Scientists and engineers can find it difficult to write
effectively about their research, however, honing your writing ability is a necessity
if you wish to successfully promote your research and further your career.
SPIE recently published a book by Chris A. Mack titled How to Write a Good Scientific Paper. This book is available for free online and
offers advice on everything from style to graphics to picking the right journal
to publish in. The free online version
of the book can be downloaded here: http://spie.org/Publications/Book/2317706?SSO=1.
One topic that Mack discusses at length is the importance of
a literature review. This component is often
overlooked in scientific writing, much to the detriment of the paper. Literature reviews offer a summary of
scholarly articles, books, and other literature on the topic as well as methods
used in the research. It also serves as
an overview of the subject and gives the reader an understanding of where your
paper fits within the scope of previous work.
If you are interested in learning more about compiling a
literature review, take a look at the Schwerdtfeger Library’s video series of
tutorials on the subject: http://library.ssec.wisc.edu/research_Resources/atmospheric_Resources/research_Guides.
There are many other books available through the
libraries on the topic of scientific writing, some of which are listed below:
·
Writing science: how to write papers that
get cited and proposals that get funded by Joshua Schimel
If you have any questions or would like more
recommendations, please contact the Schwerdtfeger Library at library@ssec.wisc.edu or stop by room
317.