Scientific research is only meaningful if it is communicated clearly and is seen (and understood, and accepted) by the larger scientific community. Useful insights into preparing papers and figures can be gained by examining how some of the world's most successful researchers go about these tasks.
George M. Whitesides, the astoundingly productive professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Harvard University, has generated a number of guides for paper preparation. These guides focus on the ideas and structure of a paper more than the contained prose. A video produced by the American Chemical Society about writing a paper is available here, along with a presentation on scientific paper writing. A more formal summation of Whitesides' ideas is available in an article originally published in the Advanced Materials.
Clearly, writing a scientific paper is closely linked to the data and figures that the paper presents. Figures should reflect the results of an experiment, not the interpretation of those results. To this effect, Mike Rossner and Kenneth M. Yamada have published a paper on the dangers of image manipulation. The paper is a very helpful guide for young researchers to see what is and is not allowed when preparing figures for publication.
George M. Whitesides, the astoundingly productive professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Harvard University, has generated a number of guides for paper preparation. These guides focus on the ideas and structure of a paper more than the contained prose. A video produced by the American Chemical Society about writing a paper is available here, along with a presentation on scientific paper writing. A more formal summation of Whitesides' ideas is available in an article originally published in the Advanced Materials.
Clearly, writing a scientific paper is closely linked to the data and figures that the paper presents. Figures should reflect the results of an experiment, not the interpretation of those results. To this effect, Mike Rossner and Kenneth M. Yamada have published a paper on the dangers of image manipulation. The paper is a very helpful guide for young researchers to see what is and is not allowed when preparing figures for publication.