Engl 3150 midterm Pulley

paragraph unity

"A paragraph is unified when all its content belongs—when every word, phrase, and sentence directly expands on the topic sentence."

McMillan's definition of a literature review

"a critical synthesis of the research on a particular topic" -Readers of reviews want to stay abreast of current knowledge or learn about unfamiliar topics

anadiplosis

-A repetition of the last word or last subject of a sentence at the start of the next. -Using anadiplosis often requires passive voice in the second sentence -Ex: In August, she completed most of the tests. The last test was completed on Friday.

spatial sequence

-Begins at one location and ends at another (examples: "top-to-bottom, east-to-west, or inside-to-outside") -Most useful in describing geography or a physical item or mechanism

classification

-Create parallel groups or categories of related material -Examples: "You group the motors your company manufactures according to the fuel they burn: gasoline or diesel."

cause and effect

-Describe evidence for a cause and how it could have led to an effect. -Or use the reverse pattern. Begin with the effect and work backward to examine the causes (Good for problem-solving analyses) -Explain links in a chain of events

introductions in lit reviews do three things in this order

-Introduces the subject -Explains Your Rationale -States the Central Question, Objectives, or Thesis

common research strategies

-Keywords and author names are the chief means for accessing research. -Rely on reference librarians for ideas. -Acronyms are useful search terms. -Watch for unusual spellings such as British variants (colour, etc.). -Search taxonomically for plants or animals using genus and specific epithet. -Understand how the wild card strategy or asterisk (*) is used in web searches

problem-methods-solution

-Make an argument for a solution. -First describe the problem and its consequences. -Next, describe "the procedures performed to confirm the analysis of the problem, solve the problem, or exploit the opportunity." -Then describe the solution and its consequences.

Know the following about documentation in a review:

-Many citations are used, but scientific readers are used to such interruptions. -Documentation is important because: o Tells readers where to find more info. o Reflects the thoroughness of your lit search and your honesty (no plagiarism)

comparison and contrast

-Often used to help make decisions between alternatives, or understand concepts in relation to each other -Use either whole-by-whole or part-by-part patterns -"The whole-by-whole pattern provides a coherent picture of each option. . . . This pattern works best if your readers need an overall assessment of each option or if each option is roughly equivalent according to the criteria." -"the part-by-part pattern lets you focus your attention on the criteria. If, for instance, Model 5L produces much better resolution than Model 6L, the part-by-part pattern reveals this difference more effectively than the whole-by-whole pattern does."

more important to less important

-Reasons or examples arranged in order of descending importance -Often used in persuasive writing -"Recognizes that readers often want the bottom line"* - example: "In an accident report, you describe the three most important factors that led to the accident before describing the less important factors."

writing a good discussion or review body

-Simply regurgitating the contents of a series of papers is not enough. -Relate each source to your principal objectives. -Present your information selectively—use it to support or illustrate statements. -Interpret the literature from the writer's informed perspective. -Give readers a sense of integration, development, focus. -Use individual headings to organize your perspectives along topic lines

abstracts in lit reviews do three things:

-States the purpose or scope of the review -Lists major points on the topic -Summarizes important conclusions

partition

-The "process of breaking a unit into its components." -"Partition is used in descriptions of objects, mechanisms, and processes." -example: a home theater system could be partitioned into the following components: TV, amplifier, peripheral devices such as DVD players, and speakers. Each component is separate, but together they form a whole system. Each component can, of course, be partitioned further."

general to specific

-The general-to-specific pattern is useful when your readers need a general understanding of a subject to help them understand and remember the details. -For example, in a report, you include an executive summary—an overview for managers—before the body of the report

Know the guidelines for when to use direct quotes in a review:

-To emphasize an important point. -State a precise definition. -The author's exact words are indispensable in conveying a particular viewpoint

Know the following about use of direct quotation in reviews:

-Use direct quotation rarely—rely on careful, concise paraphrases or summaries. -Too many quotes make a paper a collection of other people's words. -With too many quotes a writer loses authority and their voice gets lost. -Too many quotes suggest that the writer "hasn't come to terms with the material"—they're too lazy or inexperienced.

Know that a good conclusion of a review summarizes main points as well as brings in broader perspectives:

-What is the significance of what has been presented? -What conflicts still need to be resolved? -What research must still be completed? -How can this information be beneficial to practitioners or the general public?

once you orient the reader, work down to more specific issues:

-Why is this subject important? -What approach have you taken? -Will you be giving a comprehensive summary or one that is more limited?

how to identify and revise a misplaced modifier

-a misplaced modifier is a word (usually an adjective or adverb) or a group of words (phrase or clause) that provides information about other words or groups of words. -position modifiers to reflect your meaning -if a modifier is too far from the word it modifies, it can be ambiguous -Ex: Only call 911 in an emergency. (Does only modify 911 or emergency?)

