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Practical guidelines for writing a technical or scientific report

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Title: Practical guidelines for writing a technical or scientific report


1
Practical guidelines for writing a technical or
scientific report
  • J. De Schutter, K.U.Leuven/PMA

2
  • How important are written and oral reporting for
    an engineer, and why are they important ?
  • What is the most important basic principle of
    good reporting ?

3
Overview
  • Introduction
  • General remarks
  • Guidelines for contents
  • How to structure thoughts ?
  • Guidelines for style
  • Examples
  • Conclusion
  • Epilogue guidelines for oral presentations

4
Introduction
  • Objective
  • Improve the quality of reports
  • Reports of project works 1st2nd3rd ir.
  • Reports of design project 2nd ir.
  • Thesis 3rd ir. postgraduate programs
  • Technical report
  • Publication (journal or conference paper ...)

5
General remarks (1)
  • Reporting is an essential part of any technical
    or scientific activity (...
    15 ...)
  • Basic principle Make it as simple as possible
    for the reader !!
  • ? Guide the reader
  • ? Give a clear message
  • ? Be concise

6
General remarks (2)
  • And, furthermore
  • Report is your name card
  • Proper reporting requires special effort
  • Writing down brings about better understanding

7
Guidelines for contents (1)
  • Title
  • Aim give reader exact idea of contents
  • ? should cover contents as specifically as
    possible
  • as specific as possible
  • every word is important
  • ? is decided at the very last moment !
  • Example
  • BAD Detector of air bubbles
  • GOOD Design of an ultrasonic detector of air
    bubbles for blood lines

8
Guidelines for contents (2)
  • Abstract
  • Aim
  • indicates clearly own contributions
  • helps reader to decide whether report is of
    interest to him
  • ? Only summarises conclusions, no explanation
  • ? Is written at the last moment !

9
Guidelines for contents (3)
  • Table of contents
  • Aim
  • allows to jump to specific part of the text
  • reveals structure of report
  • ? structure should be logical and transparant !

10
Guidelines for contents (4)
  • Introduction
  • Situate problem or assignment
  • Give relation with literature/previous work
    (? references !)
  • Give short description of activities/procedures
    followed
  • Summarise most important conclusions
  • Give structure of report (refer to different
    parts)

11
Guidelines for contents (5)
  • Chapters/Sections
  • Logical/transparant structure and sequence
  • Equilibrated sections (approx. same length)
  • Limited subdivisions
  • three for thesis e.g. 3.5.1
  • two for publication or short report e.g. 3.5
  • Usual order theory/experimental set-up/ results
    discussion

12
Guidelines for contents (6)
  • Chapters/Sections (continued)
  • Contents of chapters of thesis
  • Introduction
  • Short description of activity procedure
  • Conclusions of chapter
  • Structure of chapter
  • Sections
  • Conclusion

13
Guidelines for contents (7)
  • (General) Conclusion
  • Recaps most important conclusions
  • Gives suggestions for further study/research
  • BAD situate problem, explain, motivate, etc.
  • References complete and systematic !!
  • chronological
  • order of appearance
  • alphabetical

14
Guidelines for contents (8)
  • Appendices
  • Non-essential details that harm readability
  • Long proofs
  • Long calculations
  • Extensive experimental results
  • Deviations from main line of thought

15
How to structure thoughts ? (1)
  • Rule 1 Treat all necessary topics
  • Example cycle of combustion engine

16
How to structure thoughts ? (2)
  • A. Intake stroke
  • 1. Increase of volume
  • 2. Decrease of pressure
  • 3. Inflow of gas mixture
  • 4. Closing of intake valve
  • B. Compression stroke
  • 1. Decrease of volume
  • 2. Increase of temperature
  • C. Power stroke
  • 1. Increase of volume
  • 2. Evolution of pressure
  • 3. Opening of exhaust valve
  • 4. Outflow of combustion gases

17
How to structure thoughts ? (3)
  • Rule 2 Omit all unnecessary (irrelevant) topics
  • Example cycle of combustion engine no
    description of carburetter
  • How do irrelevant topics sneak in ?
  • We work hard on something we are interested in
    ...
  • Some subject is very close to our subject ...
  • After some time we find out that the original
    scope was too wide and we have to narrow down.

