Research Guides: FAMU-FSU College of Engineering: Scientific Writing

Citation Information

Purdue OWL
The Online Writing Lab (OWL) at Purdue University houses writing resources, including information on APA style.
FSU Libraries' APA Citation Guide
FSU Libraries' Guide to the APA style

Citation Management Software

Mendeley
This guide provides on overview of how to use Mendeley to create a personal database of references that can be inserted into documents created with Word.
Zotero
A pathfinder for students and faculty to learn about using Zotero at FSU.
Endnote
EndNote is bibliographic software that is available for purchase and installation on your computer. It will allow you to save and organize references, images, and other files and to create formatted bibliographies.
RefWorks
RefWorks is a web-based citation manager provided by the FSU Libraries for all Florida State University faculty, students, and staff.

Articles on Scientific Writing

Tips for writing your first scientific literature review article
Practical tips published in ASBMB Today magazine of the American Society of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology.
Handbook of Scientific Propsal Writing
This book describes a "hands-on approach" designed for researchers developing research ideas.
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Published (C)2012 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
ACS Publishing Your Research 101 Video Series
"The Publishing Your Research 101 video series helps authors and reviewers understand how to get a manuscript accepted, respond to reviewer comments, navigate ethical considerations, and improve their manuscript submission process experience. "

Scientific Writing Manuals

Scientific Writing 2.0 by Jean-Luc Lebrun
ISBN: 9789814350600
Publication Date: 2011-05-30
The book helps scientists write papers for scientific journals. Using the key parts of typical scientific papers (Title, Abstract, Introduction, Visuals, Structure, and Conclusions), it shows through numerous examples, how to achieve the essential qualities required in scientific writing, namely being clear, concise, convincing, fluid, interesting, and organized.
Writing Science by Joshua Schimel
ISBN: 0199760233
Publication Date: 2011-11-29
As a scientist, you are a professional writer: your career is built on successful proposals and papers. Success isn't defined by getting papers into print, but by getting them into the reader's consciousness. Writing Science is built upon the idea that successful science writing tells a story....The book takes an integrated approach, using the principles of story structure to discuss every aspect of successful science writing, from the overall structure of a paper or proposal to individual sections, paragraphs, sentences, and words.
The Tools of Science by Jose Russo
ISBN: 9789814293174
Publication Date: 2010-12-14
This book aims to provide useful tips for the understanding of scientific research processes and practical advice for people engaged in this field. There are numerous practical advices in this book, such as guidelines on writing a grant proposal and the first peer-reviewed manuscript, the selection criteria of the training laboratory and mentors, as well as experimental record.
How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper by Robert A. Day; Barbara Gastel
ISBN: 9780313330278
Publication Date: 2006-01-01
To be useful, scientific research needs to be explained clearly to others to colleagues, to administrators, to foundations and governmental bodies, and to the public....The core of the book consists of a how-to guide to writing and publishing research articles for scientific journals, explaining every step of the process, from choosing a suitable journal for your work to presenting the results and citing references.
Writing Papers in the Biological Sciences by Victoria E. McMillan
ISBN: 9780312440831
Publication Date: 2006-03-17
Written by a professional biologist who is also an experienced writing teacher, this comprehensive guide for students writing in biology, zoology, and botany provides detailed instruction on researching, drafting, revising, and documenting papers, reviews, and other forms of writing.

ORCiD

ORCiD provides a persistent digital identifier that distinguishes you from every other researcher and, through integration in key research workflows such as manuscript and grant submission, supports automated linkages between you and your professional activities ensuring that your work is recognized.

Online Scientific Writing Sources

The Plain English Campaign
A series of guides (PDF format) from the United Kingdom on writing crystal-clear communications. Available since 1979.
Plain Language Action and Information Network
A U.S. government website that supports the use of clear communication in government writing. Established in the mid 1990's.
Style Writer 4
StyleWriter is a editing and proofreading software to help write in a clear, concise and readable style. There is a fee involved for purchase.

FSU Reading & Writing Center

The Reading & Writing Center offers writing and digital literacy support to all FSU students, including first-year undergraduates, students in all majors, international and other ELL students, CARE students, student athletes, and graduate students across the disciplines.

Locations include:

Williams Building room 222
Johnston Building on the ground floor
Strozier Library first floor (by appointment only)