SWP_w_graphics

2nd Edition

Cover design by C. D. Vaughan. Photography by J. M. Lopez. Design of

Life Sciences logo by Jessica Raab.

Au!ors / Cont"butors

James Morris

Tom Jehn

Cheryl Vaughan

Erica Pantages

Tom Torello

Miriam Bucheli

David Lohman

Robert Lue

A co#aborative work

A team of innovators, contributors, and funders has made

this guide possible. Professor Robert Lue initiated the

project to improve the teaching of writing in the Life Sci-

ences at Harvard University and has sustained the pro-

ject’s vision over several years. Produced through col-

laborative efforts of the Department of Molecular and

Cellular Biology and the Harvard Writing Project, the

guide could not have been written and published without

the combined generous support of a Gordon Gray Fac-

ulty Grant for Writing Pedagogy and a Howard Hughes

Medical Institute Grant, both awarded to Professor Lue.

Table of Contents

Chapter I

Writing in the Life Sciences

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1

Links to Expository Writing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

Using this Guide: A Guide to the Guide . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Chapter II

Speciﬁc Types of Writing in the Life Sciences

Short Answers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Laboratory Notebooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Research Papers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Research and Grant Proposals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Reviews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Critiques of Scientiﬁc Papers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Writing for the General Public . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Chapter III

Writing Strategies and Feedback

Revising and Editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43

Evaluation of Student Writing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Common Mistakes in Scientiﬁc Writing . . . . . . . . . . .48

Chapter IV

Finding and Using References

Finding References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

When to Cite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55

How to Cite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57

Chapter V

Related Skills

Reading the Scientiﬁc Literature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61

Oral Presentations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Active Listening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

Appendix

Additional Resources

Writing Centers at Harvard University . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Useful Websites on Writing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .75

Searchable Online Databases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Suggested References for Further Reading . . . . . . . . . . 76

Chapter I

Writing

in the

Life Sciences

My aim is to put down on paper what I see and

what I feel in the best and simplest way.

! ! ! ! ! Ernest Hemingway

Introduction

! Writing well is one of the most important skills you

will tackle in college. Writing is not just an important form

of communication, but it also helps you develop, organize,

and solidify your ideas and thoughts. At the same time, writ-

ing is among the most difficult skills to learn and teach. This

difficulty is especially pronounced in science classes, where

the focus is usually on science content, not on writing.

While there are plenty of writing assignments in science

classes, there is typically little attention paid to the writing

process itself. This situation is unfortunate, as writing is cen-

tral to science. Writing serves as a way to communicate sci-

entific ideas and findings to other scientists as well as to the

public. Importantly, writing is also part of the scientific

process. The keeping of laboratory notebook, the writing of

a research proposal, and the telling of a story in the form of

a research paper are all integral parts of scientific thinking.

The education of scientists, therefore, needs to consist not

only of learning content and methods, but also of master-

ing both the general elements of writing and the specific

aspects unique to scientific writing.

A new initiative, Writing in the Life Sciences, began

at Harvard University in response to the recognition of the

importance of writing in science and the lack of a consis-

tent, clear, articulated writing curriculum for undergraduate

science students. While much thought and energy have been

put into the undergraduate science curriculum, a parallel,

complementary look at the writing curriculum in the sci-

ences has not been undertaken. Many undergraduate science

classes do have writing assignments, but there is little focus

on the connection between the writing assignments in the

various courses, the quality and consistency of the feedback

on the writing assignments, and the importance of writing

to the scientific process.

One of our goals, therefore, is to articulate and put

into place a coherent writing curriculum for undergraduate

science students. We envision a two-way conversation, with

writing that communicates scientific thought, and science

that comes to life through writing. Just as you progress

through a series of classes, each one building on the scien-

tific content of a previous class, you will also move through

a writing curriculum, with assignments that build on skills

learned in previous classes. That is, the writing curriculum

will be integrated into the science curriculum. We hope that

this dual approach will make for better writers and for bet-

ter scientists.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter I

In the fall of 2004, we had several preliminary meet-

ings to understand what kind of writing curriculum is al-

ready in place in undergraduate biology classes, where needs

are perceived, and what models can be used from the expe-

riences of other departments at Harvard. These meetings

benefited greatly from contributions of faculty, staff, and

preceptors from the Biology Department and Expository

Writing Program. We learned that the core introductory bi-

ology (50-level) classes do have a variety of thoughtful writ-

ing assignments. In addition, we learned that the Expository

Writing Program has worked with a number of depart-

ments, most recently Psychology, East Asian Studies, Eco-

nomics, and Government 10, to create writing guides spe-

cific for their concentrators.

As a first step to foster a stronger culture of writing

in the sciences, we put together this guide to undergraduate

writing in the sciences. This guide addresses elements of

writing in general and writing in the sciences in particular,

provides instructions on and examples of different types of

writing, discusses how writing assignments are evaluated,

and points out writing resources available in the Harvard

community. Our hope is that this guide will serve as a useful

resource for students, teaching fellows, and faculty.

We see this project as an ongoing one to think about

and address issues of writing in the undergraduate science

curriculum. For example, over the next several years we will

begin to focus more deliberately on the sequence of writing

assignments that you encounter as you move through the

biology curriculum. Our eventual goal will be a thoughtful,

articulated, evolving writing curriculum that serves students

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter I

in the sciences, as well as one that provides a model for un-

dergraduate writing in the sciences in general.

Links to Expository Writing!

Expository Writing (Expos) is Harvard’s introduc-

tory course in college-level writing, required of all first-year

students. If you are using this guide, Expos is probably well

behind you. However, it is not time to forget about the les-

sons you learned in Expos, as much of what you worked on

and learned is directly relevant to writing in the sciences.

Some of these are obvious; clarity, organization, elements of

grammar, and use of sources clearly apply to any kind of

writing. But the connections to Expos actually run deeper

than these standard elements of good writing.

Two elements of writing that are particularly em-

phasized in Expos are argument and evidence. The Expos

philosophy holds that to think effectively, you have to write

well; thus, in your Expos class you worked on strategies of

argument. By writing drafts and revisions, you discovered

your ideas and practiced ways to convince your readers that

those ideas were valid: in each paper you focused on articu-

lating an idea that readers could reasonably disagree with;

you established why readers should care about that idea; you

substantiated your argument with evidence that you care-

fully analyzed. You learned as well the importance of antici-

pating objections that your readers could make to your find-

ings when there was counter-evidence to consider.

Argument and evidence not only are well at home in

scientific writing, they are in fact central to it. For example,

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter I

a research paper or research proposal builds a story or ar-

gument by carefully putting together different pieces of evi-

dence. The evidence, in the case of science, often comes

from scientific papers or from one’s own observations or

experiments. However, as in other forms of writing, scien-

tific writing uses these pieces of evidence to craft a well-

substantiated argument designed to convince the reader of a

particular point-of-view. While there are particular style

conventions that are unique to science writing, the impor-

tance of argument and evidence should not be forgotten as

you embark on your own science writing assignments.

Using this Guide: A Guide to the Guide

So why focus on writing in the sciences? In many

ways, writing in the sciences is no different from writing in

other fields. Both require a clear argument or thesis, careful

use of evidence and sources, organization, and attention to

grammar and wording. Both also require a good deal of

thought, as good writing often reflects a clear understanding

of the subject. In fact, the process of writing itself can of-

ten help to formulate and solidify ideas.

However, there are also aspects of writing in the

sciences that are particular to science. Writing in the sci-

ences follows certain conventions, styles, and formats.

These are considered in Chapter II, where we describe in

some detail the major forms of writing you are likely to en-

counter in the sciences, including short answers and essays

typical of science examinations, the laboratory notebook,

research papers, research proposals, reviews, and writing for

the general public. Chapter III focuses on a key aspect of

good writing, namely rewriting. Rewriting is often informed

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter I

by feedback, so we have also included here a section on how

writing is evaluated. In addition, we have included in this

chapter a list of the common writing mistakes that we en-

counter in reading student assignments. Alerting you to

these is the first step in avoiding them. Chapter IV deals

with sources and references, giving tips on how to find use-

ful references, as well as instructions on how and when to

cite your sources. Finally, in Chapter V, we have included a

discussion of two related topics: how to read a scientific

paper and how to prepare an oral presentation.

As you read through this guide, keep in mind that

while there are many types of writing assignments, each of

which follows a different format and set of rules, there are

also common threads that run through these various types

of writing, as well as between writing in the sciences and

writing in general.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter I

Chapter II

Speciﬁc Types of

Writing in the

Sciences

I write entirely to ﬁnd out what I'm thinking,

what I'm looking at, what I see and what it means.

What I want and what I fear.

Joan Didion

Writing in the sciences takes many forms. Here we

consider specific types of writing that you are likely to en-

counter in your undergraduate science classes. If you go on

to become a scientist, be it in academics or industry, or a

physician, you will constantly revisit these various forms of

writing. For each, we provide an overview as well as detailed

instructions. These instructions are meant to provide a gen-

eral guide; you should follow the specific instructions you

receive in assignments that you have for class.

Short Answers

! We begin this section of the Guide with a form of

writing that you will encounter many times as a student, but

less frequently, if at all, as a practicing scientist: the short

answer or essay form. This type of writing comes up on

many of the examinations of the introductory sequence of

biology classes at Harvard, so it is worth at least a brief

consideration here. In some ways, this is the simplest form

of writing; you are asked a direct question and given a lim-

ited amount of time and space to answer it. The questions

are not usually open-ended, but instead are direct and

straightforward. At the same time, writing short answers can

present a special challenge. Sometimes, it is harder to write a

brief answer than to write at greater length. In a short an-

swer or essay, words must be chosen carefully and consid-

eration must be given to what to include and what not to

include. This takes some practice and thought.

When answering a short answer question on an ex-

amination, one of the most important points is to make

sure you are answering the question being asked, not the

question you hoped would be asked. For example, if the

question asks to compare and contrast elements of mitosis

and meiosis, the answer should do just that, compare and

contrast. Consider this example of a student answer:

Mitosis and meiosis are both forms of cell division. While mitosis

produces two identical daughter cells from a single parent cell,

meiosis produces four haploid cells from a single diploid cell. The

different products of the two forms of cell division result from a

difference in the mechanics of the two processes. In mitosis, a

single round of DNA synthesis is followed by a single round of

chromosome segregation. By contrast, in meiosis, there is a single

round of DNA synthesis followed by two rounds of chromosome

segregation. It is also important to note that the products of mitosis

are genetically identical to each other and to the parent cell, while

the products of meiosis are genetically distinct as a result of chro-

mosome segregation and crossing-over, two processes that lead to

genetic diversity.