laypersons

-a person without professional or specialized knowledge in a particular subject -information needs: -Big pic instead of complex details -Words most people understand -No abstract theories—enough background to help them make the right decision or take right action -Bored or confused by excessive detail, yet frustrated by raw facts unexplained or uninterpreted -Expect to understand doc after reading it only once

how to identify and revise a dangling modifier

-another kind of ambiguous modifier - these are words, phrases, or elliptical clauses without an appropriate noun to modify -may contain a verb form that has no clear agent, or it may consist of adjectives with no noun to modify -EX: Totally destroyed by the hurricane, he had to rebuild his office. (Did the hurricane destroy the man or the office?)

secondary research (sources)

-general works based on primary sources -may include: books on natural history, the environment, other scientific subjects, articles in magazines like Discover or Natural History, scholarly books (monographs), review papers

communicating to an audience with varying technicality levels

-if a document is two pages or less, it's best to write separate reports to experts, semitechnical, and laypersons -if longer, divide audience into primary and secondary readers -Write the main narrative, executive summary, or abstract for the primary (semitechnical, say, your boss), and provide appendixes and more technical detail later in the report for the secondary audience (possibly principal investigator or other highly technical person who will implement the project). -provide a table of contents so audiences can easily find which part of the text pertains to them

expert

-information needs: -Facts and figures without long explanations or interpretations -Jargon not defined, abbreviations okay -Concise answering of anticipated questions

informed persons (semi-technical)

-know more than laypersons but less than experts - information needs: -Identify lowest level of understanding and write to that level—too much explanation is better than too little -Raw data explained (Normal values or measurements of data given for comparison sakes).

how to "restrict" searches when a search returns too many sources

-limit searches to specific "fields" within a data base -add a concept to your original search term

paragraph coherence

-paragraphs achieve "coherence" by ensuring that ideas are presented in a logical progression or flow. -Methods for achieving coherence include use of anadiplosis and transitional words and phrases as well as common organizing formats -"In a coherent paragraph, everything not only belongs, but also sticks together: Topic sentence and support form a connected line of thought, like links in a chain."

ambiguous pronouns

-pronouns are words that stand in for nouns, they must clearly refer to the noun or antecedent they replace

primary research (sources)

-reports of original ideas and research in the lab or field -examples include: research papers, conference papers, dissertations, and technical reports of govt agencies or private organizations -Materials and Methods section & Results, indicating author is introducing new data and ideas

active voice

-the subject performs the action -agent-action-participant

passive voice

-the subject receives the action -recipient-action-agent

the revision process

1. Content, organization, and transitions 2.Emphasis, point of view, awkward language problems, grammar, etc. 3.Visual formatting and final proofreading to catch errors of punctuation, spelling, typos, etc.

5 quotation rules

1. Do not substitute single quotation marks (' ') for double ones (" "). 2. a short quotation can be integrated into the text. Make sure it fits grammatically with the rest of the sentence. 3. place periods and commas inside the quotation marks; semicolons and colons go outside; if exclamation points, question marks, and dashes are part of the quoted material, put inside but if a part of your own sentence, put outside. 4. If you need to interrupt a quotation to omit one or more words, indicate the omission by a ellipsis. If it comes at the end of a sentence, put the period followed by a space before the ellipsis 5. if you insert clarifying or explanatory material into a quotation, put such material in brackets.

6 situations where passive voice is better than active voice:

1. when the agent is not known 2. When your audience has no need to know the agent, or your readers know the identity of the agent from the context of the sentence 3. When the recipient is more important than the agent 4.When you want to be indirect or inoffensive 5. When the person behind the action needs to be protected 6. When it's needed for cohesion or good style

to introduce the subject in the lit review's introduction, do the following:

Start with broad statements, explanations, and definitions that orient and educate the reader

synthesis-of-two-fields review

attempts to provide new insights about one field of study by bringing in literature from another area or discipline

comparison-of-perspectives review

critically examines two or more ways of looking at a particular scientific issue

chronological/process

discuss events in the order at which they occur

historical review

examines the historical development of knowledge about a particular topic; may focus on the emergence of the subject area as an important field of study, the major pioneering work by early contributors, the replacement of outdated theories or perspectives, and the development of improved methodologies

three levels of technicality

experts (highly technical), informed persons (semi-technical), laypersons (non-technical)

state-of-the-art literature review

presents an up-to-date, interpretive synthesis of our knowledge of a certain subject or issue, with emphasis on the most recent literature

What audiences are reviews typically aimed at?

semi-technical -audiences "with a background in the broad subject area but without specialized knowledge of [a] particular topic"

theoretical review or model-building review

surveys the literature on a particular scientific problem with the aim of presenting a new theoretical context or an alternative model

"gray" (unpublished) literature

unpublished research in the form of technical reports, working papers, and some conference proceedings -can be found on institutional or govt websites