Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Fall 2016-17
LANG 3011
CAPSTONE ENGLISH
FOR MATHEMATICS
Fall 2016-17
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank all writers and publishers who granted us permission to use
the copyright materials in this book.
Every effort has been made to trace copyright holders, but if any have been inadvertently
overlooked, the publishers will be pleased to make any necessary arrangements at the first
opportunity.
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Table of Contents
p.3
Course Outline and Schedule
p.5
Assessments
p.8
Intended Learning Outcomes
p.9
Capstone Project Skills
p.11
Course materials:
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Course Topics
page
1. Research Projects
p.10
p.20
p.32
p.41
p.56
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5
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Week 6
6. Assessed Presentations
p.66
Week 7
p.69
p.126
Week 9
Week 10
Week 11
Week 12
Week 13
Assessed Presentations
p.81
p.98
p.112
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At the start of this course you will develop your own research question for a research project that you
would like to conduct.
Throughout the course, you should develop your understanding of research skills and use these skills
to help you develop and conduct your research project.
Midway through the course you will introduce your project to the rest of the class through a short
presentation and submit a written report both as mid-course assessed tasks.
At the end of the course you will write up your finished project into a final report, and deliver a
project presentation to the rest of the class both as end-of-course assessed tasks.
15%
3. An individual research project final presentation (8-10 min + 3-4 min Q&A)
30%
15%
30%
Participation: You will also be assessed on your participation in class activities and on your
effort with the out-of-class work assigned.
10%
Please note that in order to pass the course, 80% attendance in the lessons is also required.
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1. Background information
to orient your reader/audience around the general topic area
to briefly explain how/why you came up with the topic idea
2. Preliminary project planning and objectives
to describe some details of the recent history of the topic, i.e. how this area of maths has
developed/advanced recently
to show how the recent developments/advancements in this field have led to the need for your research
question or project design
to introduce your specific research question or project objective or hypothesis
to explain and justify the preliminary plan for how the project will be conducted, e.g. what methods or
methodologies will be used, how data/results will be obtained and analyzed
3. The importance of the study
to justify why the study will be useful/worthwhile to conduct
to explain what potential impact the outcome of the study might have
How is it assessed?
Content and organization: does it have an appropriate level of detail? is the information well selected for the
audience? do you convince the reader that the research will be feasible? do you convince the reader of the
relevance of the research to your field? do you convince the reader of your interest in the research? is it
coherent? are your sections well balanced? are your sections and ideas cohesive? does the organization help
the reader follow the ideas? do you start and end in a helpful way?
Language: do you use or explain technical terms appropriately for the reader? do you use a natural range of
vocab appropriately for this context and genre? do you use vocab accurately? do you use appropriate grammar
structures for this context and genre? do you use accurate grammar?
Delivery (only for presentations): does your intonation help engage the audience? does your body language
help engage the audience? do you use appropriate speed, volume, rhythm and visual aids which enhance the
presentation? is your pronunciation clear?
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How is it assessed?
Content and organization: does it have an appropriate level of detail? is the information well selected for the
audience? do you convince the reader that the research will be feasible? have you selected appropriate sources
from the literature? have you integrated ideas from the literature in a meaningful way? is referencing well
managed? do you convince the reader of the relevance of the research to your field? do you convince the
reader of your interest in the research? is it coherent? are your sections well balanced? are your sections and
ideas cohesive? does the organization help the reader follow the ideas? do you start and end in a helpful way?
Language: do you use or explain technical terms appropriately for the reader? do you use a natural range of
vocab appropriately for this context and genre? do you use vocab accurately? do you use appropriate grammar
structures for this context and genre? do you use accurate grammar?
Delivery (only for presentations): does your intonation help engage the audience? does your body language
help engage the audience? do you use appropriate speed, volume, rhythm and visual aids which enhance the
presentation? is your pronunciation clear?
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locate and use appropriate language materials, tools and resources in developing and
maintaining the life-long communication skills.
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One of the main aims of this course is to help you improve your language and communication
skills, and academic literacy to help you complete your maths Capstone project in your 4th year.
Which of the following skills do you think will be most useful for you to develop on this course?
nalyzing and discussing data, which leads to a well-crafted and insightful Conclusion.
resenting significant findings in an oral presentation and a research report, which are
supported with carefully selected and well-designed visual aids and accurate graphical data
respectively.
ransforming research data into useful, digestible and reportable information which caters
for the interests and needs of a specific audience.
rganizing the structure of your oral presentation and research report coherently and
cohesively.
arrowing down a broad research topic into feasible, meaningful and appropriate research
questions.
xcelling in language, communications and academic literacy which would facilitate the
accomplishment of your Capstone project and academic studies.
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Task 1: In your 4th year at university, you will conduct a research project called a Capstone
Project. What do you know already about Capstone Projects? Discuss together:
1. What is a Capstone Project?
2. What are the goals of a Capstone Project?
Task 2: One of the main aims of this course is to help you improve your language and
communication skills, and academic literacy to help you complete your maths Capstone project in
your 4th year. To do this, on this course you will develop your own mini Research Project through
the course, and explore how to develop your research skills, so that in year 4 you have a better idea
of how to progress well with the Capstone project that you will be assigned in year 4.
Read the information about the Assessment Research Project at the front of the book to get a better
idea of what is expected on this course.
Task 3: On this course you will develop and conduct your own research project. What is research?
Discuss which of the following you think could be considered research projects.
a. Replicating a study that someone else has done before, using a different data set
b. Developing a new theory or model
c. Modifying an existing theory or model
d. Applying an existing theory or model to a new context/application/data set
e. Demonstrating further evidence to support an existing theory or model
f. Demonstrating evidence against an existing theory or model
g. Compare two models when applied to the same context/example/application
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Task 4: Match the above project types with the reasons below for why such projects might be
carried out:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Which of the above project types do you think are more common for undergraduate research
projects in maths?
Task 5: Now watch this video about what research is, and what research is not. Make some
notes below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yt6XXDF7xaQ.
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Step 1: Discuss in pairs the following questions. Change partners before each question, so that
you have talked to 5 different people by the end of this Step.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Step 2: You have 5 min to prepare a 1-2 min talk on ONE topic in maths that really interests you
or that you are passionate about.
You might want answer some of the following questions:
Step 3: Mix groups so that you are now sitting with 3 or 4 different people who you have not yet
spoken to. Take it in turns to give your 1-2 min talk. Remember you are talking about an interest
or passion so try to use your voice and body language in an engaging way, to reflect your interest
or passion in the topic.
Listen to your group members do you think they have similar interests to you?
Step 4: Reflection
Discuss or make some notes on the following questions to help you identify how to develop your
ability to talk effectively about your research topic for the future:
13
Which of the questions listed in Step 2 above were you most / least confident to talk
about?
Did your partners ideas inspire you to think about other topics, or to think about your
own topic in a different way?
CLE, HKUST Copyright. All rights reserved.
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What did you learn at home from looking through some of the example projects at the links
provided in the Self-study task?
What questions came up for you when reading the reports, that you want to ask?
Task 2: Go to the back of the book and read the page called Stages of a Research Project to find
out more about what stages you might expect to undertake through this course, and discuss the
following questions:
1. Which stages do you think might be more challenging for you?
2. What kind of problems might a novice researcher have with those challenging stages?
Over the next few lessons we will focus on stages 1-3. By the end of week 3 you should have
identified a clear topic focus and be able to start planning your project.
Task 3: One challenge for many researchers is just getting started! You are going to watch a clip
from the film A Beautiful Mind about how mathematician John Nash got started with his
university research project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2d_dtTZQyUM
Before you watch - what do you know about John Nashs maths theories?
While you watch - where did he get the inspiration for his university research project idea?
After you watch Do you know any other Nobel Prize winning breakthroughs in maths or
science?
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Task 4: Identifying a research topic and developing a clear focus and objective for your project
can be challenging. A research question is a statement that identifies the focus of the topic to be
studied. It must be narrow rather than broad-based. In order to narrow down your research topic
into a focussed research objective or research question, you might ask yourself some of the
following questions.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Highlight 3 questions above that you think would be especially helpful for you to consider.
Task 5: Read the Abstract of the Capstone Project below and discuss in groups:
Where is the objective of research stated?
What are the expected findings?
What are the implications/significance/uses of the research?
Task 6: Read the extract below. Why is it important to consider the implications of the research?
Extract
Researchers should try to avoid proceeding directly to the stage of the research itself without considering the
theoretical and practical implications of the general question, because this inevitably leads to false starts or
problems with the design and methodology of the research. Even experienced researchers sometimes have to
discontinue efforts because of unforeseen or unavoidable obstacles. However, the more experienced researchers
become, the more they learn to ask questions about feasibility and to predict possible areas of difficulty. It is not
unusual to abandon research ideas at the general question stage because of infeasibility.
(Seliger & Shohamy 1990: 52/3)
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Step 2: Articulating a clear research question or research aim in one sentence is key to keeping
your project focused. Choosing the most specific action verb possible helps to communicate
your aims. Consider some examples in the box below:
Useful Expressions: Writing a research aim / question
We aim to demonstrate
This project aims to highlight
We intend to shed light on
This investigation aims to contribute further evidence to
This project aims to examine
This study aims to determine
The major objective of the study is to evaluate
Now choose ONE of the research areas that you discussed in Step 1. Work with a partner to
write a possible research aim/objective for this project. Use the language in the box to help you.
Step 3: You have 10 min to prepare a 2 min talk on ONE exciting area of current maths or
science research that you have heard of that really interests you. You can use one of the research
areas that you discussed earlier in Step 1-2.
You might want answer some of the following questions:
How can you summarize this research area in a few sentences?
What is the problem which the researchers are trying to solve?
What do the researchers hope to achieve?
Why is this topic interesting to you?
Why is this topic useful for us?
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Step 4: Mix groups so that you are now sitting with 3 or 4 different people who you have not yet
spoken to. Take it in turns to give your 2 min talk.
Listen to your groupmates talks. Have you heard before of any of the research areas they
discussed?
Step 5: Reflection
Discuss or make some notes on the following questions to help you identify how to develop your
ability to talk effectively about research interests:
18
Which of the questions listed in Step 3 above could you most confidently answer?
