Writing Assignment, Spring 2013
Because all scientific disciplines are changing rapidly, new ideas are commonly presented in journals months or years before they are incorporated into textbooks. In order to introduce you to some of the current or classic ideas in oceanography I would like you to read an article from the recent literature and then, working from the premise that one of the best ways to understand something is to explain it to someone else, I also ask that you write an outline and an abstract (concise summary) of that article. Developing the ability to recognize which elements of a presentation provide key support for its hypothesis and then communicate your analysis to others through a well-organized and clearly-written narrative is a skill that will serve you well in whatever work or studies you pursue.
Instructions for each part of the writing assignment
- Article: To begin, read one of the articles listed below. If you would like additional background you may want to look back (or ahead) at our text's discussion of the topics covered by the article you choose. Remember, however, that your outline and abstract are to present information only from the article and not from other sources.
- Outline: Then, write a outline of the article's key points using complete sentences.
A good way to begin organizing your outline may be to imagine that you are telling a friend what the most important conclusions of the article are and what data support them. If you can lay our your statements and data this way you'll be well on your way to writing a good outline.
- Your final version must be typed and you should identify yourself only by typing your class PIN—but not your name—on the upper, right-hand corner of the first page.
- The outline will be worth 10 points, and will be graded on grammar, completeness and relevance of the material to the main ideas of the article (focus on major points, not peripheral details) according to the accompanying rubric.
- You should also review this sample outline, which was written from an article previously used for this assignment, so that you can get an idea of what sort of detail your outline should include. Because the rubric and sample outline (as well as the other sample documents linked below) are PDF files you will need to install a free copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader to view them if you do not already have one on your computer.
- Here is a list of the annotations I will make on student writing assignments when I review them.
- Preliminary Abstract: Next, prepare an abstract that summarizes the most important observations
and conclusions of the article according to the instructions given on the
accompanying template.
(If you're not using Word, this abstract layout page will show you the correct margins and column sizes for your abstract.) If you're not familiar with what an abstact is, check out this short
essay on what makes a good versus a bad abstract by Kenneth Landes.
- Your final version must be typed using the format given in the template. Just highlight each element of the template in turn (title, author name(s), journal title, abstract text, index terms, etc.) and type in the corresponding text for your abstract. The template will correctly position and space text on the page. Be sure to save the edited template so that if anything goes wrong you won't have to type it again.
- Your abstract text should fit in the space available in the left-hand column but not wrap over into the right-hand column. If it does you'll need to shorten the text accordingly. Also, the top line of the right-hand column should be flush with the title in the left-hand column. If it's not, be sure to remove any extra carriage returns from the top of the right-hand column.
- Finally, you should only identify yourself only by typing your PIN—not your name—in the space indicated near the top of the right-hand column. You will want to work from your outline, but be careful not to paraphrase the article closely or include text directly from it. Doing so constitutes plagiarism and will result in a loss of points.
- The preliminary abstract will be worth 10 points and will be scored about 2/3 on format (page layout and index terms) and 1/3 on content (sentence structure, narrative coherence and completeness and accuracy of content). You should also review this sample abstract, which was written from the same article as that used for the sample outline, so that you can see how the narrative content of the abstract is related to the ideas presented in the outline.
- Final abstract: Finally, prepare a revised abstract that takes into account all of the comments you received on you first version. This final abstract will be graded about 2/3 on content (clarity, originality and coherence of narrative) and 1/3 on form (layout, index terms, grammar and sentence structure) according to the acompanying rubric. Special emphasis will be given to those sections where you were asked to make changes to the preliminary version. It will be worth 20 points.
Articles |
- The Dangers of Ocean Acidification by Scott C. Doney, Scientific American, March 2006, p. 58-65.
As the amount of carbon dioxide in Earth's atmosphere rises so does the acidity of seawater. This article examines the effects of this change on the marine environment and the life it supports.
- Warmer Oceans, Stronger Hurricanes by Kenneth E. Trenberth, Scientific American, July 2007, p. 44-51.
This article examines the potential link between warmer sea-surface temperatures and the increased strengths of recent hurricanes and explores other factors that may make the situation more complicated.
