Facing "Publish or Perish" in English John Y. Hung Visiting Professor NTUST Taiwan Professor Auburn University USA 1

Facing "Publish or Perish"in English

John Y. HungVisiting Professor

NTUSTTaiwan

ProfessorAuburn University

USA

1

My Past That is Relevant

• Associate Editor– Trans. Control Systems Technology– Trans. Industrial Electronics

• Special Section Editor (4)

• > 15 years Conference Organization

2

Publishing in IEEE

Language is English, and

editorial culture favors USA.

Yet Asian authors publish equally well !!

3

USA Asia

Editors-in-Chief > 70% 4%

Authors 33% 33%

Some Facts of Life

1. Good research is objective

BUT

2. Publication follows different rules

AND

3. Processes are not perfect!

4

Some process imperfections

• Small sample size

• Human behavior– we tend to be subjective, not objective

• Volunteer-based system– publication is a high priority, BUT– reviewing tends to be low priority

• Blind vs non-blind review

5

We Write Many Things

• These serve different purposes:– Proposal– Thesis/dissertation– Research report– Conference or Journal Paper

• They are NOT written the same way!

6

My First Recommendation

Volunteer as a Reviewer / Assoc. Editor• Helps bring relevant papers TO you• You see both "good" and "bad" writing• Your review is a way to practice writing

– brief assignment– more forgiving regarding English

• Contact editor/professor – offer your abilities

7

My Second Recommendation

Write as if reporting the news!

To publish in a Journal,

Write like a Journalist!

8

Journalists Understand These

• Audience Background

• Structure

• Front and Back Materials

• Terminology, Notation, Math

• Figures and Tables

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Understand Your Audience

All works receive different reactions...

The Railway Crossing, Fernand Léger (1919), The Art Institute of Chicago.10

The Engineering Spectrum

puretheory

purepractice

11

Where do you fit?


puretheory

purepractice

12

Where do you fit?

Where is the audience?


puretheory

purepractice

13

Who is my audience?

• Attend the related conferences– Study people– Compare topics to your interests

• Review papers in the journal

• Study the editorial board– What are their interests?– What are their experiences and strengths?

14

IEEE Control Systems Society

• Transactions on Automatic Control– Panos Antsaklis (PhD, Brown)

• Trans. on Control System Technology– Thomas Parisini (PhD from Italy)

• In 2008-09, eighteen (18) journal and conference papers (very impressive)

• Zero (0) papers with experimental work• He has never published in the journal...

15

Trans. on Industrial Electronics

• IES science is not the "best" in any field

• But 2008 impact factor is #1 in IEEE!

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Some technical interest Other IEEE society members

control systems Control System 8,800

power electronics PELS and IAS 7,000 / 10K

robotics / mechatronics Robotics & Automation 7,300

neuro-fuzzy-genetic Computational Intelligence 6,700

Industrial Electronics Society 4,900



• Structure




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Steps in the Scientific Method

1. Make Initial Observation

2. Form Hypothesis

3. Conduct Experiments

4. Analyze Data

5. Accept or Reject Hypothesis

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2. Form Hypothesis


4. Analyze Data


OK structure for Project Report...

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2. Form Hypothesis


4. Analyze Data


OK structure for Project Report...

NOT good for Most Journals!20

Purpose of a Journal Paper

Record scientific data? NO...

Most journal papers report

new, good ideas.

Try to convince the reader:

• the idea is new

• the idea is good

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Basic Parts of an IEEE Paper

Part Why does it exist?

Title / Abstract Capture attention!

Introduction Show you understand the problem.

Body Explain the principles underlying the innovation.

The Proof Convince reader you did a thorough study.

Summary Tell the good news again, and suggest new directions.

References Complements the introduction.

22

Creating a Draft

• Linear Approach– start from the beginning (title, abstract ...)– seems "logical"

• Inside-Out Approach– start with the easy-to-write parts– I advise students to follow this

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Creating a Draft: Linearly

Part Which part do I write first? second? ... last?

Title / Abstract Most people start here...

Introduction Then work on this ... seems easy (no new ideas)

Body Most people can do this part well, but it takes time.

The Proof By now, the author is tired, and quickly puts together some figures.

Summary The end is near! Oh just repeat the abstract ...

References Some people really struggle here.

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Creating the Draft: Inside-Out

Part Which part do I write first? second? ... last?

Title / Abstract Do this last – it is hardest. Less than 100 words to convince the world you have new, good idea.

Introduction #4 – Holding reader attention is not easy.

Body #3 – You know the new idea well, so it is not too difficult to describe. But, good development does require planning.

The Proof #1 – Simulations and experiments are easiest to explain, especially to other engineers.