Which of the research areas - that your groupmates talked about - sounded the most
interesting to you? Which sounded the most worthwhile areas of research?
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You will be able to change your research topic later in the course, if you want to, but this task
should help you think about how to get started which is sometimes the hardest part of any
research project! When you listen to your classmates presentations next lesson, you might get
some more inspiration for ways to better focus your ideas or for ways to change your topic area.
But the more reading you do now, the easier it will be to design your project, and get feedback on
your project progress along the way.
For reference to help you develop your understanding of how to develop a research question:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWLYCYeCFak
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGdfnc7VBN4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmjujlZExQ
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Task 1: In this lesson you will watch the 2 min presentations of your classmates, prepared in
Unit 1.2. What do you think you will be able to learn from your classmates, by watching their
presentations?
Task 2: Remind yourself of the questions below, from Unit 1.2 that you have used to prepare
your presentation. Which questions did you find easiest to prepare? Which were more
challenging to prepare?
1. How can you summarize the topic/theory/model in a couple of sentences?
2. Why is this topic interesting for you?
3. What do you want to know more about, regarding this topic?
4. Why is this area of maths useful/worthwhile to study/research?
5. What kind of research project might it lend itself to?
6. Do you have any ideas for potential research questions that could be developed for a
project in this area?
7. What would be the next step for you over the next few weeks, if you go ahead with this
project idea?
Task 3: What feedback would you like to receive after your presentation? Remember to tell your
classmates, before you start your presentation!
Watch your classmates presentations and take some notes on the next page.
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Student:
Student:
Topic:
Topic:
Topic:
Comments:
Comments:
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Topic:
Topic:
Comments:
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Student:
Student:
Student:
Topic:
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Comments:
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Student:
Student:
Student:
Topic:
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Topic:
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Comments:
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I am
strong
Presentation skills/traits
A.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
B.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j.
k.
l.
C.
a.
b.
c.
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I am
ok
I am
weak
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Task 2: Think about some of the presentations that youve seen either online or face-to-face.
Discuss what made these presentations memorable for you and what do still remember about
them.
Task 3: Discuss together ideas for one box of the table below. Share your ideas with a group that
discussed the other box.
Things that could help engage the audience
Task 4: Effective presentations might be memorable, clear to follow, and engaging. While this is
partly dependent on your actual ideas, the language you choose to use has a huge impact on the
effectiveness of your presentation. What features of language or linguistic strategies make
language memorable? clear to follow? engaging?
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Task 5: Think back to student presentations youve watched in the past. Below are some
common ways students start and end presentations. They are not all effective! Discuss which you
think are effective and which are ineffective? Why?
Common ways students start presentations
e.g.
ask a rhetorical question
say Good morning, my name is Anna
and Im going to talk about x
make a short bold / shocking /
controversial statement
In your group, add some more ideas above for effective ways to start and end presentations.
Which of these have you used yourself in presentations youve given in the past?
Task 6: Compare the following Introductions delivered by two prominent physics professors, and
answer the following questions:
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(0:00 - 1:00)
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Task 7: After youve planned what information you want to include, you should think about how
to organize it, and how to communicate this organization to the audience. Which of the following
do you think are useful strategies / techniques / tips for helping the organization and coherence of
your presentation?
Refer forwards to key information thats coming soon e.g. Ill explain that more a
little later// Ill come back to this point later// Just bear with me before I show
you// Later well see how.
4. Use the 3-step approach for certain main points: (1) briefly tell them what you are
going to tell them (2) tell them the main point (3) briefly tell them what you told them.
5. Imagine your ideas as paragraphs. The first sentence of a paragraph is a signpost
which tells us where the paragraph is going and the general topic of the paragraph. Do
something similar in a presentation. This means that you should regularly have signposts
to tell us what type of information is coming next e.g. Lets explore this solution a little
more. // Let me explain why Ive mentioned this.
6. Show that you know that the audience already knows a certain fact, so that the
audience will better understand why you are telling them this again. e.g. As Im sure you
already know, // I assume you are familiar with the idea of.
7. Link sections with logical ideas. Dont just give the title of the next section
Star three points above that you think will be most useful for you in the future.
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Task 8: Compare the language below, which students on previous courses have used to transition
between different sections of a presentation. Whats the difference between box A and box B?
Which do you prefer? Why?
Language examples A
Language examples B
We are going to talk about your reflections on the recommended TED Talk that you watched at
home (the self-study task of Unit 2.1). Follow the steps below.
Step 1: Work in a small group who watched the same talk as you (if possible) and discuss:
1.
2.
3.
4.
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What was the main topic of the talk that you watched?
What was the most memorable idea for you? Why was it memorable?
What did you like about the presentation or speaker? Why?
Was there anything that you didnt like about the presentation or the speaker?
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Step 2: Now find a different partner who watched a different talk to you and discuss:
1. What was the main topic of the talk that you watched?
2. What did you learn - from watching this talk that you can try to apply to your own
presentations in the future? E.g.
a. Something you liked, i.e. a presentation skill/strategy you could try out
b. Something you didnt like, i.e. something to avoid doing yourself
Go to the back of the book, and complete one of the TED Talk Analysis tasks. This involves
choosing one of the recommended TED Talks to watch, then analyzing the talk and the speakers
presentation skills, using the questions for Unit 2 provided. You can learn a lot about presentation
skills by watching other good speakers!
For reference you can find out more about understanding your audience with this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJUblvGfW6w
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Task 1: For this course, your wider maths studies, and your future career as a mathematician,
you will need to read research articles, in order to keep up-to-date with key ideas in your field.
Have you read any research articles from academic journals before? Which journals did the
articles come from?
The American Mathematical Society is a good source of accessible articles for your reference.
http://www.ams.org/publications/publications
Task 2: As you may know, we dont always need to read the full research article.
Read the information below about one mathematicians basic steps to show how she critically
reads an article.
Which steps below do you think are most difficult?
Step 1
Read the Abstract: This is usually one or two paragraphs, and contains an overview of the background,
methodology, results and conclusions of the study. Decide if its worth reading more of the article.
Step 2
Skim parts of the article: Skim the section that might be most relevant to your work, e.g. are you more
interested in the methodology design or in the results or conclusions? Decide if (which part of) the article
is worth reading in more detail.
Step 3
Read in detail: Read key parts of the article several times, and annotate it by underlining important ideas
or making notes in the margin, etc. to help you follow the ideas of the passage. Look up unfamiliar words
to make sure you fully understand the passage.
Step 4 Start building your own notes: Write down only a few words for each idea rather than complete
sentences. Use subheadings and bullet points in your notes to help you process the relationships between
ideas.
Step 5 Think critically outside the article: Use your annotated notes to think critically about how/why this
article is relevant to your work. Add these critical thoughts to your annotated article.
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Task 4: As you have seen, the first step to reading an article usually involves reading the
Abstract. What do you know about Abstracts? Circle the correct word.
An Abstract is generally the first/last thing we might write for our own research reports, as it
is a summary of the whole research project. However it is usually the first/last thing we read
about other peoples research for the same reason. Reading the Abstract should enable us to
get an overview of the whole research project its context, method, findings and significance.
From reading an Abstract we can determine whether or not we want to read the rest of the
paper.
The Abstract is the first/last section of a research document. It usually comes before/after the
title and before/after the introduction. In some subject areas, this section may be titled
summary. The Abstract provides an overview of the study based on information from the
other sections of the research document. It is, therefore, a complete document, which
summarizes a paper that has already been written.
Swales and Feak 2012, pp. 381-386
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Task 5: In general, an Abstract often follows the following structure. Complete the gaps.
1. Ba____________ information
Introduce the study by describing the context.
Explain why the subject is important.
2. Ob_____________
Describe the purpose of the study.
1. Me______________
Report how the study was undertaken.
2. Fi_____________
Report the results that were found.
3. Co_______________
Explain what is important about the research and why.
State what is suggested/recommended for the future.
Task 6: You are going to read part of a maths research paper about a zombie outbreak. What
kind of maths do you think this research might involve?
While reading, discuss:
Task 7: At the end of this course you will submit a research report for your final project. Discuss
with your group:
1. What is a research report?
2. What characteristics does a research report have?
3. What sections might it contain?
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Task 8: What type of writing do you think is suitable for an academic research report? Circle
which of the bolded options below would generally best help the reader.
This course will explore how to put these tips/strategies into action. Tick which of the above
tips/strategies you are already confident to do. Star (*) those you want to develop more.
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Notes
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Task 2: Now read the following extract of a research report and discuss how the authors have
effectively presented their ideas. Use the following questions to analyze the text.
Remember to use some of the ideas about academic writing style from earlier in the unit.
Be prepared to share your paragraph with your group and give/receive feedback.
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Language Task 2: Below is a student text, introducing the topic of the space elevator. Focus on
the underlined sections, which are too wordy. Use the tips above to re-write the underlined sections
so that the text is more concise. Which tip above is relevant to each underlined expression below?
Language Task 3: Now read another student text below. Work together to decide which parts
are too wordy and could be made more concise. Then edit the text to improve it.
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For reference you can find more advice on improving your academic writing style here:
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Task 1: In your previous LANG courses you will have studied how to write Introductions for the
two different types of texts below.
Discuss together what you can remember about what makes a good Introduction for each of these.
What are the similarities between the Introductions for these types of texts? Are there any
differences?
Essays (year 1)
Technical reports (year 2)
In this course you will be writing a research report. How do you think the Introduction might be
similar or different to an Introduction for an essay or technical report?
Task 2: Read the information on Assessments 1 and 2 at the front of the book. For both these
assessment tasks you will introduce the audience/reader to your project so far i.e. writing a type
of Introduction to your project.
Which of the suggested content points do you think might be more challenging to answer? How
do you think you could ensure you are confident to answer them well?
Task 3: In general, most Introductions provide background information on the topic, and an
overview of the project design.
To do this, many Introductions have a key focus on the following:
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
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Research gap
Present the general topic area
Previous research or recent history about the topic
Purpose of the project
Significance of the topic
How you will conduct the project
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Complete the table below with the key focus areas listed above:
Type of
information
background to
the topic
Key focus
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
overview
of
project design
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Task 5: As you may know, there is not one fixed way to organize the ideas in an Introduction
because different projects will necessitate different content and different organization. However
the table above should be a useful guide for content and structure. Of course, the more you read,
the more confident you will become with understanding how you can best write your own report.