This answer nicely compares and contrasts the two proc-

esses; it puts the two side-by-side and discusses similarities

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

and differences in a thoughtful manner. Now consider this

response:

Mitosis is a form of cell division that produces two daughter cells

from a single parent cell. It consists of the following steps: Inter-

phase, Prophase, Metaphase, Anaphase, Telophase, and Cytoki-

nesis. The resulting cells are genetically identical to the parent cell.

An example of mitosis is the cell division that occurs as a fertilized

egg divides to produce all of the cells in the body. Meiosis is a form

of cell division in which four cells are produced from a single parent

cell. There are two rounds of cell division and only a single round of

DNA synthesis, so a single diploid cell produces four haploid cells.

Genetic diversity is produced by crossing-over.

Notice that this answer is accurate and correctly describes

the two processes, but leaves the comparing and contrasting

to the reader. As a result, it does not really answer the ques-

tion being asked. The student has conveyed information,

but has not processed it or even answered the question. So,

in short, if the question asks for a list, provide a list; if it

asks to discuss, discuss; if it asks to compare and contrast,

be sure to consider similarities and differences.

In addition to answering the question, be sure to

present all of the relevant facts. Normally, an instructor is

looking for a set of key terms or ideas and it is up to you to

convey all of them. Sometimes it is useful to first jot down

key thoughts or terms before you begin to answer the ques-

tion, as a kind of checklist to yourself to be sure you are

including all of the major points.

While your goal is to present all of the relevant

facts, this does not mean to present everything you know

about a subject. Stick to the relevant facts; do not include

superfluous or unnecessary information. If what you write

is not relevant to the question, you will not receive extra

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

credit, and it if is irrelevant and incorrect, you may lose

points. Answering questions on an examination is not just

an exercise in conveying information, but also a chance to

demonstrate that you are able to read and answer questions.

Laboratory Notebooks

! Many of your science classes have a laboratory

component. Laboratory exercises are designed to give you

hands-on experience with techniques and to illustrate some

of the concepts that are introduced in lecture. This is also

the place to learn to ask questions, develop a hypothesis,

design or carry out an experiment to test the hypothesis,

collect and analyze data, and present your work.

Central to the process of doing science is the keep-

ing of an organized and thorough laboratory notebook. In

order to become a good scientist, you must learn how to

keep an accurate and current record of all experimental

procedures, observations, and results. Your notebook is

your own personal reference when writing a formal report

or article on the experiments you have performed.

When you keep a laboratory notebook, you also leave

behind a legacy once you leave the laboratory. Anybody

who follows in your experimental footsteps should be able

to go to your notebook and, without additional references,

repeat every single experiment reported there. In fact, when

you work in a research laboratory, your notebooks are the

property of that laboratory and you are legally responsible

for their contents.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

The keeping of a laboratory notebook is a very im-

portant form of scientific writing and in some ways can be

thought of as the cornerstone of all other types of writing.

There are various forms of writing that you will learn about

in your biology courses at Harvard, but all of them build on

the critical skills of effective communication, organization,

and data interpretation that are first practiced in the labora-

tory notebook.

Laboratory notebooks often follow a particular

format, which is described on the following pages:

Table of Contents. Every experiment in your notebook must

be documented in the table of contents. The first page of a

notebook is typically reserved for the table of contents, but

some, including the ones recommended above, have a table

of contents page already included. In your table of con-

tents, record the following information:

‣

the number and title of each experiment;

‣

the date when the experiment was started;

‣

the page number where documentation for that ex-

periment begins.

Date. At the top of the first page, record the date the ex-

periment was performed. Each subsequent page should also

be dated. On the first page for that experiment, write out

the full date (month, day, year). Subsequent new pages used

with that same date can be dated at the top using an abbre-

viation (X/X/XX). In either case, place the date close to

where the page number is located. If an experiment is car-

ried out over several days, it must be clear which steps in the

procedure were carried out on each date. You may put a

range of dates at the top of each page, and then indicate

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

within the write-up (in Notes and Changes to Procedure

section) what was done when.

Number and Title of Experiment. The number and title of the

experiment should be written at the top of the first page of

an experimental write-up. The title should be descriptive,

but not too wordy. Examples of good titles include “Ob-

serving Mitosis and Meiosis” and “Complementation and

Meiotic Mapping in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.”

References. Reference any source you used to prepare for the

laboratory. You will definitely need to reference the labora-

tory manual, and you may also want to reference the text-

book or any other source of background information you

used. Here are two examples:

Biological Sciences 50 Genetics and Genomics Sec-

tion Manual, Fall 2004, pp. 12-16.

Hartl, D. and Jones, E. Essential Genetics: A Ge-

nomics Perspective. 3

ed. Sudbury: Jones and

Bartlett, 2002.

Collaborators. Acknowledge the contribution of your labora-

tory partners by including their names in this section.

Purpose. In this section, you are explaining why you are per-

forming the experiment and how you will do it. Not only is

this section useful to others who may want to replicate your

work, but it can also be tremendously helpful to researchers

when they are reviewing their own work. In one paragraph,

succinctly convey the goal of the experiment or the experi-

mental question, why the experiment is being performed,

how the experiment will be carried out (methods or tech-

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

niques used), and any relevant background information. If

relevant, also briefly discuss possible outcomes. This section

should be no more than a half of a page.

Materials. List equipment and supplies, reagents and chemi-

cals (even water), names of organisms used and their strains

or genotypes. Also include the manufacturer of a reagent or

supply if a particular item can only be obtained from that

company—e.g., Ready-To-Go PCR Beads (Biorad).

Planned Procedure. In this section, present the procedure that

is outlined in the laboratory manual in your own words. Do

not copy blindly. List in step format. The steps can be brief,

but must be descriptive enough for someone to be able to

follow your directions. Also include helpful notes (wear

gloves, keep tube on ice, perform this step in the hood).

Pre-laboratory Exercises. Some laboratories will have pre-lab

questions or exercises (found in the laboratory manual);

present your work here.

Notes and Changes to Procedure. This section is completed dur-

ing the laboratory period. Note any deviations from your

planned procedure. Also make notes and observations per-

taining to the experiment and anything that you think is im-

portant to note about what happened or what you saw. Re-

member, someone should be able to read your notebook

and do exactly what you did, not just what was listed in the

laboratory manual. Be sure to make note of mishaps or any-

thing that you think may affect your results. Always make

clear the part in the procedure to which you are referring.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

Here are some examples:

‣

Step 1 was already completed by the teaching staff

before the laboratory period.

‣

When loading the molecular weight markers in the

gel, 20 ul was loaded, not 10 ul as written in step 4.

‣

This group’s yeast plates were contaminated with

bacteria so another set was used (supplied by J. Wat-

son and F. Crick).

‣

Step 5: agarose gel was run for 45 minutes at 100

volts.

‣

For step 6, 53 colonies were identified and streaked

to the master plate.

Do not forget to include what happens to your experiment

in your absence:

‣

The TF incubated the plates at 30°C and then trans-

ferred them to 4°C after 24 hours.

Results. This section should include any raw data that you

produce during the laboratory period, such as tables of

yeast spore genotypes, charts of color changes of samples,

photographs, drawings of observations. Anything presented

in the results section should be labeled with a descriptive

title and measurements should always be labeled with ap-

propriate units. Do not forget to make a copy of any pho-

tograph or drawing to put on the duplicate page.

Data Analysis. This section will include any calculations, ma-

nipulation of the data, or conclusions that you make after

the laboratory period. Items that might be found in this

section include a table of molecular weight vs. distance mi-

grated and accompanying graph, calculations (Chi square

test) and determination of linkage, or identification of un-

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

known strains based on information presented in the results

section. Again, do not forget to include titles, all appropriate

graph labels, and units of measurement.

Discussion. In this last section, evaluate and discuss the suc-

cess of the experiment. Write as if your audience is some-

one who wants to repeat your experiment, or someone who

wants to move forward from your experiment (this could be

you, at a later date). What does that person need to know?

Include interpretation of your results—how you came to

the conclusions presented in the previous section and

whether or not your conclusions agree with any of the out-

comes discussed in the Purpose section. What did you learn

from the experiment? If the experimental outcome contra-

dicted expected results or produced surprising results, sug-

gest possible reasons or address possible sources of human

or equipment error. Keep in mind that just because an ex-

periment does not give expected results does not mean that

the procedure or the execution of it was flawed. Unex-

pected results can be real and can lead to alteration of cur-

rent models and ways of thinking (but only if someone else

can read your notebook and repeat your experiment). Also

in this section, address any questions posed in the labora-

tory manual.

Signature. When you complete each experimental write-up,

sign and date your work. Put the date that you did the calcu-

lations and finished the work, not the date you did the ex-

periment (this should already be documented in your note-

book). Cross out any remaining blank space on the last page

with a diagonal line.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

Other Notes about your lab notebook:

•

Write legibly.

•

Laboratory notebooks are bound books, with numbered pages that

cannot be removed from the book (i.e., a 3-ring binder with loose

leaf paper is not acceptable).

•

Inside the front cover and on the table of contents page, provide

descriptive and identifying information: your name, e-mail address,

university, course number and title, laboratory room number, and

teaching fellow.

•

Do not remove any pages from your laboratory notebook. Original,

consecutively numbered pages must always remain.

•

Do not skip pages. If a page is accidentally skipped, draw a diago-

nal line through it.

•

Because laboratory notebooks often have duplicate pages, write

only on the front side of each page.

•

Write in black or blue ink. Do not use pencil.

•

Do not make erasures or heavy scribble outs, or use white-out. If

you need to change something, draw a single line through it and

write your correction on the next line. Nothing in your notebook

should be obscured.

•

Update the table of contents each time you use your notebook.

•

Start the documentation of each new experiment on a fresh page.

•

During the laboratory period, carry your notebook with you wher-

ever you go and enter data or observations as you have them. Do

not write information on scraps of paper and enter it into your

notebook later.

•

Photographs, computer printouts, and other data generated by

something other than your pen should be taped into the notebook.

A photocopy can be taped to the duplicate page.

•

When an experimental write-up is completed, sign and date it.

Cross out any remaining space on the last page with a single diago-

nal line.

•

Use continuation notes when an experiment requires more than

one page. At the bottom of each page, write “continued on page

___”; at the top of each page, write “continued from page___”.

This is particularly necessary when a single experiment is not

documented on consecutive pages (which often happens when a

new experiment is started before an ongoing one is finished).

Research Papers

A research paper is the currency, the mainstay of

scientific information. This is the place where new results

and ideas are communicated to other scientists. Most of the

facts you learn in a science lecture or textbook are actually

interpretations of data that were first described in the form

of a research paper.

