The simplest way to write a

paperThe simplest way to write a paper

This presentation is a show of flashes to put forth the main concepts

and ideas about the way to prepare a paper. There are numerous books, articles and manuals that specify particular rules for style and grammar, therefore these aspects will not mention here. The aim is to make the students to think, to awaken their curiosity and to create their own criteria to judge and criticize their own work, and finally to express it.

This work is addressed to graduate or postgraduate students not to editors or any other specialist joined to the publishing world, and emphasizes the importance of the scientific research communication.

The importance of science communication and research transfer to the scientific community

How to organize the material (results, tables, figures, references...) to constitute a map of information, and how to move the pieces into a comprehensive whole.

It is focused on:

The main guidelines to structure a manuscript and preparing a draft. The characteristics of any part in a paper.

The revision of the first draft.

The submission of the original work and a brief description of the manuscripts handling in the editorial office.

and on .....

• The construction of the science is based on the communication of the research results.

Research

Production

Literature

your research career. Within the circle it is relevant to communicate your results as brief and clear as possible.

Previous works are thebasis for yours, when you enter in the loop (intake, production, output and feedback) you become a consumer and a producer and so on till the end of

Why is important your scientific contribution?

Question

How does the process begin?

Preliminary research

answeryes noNew research

Project design

Lab workresults

conclusions

manuscript Dissemination & retrieval

Be aware of the contribution of your research to the Scientific Community and try to share it with your colleagues

How?Communicating your results (written, oral, others)

When you consider you have finished an homogeneous part, be sure before closing the assays.

Arrange and organize your notes, references or any other material, display and classify it.

How to startto write a

manuscript?

Organize your information

Structure your information in separate blocks

Notes, comentaries, references, objetives

Samples, individuals, sampling, analytical and statistical methods, ...

Answers to the objetives support-ed by numerical, graphical or any other formsAnalysis of the results, comparison with other authors

Try to integrate your puzzle of information

And structure it

Structure of a scientific paper

Title

Authors’ names and

affiliation

Abstract, keywords

Introduction

Material and methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusions

Acknowledgements

References

Annexes

TITLEThe title should inform accurately about the content of the manuscript without ambiguities.

Why is important the title?

Most of information retrieval services, browsers or data bases use titles to elaborate their indexes, so the more accurate and concise the better to its specific dissemination and retrieval.

InformativeBriefSpecificAccurateConciseUnambiguous

Basic characteristics of a title

Authors’ names and affiliations

Use always the same name (signature) to avoid any confussion within the scientific community. A “reliable name” is advisable. Identify the author for correspondence (with *).

Give the complete name and address of the institutions or centers the authors belong to.

Currently e-mails are also given.

KeywordsKeywords have not to be “empty words” or express generalities. Their source could come from:

Descriptors from a thesaurusFree text

AbstractThe abstract, summary or synopsis is, like the title, one element within the manuscript of relevant importance. The retrieval of the paper and its reading depend greatly on it. Therefore it should provide the concise information to indicate whether the paper fulfils our expectations.The main feature of an abstract is its size. In very few words (200-300) the abstract should inform about the main aspects of the manuscripts and respond to why, what, how and the results and their interpretation.

Characteristics of an abstract

Brief Inform ativeConcise Condensed

Content

Structured Single paragraph

Form at

Abstract

Short sentences, but not telegraphedNo references, tables or figuresNo acronyms, abbreviations..

No excessive details

IntroductionBrief

Focused

With the most relevant references

Without repetitions of known stablished assumptions

Aims and objetives

Material and methods

Samples, samplingIndividualsMaterial (origin if neccesary)Methods (references and brief description)Statistical methods (packages, software..)Equations. Internationally nomenclature accepted

Results

Answers to the objectivesExpose the experiences logically sequencedOmit superfluous resultsDo not remove those that invalidate the initial hypothesisDo not repeat any information in tables or figures, and in the text

DiscussionWhat do the results mean?

Are my results compared with other previous works?

Do not repeat results

Conclusions

AcknowledgementsNames, institutions, projects, grants, etc...

Citation

S. Harvard S. Vancouver(Name and year) (numerical sequence)

......These results agreed with previous works (Smith, 1996; Brown et al., 1998)....

......These results agreed with previous works 1,2......

Bibliographic elements:Journal article: Authors. Year. Article Title, Journal, Vol. (issue).pp-pp.Book: Author(s). Year. Title. Edition. City of publication. Publisher. pp.-pp.Chapter of book: Author’s chapter. Year. Chapter title. Editor. Book title. Edition. City of publication. Publisher. Pp.pp.

Patent: Author. Year. Patent title. Number of the patent.Congress comunication: Author. Year. Title of the communication. Title of the congress. City. Date

Verb tenses

Pasive voicePast

Present

Do not flaw the text with redundant passive voice, avoid it when neccesary and apply when the subject is unknown and the object relevant

Directives, conclussions, generalities, stable conditionsProcedures, results, finished statements

Active voice

Tables

Simple, avoid grids and backgrounds, use only the concise lines to separate the content from the headings.

Do no repeat any information in tables and figures or within the text.

Use only the essential footnotes

(Express in a tabular way concise results)

Do not forget the units of the headings.

The table should contain at least 2 x2, rows x columns.

FiguresFigure = figure caption+ axes+units+ content

Avoid grids, lines, frames, and legends inside the drawing.

Figures are preferably to show tendencies more than particular (discrete) data.

Avoid figures with only a line. Use common symbols, clear and neat within the traces.

Have you chosen the journal?

Have you the instructions to

authors?

Let’s write the first draft

AVOID

Long

Redundant Ambiguous

Jargonized

Obscure

MANUSCRIPTS

The simpler

The clearer

The shorter

The moreconcise

TheBetter The

more arresting

Manuscripts

Why?How?What did you find?What does it mean?

Does your paper answer these questions? introduction

material + methodsresultsdiscussion

Check the accuracy of the data in tables and figures

Are all tables and figures neccesary?

Could you join figures or tables?

Do you repeat any information?

Re-read first draft

Revise the style

Review the content, data, references

2nd draft

Final manuscript

Submiss ion andE ditorial proc ess ing

R ev iewer 1 R ev iewer 2 Ed. Board In houseExpert com m ittee

R ev iew Editoria l o fficedecision

Author

Acceptance(< 5% )

M odifica tions,C hanges............

R e jection

2nd version

further correction Acceptance R ejection

in house rev iew

Peer rev iew

Journal