18
How to structure thoughts ? (4)
  • Regel 3 With a top-down procedure divide each
    topic in all its sub-topics
  • Every sub-topic can only belong to one sub-topic
    of a higher level (father)
  • Every sub-topic should be at the same level with
    at least one other sub-topic

19
How to structure thoughts ? (5)
  • Regel 4 Order each group of sub-topics in a good
    way
  • Avoid cross division use unique criterion !
  • Example
  • A. Machines
  • 1. Pumps
  • a. Principle pumps
  • b. Secondary pumps
  • c. Tertiary pumps
  • d. Centrifugal pumps
  • ...

20
How to structure thoughts ? (6)
  • Avoid cross division use unique criterion !
  • Example
  • I. Shoes
  • 1. Leather
  • 2. Wood
  • 3. Textile
  • 4. Cardboard
  • 5. Safety shoes
  • 6. Health shoes
  • 7. Child shoes

21
How to structure thoughts ? (7)
  • Rule 5 Use as much as possible parallel
    treatment and parallel structure
  • Example
  • BAD
  • I. How heat is generated
  • II. Measurement of heat
  • III. Heat transfer

22
How to structure thoughts ? (8)
  • GOOD
  • I. Generation of heat
  • II. Measurement of heat
  • III. Transfer of heat
  • I. Heat generation
  • II. Heat measurement
  • III. Heat transfer

23
How to structure thoughts ? (9)
  • Questionnaire
  • Does the table of contents express a certain
    objective ?
  • Does the table of contents contain the essentials
    of the subject ?
  • Does the table of contents include the whole
    subject ?
  • Is the table of contents clear ? Do the topic
    headings make sense ?
  • Is every topic sufficiently divided in sub-topics
    ?
  • Are the chosen headings the most appropriate ones
    (for your objectives) ?
  • Are all superfluous topics omitted ?

24
How to structure thoughts ? (10)
  • Do the groups of headings express the relative
    length of all parts of the finished report ?
  • Does the table of contents a feeling of unity,
    rather than a simple collection of headings ?
  • Does every heading, if it is subdivided, have at
    least two sub-headings ?
  • Are there less than six sub-headings ?
  • (If not check if all sub-headings are indeed at
    the same level)
  • Is every sub-heading placed under the right
    heading ?
  • Is every group of sub-headings free of cross
    division
  • If advisable, is parallel treatment and parallel
    wording being used ?

25
Guidelines for style (1)
  • General
  • Conciseness
  • Delete all meaningless words, sentences, ...
  • Avoid repetition
  • Guide the reader
  • Use introductory sentences and refer later on
  • Define all concepts !!
  • Never leave the reader with questions
  • Do not try out the readers curiosity

26
Guidelines for style (2)
  • Paragraph
  • Topic sentence sentence around which the other
    sentences of the paragraph are being developed
  • Methods to develop the paragraph ?
  • from general to detail
  • from physical cause to consequence
  • order according to space or time
  • by analogy
  • by example

27
Guidelines for style (3)
  • by comparison or contrast
  • by explanation of a definition
  • from simple to complex
  • by proof (induction or deduction)
  • by order of importance
  • ...

28
Guidelines for style (4)
  • Sentence
  • Use short, simple sentences
  • Introduce only one new idea per sentence
  • Make the most important element subject and place
    it in front
  • Avoid the use of we/I/one
  • BAD In this chapter we describe how we have
    extended the 2D system to a 3D system

29
Guidelines for style (5)
  • Sentence (continued)
  • Indicate clearly relation with previous sentence
  • use reference words
  • conjunctions
  • prepositions
  • demonstrative pronouns
  • punctuation marks (between parts of compound
    sentence)
  • Use parallel wording for parallel constructions

30
Guidelines for style (6)
  • Verbs
  • Active prefer active form over passive form
  • BAD In this chapter it is described how the
    2D-system is extended to a 3D-system.
  • GOOD This chapter describes the extension from
    a 2D-system to a 3D-system.
  • BAD Following results are obtained in this
    experiment ...
  • GOOD This experiment yields following results
    ...

31
Guidelines for style (7)
  • Verbs (continued)
  • Active replace noun by verb
  • BAD Title
  • Control of heavy machines for in ...
  • GOOD Title
  • Controlling heavy machines for in
  • Simplicity use as much as possible present tense
  • Direct avoid verbs like would/should/can/could/ma
    y/...

