Hints on Writing Technical Papers and Making Presentations
134
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON EDUCATION, VOL. 42, NO. 2, MAY 1999
Hints on Writing Technical Papers and Making Presentations
Victor O. K. Li, Fellow, IEEE
Abstract— This paper is an attempt to give some guidelines on how to write a good technical paper and to make good presentations, important skills for a successful career in research and teaching.
Index Terms—Technical presentation, technical writing, thesis presentation. I. INTRODUCTION
I
have been involved in a career in research and teaching for
17 years. During this period, I have had the opportunity to work very closely with some very bright Ph.D. students.1
One of the major problems that they ran into, as I myself ran into earlier in my career, is how to communicate effectively.
Over the years, my own techniques have improved. This was achieved by reading books on the subject, talking to colleagues, and above all, observing and studying the techniques of those considered good writers and good speakers in the research community. In this paper, I will summarize my findings. In the next section, the structure of a technical paper is described. Section III contains hints on making good presentations, and Section IV, the conclusion. Hints on the thesis defense are included in Appendix A. Some common writing pitfalls are included in Appendix B.
II. STRUCTURE
OF A
TECHNICAL PAPER
A technical paper should be clear and concise. The goal is to convey ideas and results to the readers in the least possible time and space. The notations and format should be consistent throughout the paper. A paper usually consists of the following components: 1) Title—It should be concise and to the point. For example, some publications limit the title to less than ten words. 2) Abstract—A summary of the paper, including a brief description of the problem, the solution, and conclusions.
Do not cite references in the abstract.
Manuscript received May 8, 1995; revised December 14,
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON EDUCATION, VOL. 42, NO. 2, MAY 1999
Hints on Writing Technical Papers and Making Presentations
Victor O. K. Li, Fellow, IEEE
Abstract— This paper is an attempt to give some guidelines on how to write a good technical paper and to make good presentations, important skills for a successful career in research and teaching.
Index Terms—Technical presentation, technical writing, thesis presentation. I. INTRODUCTION
I
have been involved in a career in research and teaching for
17 years. During this period, I have had the opportunity to work very closely with some very bright Ph.D. students.1
One of the major problems that they ran into, as I myself ran into earlier in my career, is how to communicate effectively.
Over the years, my own techniques have improved. This was achieved by reading books on the subject, talking to colleagues, and above all, observing and studying the techniques of those considered good writers and good speakers in the research community. In this paper, I will summarize my findings. In the next section, the structure of a technical paper is described. Section III contains hints on making good presentations, and Section IV, the conclusion. Hints on the thesis defense are included in Appendix A. Some common writing pitfalls are included in Appendix B.
II. STRUCTURE
OF A
TECHNICAL PAPER
A technical paper should be clear and concise. The goal is to convey ideas and results to the readers in the least possible time and space. The notations and format should be consistent throughout the paper. A paper usually consists of the following components: 1) Title—It should be concise and to the point. For example, some publications limit the title to less than ten words. 2) Abstract—A summary of the paper, including a brief description of the problem, the solution, and conclusions.
Do not cite references in the abstract.
Manuscript received May 8, 1995; revised December 14,