There are also some characteristics that you could bear in mind, which tend to apply across most
Introductions:
Characteristics of good Introductions:
1. The reader is gradually led from their current broad general knowledge, to the specific focus
of this project and now wants to read the rest of the report.
2. Basic knowledge (that the reader may already have) is mentioned briefly for context, but
not explained in detail.
3. Higher level knowledge (that might be new to the reader) is presented step-by-step.
4. The reader is not distracted by unnecessary details or vacuous statements.
5. The reader can understand how this project is connected to other previous research.
6. The reader can understand why this project has been designed, why it has been designed in
this way, and why they should care about it.
7. The reader is helped with brief explanations of uncommon terminology or acronyms if
necessary.
Which of the above characteristics do you think you and your classmates might find most difficult?
Task 6: Underline each of the expressions below in the Introduction that you have just read.
These expressions might be useful for your own writing.
Useful Expressions: Introducing your project
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
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Task 7: Now read two more student-written Introductions. Which of the six key focus areas are
covered in each text? Annotate your text to show where each key focus area is covered.
Notes
Brusselator, which was first introduced by chemist Ilya Prigogine, describes a chemical
reaction that has the following procedures with inputs A, B and products D, E among all
oscillating autocatalytic reactions, which can be symbolized as
A X,
B + X Y + D,
2X + Y 3X,
X E,
with reaction rates k1, k2, k3 and k4 respectively. Note that chemicals X and Y work as
intermediate chemicals that do not appear in the overall reaction A + B D + E after
combining all the reactions together, which are the quantities that we are interested in.
There have been many research papers working on brusselator. [1] studied behavior of
brusslator and approximated period for the case B = A2 + 1 under the assumption of
constant A and B. Hin as posted in [2] found that period T is estimated to be
0.3378e0.2470B when A = 1 by using the Fast Fourier Transform, however, the study
mainly focuses on constant amounts of inputs as well. Our question to study is therefore
how solutions change along with time if we assume one chemical input to be changed
periodically. This paper first displays the equations interested, then studies fixed point(s)
for the equations and analyzes some properties of solutions obtained from the numerical
approach.
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Most of the water that sustains life on Earth probably came from
asteroids rather than comets.
Look at three further 3 paired examples. Notice how the language has changed.
Ex 1
Ex 2
Ex 3
Now go back to the text above on the topic of Lorenz / Henon map, and find two examples of
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normal relative clauses and two examples of reduced relative clauses. Language Task 2:
Underline the relative clause in each example below, then edit it, to be more concise.
1. The forced Morse Oscillator adds a sinusoidal term in the original equation, which produces
2 results where the original one cannot be observed.
2. A slight change in the conditions can lead to a significantly different result after a period of
time. The phenomena which results is referred to as chaos.
3. The Duffing equation is a powerful mathematical tool, which is used to describe various
oscillations.
4. The Duffing equation or Duffing oscillator, which is named after Georg Duffing, is a nonlinear second-order differential equation, which is used to model certain oscillators.
5. Originally, the Henon-Heiles system, which was first proposed by Michel Henon and Carl
Heiles, was the simplified two dimensional non-linear axi-symmetric model.
6. In order to investigate the features of the orbits, both physical and mathematical methods are
used, which include Finat Time Lyapunov Exponent, Hamiltonian mechanics and the
Runge-Kutta method.
Which of the key focus areas from this unit are covered in the Introduction?
Can you see any features of good academic writing in these articles? How formal is the
writing?
How can the information stated in these Introductions help you to design your own project?
Remember to keep notes of your source articles and the key ideas from them, so that you can
come back to them later, if you reference them in your project report. A useful source of research
articles can be found here http://www.ams.org/publications/publications
For reference you can find more advice on using reduced relative clauses here:
general advice and examples http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/relative-clauses/
examples and practice http://www.grammar-quizzes.com/clauses-6.html
relative clause review http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/clauses.htm#relative
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Task 1: The Theory section of a report may look very different for Pure, Applied and Statistics
track projects. Sit with a group of students from your track. Discuss together - what might this
section of the report look like?
Task 4: What problems do you think students might have when they write this section of the
report?
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Task 5: As you have seen, you will need to read multiple sources, in order to synthesize ideas for
your project. How do we deal with synthesizing ideas from multiple sources?
Circle the best options: introducing your project (i.e. through the Introduction section and Theory
section) might involve
incorporating / not incorporating your own analysis or critical thinking toward some of
the writers
Language Task 1:
Below are four common occasions when you might refer to other peoples work. In which section
of your report would you find each of these?
1. You might provide background information on the topic and its significance, which
you have learned from other text books, journals or websites.
2. You might discuss the recent developments in the field, in order to identify the research
gap that you intend to fill with your own study.
3. You might mention a model/method that a previous study used, in order to rationalize
the design of your own project.
4. You might compare the findings/results/data from your study with those of a
previous study, in order to cite agreement or disagreement, to make interpretations.
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Language Task 2: Match the expressions in the table below to the four points highlighted above,
to show when you might most likely use such expressions.
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Identify three or four different verbs that you could put somewhere on each of the scales above.
Of course some verbs fit somewhere all three scales.
In order to learn how to use these words accurately, appropriately and naturally, you should try
to find and notice lots of examples in their natural context i.e. you need to read a lot! If you
expose yourself to lots of examples, you will start to notice patterns in language, and you can
use this to learn how to use this language more naturally in your own writing.
You can use wordneighbors.ust.hk to search for examples of words in context, to help you see
how these words are used in context naturally.
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Summarizing a text
Step 1 Record the source on your notes page so you can cite the source later.
Step 2 Understand the ideas: Read key parts of the text several times. Look up unfamiliar
words to make sure you fully understand the passage.
Step 3 Annotate the text to identify which ideas to omit from your summary, e.g. underline
important ideas and cross out the minor details.
Step 4 Start building your own notes: e.g. write only a few words for each idea rather than
complete sentences. Use subheadings and bullet points in your notes to help you
process the relationships between ideas. Use synonyms where obvious to do so (not
for words that explain the technical concepts). Change grammar structures from the
original text if easy to do so.
Step 5 Plan your summary: Edit your annotated notes to build the structure of your
summary. What will be the topic of the first sentence? Do any of the ideas in the
article need re-ordering in the summary? How will you organize your notes into plans
for paragraph(s)?
Step 6 Write your text from your summary plan. Try not to look at the original article
while writing. Remember to include in-text citation in appropriate style.
Step 7 Check your summary against the original. Re-read the original text to make sure
you have kept the exact meaning of the original.
Step 8 Add an end-of-text citation at the end of your document, in appropriate style.
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Task 1: Think about some of the presentations that youve seen either online or face-to-face.
Which aspects of voice control do you think most affect the audience in a presentation? How do
they affect the audience?
volume
varying intonation
pausing
speed
Task 2: Self evaluation: Mark a cross (x) on the 5 scales below, to correspond to your own abilities
when you deliver presentations.
too quiet
flat intonation
confident with stress
uncomfortable with pauses
too fast/rushed
too loud
varied intonation
rarely stress words
confident with pauses
too slow
Now mark a star (*) on the same scales above, to correspond to where you would like to be. Which
scales show that you need the most improvement? Which are you already confident with?
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Task 3: In a presentation, we separate our language into chunks of ideas, by using frequent
pausing. This makes our message easier to follow.
Listen to the following video clip about What is the likelihood that mankind will destroy itself?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NPC47qMJVg (0:00 - 1:00) delivered by Prof. Michio
Kaku, City University of New York.
While listening, read the transcript below and mark the pauses by a slash /.
I, say, looking at the next 100 years, that there are two trends in the world today. The first trend
is toward what we call a type one civilization, a planetary civilization. A civilization that I
resemble something out a book, Rogers or Flash Gordon. A type 2 civilization is stellar. They
consume so much energy; they can play with stars. Thats, for example, the Federation of planet
in Star trek. Star Trek we represent that the pickle pie to civilization. Then we have Type 3,
which is galactic, like the board or Independence Day, or the Empire The Empire Strikes Back.
That is a Type 3 civilization which is truly galactic. Now, by the time you reach Type 2, you are
immortal; nothing knows in science can destroy a Type 2 civilization .
Task 4: For each of the tips below, discuss which of the 5 features in Task 1 are addressed.
1. Mark horizontal lines on your script to show where to break for a second or two.
2. Watch an online presentation and note down which words the presenter says louder or
slower that the rest.
3. While you are watching a film in English, pause the film occasionally to repeat back a
line, using the same pitch pattern as the speaker.
4. Record yourself practising part of your presentation with an audio voice recording app
on your phone. Listen to it and decide if you are speaking faster or slower than you
thought you were.
5. Underline the words on your script which you want to emphasize to the audience.
6. While practising your presentation, count 1,2,3 in your head when you want to make a
brief silence for your audience to process some information.
7. Practise your presentation speaking just a little bit slower than normal, and try to use
your voice to sound more enthusiastic.
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Task 5: Watch the video and make notes on the 5 aspects of a powerful voice. Which aspect do
you think is most useful for you to think about, in order to improve your own presentations?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wE7QJSO449o
Task 6: In a presentation you may be faced with various challenging situations. Work in a group
of 4 and following the Steps below.
Step 1: Discuss - have you ever encountered a stressful problem during a presentation before?
What happened? What did you do?
Step 2: Imagine yourself in the following situations. Discuss what would you do if
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Step 3: A key challenge to address in an academic presentation may be to ensure the audience
can follow the complex ideas that you are talking about. Which of the following strategies do
you think would be most effective in helping the audience to follow your ideas? Which strategies
do you use already? Discuss together.
1. Make sure your audience understand complicated vocab by providing an explanation
immediately e.g. what I mean by that is..// lets assume that .// let me explain what
I mean when I say// just to clarify, what I mean is// to make sure we are on the
same page, what I mean is// You can think of this concept as similar to.
