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1、Chapter Eight Successful Theses or Dissertations,Part Successful Theses or Dissertations,Section 1 Familiarizing yourself with the real task,Familiarizing yourself with the real task,In academia,academic writing covers a variety of writings devoted to some specific topics or disciplines of studies w
2、ith well-grounded propositions and the authors originality in pursuing new discoveries or generating new knowledge or achieving intellectual revelation through critical approaches by abiding certain commonly recognized rules or formats.Gene rally speaking,academic writing may include such writings a
3、s research papers,theses,and dissertations.,Familiarizing yourself with the real task,A research paper is a piece of academic writing that requires a more abstract,critical,and thoughtful level of inquiry than you might be used to.An article is a piece of writing on a specific topic,by one or more a
4、uthors,that forms an independent part of a periodical publication such as a journal or serial,magazine,or newspaper.An essay is a short work that treats of a topic from an authors personal point of view,often taking into account subjective experiences and personal reflections upon them.,Familiarizin
5、g yourself with the real task,A thesis is an intellectual proposition.In the academic circle,a thesis or dissertation is a document that presents the authors research and findings and is submitted in support of candidature for a degree or professional qualification.As the term is used in a more comm
6、on sense,a thesis may chiefly refer to a written paper elaborating on original research,arguing a specific view,for the completion of an academic degree,usually the Masters degree.A dissertation is a treatise advancing a new point of view resulting from research;usually a requirement for an advanced
7、 academic degree.To be more specific,a dissertation is a substantial academic paper written on an original topic of research,usually presented as one of the final requirements for a Ph.D.degree.,Familiarizing yourself with the real task,Three concepts that you need to understand before you write you
8、r first academic paper 1.Academic writing is writing done by scholars for other scholars.2.Academic writing is devoted to topics and questions that are of interest to the academic community.3.This brings us to our final point:Academic writing should present the reader with an informed argument.,Fami
9、liarizing yourself with the real task,something about the major steps in writing a thesis or dissertation1.Choose your research 2.Write a thesis proposal 3.Receive approval from your advisor/supervisor 4.Set up a writing schedule with your advisor/supervisor 5.Outline your ideas6.Research:collect da
10、ta,information concerning your topic and read and review literatures in the field of your studies.7.Prepare writing outline 8.Begin writing 9.Finish first draft,begin improvements,Familiarizing yourself with the real task,10.Put document into final form 11.Submit paper to editor 12.Revise paper acco
11、rding to editors suggestions 13.Return to editor for further editing 14.Rewriting,Familiarizing yourself with the real task,A thesis usually contains the following basic elements:1.the title2.the authors name3.The name of your advisor if it is a degree thesis4.the institution the author belongs to 5
12、.an abstract of your thesis6.thesis introduction7.the divided chapters/parts of your thesis8.thesis conclusion9.footnotes or endnotes or in-text notes10.bibliography/works cited/references,Section 2 Preparing Your Proposal,Preparing Your Proposal,A thesis proposal normally includes the following:1.T
13、he background and context of your research problem.2.Problem definition and approach.3.Theoretical background.4.Procedure.5.Materials and support.6.Project task breakdown and schedule.Prepare a task breakdown and schedule of your work.7.Bibliography,Preparing Your Proposal,Make sure your proposal is
14、 no longer than 2 to 3 pages and has the following:1.Your first and last name.2.A list of courses taken during the program,with instructors names and grades received.3.The title of your thesis,in capital letters,centered on the page.4.The name of your thesis advisor.5.Thesis proposal（summary of main
15、 ideas）（no more that 200 words）.6.Statement of purpose.Put your thesis in the context of its field.Give a summary of the literature available on the topic,and discuss any similar studies that have been done.Clearly explain what makes your paper different and how it will fill some gap in the existing
16、 literature.,Preparing Your Proposal,7.Methodology.Discuss what methods you will use to gather and analyze your data（oral history,field research,a reading of primary sources,archival documents,etc.）.8.Provide a working schedule outlining the flow of your work,dates you will submit progress reports,a
17、nd time of completion.9.Provide a preliminary bibliography that shows there are enough sources for your study.,Section 3.Writing your thesis or dissertation,Writing your thesis or dissertation,3.1 Writing AbstractsAn abstract should briefly:1.reestablish the topic of the research.2.give the research
