WRITING SKILLS AND
PLAGIARISM
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Writing Skills
• Language Skills Matter.
• Punctuation and Grammar Matter.
• Reading a poorly written paper:
– Is like driving down a potholed road.
– Distracts from the these of the paper.
– Signals that the ideas may be faulty.
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Importance of Punctuation
• A panda walked into a café. He ordered a
sandwich, ate it, then pulled out a gun and shot
the waiter. ‘Why?" groaned the injured man.
The panda shrugged, tossed him a badly
punctuated wildlife manual and walked out. And
sure enough, when the waiter consulted the
book, he found an explanation.
• “Panda,” read the entry for the assailant. “Large
black and white mammal native to China. Eats,
shoots, and leaves.”
– From EATS SHOOTS AND LEAVES, The Zero Tolerance Approach to
Punctuation by Lynne Truss, Profile Books
– This book is dedicated to the memory of the striking Bolshevik printers in St.
Petersburg, who in 1905, demanded to be paid the same rate for punctuation
marks as for letters, and thereby directly precipitated the first Russian Revolution
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Plagiarism
• Examples of ethical issue in a school
setting
• Becoming a major concern of faculty and
students
• Definitions
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Neil Kinnock Speech
• Why am I the first Kinnock in a thousand
generations to be able to get to University? Why
is Glenys [Kinnock’s wife] the first woman in her
family in a thousand generations to get to
university? Was it because all our predecessors
were thick?...Those people who could sing and
play and recite and write poetry? Those people
who could make wonderful, beautiful things with
their hands? Those people who could dream
dreams, see visions? Why didn’t they get it?
Was it because they were weak? Those people
who could work eight hours underground and
then come up and play football?
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Joe Biden Speech, 1997
• I was thinking as I was coming over here, why is it that
Joe Biden is the first in his family ever to go to a
university? Why is it that my wife who is sitting out here
in the audience is the first in her family to ever go to
college? Is it because our fathers and mothers were not
bright? Is it because I’m the first Biden in a thousand
generations to get a college and a graduate degree that I
was smarter than the rest?...Those same people who
read poetry and wrote poetry and taught me to sing
verse? Is it that they didn’t work very hard, my ancestors
who worked in the coal mines of Northeast Pennsylvania
and would come up after 12 hours and play football for
four hours?
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Perils of Plagiarism
• Sen. Biden not running for President
– Tuesday, August 12, 2003 Posted 7:42 AM EDT (1142
GMT)
• WILMINGTON, Delaware (CNN) – Sen. Joseph
Biden, D- Delaware, ended speculation about
his presidential aspirations Monday with the
announcement of his decision not to join the
2004 Democratic presidential field.
• [Biden] ran in the 1988 presidential race, but
dropped out in 1987 amidst allegations of
plagiarism in his campaign speeches.
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Plagiarism Sources
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•
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Avoiding Plagiarism
How Not to Plagiarize
Plagiarizing by Paraphrasing
Plagiarism and the Internet
Types of Plagiarism
– failing to cite quotations and borrowed ideas
– failing to enclose borrowed language in quotation
marks
– failing to put summaries and paraphrases in your own
words
• source: Diana Hacker A Pocket Style Manual, 4h ed., 2004
Bedford/St. Martin's, pp 228-30.)
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Example 1
in the middle of a 22 page analysis of Microsoft
• Microsoft has now gone as far as to try and patent the
numbers one and zero, or the basic building blocks of all
mathematical programs and languages. Microsoft is
looking to charge 10 cents per character if the patent is
to go thru, in essence putting most software businesses
in bankruptcy status or forcing them to move to analog.
This language has been used since 1975, but Gates
stated that the increasingly predatory practices of certain
competitors now leave us with no choice but to seek
compensation for the use of our numerals.”\
– MBA paper
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Example 1
in the middle of a 22 page analysis of Microsoft
•
Microsoft has now gone as far as to try and patent the numbers one
and zero, or the basic building blocks of all mathematical programs and
languages. Microsoft is looking to charge 10 cents per character if the
patent is to go thru, in essence putting most software businesses in
bankruptcy status or forcing them to move to analog. This language
has been used since 1975, but Gates stated that the increasingly
predatory practices of certain competitors now leave us with no choice
but to seek compensation for the use of our numerals.”
– MBA paper
•
Microsoft has now gone as far as to try and patent the numbers one
and zero, or the basic building blocks of all mathematical programs and
languages. Microsoft is looking to charge 10 cents per character if the
patent is to go thru, in essence putting most software businesses in
bankruptcy status or forcing them to move to analog. This language
has been used since 1975, but Gates stated that the increasingly
predatory practices of certain competitors now leave us with no choice
but to seek compensation for the use of our numerals.”
– MisterJokester.com
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Example 2
From another team paper, same semester
• The thread of substitutes is moderate. Exhibit 2 shows the main
substitutes of soft drink. These substitutes include bottled water,
juices and juice drinks, ready-to-drink tea, and sports drinks. A
relative newcomer to the beverage industry, the so-called new age
or functional beverages segment continues to exhibit strength in the
marketplace, with products that include all-natural juices and teas
laced with a cornucopia of herbs and ingredients. Functional
beverages accounted for only $2.1 million in revenues in 1996, but
have grown explosively since then. Revenues totaled $286 million
in 1999, almost tripling from an estimated $100 million in 1998.