2. Clarification of definitions, technical terms and acronyms
3. Repetition of key points
4. Reviewing key points at the end of sections before moving on
5. Short simple sentences
6. Pausing before and after important points, difficult points, key words, etc.
7. Getting the audience to think, not just listen, e.g. using rhetorical question to structure
ideas through the presentation
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You are going to share your progress, challenges and experiences of developing your project so
far. Follow the Steps below.
Step 1: First, you have 5 min to reflect on your progress and challenges so far that youve
experienced I your project. Think about the following questions:
1. What is your project objective?
2. Go to the back of the book and skim the page called Stages of a Research Project. Which
stages have you addressed already, and which have you not yet addressed?
3. What challenges have you encountered so far with your project?
4. What have you learned from planning your project so far about? About research skills?
About maths? About anything else?
5. What will you be doing this week, in terms of developing your project?
Step 2: Now work in a group of 3. Discuss some of the questions from Step 1 with your group.
You dont have to discuss them in order just choose the most useful/interesting questions to
discuss.
Has your group encountered similar problems? Do you have any advice to help solve each others
challenges?
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Circle three learning outcomes for each unit that you feel you feel most confident with.
Highlight one learning outcome in each unit that you want to review again.
Make some notes in the table, about any key points/ideas/tips that you want to remember.
Topics covered
1. Identifying a Research
Topic
1.1. What is Research?
1.2. Getting Started with a
Research Project
2. Preparing an Engaging
Presentation
2.1. Presentation Practice
2.2. Audience Analysis
Learning Outcomes
Particular points/ideas/tips
I want to remember
For reference you can find further advice on dealing with challenging situations:
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facial expressions
hand gestures
body movement
posture
PowerPoints/visuals
Task 2: Discuss in your group what are some possible reasons why people use PowerPoints (or
Keynote, Prezi, etc.) during a presentation? Which of the following suggestions do you think are
the most sensible reasons for using PowerPoints (or Keynote, Prezi, etc.)?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Which of these ideas do you think you already do well? Which do you want to improve for the
future?
Task 4: What do you think Death by PowerPoint means? Watch this video and make notes
below on points you want to remember. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjcO2ExtHso
Which tips do you think will be most useful to remember for your future presentations?
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Task 5: Which of the following strategies/techniques do you think are good advice for using
PowerPoints effectively during a presentation? Or bad advice?
1. Check that everyone can see your PPT, and move out of the way if necessary. If
youre standing in the way, your beautiful PPT slide will be wasted because some people
cant see it.
2. Explain the image/graph/data on the PPT, dont just show a PPT without talking
about it. What you can see here, is.// This here shows the key trend of.// You can
clearly see on the graph that.// The peak that you can see in 2011 is obviously due to
.// The upper part of the chart youre looking at is..
3. Blank the screen if you are not using the PPT right now. It can be confusing and
unnecessary to still see your PPT graph, when you are no longer talking about it.
4. Point clearly at exactly which part of the PPT we should look at (or use a laser
pointer), dont just wave your arms in the vague direction of the PPT. You look much
more confident when you point clearly and precisely.
5. If there is a lot of information on a PPT, e.g. a complex graph or diagram, give your
audience a brief moment of silence to process the information. Then continue talking.
6. If you have a complex PPT to show, explain briefly what you are going to show,
before you reveal the slide. This helps prepare the audience for what is coming next.
The next chart youll see shows the most important findings of our research. /// What Im
going to show you next is .
7. If you have a lot of points on your PPT, reveal them gradually, one by one, with the
animation function. This can help them see only the information that is relevant to what
you are saying at each moment.
8. If you show an equation or formula on a PPT, you dont always need to read out
the whole equation out verbally too.
9. If you show a full sentence on a PPT, you dont always need to read out the sentence
to the audience too.
10. Face your audience and speak towards your audience, not towards your PPT.
Remember, the PPT is not listening to you.
Star three strategies/techniques above that you think will most improve your own presentations
in the future.
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Stand up and find a partner. Talk for 45 seconds about question 1 above, then listen to your
partner for 45 seconds.
Change partner after every question, so that you have talked to 8 different people to answer
the 8 questions above.
Step 3: Reflection
Discuss or make some notes on the following questions to help you identify how to develop your
ability to talk effectively about your research topic for the future:
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Which of the questions listed above were you most / least confident to talk about?
Did your partners ideas inspire you to think about your own topic in a different way?
Which aspects of effective voice control and body language did you pay attention to while
you were speaking (intonation, speed, volume, pausing, stress)?
What feedback did you receive from classmates or the teacher, that you want to bear in
mind for the future?
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Explore some of the follow links and identify 3 useful points from each, that you would like to
remember.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duf_gutmvjo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i68a6M5FFBc
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http://www.speakingaboutpresenting.com/delivery/9-ways-space-presentation/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ooOQQOQdhH8
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Task 1: This week you will watch the assessed presentations of your classmates. What do you
think you will be able to learn from your classmates, by watching their presentations?
Task 2: What would you like to receive feedback on after your presentation? Remember to tell
your classmates, before you start your presentation!
Reflection: Make notes on the peer feedback or comments from your classmates or teacher - that
you want to bear in mind to help you develop your project in the next few weeks.
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Student:
Student:
Comments:
Comments:
Comments:
Student:
Student:
Student:
Comments:
Comments:
Comments:
Student:
Student:
Student:
Comments:
Comments:
Comments:
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Task 1: Sit in a group with students from the same track as you (Pure / Applied / Statistics).
Discuss in your group:
1. What do you think is the purpose of this section of the report for the reader?
2. This unit is divided into Methods for Theoretical Projects and Methodology for DataDriven Projects. What might be the differences?
3. Which of these (Theoretical or Data-Driven) do you think is more applicable to your own
project?
Task 2: Look at the following mini extracts from the Methods/Methodology section of various
different project reports. Which do you think is more likely to come from a data-driven project and
which are more likely to come from a theoretical project?
1. This was extracted from meteorological observations for Hong Kong in 2014 by Hong
Kong Observatory. Daily average readings were used of four variables with a sample of
size 365. The four variables include air temperature (deg. C), relative humidity (%),
amount of cloud (%) and wind speed (km/h).
2. At first, M1 proposes to W2 while both M2 and M3 propose to W1. Since W2 prefers M3 to
M1, M1 will be rejected and is blocked already in this step. Still, consider M2 and M3
also, both of them will be rejected, as W1 prefers M1 the most. Next, M1 proposes to his
second preference W1 and will be accepted this time because W1 wants M1 most. At the
same time, M2 proposes to W3 and M3 proposes to W2. Though W3 prefers M3 to M2, it is
supposed that W3 would reject M2, M3 is engaged with W2 already because M3 suits W2
most. Finally, W3 and M2 are left out, so they will be engaged and stable marriage is
achieved.
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Task 3: The following types of information are usually included in the Methods/Methodology
section of a report, depending on the project.
Think about your own project. Tick which of these you think you will need to include in your
project.
What other types of information might you need to include in your project
Methods/Methodology?
Task 4: Which of the following are from data-driven projects? Ignore underlined parts for now.
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1.
The past 9 years worth of the price and payoff of CPL were taken as the dependent and independent
variables respectively in the model from the annual report of CPL. The fuel price was extracted from BP
Statistical Review of World Energy (2014) to factor into the relevant analysis.
2.
From the results, a regression function was executed to get the unknown parameters in the formula as
below.
3.
To calculate R squared, the method used in this study was multiple linear regression analysis for the
statistical model in finding the relationship between air temperature and three factors including relative
humidity, cloud cover and wind speed
4.
Regardless of the reality, following assumptions are made. First, each person has strict preference over the
opposite gender. The men have perfect information about the women in order to have their full preference
lists at the beginning. It is also assumed that no man proposes to the same woman twice. In addition, no
couple would divorce and form a new matching which makes them a better off. In this example, we take
n=3, which means there are 3 men and 3 women in the marriage market.
5.
To test the weak-form efficiency, information from the S&P 500, NASDAQ and Dow Jones from Yahoo!
Finance were selected from Jan 2005 to Jan 2015. The weekly returns for each index were calculated. Then
Autocorrelation test, and Runs test were used to test its randomness.
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Task 5: Notice the underlined expressions above. What language feature do they all have in
common?
Task 6: You are going to watch a TED Talk about The Maths of War in which the speaker
presents his research project. What kind of maths do you think might be involved in this
research? Discuss some ideas together.
Task 7: Use the task box below while you are watching to take notes. Pause the video at each
section to discuss your ideas.
TED Talk: The Maths of War
Speaker: Sean Gourley
Source: https://www.ted.com/talks/sean_gourley_on_the_mathematics_of_war/transcript?language=en
(0:00-0:32) Introduction
Qu.1: How did he get his initial idea for his research topic?
(0:32-2:00) Methodology
Qu.2: What procedures/stages did he undertake in this project?
(2:15-3:55) Findings
Qu.4: What kind of pattern did he actually find in his results for Iraq?
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Find 2 research articles relevant to your proposed project topic, and analyze the
Methods/Methodology section.
Remember to keep notes of your source articles and the key ideas from them, so that you can
come back to them later, if you reference them in your project report. A useful source of research
articles can be found here http://www.ams.org/publications/publications
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Task 1: Later you are going to read the Methods section of the zombie outbreak report that we
read about earlier in the course. Recall that this study stated the following in the Abstract:
The goal of this paper is to develop a zombie model that represents AMC's The Walking Dead
outbreak and develop numerical methods by which mankind can calculate appropriate actions.
What kind of information would you expect to see in the Methods section of this report?
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Task 3: There are lots of useful expressions in the report you have just read. Many of these help
signal to the reader what type of information is being discussed, e.g.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
Match the four points above to the example expressions extracted from the Method section of the
zombie outbreak report.
Highlight some of these expressions in the report you have just read.
Useful expressions for ..
Let x be .
Assuming.
Recall.
The term.has
we can approximate .as.
which has the solution.
shown in Figure 3
The flow diagram of the model .is
shown in Figure 9.
The flow diagram in Figure 9 gives.
Transformed data .is shown in Table 2
the plot is shown in Figure 7.
Task 4: Sit with a new partner, so that if possible at least one of you is doing a theoretical
project. Discuss your theoretical projects together. Which of the four points above might be
useful to include in the Methods sections of your or your partners theoretical project report?
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Task 5: Read the following student-written Methods section and make notes about the type of
information that each paragraph contains.
