Scientific Papers and Presentations / Edition 3

by Martha Davis, Kaaron Joann Davis, Marion Dunagan

Overview

Electronic publishing and electronic means of text and data presentation have changed enormously since the first edition of this book was published in 1997. The third edition of Scientific Papers and Presentations applies traditional principles to today's modern techniques and the changing needs of up-and-coming academia. Topics include designing visual aids, writing first drafts, reviewing and revising, communicating clearly and concisely, adhering to stylistic principles, presenting data in tables and figures, dealing with ethical and legal issues, and relating science to the lay audience. This successful legacy title is an essential guide to professional communication, provides a wealth of information and detail and is a useful guide.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780123847270
Publisher:	Elsevier Science
Publication date:	07/27/2012
Pages:	368
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

After teaching English composition and world literature, Martha Davis crossed the line between the humanities and the sciences. Always an aficionado of biology and gardening, her interests led her to the biological and agricultural sciences where she has worked for some 15 years mostly with graduate students relative to their communication skills in science. This handbook is the result of seeking answers to their questions and of recognizing that most other communication handbooks are limited to specific areas of writing or speaking. Scientific Papers and Presentations is her attempt to put under one cover the basic guidelines for the communication endeavors of the graduate student as well as the professional scientist.

Table of Contents

1. THE SEMANTIC ENVIRONMENT OF SCIENCE

2. BEFORE YOU BEGIN

3. ORGANIZING AND WRITING A ROUGH DRAFT

4. SEARCHING AND REVIEWING SCIENTIFIC LITERATURE

5. THE PROPOSAL

6. GRADUATE THESIS AND DISSERTATIONS

7.PUBLISHING IN SCIENTIFIC JOURNALS

8. STYLE AND ACCURACY IN THE FINAL DRAFT

9. REVIEWING AND REVISING

10. TITLES AND ABSTRACTS

11. PRESENTING DATA

12. PROFESSIONALISM, ETHICS, AND LEGAL ISSUES

13. SCIENTIFIC PRESENTATIONS

14. COMMUNICATION WITHOUT WORDS

15. VISUAL AIDS FOR PRESENTATIONS

16. THE ORAL PRESENTATION

17. POSTER PRESENTATIONS

18. GROUP COMMUNICATIONS

19. COMMUNICATION WITH NON-SCIENTISTS

20. TO THE INTERNATIONAL STUDENT

APPENDICES

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

Covers the writing needs of scientists starting out in their career today: from developing a relationship with their advisor, writing the thesis, grant writing, presenting your findings, the impacts of social media and working with corporate entities

Editorial Reviews

"The book specifically lays out ideal techniques for scientific writing. It is easy to follow and has an excellent table of contents and appendix...This book will be beneficial not just to scientists, but anyone who struggles with their writing." —Technical Communication, August 2013

From the Publisher

4 Stars! from Doody

This is a guide to writing and communications. The first few chapters guide and explain in detail the organization of the communication, literature review, research proposal, and thesis; other chapters address editing and publishing, style, format, illustrations and tables, and types of communication. This book is intended to educate and assist beginning scientists in various forms of communication. The intended audience is science graduate students, but this guide would also be useful for undergraduate science students, medical students, residents, postdoctoral students, and science scholars early in their careers. This book provides numerous examples to illustrate educational objectives about communication. Brief examples are presented in each chapter and more detailed examples in the appendices. All figures and illustrations are well done and contribute to the purpose of this book. Useful references are provided. For its purpose, this book rests more on its didactic content than on references or illustrations, and the content is complete and excellent. This book is outstanding in its clarity and quality. Every section is highly readable, well organized, and concise. The author provides a clear rationale for the methods she advocates. The examples and explanations suffice to help a beginner to develop effective communication skills and to help more experienced scientists become more effective in their communications. Many alternative references are available, but this book would be my first choice for advanced college students or graduate students, including medical students and residents. The book itself is an outstanding example of effective written communication.

Michael M. Ravitch

Reviewer: Michael M. Ravitch, PhD (Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine)
Description: This is a guide to writing and communications. The first few chapters guide and explain in detail the organization of the communication, literature review, research proposal, and thesis; other chapters address editing and publishing, style, format, illustrations and tables, and types of communication.
Purpose: This book is intended to educate and assist beginning scientists in various forms of communication.
Audience: The intended audience is science graduate students, but this guide would also be useful for undergraduate science students, medical students, residents, postdoctoral students, and science scholars early in their careers.
Features: This book provides numerous examples to illustrate educational objectives about communication. Brief examples are presented in each chapter and more detailed examples in the appendices. All figures and illustrations are well done and contribute to the purpose of this book. Useful references are provided. For its purpose, this book rests more on its didactic content than on references or illustrations, and the content is complete and excellent.
Assessment: This book is outstanding in its clarity and quality. Every section is highly readable, well organized, and concise. The author provides a clear rationale for the methods she advocates. The examples and explanations suffice to help a beginner to develop effective communication skills and to help more experienced scientists become more effective in their communications. Many alternative references are available, but this book would be my first choice for advanced college students or graduate students, including medical students and residents. The book itself is an outstanding example of effective written communication.

Doody's Review Service