Transcript Teaching Grammar

Writing abstract
Contents:
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Structure of a technical papers
Writing abstract
Structure of
Technical papers
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http://myweb.ncku.edu.tw/~msju/mml/techwrt.htm
http://www.cs.ccu.edu.tw/~ccc/article/TecWrite.htm
http://www.cs.columbia.edu/~hgs/etc/writing-style.html
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A technical paper should be clear and concise. The goal
is to convey ideas and results to the readers in the least
possible time and space. Everything about the document
should contribute to this goal. The notations and format
should be consistent throughout the paper.
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It is a very common error to dive into the technical
approach or the implementation details without having
appropriately framed the problem. You should first say
what the problem or goal is, and — even when
presenting an algorithm — first state what the output is
and probably the key idea, before discussing steps.
Structure of a technical paper
A paper usually consists of the following components:
1)
Title —It should be concise and to the point. For example,
some publications limit the title to less than ten words.
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Avoid all but the most readily understood abbreviations.
Avoid common phrases like "novel", "performance evaluation"
and "architecture", since almost every paper does a
performance evaluation of some architecture and it better be
novel. Unless somebody wants to see 10,000 Google results,
nobody searches for these types of words.
Use adjectives that describe the distinctive features of your
work, e.g., reliable, scalable, high-performance, robust, lowcomplexity, or low-cost.
If you need inspiration for a paper title, you can consult the
Automatic Systems Research Topic or Paper Title Generator.
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2) Abstract —A summary of the paper, including a brief
description of the problem, the solution, and conclusions.
Do not cite references in the abstract.
3) Keywords —They should be selected such that a
computerized search will be facilitated.
4) Introduction —This should contain the background of
the problem, why it is important, and what others have
done to solve this problem. All related existing work
should be properly described and referenced. The
proposed solution should be briefly described, with
explanations of how it is different from, and superior to,
existing solutions. The last paragraph should be a
summary of what will be described in each subsequent
section of the paper.
5) System Model —The proposed model is described. There
will invariably be assumptions made. State the model
assumptions clearly. Do the assumptions make sense?
Use figures to help explain the model.
6) Numerical results —Based on the model, numerical
results will be generated. These results should be
presented in such a way as to facilitate the readers’
understanding. Usually, they will be presented in the form
of figures or tables.
The parameter values chosen should make sense. All the
results should be interpreted. Details on the simulation
time, the computer, and the language used in the
simulation should also be included.
7) Conclusions —This summarizes what have been done
and concluded based on the results. A description of future
research should also be included.
8) References —This should contain a list of papers referred to
in the paper. If there is a choice, use a reference which is
more readily available, i.e., if an author has published a
conference version and a journal version of the paper, refer to
the journal version. Research reports, internal memos, private
correspondences, and preprints are usually hard to access
and should be avoided as much as possible.
9) Appendix —Those materials which are deemed inessential to
the understanding of the paper, but included for the sake of
completeness. Sometimes, detailed mathematical proofs are
put in the appendix to make the paper more readable.
10) Figures —The figures may be placed immediately after they
are referred to in the text, or placed at the end of the paper.
Each figure should be readable without relying on the
accompanying description in the text. Thus, all symbols used
in the figure should be explained in the figure legend. In
addition, do not make the figures and legends too small.
Writing abstract
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http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/writing_center/grabstract.html
http://www.languages.ait.ac.th/EL21ABS1.HTM#examined%20for%20all%2
0systems
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An abstract is a summary of a body of information in a paragraph—
100-350 words for a descriptive abstract, 100-250 words an
informative abstract. An abstract expresses the main claim and
argument of a paper.
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In most disciplines, it never includes bibliographic citations. An
abstract concisely highlights or reviews the major points covered
along with the content and scope of the writing.
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An abstract can also be a useful tool for writers to check that they
have a clear grasp of their thesis and argument. If the writer can
state the thesis and argument clearly in a few sentences—and in
such a way that someone who doesn't know the subject will still
be able to understand the main idea—then the writer knows she has
a good grasp of the ideas she is trying to express.
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An abstract says everything of central importance in a way that
gives the reader a clear overview of what is contained in the essay.
Essential elements of the abstract are:
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Background: A simple opening sentence or two placing
the work in context.
Aims: One or two sentences giving the purpose of the
work.
Method(s): One or two sentences explaining what was
done. (Described at length only if it is unusual)
Results: One or two sentences indicating the main
findings. (Absolutely essential)
Conclusions: One sentence giving the most important
consequence of the work. (Telling what the results mean).