Which of the above four points are also included in this text?
Methods
Title: Gale-Shapley stable marriage model
Source: student-written
Considering a Gale-Shapley stable marriage model of a mini marriage market in the men-proposing option, by the deferred
acceptance algorithm under game theory, stable matching situation is attained, such that if any man and woman are left out,
they will pair up eventually. Furthermore, the probability of finding the best person is calculated. Making use of
differentiation under calculus, differentiate the probability once can maximize it and the corresponding optimal time for
making a decision can be found.
Under the world of mathematical make-believe, it is trusted that stable marriage can be achieved in the society. By deferred
acceptance algorithm, a kind of algorithm game theory, everyone is able to find a spouse. To study this, actually there is two
alternative ways, either men-proposing or women-proposing. Now consider a men-proposing example.
I.
Scenario
There is a set M of n men and a set W of n women, where n is the size of the marriage market. A matching between
M and W is a bijection, one-to-one correspondence function, denoted by . A man-woman pair blocks if they
prefer others to be their spouses under . Stable matching is achieved until there is no man-woman pair blocking .
II.
Assumption
Regardless of the reality, following assumptions are made. First, each person has strict preference over the opposite
gender. Secondly, the men have perfect information about the women in order to have their full preference lists at
the beginning. Thirdly, no man proposes to the same woman twice. Last but not least, no couple would divorce and
form a new matching which makes them a better off.
III.
Procedure
Each man proposes to his favorite woman, each woman either engages with the man or reject him. Then, each
rejected man proposes to his next favorite woman. This process goes on until all women have been proposes to.
In this example, take n=3, which means there are 3 men and 3 women in the marriage market.
Wi and Mi stand for woman and man respectively, where i=1,2,3. For the left table, each column represents the corresponding
Wis preference of man, say, W1 prefers M1 to M3 to M2. The same for the right table.
At first, M1 proposes to W2 while both M2 and M3 propose to W1. Since W2 prefers M3 to M1, M1 will be rejected and is
blocked already in this step. Still, consider M2 and M3 also, both of them will be rejected, as W1 prefers M1 the most. Next, M1
proposes to his second preference W1 and will be accepted this time because W1 wants M1 most. At the same time, M2
proposes to W3 and M3 proposes to W2. Though W3 prefers M3 to M2, it is supposed that W3 would reject M2, M3 is engaged
with W2 already because M3 suits W2 most. Finally, W3 and M2 are left out, so they will be engaged and stable marriage is
achieved.
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Task 6: What problems do you think students might encounter when they present the theoretical
Methods section in a presentation?
Task 7: Later you are going to watch a TED Talk about Fibonacci numbers. He tries to present
the processes - of working through an abstract concept in a way that the audience can easily
follow.
Task 8: Use the task box below while you are watching the talk to take notes. Pause the video at
each section to discuss your ideas.
TED Talk: The Magic of Fibonacci Numbers
Speaker: Arthur Benjamin
Source: http://www.ted.com/talks/arthur_benjamin_the_magic_of_fibonacci_numbers
Introduction Section
Qu.1: What do you like about his Introduction? Why?
Conclusion Section
Qu.3: How effective do you think the Conclusion is? Why?
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Brainteaser 2
Step 2: Now prepare and practice with your partner how you are going to teach the teacher to
solve one of the brainteasers above. Remember to practice some of the following strategies,
which we saw in the TED Talk:
Step 3: Choose one representative to present your Methods to the teacher to explain to him/her
how to solve the brainteaser.
Step 4: Reflection listening to the Methods of other speakers, what did you notice about the
speakers who were effective? What speaking strategies did they use to make their Methods easier
to follow and clear to understand?
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Task 1: We are going to read an extract of a report which uses Game Theory.
First, read the Abstract to the report below. It has been divided into numbered sections.
Identify which numbered section is a summary of the results and discussion mentioned.
Supplementary Sample 6 (Abstract)
Title: A Game-Theoretical Approach for Designing Market Trading Strategies
Source: Garrison W. Greenwood and Richard Tymerski, 2008 IEEE Symposium on
Computational Intelligence and Games (CIG'08)
http://www.csse.uwa.edu.au/cig08/Proceedings/papers/8011.pdf
Task 2: Read the Section V Experimental Results of this report (which represents the Results
and Discussion section of a report. Its divided into four parts for you.
What is the main function of each of the four parts in this section?
Supplementary Sample 7 (Results and Discussion)
Title: A Game-Theoretical Approach for Designing Market Trading Strategies
Source: Garrison W. Greenwood and Richard Tymerski, 2008 IEEE Symposium on
Computational Intelligence and Games (CIG'08)
http://www.csse.uwa.edu.au/cig08/Proceedings/papers/8011.pdf
Task 3: The Results and Discussion section often answers the following questions in the table
below.
Complete the table by matching the questions in the table to the types of information below:
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statement of findings
summary of methodology
interpretation of findings
Type of information
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Task 4: We have seen that two key aspects of the Results and Discussion are (1) statement of
findings and (2) interpretation of findings. Match these to the useful expressions below to show
what each box might be most useful for.
Useful Expressions for .
Table IV shows that.
Fig. 1 illustrates that.
As demonstrated in Table IX,.
As can be seen in Fig. 1,
.are given in Fig. 3.
It was found that
The analysis demonstrated that.
Useful Expressions for .
This is in line with the findings of Smith [2].
As predicted by Smith [2], these results demonstrate
This differs significantly from the findings of Smith [2].
While previous studies (Smith [2]) have pointed towards , this study has shown that
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In contrast,
Similarly,
Conversely
Comparison (2): comparing your findings to the hypothesis, theory, or previous research, e.g.:
Which of the two above two types of comparisons are found in the Game Theory
Results/Discussion text that you read in this unit?
Language Task 2: Did you notice any language used to make comparisons in the text you read
earlier in this unit about Game Theory strategies for market trading? Underline the following
expressions in the text, which are used to make comparisons.
Do these expressions in the text relate to comparison (1) or comparison (2) from the box above?
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Language Task 3: Did you notice how the writer of the Game Theory report also showed
comparisons by repeating the same structures through the texts? Underline the following
expressions in the text, which are used to make comparisons.
What effect do you think these repetitive structures has on the reader?
Comparisons are useful in scientific writing because they enable us to create a framework for
understanding particular results, in the context of others. However comparisons can potentially
lead to confusion because they require processing multiple concepts at the same time. One way
to help the read avoid confusion, and to communicate the comparison clearly and precisely, is
to use parallel structures, like the examples above. This means reporting two ideas using the
same or consistent structures.
Remember: you shouldnt be aiming for complexity; you should be aiming for natural clarity
in your writing (and speaking).
Fall 2016-17
Experimental investigation
Objective:
In this experiment, you examined a hypothesis about the geometry of circles:
The circumference (C) of a circle is directly proportional to its diameter (D) regardless of the circles size, and
= 3.14159
Materials:
Metric ruler with millimeter resolution
Vernier calipers with 0.05 mm resolution
5 objects with diameters ~1 cm to ~10 cm: (penny coin, tomato soup can, D cell, PVC cylinders)
Procedures:
Five objects were chosen such that measurements of their circumference and diameter could be obtained easily and
would be reproducible. The diameter of each of the 5 objects was measured with either the ruler or caliper. The
circumference and diameter of each object was measured with the same measuring device in case the two
instruments were not calibrated the same. The circumference measurement was obtained by tightly wrapping a small
piece of paper around the object, marking the circumference on the paper with a pencil, and measuring this distance
with the ruler or caliper. The uncertainty specified with each measurement is based on the precision of the measuring
device and the experimenters estimated ability to make a reliable measurement. Results for all five objects are
given in the table below:
Table: The C/R Ratios of all Five Objects
Object
Penny
D cell battery
PVC cylinder A
PVC cylinder B
Tomato soup can
Diameter (cm)
1.90 +/- 0.01
3.30 +/- 0.02
4.23 +/- 0.02
6.04 +/- 0.02
6.06 +/- 0.1
Circumference. (cm)
5.93 +/- 0.03
10.45 +/- 0.05
13.30 +/- 0.03
18.45 +/- 0.05
21.2 +/- 0.1
C/D Ratio
3.12 +/- 0.02
3.17 +/- 0.02
3.14 +/- 0.02
3.06 +/- 0.01
3.21 +/- 0.05
Measuring Device
Vernier caliper, Paper
Vernier caliper, Paper
Vernier caliper, Paper
Plastic ruler, Paper
Plastic ruler, Paper
The precision of the ratio can be estimated using the error propagation formula:
Average C/D = 3.14 +/- 0.03, where 0.03 is the standard error of the 5 values
A graph showing the relationship between the two variables (Diameters and Circumference) is given below:
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Structured Writing Guide gaps can be filled with more than one word, if needed.
As shown in the Table, the numerical analysis of the circular objects, ranging from 2cm to 7cm, yielded
_____________________________, where 0.03 is ___________________________________ of the 5
values.
This
average
C/D
ratio
is
essentially
constant
and
nearly
equal
to
According to the Figure, the __________________________ between the circumference and diameter
_________________________________ y = 3.1527x 0.0502, _____________________ R2 = 0.9967
_________________________
-0.05.
With
the
R2
being
close
to
1,
it
roughly
Both numerical and graphical results are _____________________________ the commonly accepted
geometrical theory which states that the circumference (C) for all circles is directly proportional to its
diameter. ______________________, only a narrow range of circle sizes were analyzed, so
_____________________________ investigation of this C/D relationship over a wider range of circle
sizes should be performed to ______________________ that this ratio is indeed constant for all circles.
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Task 2: Below are two standard tips to remember for using tables and figures in your report.
Discuss why they are important - why would each help the reader?
Tip 1: All tables/figures must be numbered, captioned and formatted in a standard way.
Tip 2: All tables/figures must be referred to in the body of the text
Task 3: Below are 10 standard conventions to remember for numbering, captioning and formatting
tables and figures in a standard way. Read the conventions and circle any that you didnt know
already.
Tables
Figures
5. The table numbers use Roman numerals 6. The figure numbers use Arabic numerals
in capitals (I, II, III, IV, V, etc.)
(1,2,3,4,5, etc.)
