writing papers for publication 3 (2)

8/8/2019 Writing Papers for Publication 3 (2)

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Writing papers for publication

Scientific publications is an essential part of the

research process and is just as important as the

research itself, yet few research workers receive

general training in the technique of scientific

writing.

The object of this article is to provide some

practical guidelines to assist authors in the writing

of scientific papers. Experienced authors will be

familiar with such guidelines, but the suggestions

may be of help to those who are comparatively new

to research and would like to publish their

research results.


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The emphasis is on style of writing i.e.how to present the material, and not on

content, which obviously will vary

widely depending on the nature of the

each project.


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WRITING THE MANUSCRIPT

Writing scientific papers involves more

than just assembling the results of

research in grammatically correctsentences.

Although good writing does not lead to

the publication of bad research, but bad

writing can, and often does, prevent ordelay the publication of good research.


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A research work is a form of written

communication and unless it is

presented in a clear, unambiguous, andeasy to understand style, good

communication will not be achieved,

how ever sounds the scientific contentof the paper.

Good presentation is therefore

necessary not only to make the paper

acceptable by the journal, but also for

keeping the interest of the reader alive.


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Presentation covers everything from thewriting of good English in the style of

the journal chosen, leaving out

everything that is irrelevant or is likely

to weaken the paper. The paper must

be arranged in sections in a logical, well

thought out sequence.


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A useful first step for a paper would beauthor is to keep the publication of a

paper in mind while the work is being

done.

This will enable you to plan your work

more systematically from the beginning.


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As you go along, make a habit of notingdown your observations and results

while they are fresh in your mind.

Notes can be modified or improved asthe work progress.


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Thus, start writing without waiting forinspiration it may never come and you

may find yourself over whelmed by your

writing once the project is finished.

Having all your material to hand willalso make you less traumatic and save

you the last minute Journey to the

library for literature search or to thelaboratory to check a result.


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Most journals regularly publish

instructions to authors which gives

the scope of the Journal and contain

details of the preferred style of writing

(titles, subtitles, references etc) and layout (diagrams, tables etc). Journals

differ greatly in the amount of details

they provide in their instructions toauthors.


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I

n the preparation of your manuscriptfollow carefully the instructions to

authors of your chosen journal. Doing

so will minimize editorial revision and

delay if the paper is accepted forpublication. In addition, consulting one

or two recent (preferably relevant)

papers in your selected journal willfurther help you in preparing the

manuscript.


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HEADINGS AND SUBHEADINGS

Most scientific papers, particularly thosebased on laboratory studies, cover the

following sections. Arranged in a logical

order, they are:

a) Title, authors and their

address,

b) Summary (or abstract)c) Introduction,

d) Methods discussion


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e) Experimental resultsf) Conclusions

g) Acknowledgements

h) ReferencesI) Captions for figures and

j) Captions for tables


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Title:

The title should be specific,informatics but brief. It should indicate

clearly the main subject matter so that

readers can decide at a first glancewhether it interests them without

having to read the summary of the

paper.


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Authors:The authors of a paper should be

all those who have made a significant

scientific. Contribution to the work.

Other contributions (such as financialsupport, lending of equipment, spectral

analysis recording etc) should be

indicated in the acknowledgements.


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For Example:

SYNTHESIS AND CHARACTERISATION OF

POLYAMIDES AND POLYIMIDES FROM AMINO /

METHYLENE bis (BENZENAMINE) STYRYL

PYRIDINES.

Venkateswarlu Peesapati,* U.Narasimaha Rao

Department of Chemistry, Osmania University,

Hyderabad, IndiaAnd

Richard A. Pethrick

Department ofPure and Applied Chemistry, Thomas

Graham Building, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow,

U.K.

Received 21 May 1996; revised 8 November 1996;

accepted November 1996.

(Polymer International)


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Baylis- Hillman adducts between Pyridine

Carboxaldehyde derivatives and cyclic enones

P.Narender,a B Gangadasu, a M.Ravinder,a U.Srinivas,a G.Y.S.K.Swamy,b K.Ravi Kumar, b* and V.

