1. Common English writing problems
Authors should pay sufficient attention to format, specification and presentation. If you take the time to develop good habits from the beginning, the time spent in this area will be greatly reduced to the point where it can be ignored.
In a scientific paper, there must be literature references, figures , and possibly tables . In addition to introducing these precautions, this chapter also lists the key points that should be paid attention to in paragraphs, fonts, capitalization and spacing.
1.1 Literature citations
The quotations of the paper, such as "[2]" should not become sentence components. In other words, if the quotation is removed, the sentence will still be readable. So In [2]... and reader could consult [2],... are both incorrect ways of writing. Such literature citations should not be used as subjects!
Some journals require citations to follow APA format (https://apastyle.apa.org):
(1) One author: (Author Name, 2019)
(2) Two authors: (Author Name1 & Author Name2, 2019)
(3) Three or more authors: (Author Name1 etal., 2019)
The specific details here may not be exactly the same. For example, square brackets may be used, only the first few letters of the name may be used, a semicolon ";" may be used after the name instead of a comma, etc. In this format, if the author name is taken out of brackets, it can be used as a subject or other sentence component. For example, in the case of two authors, Author Name1 and Author Name2 (2019) conducted...
The above format is widely used in many subject areas. Some journals also use MLA format (https://style.mla.org). Regardless of the format, an essay should follow a format from beginning to end.
1.2 Figure
Figures include screenshots, schematic diagrams, statistical charts, etc. No matter what kind of picture, the general rule is that black text on a white background is easiest to read, and color pictures are more expressive.
The diagram can be large or small, but do not make the diagram too small or too large. Try to use scalable vector graphics (or vector graphics), which will be much clearer than bitmap graphics . When there is no vector image, the bitmap image must be large enough and the resolution must be high enough.
Each different symbol in the diagram is labeled and explained as clearly as possible in the diagram. If the figure is too complex to be explained in the figure, mark it and explain it clearly in the figure caption or in the main text of the paper. Typical statistical charts, such as bar charts, require legends to mark different colors or line types.
When taking screenshots, you should also be careful not to include large pieces of irrelevant screen or blank areas in the screenshot, and every independent and meaningful part of the screenshot needs to be labeled and described with text.
When using color drawings or annotations, considering that the article may be printed or copied in black and white, you need to pay attention to the difference between adjacent colors in the picture after being converted to black and white.
The title of the figure should not be too general and should clearly summarize the meaning of the figure. Some pictures may be composed of several sub-pictures, and each sub-picture must be clearly marked, such as a, b,... and explained separately.
1.3 Table
The format of the table should also be consistent . The format of different tables must be consistent within the same table. For example, the elements in the table are all aligned in the same direction.
If you want to put special emphasis on individual cells , you can highlight them or make them bold.
If there are only two or three numbers that can be expressed clearly in one sentence, do not use a table.
1.4 Algorithm
There are certain specifications for writing algorithms, and it is obviously inappropriate to express them directly in a programming language. Therefore, the convention is to use a natural language that is close to a programming language, usually called pseudocode (Pseudocode), to write the algorithm.
For the variables and special symbols that appear in the pseudocode, as well as the functions or subroutines called therein, their roles in the algorithm must be clearly explained in the text.
1.5 paragraphs
Each paragraph should be a relatively independent logical unit. Try not to exceed 200 words in a paragraph, otherwise readers will be tired from reading. At the same time, avoid a series of paragraphs of two or three lines (unless they are all concepts or definitions), as too many breaks may make readers feel confused. In principle, a paragraph should not have only one sentence.
There are usually two formats for dividing paragraphs, one is to add a blank line between paragraphs, and the other is to have an indentation (Indentation) before the first line of each paragraph. But use only one in the same article, not both.
Don’t space your paragraphs too closely, but keep them consistent throughout the article.
1.6 fonts
It is generally recommended to use Serif fonts (Font) (such as Times New Roman) for text content, and Sans fonts (such as Arial) for titles and chart labels. However, no more than two fonts should be used in an article. When emphasis is needed, double quotation marks, boldface, italics, etc. can be used. If the template specifies fonts and emphasis, the template is followed. It must be consistent throughout.
1.7 Case and spaces
The first letter of any label, title, proper noun, Figure M, Table N, etc., whether in the title of the figure or in the text referencing the figure, must be capitalized. When writing titles of documents, the first letters of book titles, conference and journal titles must be capitalized.
Whether it is a square bracket or a round bracket, there should be a space before the left bracket and after the right bracket (if it is not punctuation), but there should be no space after the left bracket and before the right bracket.
There should be no spaces to the left of punctuation marks, but there should be spaces to the right of them.