7. Both table and figure captions should be concise but informative.
8. Both tables and figures should be aligned in the centre of the page, not aligned on the left
or on the right of the page.
9. Both tables and figures should have space above and below them, so that they are clearly
separated from the body of the text.
10. Both tables and figures should be presented as soon as convenient after they are first
referred to in the text.
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Now use the information above to help decide if the presentation of following figures and tables
is appropriate, and discuss why/why not:
Remarks
1.
I-V Curve
0.01
0
I(A)
-1.50E+01 -1.00E+01 -5.00E+00 0.00E+00 5.00E+00
-0.01
VA(V)
Table 1
2.
Fig. 2
Weight
Velocity
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2 kg
30 m/s
3 kg
25 m/s
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Task 4: Circle the most appropriate option for each statement below to create useful tips for
referring to tables and figures in the body of the text.
a. A table and figure needs/doesnt need to be referred to in the body of the text.
b. A table or figure should be presented as soon/late/convenient as possible after
reference to it in the body of the text.
c. Figure can/cannot be abbreviated to Fig. in the body of the text.
d. Table can/cannot be abbreviated to Tab. in the body of the text.
e. Tables and figures should/shouldnt be referenced in the body of the text by their
caption title (e.g. As shown in the Wave Distribution table, there is a)
f. Tables and figures should/shouldnt be referenced in the body of the text by
number e.g. As shown in Fig. 1, there is a)
g. Tables and figures should/shouldnt be referenced in the body of the text by their
spatial relationship to the text (e.g. As shown in the figure below, there is a//
The table on page 117 highlights)
h. All observations / Only key observations from a table or figure need to be
referred to in the body of the text.
Task 5: We are going to return to the zombie outbreak report that you started reading earlier in
the course and read extracts of the Results/Discussion section, which includes some discussion
of graphical data. Work in a group of 4 and analyze the texts together. Follow the steps below.
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Language Task 1: Look at the underlined expressions in the zombie texts you have just read. Are
these:
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strong claims, e.g. showing that the writer is 100% confident, or that the event is 100%
inevitable, etc.?
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Language Task 2: In the table below, compare the expressions on the left to the corresponding
ones on the right. Some of these expressions come some of the texts you read earlier in the course.
Which column below represents strong language, and which represents tentative language?
Circle the changes in the language from the left to the right column.
In fact, is identical
It is found that
It is possible that
Our experiment represents a crucial step Our experiment may represent a crucial step
toward
toward
Based on the above, we can summarize that a variety of language structures, besides just modal
verbs, can be used to make hedges.
Frequently used language in science writing used to make hedges is:
1. non-modal verbs (appear, assume, aim, propose, suggest, indicate, seem, tend, intend)
2. adverbial phrases (arguably, largely, probably, rather, likely)
3. adjectives (apparent, possible, presumed, probable, supposed)
4. modal verbs (could, may, might, can, should)
5. reference to limiting conditions (in some ways, under different parameters)
6. nouns (appearance, indication, likelihood, possibility, suggestion, tendency)
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Language Task 3: The expressions below might be useful for the Results and Discussion section
of a report.
Decide which of the six language categories above is used in each example below.
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Language Task 4: Below are some student-written examples. Select the most appropriate
language to communicate the facts/claims accurately.
1. Experimental results indicate that / We proved that the amplitude of the reflected
waves attenuate because energy is lost at the boundary in the imperfect LC circuit and
transmission line.
2. In standing waves, multiple frequency nulls are found. This suggests that / This means
that standing waves resonate with the transmission line.
3. The theory behind this phenomenon is still under debate, but a common explanation is
that / the explanation is that the sudden collapse in size of the bubble would cause the
surrounding water to have high pressure and temperature.
4. We observed that / We think that light intensity at the beginning is usually higher than
that towards the end.
Sometimes our claims/statements may be based on strong evidence, and sometimes our
claims/statements may be tentative depending on how strongly the evidence seems to support
them. Its important to accurately convey the strength or weakness or our
claims/suggestions/evidence, based on the findings and understanding that we have. A common
problem observed in student reports is that the strength of claims is exaggerated, i.e. the language
is too strong. This gives the impression that the student is certain about something, but in fact,
the evidence does not fully support such a strong/certain claim. Students should remember that
exaggerating the strength of our claims does not make our report better; it makes our report
inaccurate.
Hedging in science is generally used to enable the writer to make accurate claims, i.e. claims
which are accurately supported by the evidence, and claims which accurately report the level
of confidence that the writer has about the claim. Why is this important?
the purpose of research is to further our understanding of the world, not to mislead
people.
the writers reputation as a scientist is in part dependent on their ability to accurately
communicate their observations and subsequent interpretations. For this reason,
exaggerating the strength of evidence supporting a claim can seriously damage their
reputation as a scientist.
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There are different conventions of writing numbers. Read the table below for some general
guidelines followed by most technical writers.
Digits are often used:
for any measurement or data: 2.5 L
for any number 10 or greater: 14 boilers
for any number less than 10 with units: 8
m/sec
for any number less than 1.0: 0.375
when the numerical value of a quantity is
important: 6 failures
with a comma separating every three digits
except in numbers after a decimal: 3,968,
0.32147
Symbols may have an alphabetic basis (e.g., mm, kV, g, qt, ft) or a non-alphabetic basis (e.g., %,
$, , ). Generally, neither type of symbol should be used without an accompanying numeral.
Rules differ for separating numerals from alphabetic and non-alphabetic symbols. Read the table
below for some general guidelines.
Alphabetic symbols
Separate a number from a following
alphabetic symbol with a single space: the
overall length of 130 mm
For dimensions, use a multiplication symbol
(not a small letter x) or the word by to
separate the measurements: 10 55 5
mm, 10 by 55 by 5 mm
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Non-alphabetic symbols
Close up a number and a non-alphabetic
symbol, whether the symbol precedes or
follows the number (except if the symbol
is being used as a mathematical
operator): =3 mm, 44%, 5 but P < 0.001
As for degrees Celsius, separate the nonalphabetic symbol from the number by a
space: 12 C
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Read the extract below, taken from the Results section of a student-written report. Use the
information above and from the rest of the lesson to:
1. Identify the different types of information in the text, and how this information is
organized.
2. Evaluate whether the units and digits are appropriately presented, based on the information
in the boxes above.
3. Evaluate whether the references to the numbered equations is appropriate.
Student Sample Results Section: Ray Optics
Type of information
For reference you can find more advice on using hedging here:
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Task 1: We are going to watch a TED Talk by a mathematician talking about his basketball
research project. What kind of maths do you think would be relevant to basketball?
Task 2: Use the task box below while you are watching to take notes. Pause the video at each
section to discuss your ideas.
(0:00-2:20) Introduction
Qu.1: Where did he get his initial idea for the research project?
Qu.2: What was the overall outcome of the project?
(2:20-7:40) Methodology
(11:00-12:00) Conclusion
Qu.3: Do you think the Conclusion is effective?
Qu.4: What question has he tried to answer in this Conclusion section?
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Task 3: Think about the Conclusions you have seen in this TED Talk and other presentations.
What makes an effective Conclusion in a presentation for the audience?
Task 4: What about a written report? What kind of information do you think a reader would want
to find in a Conclusion for a research report?
Task 5: Consider whether you agree (A) or disagree (D) with the following:
1. The Conclusion should be short and concise because it briefly reiterates the significance of
the research problem and information from the Discussion section.
2. A long Conclusion section makes the research problem investigated by the author/s seem
more important.
3. A short Conclusion section suggests that the research was rather insignificant and has little
relevance to future studies.
4. The Conclusion is intended to prove a hypothesis
5. The Conclusion could disagree with previous research.
Task 6: Scientific reports should inform, interest and inspire the reader. If your reader is confused,
bored or uninspired after reading your Conclusion, they may not be left with a meaningful lasting
impression from your research. Consider how the characteristics below would be helpful for
Conclusions which inform, interest and inspire:
Characteristics of good Conclusions in reports:
1. The reader can get a reasonable understanding of the main findings of the project, even if
they havent read the rest of the report.
2. The reader can focus on the key points easily. The reader is not distracted by unnecessary
details, minor findings, or vacuous statements.
3. The reader can get a reasonable understanding of how the experiment could be improved
in the future, even if they havent read the rest of the report.
4. The reader can understand why this project is significant to the field or furthers our
scientific understanding in the field.
5. The reader can trust your Conclusion. The reader is not misled by idle speculation, or by
exaggerated or unsupported claims.
6. The Conclusion is written for a broad audience, not a specialist audience.
7. The Conclusion should be the starting point of a future project, not just the end of a current
project.
Which of the above do you think you and your classmates might find most difficult?
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Language Task 1 Read the following pairs of statements for including in a report Conclusion.
Which sentence in each pair do you prefer? Why?
1a. Our model sheds light on how this challenge might be approached in the future.
1b. Our model will transform this field of maths.
2a. This study contributes further evidence to support Bolts theory.
2b. This study unequivocally proves the validity of Bolts theory.
3a. The findings of this study challenge the validity of Bolts theory.
3b. The findings of this study show that Bolts theory was wrong.
4a. Our findings are very useful to everyone.
4b. Our findings may further the development of theories in macro-economics.
Language Task 2: The table below contains language for verb-phrases commonly used to
communicate the significance of a project or project outcome.
Create verb phrases by matching the verbs on the left with the end-of-phrase language on the right.
There are multiple possible matches for many of the verbs.
Remember: focus on matches which are natural collocations and meaningful to use to talk about
the significance of a project not just matches which are grammatically correct.
For example reveal the validity of is grammatically correct, but its not a natural collocation.
verb
end-of-phrase language
1. transform
2. question
3. reveal
4. challenge
5. contribute
6. further
7. shed
8. highlight
9. confirm
10. raise
11. advance
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Language Task 3: Recall the basketball TED Talk that you watched earlier in this unit, in which
the team designed a model that could analyze the moves of a basketball game better than a coach.
1. Discuss the project in a group of 3.
2. In pairs, write one sentence to outline the possible significance of this project. You might want
to use some of the language in the box above. Remember to use appropriate hedging if your ideas
are not 100% certain or you are not 100% confident with your statement.
