Lesson #1 for success in life Find out what you’re expected to do, then do it better than expected. In other words: READ THE ASSIGNMENT

Revising Your Paper ZIntro: ZSTRONG thesis statement ZSome context for understanding the thesis statement ZA preview of the structure of the paper

THESIS: Nuclear power has the greatest potential of any energy source to arrest and perhaps reverse climate change.

CONTEXT: Nuclear power is the only energy source that can provide uninterrupted energy with minimal carbon emissions. Despite public fears, nuclear power has proven to be safe and relatively inexpensive.

THESIS: Nuclear power has the greatest potential of any energy source to arrest and perhaps reverse climate change. CONTEXT: Nuclear power is the only energy source that can provide uninterrupted energy with minimal carbon emissions. Despite public fears, nuclear power has proven to be safe and relatively inexpensive. PREVIEW: Nuclear power is attractive in three respects: economically, environmentally, and geopolitically. Electricity generated by nuclear power plants compares in cost to that generated by coal-fired plants. Even with the Chernobyl disaster, nuclear power is responsible for far less environmental damage than coal-fired or petroleum-fired power plants. Geopolitically, nuclear power is very attractive; the U.S. controls the great majority of the world's uranium ores. However some challenges remain, including the two most critical issues: long-term disposal of nuclear waste, and security of nuclear materials.

Organizing Your Paper ZMake an outline ZLevel I: words that become section headings ZLevel II: the Big Ideas in full sentences ZThese Big Ideas become your topic sentences ZLevel III: sentences that make up the paragraphs

Writing is like painting your house… You can’t make up for a lack of preparation with more paint (or words).

Paragraphs 101 ZOne idea per paragraph ZStarts with topic sentence ZTopic sentence should sell the paragraph ZThen supporting details ZEnds with transition ZPage-long paragraphs are TOO LONG ZPoor paragraphs are a symptom of poor planning

Using Quotes ZDON’T! ZOnly use quotes if you need those exact words. ZYou almost never do. ZInstead synthesize the information from several sources.

Citations ZEmbedded in text (Kusnick, 2008). Z(Author, year) ZIf no personal author, then use agency or organization as author ZReference list is alphabetical by author ZAvoid “According to…”

Use citations when… ZYou state factual information ZYou state someone else’s opinion ZAnywhere the ideas in the text are not your own ZToo many are WAY better than too few

It’s plagiarism when… ZYou use someone else’s words without quoting them ZEven if you change a few words ZEven if you just lift a phrase here and there ZYes, it’s stealing, both ethically AND legally

It’s also plagiarism when… ZYou use information or opinions with citing the author ZEven if you saw it in more than one source ZEven if you think it’s common knowledge ZAnything without a citation is assumed to be your thinking

Tone and voice ZEveryone needs to master different ways of speaking & communicating in different settings ZThese are called registers. ZYou need to master a formal register Znot conversational, nothing cute Zimpersonal, does not directly address the reader Zno slang, cliches or metaphors

Producing powerful text ZPower, not drama ZSimple clean sentences ZEliminate adverbs and adjectives ZAvoid unnecessary qualifiers: seems, may be, etc. ZProvide a framework for the reader to view the details through

Banned words and phrases ZPeople, scientists, nobody, everybody ZReally, mainly, basically, extreme Zthe fact that, it is believed ZMost sentences starting with “It is…” ZFirst and second person pronouns: I, you, we

Misc. stuff ZActive voice, not passive voice ZPassive: It is frequently observed that… ZActive: uses verbs other than “to be” ZYou almost never should use the word “being” ZDon’t start sentence with “and”, “or”, or “but” (in formal writing). ZSpell numbers under ten, or numbers that start a sentence. ZBe miserly with your words - don’t waste words on bland generalities. Make every word count.