A research paper is essentially an argument. In a re-

search paper, the authors put together various observations

and pieces of data to come to some sort of conclusion. It is

written for other scientists, but, because science encom-

passes many fields, is often written in a way that can be un-

derstood by someone educated in science though not neces-

sarily in the field under study.

The format, style, organization, and level of detail

of research papers vary depending on where they are pub-

lished. Some journals, such as Science and Nature, empha-

size short papers without a lot of primary data. Others,

such as Cell, Genetics, and Genes & Development, are

more complete and thorough. In addition to differences in

length, the organization of the papers varies depending on

the journal. The format described below is a generic one

that is presented as a way to consider each part of a re-

search paper. The particular format you follow will depend

on the nature of the assignment you have or the journal to

which you are submitting a paper.

As a student, you will often be asked to write a re-

search paper as a way to put together experiments that you

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

did and data you gathered as part of a laboratory exercise or

a series of laboratory exercises. Note that this type of as-

signment is different from the laboratory notebook (see

above). While the laboratory notebook emphasizes careful

note taking and observations, the research paper is a chance

to make an argument by synthesizing other studies and your

own experiments.

A research paper has several sections, which are de-

scribed here:

Title. The title of a research paper should be concise; at the

same time it should contain enough information that a

reader can determine the relevance of the paper to their

needs without reading the entire paper. In reports of an ex-

perimental nature, the specific information given in the title

should include the factors being manipulated and the effects

of responses being measured. An example of a self-

explanatory title containing the above three elements would

be, “Ultraviolet light induces apoptosis via direct activation

of Fas/APO-1, independent of CD95L.” Avoid cryptic ti-

tles such as “A Lab Report” or “Enzyme Action.” Such ti-

tles give little or no information as to the content of the

report.

Another way to think about a good title is to put

yourself in the position of a researcher who is going to

search a database of scientific literature (e.g., PubMed) using

key words to find articles of interest.

Authors. When considering authorship on any paper, the

contribution of ideas, materials, experimental results, and

the work of writing of the article must all be taken into

consideration. In the case of a research paper based on ex-

periments you do as part of a laboratory exercise for a class,

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

you are the first author by virtue of doing all the writing and

a large amount of laboratory work to produce the data. The

second author is your laboratory partner. The last author on

your paper is your TF, acting as the Principal Investigator.

The other students in your section have provided additional

data for your article and thus should be after your lab part-

ner and before your TF, as scientists who have collaborated

in your efforts.

Abstract. This portion of your article should be a summary

of your entire report. Without including specific details or

references to figures or other studies, provide background,

state the principal objectives of your study, describe the

methods used, list your most important results and state

what you can conclude from them. Similar to the research

paper itself, the Abstract should ask and answer a question.

In addition, it should be able to stand on its own as a sum-

mary of the research; if the rest of the paper were missing,

the abstract should still be comprehensible to a reader un-

familiar with the study. Although it comes first, the abstract

should be the last thing you write, which will allow you to

simply extract key points that you have already written in

the body of the report and will ensure that you do not in-

clude any information in the abstract that is not in your re-

search article. An abstract is typically between 150 and 500

words in length.

Introduction. The Introduction should provide a context for

the topic under study and give the reader the background

necessary to understand the rest of the report. As a result,

the background will usually be based on previously pub-

lished material (which must be properly cited). In addition

to establishing the context of the problem, the Introduction

should provide a concise statement of the problem or goal

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

of the project and a description of the experimental ap-

proach(es) used to answer those questions.

Note that an Introduction differs from a Review of

a particular topic. While a Review typically covers a topic in

detail, the goal of an Introduction is to provide context to

understand the question you are asking or the system you

are studying. In essence, the Introduction should build to

your experimental question. This can be done by describing

what is known about a particular topic, to be sure that the

reader understands the system, but also considers what is

not known or where there is room for additional work.

Materials and Methods. This section describes the specific de-

tails of your experiments. As a result, it must provide

enough information about the techniques you used to allow

the reader to both judge whether the data justify your con-

clusions and, if desired, replicate your experiments. It is al-

ways written in the past tense, as it describes exactly what

you did. For example, “The plates were incubated overnight

at 37°C.”

This portion of a research paper is usually divided

into sections labeled with the appropriate subheadings to

indicate a specific method (i.e., PCR or Western Blotting).

Usually these subheadings are arranged chronologically

based on the order of the experimental results presented in

the Results section. DO NOT present/discuss your results

in this portion of the article, it is meant to be a “how to”

guide to your experiments.

How much detail is required? You should provide

sufficient detail so that a reader could order the materials

you used and replicate the experiment. If a published ac-

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

count is already available (for example, bacterial transforma-

tion, PCR, sequencing), the technique itself need not be de-

scribed in detail again, but you must provide enough infor-

mation about how you performed the experiment so that it

can be independently replicated in another laboratory (for

example, in a discussion of PCR, you must provide infor-

mation about the primers and thermal cycling conditions

used, but you do not need to describe how PCR is done). In

addition, for all experiments, the name and manufacturer of

reagents (including enzymes, bacterial strains, kits, columns,

etc.) and relevant instrumentation must be provided. This

section should also include sample sizes or number of repli-

cations, strain and plasmid names, and other factors known

to affect the particular experiment (e.g., temperature, pH,

etc.).

Results. In this section, you objectively present the results of

your work through descriptive text, figures, and tables. In

essence, you are reporting what you observed in each ex-

periment. Briefly state what you did in the experiment, leav-

ing out the plethora of details you included in the Materials

and Methods section, describe the key result, and indicate

the figure or table containing the supporting data. Remem-

ber that the essence of good scientific writing lies in its or-

ganization and the distillation of critical results. Refer to the

figures and tables parenthetically. This will help you avoid

bogging down your writing with a lot of extra words and it

will help to keep the reader focused on your key points. In

addition, you should avoid explaining every detail of every

figure. It is far better to direct the reader to a specific por-

tion of the figure that gives the best demonstration of what

you claim is your result. The first one or two sentences of

each new paragraph of results should be a transitional

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

statement that explains the logic of why, based on the last

experiment, you went on to do the next experiment. Finally,

you should avoid drawing conclusions or inferences about

the results in this section; save that for the discussion.

Figures and Tables. Figures and tables provide ways to display

primary data, such as a photograph of a gel or a Southern

blot or a list of numerical data. Each figure and table should

be accompanied by a legend. A well-written legend provides

enough information about the figure or table that the expert

reader (for example, a scientist in a related field) could un-

derstand the experimental results by simply looking at the

figure or table and reading the legend. In other words, fig-

ures and tables are independent units that can be under-

stood without reference to the text. Try this out by going to

any journal article and “reading” it by simply glancing at the

figures and tables. Note that every figure and table should

be referenced in the text.

Discussion. This is the portion of your article where you in-

terpret the results in the context of what is known in the

field. The first paragraph should summarize what you be-

lieve to be your most important results and what you believe

are the best conclusions based on your findings. Then, you

may go on to discuss those conclusions in the broader sci-

entific context (i.e., compare them to what has been re-

ported by others in the same area of biology). Discuss the

implications of your data and propose future experiments

to address unanswered questions. It is important to ac-

knowledge deviations in your data, compared to the results

you expected, and explain why those deviations may exist.

References. This final section lists all of the references you

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

cited in the research paper. Every paper you cite in the text

should have a corresponding reference in the References

section and vice versa. The specific format of the in-text

citations and the references listed in this section of the re-

search paper varies depending on the particular journal or

assignment. Two rules of thumb always apply, however:

‣

Follow whatever format is suggested or required.

This ensures that the references are formatted in a

consistent fashion throughout your paper.

‣

Watch the details of the suggested format. If a

comma is written after the volume number, this

means that a comma is required, not a colon, not a

semicolon.

Additional information about citing references can be found

in Chapter III.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

FAQs on Writing Research Papers

Question:

What is the difference between the Re-

sults section and the Discussion section?

Answer:

Think of it this way: R = Report. As a

general rule, you should not present any

interpretation or draw any conclusions in

this portion of your article. D = discuss.

The Discussion section is the appropri-

ate place to make conclusions and state

your interpretation of the data you have

presented. It is your job to consider all

possible interpretations before present-

ing one, which you think, is the best.

Question:

What types of materials do I need to

cite in my reference section?

Answer:

All printed material that you use as a

resource to produce your research pa-

per should be included in your refer-

ences. This includes your class source-

book, websites, review articles, books,

and all primary research literature.

FAQs on Writing Research Papers

Question:

What is the appropriate length for each

section of the article?

Answer:

The abstract is the only section that has

a pre-defined length, but often there is a

word limit for the article as a whole.

Example:

If the word limit is 9,000, the lengths of

each section may be something like the

following: 300-400 words in the Ab-

stract, 1,400 words in the M&Ms, and

1,000 words for your references. This

gives you a remainder of ~ 6,000 to use

for your Introduction, Results, and Dis-

cussion. As a rule of thumb, these sec-

tions should be about equal lengths,

leaving you 2,000 words for each.

Research and Grant Proposals

A research or grant proposal is one of the more dif-

ficult kinds of writing assignments you will encounter as a

student. In addition to understanding the basic components

of a research paper (described above), a research proposal

requires an additional step. It requires that you ask an origi-

nal question, develop a reasonable hypothesis or hypotheses,

and then come up with a plan for testing that hypothesis or

set of alternative hypotheses in the form of an experiment

or a series of experiments. If you are writing a real grant

proposal, you will eventually do the experiments you de-

scribe. If you are writing a research proposal for a class, you

are usually not expected to do the experiment or collect any

data. Nevertheless, the feasibility of the proposed project is

often considered in the evaluation of any proposed project.

If you are writing a real grant proposal, it pays off to do

some research into the kinds of proposals that are success-

ful with a particular funding agency before you start think-

ing of the questions that you would like to answer. Some

agencies give high points for novelty and creativity while

others may prefer proposals that are sound but low-risk.

This information may be easily obtained from your advisor

or by contacting successful applicants. Usually, these indi-

viduals are very helpful and will answer any questions you

may have. You can ask to read some of their past proposals.

Unless there is a conflict of interest, most grant awardees

will be very open to sharing information.

A major challenge of this type of assignment is

coming up with a question. This step is difficult because the

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

question has to be one that has not been asked before or

one that not been fully answered. In addition, the question

has to be answerable in the context of a feasible experiment

or a set of experiments. Fortunately, there are places to turn

to for help. Keep in mind that questions do not come out of

a vacuum. A good place to start is your advisor. A knowl-

edgeable advisor with expertise in a given field of science

will be an invaluable source of guidance. This person can

direct you to the questions that are currently unanswered

within a particular field. Alternatively, he/she may suggest

areas of study that have received little or no attention and

therefore make them ideal for a proposal. If you prefer a

more independent approach or if you are writing a proposal

for a class, you can read several papers in your field of in-

terest before coming up with a question. Most papers sug-

gest follow-up experiments in the discussion section. An-

other good source for a good question is a current review

paper. Reviews are written by experts in a given field and

they often suggest areas that need more study or questions

that remain to be answered.

