H

Helder Oliveira

Associate Professor · Department of Computer Science · IME-USP

Students' Area · Academic Writing

Tips for Writing Scientific Papers

Guidelines for writing clear, precise and effective scientific papers. The focus is on clarity, concise sentences, evidence and careful revision.

01

Write Clearly and Concisely

Scientific writing should be clear, precise, and objective. Avoid unnecessary words and overly complex sentences.

Weak
Many very good results were obtained in our experiments.
Better
The proposed algorithm reduced blocking probability by 35%.
02

Avoid Long Sentences

Long sentences make scientific texts difficult to read. Prefer short and direct sentences.

Weak
In this paper we propose a method that is able to improve the performance of communication networks and reduce several problems discussed in the literature.
Better
This paper proposes a method to improve network performance.
03

Prefer Active Voice

Active voice usually makes sentences clearer and easier to understand.

Passive
The experiments were conducted by the authors.
Active
We conducted the experiments.
04

One Idea per Paragraph

Each paragraph should present a single main idea. A typical paragraph structure is:

  • Topic sentence: main idea.
  • Explanation: development of the idea.
  • Evidence or example: support for the argument.
05

Support Claims with Evidence

Statements in scientific papers should be supported by experimental results, references, or analytical arguments.

Weak
Our algorithm performs better than existing approaches.
Better
Our algorithm reduces blocking probability by 28% compared to the baseline method.
06

Use Figures and Tables

Figures and tables help communicate results clearly and efficiently.

  • Use graphs to present experimental results.
  • Use tables to compare algorithms.
  • Always explain figures in the text.
07

Avoid Common Writing Problems

  • Using vague words such as good, very, and many.
  • Writing overly long paragraphs.
  • Repeating the same idea several times.
  • Not citing related work.
  • Poor grammar or unclear sentences.
08

Useful Academic Expressions

Common expressions used in scientific papers include:

Introducing the Topic

Recently, there has been growing interest in...
Several studies have investigated...

Describing Contributions

This paper proposes...
The main contribution of this work is...

Discussing Results

The results indicate that...
The proposed method outperforms...
09

Review Before Submission

Before submitting a paper, perform several revisions.

  • Check grammar and spelling.
  • Verify references and citations.
  • Ensure figures are properly labeled.
  • Confirm the paper follows the conference or journal guidelines.
10

Final Advice

Good scientific writing is a skill that improves with practice. Reading high-quality papers and writing frequently are the best ways to improve.
11

Recommended Resources

Improving scientific writing is a continuous process. In addition to the guidelines presented on this page, the following resource is recommended for students who want to further improve their academic writing.

Dicas de Inglês para Pesquisa Científica · Fabio Kon → ← Research and Academic Writing