博士生英语课件：Class 6 - methods; writing effectively_449902204

1、English for Academic Purposes for Doctoral StudentsClass 6 Methods; Writing EReminder Introduction and References due today clean version (i.e., no edits or comments) course ContentsMethodsWriting EMethods Give a clear overview of what was done Give enough information for replicating the study Be co

2、mplete, but make life easy for your reader! You may use jargon and the passive voice more liberally in the methods section Try to achieve a flow of ideas in the Possible Elements Materials drugs, buffers, chemicals, gases, reagents, cell lines, etc. Instruments telescope, microscope, weighing scale,

3、 questionnaire, testing instruments, etc. Procedure Analyses Equations The equation should be treated as a sentence. Period at the end Comma before non-restrictive attributive clauses that explain the meaning of symbols in the Make life easy for your reader! 1. Break into sub-sections with informati

4、ve subheadings Example SubheadingsMETHODS General Approach Biosafety Isolation of Virus Serologic Analysis Pathological and Immunohistochemical Studies Molecular AExample SubheadingsMETHODS Subjects and experimental protocols Hardware GPS data processing WMake life easy for your reader! 2. Cite a re

5、ference for commonly used or previously used methods rather than explaining all the Cite commonly/previously used methods Each peptide was covalently coupled to agarose (AminoLink Kit, Pierce Chemical), and 30-to-200-ml quantities of each crude polyclonal antiserum were affinity-purified with the us

6、e of the appropriate immobilized peptide, as previously described.13 Immunoprecipitations, SDS-PAGE on 10% polyacrylamide gels, and phosphorimaging analysis were performed as described previously (Berson et al., 2000)Voice Its OK to use passive voice! What was done is more important than who did it!

7、 Readers tend to skim the methods section for key words rather than reading it as prose. It may be more effort than it is worth to avoid using “we” in every And now a bit of practice! Scan your small collection of research papers in your area and determine, for each paper, what elements the Methods

8、section contains whether the Methods section includes subheadings whether the section cites a reference for commonly / previously used methods or explains all the details whether active or passive voice is Flow of Ideas in a Process Description Adding a time adverbial once, first, next, then, finall

9、y, etc. Linking passives two or more passives linked in the same sentence Using an -ed participle Taking the -ed participle in the passive construction and using it as an adjective, thus establishing a strong connection b/w the sentences This form of repetition contributes to the overall old-to-new

10、flow of Flow of Ideas: Example First, the virus strains most likely to cause disease are identified and three are selected for vaccine development. The virus samples of each selected strain are injected into separate batches of fertilized eggs to amplify the amount of virus. Each virus strain is gro

11、wn separately inside the eggs over the course of several days, after which it is harvested, inactivated, and purified. The purified virus strains are then combined to create the vaccine, blended with a carrier fluid and dispersed into Adding a Time Adverbial First, the virus strains most likely to c

12、ause disease are identified and three are selected for vaccine development. The virus samples of each selected strain are injected into separate batches of fertilized eggs to amplify the amount of virus. Each virus strain is grown separately inside the eggs over the course of several days, after whi

13、ch it is harvested, inactivated, and purified. The purified virus strains are then combined to create the vaccine, blended with a carrier fluid and dispersed into Adding a Time Adverbial First, the virus strains most likely to cause disease are identified and three are selected for vaccine developme

14、nt. The virus samples of each selected strain are injected into separate batches of fertilized eggs to amplify the amount of virus. Each virus strain is grown separately inside the eggs over the course of several days, after which it is harvested, inactivated, and purified. The purified virus strain

15、s are then combined to create the vaccine, blended with a carrier fluid and dispersed into Linking Passives First, the virus strains most likely to cause disease are identified and three are selected for vaccine development. The virus samples of each selected strain are injected into separate batche

16、s of fertilized eggs to amplify the amount of virus. Each virus strain is grown separately inside the eggs over the course of several days, after which it is harvested, inactivated, and purified. The purified virus strains are then combined to create the vaccine, blended with a carrier fluid and dis

17、persed into Linking Passives First, the virus strains most likely to cause disease are identified and three are selected for vaccine development. The virus samples of each selected strain are injected into separate batches of fertilized eggs to amplify the amount of virus. Each virus strain is grown

18、 separately inside the eggs over the course of several days, after which it is harvested, inactivated, and purified. The purified virus strains are then combined to create the vaccine, blended with a carrier fluid and dispersed into Using an -ed Participle First, the virus strains most likely to cau

19、se disease are identified and three are selected for vaccine development. The virus samples of each selected strain are injected into separate batches of fertilized eggs to amplify the amount of virus. Each virus strain is grown separately inside the eggs over the course of several days, after which

20、 it is harvested, inactivated, and purified. The purified virus strains are then combined to create the vaccine, blended with a carrier fluid and dispersed into Using an -ed Participle First, the virus strains most likely to cause disease are identified and three are selected for vaccine development