The format of a research proposal is very impor-

tant, especially if you are submitting it for funding. Every

funding agency expects that submitted proposals be format-

ted in a very specific way. These guidelines are strictly en-

forced. A funding agency will turn down a proposal that is

not properly formatted. You will also loose points from

class assignments if you have not followed directions for

the layout. Therefore, be sure to follow whatever guidelines

are given to you for a class assignment or for a granting

agency.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

The text of a research proposal is typically double-

spaced, written in a 12-point standard font (Times Roman,

Century), 15 cpi (characters per inch), with one-inch mar-

gins on all sides.

Make your proposal reader-friendly. You may occa-

sionally use bold or italics to highlight important points. Use

headers to organize your proposal. You should indent para-

graphs, and unless absolutely unavoidable, skip a line be-

tween paragraphs.

The final proposal is comprised of several sections

including the following:

‣

Title Page (optional)

‣

Abstract or Summary

‣

Hypotheses and Aims

‣

Background and Significance

‣

Preliminary Results (if any)

‣

Detailed Aims (research design and methods)

‣

Anticipated Results

‣

References

‣

Appendices

The sections in a proposal are distinct from those in a re-

search paper, and these will be discussed in more detail be-

low.

Title Page. Proposals for class assignments often require a

Title Page. The Title Page contains the title as well as identi-

fying information, such as your name, campus address, and

contact information. The Title Page for most funding agen-

cies is given in a pre-printed format where you need to fill in

your information. For both kinds of proposals, the title

should be a clear, concise, and accurate description of the

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

goals proposed, while containing enough information so

that a potential reader can get the main point of the pro-

posal. Only the first of the three titles, shown on the next

page, is specific and direct enough to alert a potential reader

to the subject of the paper.

Abstract or Summary. In the Abstract, key elements of the

paper are mentioned. It should serve as a proposal “adver-

tisement;” that is, be simple, interesting and accurate. In the

Abstract, you should do the following:

‣

provide context for your proposal;

‣

introduce the model system you will be using, and

why it was chosen to answer the questions pro-

posed;

‣

state your hypothesis.

‣

outline your aims and briefly describe the experi-

mental methods to be used and expected results of

each aim.

‣

explain the relevance of accomplishing the pro-

posed research and how it fits within the larger pic-

ture. In other words, how will your research affect

other areas?

A Comparison of Three Sample Titles

Effective:

‣

The Process of Nuclear Import Requires Recognition

of a Nuclear Localization Signal by α-Importin

Not Effective:

‣

Importins Assist Entry into the Nucleus

‣

How Proteins Enter the Nucleus

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

The abstract or summary should be able to stand on

its own without reference to the rest of the Research Pro-

posal. Typically, there is a word-limit for this section, such as

250 words. Although this section appears first to the reader,

it is best to save writing it until the end. A good Abstract

reflects the entire proposal.

Hypotheses and Aims. It is a good idea to introduce the reader

to your hypotheses and aims as early as possible. This sec-

tion should be brief (one-half to one page long). Funding

agencies are increasingly requiring that proposals be

hypothesis-driven. Even if what you are proposing to do is

more of an exploratory nature (such as a genetic screen or

microarray experiment), you should frame it within the con-

text of a testable hypothesis. Your hypothesis should guide

the research. Consider the examples provided below. In the

first example, the hypothesis is clearly stated. In the second,

it is less clear; after reading it, the question remaining is

“why?” You should be thorough and state your hypothesis

clearly.

You should also include your aims or goals in this

section. Your aims should each have a brief description (1

or 2 sentences) of the methodology you propose to use and

how the results will be used to test the hypothesis. The

number of aims is usually dependent on the amount of

time needed to complete the entire project. Short proposals

(i.e., summer research) should have one or two aims. Longer

proposals (1-3 years) can have up to 3-4 aims. All aims

should be related to the hypothesis, and they should be at-

tainable and within your expertise level. You may choose to

draw attention to your hypothesis and aims by highlighting

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

(indent or use italics) those sentences. Most reviewers will

greatly appreciate this time saver.

Sample Hypotheses

Effective:

I propose to use molecular systematics to test the hy-

pothesis that two species of the Pan troglodytes clade (P.t.

troglodytes and P.t.verus) are able to interbreed success-

fully.

Not Effective:

I propose to study the genetic and environmental deter-

minants for key pathways of folate metabolism during

human development.

Background and Significance. This section provides context for

the research by providing background information on the

questions being addressed. This section requires a good and

succinct literature review. Include appropriate citations and

all relevant information. You should state the rationale be-

hind your proposal and why it is important to answer your

specific question. The length of this section varies. If you

do not have preliminary results of your own, this section

should highlight any research done by others that supports

the rationale of your proposal. For short proposals (1-2

pages), this section can be brief and included in the above

overview.

Preliminary Results. When available, include work you may

have done that is relevant to the project. In this section you

may include Figures and Tables that show your work. You

should refer to the figures within the text (e.g., Figure #).

The purpose of this section (when available) is to support

the feasibility of the proposed project.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

Detailed Aims. Include here the specific methods you will use

to accomplish your aims. Describe here the experiments will

you need to carry out to accomplish your proposed goals or

aims. Also describe the logic and design behind each ex-

periment proposed. You should include enough detailed

information for the reader to understand the methodology,

but do not give excessive information (i.e., materials used).

Consider your experiments carefully – does it really test the

hypothesis? What will the outcome tell you? If proposing a

new approach, discuss why it improves on current methods

used. Try to identify any pitfalls in your experiments and

discuss how this will be circumvented.

Example of a Detailed Aim

I propose to use both nuclear and mitochondria DNA to ana-

lyze polymorphisms characteristic to each group. This will be

done using hair samples from P.t. verus and P.t. troglodytes

from wild populations.

Anticipated Results. The name of this section sometimes mis-

leads students. Under this heading, you should consider all

of the possible outcomes of your study, not just those you

anticipate. In other words, you should consider all the out-

comes that you are able to anticipate. The point of this ex-

ercise is to think through the design of your experiment.

Will your experiment give outcomes that are interpretable?

How likely is each of the outcomes? For each possible re-

sult, you should discuss how you would interpret it and how

it would allow you to discriminate among your hypotheses.

Will you be able to meet the goals you set out in your Intro-

duction?

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

In addition, you should consider how your antici-

pated findings would change the way we think about the

topic and how they fit in the context of the field. This is

also the place where you should address potential shortcom-

ings or limitations of your proposed study. You are also

welcome in this section to speculate on the generality of

your findings and suggest new or follow-up questions or

experiments that might stem from your work.

Alternative methods should be included for experimen-

tal approaches that may appear risky (not been previously

used). It is particularly important to provide alternative

methods when the outcome of any aim (i.e., protein purifi-

cation) is a prerequisite to others (i.e., characterization).

The description of the alternative approach should not

shadow the initial method proposed. Instead, it should be

included as a concise description that strengthens the viabil-

ity of the project.

References. Provide a reference for each in-text citation. Be

sure to follow the suggested format. If not specified, the

use of numbered citations is recommended to save space.

Appendices. Any supplemental material, such as photographs

or enlarged figures, should be included in the Appendix. Do

not use this section to include essential material not in-

cluded in the proposal because of a page limit. Include ta-

bles and figures only if they add to or complement the de-

scriptive text. For example, a figure is sometimes useful to

describe a complicated experimental apparatus or biological

model. A table is sometimes helpful if your experiment has

many variables or many possible outcomes. Tables and fig-

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

ures are placed in that order at the end of the document,

after the References.

A Few Final Tips about Research Proposals

‣

Be objective in your language: test hypotheses, do

not try to prove them.

‣

Discuss your paper with classmates or anyone who

is willing to listen. Talking about your ideas often

helps to clarify them and others may catch errors

that you might have overlooked.

‣

In addition to consulting published materials, feel

free to talk to experts in the field of your proposal,

whether they are from Harvard or elsewhere.

‣

Edit your proposal after you have completed the

entire first draft. Editing a proposal before submis-

sion is essential. When submitting a proposal to a

funding agency, get feedback from different men-

tors. You want to receive feedback in every aspect of

the paper, including the science, grammar and or-

ganization.

‣

Be open to receiving criticism; this will only im-

prove the quality of your final proposal. You should

reply graciously to all reviewers’ comments and ad-

dress their concerns if resubmission of the pro-

posal is necessary.

Reviews

! A review gives you the opportunity to explore a

topic in depth. You get a chance to read the primary scien-

tific literature, teach yourself a topic, synthesize informa-

tion, and put it all together in the form of an essay. Some

students confuse a review with a book report, thinking that

the point is simply to report what is known about a given

subject or to summarize four or five journal articles in a

given field. This is not the case. A review is in fact a creative

exercise. A good review not only conveys what you have

read and learned, but also takes the next step and comes up

with an angle or argument that extends what you have read.

What does it mean to take the next step? In this case, it

means to evaluate what you have read, synthesize informa-

tion from various sources, and then come up with a new

way of looking at a field. You may put together information

in a new way, compare and contrast different pieces of in-

formation, explore relationships, or analyze and evaluate

primary data. Whatever you choose to do, you should try to

analyze and evaluate, not report and list.

Your goal, in other words, is to make a point, to

come up with a thesis statement. A thesis statement is sim-

ply an argument that you propose and then use evidence to

back up. You will recall working on thesis statements in Ex-

pos. The thesis statement here is no different. It is a chance

to make an original proposal or argument. The strength of

this argument will depend on your ability to back it up with

evidence from the literature, anticipating and responding to

potential objections and counter-arguments, and the organi-

zation and structure of your writing.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

Coming up with a thesis statement is not easy. You

normally begin with a topic, something you want to explore,

not a thesis statement. As you read articles and learn about

your topic, start taking notes:

‣

Is something not clear to you?

‣

Do different authors report conflicting data?

‣

Do you think it would be interesting to bring to-

gether two areas that were previously thought to be

unrelated?

‣

What is particularly interesting about a given topic?

‣

Is one approach radically different from another?

‣

Are there assumptions that run through many dif-

ferent experiments?

The answers to any of these questions can serve as a germ

of a thesis statement.