-- MBA Paper
• that include all-natural juices and teas laced with a cornucopia of
herbs and ingredients. Functional beverages accounted for only
$2.1 million in revenues in 1996, but have grown explosively since
then. Revenues totaled $286 million in 1999, almost tripling from an
estimated $100 million in 1998.
-- http://www.cnn.com/2000/FOOD/news/08/16/beverages...
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Example 3
Another team paper that semester
• With respect to safety, UAL invests in safety. UAL has a
reputation to protect and liability insurance to buy.
However, due to the current extensive losses, UAL is
desperately looking to cut costs by sacrificing minimum
safety levels, UAL spends on average 12.3% of
operating expenses, the third-highest non-capital cost
after labor and fuel. – MBA Paper
• Even without an FAA, carriers would invest in safety.
They have reputations to protect and liability insurance
to buy. But since they lost $6 billion last year, they are
desperately looking to cut costs. Airlines spend on
average 12.3% of operating expenses to keep planes
flying, the third-highest non-capital cost after labor and
fuel.
-- http://www.untied.com/ual/news.html
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Example 4
One paragraph from ten pages lifted verbatim from a paper posted on the Internet
• The third barrier to entry is brand loyalty and reputation. In the
areas of healthcare, consumers are purchasing security as much as
tangible services. Since a relatively high level of emotion is
involved, reputation is critical. Therefore, the companies that
survive tend to be those that have strong brand recognition and
loyalty…
-- MBA Paper
• The third barrier to entry is brand loyalty and reputation. In the
areas of healthcare, consumers are purchasing security as much as
tangible services. Since a relatively high level of emotion is
involved, reputation is critical. Therefore, the companies that
survive tend to be those that have strong brand recognition and
loyalty…
-- http://web.bentley.edu/empl/h/ahoffman/cigna.pdf
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Example 5
From an MBA Strategy course
• Factors spurring consolidation among soft- drink bottlers
include efforts to reduce operating expenses and the
need for greater capital outlays. Consolidation also
reduces the number of competitors, which helps improve
the industry pricing flexibility. In addition, franchisers are
attempting to limit the number of bottlers with which they
do business. For example, Coca-Cola’s efforts to
streamline its distribution system have led to a steep
decline in the number of bottlers. In 1978, Coca-Cola’s
U.S. bottling system had 370 bottling operators. By the
end of 2000, the total had shrunk to 83, and the
company expects the consolidation of its distribution
system to continue.
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Example 5
From an MBA Strategy course
•
•
Factors spurring consolidation among soft- drink bottlers include efforts to
reduce operating expenses and the need for greater capital outlays.
Consolidation also reduces the number of competitors, which helps improve
the industry pricing flexibility. In addition, franchisers are attempting to limit
the number of bottlers with which they do business. For example, CocaCola’s efforts to streamline its distribution system have led to a steep
decline in the number of bottlers. In 1978, Coca-Cola’s U.S. bottling system
had 370 bottling operators. By the end of 2000, the total had shrunk to 83,
and the company expects the consolidation of its distribution system to
continue. --- MBA Paper
Factors spurring consolidation among soft- drink bottlers include efforts to
reduce operating expenses and the need for greater capital outlays.
Consolidation also reduces the number of competitors, which helps improve
the industry pricing flexibility. In addition, franchisers are attempting to limit
the number of bottlers with which they do business. For example, CocaCola’s efforts to streamline its distribution system have led to a steep
decline in the number of bottlers. In 1978, Coca-Cola’s U.S. bottling system
had 370 bottling operators. By the end of 2000, the total had shrunk to 83,
and the company expects the consolidation of its distribution system to
continue. --- from a paper at University of Central Florida
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Why Plagiarism?
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“Everybody does it.”
It’s easy to do.
No one gets caught.
Not discussed in public schools or
universities.
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Plagiarism Hurts Other Students
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Majority don’t cheat.
Honest students can get lower grades.
Plagiarism is not victimless.
Lower grades might mean future earnings
less by >> $1,000,000.
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Catching Plagiarists
• Very easy in 2006.
• From Google
– “cornucopia of herbs and ingredients”
• To Turnitin.com
• It is VERY EASY to catch plagiarism!
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Plagiarism Hurts Plagiarists
• Can’t run for President. ;-)
• May not get degree.
• May lose degree after it was granted.
– Charlottesville, Virginia (AP) Tuesday, November 26,
2002”: “A wide-ranging probe of student plagiarism at
the University of Virginia ended with the dismissal of
45 students and the revocation of three graduates’
degrees.”--- http://archives.cnn.com/2002/EDUCATION/11/12/uva.plagiarism.ap
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Plagiarism Hurts Society
• Would you want to use a surgeon
who cheated in medical school?
• Would you want to use an airline pilot
who cheated in flight school?
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Don’t Plagiarize
• Plagiarism is VERY EASY to avoid.
• Read several sources, set aside, write
your paper without looking at the sources.
• Return to sources to verify accuracy and
lack of plagiarism.
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
Don’t Plagiarize
• Cite sources for ANY facts that not
common knowledge.
• For direct quotations, use quotation marks.
• Write over 90% of your papers in your
own words – do not paraphrase.
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University
ANY QUESTIONS?
Copyright 2004 Philip L. Cochran
and Indiana University