Remember to keep notes of your source articles and the key ideas from them, so that you can
come back to them later, if you reference them in your project report. A useful source of research
articles can be found here http://www.ams.org/publications/publications
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Task 1: Think about how the words in the box below relate to Conclusions.
take-away message
evaluating
summarizes
brief
tie up
linking back
should lead
The Conclusion is only (1) ________________________ (maybe one paragraph) but it should (2)
_____________________ the project, which means (3) ____________________ to all the other
sections of the report, (4)_____________________ whether the objective has been achieved, and
using this to generate a (5)_______________________ for the reader which
(6)_______________________
what
you
have
achieved,
and
where
this
(7)___________________________future scientists work in the future.
Task 2: A major function of the Conclusion is to tie the report together, by linking back to the
other sections. Discuss together:
1. In what way might a Conclusion link back to the Introduction section?
e.g. the Introduction highlights the objective of the project and the Conclusion should
state whether/how the objective has been achieved.
2. In what way might a Conclusion link back to the Theory section?
3. In what way might a Conclusion link back to the Methodology/Methods?
4. In what way might a Conclusion link back to the Results/Discussion?
Task 3: Read the two student-written Conclusions below. They have been divided into numbered
sections.
1. What are the functions of each numbered section?
2. Which Conclusion do you prefer? Why?
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Conclusion A
Conclusion B
Task 4: In order to link back to the other sections of the report - and tie the report together - a
Conclusion tends to answer the following questions:
1. What was the main outcome of the project?
2. Why is this significant/useful?
3. What were the limitations of the study?
4. What future research is suggested?
Which of these questions can you already answer about your own project?
What other questions might you answer in the Conclusion of your own project?
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Task 5: Read three more Conclusions below, which are divided into numbered sections.
1. Identify which question above is answered in each numbered section.
2. What do these three Conclusions all have in common, in terms of their organizational
structure?
Conclusions from HKUST student-written Capstone reports (2015)
Function or
Type of information
Conclusion C
(1) The properties and chaotic nature of the Henon map was illustrated by
computational methods in different aspects such as the stability of a fixed
point, existence of strange attractor for given parameters and the period
doubling bifurcation. (2) However in this paper we only studied the
properties for a small range of parameters a and b. (3) It may be worthwhile
to plot an a-b graph to indicate how the map will behave with different
values of parameters.
Conclusion D
(1) The Lotka Volterra equation is a powerful equation which can predict
the population of food chain in ecosystem. (2) In a three dimensional case,
when the population of super predator Z a31 is equal to 2, the ecosystem
converges to 1 and the behavior stops. However, when a31 changes from 1.06 to -2, the behavior of predator and prey changes from simple periodic
to periodic doubling, and then occurs an attractor. As a result, it turns to
chaos and the population of three species converges to 1. This implies the
food chain would stop. (3) The bifurcation diagram, hopf diagram are
needed for analysis of chaos of the three species in competition. However,
this paper focussed only on the general form of Lotka Volterra. (4) Hopf
bifurcation will be used in the next stage of research.
Conclusion E
(1) This paper explained different diagrams in order to better understand
the forced doffing oscillator. The weak signal detection and the watertreeing detection were done by observing the dramatic changes of the
system states the around critical state. (2) However, certain limitations
arose for both applications: the value of the external signal and current
input. (3) Further studies should be done on both applications for addressing
these limitations.
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Task 6: In the Conclusions above, underline any useful expressions that you want to remember,
which help to indicate which question is being answered.
Task 7: Below are common problems with writing Conclusions to research reports.
Which do you think you might find most difficult?
Common problems with writing Conclusions:
1. Omitting a statement about the general project area or overall outcome of the project.
Remember that the reader may read this section before the rest of the report, so
one sentence to summarize the whole project is helpful.
2. Writing in too much detail, i.e. not being able to distinguish the key findings from the
minor findings. Remember that a Conclusion should only include key findings, not
all findings.
3. Omitting limitations and subsequent suggestions for improvements/future research.
Remember that a Conclusion should be the starting point for a future project, not
just the ending point of a current project.
4. Unreliable statements, e.g. exaggerating the importance of minor findings, underplaying
sources of errors, exaggerating the strength of evidence behind claims. Remember that
the scientific accuracy of your claims is of utmost importance.
5. Presenting ideas that are not logically supported by the evidence. Remember that a
Conclusion is a logical summary of the project and a logical plan for future
research.
it should present Conclusions that are logically deduced from the evidence
it should present suggestions for future research that would logically follow this study
One common problem with Conclusions is to overlook the logic and fall into the fallacy trap. This
can lead to drawing unhelpful Conclusions or drawing Conclusions that do not accurately represent
reality.
What is the problem with the logic of the following sentences?
1. We can conclude that the economic recession has now ended because we have seen
unemployment rates have decreased.
2. The results demonstrate a correlation with this strategy, so this strategy is the best and
should be recommended to all companies to improve their sales.
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3. The plan proposed by the Marketing department will not be possible to implement
because it is unworkable.
Task 9: Three common fallacies relating to the logic of an argument are given below. Match
them to the details in the box below.
a) Sweeping generalization
b) Circular argument
c) Weak deduction
Fallacy type
Details
There is insufficient evidence to draw the conclusion that has been made.
A conclusion logically drawn from one case, has been applied to cases for
which this conclusion may be unjustified.
The argument goes round and round, instead of finding logical steps forward
in the argument
Language Task 2: Because the Conclusion might be read by someone without full knowledge of
the details of the rest of the report, it is important to ensure that the Conclusion is especially clear
and coherent.
One way to help the reader follow the ideas of a text is to create a chain of ideas in which sentences
begin by first giving the reader information old information that the reader already knows. Then,
introduce the new information at the end of the sentence.
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Look at the example in the box below. Notice how the first sentence ends with new
information, and then this becomes old information at the start of the second sentence.
The first approach is to focus on the retention time and select transitions with large
retention time variation. By adjusting for global retention time variation, it provides
more robust detections of problematic transitions with mis-identified peaks.
Read the following conclusion section for a paper about data pre-processing for label-free
Multiple Reaction Monitoring (MRM) experiments, and focus on the bolded expressions.
How is the old information linked to the new information?
Conclusion
Title: Data Pre-Processing for Label-Free Multiple Reaction Monitoring (MRM) Experiments
Source: Chung, L.M., Colangelo, C.M., & H.Zhao. Data Pre-Processing for Label-Free Multiple
Reaction
Monitoring
(MRM)
Experiments.
Biology 2014, 3(2),
383-402;
doi:10.3390/biology3020383. Available from: http://www.mdpi.com/2079-7737/3/2/383/htm
In this paper, we have discussed pre-processing approaches for label-free MRM data sets. We
considered the assessments of transition and sample quality and data normalization. For
quality assessment, we suggest to examine the consistency of retention time and peak area
across all the samples in the experiment. The first approach is to focus on the retention time and
select transitions with large retention time variation. By adjusting for global retention time
variation, it provides more robust detections of problematic transitions with mis-identified
peaks. The second approach aims to evaluate inconsistent MRM peaks by decomposing the
peak area with transition effect and sample-specific variation. Robust linear regression evaluates
weights for individual peak which can be used as evidence for outlying quantitation. By
summarizing the weights at the transition- or sample-level, one may be able to identify
inconsistent transition or problematic MRM samples. The distinctive feature of this quality
assessment tool lies in its data-driven nature. We note that other methods have been proposed
for quality assessment, such as to utilize spectral library intensity (Skyline), peak intensities from
heavy labeled transitions (AuDIT), or peak characteristics from decoy transitions (mProphet).
These methods require specific assay development or MS/MS peak monitoring scheme. In
contrast, we believe that our pipeline is advantageous in that it does not require extra information
and borrows information across samples. Our approaches model retention time or peak area
across all the samples processed together in a label-free MRM experiment, and are more
generally applicable. This pipeline can be used along with the Skylines label-free function or
independently for the MRM data quantified by other approaches.
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Review: Through this course, you have read various sections of the zombie outbreak report.
Finally, we come to the Conclusion of that report!
Step 1: Use what we have covered in this unit about coherence and old-to-new principle to help
you to put the sentences into order, to make a coherent Conclusion.
Step 2: Then read the completed Conclusion that you have constructed and evaluate:
1. What helped you to put the sentences into order?
2. Does this Conclusion include the type of content and structure that we have studied in this
unit?
3. What do you like about this Conclusion or the way that it is written?
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Read the full zombie outbreak article online. You have read extracts from each section already in
this course:
http://opus.govst.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1046&context=theses.
While reading the whole article:
1. Can you find more examples of old-to-new principle, which help the ideas flow together
well?
2. What else - about the writing style - helps the ideas flow together well?
Then find another article relevant to your own project. Read the full article and consider:
1. Do the ideas flow together well? Why/why not?
2. What else do you like about the style of writing in this article?
For reference you can find more practice on old-to-new principle here:
http://www.uefap.com/writing/parag/par_flow.htm
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Step 1: Look at the table below. These are the key findings from some research into the language
used in maths papers. The usage of four particular language structures was analyzed in a number
of different maths papers, comparing the use of these structures in different sections of the
report. Work in a group of 3 and discuss together:
1. What conclusions can you draw from this information?
2. Are you surprised by any of their findings?
3. Why do you think this study was conducted?
4. What impact do you think this study could this study have?
5. Where do you think this research might lead to in the future?
Wesubject pattern
We report a reduction.
Anticipatory itpatterns
It is likely that..
It is important to
remember
Inanimate subject
patterns
Passive patterns
Introductions
19.02%
3.93%
7.87%
69.18%
Methods
0.82%
0.00%
0.10%
99.08%
Results
13.10%
1.75%
4.80%
80.35%
Discussions
15.83%
9.91%
22.26%
52.00%
Carmen Prez-Llantada, 2011. Constructing the Ideal Readership: Heteroglossic (Dis) Engagement in Research Writing Practices across Cultures
In V. Bhatia, P. Snchez & P. Prez-Paredes (Eds), Researching Specialised Languages, pp. 25-45. Amsterdam: John Benjamins
Step 2: Write a conclusion paragraph with your group, summarizing your groups ideas from the
above discussion. Remember to the ideas that we have covered through the course about academic
writing features, to ensure that your paragraph is written in appropriate academic style.
