1、Scientific paper structureWhy a Scientific FormatThe scientific format may seem confusing for the beginning science writer due to its rigid structure which is so different from writing in the humanities. One reason for using this format is that it is a means of efficiently communicating scientific f
2、indings to the broad community of scientists in a uniform manner. Another reason, perhaps more important than the first, is that this format allows the paper to be read at several different levels. For example, many people skim Titles to find out what information is available on a subject. Others ma
3、y read only titles and Abstracts. Those wanting to go deeper may look at the Tables and Figures in the Results, and so on. The take home point here is that the scientific format helps to insure that at whatever level a person reads your paper (beyond title skimming), they will likely get the key res
4、ults and conclusions.Top of pageThe Sections of the PaperMost journal-style scientific papers are subdivided into the following sections: Title, Authors and Affiliation, Abstract, Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, Acknowledgments, and Literature Cited, which parallel the experimental proce
5、ss. This is the system we will use. This website describes the style, content, and format associated with each section.The sections appear in a journal style paper in the following prescribed order:Experimental process Section of Paper What did I do in a nutshell Abstract What is the problem Introdu
6、ction How did I solve the problem Materials and Methods What did I find out Results What does it mean Discussion Who helped me out Acknowledgments (optional) Whose work did I refer to Literature Cited Extra Information Appendices (optional) Section Headings:Main Section Headings: Each main section o
7、f the paper begins with a heading which should be capitalized, centered at the beginning of the section, and double spaced from the lines above and below. Do not underline the section heading OR put a colon at the end.Example of a main section heading:INTRODUCTIONSubheadings: When your paper reports
8、 on more than one experiment, use subheadings to help organize the presentation. Subheadings should be capitalized (first letter in each word), left justified, and either bold italics OR underlined.Example of a subheading:Effects of Light Intensity on the Rate of Electron TransportTop of pageTitle,
9、Authors Names, and Institutional Affiliations1. Function: Your paper should begin with a Title that succinctly describes the contents of the paper. Use descriptive words that you would associate strongly with the content of your paper: the molecule studied, the organism used or studied, the treatmen
10、t, the location of a field site, the response measured, etc. A majority of readers will find your paper via electronic database searches and those search engines key on words found in the title.2. Title FAQs3. Format:The title should be centered at the top of page 1 (DO NOT use a title page - it is
11、a waste of paper for our purposes); the title is NOT underlined or italicized. the authors names (PI or primary author first) and institutional affiliation are double-spaced from and centered below the title. When more then two authors, the names are separated by commas except for the last which is
12、separated from the previous name by the word and. For example:Ducks Over-Winter in Colorado Barley Fields in Response to Increased Daily Mean TemperatureIma Mallard, Ura Drake, and Woodruff DucqueDepartment of Wildlife Biology, University of Colorado - BoulderTop of pageThe title is not a section, b
13、ut it is necessary and important. The title should be short and unambiguous, yet be an adequate description of the work. A general rule-of-thumb is that the title should contain the key words describing the work presented. Remember that the title becomes the basis for most on-line computer searches
14、- if your title is insufficient, few people will find or read your paper. For example, in a paper reporting on an experiment involving dosing mice with the sex hormone estrogen and watching for a certain kind of courtship behavior, a poor title would be:Mouse BehaviorWhy It is very general, and coul
15、d be referring to any of a number of mouse behaviors. A better title would be:The Effects of Estrogen on the Nose-Twitch Courtship Behavior in MiceWhy Because the key words identify a specific behavior, a modifying agent, and the experimental organism. If possible, give the key result of the study i
16、n the title, as seen in the first example. Similarly, the above title could be restated as:Estrogen Stimulates Intensity of Nose-Twitch Courtship Behavior in Mice4. Strategy for Writing Title.Top of pageABSTRACT 1. Function: An abstract summarizes, in one paragraph (usually), the major aspects of the entire paper in the following prescribed sequence:the question you investigated (or purpose), (from Introduction) state the purpose very clearly in the first or second sentence. the exp
