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Writing in Science Technical Writing

Goal

Select three problems from three different chapters and write up the solutions. The selected

problems must be a two-star or three-star problem from the book. The problem must involve

drawing a picture and/or drawing free-body diagrams.

The solutions must be neatly typed (no handwritten components) and include an illustration

and/or free-body diagram, equations used, algebraic steps, and accompanying explanations for

each step to make the solution clear to the reader.

This activity will be evaluated on the following components:

1. The correctness of your solution (30 pts)

2. Illustrations/ Free body diagrams (20 pts)

3. Clearly typed equations, formulae, and explanations (30 pts)

4. Organization and overall clarity (including correct grammar) (20 pts)

Resources

Every student has access to the Google Suite (use your VCCS email to access the Google

Suite) and Office 365 (find the instruction in the syllabus).

Software to write the report

Use Google Documents (or equivalent such as MS Office, Open Office, etc.) to write your

documents. Use the built-in section titles and headings.

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To write formulae and equations, use the “Insert Equations” function in the Insert Drop-down

menu. In the same menu, the item above Insert Equations, allows you to insert special symbols,

such as Greek letters or math symbols.

Most Equation Editors (in Google and Pages, at least) allow you to type in commands for the

math formulae that are based on LaTeX. So, if you wish to type in the following:

𝛴𝐹 = 𝑚�⃗�

You must type in the equation editor the following (without the quotes)

“Sigma F = m vec a”

Here is a quick reference on LaTeX commands for math symbols and letters.

Diagrams and Pictures

Generally speaking, copying and pasting someone else’s diagram is a copyright violation, so it’s

safer to avoid it. Make your own graphs and diagrams.

For Diagrams – Use Google Draw or Presentation where you can draw a diagram and then copy

and paste it in your documents. (Alternatives include Microsoft PowerPoint, Apple Keynote,

diagrams.net, etc.)

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For Graphs – use a spreadsheet – Google Sheets, MS Office Excel, etc. Then copy and paste

the graph into your document.

Overall Appearance of your Document

Your document should include full sentences organized in paragraphs. You cannot simply use

bullet lists or write the equations and skip the explanations. That is why it is called a Report.

Make sure all steps of your solution are fully explained.

As with the diagrams and illustrations, use your own words. Do not copy and paste other

people’s words.

Grammar, Style, and Punctuation

Most Editors have automatic spell checkers. There are apps on the web which can also scan for

punctuation and style. One such is Grammarly which has paid and free versions.

When you finish with your report, run the checks for common grammatical and spelling errors.

Bibliography

If you have used external resources, make sure to include them at the end of your report. The

best way to do this is to use a bibliography app. MyBib is free that I have used in the past. You

may also refer to Citation Help & Plagiarism by NOVA Library.

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Appendices

If you want to include data from experiments that take a lot of space, or add more details that

might or might not be necessary – consider putting them in an Appendix at the end of your

report.

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