Topics+of+Interest+-+Discussion+Page

For many of our classes we will:

1. Review one or two students writing 2. Discuss a topic about writing we would like to learn about this semester

For the first class we discussed the importance of understanding your goals and audience, as well as analyzed the overall structure of a paper from the journal Urban Ecosystems. I (melissa) have listed potential topics of interest on our main course page (NR610_ResearchWriting) and we discusses others in class. Please add some topics you would like to discuss, insert articles or examples if you have any, and indicate if you would be willing to lead a discussion on your topic of interest. Please note, leading does not mean you have all the answers - it means you find something for us to read and discuss related to your topic and bring up questions for the rest of the group to address. This is exactly what I did with McKinney's biodiversity review in the first class.


 * How to write a letter to an editor (melissa - interested in leading if we have time near the of the course)
 * Cara--I like the potential topics already listed, and hope that we DO cover all of those. I would really like to focus on writing a publication/scientific paper, but all the listed topics are related to the end product anyways. Also, I liked Michael's idea about going over citations/references. We probably all need a reminder on this, especially coming from different backgrounds. I would be willing to lead a discussion on citations/references pending I will not have all the answers :). I would be more than willing to show everyone what I know about Refworks too because it is so useful and time-saving.
 * Strategies for successful writing, editing, etc. E.g., we've heard that you need to be writing every day. I think I agree, but I also know that there comes a point when you're sick of looking at something. This is where seeking a second, 3rd, opinion is great. What other writing and editing tips are there? I'd like to find a brief paper on this (or if someone already has something in mind we can use that) and go over it in class and talk about each persons' experiences (Kevin)
 * Meg- I also have experience with Refworks, and would be happy to support Cara in that discussion (Refworks and/or endnote are critical to writing in my opinion!) I am also interested in the idea of how to give good critiques to your peers. I have a style of critiquing I like to follow. Otherwise the topics already listed are ok by me.
 * Neal- I have just come to the realization I haven't a clue as to how to write a literature review...