Writing Conventions Used In Science Communication - Coursework Example

A Review of Writing Conventions Used In Science Communication Introduction Reviewing various authenticated articles and journals is the commonly usedpractice by different authors in performing proper scientific research. Editor-in-chief, editor, publishers as well as reviewers and targeted audiences perception of the acceptability of an article plays a key role behind the successfulness of any article. In this respect, many authors provide scientific viewpoints through different publications and findings. The way in which an article is presented is based on writing style and its importance and newness in the field of study. In addition to that, the audiences consider various practical implications of research (Murphy, 2010). In this context, the paper evaluates the three different articles on the basis of writing styles of authors, objectivity and validity or trustworthiness of Park (2013), Konopka & Brock (1978) & Rania & Hala (2008). Writing Style The writing style of the authors in their article has a degree of uniqueness. Style of writing is the way in which writers’ incorporate their thinking in sentences in order to align with the context of specific subject, purpose or readers. The choice in the word selection, sentence structure and fluency and use of tenses and voice are all contributing factors in any piece of writing or literature (School Curriculum Specialists, LLC, 2012). Comparing Articles Park (2013) reports the facts to the audience by using short sentences that are written in simple present tense and past perfect continuous tense in some areas. The article emphasizes the use of punctuation and capital letters regularly at the right places in the sentences. In order to create better comprehensibility for the new reader, Park uses very simple words rather than creating complexity of scientific words in the article; words like ‘dissolved’, ‘concentration’, ‘efficient’ among others rather than using the scientific words like ‘disintegrate’, ‘dwindle’, ‘engrossment’, ‘assemblage’ or ‘coherent’ and others. Passive voice is used in his writing style in order to create more awareness for the general audience. For instance, adding the form of “the benefit of recycling on harvestable biomass production is illustrated by comparison of our results with a previous study” (Park, 2013, pp. 78). Konopka & Brock (1978) narrate their account in a very forceful, emotional way to the audience such as the use of “low temperature per se does not prevent growth of blue-green algae in the spring in temperate lakes”. They used the past tense in presenting the article, which is quite clear with the use of sentence like “The cell yield was independent of temperature, but the outcome of competition between species was highly dependent on temperature” (Konopka & Brock, 1978, pp. 572). Konopka & Brock (1978) shared their point of view, thoughts and feelings. For instance, rather than providing effective measures for overcoming the situation, they reflected on the effects, which can be justified through the statement “This suggests that low temperature per se does not prevent growth of blue-green algae in the spring in temperate lakes” (Konopka & Brock, 1978, pp. 576). Furthermore, in the article by Konopka & Brock (1978), the sentence flow in the article was quite presentable, which encouraged the audience to feel from the authors’ viewpoint about the adverse effect in the Lake Mendota. Konopka & Brock (1978) presented the information in the form of passive voice such as the use of “The temperature optimum for photosynthesis of natural populations of blue-green algae (cyanobacteria) from Lake Mendota was determined during the period of June to November 1976” (Konopka & Brock, 1978, pp. 572). Rania & Hala (2008) conveyed the facts in the article in a complex manner to the readers by using various variables in the research. The writing style of the authors reflected that they used past tense to address the subject matter of the research as the test is already undertaken for instance the use of sentences like “Five axenic algal strains were selected for screening their antimicrobial activity against some species of bacteria and fungi” (Rania & Hala, 2008, pp. 23). They use very scientific word construction to write for those audiences, who were familiar with such terms used in the paper. Furthermore, Rania & Hala (2008) justify the information by reflecting on all the aspects they have used to conclude the outcomes of various variables used in the study. The sentences used by Rania & Hala are quite long, as the sentences need proper justification of using various facts. For better understanding, these authors used passive voice to narrate the information about research subject by sentences like “the test organisms used were the bacteria” (Rania & Hala, 2008). Objectivity Objectivity denotes value or truths about a research subject. It presents the special attributes that are used by a writer in providing fact and comments about a research subject to the reader through personal pronoun and opinions. Objectivity in a particular article reflects the key personal pronouns or the opinion that an author incorporates for providing general views about the procedures based on which an author validates information for better acceptability by the audience (School Curriculum Specialists, LLC, 2012). Comparing Articles Park (2013) uses various examples in the entire article. Park (2013) writes with clarity and consistency in the sentences, for instance use of sentences such as “the comparison between algal production and wastewater treatment are summarized” (Park, 2013, pp. 5). The author conducted an experiment in order to justify the statistics relating to the adverse effect of algae production. His research claimed that literature reviewed fails to justify the facts. The researcher presents comprehensive views about the algae production in better scientific terms (Park, 2013) Konopka and Brock (1978) narrated their article in negative ways by stating the adverse consequences of temperature. Throughout the paper, the authors try to rationalize their ground with proper experimental method. Furthermore, the authors avoided the use of personal pronouns in the entire content of the article. Rather, the