Of course, to be convincing, you have to find sup-

port for your thesis statement. Be sure that for the angle

you choose to take, you can support it with examples from

the primary scientific literature. Remember, your goal is to

try to convince your reader of the point you are making,

and you cannot convince your reader without a good deal of

evidence.

A review gives you the opportunity to read papers

from the primary literature. This is not an easy task and is

therefore discussed more fully in Chapter VI. Reading pri-

mary research papers can be difficult, but it is an essential

part of being a scientist. It is in a research paper where pri-

mary data are reported. You should begin to get used to

looking at primary data yourself and coming up with your

own interpretations. After all, this is the task of a scientist.

What you read in a textbook, what is presented in lecture,

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

what is discussed in a Discussion section of a paper is the

result of a distillation process. Someone has looked at the

data and come to some kind of interpretation. While most

data are real and objective, interpretations are not. Reading

the primary scientific literature gives you the chance to look

at data for yourself and form your own opinions and inter-

pretations. Were the experiments well designed? Is there an

important control that is missing? Were the experiments

replicated a sufficient number of times? Are the conclusions

sound? Do the interpretations go beyond the data? These

are the types of questions that you should be asking your-

self as you read the primary literature.

Writing a good review, then, relies on the two as-

pects of writing that were emphasized in Expository Writ-

ing: argument and evidence. You should begin such an exer-

cise by choosing a topic and then researching it. After read-

ing several papers, see if something stands out or might

work as a thesis statement. Keep reading and find out if

your thesis statement holds up. Then begin writing. Some

people like to begin by writing an outline to organize all of

their thoughts and information. Others prefer to write

quickly and then go back and carefully revise their work.

Whatever your approach, you will want to pay particular

attention to the first paragraph, in which the direction of

your paper and the nature of the problem you want to ad-

dress are clearly stated. Once you state your case, you will

want to support it and build it carefully. Use the information

you have collected to make a point, to build an argument.

Writing a review is like taking a photograph. When

you take a photograph, you are looking at something that is

already out there and capturing it on film. While the result-

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

ing image is a representation in most cases of the real

world, the photographer does play a creative role. The pho-

tographer chooses what to include and what not to include,

how to frame the image, what to bring to the foreground

and what to place in the background, whether an image is

clear or out-of-focus, the amount of light and darkness. In a

similar way, the reviewer takes what is out there and distills

it through his or her own writing to create something new

and original.

Critiques of Scientiﬁc Papers

A common assignment in an undergraduate course

involves reading one or two papers (either a review and a

primary paper, or two primary research papers) and then

writing a critique. When dealing with all of the data and de-

tails presented in a primary paper, it is very easy to write an

unfocused, poorly structured paper.

When writing a critique, it is essential that you write

your paper as if you are giving a presentation or lecture

about the topic. You probably would not begin a lecture

with a critique of the methods used by a particular research

group. Instead, you would likely start by providing some

broad background information, strategically working your

way into the details of your presentation. If your presenta-

tion included a critique of the work, you would present the

critique only after having provided a solid foundation for

understanding your critique. And of course, you would end

with a well-crafted conclusion.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

You should structure your paper similarly. Begin

with a broad introduction: what is the overall field or topic

being addressed? What specific question(s) are the authors

investigating? What is the main hypothesis of the authors?

Continue with your written presentation, describing how the

authors test their hypothesis (what is their experimental ap-

proach?). Only include specific details about the methods if

those details are later necessary for the reader to understand

or evaluate a specific point you wish to make. Then provide

your critique at the end, after you have explained all the

relevant details to the reader. Finally, end with a conclusion

that ties your points together.

Writing for the General Public

! Writing for a general audience, sometimes called

science journalism, presents a special challenge. While a full

discussion of this important area is beyond the scope of

this Guide, we include a brief consideration of this type of

writing here for a few reasons. First, you are likely to en-

counter at least one such writing assignment as an under-

graduate science major, so having a few pointers might be

helpful. Second, writing for a general audience can help you

sharpen your thinking skills and, in the process, your writing

skills. After all, if you can explain a result or research paper

to someone else, you probably understand it well. Third,

and perhaps most importantly, keeping lines of communica-

tion open between scientists and nonscientists is becoming

increasingly important as such issues as stem cells, cloning,

nanotechnology, global warming, and the like enter the pub-

lic arena. In this way, writing for a general audience can be

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

thought of as less of a task and more of a responsibility of

scientists.

There are aspects of writing for a general audience

that are shared with other forms of writing. For example,

writing for a general audience requires that you know your

audience. At times you need to understand how to summa-

rize, at times simplify, at times explain to get scientific ideas

across. You need to understand when you can avoid techni-

cal language, as well as when a key term cannot be left out

but needs to be explained. You need to understand what

background you need to provide and what knowledge can

be assumed. Knowing your audience is a key aspect of any

sort of writing, even research papers. In this case, you need

to keep in mind whether your audience is general, from any

field of science, such as when you write for journals such as

Science or Nature, or more specialized, as is the case for

readers of Genetics or Animal Behaviour. The kind of

words you use and the amount of background your provide

will vary depending on who you expect to read your paper.

In addition, writing for a general audience is an ex-

cellent exercise in summarizing. Often we are asked, when

writing for a general audience, to explain an exciting new

result or discovery. To do this, we need to fill in the back-

ground, describe the key experiment, and convey the major

result, all in a relatively small amount of space. Understand-

ing what to include and what to leave out and how to sim-

plify a complicated idea or apparatus is often key to a good

piece for a general audience.

While there is no one way to write for a general

audience, there is a certain style that often shows up in this

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

form of writing. For example, the paragraphs tend to be

short, shorter than you are probably used to in scientific or

expository writing. Technical words are often avoided. Im-

portant terms that cannot be avoided are carefully ex-

plained. Finally, writing for a general audience often begins

with a “lead” or “hook,” something that is written in a way

to grab the reader. For example, the hook may be a simple,

dramatic statement of a finding, a narrative, or a twist or

surprise from what is expected. However you open a piece

for a general audience, and however you write it, you will

want to keep the piece moving and your reader interested.

Try not to get bogged down in technical explanations or

lengthy descriptions, unless it works for the story you are

telling.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter II

Chapter III

Writing Strategies

and

Feedback

The beautiful part of writing is that you don't have

to get it right the ﬁrst time, unlike, say, a brain surgeon.

Robert Cormier

Revising and Editing

! Writing is really more about revising than about

writing. Revising is such an essential aspect of writing that it

warrants special consideration here. Seldom, if ever, do any

of us write a first draft and then feel that we are done with a

written assignment. Written material is reworked, reorgan-

ized, reworded, removed, and rewritten before it really starts

to make sense. How you write and subsequently revise a

paper can be a very individual process. Some people like to

get out ideas quickly, without much attention to detail or

organization, and then take the time to rework it into a co-

herent argument. Others prefer to write more deliberately,

taking time and thought with each sentence, even each

word, and then spend less time going back over their work.

Your approach to the first draft will inform how you end up

revising. Nevertheless, there are a few general guidelines

that are applicable to any writing style that are worth sharing

here.

One important point to keep in mind is that every-

one can benefit from revising. We are increasingly accus-

tomed in our society to seeing or doing something once and

then moving on. We watch a television show and then turn

the television off; we pick up the paper and move quickly

from one article to the next; our nightly news is chopped up

into increasingly smaller pieces. Writing is different. We

need to spend time with the material, think it through, re-

visit it a number of times, and grapple with the ideas before

we can expect to have anything close to a finished work. It

is always worth spending this time, even if we are not used

to it.

Rewriting serves at least two complementary pur-

poses. The first is obvious; rewriting improves your writing

by making sure that you are paying attention to key elements

such as content, organization, and style. The second may be

less obvious; rewriting helps to clarify your thinking on a

subject. It is often the very act of writing, of putting

thoughts down on paper, that challenges us to make sure we

understand something. And in the act of rewriting, we make

sure that the arguments are clear, well supported, and pre-

sented in an organized manner.

There are a variety of ways to go about rewriting

and one way is not better than another. One strategy for

rewriting is to go about it in two phases. In the first phase,

pay attention to the major elements of writing: What is the

argument? Is it stated clearly? Is the argument well struc-

tured? Is the paper well organized? Do the ideas flow easily?

Is the argument well supported? Am I using the best evi-

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter III

dence? In other words, this is the time to pay attention to

such broad issues as argument, content, cohesiveness, and

organization. The second, narrower phase occurs once the

major elements are in place. Go back and consider some of

the details, including elements of grammar, word choice,

spelling, and the like. This two-phase approach emphasizes

that rewriting does not mean simply going over the paper

for spelling mistakes. Rewriting involves looking at what you

have written and making sure you are saying what you want

to say.

Here are a few basic guidelines to keep in mind as

you revise your own papers:

‣

Consider going through at least three drafts as you

revise; four to five drafts are not unreasonable.

‣

Try reading your paper aloud. Sometimes listening

to your written work is the clearest way to spot

problem areas, difficulties with logic, and grammar

mistakes.

‣

Do not be afraid to make major changes to your

work. While sometimes it is hard to discard hard-

won sentences or reorganize a beloved passage, keep

in mind that your ultimate goal is to put together a

coherent, well-articulated paper. If a word, sentence,

or passage is not working, or if the organization

does not serve the argument, a major change may be

just the thing.

‣

Print out your paper. In the editing and revising

process, it is often useful to see several pages at

once and not be confined to what fits within the

limited space of a computer screen.

‣

Be aware of and address your writing weaknesses.

By the time you reach college, you hopefully have

had enough feedback on your writing to at least

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter III

have some idea of your strengths and weaknesses.

Knowing your weaknesses and rewriting with an eye

towards these is very helpful. If you know you have

trouble with transitions, ask yourself whether each

paragraph flows easily to the next. If you have been

told that you rely too heavily on secondary sources,

ask yourself if you have used and cited the best

primary evidence. In other words, know and explic-

itly address problems that you know you have.

‣

Realize that your computer spell-check will not

catch all of your spelling mistakes. For example, it

will not pick up words that are misspelled but be-

come other words, such as is/if or deaf/dear. It also

does not do a very good job with technical words,

sometimes even automatically changing a correct

word to something entirely inappropriate.

‣

Come at your paper with a fresh eye. The word “re-

vise” after all means to see again, and it is hard to

see something again without a bit of time between

drafts. This often means leaving your paper for a day

or two and then returning it. Of course, to do this

means completing one or two drafts well in advance

of the due date. While this may be difficult, such

planning often pays off in terms of being able to

get some distance from your work.

‣

Seek help from the peer tutors at the Harvard Writ-

ing Center (Appendix) or from your House aca-

demic writing tutor (if your house has one).