18、 problem and/or main objective of the research（this usually comes first）.3.indicate the methodology used.4.present the main findings.5.present the main conclusions.,Writing your thesis or dissertation,Introductionshould be short,but does not have a word limit;Main purpose is to introduce the researc
19、h by presenting its context or background.Introductions usually go from general to specific,introducing the research problem and how it will be investigated.AbstractHas a maximum word limit;Is a summary of the whole research;Main purpose is to summarize the research（particularly the objective and th
20、e main finding/conclusion）,NOT to introduce the research area.,Writing your thesis or dissertation,Example 1/AbstractMajor problems of the arid region are transportation of agricultural products and losses due to spoilage of the products,especially in summer.This work presents the performance of a s
21、olar drying system consisting of an air heater and a dryer chamber connected to a greenhouse.The drying system is designed to dry a variety of agricultural products.The effect of air mass flow rate on the drying process is studied.Composite pebbles,which are constructed from cement and sand,are used
22、 to store energy for night operation.The pebbles are placed at the bottom of the drying chamber and are charged during the drying process itself.A separate test is done using a simulator,a packed bed storage unit,to find the thermal characteristics of the pebbles during charging and discharging mode
23、s with time.Accordingly,the packed bed is analyzed using a heat transfer model with finite difference technique described before and during the charging and discharging processes.Graphs are presented that depict the thermal characteristics and performance of the pebble beds and the drying patterns o
24、f different agricultural products.The results show that the amount of energy stored in the pebbles depends on the air mass flow rate,the inlet air temperature,and the properties of the storage materials.The composite pebbles can be used efficiently as storing media.,Writing your thesis or dissertati
25、on,Example2/AbstractThe long-term performance of various systems was determined and the economic aspects of solar hot water production were investigated in this work.The effect of the collector inclination angle,collector area and storage volume was examined for all systems,and various climatic cond
26、itions and their payback period was calculated.It was found that the collector inclination angle does not have a significant effect on system performance.Large collector areas have a diminishing effect on the systems overall efficiency.The increase in storage volume has a detrimental effect for smal
27、l daily load volumes,but a beneficial one when there is a large daily consumption.Solar energy was found to be truly competitive when the conventional fuel being substituted is electricity,and it should not replace diesel oil on pure economic grounds.Large daily load volumes and large collector area
28、s are in general associated with shorter payback periods.Overall,the systems are oversized and are economically suitable for large daily hot water load volumes.,Writing your thesis or dissertation,3.2 Writing IntroductionsThe following are suggested topics that are usually covered in the introductio
29、n.1.Statement of the Problem.2.Background and Need.3.Rationale.4.Purpose of the Project.5.Research Questions/Hypotheses.6.Methods.7.Limitations.,Writing your thesis or dissertation,3.2 Writing IntroductionsSome strategies for you to follow:1.Announce your topic broadly,then declare your particular t
30、ask.2.Provide any background material important to your argument.3.Define key terms,as you intend to make use of them in your argument.4.Use an anecdote or quotation.5.Acknowledge your opponents.Remember:your introduction is the first impression your argument will make on your reader.,Writing your t
31、hesis or dissertation,3.3.Writing Your Literature Review3.3.1.A literature review,not to be confused with a book review,surveys scholarly articles,books and other sources（e.g.dissertations,conference proceedings）relevant to a particular issue,area of research,or theory,providing a description,summar
32、y,and critical evaluation of each work.The purpose is to offer an overview of significant literature published on a topic.,Writing your thesis or dissertation,3.3.2.Similar to primary research,development of the literature review requires four stages:Problem formulationwhich topic or field is being
33、examined and what are its component issues?Literature searchfinding materials relevant to the subject being explored.Data evaluationdetermining which literature makes a significant contribution to the understanding of the topic.,Writing your thesis or dissertation,3.3.3.Literature reviews should com
