Scientific Research Methods and Terminology

Methods of Working and Terminology 2

• The researcher must not only "do science" but also "write their science" because training of scientists is mainly oriented towards technical aspects of science, leaving little room for learning communication.
• The objective of this course is to teach the methodology of writing to structure individual writing, focusing on basic techniques for writing documents (reports, presentations, scientific articles, etc.).

Advantages of Written Communication

• Written communication has several advantages over oral communication, including:
  • Reaching an unlimited number of people
  • Leaving a trail or witness
  • Drawing more attention than words that are soon forgotten

Types of Academic Writing

• Thesis and Dissertations: a long piece of academic writing reporting original research, submitted as part of a postgraduate degree
• Book Chapters: a significant part of a book that helps establish the foundation of a topic and complements the overview of the work's content
• Research Articles: a lengthy piece of academic writing presenting the outcomes of research, based on the analysis and interpretation of data
• Conference Papers: a combination of written documents and oral presentations, published in collections called proceedings
• Abstracts: a short summary of completed research that describes the work without providing details
• Reviews: short articles based on other published books or articles, not an original piece of research

Structure of a Doctoral Dissertation/Master's Thesis

• The structure of a thesis or dissertation is composed of:
  • Cover page
  • Acknowledgment
  • Abstract in three languages (Arabic, French, English)
  • Table of Contents
  • List of figures (graphs, diagrams, and drawings, etc.)
  • List of tables
  • List of abbreviations (if necessary)
  • Introduction
  • Materials and Methods
  • Results
  • Discussions
  • Conclusion
  • List of references
  • Annexes

Writing a Dissertation/Thesis

• The title of the dissertation/thesis should have the following qualities:
  • Clarity
  • Precision
  • Accuracy
• The cover page is not numbered and is not included in the numbering of the document
• Acknowledgment: a separate textual unit that mentions the names of people or institutions to be thanked
• Abstract: a short summary of the dissertation/thesis, including the problem, main objective, methodology, principal results, and keywords

Table of Contents and Lists

• The table of contents contains the divisions and subdivisions of the document, with their respective numbers
• The list of figures or tables identifies each figure or table with its number, title, and page number
• The list of abbreviations is presented in alphabetical order

Introduction

• The introduction presents the subject and its limits, drawing on bibliographical references
• It is structured like a funnel, including:
  • The general aspect of the subject, placing it in context
  • The specific aspect of the problem addressed
  • Presentation of the investigative approach
  • Objectives
  • The different stages of the work

Materials and Methods

• The writer describes the methods and materials used in the current work
• It is a procedural guide, providing complete information for any other researcher to redo the procedure

Results

• This chapter presents the objective part of the manuscript, focusing on data processing and interpretation
• Graphic presentations are preferable to verbal developments

Discussion

• This chapter examines the significance of the results and their interpretation
• It situates the new knowledge generated by the study in relation to previous research

Conclusion

• The conclusion includes the following elements:
  • A reminder of the problem
  • The main results of the study
  • The theoretical contributions of the study
  • Future avenues of research

Appendices (Annexes)

• Include any additional technical documents or explanatory texts that would be out of place in the main text
• Examples include lists of species cited, experimental protocols, technical data sheets, and numerical data for statistical tests