Scribd
Upload
7 views

10 - Writing A Scientific Paper

Research methods

Uploaded by

elfakhri629
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
7 views

10 - Writing A Scientific Paper

Research methods

Uploaded by

elfakhri629
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 19

Libyan Academy School of Basic Science

Life Science Department

Research Methodology

10- Writing a Scientific Paper

Spring 2024

1
Writing the Paper

The questions and hypotheses that initiate an investigation, the


resultant data gathered, and the background information
obtained by reading the literature will lead to conclusions.
Your research paper presents these conclusions and the
appropriate evidence (data and relevant literature).
Before writing your report, construct an outline that logically
presents the information to support your conclusions.
Organize the data into tables and figures to present the
evidence in a logical order.
2
Writing the Paper

Many authors prefer to construct a draft by rapidly putting


down ideas with little regard to sentence structure, and
to make corrections later. Others prefer to make
revisions as they proceed. Write the report with a target
audience of other students with experience in biology
equivalent to that of the class for which the report is
written.

3
Paper Format
Scientific research report format is based on the scientific method
and is organized to enable the reader to quickly comprehend the
main points of the investigation. The format required in all
biology classes consists of a Title, Abstract, Introduction,
Methods, Results, Discussion, and Literature Cited sections.
Section headings (Abstract, Introduction, Results, etc.) are
always capitalized, centered, and placed with the body of each
section immediately following. The end of one section is
immediately followed by the next section on the same page.
Do not include a Table of Contents.
4
I- Title

The title should be at the top of the first page of your


report. The title should be placed on the first page
along with your name. You should also list the names
of other classmates or research team members who
participated in the research project. These additional
names should be included below your name.
Scientific titles should always communicate your results.
If you have a null result your title should clearly
communicate that. 5
I- Title
Note : avoid the temptation to have a “catchy” title. Your title
should communicate information clearly and does not need to
be designed to “hook” a reader as a title might in a creative
writing class. With a title such as “A Biology Lab Report” the
reader has no idea whether the work involved an animal,
plant, or microorganism, or what was measured or tested.
The following is a self-explanatory title.

Light and temperature both affect the growth of the


bacterium Escherichia coli
6
II- Abstract
The abstract is a short summary of the study. The abstract
should be one paragraph long and no more than 250
words. Abstracts usually contain a sentence of
background, clear statements of the hypothesis and
predictions, a methods sentence, and a sentence of
results. The final sentence should that convey the “big
picture” conclusion of your study.

7
III- Introduction

The Introduction concisely describes the purpose of the


investigation and should tell the reader why this
work was done. You should briefly review past
research on the problem with enough background
information to orient the reader. The background
information included must be appropriately
referenced (will mention later how to cite
references).

8
III- Introduction

Think of the Introduction as a funnel. Start by stating a


very broad topic, problem, area of study, etc. You
might first discuss the general problem or theory
pertaining to the problem you are studying. From this
broad introduction, focus down to your specific
research topic and project.
The final paragraph of your introduction should
include a statement of the hypothesis you have
investigated and your predictions. 9
IV- Methods
In this section, you explain the type of data gathered or the
experiment in sufficient detail that it could be repeated.
Avoid unnecessary details and include only information
that is necessary to complete the experiment or gather
the data. The experimental design, apparatus, procedures
of gathering and analyzing data, types of control, etc.,
should be described. If standard procedures are used,
cite the reference and describe only the modifications
made (if any).
10
IV- Methods

When experiments are conducted outdoors, you should


describe the factors that may influence the results of
the investigation such as location of the study site, the
weather, etc. If any specimens were collected for the
investigation, you should state how, where, and when
that material was collected. Write the Methods
section in the past tense. It should not be written as if
it were directions in a laboratory manual.

11
V- Results

In this section, you present the data in a straightforward


manner with no analysis of the reasons the results
occurred or the biological meaning of the data (these
comments are reserved for the Discussion). However,
you should interpret the data (preferably statistically),
highlight significant data and point out patterns,
correlations, and generalizations that emerge. Also
write this section using the past tense.

12
V- Results
Data are generally organized into tables and/or figures
(graphs). Tables must have a table header (above the
table) and figures must be accompanied by a caption
(below the figure). Both tables and figures must be
referred to in the text (see below for an example of how
to cite this in the text of your paper). A Results section
that includes only a table or a figure and no text is not
acceptable. Text must be given first, before tables and
figures on a page, if the tables and figures are included in
the text rather than on the final pages of your.
13
Use of Tables and Figures
Tables and figures summarize data in a form that allows the
reader to easily see any correlations, relationships, or
patterns that are important. Tables are made when it is
important that specific values are shown. Figures are
made when it is more important to shown trends or
relationships of data. Certain requirements, however,
must be met:

1) Refer to the tables as Tables; refer to all other items


(graphs, pictures, drawings, maps, etc.) as Figures.

2) When you include a table and/or figure, you must refer to


it in the text.
14
3) Independently number tables and figures.

4) Assign tables and figures their respective numbers on the


basis of the order in which you first mention them in the
text.

5) Tables and figures can either follow as closely as


possible the actual page on which the table or figure is
mentioned in the text or be included on individual pages
following Literature Cited.

6) All tables must have headers and figures must have self-
explanatory captions. The rules for composing the
headers and captions are the same as for composing the
title of the paper. 15
7) All tables and figures should include the units of
measurement used (grams (g), meters (m), seconds (s),
etc.). Otherwise the data are meaningless. All columns in
a table and both axes of a graph must be independently
labeled including units. Units are usually included
parenthetically in axes labels.

8) Headers for tables are always placed above the table, and
captions for figures are always placed below the figure.

16
VI- Discussion
The discussion should be organized as an inverted funnel.
Start by explaining in a paragraph or two the results of
your specific study and whether your hypothesis was
supported or not. After results are explained, the
discussion should be expand by comparing own results to
published studies.
Compare and contrast research results to those of previous
studies, making sure to reference them properly. also
should explain differences from or similarities to any
related experiments completed by other researchers. 17
VI- Discussion
If the results differ from those of previously published
studies, it should be discussed biologically. In
constructing explanations, then reach conclusions that
explain the outcome, support those conclusions with
well reasoned arguments, and documentation from the
scientific literature.
In effect, you are presenting and defending a point of
view in the discussion section.

18
Thank you
For your Attention

19

You might also like