Pechenik, Jan. 1993. A Short Guide to Writing about Biology. New York: HarperCollins.
A Short Guide to Writing about Biology presents guidelines for writers and editors of biology documents. The book is divided into ten chapters and covers topics including how to effectively read and take notes from references, how to write lab reports, how to write essays and term papers, how to write research proposals, how to write summaries and critiques, how to prepare for presentations, and how to edit and revise documents. She includes tips on creating graphs and tables, how to correctly and accurate cite sources, and how to write the statisical analysis of a study.
The author's suggestions throughout the book are extremely thorough and practical. She covers all aspects of scientific writing and walks the reader through the process step by step. The most helpful part of the book is in the first chapter, where the author suggests key tips for successful biology writing. Four of these recommendations increase the coherence and cohesion of the text:
“Write to illuminate, not to impress” (4). Define complicated terms and use simple words to communicate your point.
“Say exactly what you mean” (6)
“Never make the reader back up” (6-7). Lead the reader through the paragraphs, sentence by sentence by linking information together with sentence connectives and by repetition of important terms.
“Don’t make the reader work harder than they have to” (7-8). You should do the interpreting and not make the reader do it.
This inclusion is extremely useful for my research topic, as I am looking at the effect of syntax and semantics on reader comprehension of science text. I will be using this reference in my research project report.
These are good points! One correction though - Jan Pechenik is a male. I've spoken to him several times (his voice reminds me of Jimmy Stewart)
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