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COMP70100 Effective Academic Writing

Current COMP70100 (2009/10)

Level: 7
Credit Rating: 15
Degree(s): MPhil, PhD: for new research students and anyone completing this year
Duration: 15 weeks in second semester
Seminars: about 18 in total, 1-2 per week (see schedule)
Assessment: Technical Writing and Critique of Technical Writing.

Aims

The aim of the seminar is to help students:

  • develop their scientific writing skills
  • understand the publication process and how to publish
  • select material to be included in the thesis
  • present the material in a coherent and interesting way

Objectives

Each student must be able to:

  • construct a 8-12 page technical document associated with your research project (thesis chapter, research paper, user manual), demonstrating
    • a command of the rules governing the use of words, as given in reference manuals;
    • a style of writing that is both clear and understandable to academics from the field;
    • an ability to present a coherent and interesting argument.

Reading list

Syllabus

The topics covered include:

  • Some simple rules of English usuage, to avoid the usual pitfalls.
  • Technical writing
  • Strategies for paper writing and publication at conferences and in journals.
  • What is required of a thesis? What will happen in your viva?
  • Making your thesis fun to read (and write): good writing style.
  • Scientific philosophy: what makes work science and how to bring that out in your written work.

Assignment

Each student will be required to

  • present, in written form, a technical document associated with their research. This could be a chapter from their thesis, a conference paper, a journal paper or a user manual. The document must include: A title, an abstract, an introduction, conclusion and references.
  • presenting a review and leading a discussion of a piece written by another student.

Background Reading works:

  • Old GSSEM's Notes on writing a thesis.
  • Questions asked of examiners of MPhil and PhD theses.
  • Past winners of the Distinguished Dissertations awarded by the British Computer Society.
  • Aaron Sloman's notes on how to write a thesis.
  • R.M. Ritter, The Oxford guide to style. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002.
    This is an updated version of the classic Hart, Horace, Hart's rules for compositors and readers at the University Press, Oxford. 39th completely rev. ed. Oxford : Oxford University Press, 1983.
    Used as a standard by the Oxford University Press. Now includes sections on different subjects, including computing.
  • Judith Butcher. Copy editing: the Cambridge handbook for editors, authors and publishers. 3rd edition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992.
    Used as a standard for the Cambrdige University Press. Gives good descriptions of all conventions.
  • The Oxford English dictionary for writers and editors. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1981.
    THE source for abbreviations and single word/hyphenated/two words conventions. Did you know it is M.Sc. but MA?
  • The Chicago manual of style, 14th edition. Chicago: Chicago University Press, 1993.
    THE reference work for academic work in the U.S.A.
  • Kate L. Turabian. A manual for writers of term papers, theses and dissertations. 5th edition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987.
    Based on the Chicago Manual of Style, giving guidance on technical matters at the word level.

Other useful texts:

  • J.R. Matthews, J.M. Bowen and R.W. Matthews, Successful scientific writing: a step by step guide for the biological and medical sciences. 2nd ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000.
    Of all the many How-to books, this appealed to me the most.
  • Antoinette M. Wilkinson, The scientist's handbook for writing papers and dissertations. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1991.
    The most complete guide I've found to date. Thorough and good.
  • Justin Zobel. Writing for Computer Science. Singapore: Springer, 1997.
    Includes style heuristics at the sentence and paragraph level, as well as strategy. Good on relevant examples.
  • Nicholas J.Higham. Handbook of writing for the mathematical sciences. Philadelphia; SIAM, 1993.
    Gives good guidance on style, including contents of the abstract and introduction, (chapter 6), on the choice of words (chapter 4) as well as on mathematics writing in particular (chapter 3).
  • Linda Flower. Problem-solving strategies for writing. 4th edition. Fort Worth: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1993.
    A general introduction to writing, for university students. Based on a cognitive analysis of students actually writing.
  • Edward R. Tufte. The Visual display of quantitative information. Cheshire, Connecticut: Graphics Press, 1983.
  • Steven Pinker. The Language Instinct. Penguin, 1994.
    Chapter 12 is a diatribe AGAINST the rules given by grammarians, such as not to carelessly split infinitives, on the grounds that they are only there precisely because we (need to) break them on occasion!

On-line works:

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