Week-1 Module -2 Title and an Abstract PDF

Technical Communication for Engineers Title and an abstract Dr. Arun K. Saraf, Professor Department of Earth Sciences 1  Title While searching for a research study on a par...

Technical Communication for Engineers Title and an abstract Dr. Arun K. Saraf, Professor Department of Earth Sciences 1  Title While searching for a research study on a particular topic, one probably notices that articles with interesting, descriptive research titles attract most. https://www.enago.com/academy/write-irresistible-research-paper-title/ By contrast, research paper titles that are not descriptive are usually passed over, even though they may be good research papers with interesting contents. This shows the importance of coming up with a good title for your research paper / seminar / dissertation / thesis when drafting your own document. 2  Title A search using the keywords “nursing”, “communication”, and “meditation” may yield the results that have the following titles: Title Comment https://www.enago.com/academy/write-irresistible-research-paper-title/ Benefits of Meditation for the describes the topic and the method Nursing Profession: A Quantitative of the study but is not particularly Investigation catchy. Why Mindful Nurses Make the Best partly describes the topic, but does Communicators not give any information about the method of the study—it could simply be a theoretical or opinion piece. 3  Title Title Comment Meditation Gurus is somewhat catchier but gives almost no information at all about https://www.enago.com/academy/write-irresistible-research-paper-title/ the article. Nurses on the Move: A Quantitative begins with a catchy main title and Report on How Meditation Can is followed by a subtitle that gives Improve Nurse Performance information about the content and method of the study. As we see, the last title has all the characteristics of a good research title. 4  Title Predicts Reflects Important Title Interesting? content? tone? keywords? Benefits of Meditation for the https://www.enago.com/academy/write-irresistible-research-paper-title/ Nursing Profession: A Quantitative Yes No No Yes Investigation Why Mindful Nurses Make the No Yes Yes No Best Communicators Meditation Gurus No Yes No No Nurses on the Move: A Quantitative Report on How Yes Yes Yes Yes Meditation Can Improve Nurse Performance 5  Title A paper / article involves ensuring that the title of the research accomplishes four goals. 1. A good title predicts the content of the research paper. https://www.enago.com/academy/write-irresistible-research-paper-title/ 2. A good title should be interesting to the reader. 3. It should reflect the tone of the writing. 4. It should contain important keywords that will make it easier to be located during a keyword search. 6  Tips for Writing an Effective Research Paper Title When writing a research title, earlier discussed four criteria may be used. https://www.enago.com/academy/write-irresistible-research-paper-title/ Few other tips for an effective research paper: 1. Make sure research title describes (a) the topic, (b) the method, (c) the sample, and (d) the results of your study. 2. Avoid unnecessary words and jargons. A title should be comprehensible even to non-experts. 3. Make sure your title is between 5 and 15 words in length. 7  Title Title should be: Strong and focused Sufficiently informative Attractive / striking Interesting and easily comprehensible 8 2. Abstract / synopsis / summary It is the first section which mostly a reader goes through after http://www2.geof.unizg.hr/~znevistic/ids2018/ppt/PDS_Dubrovnik_abstract_writing.pdf title It is a brief summary of work presented It tells the prospective readers what and how the work has been done and what were the important findings? In someway it is an advertisement of your work / article / manuscript Make it interesting, and easy to be understood without reading the whole article Must be accurate, specific, simple and easily understandable 9 2. Abstract / synopsis / summary / extended abstract A clear abstract will strongly influence whether or not your work is further considered Generally, abstract and synopsis are used synonymously / interchangeably, however, there are differences: abstract means an abridgement or summary of a longer publication, whereas synopsis means a brief summary of the major points of a written work, either as prose or as a table. Further, An abstract is said to reflect the mind of the author of the research paper, whereas a summary, on the other hand, is said to reflect the events of the particular act of a play, in a nutshell. 