# Writing about Results

(资料图片仅供参考)

## Structure

However, one of the most important reasons for writing a Results section rather than relying on graphs, tables and other images is that you must communicate your own understanding and interpretation of the results to your readers.

When we come to ask our three questions:

* How do I start the Results section? What type of sentence should I begin with?

* What type of information should be in this section and in what order?

* How do I end this section?

## Grammar and Writing Skills

### Sequence

In order for other researchers to be able to repeat your work accurately and compare their results with yours, you need to be able to describe the order and time sequence of what you did and found in a very precise way.

The words and phrases that communicate sequence can be divided into eight groups (P98):

1. before the beginning: beforehand / earlier

2. at the beginning/first step: at first / initially

3. steps/order: after / previously

4. after a short while: before long / soon

5. at a late/later stage; after a while/longer period: eventaully / later on

6. one point/period occurring almost or exactly at the same time as another: as soon as / when

7. at the end/last step: finally / lastly

8. after the end: afterwards / in the end

### Frequency

It is also important to communicate clearly how often a particular event or result occurred.

Frequency language has been arranged in the list below in order of frequency from 100% frequency (on every occasion) down to zero frequency (never) (P100). However, note that frequency language is often used in a subjective way: if something is said to occur frequently, this could be in relation to how oft en it was expected to occur.

### Quantity

Results do not speak for themselves! Your reader needs to know what the numbers or quantities mean in order to understand them.

Losing this opportunity to communicate what your results mean can cause problems. If you do not describe or comment on your results in words, the reader may perceive them differently from you.

One way to communicate your interpretation of the results is to use the language in the Frequency list. Another way to communicate your comments on the numbers, levels

and quantities in the figure you are describing is to use quantity language (P107).

### Causality

This section is designed to provide you with a variety of language options to represent your understanding of the relationships between the events you observed.

Causal statements such as x caused y are risky because they may be disproved at a later stage.

Here are some other ways of reducing your risk and responsibility by ‘softening’ a causal statement (P110):

It appears that…

It can/may* (therefore) be inferred/assumed that…

It is (very/highly/extremely) probable/likely that…

## Writing Task: Build a Model

### Building a model

### Key

1. Refer to the findings and conclusions obtained by other researchers;

You can begin by offering an overview of the current section or you can begin by referring back to something from the previous section(s).

2. Refer back to your own methodology and adds more information about it;

3. Invite the reader to look at a graph/figure/table etc;

4. Refer to specific results and compares them with those obtained in another study, using subjective, evaluative language (consistent with);

5. Offer a general statement about your results to begin a new paragraph;

6. Refer to specific results and compare them to those obtained in another study, using language that comments on the result(s) (a striking difference);

7. Select specific results to describe in more detail, using language that comments on the results (considerably lower, generally, frequently far lower);

8. Refer to the method used to analyse the results;

9. Mention a problem in the results and uses quantity language (slightly) to minimise its significance;

As with problems in the methodology, if you delay writing up until your results are all perfect, you may never get to publish it. So write it up as soon as your results are worth communicating; don’t wait for perfection.

Use vocabulary that minimises the problem, suggests possible reasons for it and/or offers a solution or a way forward.

10. Make a reference to the implications and applications of the work s/he has done.

Streamline with 4 basic components:

1. Revisiting the research aim/existing research; revisiting/expanding methodology; general overview of results;

2. Invitation to view results; specific/key results in details, with or without explanations; comparisons with results in other research; comparison/s with model predictions;

3. Problems with results;

4. Possible implications of results.

## Vocabulary

1. Revisiting the research aim/existing research (P137)

Since... investigated experimentally.

We reasoned that...

In earlier studies...

2. General overview of results (P138)

It is apparent that both...

It is evident that...

In general, ...

3. Invitation to view results (P138)

indicate / illustrate / reported

... can be seen in Fig. 1.

Comparing Figs. 1 and 4 shows...

4. Specific/key results in details (P140)

5. Comparisons with other results (P143)

It is evident that...

... almost identical in...

... strongly confirm...

6. Problems with results (P144)

It should, however, be noted that...

Nevertheless, ...

Reasonable results were obtained...

7. Possible implications of results (P147)

This suggests that...

It could be inferred...

... seem to indicate that...

# Writing the Discussion/Conclusion

## Structure

When you started the Introduction, you helped your readers move into the research article by establishing that the topic was a significant topic, providing background information and so on. Following the same pattern in reverse, you end the Discussion/Conclusion by helping your readers move out of the article.

When we come to ask our three questions:

* How do I start the Discussion/Conclusion section? What type of sentence should I begin with?

* What type of information should be in this section, and in what order?

* How do I end this section?

## Grammar and Writing Skills

Modal verbs are particularly useful in the Results and Discussion sections. In these sections you are writing about the reasons, interpretations and implications of your results and you oft en need to communicate that something is a possible reason, or an obvious interpretation or a probable implication.

Here is a table showing how each of these modal verbs works in the past tense and in the negative, with examples (P161).