21、. The virus samples of each selected strain are injected into separate batches of fertilized eggs to amplify the amount of virus. Each virus strain is grown separately inside the eggs over the course of several days, after which it is harvested, inactivated, and purified. The purified virus strains

22、are then combined to create the vaccine, blended with a carrier fluid and dispersed into And now a bit of practice! John Swales (2nd ed.), pp. 97-98, Task 7 / John Swales (3rd ed.), pp. 127-129, Task Target Journal Consult your target journals instructions for specific details (and the correct title

23、). Even the title of this section varies a lot (“Experimental Methods”, “Experimental Details”, “Experimental”, “Experimental Section”, “Materials and Methods”, etc.)After-Class Reading “Write the paper in order of decreasing believability” (pp. 2-3, How to Avoid the Reviewers Axe)ContentsMethodsWri

24、ting E中国作者论文遭到期刊重大修改或退稿的原因中国作者论文遭到期刊重大修改或退稿的原因Principles of Effective Writing Cut unnecessary words and phrases Use the active voice Write with Cut Unnecessary Words or Phrasesvdead weightvrepetitivevlongvnegativev“there are / there is”Dead weight words or phrasesvAs it is well knownvAs it has been

25、shownvIt can be regarded thatvIt should be emphasized thatdead weight: a heavy burden that contributes nothing Repetitive words or phrasesvThis paper provides a review of the basic tenets of cancer biology study design, using as examples studies that illustrate the methodologic challenges or that de

26、monstrate successful solutions to the difficulties inherent in biological research.vstudies/examplesvillustrate/demonstratevchallenges/difficultiesvbiology study / biological researchvsuccessful Long phrases that could be shortWordy VersionCrisp Versiona majority ofa number ofare of the same opinion

27、less frequently occurringall three of the give rise todue to the fact thathave an effect on , and the reason for it is thatin a direct rather than an indirect wayin the field of Long phrases that could be shortWordy VersionCrisp Versiona majority ofmosta number ofmanyare of the same opinionagreeless

28、 frequently occurringrareall three of the the / all threegive rise tocausedue to the fact thatbecausehave an effect onaffect , and the reason for it is that , becausein a direct rather than an indirect waydirectlyin the field of Long phrases that could be short The expected prevalence of mental reta

29、rdation, based on the assumption that intelligence is normally distributed, is about 2.5%. The expected prevalence of mental retardation, if intelligence is normally distributed, is 2.5%. The expected prevalence of mental retardation is 2.5%, if intelligence is normally distributed. Style pp. 4-Nega

30、tivesnot honestnot harmfulnot importantdoes not havedid not rememberdid not pay attention todid not succeednot Negativesnot honestdishonestnot harmfulsafenot importantunimportantdoes not havelacksdid not rememberforgotdid not pay attention toignoreddid not succeedfailednot Negatives She did not want

31、 to perform the experiment incorrectly. She wanted to perform the experiment correctly. They did not believe the drug was harmful. They believed the drug was “there are / there is” 有很多物理学家喜欢写作。 There are many physicists who like to write. Many physicists like to write. The data confirm that there is

32、 an association between vegetables and cancer. The data confirm an association between vegetables and Cut Unnecessary Words or Phrasesvdead weightvrepetitivevlongvnegativev“there are / there is”Practice: Cutting Injuries to the brain and spinal cord have long been known to be among the most devastat

33、ing and expensive of all injuries to treat medically. Injuries to the brain and spinal cord are among the most devastating and Practice: Cutting An IQ test measures an individuals abilities to perform functions that usually fall in the domains of verbal communication, reasoning, and performance on t

34、asks that represent motor and spatial capabilities. An IQ test measures an individuals verbal, reasoning, and motor and spatial Practice: Cutting As we can see from Figure 2, if the return kinetic energy is less than 3.2 Up, there will be two electron trajectories associated with this kinetic energy

35、. Figure 2 shows that a return kinetic energy less than 3.2 Up yields two electron trajectories. A return kinetic energy less than 3.2 Up yields two electron trajectories (Figure 2)Use the Active Voice The active voice is livelier and easier to read The style guidelines for many journals explicitly

36、instruct authors to write in the active voice. For example, Science magazine advises: “Use active voice when suitable, particularly when necessary for correct syntax (e.g., To address this possibility, we constructed a Zap library .).”When OK to use the passive voice? The methods section To emphasiz

37、e the method or variable, rather than the Write with Verbsvavoid turning verbs into nounsvdo not bury the main verbvuse main verb to emphasize important Do Not Turn Verbs into Nouns Do not kill verbs by turning them into Do Not Turn Verbs into Nounsobtain estimates ofhas seen an expansion inprovides

38、 a methodologic emphasistakes an assessment ofweak verbsformerly spunky verbs transformed into boring Do Not Turn Verbs into Nounsobtain estimates ofestimatehas seen an expansion inhas expandedprovides a methodologic emphasis emphasizes methodologytakes an assessment ofassessesweak verbsformerly spu