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter III

Evaluation of Student Writing

! The evaluation of student writing in the sciences

follows many of the same criteria used to assess student

writing in general. Criteria for five elements of writing are

most emphasized by the Expository Writing Program in the

evaluation of student writing, and it is useful to be aware of

these, not just for the sake of improving your grade, but

because they reflect basic elements of good writing. These

elements are the following:

‣

Thesis: Is there a main argument in the paper? Is it

clearly stated? Is it interesting and complex? Is it

well argued throughout the paper?

‣

Structure: Is the paper organized clearly? Is it easy

to understand the main point of the paper, the main

point of each section, the main point of each para-

graph? Does the order of the overall argument

make sense? Is it easy to follow? Are there appropri-

ate transitions linking the various ideas?

‣

Evidence and Sources: Does the paper give support-

ing evidence for each of its points? Does the paper

suggest that the writer has a good grasp of the sub-

ject matter and the field in general? Has the paper

missed any obvious or important pieces of evi-

dence? Is the evidence properly attributed and is the

reference information correct and properly cited?

‣

Analysis: Is there enough analysis of the evidence?

Is the analysis appropriate? Are the conclusions

sound?

‣

Style: Is the style appropriate for the assignment and

the audience? Is the paper concise and to the point?

Are sentences clear and grammatically correct? Is

the paper free of spelling and proofreading errors?

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter III

These five elements apply to writing in general as

well as to writing in the sciences, so it is useful to keep them

in mind in your own writing.

Common Mistakes in Scientiﬁc Writing

! Certain mistakes show up repeatedly in student writ-

ing. Here, we have compiled the most common writing mis-

takes that we have found. They are worth paying attention

to, as getting these details right will allow the reader to focus

on what you want to say, without being distracted by simple,

avoidable errors. While some of these pertain to writing in

the sciences, many are relevant to writing in any field.

Formatting Conventions

‣

Pages should be numbered; the first page usually

does not have a number because it is understood

that it is page one.

‣

Avoid series of parentheses, such as: (Davis

1999)(Figure 1). Combine the information: (Davis

1999; Figure 1).

‣

In-text citations are always inside end punctuation:

“…higher fitness (Lewontin 1976).” Not “…higher

fitness. (Lewontin 1976)”

‣

Each in-text literature citation must have a full cita-

tion in the References section and vice versa.

‣

Figures and tables should be numbered in the order

they appear in the text.

‣

Figures should be cited as (Figure 1) or (Fig. 1), not

(see Figure 1) nor (see Figure 1 attached), etc. The

same rules apply for references to tables.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter III

‣

During the publication process, figures (photos and

graphs) are usually scanned or photographed and

added to the layout in the appropriate place. All text,

including figure captions and tables, are word proc-

essed and added to the layout as text, not as a

graphic. For this reason, figure captions should be

listed on a single sheet (the last page of text before

the figures), and the figures should be camera-ready

with no captions on the same piece of paper (letters

and numbers in the figure will become a graphic

element). Note that, while it is important to layout a

table so that it is easy to interpret, journals will re-

format tables to conform to their standard table

style.

‣

If you use an abbreviation, you should define it after

its first use in the paper. For example, “The vo-

meronasal organ (VNO)....” After this, simply use

VNO.

Scientific Usage Rules and Conventions

‣

Gene names and their abbreviations, as well as Latin

words and their abbreviations, should be in italics:

e.g., ultrabithorax, ubx, ergo, in situ, et al., etc. Note that

some journals choose to ignore these rules.

‣

“Data” is the plural of “datum.” Therefore, “…the

data were collected….” not, “the data was col-

lected.”

‣

The plural of species is species; the plural of genus

is genera.

‣

The word “prove” is generally avoided outside of

mathematics. In science, you cannot prove a hy-

pothesis. The best you can hope for is that your hy-

pothesis is supported by the data, or that your data

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter III

are consistent with your hypothesis. If an idea re-

peatedly stands up to experimental scrutiny and is

consistently not disproved, then it becomes rele-

gated to the status of a theory, such as the Theory

of Evolution or the Chromosome Theory of In-

heritance.

‣

Be careful of attributing intent to organisms when

talking or writing about evolution. Birds did not

evolve wings in order to fly. Natural selection does

not work with a particular goal in mind, such as

flight. Instead, it works through random variation

followed by differential survival and reproduction.

While suggesting that birds evolved wings in order

to fly is a convenient shorthand, it misses the fun-

damental principle of evolution by natural selection.

‣

Be aware of tense. The results of others are usually

discussed in the past tense, “Smith and colleagues

(1998) found that….” The Methods section of a

research paper is also written in the past tense (it has

already been done by the time the paper is being

written). However, the results section of a paper is

written in present tense. Grant proposals describe

procedures that have not yet been done, and should

be written in future tense.

‣

A scientific name is composed of two words: a ge-

nus name and a species epithet. The first letter of

the generic name is always capitalized and the spe-

cific name is never capitalized. Both words must be

written in italics or underlined. Generic names

should be written out in their first appearance in the

title, abstract, and main text. If they are subse-

quently mentioned in one of these locations, they

may be abbreviated. It is also advisable to mention

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter III

the English name for your critter once or twice. For

example, “Caterpillars of the lycaenid butterfly Jal-

menus evagoras were studied….” Later, “J. evagoras

caterpillars were studied….” While most scientists

know that C. elegans is a nematode worm, it is help-

ful to provide a common name for lesser known

organisms. The generic names of some common

model organisms, e.g., Drosophila and Arabidopsis,

are now used as common names, too. When these

names are written in isolation, they are being used as

common names and are not italicized. In conjunc-

tion with a specific epithet they are scientific names

and must be italicized. A final note: Jalmenus sp. re-

fers to a single unspecified species in the genus Jal-

menus. Jalmenus spp. refers to two or more species in

the genus Jalmenus. Note the use of italics on these

intentionally ambiguous names.

General Comments

‣

“Between” is used for two things; “among” for

three or more. So, “the caterpillars were distributed

among the three plants,” not “the caterpillars were

distributed between the three plants.”

‣

Do not use “however” as a conjunction, as “Doxo-

rubicin is a useful chemotherapeutic agent, however

severe cardiotoxicity limits its use.” This sentence is

a run-on. However requires a semicolon or period

preceding it and a comma after it, as “Doxorubicin

is a useful chemotherapeutic agent; however, severe

cardiotoxicity limits its use.” The same holds true

for “therefore.”

‣

Be careful with word pairs that are often confused:

that/which, affect/effect, its/it’s, choose/chose,

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter III

advice/advise, accept/except, proceed/precede;

between/among; less/fewer.

‣

The words “who” and “whom” refer to people; they

cannot refer to animals.

‣

It is not appropriate to use first person plural in a

single authored work. For a single authored work,

use “I.” For two or more authors, use “we.”

‣

Avoid strings of prepositional phrases: “Several re-

gions of the brain have been implicated in the rec-

ognition of kin,” might be written, “Several brain

regions have been implicated in kin recognition.”

‣

Avoid overused expressions and clichés.

‣

Strive for verbal variety; do not begin every sentence

in a paragraph with “I.”

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter III

Chapter IV

Finding

and

Using References

The most erroneous stories are those we think we know

best—and therefore never scrutinize or question.

Stephen Jay Gould

Finding References

" If you have tried your hand at any form of scientific

writing, or if you have reached this point in the guide, you

can see that scientific writing makes use of many kinds of

references. Therefore, knowing how to find and cite these

references is key and warrants attention here. In addition to

this chapter, a very useful guide to the use of references is

Harvard’s Writing with Sources (Appendix A), which pro-

vides a more complete treatment of the issues that are

touched upon here.

There are two general kinds of sources that you will

come across in scientific writing: primary sources and sec-

ondary sources. Primary sources report original experi-

ments, data, and ideas. They usually take the form of re-

search articles and can be found in scientific journals, such

as Science, Nature, Cell, Genetics, Animal Behaviour, and

Evolution. Other primary sources that show up less fre-

quently include dissertations, technical reports, and confer-

ence abstracts and papers. Secondary sources, as the name

suggests, are one step away from the primary data. They

include such sources as textbooks, review papers, and arti-

cles in popular science magazines, such as Scientific Ameri-

can, Natural History, and Discover. These are generally writ-

ten for a general audience and summarize many experiments

and papers. Most websites on a scientific topic that you will

encounter summarize experiments and data, and are there-

fore considered secondary sources. However, primary data

are sometimes reported on the web, in which case that web-

site would be considered a primary source. For example,

DNA sequence data are now frequently found on the web.

As you write your own science papers, you will want

to turn increasingly to primary sources. Primary papers de-

scribe experimental methodology and report original data.

Learning how to evaluate an experiment critically and inter-

pret data for yourself is an important aspect of being a sci-

entist (Chapter VI). While the secondary literature is often a

great place to start, you will want to seek out and read the

primary literature on which the secondary sources are based.

So how do you go about finding sources for your

papers? There are two general ways. The first is to follow a

paper trail. Start with the secondary sources, such as your

textbook or a scientific review. These are often heavily cited

and highlight major works in a particular field. From there,

read the primary papers that are referenced. Again, the lit-

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter IV

erature cited section of these primary works will be filled

with additional papers that are relevant to the area you are

exploring. In a short amount of time, you will start seeing

the same reviews and primary articles showing up again and

again, and this will give you an indication that you have

found most of the important or key references on a given

topic.

A second, complementary approach is to use com-

puterized, searchable databases. There are several excellent

internet-based databases of science references and you

should begin to familiarize yourself with them. These are

readily searchable, allowing you to type in a subject, key

word, author, or other search term and pull up hundreds, if

not thousands, of references. The challenge of using these

databases, then, is not finding references, but identifying

which ones from the list are most useful to you. Knowing

how to narrow your search is often key in the effective use

of these databases. The most widely used databases in the

biological sciences include Medline, Science Citation Index,

Current Contents, and Biological Abstracts (Appendix A).

These are best accessed through the Harvard University Li-

brary website (http://lib.harvard.edu

), as Harvard has li-

censing agreements that give you access to those that are

otherwise restricted.

When to Cite

" At this point in your education, you are probably

familiar with the basic rules of citation. You know you are

supposed to provide a reference following a direct quotation

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter IV

or when you borrow or make use of another author’s idea.

While these two rules certainly apply to writing in the sci-

ences, they actually do not come up very often. Direct quo-

tations are seldom seen in scientific writing. If you use a

direct quotation, you should think very carefully whether

the exact words are really required, or whether paraphrasing

might be sufficient. In either case, you will need to provide a

reference for the idea or thought. However, a direct quota-

tion in student writing in the sciences often indicates that

the writer did not fully understand what was written. After

all, it takes understanding to be able to paraphrase someone

else’s work. Only use a direct quotation if the particular

words carry significance that cannot be conveyed by para-

phrasing.

