Hello, hello! Welcome to your English phrase workout - "Mixups Unmixed!" Again this month, we're exploring sets of words that scientists tend to confuse in their papers. Your challenge: guess the correct use of these...
Using ‘s, Of, and Zero Possessive: A guide for scientific writers
I have an embarassing confession to make: After decades of writing in English (and years of teaching scientific writing), I still struggle with possessives. A possessive is the 's or the of that you put...
Mixups unmixed: ‘Farther’ from Reality or ‘Further’ from Truth?
Hello, hello! Welcome back to your favorite word workout – “Mixups Unmixed!” Every month, I bring you a new set of word pairs that scientists tend to mix up. Your mission, should you choose to...
5 books on writing every scientist should read
Writing is a craft that every scientist must learn. And what better way to learn a skill than from a good book? In this post, I list five reference books on writing, my favorite books...
What makes an excellent scientific abstract?
Scientific abstracts are of huge significance within academia. Whether they accompany a doctoral dissertation, a conference presentation, or a journal article, abstracts serve as the readers' initial—and often only—encounter with your work. They create the...
The ultimate guide to scientific writing
Do you want to take your scientific writing skills to the next level? As a scientist, your career depends primarily on your publications. But publishing in high-ranking journals is a tough game. So, to put...