BIOL 1441-033 Tue 3:00 – 4:50 LS 207
BIOL 1441-030 Wed 11:00 – 12:50 LS 200
BIOL 1441-037 Fri 11:00 – 12:50 LS 200
Heath Blackmon LS 459
Office Hours: 10:30-12:00 Tue and Thu
heath.blackmon@mavs.uta.edu
Scientific Communication
Scientific Writing & Literature
Scientific Literature
Three basic types:
1.Primary
2. Secondary
•Review papers
•Compilations and Textbooks
3. Popular
Primary Literature
Popular
Popular
Secondary Literature
Scientific Literature
1. Primary:
•Reports original results of experiments or
observations.
•Published in Scientific Journals or Conference
Proceedings
•The best source for information on specific
subjects because it is the initial report of findings.
Scientific Literature
1. Primary:
•Scientific Journals:
•Usually published by a scientific society specializing in the
specific subject
•Peer-reviewed: manuscripts are sent to the editor, who
sends it out to multiple scholars in the field that make
comments. Those comments are than sent to the author(s)
and they are addressed. The editor, with input from the
reviewers, then decides if the manuscript is to be published
or it is in need of additional revisions.
Scientific Literature
1. Primary:
•Conference Proceedings:
•Published by the organization that organizes a conference
or meeting
•Includes the findings that were presented during that
meeting.
•May or may not be peer-reviewed
Scientific Literature
2. Secondary:
•Literature Review
•A synopsis of recent or historical primary literature
designed to draw comparisons or provide a better
understanding of the subject.
•Published in a variety of formats, including Scientific
Journals, Proceedings, and Society Newsletters.
•May or may not be peer-reviewed
Scientific Literature
2. Secondary:
•Compilations and Textbooks
•Much like a Literature Review, but with a broader treatment of the
subject.
•Typically published in book form.
•Not formally peer-reviewed, but open to criticism after publication.
Most authors do submit their works to “friendly” peers prior to
submission.
•Typically a good source of knowledge on a subject, incorporating
primary literature into the overall work
Scientific Literature
3. Popular:
•Magazines, Newspapers, Internet Blogs, etc.
•Often a source of good practical information, but must be read with
caution.
•Almost never reviewed for content.
•Good way to communicate scientific findings to laypersons who may
not be as knowledgeable on the subject.
•Is targeted at a different audience than others.
•Utilizes a different style of writing than others.
Good Things
Amazing coverage
Bad Things
No peer review
Many Languages
Vulnerable to malicious editing
On average high accuracy
You must determine validity and
completeness
Do not use as a cited source! Instead use it as a resource to give you a basic
understanding of the topic so you know were to go next.
Scientific Writing
General Rules:
•Be thorough
•Be concise
•Be descriptive, but avoid “fluff”
•Label all figures and tables so that they can “stand alone”
Scientific Writing
You must be proficient at writing so that you can
properly and professionally convey your findings
and views to members of your respective
community.
Formats for written communication that are
important to you:
•Letters and E-mail
•Lab Reports and Scientific Papers
•Essays and Short Answer Questions on Exams
Scientific Writing
LAB REPORTS:
•Will follow general form of a scientific paper
•Must follow the “Instructions for Writing a Laboratory Report” that is
accessible from http://biology.uta.edu/introlabs/ .
•Must include at least two primary citation.
–You will learn how to access and search databases online today.
•Must draw intelligent conclusions from the data.
•No page number requirement, but should not exceed 10 pages.
•Pubmed
•Google Scholar
Formatting:
The entire document should be double-spaced.
All text should be 12pt Times New Roman.
All margins should be set to 1”
Less than 10 Pages
The title should be centered and bolded.
The author’s full name should follow the title on a separate line.
Section headings should also be centered, bolded and on a separate line.
Sub-headings should be left justified, and on its own line.
Do not start a new page for each section.
The abstract should not have a heading.
Scientific Writing
LAB REPORTS:
•Components of a Scientific Paper:
1.Title
2.Abstract
3.Introduction
4.Materials and Methods
5.Results
6.Discussion
7.Literature Cited
Title is clear concise and short!
The abstract tells the reader exactly what was done
and what was found, but does so very compactly again
only what is needed no fluff! <250 words only one
paragraph.
The introduction section will provide the background to your
reader. Include any important definitions and history that
make your experiment relevant. Your hypothesis should be
clearly connected to the topic in your introduction and stated
clearly.
The methods section should be written in the past tense and
describe exactly what you did. No lists, no results, no figures in
this section.
The results section is were you will report you findings… not
your conclusion or interpretations. This is done in paragraph
format, and you can and should make reference to your graphs
and tables that will be in the appendix.
The discussion section is were you must discuss what
happened in your experiment.
-what do your result mean
-what went wrong
-what went right
-future work or extensions
-how could problems of been avoided
-cite at least one primary source to show how your relates to
the current research.
Graphs and tables must be clear and complete. No hand
drawing, no crooked columns, no vertical lines in tables.
If you have multiple data sets you must use various shades or
shapes so data is clear in black and white.
Scientific Writing
LAB REPORTS:
•Title
–Simple, yet descriptive
•Abstract
–A brief summary of your paper
•Materials and Methods
–What materials did you use?
–What were the methods of the experiment?
–This section is what defines the experiment for repeatability. It is
important that you are extremely thorough here
Scientific Writing
LAB REPORTS:
•Results
–This is reserved simply for reporting results. No conclusions should be
drawn from these results, yet.
•Discussion
–This is where conclusions and predictions are made.
–The “meat and potatoes” of the report
•Literature Cited
–What references did you use?
Scientific Writing
LAB REPORTS:
•Literature Cited
–How do I site a reference?
Different conventions depending on the field of study.
Typically, we place the name of the author and the year the
article was published in parenteses.
Ex: ……may not reach previous densities until hardwood leaf
litter is present (Watson, 2005).
This would correspond to a citation in the Lit Cited section
Scientific Writing
LITERATURE CITED:
Articles:
Watson, Charles M. 2005. Post-burn substrate
preference of the ground skink, Scincella
lateralis, in East Texas. Herpetological Times
11(2). Pp 223-225.
Books
Soloman, Berg, and Martin. 2004. Biology, 7th ed.
Brooks/Cole-Thompson Learning. Belmont, CA
Scientific Writing
Tables and Figures:
Must “stand alone”
If seperated from the report, it must be
understandible as a document.
May be cited in text as (Figure 1.) or “Figure 1
shows that….”
Scientific Writing
Tables and Figures:
How to produce tables and figures in Excel:
Go over it in on computer.
* Today turn in web assignment one
* Next week turn in web assignment two