing room’
Page Formatting
• Typeface
– Serif (larger quantity of text) and sans serif
(headings)
• The electric car prototype has regenerative
braking, which recharges the supply while
decelerating the vehicle.
• The electric car prototype has regenerative
braking, which recharges the supply while
decelerating the vehicle.
Time Management
• Finding and using time
– breaks, laptops in waiting rooms, hotels, at
airport, on trains, etc.
• Outlines, deadlines, and time lines
• Collaborative writing
– Team writing is not easy (divide work among
persons, finish and pass to the next, or assign
each person a different task)