1. Ability/Capability: can / can not

2. Possibility/Options: may / might

3. Probability/Belief/Expectation: should / ought to

4. Virtual certainty: must / have to

5. Advice/Opinion: should / should have

6. Necessity/Obligation: need to / have to

## Writing Task: Build a Model

### Building a model

### Key

1. Revisit previous research;

Offering an overview of the section by previewing the content of that subsection with some general statements and referring back to something from the previous sections to link it with the new one.

One option is to begin by revisiting the most signifi cant aspects of your work.

2. Revisit the Introduction to recall specific weakness in the methodology used in previous studies;

3. Revisit the methodology used in this study;

4. Revisit and summarise the results;

5. Show where and how the present work fits into the research 'map' of this field;

6. Recall an aspect of the results that represents a positive achievement or contribution of this work;

Mapping shows where the achievement fits into the research picture in this field, but the achievement itself is often stated separately so that the reader can see the value of what has been done and found in this study independently of how it affects the current state of knowledge.

7. Focus on the meaning and implications of the achievements in this work;

Saying what your results are is the central function of the Results section; talking about what they mean is the central function of the Discussion.

8. Note that one of the achievements or contributions of this work is its novelty;

9. Refine the implications of the results, including possible applications;

10. Describe the limitations which should direct future research;

11. Suggest a specific area to be addressed in future work.

Streamline:

1. Revisiting previous sections; summarising/revisiting general or key results;

2. Mapping (relationship to existing research);

3. Achievement/contribution; refining the implications;

4. Limitations; current and future work; applications

## Vocabulary

1. Revisiting previous sections

2. Summarising/revisiting general or key results

3. Refining the implications

When you revisit these sections, don’t change the words in the sentences unnecessarily; your aim is to create an 'echo' that will remind the reader of what you said before, so repeating the same words and phrases is advantageous.

4. Mapping (relationship to existing research) (P188)

To the knowledge of the authors, ...

... are comparable to...

... are in general agreement with ...

5. Achievement/contribution (P189)

novel / dramatically

... provide compelling evidence that...

... provide the framework for ...

6. Limitations/current and future research

... are encouraging and should be validated ...

... remain to be determined.

Future work should ...

7. Applications/applicability/implementation

... can be applied to ...

It should be possible, ...

... could be applied ...

# Writing the Abstract

## Structure

It should make sense as a standalone, self-contained description of the research article, and readers should be able to understand the key points and results of the research even if they never see the whole article. The Abstract, in this sense, is a representation of the research article.

Most Abstracts are results-focused and there are basic similarities in all Abstracts, but there are two quite distinct models. The first model is similar to a summary, and is very structured. Th e second model is more common, and focuses primarily on one or two aspect of the study, usually — but not always — the method and the results.

When we come to ask our three questions:

* How do I start the Abstract? What type of sentence should I begin with?

* What type of information should be in the Abstract, and in what order?

* How do I end this section?

## Grammar and Writing Skills

### Verb tense

The gap/problem is normally in the Present Simple tense.

When you are referring to what the paper itself does or what is actually in the paper itself, use the Present Simple tense.

When you are referring to your methodology, or what you did during the research period, it is common to use the Past Simple tense.

It is also possible to use the Present Simple tense to talk about your methodology, especially when you are referring to calculations or equations which can be found in the paper itself.

Results can be expressed in either the Present Simple tense, or more commonly, in the Past Simple tense.

Achievements can be expressed in the Present Perfect tense, as in the Discussion/Conclusion and also in the Present Simple tense.

Applications are normally stated in the Present Simple tense.

### Length

Most are between 80–150 words and are written as a single paragraph. Even longer Abstracts (150–250 words) are usually written as a single paragraph.

### Language

The Abstract is sometimes written in a slightly less technical way than the article itself in order to attract a wider audience.

## Writing Task: Build a Model

### Building a model

### Key

MODEL 1

1. Provide background factual information;

Limit background information to one or two sentences.

2. Combine the method, the general aim and the specific aim of the study in one sentence;

You can reduce the number of words by combining the background information and the aim, or what this paper does and what was found, so that the sentence serves more than one purpose.

3. Summarise the methodology and provide details;

4. Indicate the achievement of the study;

5. Present the implications of the study.

MODEL 2

1. Combine what the paper does (This paper reports), the method or materials used (water-soluble polymer blend), the contribution (novel) and the aim of the study (to control drug release);

2. Refer to the method in more detail and provides numerical details of the results.

Streamline:

1. Background; aim; problem; what the paper does;

2. Methodology/materials;

3. Results; achievement/contribution;

4. Applications;

5. Limitations; future work.

## Vocabulary

1. Background (P217)

2. Aim (P217)

3. Problem (P218)

4. What the paper does (P218)

5. Methodology/materials (P219)

6. Results (P219)

7. Achievement/contribution (P220)

8. Implications (P220)

9. Applications (P220)

10. Limitations and future work (P221)