Citing comes up most often in scientific writing in

two other scenarios. The first is when you report the results

or conclusions of a particular study. In this case, you can

cite the study as, “Darwin (1859) suggested that evolution

occurs by means of natural selection” or as, “Evolution oc-

curs by means of natural selection (Darwin, 1859).”

The second, often overlooked scenario for citing is

when you want to direct the reader to additional reading.

For example, if you write, “T cells are known to be impor-

tant in the immune system,” it is helpful to cite a recent re-

view on the topic or several key recent papers or even an

older, original reference if it is not cited in a recent review.

This kind of citation directs the reader to additional sources

if he/she is interested in pursuing the topic further.

When you cite references in either of these situa-

tions, it is useful to provide the reference or references up-

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter IV

front, at the first mention of the study or idea. In other

forms of writing, the citation is often held to the end of the

paragraph in which you talk about someone else’s ideas or

thoughts, as a way to signal that the entire paragraph relies

on that work. In science, however, the citation is provided

early, following the first sentence, so that a reader familiar

with the study or idea will instantly know what work you are

discussing. Even if the rest of the paragraph continues to

refer to the same study, you do not need to keep repeating

the citation. It is understood that the early citation is the

source under discussion.

How to Cite

" References are cited in two places in scientific writ-

ing, in the text and at the end of the document in a dedi-

cated “References” section. The format of the citations in

these two places is very important. Different journals, fund-

ing agencies, and classes follow different and often idiosyn-

cratic formatting styles. The task is simply to follow the

format that you are provided. So, if you are submitting a

paper to the journal Behavioral Ecology, you should follow the

format of that journal. Most journals have a special “In-

structions to Authors” section on their website that spells

out in detail how to format references. Another approach is

simply to follow the format of the references in a recent

article from that journal. Similarly, if you are submitting a

grant to the National Science Foundation, you should find

and follow those formatting guidelines. Most writing as-

signments for your college classes will also specify a particu-

lar style, either from a journal or another source.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter IV

Whatever style you are asked to follow, it is impor-

tant to follow it. While this sounds simple, it apparently is

not, as instructors constantly receive incorrectly formatted

references even when explicit directions are given. A

comma does not mean a semicolon, and bold type is not the

same as plain type. For example, the American Psychologi-

cal Association (APA) provides specific formatting guide-

lines for references. A student who was asked to follow

APA guidelines came up with the following incorrect refer-

ence:

A. E. Newsome, 1965. “The abundance of red kan-

garoos in central Australia.” Australian Journal of

Zoology. 13: 269-287.

Can you spot all of the formatting errors above? The cor-

rectly formatted APA citation is provided here:

Newsome, A. E. (1965). The abundance of red kan-

garoos in central Australia. Australian Journal of

Zoology, 13, 269-287.

At this point, you might think that this level of de-

tail is trivial at best. However, there are several reasons why

citation format is important. First, as a scientist or physi-

cian, a journal article submission or grant will be returned

unread if the specified format is not followed. Second, fol-

lowing a particular style will ensure that your references are

consistently formatted. Finally, different formatting styles

convey different kinds of information. For instance, the

(author, year) style for in-text citations of APA or Cell pro-

vides information to a reader familiar with a field that a par-

ticular study or work is under discussion. Alternatively, use

of footnotes for in-text citations, as is required for papers in

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter IV

Science or Nature, saves space and allows for multiple refer-

ences to be grouped together.

In summary, while there is no specific format that

should be followed for all of your writing assignments in

the sciences, a few general guidelines apply. First, always fol-

low the format that is suggested in a given writing assign-

ment. The format is usually specified or spelled out in detail;

if so, it is not meant as a vague suggestion, but instead is

intended as an explicit direction. Second, watch details. Dif-

ferent formats and style sometimes differ in small ways – a

comma here, a semicolon there – and part of the task of

following a particular format is just that, to follow the for-

mat. While this might seem like a trivial exercise, the work

of a scientist in part involves writing papers for publication

or grants for funding, where following proper format is

crucial. Third, unless otherwise stated, in-text citations

should normally be in the form of (author(s), year), rather

than in the form of a footnote, since the former conveys a

lot of information to a reader familiar with the topic. Foot-

notes are generally used in scientific writing only when

space is severely limited, which is typically not the case in

student writing assignments.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter IV

Chapter V

Related Skills

Reading usually precedes writing and the impulse

to write is almost always ﬁred by reading. Reading, the love

of reading, is what makes you dream of becoming a writer.

Susan Sontag

Reading the Scientiﬁc Literature

" The scientific literature is a published account of

work done in a particular field and is the predominant way

in which experimental findings are communicated. The sci-

entific literature is comprised of two types of publications:

primary research articles and review articles. Primary re-

search articles are typically written by the group of scientists

that performed the experiment or experiments being de-

scribed and contain background information outlining the

rationale for performing the experiments, details about the

materials and methods used to conduct the experiments, the

results (data) obtained from the experiments, and the

authors’ analysis and interpretation of the experimental

findings.

Review articles, on the other hand, contain very little

(if any) experimental data; the purpose of a review article is

to summarize and synthesize the findings of one or more

primary research articles and to put those findings in a

broader context that is accessible to a wider readership. Re-

view articles may or may not be written by the scientist(s)

who performed the experiments, although they are almost

always written by scientists having an expertise in the sub-

ject matter of the article. Review articles often present al-

ternate interpretations of the data reported in a primary ar-

ticle, synthesize data presented in multiple primary research

articles into a single model, and provide suggestions for fur-

ther research in the field.

What about textbooks - are they considered part of

the scientific literature? Not really. Textbooks distill infor-

mation contained in primary research and review articles in

order to present a “broad overview” of a particular subject

– in many cases, a single textbook chapter may distill infor-

mation gathered from hundreds of experiments carried out

over many years! Most textbooks contain very little experi-

mental data and almost never provide a detailed description

of the experimental materials and methods. Although text-

books are extensively reviewed and edited by experts in the

field, they occasionally contain oversimplified models and/

or analyses based primarily on current opinion in a given

field, so you should always keep in mind that textbooks are

not a list of undisputed scientific “facts.”

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter V

It is important to gain experience reading the scien-

tific literature for two reasons. First, the most up-to-date

experimental data and ideas are communicated as primary

research articles and review articles, and so all scientists

must be proficient at reading the scientific literature to stay

current in a particular field. Since these most current find-

ings are not available in textbooks, most scientists use text-

books only as resources for gathering background informa-

tion on topics with which they are unfamiliar.

Second, reading the literature encourages you to

think like a scientist. Since the literature contains actual ex-

perimental data and procedures used to reach conclusions, it

enables you to critically examine the authors’ interpretation

and analysis of the data – do you believe what they are tell-

ing you? By examining the experimental data and under-

standing how the authors reached their conclusions, you are

being exposed to the “thought processes” of a group of

scientists (the authors) and challenging yourself to think like

a scientist.

Because the information contained in a research ar-

ticle is compartmentalized, scientific papers are typically not

read straight through like a novel; reading a scientific paper

is not a unidirectional process. To fully comprehend how

the experiments were carried out, understand the data, and

critically examine the authors’ analysis and interpretation of

those data, you will probably need to flip back-and-forth

between sections and will usually need to read the paper

multiple times.

The ability to effectively read the scientific literature

is a skill that is acquired over time. In this guide we offer

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter V

some suggestions on how to begin reading primary research

articles from the scientific literature (to help you prepare for

an assigned reading, for example).

It is important to note here, there is no single cor-

rect way to read a paper. The manner in which you read a

paper will depend on many factors, including your familiar-

ity with the subject matter and the length and format of the

paper (both of which will vary depending on the journal

where the article was published).

An additional factor that will influence how you

read the paper is knowing what you hope to gain from your

reading. Are you reading the paper out of own interest, for

an assignment in a course, or in order to replicate an ex-

periment that has been described in the literature? Alterna-

tively, perhaps you are gathering background information

for your undergraduate thesis project, preparing for your

Ph.D. dissertation defense, writing a grant application to

fund a research project in your laboratory, or reviewing/

critiquing an article submitted by another scientist prior to

publication. For each of these scenarios, you would proba-

bly read the paper in a different manner, by focusing your

attention on different aspects of the paper.

Below, we offer some suggestions on how to read a

primary research article, assuming that you have little (or

no) experience reading the primary literature and that you

are reading the paper to fulfill an assignment in an under-

graduate biology course. Experienced readers will probably

find they already use some of these techniques, but hope-

fully all additional tips will be useful for further improve-

ment.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter V

Step 1: Read the title and abstract. This step will help you de-

termine if the paper is appropriate for your needs (unless

you have been assigned the paper, of course – then you

have to read it!). Pay particular attention to the following

questions:

‣

What hypotheses are the researchers addressing?

‣

How do they test their hypotheses (what is the ex-

perimental design?)

‣

What are the overall findings of the paper?

Do not worry if you cannot answer all of these questions

from reading the abstract alone; you will be able to by the

time you have grappled with the paper a bit.

Step 2: Read the introduction carefully and take notes. A well-

written introduction should lead you directly into the results

section by setting you up to understand the experiments

presented in the paper. If necessary, do some supplemen-

tary reading (you might find it helpful to refer to a textbook

or to papers that are specifically referenced) if you need ad-

ditional background information on the topic(s) discussed

in the paper.

Note that if you are a practicing scientist and if the

paper is in your primary field, you may choose not to read

the introduction because you will be very familiar with the

experiments leading up to the work. However, most stu-

dents should read and understand the introduction, because

it is in the introduction that relevant background informa-

tion is communicated to the reader.

Step 3: Go through the entire paper one figure at a time. The figures

are where the data are presented and are therefore one of

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter V

the most important parts of the paper. Jot down any acro-

nyms you encounter and try to determine what experimen-

tal technique was used to obtain the data presented in each

of the figures (Southern blot, polymerase chain reaction,

Western blot, immunoprecipitation, etc.). This will help

prepare you to read the results and discussion sections. Do

not worry if you do not understand all of the experimental

techniques used in the paper – you will probably understand

them better when you actually read the results and discus-

sion.

Note: many scientists “read” the paper simply by

looking at and understanding the figures, reading the ac-

companying text only as necessary to understand the data

presented in the figures. Write notes to yourself about the

data, its significance and any questions you have as you go

through them.

Step 4: Begin reading the results (or results/discussion) section. As

you read the results section, you will frequently come across

parenthetical references to the figures. Carefully examine

the data and text presented in each figure/figure legend as

you read along, supplementing your understanding of the

experiment with the text in the results section, and, if nec-

essary, the materials and methods section. Repeat this proc-

ess for each of the figures in the paper, until you are confi-

dent that you understand the data presented in each figure.