10 The abstract of a paper is the only part of the paper:  Generally, that is published in conference proceedings http://www2.geof.unizg.hr/~znevistic/ids2018/ppt/PDS_Dubrovnik_abstract_writing.pdf  That a potential referee sees when he is invited by an editor to review a manuscript.  That readers see when they search through electronic databases. 11 Finally, most readers will acknowledge, that when they look a paper:  First they only go through the titles of the papers. http://www2.geof.unizg.hr/~znevistic/ids2018/ppt/PDS_Dubrovnik_abstract_writing.pdf  If a title interests them, they glance through the abstract of that paper.  Only a dedicated reader will pursue the contents of the paper, and then, most often only the figures, introduction and discussion sections.  Only a reader with a very specific interest in the subject of the paper, and a need to understand it thoroughly, will read the entire paper.  Consequently, for the vast majority of readers, the paper does not exist beyond its abstract. 12  For the referees, and the few readers who wish to read beyond the https://pdcrodas.webs.ull.es/empresa/HowToWriteAGoodAbstractForAScientificPaperOrConference.pdf abstract, the abstract sets the tone for the rest of the paper. It is therefore the responsibility of the author to ensure that the abstract is properly representative of the entire paper / work. Further, the abstract is a condensed and concentrated version of the full text of the research manuscript. It should be sufficiently representative of the paper if read as a standalone document. The abstract must be as detailed as possible within the word count limits specified by the journal / conference to which the paper is intended to be submitted. 13  This will require good precise writing skills, as well as a fine judgment https://pdcrodas.webs.ull.es/empresa/HowToWriteAGoodAbstractForAScientificPaperOrConference.pdf about what information is necessary and what is not. The abstract must contain as much information as possible on the analyses related to the primary and secondary outcome measures. The abstract should not present a biased picture, such as only favorable outcomes with the study done, or findings that support the authors’ hypotheses; important nonsignificant and adverse findings should also receive mention. Thus, to the extent possible, the reader should be able to independently evaluate the authors’ conclusions. 14  Components of an Abstract https://pdcrodas.webs.ull.es/empresa/HowToWriteAGoodAbstractForAScientificPaperOrConference.pdf Despite the fact that an abstract is quite brief, it must do almost as much work as the multi-page paper that follows it. Each section is typically a single sentence, although there is room for creativity. In particular, the parts may be merged or spread among a set of sentences. 15  Checklist for an abstract https://pdcrodas.webs.ull.es/empresa/HowToWriteAGoodAbstractForAScientificPaperOrConference.pdf Motivation: Generally, work is incremental progress on a problem that is widely recognized as important It is better to put the problem statement first to indicate which piece of the larger problem you have been working on. Also include the importance of your work, the difficulty of the area, and the impact it might have if successful. 16  Checklist for an abstract https://pdcrodas.webs.ull.es/empresa/HowToWriteAGoodAbstractForAScientificPaperOrConference.pdf Problem statement: What problem are you trying to solve? What is the scope of your work (a generalized approach, or for a specific situation)? Sometimes, it is appropriate to put the problem statement before the motivation. 17  Checklist for an abstract https://pdcrodas.webs.ull.es/empresa/HowToWriteAGoodAbstractForAScientificPaperOrConference.pdf Approach: How did you go about solving or making progress on the problem? Did you use simulation, analytic models, prototype construction, or analysis of field data for an actual product? What was the extent of your work? What important variables did you control, ignore, or measure? 18  Checklist for an abstract https://pdcrodas.webs.ull.es/empresa/HowToWriteAGoodAbstractForAScientificPaperOrConference.pdf Results: What's the answer? Specifically, most good papers conclude that something is so many percent more accurate, faster, cheaper, smaller, or otherwise better than something else. Put the result in numbers. Avoid vague statement. 19  Checklist for an abstract https://pdcrodas.webs.ull.es/empresa/HowToWriteAGoodAbstractForAScientificPaperOrConference.pdf Conclusions: What are the implications of your answer? Is it going to change the world? Are your results general, potentially generalizable, or specific to a particular case? 20 THANKS 21