Transcript How to write your 3rd year report…..

How to write your 3rd year
report…..
painlessly©
Dr Izzat Darwazeh
[email protected]
Four main points before starting;
1.
2.
3.
4.
Have you done the work?
Do you know what is it all about?
Have you written 1st and 2nd reports?
Do you have a GOOD log book?
IF
yes, yes, yes and yes…
THEN
IT is easy!
Remember that you are writing for
three main reasons;
1- To gain credit for the degree
2- To be assessed by others who are technically aware but not all are
experts
3- To document your work for yourself and others
Therefore, features of a good report are:•
Statement of clear aims and objectives and conclusions about
reaching aims
•
Clarity and good presentation;
•
Gives information/understanding;
•
Reflects understanding;
•
Good technical content;
•
Gives the opportunity to “dig deeper” into the subject.
To start..
1. Write a list of what has been done and learnt
(background, theoretical, experimental,
measurements..etc)
2. Decide what to include
3. From the above write down a logical (NOT
chronological) structure (chapter headings/titles)
4. Refine the structure (sections in chapters, subsections, diagrmans..etc)
Consult your supervisor
Report structure- general
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Title page
Declaration
Abstract
Acknowledgements
List of figures/tables
List of abbreviations
Contents
8. The chapters
9. References
10. Appendix
1,2,3,7,8,9 MUST
5,6 ADVISABLE
4,10 POSSIBLE
The chapters
Common features
• MUST be divided into sections
• Each MUST have an introduction
• Each MUST have a summary/conclusions
Good practice is to make sure that each
chapter is “stand alone” yet “well linked” to
other chapters, especially to chapters
immediately preceding and following
“In the beginning there was the..”
Introduction
Chapter 1
Short (2-5 pages) contains…
Introduction (to set the scene)
1.1 Aims and objectives (possibly motivation)
1.x Structure of report
1.y Contributions/Achievements
Chapter 1, is an Introduction to the report
Written last
Then comes the
Introductory/background
Chapter OR Chapters
Examples…
P1 “Modelling GSM and 802.11 integration”
P2 “design of Op Amp PID controllers for use in central
heating systems”
P3 “ Maxwell equations using JAVA”
P4 “ Optical fibre link for video distribution”
P5 “Design and implementation of high power MOS
amplifier”
And the important bits
Work Chapters
How many? 1,2,3,4…???
Most important is to decide on the
partitioning of these chapters. It all
depends on the nature of the project and it
is an individual’s choice.
And finally..
•
The Conclusions
“to-conclude” (Collins English Dictionary) has two meanings!!
to come or cause to come to an end or conclusion
to decide by reasoning; to deduce”.
Chapter (last)
Short (2-3 pages) contains…
• Summary of work
• Critical commentary about the project
• Show the project met its aims
• Possible future work
• Lessons learnt
Written last-1
(just before you write Chapter 1)
The last bits
• References
Books, papers, standards, web resources,
project reports, Thesis, software,
presentations, lecture notes...etc
MUST be linked to the text of the report
• Appendix
Material that is helpful (to the reader) but
not essential. Do not “over do it”
Now you have written it..
Check the “overall picture”
Make sure it is all there
Make sure it reads well
Check the details
Referencing
Language and punctuations
Diagrams, figures,axis, units..etc
consistency in style, fonts..ets
Page numbers …
Remember e-submission
The details are in
http://www.ee.ucl.ac.uk/~afernand/ProjGuideStudents.html
http://www.ee.ucl.ac.uk/~dselviah/ReportOutline.html
Good luck
It normally is fun….
and you may well have to
experience it again …