32
Guidelines for style (8)
  • Choice of words
  • As specific as possible
  • BAD a transducer
  • GOOD a strain gauge
  • BAD is obtained
  • GOOD is measured
    or is calculated
  • No poetic descriptions
  • Always use same word for same concept
  • Choose simplest expression

33
Guidelines for style (9)
  • Formulas and symbols
  • Use standard symbols and notations
  • Avoid double use of symbols
  • Define symbols where they appear first
  • Insert short formulas in text
  • Write longer formulas on separate line
  • Use punctuation marks, for example
  • This yields
  • y ax2 bx c ,
  • where a, b and c result from (3.23).

34
Guidelines for style (10)
  • Figures and tables
  • Sufficiently large and clear
  • Label axes units scales
  • Show most significant results
  • Refer to figure or table in text
  • Add explanatory caption to figure or table

35
Guidelines for style (11)
  • Appendices
  • Add necessary explanation !

36
Examples (1a)
  • Both methods are applicable to systems that can
    be considered single degree of freedom and few
    restrictions are imposed upon the type of
    nonlinearity. The methods are self-consistent in
    the sense that no apriori knowledge about the
    nonlinear system characteristics is required and
    no initial estimates or approximative functions
    have to be provided. (54 words)

37
Examples (1b)
  • Both methods apply only to single degree of
    freedom systems, however with few restrictions
    imposed upon the type of nonlinearity. They
    require no prior knowledge about the type of
    nonlinearity no initial estimates or approximate
    functions are needed. (38 words)

38
Examples (2ab)
  • De wagen met zijn weggedrag dat bepaald is door
    de stuurgeometrie en de ophanging, afvering,
    demping en belading, is wat ze is. (22 woorden)
  • De stuurgeometrie, de ophanging (vering en
    demping) en de belading bepalen het weggedrag van
    de wagen. Zij worden gegeven verondersteld. (20
    woorden)

39
Examples (3a)
  • Indien niet de ideale overbrengverhouding No,
    maar een andere overbrengverhouding N, gekozen
    wordt voor de gegeven inerties en de andere
    gegevens, dan definieert men een energiefaktor
    rho die de verhouding is van de energiedissipatie
    bij de gekozen overbrengverhouding N tot de
    ideale overbrengverhouding No. (44 woorden)

40
Examples (3b)
  • De energiefactor ? wordt gedefinieerd als de
    verhouding van de gedissipeerde energie bij de
    gekozen overbrengingsverhouding N tot de
    gedissipeerde energie bij de ideale
    overbrengingsverhouding No. (26 woorden)

41
Examples (4ab)
  • A self-calibration procedure will deduce the
    systematic errors of the CMMs and this
    information can be used in an on-line error
    correction of single measurements by the CMM. (28
    words)
  • A calibration procedure determines the systematic
    errors of the CMM. These are then used for
    on-line error correction. (18 words)

42
Examples (5a)
  • Als er een goede instelling voor de PID-regelaar
    zou bestaan, dan kunnen we ons voorstellen dat
    bij uitval van de koppelsensor er wordt
    overgegaan op een algoritme dat het gemeten
    koppel aan het stuur vervangt door het berekende
    T_in_experimenteel. We hebben dan dus een
    regeling zonder koppelsensor die toch
    koppelgevoelig is. Evenwel is het
    adaptatievermogen van de nieuwe regeling zero
    geworden. (62 woorden)

43
Examples (5b)
  • Bij uitval van de koppelsensor kan het koppel
    Tin,experimenteel, berekend door een goed
    ingestelde PID-regelaar, het gemeten koppel aan
    het stuur vervangen. Zo ontstaat een regeling
    zonder koppelsensor, die toch koppelgevoelig is.
    Deze regeling is echter niet adaptief. (38
    woorden)

44
Conclusion
  • Reporting is important it is an essential part
    of the work
  • Reporting requires special effort and critical
    attitude
  • Basic principle make it as simple as possible
  • Practical guidelines for
  • Structure of contents
  • Style
  • Reports of project works, design projects, thesis
    projects are very good exercise !

45
Epilogue guidelines for oral presentations (1)
  • Same as report guide listener, give clear
    message, be concise
  • Slides
  • characters big enough
  • not too much information on one slide
  • start with overview end with conclusion
  • use pointer
  • no strip-tease

46
Epilogue guidelines for oral presentations (2)
  • Guidelines for speaking
  • speak loud enough
  • face the audience
  • do not use stopgaps
  • respect time limit
  • prepare very well and practise !
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