q^A^t,-. /fYvvx^lT. (2^>r?) £^^9^,. ce^iz^ ^ Writing the abstract 6 3 In pairs, discuss the following questions. 1 What is the purpose of an abstract? 2 How can an abstract help a researcher choose which,papers to read? 3 What information does the abstract usually include? 4 Why do some people think a good abstract is even more important in the internet age than it was before? b An abstract usually contains one or two key sentences from each section of a paper. Read the following extracts from Mya's draft abstract. Match a section (1 -4) to an extract (A-D), 1 Introduction_ 3 Results_ 2 Method_ 4 Discussion_ : With; the aim, of evaluating- tHis possibility, two iriicr^ firrooxidam, an. ay4oi?hi),Va^ I • microorganism, were exposed 10 simulated Mars.conditions^ thatis,95% C(.)2y2.7%-. f N2, 1.6% Ar and 0.6% H,0 with a pressure of 7 mbap. Tempera tare was Re^a 1150 | ■ K and ultraviolet radiation -was mthc wavelength range ol 2G0MK).O mnat. Eiposiire ] .was for different times under the .protection of 2 and'5 m.nv layers of oxidised iroji..,»;! minerals. Survival was evaluated by growing the organisms oq-fresh media,: 1 The resistance, of organisms to extreme-conditions likeitheconditions which .exist, on the surface of.Mars under-the protection of a thin.material layer increases the«;-possibiIitythat life could exist 011 Mars. -.-"■ L- , D .Here we report that: both the 2 and 5 mm. thick layers provided enough protection [ agamst. radiation and Mars environmental conditions for.the bacteria to survive) ,"l •(Figs. 2.& 3)..' ' :>-'^ ■-y ' :::"-f v7v^ V ' ......,.'............... .,----... ' ...........................;.....„..:....;..,.,..,:..........> Current surface conditioiis oh Mars are extremyy.ch .; j Nicholson and Sfchuerger (2005) reported that Bacillys subittis was- able to surviye-for f ■ 19 days.under Mars atmospheric pressure and composition. The. question is whether i- there .are any features on Mars that cbuld provide protection against the surface conditions. One possibility is that the surface, material plays a protective role due-to the fact that it is composed of irbn^Dxides and hydroxides.1 .: -y , , ,:. ;l C In pairs, decide on the best order for the extracts (A-D) in the abstract. Give reasons for your answer. a ► 9.1 Svenja, Mya's supervisor, is commenting on the draft abstract in Exercise 6b. Listen to part of the conversation and say which section (A-D) Svenja does not comment on. Unit 9 Writing up research 4: introduction and abstract b ► 9.1 Listen again and mark the following statements true (T) or false (F). ! Svenja thinks the reference to Nicholson and Schuerger (2005) is useful. 2 Mya should remove the information on iron oxides and hydroxides-- 3 Mya needs to include more information about the method in his abstract. 4 Svenja advises Mya to refer to the visuals (figures, tables etc.) in the abstract__ 5 Overall, Svenja thinks the abstract is well written-- C Look at Audioscript 9.1 on page 101. Use Svenja's advice to Mya to improve the three sections of the text of the abstract in Exercise 6b. Then compare your corrected text with the Answer key on page 115. 8 a Mya uses particular phrases to signal the purpose of each part of the abstract (A-D) in Exercise 6b. Underline a phrase in the extracts which Mya uses to: 1 state the research question 2 present the hypothesis 3 introduce the method 4 introduce key results b The following phrases can also be used to signal the purpose of each part of an abstract. Divide the phrases (a-l) into four groups according to the functions in Exercise 8a [1 -4). a An investigation was g The study provides strong undertaken to explore ... evidence that... b It seems likely that... h We demonstrate that... c Results show that... i We expected that... d The aim of the study was to ... j We investigated a new method of WRB-Ing e The data suggest that... k The method involved wRB-ing f The present study I was found to ... investigates... C The text of an abstract must be concise. Replace the underlined words in extracts 1 -5 below with that or those. 1 The hormone increased the power output of healthy volunteers by 16 per cent after four weeks of taking the drug. Healthy volunteers who took the drug could also exercise 50 per cent longer than control subjects. 2 We compare photographic exposure from scattered light with light from direct light. 3 The target yield is the yield which can be produced in 'perfect' conditions. 4 Structures like the structures described in this paper are not known in glyptodonts recorded before the Great American Biotic Interchange (CABI). 5 The lithology of failed carbonate strata differs from thejitholcgy of their basal shear surfaces. 9 a Think about some research you have done recently. Write: • one or two sentences which provide the key background to the research • a sentence which states your research question • a sentence which presents your hypothesis two or three sentences outlining the main methods used one or two sentences presenting the key results a sentence which states the key implication of your findings Connect these sentences to form a draft of an abstract. Use the phrases in Exercises 8a and 8b to make it dear where each section of the abstract begins. Check your work for repetition of words or ideas