Qualities of a Good Abstract
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Well developed paragraphs are unified, coherent,
concise, and able to stand alone
Uses an introduction/body/conclusion structure which
presents the article, paper, or report's purpose, results,
conclusions, and recommendations in that order
Follows strictly the chronology of the article, paper, or
report
Provides logical connections (or transitions) between the
information included
Adds no new information, but simply summarizes the
report
Is understandable to a wide audience
Oftentimes uses passive verbs to downplay the author
and emphasize the information
Voice
Scientists have grappled for years over the
appropriate way to talk about discoveries: should it be
"We measured ion concentration in the blood"
or
"Ion concentration in the blood was measured"
Don’ts
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Do not commence with "this paper…”, "this report…" or
similar. It is better to write about the research than about
the paper. Avoid use of "in this paper“, what other paper
would you be talking about here?
Do not contain references, as it may be used without the
main article. It is acceptable, although not common, to
identify work by author, abbreviation or RFC number.
(For example, "Our algorithm is based upon the work by
Smith and Wesson.")
Avoid sentences that end in "…is described", "…is
reported", "…is analyzed" or similar.
Do not begin sentences with "it is suggested that…” "it is
believed that…", "it is felt that…"or similar. In every case,
the four words can be omitted without damaging the
essential message.
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Do not repeat or rephrase the title.
Do not enumerate a list of topics covered; instead,
convey the essential information found in your paper.
Avoid equations and math. Exceptions: Your paper
proposes E = m c 2.
Do not refer in the abstract to information that is not in
the document.
If possible, avoid trade names, acronyms, abbreviations,
or symbols. You would need to explain them, and that
takes too much room.
The abstract should be about the research,
not about the act of writing.
Where to find examples of abstracts:
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The best source of example abstracts is journal articles.
Go to the library and look at biology journals, or look at
electronic journals on the web.
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Read the abstract; read the article. Pick the best ones,
the examples where the abstract makes the article
easier to read, and figure out how they do it.
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Not everyone writes good abstracts, even in refereed
journals, but the more abstracts you read, the easier it is
to spot the good ones.
Example 1
(Here is an abstract from a published paper. It is 220 words long. )
Abstract
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Major problems of the arid region are transportation of agricultural products
and losses due to spoilage of the products, especially in summer. This work
presents the performance of a solar drying system consisting of an air
heater and a dryer chamber connected to a greenhouse. The drying system
is designed to dry a variety of agricultural products. The effect of air mass
flow rate on the drying process is studied. Composite pebbles, which are
constructed from cement and sand, are used to store energy for night
operation. The pebbles are placed at the bottom of the drying chamber and
are charged during the drying process itself. A separate test is done using a
simulator, a packed bed storage unit, to find the thermal characteristics of
the pebbles during charging and discharging modes with time. Accordingly,
the packed bed is analyzed using a heat transfer model with finite difference
technique described before and during the charging and discharging
processes. Graphs are presented that depict the thermal characteristics and
performance of the pebble beds and the drying patterns of different
agricultural products. The results show that the amount of energy stored in
the pebbles depends on the air mass flow rate, the inlet air temperature,
and the properties of the storage materials. The composite pebbles can be
used efficiently as storing media.
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Helwa, N. H. and Abdel Rehim, Z. S. (1997). Experimental Study of the Performance of
Solar Dryers with Pebble Beds. Energy Sources, 19, 579-591.
Example 2
(Here is a second abstract from a published paper. It is 162 words long. )
Abstract
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The long-term performance of various systems was determined and
the economic aspects of solar hot water production were investigated
in this work. The effect of the collector inclination angle, collector area
and storage volume was examined for all systems, and various
climatic conditions and their payback period was calculated. It was
found that the collector inclination angle does not have a significant
effect on system performance. Large collector areas have a
diminishing effect on the system’s overall efficiency. The increase in
storage volume has a detrimental effect for small daily load volumes,
but a beneficial one when there is a large daily consumption. Solar
energy was found to be truly competitive when the conventional fuel
being substituted is electricity, and it should not replace diesel oil on
pure economic grounds. Large daily load volumes and large collector
areas are in general associated with shorter payback periods. Overall,
the systems are oversized and are economically suitable for large
daily hot water load volumes.
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Haralambopoulos, D., Paparsenost, G. F., and Kovras, H. (1997) Assessing
the Economic Aspects of Solar Hot Water Production in Greece. Renewable
Energy, 11, 153-167.
Web links
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http://penscanner.bellus.com.tw/howtothesis2.html (Technical writing)
http://pioneer.netserv.chula.ac.th/~pkanchan/htm
l/eap2.htm (English for Academic Purposes Science)
http://www.cs.washington.edu/homes/mernst/ad
vice/write-technical-paper.html (Writing a
technical paper)
http://infolab.stanford.edu/~widom/paperwriting.html (tips for writing technical papers)