The factual reality of writing an abstract

Let’s begin with the end. Most scientific papers do.

Placed at the beginning of a research article, the abstract is the last piece to be written. It is composed of ‘a few sentences that give the main idea in an article or a scientific paper’.

First impressions are crucial in scientific publishing, and this short text has many jobs.

🥸 It must be a self-contained summary of the research paper.

🔉 It should accurately and clearly present the most important results.

🤔 While encouraging researchers to read on.

It would help if some SEO-friendly keywords are sprinkled over, while maintaining coherent flow… and avoiding jargon, acronyms, abbreviations, footnotes…


This may seem very simple to most people. To most first year graduate students, deeply involved in their research field, when minute details make or break publications and careers, and when statistically significant differences are what you live for… being simple is hard.

So, for all your studies, allow readers to 👀 SEE:

Statement ☞ describe what your findings were.

Explanation ☞ say why they are important.

Example ☞ highlight their impact in people’s lives. 


Communicating science is not always easy, but it is always rewarding!

 

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