Understanding the figures is so important that a good rule-

of-thumb is that you should be able to draw out the results

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter V

on a blank sheet of paper and be able to explain them to a

friend using plain English words.

You will likely have to flip back-and-forth, gathering

relevant information from the figure legends, materials and

methods, results, and perhaps even the discussion sections

in order to thoroughly understand the data presented in

each of the figures. By the time you have completed this

stage of the reading, you should have defined all of the ac-

ronyms you jotted down when you skimmed through the

paper and you should be familiar with each of the experi-

mental techniques used to collect the data. If not, you

should do some background reading on topics that remain

confusing, utilizing textbooks and online resources (such as

the “books” search engine at the National Center for Bio-

technology Information

Step 5: Read the discussion section. Once you understand the

results reported in the paper, it is time to tackle the discus-

sion section. The text in the discussion section provides the

authors with the opportunity to put their findings in a

broader context: What conclusions can be drawn from the

findings? How do the findings fit within the field as a

whole?

http://helios.hampshire.edu/~apmNS/design/RESOURCES/

HOW_READ.html

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=Books

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter V

Oral Presentations

Many science classes require some sort of oral pres-

entation that you make to the rest of the class. An oral pres-

entation is usually done to present a scientific paper or re-

view a particular topic. While this is obviously not a writing

assignment, a brief discussion is included here as many of

the same principles apply, including clarity, organization, and

ability to communicate. In addition, if you go on in any

field, be it in science, medicine, business, or teaching, you

will frequently revisit the oral presentation.

There are very few people who have a natural talent

for delivering outstanding presentations. However, plan-

ning, some hard work, and practice can carry the rest of us

to a very good level.

Many students ask whether they should use over-

heads or PowerPoint in their presentations. While you

should follow whatever guidelines are suggested, a useful

rule-of-thumb is that the point of an oral presentation is to

communicate information to others. Therefore, you should

use whatever medium will help you communicate. If Pow-

erPoint will help you get your point across, then use it. If

the blackboard is more effective, then that would be the

route to choose. In other words, the specific medium you

choose is less important than your ability to communicate.

We have probably all seen very effective presentations that

are done without visual aids, as well as PowerPoint slides

that do not add to, and sometimes detract from, the presen-

tation. This section highlights a few things to keep in mind

if you are asked to present a scientific paper to the rest of

your class.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter V

Initial planning. This is a key step. What sort of talk is it?

How long is supposed to be? Who is your audience? What

information are you expected to convey? Be sure you are

clear on these points before moving on to the next steps.

Read the paper. If you are asked to summarize a paper, take

time to read it carefully, paying particular attention to the

central question and hypothesis, methodology, results, and

how the paper fits in the overall theme of what you are cov-

ering in class. You will probably need to read the paper sev-

eral times, first to get the general questions and ideas, and

then to understand the details. Sometimes it is important to

look up, read, and discuss a key paper or two that preceded

the paper you are presenting, particularly if your paper di-

rectly follows in the scientific footsteps of previous work.

Preparing the presentation. Once you understand the paper and

know what you want to say, you will have to decide how to

say it. Unlike a conversation, an oral presentation is a one-

shot attempt to convey information and make a point. It is

essential that your talk be well organized and that your

points are presented to the audience in a logical sequence.

One example of a logical sequence for the presentation of a

scientific paper is to describe the background, question(s),

hypothesis, methods, results, and significance of the data.

Paying attention to these elements, in this order, is often

useful as a way to organize the presentation and communi-

cate the paper. It is often helpful to include a presentation

of at least one key figure from the paper. This demonstrates

that you understand the one or two key findings of the pa-

per and it is also a good chance to for you to explain and

interpret a figure, designate axes, describe the figure’s sig-

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter V

nificance (or lack thereof), etc. It is often more effective to

present the figure on an overhead, PowerPoint, or black-

board rather than have the students all refer to it in a hand-

out so you can describe it to the class. Finally, be sure not to

get lost in the details. While some level of detail is impor-

tant, be cautious about explaining every detail in the context

of a 15-20 minute presentation. Timeliness is at least as im-

portant as thoroughness in this context.

Visual Aids. Many students ask whether they should use

overheads or PowerPoint in their presentations. While you

should follow whatever guidelines are suggested, remember

that the point of an oral presentation is to communicate

information to others. Therefore, you should use whatever

medium will help you communicate. If PowerPoint will help

you get your point across, then use it. If the blackboard is

more effective, then that would be the route to choose. In

other words, the specific medium you choose is less impor-

tant than your ability to communicate. We have probably all

seen very effective presentations that are done without vis-

ual aids, as well as PowerPoint slides that do not add to, and

sometimes detract from, the presentation.

Questions. Sometimes, depending on the context and assign-

ment, a nice way to end an oral presentation is with a class

discussion. Prepare a list of relevant questions that you

think will stimulate a discussion. Open-ended questions are

far more useful for generating discussion than questions

that quiz everyone on the factual details of the paper. Many

interesting discussions result from connecting information

and concepts from other disciplines, such as neurobiology,

biochemistry, genetics, psychology, economics, mathematics,

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter V

etc. Here are some examples of questions to aid you in your

own question-writing endeavors:

‣

How universal are the conclusions from this ex-

periment?

‣

What assumptions do the authors make?

‣

Can you think of a way to improve the experimental

design?

‣

Do you think the experiments are well controlled?

‣

How do the results and conclusions connect to what

you are learning in class?

Rehearse. One of the most important aspects of preparing

an oral presentation is to rehearse. Do so by yourself at

first. Then for a real test, practice your presentation in front

of friends, classmates, or colleagues. As you rehearse, be

sure to pay attention to some key elements of oral presenta-

tions:

‣

Opening. The opening should catch the interest and

attention of the audience immediately. This is also

the place to avoid technical jargon.

‣

Transitions. The links between successive elements

of the talk should be planned carefully so that they

are smooth and logical. You should make the con-

nections between each part clear to the audience.

‣

Conclusion. Try to help your audience understand

your main points by including some sort of wrap-up

or conclusion at the end. It is useful to signal that

the summary is beginning explicitly.

‣

Rate. Don’t talk too quickly or you will lose your

audience. People tend to speed up when they are

nervous, so you may need to practice talking more

slowly than you think. Use pauses where appropriate

and repeat critical information.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter V

‣

Time. A 20-minute talk should be a 20-minute talk,

not a 30-minute talk or a 10-minute talk. While this

point sounds obvious, this is a typical place where

many presenters have trouble. The audience may get

antsy if a 20-minute talk starts going on too long

with no signs of finishing. Part of planning a pres-

entation is to make sure it does indeed fit into the

allotted time. When you practice, be sure you time

your presentation.

Active Listening

! Listening is often taken for granted. However, active

listening is an essential, but often overlooked and under-

practiced, skill in scientific and academic endeavors (and in

many other areas as well). Again, a full discussion of active

listening is beyond the scope of this Guide, but a few char-

acteristics of active listening will be highlighted here

‣

Be attentive. Focus your thoughts and attention

on the presenter.

‣

Do not interrupt.

‣

Be able to restate the person’s key points and

important thoughts.

‣

Be mindful of your non-verbal behavior such as

posture, eye contact, facial expressions, and ges-

tures.

‣

Keep in mind that active listening is personally

enriching.

Adapted from Joan Sturkie and Valerie Gibson, Peer Counselor’s

Pocket Book, San Jose: Resources Publication, 1989.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Chapter V

‣

Avoid mentally arguing with yourself or with the

other person while s/he is speaking.

‣

Do not antagonize the speaker with hasty judg-

ments.

‣

Avoid making premature conclusions.

‣

When the speaker is finished, be ready with a

question or two that shows you listened, under-

stood, and are actively thinking about what was

said.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Appendix

A$en%x

Additional Resources

Writing Support Services at Harvard University

Harvard University Writing Center

Barker Center 019

12 Quincy Street

Cambridge, MA 02138

617-495-1655

http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~wricntr

Pre-scheduled conferences with trained peer tutors

are offered Monday through Friday, 9 - 5PM; drop-in hours

are offered Sunday through Thursday, 7 - 9PM. Always

check the website for location of drop-in hours. (During the

week, you need to arrive no later than 8PM to guarantee a

slot.) You are also welcome to drop in during the day, and, if

one of the tutors is free, he or she will gladly meet with you

at that time.

Bureau of Study Counsel

5 Linden Street

Cambridge, MA 02138

617-495-2581

e-mail: bsc@fas.harvard.edu

http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~bsc

You should also check to see if your house has a

resident or non-resident writing tutor.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Appendix

Useful Websites on Writing

Writing Center’s “Writing Tools”

http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~wricntr/html/tools.htm

Writing with Sources

http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~expos/sources

Lamont Library’s Website for Student Writers

http://hcl.harvard.edu/lamont/resources/guides

University of Chicago Writing Program

http://writing-program.uchicago.edu/resources/grammar.h

Searchable Online Databases

Medline (U.S. National Library of Medicine)

Follow links to PubMed from the homepage of the Na-

tional Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) home

page at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

/ for access to ab-

stracts only or to Medline from Harvard University Library

e-resources link at http://lib.harvard.edu

for full access.

Science Citation Index (Institute for Scientific Information,

or ISI) Follow links to Science Citation Index from Harvard

University Library e-resources link at http://lib.harvard.edu

for full access.

Biological Abstracts (BIOSIS)

Follow links to BIOSIS from Harvard University Library e-

resources link at http://lib.harvard.edu

for full access.

Harvard University Libraries

Access website at http://lib.harvard.edu, follow link to e-

resources, then choose journal or database. Your identifica-

tion number and PIN will give you access to all sources with

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Appendix

which Harvard has a licensing agreement, including Science

Citation Index and BIOSIS.

Suggested References for Further Reading

Harnack, A., & Kleppinger, E. (2003). Online! A Reference

Guide to Using Internet Sources. Boston: Bedford/St.

Martin’s.

O’Brien, E., Rosenzweig, J., & Sommers, N. (2004). Making

the Most of College Writing: A Guide for Freshmen.

Cambridge, MA: Expository Writing Program, Harvard

College.

Pechenik, J.A. (2004). A Short Guide to Writing about Biol-

ogy. (5

ed.). New York: Pearson Education, Inc.

Strunk, W. Jr., & White, E.B. (2000). The Elements of Style.

ed.). Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Trus, L. (2003). Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance

Approach to Punctuation. New York: Gotham Books.

A Student’s Guide to Writing in the Life Sciences Appendix