Consistency

Before you start writing your first scientific paper, think very long about the conventions. About the names of variables. About the Greek symbols you will use for variables. About where you will put the factors of (2) in equations. About sign conventions in your equations. Write down your conventions as a scientific text. Update your own conventions regularly and always keep them within reach.

Manuscript types

There are a number of texts that can be classified as containing scientific information. Among them are:

• – scientific papers,

• – conference proceedings and abstracts,

• – (internal) progress reports,

• – theses,

• – proposals for science agencies,

• – manuals for your computer programs,

• – referee reports,

• – …

Generic scientific texts

• Always write any scientific text as much as possible as if you are writing a full scientific paper that can be submitted to an international journal.

When you are sending a text to a collaborator which whom you have very recently discussed your data and your graphs, this formal, elaborate writing might seem redundant and a round-about. But it is not. Laboratory journals are difficult to read by yourself and almost impossible to understand by your colleagues. Exchanging informal, incomplete scientific texts is an eternal source of confusion.

The sooner you incorporate your data and figures, complete with captions, into full scientific texts, the easier you make it for your colleagues, and for your self in the long run (when you are writing your thesis, for instance). If finally you end up with a text that contains too many details, save a copy, make it a readonly file (with a sensible – in the English language – file name). Subsequently you can erase details and prepare the text for publication (and save it again, with another, sensible name).

Extreme size constraint

A real challenge is to write papers that have extreme size constraints (three pages or so). A number of hints in this tutorial will not apply as implementation would make the text too long. Write the text first with a very good structure, and possibly, way too long. Then shorten it. In that way you are sure that no new information has to be put in right at the end.