Jayathirtha Rao, a*.

a Organic Chemistry Division II, Indian Institute of

Chemical Technology, Uppal Road, Tarnaka,Hyderabad-7, India.

bLaboratory of crystallography, Indian Institute of

chemical Technology, Uppal Road, Tarnaka,

Hyderabad-7, India.

Received 26 July 2005; revised 28 September;

accepted 13 October 2005.

(Tetrahedron)


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Abstract:

The summary (or abstract) ofthe paper should be brief and should

not normally exceed 200 words. It must

convey the important information in thepaper. It should state the objectives of

the study and summarize the

procedure, results, and conclusions of

the investigation.


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For Example:

Polyamides and polyimidescontaining characteristics, were

prepared Characteristics using infra

red, nuclear magnetic resonance,spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and

thermo gravimetric analysis are

reported.

Key words: Poly(amic acid)s,polyamides, polyimides, styryl

pyridines, synthesis, characterization.


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Introduction:

An introduction is more thanjust a beginning. It places the problem in

perspective and provides the background to the

problem, including relevant earlier work (with

key references) and the reasons for theinvestigation. The method of investigation and

the major findings of earlier studies should be

stated.


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For Example1:The various approaches

which may be adopted for the

production of materials with second

order non-linear optical properties have

been recently reviewed.

In our earlier communication, 4.5 we

reported the synthesis of..


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For Example2:

The neonicotinoids are

new insecticide class, which include thecommercial products Imidacloprid (IMD)

Its chemical analogs are also being used

as insecticides for many agriculturaland public health pests (Yamamoto and

casida 1999; Mason etal., 2000) which

directly act on the nicotinic

acetylcholine receptor (Tomizawa andcasida, 2001; suchail etal., 2003)

(Journal of Entomology, 2007)


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Methods:

The description of the procedure

used must be sufficiently complete forothers to be able to repeat the work. Any

modification of a previously published

procedure should be described and the

reference of the original source given.If a procedure is a commonly used one,

there is no need for its description and

only the original reference is given.

It is desirable to identify clearly any

potential hazards inherent in the

chemicals, equipment or procedure used

in an investigation.


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Results:

Although new information is

provided in the results section, the

description of the results of the

investigation should be consisting andneed not be complex. Only

representative and relevant data should

be provided.


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Numerical data are best presented inthe form of either tables or graphs.

However, any results based on these

should appear in the text. Figure

captions and table titles should be

complete enough to be understood

without having to refer to the main text.


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Discussion:

The discussion is probably the

most difficult part of the paper. Itshould consist of an objective

interpretation of the new results and

their significance and not simply arecapitulation of results. If necessary

the results and interpretations can be

compared or contrasted with previously

published work. In some cases,results and discussions sections can

be combined.


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For Example:

In the present work, two newpolyamides and two polyimides

containing styryl pyridine linkage were

prepared by the polycondensation ofdiamines (2a) & (2b) with PMDA and

(5a) & (5b) with 3-methyl adipoyl

chloride. These materials were

characterized byIR, X-Ray diffraction,Viscosity and TGA analysis.


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Conclusions:

Conclusions should follow

logically from the data and discussion

contained in the paper. Briefly sum up

the whole work and state theimplications and recommendations

clearly, rather than hope that the

readers will be able to make up their

own minds.


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For Example:

Four new polyimides and

polyamides containing styryl pyridine

linkage were prepared first time by the

poly condensation of the requisite

diamines with PMDA and 3-methyladipoylchloride. Poly (amic acid)s were

soluble in DMAC and could be cast into

a tough film. The polyamides prepared

showed good thermal stability and

having good solubility in various solvent

systems.


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Further work will be carried out toinvestigate the way in which alignment

and orientation can be induced in the

polymers prior to the final stage, with

the anticipation that a non linear

material can be generated.


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Acknowledgments:

Any financial

assistance or fellowships should beacknowledged. Also any other help such

as recording of spectral analysis, library

search, lending of equipment etc should

be properly acknowledged.

For Example:

We are thankful todepartmental chairman for providing

necessary facilities and to RSIC, CDRI,

Lucknow for spectral analysis.


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References:

It is important that the

references quoted are checked for

accuracy against the original

papers(primary source) if accessibleotherwise, they should be checked

against the abstracts, in which case the

reference of the abstract should be

given.


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References should be consulted and notmerely copied from secondary sources.

