ENG102: Tools for creating and using graphics in research papers
General guidelines for graphics
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Include identifying detail such as illustration labels, axis labels, keys, and so on. Don't hand-write them; type
them.
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Use graphics whenever they would normally be necessary.
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Always discuss graphics in nearby text preceding the graphic. Don't just throw a graphic out there unexplained.
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Orient readers to the graphic; explain its basic meaning.
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Make sure your graphics are appropriate to your audience, subject matter, and purpose — don't zap beginners
with advanced, highly technical graphics they can't understand.
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Intersperse graphics and text on the same page. Don't put graphics on pages by themselves; don't attach them
to the end of documents.
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Use figure titles for graphics (Figure 1; Figure 2) (only a few exceptions to this rule).
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Indicate the source of any graphic you have borrowed — this includes tables, illustrations, charts, and graphs.
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Whenever you borrow a graphic from some other source, document that fact in the figure title.
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Make sure graphics fit within normal margins — if they don't, enlarge or reduce the copies.
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Leave at least 2 blank lines above and below graphics.
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When you tape graphics in to your report, photocopy your entire report, not just the pages on which the tape-ins
occur. Hand in the entire photocopied document, not the original and not a mixture of original and photocopied
pages.
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Don't manually add color or other detail on the pages of the final copy that you intend to submit — in other words,
don't draw on the final copy. Any details like these should be added before photocopying. If you must have color,
use color photocopying equipment.
MLA & APA Final Research Paper Format
Illustrative Materials: Charts, Tables, Graphs, and Other Visuals
Illustrative materials may make parts of your paper easier to understand than words alone.
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Place illustrative materials as close as possible to the portion of the text where they are discussed.
Use only what you believe will be helpful to a reader's understanding.
Avoid using visuals just to be using them.
All illustrative materials must be labeled in consecutive order.
If you use any sort of visual within your research paper--a map, chart, table, graph, diagram, or picture--you must
document it within the paper and show its full source in the Works Cited/References pages.
Tables and Figures

The basic label format looks like:
Table 3. Proportion of Abstainers in Percent
(citation)
White
Men
Women

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26
39
African
American
Hispanic
36
55
35
57
The label is centered and either italicized or underlined.
Number tables and figures consecutively in separate series.
Explanatory text accompanying tables and figures is double-spaced.
Refer to tables and figures in the written report prior to inserting them.
. . . are shown in Figure 1.
Tables and figures need in-text citations, too!
(See Table 1.)
OR
The most important architectural qualities are displayed in Figure 4.
Figure 4. The public park of the future (citation)
Links to Helpful Resources
MLA Tables, Figures, and Examples
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/14/
APA Tables and Figures
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/19/
Tools for Creating Academic and Research Papers in Word 2004
http://wordprocessing.about.com/od/macsoftware/ss/2004academic_2.htm
How to Use Bullets in Lists on a Research Paper | eHow.com
http://www.ehow.com/how_7675414_use-bullets-lists-research-paper.html
When Your Research Paper Needs a Table
http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/8-17-2006-105743.asp
Online Technical Writing: Graphics and Tables
http://www.io.com/~hcexres/textbook/graphics.html
The trends of
Microsoft Word Tutorial—Creating Tables
http://www.klariti.com/microsoft-word-tutorial/tables.shtml
Using Microsoft Word Table Exercises
http://www.oneil.com.au/pc/word/UsingMicrosoftWord8-Tables.pdf
Purdue OWL Formatting and Style General APA Guidelines
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/owlprint/560/
Purdue OWL Formatting and Style General MLA Guidelines
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/11/
Last update: 4/5/2011