34、prise the following elements:An overview of the subject,issue or theory under consideration,along with the objectives of the literature review.Division of works under review into categories（e.g.those in support of a particular position,those against,and those offering alternative theses entirely）.Ex
35、planation of how each work is similar to and how it varies from the others.Conclusions as to which pieces are best considered in their argument,are most convincing of their opinions,and make the greatest contribution to the understanding and development of their area of research.,Writing your thesis
36、 or dissertation,3.3.4.In assessing each piece,consideration should be given to:ProvenanceWhat are the authors credentials?Are the authors arguments supported by evidence（e.g.primary historical material,case studies,narratives,statistics,recent scientific findings）?ObjectivityIs the authors perspect
37、ive even handed or prejudicial?Is contrary data considered or is certain pertinent information ignored to prove the authors point?PersuasivenessWhich of the authors theses are most/least convincing?ValueAre the authors arguments and conclusions convincing?Does the work ultimately contribute in any s
38、ignificant way to an understanding of the subject?,Writing your thesis or dissertation,3.3.5.Some Tips for Good Literature Review:Remember the purpose:try to answer those questions.Read with a purpose:think while reading.Write with a purpose:think while writing.Always remember:If you dont define you
39、r research problem or not clear about it,it might take you forever to search the literature.A research problem can be changed as you read more.So reading can shape a problem,and defining a problem can identify what to read and what to ignore.,Writing your thesis or dissertation,3.3.6.A literature re
40、view may constitute an essential chapter of a thesis or dissertation,or may be a self-contained review of writings on a subject.In either case,its purpose is to:Place each work in the context of its contribution to the understanding of the subject under review.Describe the relationship of each work
41、to the others under consideration.Identify new ways to interpret,and shed light on any gaps in,previous research.Resolve conflicts amongst seemingly contradictory previous studies.Identify areas of prior scholarship to prevent duplication of effort.Point the way forward for further research.Place on
42、es original work（in the case of theses or dissertations）in the context of existing literature.,Writing your thesis or dissertation,3.3.7.What to avoid:Trying to read everything.Reading but not writing.Not keeping bibliographic information.,Writing your thesis or dissertation,3.4.Discussing Materials
43、 and MethodsThis section should provide an in-depth discussion of your materials（e.g.,if this is an archaeological thesis,you should discuss the history,etc.of the populations that you are dealing with.）.The methods portion of this section should carefully and methodically discuss the methods that y
44、ou are going to use,the precedent for these,and the reasons why you are using them.A general guideline is that you should discuss your methods in sufficient detail that another researcher could take your data and duplicate your results.One of the expectations of performing original research is that
45、someone in the future will do further research on this topic.Such a researcher should be able to use your methodology without having to consult any other source.If you are using statistical analyses,explain the statistical methods.What do they mean?How are they used?Why are they more applicable here
46、 than other similar methods?For some theses,the materials and methods should be discussed in separate sections.,Writing your thesis or dissertation,3.5.Presenting ResultsThis is a narrative presentation of your findings.This is where you present your statistics,tables,figures,etc.that show what the
47、specific findings of your study are.Present them in detail.Remember that someone should be able to duplicate your study based solely on this document.This requires considerable description.It is very important not to try and combine this chapter with the next one.You need to carefully present your r
48、esults first with no further interpretation.Once you have presented the data you are ready to move on to the next section.,Writing your thesis or dissertation,3.6.Conducting DiscussionsThis chapter should begin with a concise restatement of your studys purpose along with any needed background inform
49、ation.You should restate each of your hypotheses.Now that you have presented the results in the previous section,discuss them in this section.What,specifically,do the results mean?How can they be interpreted?Can they be interpreted in multiple ways?What do the findings tell you about your hypothesis
50、?Do not claim more for your results than the data really shows.Avoid speculation.,Writing your thesis or dissertation,3.7.Writing Conclusions3.7.1.Conclusions are also difficult to write.How do you manage to make the reader feel persuaded by what youve said?Even if the points of your paper are stron
