How to write a good

Scientific Research paper

Prof. Dr. A. I. Mustafa
Chairman
BCSIR

A scientific paper is a written and published

report describing original research results
Dissemination of research results and findings is
an integral part of a research process. Research
is not complete until it is communicated
So..
Scientists must write and publish their work
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Research Idea

Materialization /
Expt. approach

Communicate results

i) Publishing research papers

ii) Registering patents
iii) Developing & leasing processes
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1)

Scientific writing should be simple and clear

but lucid.

Its purpose is to inform

2)

Scientific writing should be very organized.

So ..
Selection of right journal
where the paper will be submitted
Standard of the journal
What is the IMPACT FACTOR of the journal
Instruction to authors according to the selected journal
How the manuscript will be prepared

IF is a way to show the relative importance of a journal

The IF of a journal for a particular year is the average
number of citations received per paper published in that
journal during the two preceding years.
Journals with higher impact factors deemed to be more
important than those with lower ones.

If a journal has an impact factor of 3 in 2010, then its

papers published in 2008 and 2009 received 3 citations
each on average in 2010.

A
, where X = target year;
B
A = Cites to published articles YEARx1 + YEARx2 during YEARX and
IF of a journal for YEARx =

B = Total number of published articles YEARx1 + YEARx2

(Citable items: articles, reviews, proceedings etc.; not letters to the editor.)

IF of a journal for 2010 can be calculated as follows:

A=
the number of times that articles published in
that journal in 2008 & 2009, were cited by
articles in indexed journals during 2010.
B=
the total number of citable items published by
that journal in 2008 & 2009.
IF of that journal for the year 2010 = A/B
So
(2010 impact factor is published in 2011; it cannot be calculated until all
of the 2010 publications have been processed by the indexing agency)
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Front Matter
Title
Authors (co-authors) name and affiliation
Abstract
Keywords

Article Body
Introduction

Materials and Methods

Results and Discussion
Conclusion

End Matter
Acknowledgment (technical and financial assistance)
References
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Title: Reflects core content of the work

What was done? What was found?
What are the major conclusions?

Shortened
version of whole
piece of work

What problem was investigated and why?

What other works were done in the related field?
(i.e. a short review)
What is the aim/objective of the work?

How was the problem investigated?

What are the outcomes?

What do these outcomes/findings mean?

What is the take-home message of the work?

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Should be informative, meaningful & specific (not vague)

Neither too short nor too long
Words like studies on, investigation on etc. should be avoided

Must be chosen with extreme care since it will be read by

thousands of people while a few will go thru the entire paper
Indexing and abstracting of an article
depends on the precision of the title
Inappropriate title will led the article to be
indexed in wrong zone
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Examples:
Title: Action of antibiotics on microorganisms
Does this title looks like an attractive one ?
No. This is a vague title
Why?

Not defined

Title: Composition of the leaf and bark essential oil of

Cinnamomum Verum from Bangladesh
Not a correct title
Corrected version:
Composition of essential oil extracted from the leaf and
bark of Cinnamomum Verum available in Bangladesh
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List only those authors/co-authors name who have contributed

substantially to the work

Agree on the order of the authors names according to their

contribution
Specify affiliation of all authors according to journal format

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Capture the attention of readers

So..
Keywords should be very selective and appropriate

While choosing keywords, imagine you are looking

for your article in certain database

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Abstract
Introduction

and

Materials &
methods
Results
Discussion

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Highlight the whole piece of work in shortened

(100 250 words) but Lucid way. It is just like
Icing on the cake
A way to writing a good Abstract
Focus on:
Background information

Purpose of the study & its scope

Methods used in the study

Results (Most important ones)

Conclusion

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B
P
M
R
C

Tips to remember ABCs of a good abstract

Accuracy Highlight exact information which is focused inside the

Brevity

Clarity

article
Describe in precise language, and do not include
superfluous adjectives
Do not mention any jargons/mumbo jumbo;
Findings must be well-spoken

Write the Abstract in the past (perfect) tense,

because it refers the work that has been done

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(i)

Introduce the topic giving emphasis on its importance

(ii)

Knit related background information, present status &

previous work (literature review) together

(iii) Justify / correlate the objective of the work

Write maximum part of Introduction in present tense

Use active voice as much as possible
Avoid lengthy or unfocused reviews of previous research

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Introduce the Topic

Relate to current
knowledge

Indicate the gap

Introduce your work
State research
questions & objectives
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This section must be brief but informative. Clearly

explain how you carried out your study according to the
following generalized structure :
i)

What materials were used?

ii) How the experiment was structured or designed?

iii) How the experimental procedure was done? (i.e.

protocol for recording the data & it should be realistic)
iv) How the data were analyzed?
Write most of this section in past tense using
passive voice
Do not include any RESULT !
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Approved Title: Adsorption of organic dyes from aqueous solution

onto a low-cost adsorbent jackfruit peel
Reported Title: Adsorption of organic dyes from aqueous solution
onto a low-cost adsorbent jackfruit seed
Described Method: Jackfruit seed was washed and dried at 45 C
for 24 hrs. Then it was pulverized and used for adsorption study
Does this described method looks realistic

1st mistake: Anomalies in Title!