Full titles of pharmacopoeias and

related literature quoted should be

given. The authors should follow the

style of the selected journal for putting

the reference in to the body of the text

and writing them out at the end.


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Once the manuscript is completed, it isalso necessary to check that there is full

agreement between the references sited

in the main text and the list given at the

end.


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Papers submitted for publication butnot yet published can be referred to as

in press, preferably with the name of

the journal, provided they have been

finally accepted by the journal.


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For Example1:1. Peesapati, V & Narasimha Rao, U.

Ind.J.chem., 35B(1996)207.

2. Heck, R.F., Acc.chem.Res.,

12(1979)146.

(Polymer International)


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For Example2:

Marson, C.M. Tetrahedron

1992,48,3659.

(a) China Raju, B., Jayathirtha Rao, V.,

U.S. Patent 6,565,528, 2003; (b)Gangadasu, B., palaniappan, S.,

Jayathirtha Rao, V., synlett 2004, 1285.

(Tetrahedron)


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For Example3:C. Walsh, Nature 406(2000)775-781.

D.T.W. Chu, J.J. Platter, J. Med.chem.

39(1996)3853-3874.

J. Travis, Science 264(1994)360-362.(European Journal ofMedicinal

Chemistry)


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Publication:

The publication times forpapers vary with journals but usually it

takes between six and twelve months

from submission to publication. Manypublishers used to offer the authors a

small number of reprints free of charge

for distribution to colleagues but not

now. You have to pay on the basis of

number of pages.


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Submission of Paper:

When write up iscomplete it is often helpful to set it

aside for a few days and then read it

again. It is also beneficial to give the

manuscript to a colleague for a critical

reading.


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After the draft has been read thoroughlyfor two or more revisions and you are

ready to prepare for the final

manuscript. During final preparation

remember that the use of material

(Figure, Tables etc) taken from other

publications will require the permission

of the copy right holders and should beacknowledged in your paper.


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A covering letter to the editor is very

important.I

t puts the editor in thepicture. Simply a request to consider

your paper for publication is not

enough. A short description of the

significance of your work and how thereaders of the journal will be benefited

by its publication should be included.

Finally if there is more than one author,specify to whom the subsequent

correspondence should be addressed.


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Editors Decision:

After an initialacknowledgement of receipt of your

paper, there will be a silence of one or

two months before you here from theeditor. Usually the manuscript is sent

to at least two referees to assess its

suitability for publication and to make

suggestions for improvement.


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Referees are asked to judge the paper

a) On the basis of originality

b) Technical contentc) Clarity of the preparation and

d) Importance of the work

A paper is more likely to be accepted,

1. If it describes the work that is

original, useful

2. Good scientific standard

3. Well written for the reader to be

able to understand it readily


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Few papers are accepted for publication

out right.

The majority are returned to the

authors for revision, if it is minor

comments designed to improvepresentation.

If not they will not either recommend itfor publication or suggest major

changes in the manuscript with regard

to content, presentation or both.


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If the paper is rejected, considerwhether or not the rejection was

justified and whether to revise the paper

for submission to another journal,

which is more in line with your work.


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If the paper is to be sent to anotherjournal consider carefully the comments

from the referees of the first journal.

The revised manuscript should, of

course be prepared in the style of the

second journal.


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Conclusion:

This article has discussed theessentials of writing a scientific paper. I

am not claiming that it will give all the

answers about writing a paper, but iffollowed carefully, it will help you to get

started and will improve your

understanding of writing and

publishing a paper.


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It is better to aim at quality rather than

quantity in your publication. Scientific

writing is a skill which can and should

be learned. It is time consuming

operation but not difficult to learn andit improves with practice.


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References:

1. Huth E J (Philadelphia: ISIPress 1982.)

2. Farr A D (Oxford : Blackwell scientific

publications, 1985)

3. College ofPharmaceutical practice (Br J

Pharma Prac. 8, 222, 1986)

4. Day RA. How to write and publish a

scientific paper. (Cambridge Univ. press,

1989)

5. Brown RA The art of technical writing (Int.

Labmate, 13, 1984)

6. Eisenberg A. effective writing in science

(Trends Anal Chem. 3, 4-6(1984)


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writing papers for publication 3 (2)

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