Dartmouth Events

Dartmouth faculty, postdocs, graduate students, and staff are invited to join the Irving Institute for Energy and Society for a two-part workshop aimed at helping you write more compelling and effective research articles or papers. Led by Irving Institute Director for Research Programs Angie Hofmann and and Shawn Martin, Head of Scholarly Communication, Copyright and Publishing at Dartmouth Libraries, this all-day workshop will teach you how to organize and compose your thoughts and apply winning writing principles and best practices for your next research article.

WHEN: Tuesday, Nov. 12, 9 am - 4 pm

WHERE: Irving Institute Room 155 or Zoom (in person attendees should bring a laptop to both sessions)

WHO: Dartmouth faculty, postdocs, graduate students, staff

REGISTER

OVERVIEW OF THE COURSE

Part I (Hybrid — Zoom or Irving Institute Conference Room, IR-375): 9 am - 12 pm: Basics of Scientific Communication
In this portion of the workshop participants learn about the basic principles of good scientific style and composition, which is application across all forms of scientific communication – from writing a research paper to grant proposal and job application. The course stresses writing with the reader in mind, and thus pays particular attention to impact, logic, and clear technical style. Emphasis will be on practical applications to create clear text, figures, and tables in your research documents.

Content

• Essential scientific writing principles (word choice and location; sentences structure and placement; paragraph organization and location; impact of writing)
• Creating clear figures and tables
• References and plagiarism
• Best practices in publishing your manuscript
• Note: Participants should bring their laptop to the workshop

Part II: (Hybrid — Zoom or Irving Institute Conference Room IR-375): 1-4 pm: Writing a Research Paper
Part II of the workshop applies fundamental principles of scientific writing to composing a compelling research paper.  The course emphasizes hands-on practical exercises and applications to compose a clear manuscript with the reader and editor in mind.  Participants who have completed the course should be able to write and submit a complete research paper intended for publication.

Content

• Lecture on all sections of a scientific article  - Guidelines and practical exercises
• Cover letter to the editor
• Revising a manuscript
• Submission and resubmission
• Note: To participate in Part II, you should have attended Part I in the morning; participants should bring their laptop to the workshop

About the Presenters
Angelika Hofmann is the Director for Research Programs at the Irving Institute and author of two major textbooks on the topic, which are considered standards in the field: Scientific Writing and Communication – Papers, Proposals, and Presentations and Writing in the Biological Sciences, both published by Oxford University Press. 

Shawn Martin is the Head of Scholarly Communication, Copyright and Publishing at Dartmouth Libraries where he manages the library’s program activities on open access and other researcher services. Shawn has over ten years' experience at institutions including Indiana University, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of Michigan.