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Step 3: Read the paragraphs of your classmates and analyze them for the four language features
in the table above. Do you think these structures have been used appropriately?
Language Focus (10): Nominalization and Denominalization
Language Task 1: As we have seen in earlier units, in academic writing you are encouraged to be
concise and precise in your communication. Nominalization can sometimes help to achieve both
conciseness and preciseness in your writing.
Look at two versions of the student-written extract below.
Version 1
Version 2
We experience everyday life in a way that does Our experience of everyday life today does not
not seem to prepare us to grasp that the universe seem to prepare us to grasp the vastness of the
is so vast. We all have a vague idea of how universe. We all have a vague idea of its
immense it is just from how the dark space is immensity just from the ever-expanding dark
ever-expanding and faraway stars. But how big space and faraway stars. But how big is it
is it actually? How far does the horizon go on?
Language Task 2: Nominalization can often involve expanding on a simple noun, to create a long
string of nouns which function as one subject (or object). Look at the example below:
Hydrogen
Hydrogen isotopes
The supply of hydrogen isotopes from the comets compared with other cosmological source of the same
element to our earth
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All of the above examples are still just one noun phrase. Each phrase would function as a single subject
or object in the sentence, even though each phrase has many words in it.
Now read the full version of the student-written text below. The underlined expressions are long
noun strings, which act either as subjects or objects of the sentence. Find the main verb which
relates to each of these noun strings.
What do you notice about the density of nouns compared to the density of verbs in the text?
Language Task 3: Read the Abstract below. Underline all the long strings of nouns that you find,
which act as subjects or objects of main verbs. Identify the main verbs which they relate to.
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Language Task 4: Nominalization involves using the noun form of a verb, adjective, or adverb.
This noun can then be extended into a long noun string if required, like we have seen in the
examples above.
Like the examples above, sometimes a sentence can be made more concise and clear through
nominalization, by the following four-step process:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Example
Original:
Nominalized:
There is no expectation that these problems will be solved in the near future.
The solution to these problems is not expected in the near future. [more clear/concise]
Look at the sentences below, and follow the four-step process above. The key verb has been
identified and underlined for you.
1. It was intended that they would identify the factors which affected the growth rate.
3. The researchers proved that a particle, which previously had only been theorized, does
exist.
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Language Task 5: The subject of a sentence is not always the theme. Have a look at the example
below.
Example: The scholars agree that the impact of mathematics in computer science is a wellknown fact.
Some students may assume that the scholars is the theme of the sentences as this is the subject
of the sentence in terms of grammar. They may not realize that the theme or the key message is,
in fact, the agreement among the scholars.
To avoid such misunderstanding, you could use the structure of nominalizations.
Revise each of the sentences below by using the structure of nominalizations. Follow the
example above:
1. The researchers discovered a new dimension of mathematics, which is also to a great
extent influenced by applications.
2. Bandeira de Mello (2002, 2003) developed a procedure to create a scale for comparing
mathematics and reading achievement standards in different states by statistically linking
them to NAEP, and this makes a great contribution to the study of test-based educational
accountability.
3. The studies reviewed so far failed to explain why there was rapid development of theory
of equations in the post Second World War era, which is one of the focuses of the present
study.
4. The research intended to identify the factors which had facilitated the diversity of
mathematics, but unfortunately very little was achieved.
5. It is difficult to explain why there was such a change in statistical methods and standards,
and this is one of the objectives of the present study.
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Language Task 6: Nominalizations, however, should be used with caution. The purpose is to
make writing more clear and potentially more concise. Therefore we should be careful to use noun
phrases which emphasize the key ideas clearly, rather than just nominalizing words without need,
or creating text which is more complex (less clear) than the original.
Sometimes we might want to denominalize, if it makes the sentence clearer, e.g.
Original
Revised
Sometimes we might want to denominalize, if it makes the sentence more concise, e.g.
Original
Revised
2. The present researcher has no expectation that the problems will be solved in the near
future.
4. There was considerable confusion of the applications of mathematics from the example.
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Language Task 8: Now go back to the paragraph you wrote earlier in the lesson. Are there any
places that should be nominalized? Or denominalized? Edit and improve your paragraph.
For reference you can find more advice on using nominalization here:
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Task 2: From Unit 3, and from the articles you have read at home, can you remember the 5 types
of information usually found in an Abstract? Complete the column on the left below:
Type of information
1. background info
Useful tenses
2.
3.
4.
5.
Task 3: What tenses do you think are sensible to use for each of the above parts of the Abstract?
Complete the column on the right above.
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Comments
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Task 6: We are going to watch a TED Talk by a mathematician talking about his music-related
maths project. Later you will write an Abstract of this talk.
Task 7: Use the task box below to follow the TED Talk. Pause the video at each section to
review. Dont worry if you dont understand all the ideas in the talk; just try to follow the gist.
TED Talk: The Beautiful Math behind the Worlds Ugliest Music
Speaker: Scott Rickard
Source: http://www.ted.com/talks/scott_rickard_the_beautiful_math_behind_the_ugliest_music
0:00-0:30 - What makes a piece of music beautiful?
0:30-0:50 - What question did he want to answer in his project?
Pause after each section below. Read each section summary. Then watch the section and circle the correct
option.
0:50-2:45 section summary
Historical research about sonar pings (for use on ships / planes) was the basis of the maths that was relied on in
this project. This had been carried out by a mathematician called John Costas. However that research
encountered difficulties because Costas couldnt work out how to construct pattern-free structures for
particularly large / small structures.
2:45-3:15 - section summary
To help solve this problem, Costas contacted Solomon Golomb, another musician / mathematician. Golomb
realized that nobody had tried to think of such a pattern-free structure before.
3:154:25 section summary
Golomb was / wasnt aware of Evariste Galoires research on prime numbers, and theorized that prime number
theory would be the key to solving the problem of how to create large pattern-free structures.
4:25-4:35 section summary
Having been informed of Galoires prime number theory, John Costas was able to solve his problem: creating
large pattern-free structures for his music / sonar pings.
4:35-6:10 section summary
The pattern-free structures that John Costas developed are called Costas Arrays and they have now been used
in the speakers current project to create pattern-free music. The speaker has used an 88x88 Costas Array,
because there are 88 notes on a piano. In short, the speaker has solved his problem and created pattern-free /
highly patterned music.
6:10-6:35 section summary
Aside from drawing on these Costas Arrays, the speaker also acknowledged the work of Shoenberg, a composer
who had unsuccessfully / successfully explored the possibility of creating pattern-free music in the 1930s,
before Costas solved the problem.
6:35-7:40
Discuss: What was the final outcome of his project? How effective do you think the end of his talk is?
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Delete any linking words in the text above that you think are unnecessary.
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Notes
For reference - you can find more information about Abstracts here:
http://www.writing.utoronto.ca/advice/specific-types-of-writing/abstract
For reference you can find more practice on cohesion here:
Demonstratives: http://icosa.hkbu.edu.hk/grammar/adjectives/referencing-demonstratives/index.htm
Transitions: https://depts.washington.edu/owrc/Handouts/Using%20Transitions%20Effectively.pdf
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be aware of the use of metaphor and analogy in scientific communication for abstract
concepts
be aware of the stages of planning a presentation
understand key differences between presentation-style language and academic writtenstyle language
be aware of a range of online resources to develop features of engaging language
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Task 1: Which TED Talk or student talk - that you have watched so far on this course - do you
think was most engaging for you as an audience member? Why was it engaging?
Task 2: Think about either the last presentation you gave or a presentation you will need to give
in the future. Which of the following do you think you considered / might consider while
planning and preparing your presentation?
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Task 3: Some concepts in science and maths are often communicated to a non-expert audience
by using metaphor or analogy, e.g. a brain works like a computer; the selfish gene.
1. Can you think of any other examples in your field?
2. Discuss why the use of metaphor or analogy could be beneficial for explaining certain
concepts.
3. What problems might arise when metaphor or analogy are used like this?
Task 5: Read the two student-written texts below. Both are on the topic of waves. Discuss the
questions below:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
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Text 1
Text 2
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Task 1: In previous units of the book, you have seen various examples of useful expressions for
spoken-style presentation language. Look at some of these examples copied again in the table
below and discuss what features of these expressions mark them as spoken-style language.
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Task 2: In addition to the language examples above for spoken-style language, you have also
seen earlier in the book lots of examples of useful language for academic-style written language
which could be useful for your reports. These examples are copied again below. Compare this
language with the expressions from Task 1. Discuss what features make these expressions
suitable for written-style language.
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Choose three learning outcomes for each unit that you feel you feel most confident with.
Highlight one learning outcome in each unit that you want to review again.
Make some notes in the table, about any key points/ideas/tips that you want to remember.
Units
Writing Units
Unit 3: Academic Writing for
Research Reports
Unit 4: Introducing your Project
Unit 7: Methods and Methodology
Unit 8: Discussing your Findings
Unit 9: Concluding your Project
Unit 10: Tying your Project Together
Presentation Units
Unit 2: Preparing an Engaging
Presentation
Unit 5: Delivering a Presentation
Effectively
Unit 6: Assessed Presentations
Unit 11: Using Language Effectively
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http://www.ted.com/talks/arthur_benjamin_the_magic_of_fibonacci_numbers
http://www.ted.com/talks/rajiv_maheswaran_the_math_behind_basketball_s_wildest_moves
https://www.ted.com/talks/sean_gourley_on_the_mathematics_of_war/transcript?language=en
http://www.ted.com/talks/allan_adams_the_discovery_that_could_rewrite_physics
http://www.ted.com/talks/jedidah_isler_how_i_fell_in_love_with_quasars_blazars_and_our_incr
edible_universe
http://www.ted.com/talks/henry_lin_what_we_can_learn_from_galaxies_far_far_away
You can also use the interactive transcript available for each of these talks, to help you follow the
talks more easily, and analyze some of the language in more detail.
Below are four sets of questions. Each set relates to the ideas covered in the four units of this
course about presentations (Unit 2, Unit 5, Unit 6, Unit 11). Choose ONE set of questions to
answer while you watch the talk. Prepare to share your ideas with your group.
Questions to review Unit 2
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NOTES:
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