article used ‘they’ in place of algae repeatedly. Additionally, various facts, opinions and statistical tools like graphs were used in order to show cause and effect of temperature. The authors used passive voice in the article, which presented the issues as controversial opinions and facts for example “The effects of temperature on the rates of biological processes are well known” (Konopka & Brock, 1978, pp. 572) (Konopka & Brock, 1978). On the other hand, the article by Rania & Hala (2008) focused on the use of third person pronouns throughout the paper continuously as the paper uses various scientific variables in order to conduct a valid study. The authors exploited persuasive techniques in making their conclusions, which help them to persuade the audience with the sense of certainty about the underlying events for example “By comparing the antifungal effect of all tested cyanobacteria and green microalgae, it was more effective on Sacch. Cerevisiar, A niger, A. flavus, F. than Itraconazola and Polynoxylin” (Rania & Hala, 2008, pp. 27). The authors also avoided the use of personal pronouns in the article, as they were reporting about universal scientific facts and opinions in the paper. In this regard, the opinions of the authors were inappropriate in some respect because of the use of sentences such as “The result and calculation of experiment of acetone extract with the help of seven different factors” (Rania & Hala, 2008, pp. 24) as result and calculation represents similar ideas. The article presented a clear visual scenario of the experiment for better acceptance of findings of the research facts (Rania& Hala, 2008). Validity or Trustworthiness The validity and trustworthiness are important factors for better approval as well as acceptance by targeted audiences. Validity and trustworthiness in research can be ascertained through the use of various valid sources and references that reflect appropriate facts about data. Validity and reliability of research is based on creditability, transferability, conformability and dependability of information (Bashir, 2008). Comparing Articles In the article, Park (2013) supported the fact through the use of recently published journals such as APHA (2008), Benemann, Jr (2003) among others. Along with the use of noteworthy sources to provide reasonable rationalization of his viewpoint, the study also takes into consideration his previous research report. Additionally, trustworthy references also assisted in providing valid conclusions as most of the references were of recent publications, which reflected the true sign of good writing technique. Furthermore, the study provided a true reflection of other authors’ views on the subject matter as reflected through conclusion in every chapter. In this respect, the formulation of the entire article was based on a pertinent problem and relevant topic of interest with the key words and phrases. Rather than comparing and contrasting the secondary source in a controversial manner, the author used others’ viewpoints for enhancing his research work (Park, 2013). The article published by Konopka and Brock (1978) was quite outdated as compared to the other articles. The research was conducted on the sources published within the last fifteen years during the time of the article publication. Broadly stating, the literature is integrated with different secondary research articles and their own opinions. Similarly, utilization of similar sources were followed typically by Konopka and Brock to build their theoretical approach for allowing reviewers to make effective connections with previous research (Konopka & Brock, 1978). Validity of the research work done by Rania & Hala was rationalized through the use of multiple sources. The other research work conducted by Rania & Hala also gave their prior importance towards the time period of secondary sources within 10 to 15 years. Furthermore, the statistical information provided in the article was identified to be unreliable to a certain extent owing to the lack of proper justification. Inadequate justification can create confusion in the minds of the reader about the reliability of the facts as identified from the sentences such as “two wells (6mm) were made and filled with 100ul extract” (Rania & Hala, 2008, pp. 24). Nevertheless, the study manifested the subject matter through the use of experiment with proper justification (Rania & Hala, 2008). Conclusion The three articles written by the different authors centralized their views in a passive voice by coordinating and collaborating previous works in the respective field. The writing styles of the different authors in their earlier researches were based on common ground of analysis. Park presented his own view through the use of others researches, the research work of Konopka and Brock was based on past views and Rania & Hala stated his own perspective through experiment. Validity and trustworthiness plays important role in justification of facts and information in a research work. Thus, it can be concluded that the writing style, objectivity and trustworthiness of information depends on the experience of authors, which is very much needed for audience acceptance. References Bashir, M. (2008). Reliability and validity of qualitative and operational research paradigm. Retrieved from http://www.pjsor.com/index.php/pjsor/article/viewFile/59/38 Konopka, A., & Brock, T. D. (1978). Effect of temperature on Blue-Green Algae (Cyanobacteria) in Lake Mendota. Appl Environ Microbiol, 36(4), 572-576. Murphy, A. (2010). Academic writing and publishing matters for the scholar-researcher. Retrieved from http://www.dit.ie/media/library/documents/Academic%20Writing%20and%20Publishing%20Matters%20for%20the%20scholar-researcher.pdf Park, B. K. (2013). Enhancing harvestable algal biomass production in wastewater treatment high rate algal pond by recycling. New Zealand: Massey University, 1-179. Rania, M. A., & Hala, M. T. (2008). Antibacterial and antifungal activity of Cynobacteria and green Microalgae. Global Journal of Biotechnology and Biochemistry, 3(1), 22-31. School Curriculum Specialists, LLC. (2012). The literary comparison contrast essay. Retrieved from http://scsworkshops.info/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/The-Literary-Comparison-Contrast-Essay.pdf Read More