39、nky verbs transformed into boring Do Not Turn Verbs into Nounsprovide a review ofoffer confirmation ofmake a decisionshows a peakprovides a description ofMeasurements of the ME coefficients are carried out with The purpose of this paper is to Do Not Turn Verbs into Nounsprovide a review ofreviewoffe

40、r confirmation ofconfirmmake a decisiondecideshows a peakpeaksprovides a description ofdescribesMeasurements of the ME coefficients are carried out with The ME coefficients are measured with The purpose of this paper is to This paper aims Example This paper provides a review of the basic tenets of c

41、ancer biology study design, using as examples studies that illustrate the methodologic challenges or that demonstrate successful solutions to the difficulties inherent in biological research. This paper reviews cancer biology study design, using examples that illustrate specific challenges and solut

42、ions.35 vs. 16 Do Not Bury the Main Verb Keep the subject and main verb (predicate) close together at the start of the sentence Readers are waiting for the verb!Example One study of 930 adults with multiple sclerosis (MS) receiving care in one of two managed care settings or in a fee-for-service set

43、ting found that only two-thirds of those needing to contact a neurologist for an MS-related problem in the prior 6 months had done so (Vickrey et al 1999)Example One study of 930 adults with multiple sclerosis (MS) receiving care in one of two managed care settings or in a fee-for-service setting fo

44、und that only two-thirds of those needing to contact a neurologist for an MS-related problem in the prior 6 months had done so (Vickrey et al 1999). One study found that, of 930 adults with multiple sclerosis (MS) who were receiving care in one of two managed care settings or in a fee-for-service se

45、tting, only two-thirds of those Use Main Verb for Emphasis Keep the main verb for the most important information in a sentence Use non-finite verbs for less important Example In this study, we created a simple adsorption system and firstly combined it with fluorescence probe technology and laser sca

46、nning confocal microscopy (LSCM) to investigate the bacterial adsorption and physiological activities on the mineral surface. This is the second sentence in an abstract. What verb(s) does the sentence emphasize? How might the writer re-write the sentence? What would be the emphasis in the revised se

47、ntence?Principles of Effective Writing Cut unnecessary words and phrases dead weight repetitive long negative “there are / there is” Use the active voice Write with verbs avoid turning verbs into nouns do not bury the main verb use main verb for important Practice Exercise Review of each centers pro

48、gress in recruitment is important to ensure that the cost involved in maintaining each centers participation is worthwhile. When is the verb coming? “to be”: weak verb “important” & “worthwhile”: vague descriptors progress in recruitment recruitment in progress “involved in maintaining”: clunky (i.e

49、., heavy and awkward) Practice Exercise Review of each centers progress in recruitment is important to ensure that the cost involved in maintaining each centers participation is worthwhile. We should review each centers recruitment progress to make sure its continued participation is cost-Practice E

50、xercise After rejecting paths with poor signal-to-noise ratios, we were left with 678 velocity measurements of waves with 7.5 seconds period and 891 measurements of 15 second waves. Rejecting paths with poor signal-to-noise ratios left 678 velocity measurements of 7.5-second waves and 891 of 15-seco

51、nd Homework Consult your target journals instructions and write the Methods section for your paper. Not necessarily with the title “Methods” Due Nov. 2 / 4 (Week 8), course website Peer review due one day earlier, my email account Presentation: research field / research topic understandability + use

52、fulness + communication ListeningThank You!SAcademic Word List (AWL) a list of words which appear with high frequency in English-language academic texts Vocabulary Exercises for the Academic Word LPractice Exercise The fear expressed by some teachers that students would not learn statistics well if

53、they were permitted to use canned computer programs has not been realized in our experience. A careful monitoring of achievement levels before and after the introduction of computers in the teaching of our course revealed no appreciable change in students performances. really long subjects + buried

54、predicates negatives (“would not”, “has not”) passive verb (“been realized”) wordy expression (“in our experience”)Practice Exercise The fear expressed by some teachers that students would not learn statistics well if they were permitted to use canned computer programs has not been realized in our e

55、xperience. A careful monitoring of achievement levels before and after the introduction of computers in the teaching of our course revealed no appreciable change in students performances. Many teachers feared that the use of canned computer programs would prevent students from learning statistics. W

56、e monitored student achievement levels before and after the introduction of computers in our course and found no detriments in Practice Exercise It should be emphasized that these proportions generally are not the result of significant increases in moderate and severe injuries, but in many instances

57、 reflect mildly injured persons not being seen at a hospital. “it should be emphasized that”: dead weight “these”: Can we use a more informative adjective than “these”? Whats important about “these” proportions? “generally”: more dead weight. Ask yourself, what does the sentence lose without this qu

58、alifier? Negatives (“are not”; “not being”) “in many instances”: unnecessary “not being”: awkward use of “to be”Practice Exercise It should be emphasized that these proportions generally are not the result of significant increases in moderate and severe injuries, but in many instances reflect mildly injured persons not being seen at a hospital. Shifting proportions in injury severity may reflect stricter hospital admission criteria rather than true increases in moderate and severe Practice Exercise Important studies to examine the descriptive epidemiology of autism, including the prevalen