2nd mistake: Neither jackfruit seed nor peel can be completely
dried at 45 C for 24 hrs and pulverized.
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This is the Key driver of an article

Story of the article is based on the results
It ultimately turns data into knowledge
It is the most significant part of a paper.

So

i)

It should be short but clearly represented without wordiness.

ii)

No discussions should be included here.

iii)

Use Tables and Figures to organize all the data systematically:

Tables to show exact values
Figures to show trends or relationship effect

iv) Figures and Tables should be easy to understand without the

reader having to refer to the text
v)

Do not include both a Table and a Figure showing the same

information

vi) Textual representation mentioning the key findings must be

provided with each Table and Figure
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Use different tenses while giving different information in

the RESULT section. e.g.
i) Something done during the study past tense
ii) Something in the paper itself (Figure, Table)
present tense

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This is the toughest section to write. Its primary purpose is

to demonstrate the relationships among experimental facts.
Answer research
questions

Support and
defend answers
with results

Establish novelty

EXPLAIN:
- Conflicting results
- Unexpected findings
- Discrepancies with
other research

State importance
of findings

State limitations
of the study

Use both present tense and past tense

Reference work past tense
Own research result present / past tense
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Characterization of peanut shells by FTIR study: The

important IR absorption bands are assigned as:
The broad absorption band at 3434 cm-1 was indicative of O-H
group. A weak band was observed around 2959 cm-1 due to
sp3 C-H stretching. The band at around 1750 cm-1 was
characteristic of C=O stretching of carbonyl group of cellulose.
The absorption band at around 1628 cm-1 was observed due to
C=C stretching vibration in aromatic skeletal lignin.
Does this part reflects a good Discussion

Supporting references not mentioned

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Provides an effective
ending of the paper

So
Carefully focus the sequences
i)

State whether your aims have been achieved

ii)

Give a brief summary of the key findings

iii) Highlight the major outcomes and their significance

iv) Recommend future works

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v) State the possibility of commercialization potential or

practical application of the outcome

Acknowledge
i) Any significant help received from any individual, whether in
the laboratory or elsewhere
ii) Any sort of financial assistance, such as grants, contracts or
fellowships
Do not use the word wish, simply write I thank ..
but not I wish to thank

ALL the references used in the text must be listed properly

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Persons who have significant contributions in conducting the

research must not be excluded from the authors list and persons
without having any contribution should not be included as author
No Plagiarism but rephrase or rearticulate giving proper reference.
Be cautious about the novelty and copyrights of others.
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Repetitive publication of the same

data also falls under plagiarism
The most common offense under the Academic
Code of Conduct is PLAGIARISM

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Direct plagiarism

Unintentional
plagiarism

Direct

without crediting the

author of the original work.
It can be a copy of an entire
paper or just one/two sentences
or paragraphs or pictures from
someone else's work.

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Due to lacking of
knowledge about
plagiarism.
Not knowing
when and how to
cite.

from two other journals: (i) Waste

Management & Research, 2009, 27, 572-577; and (ii) Waste
Management, 2009, 29, 2717-2721
Copied

Data/Figures

Falls under serious plagiarism

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Direct quote from reference paper without proper

citation: Large amounts of glass and limestone wastes are
accumulating all over the world. Disposal of Limestone Powder
Waste (LPW) and Waste Glass Powder (WGP) is a rapidly
growing problem for some municipalities, so research for
alternative utilization of these disposals is needed.

Falls under plagiarism

Rephrased: Recently disposal of different waste materials (e.g.
Limestone Powder, Waste Glass Powder) are becoming a serious
problem for the environment. Concerning this problematic issue,
researchers throughout the world have paid their attention to
utilize these waste materials for various industrial applications.

No plagiarism
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of

writing a good paper

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Start writing up your research article according to the

following sequence; this will benefit you to write a good
research paper :
1) Results
2) Materials and Methods
3) Discussion
4) Introduction
5) References (or Literature Cited)
6) Abstract

Does the manuscript fit the journals scope & aim

and will it be of interest to the readers?

Is the manuscript of minimum acceptable quality?

Is the content and writing good enough to make it
worth reviewing?
Is the manuscript compliant with the journals
instruction for authors?

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