Summary #2 – Almost as easy as #1, but must be concise.

References #4 – Must understand key contribution of others.

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#1: The Proof Section

• Usually simulations or experiments

• Easiest part for non-English writers– usually less text, less math, and more

figures

• Do this first – gives feeling of accomplishment !!

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A Good Proof Section

• Describe so that it can be reproduced

• Compare to an accepted "standard"– means at least two sets of tests

• Design figures carefully (more on this later...)

• Try to highlight differences between old and new

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#2: The Summary

• Restate the main results – concisely– Avoid terms only understood by specialists

• Highlight one or two special points"...this approach has several advantages, but

the most significant is ..."

• Acknowledge weak points– as directions for future study

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#3: The Body

• First, explain how you plan to explain...

• May need several sections

• Carefully define symbols and terms

• Design good figures

• Be careful not to "lose the reader"– Car B follows Car A, but Car A cannot go

too fast... must warn the follower of turns.

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• Structure




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Front and Back Materials

• People “judge a book by its cover”– Reviewers decide “accept/reject”, then look

for evidence to support their decision

• What are “front and back” materials?• Title• Abstract• Introduction• References

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Reviewer Psychology

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If the front and back material is then Reviewers tend to

good, interesting • accept the body and proof sections• not so critical of small errors• be more helpful

poor, suspicious • reject the body and proof sections• highlight even small errors• be more hurtful

#4: Introduction

Goals:

• Convince the reader the work is interesting

• Convince the reader you understand the issues

• Draw reader's curiosity

• Convince him your story will be good

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Introduction "Do Nots"

• Never use the words "novel" or "new" or "important"

• Avoid creating new abbreviations

• Make claims without references

• Cite references with weak explanation"The problem...has been studied [1-10]"

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The 6 W’s of Journalism

"W" words Suggested usage in the INTRODUCTION

Who Who else is working on this or related problems?

What What is the problem? What are the issues? What have others contributed? What is the approach you are using? What is a good result of your work?

When When does the problem occur?

Where Where is the problem found?

Why Why is the problem "hard"?

How How are you approaching the problem? How do you plan to present the work?

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(The Background Section)

• Useful for demonstrating your knowledge of the problem & issues

• Can be used to define terminology

• Complement with good references

• Tends to make Introduction too long– Consider making it a section by itself

36

#4: References "Do"

• Relevant to the problem and reader– Don't cite math paper for non-math reader– Try to be current, but also keep classics.

• Have sufficient references

• Accessible to most readers– theses and dissertations are useless– web pages have unpredictable lifespan

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• Structure




38

Terminology, Notation, Math

• Explain unusual terms

• Abbrv. (abbreviations) must be spelled out the first time

• Equations are seldom easy to follow– use sparingly– symbols must be explained– offer an interpretation of the equation

39

Figures and Tables

"A picture is worth a thousand words"

• Assumes a well-constructed figure.– Poor figures are WORTHLESS

• Same is true for a Table

40

Figures by Software

• Optimized for computer screen– 10 point font is OK on 17-inch screen– Screen has lots of space– Colors are wonderful

• Usually not good for IEEE paper– column is narrow, space is small– scale the figure: 12 pt. font becomes tiny

41

Hints for Figures

• Spend time on the "little things"– choosing line styles

• some require color (expensive)

– rescaling text– Choose caption carefully

• Highlight difference between "old" and "new" results

42

Line Drawings

Default in PSPICE Redrawn

43

Same Data: Different Plots

2 curves are similar here Different story here!

44

Color vs Line Style

This is expensive This may be good enough

45

Font Size

Default in Excel Manually adjusted

46

Flag raising on Iwo Jima, WW-II

This was the SECOND flag raising event!Joe Rosenthal, Feb. 23, 1945, Mt. Suribachi

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• Structure




48

Ask Often This Question

Will this paper create a

“good picture”

in the reader’s mind?

• will he "see" the state-of-the-art?

• will he see how your work stands out?

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My Third Recommendation

Find a co-author who writes well !

• Less expensive than professional writer

• Good for practicing English

• Builds your professional circle

• Builds friendship

• 1/2 cookie is better than 0 cookie50

Where to find a friend?

• Conferences

• Reviewing others

• Strengths Taiwan (you) can offer– Good in mathematics– Good laboratories– Good work spirit

51

Long Term Advice

• A man’s life is 70 years

• Today affects tomorrow

• Be careful of fast solutions

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Summary

1. Volunteer to review other works.

2. Learn skills of a Journalist.

3. Build partnerships.

4. Build for the Long Term.

53

Resources / References

• IEEE Trans. on Education• IEEE Trans. on Profession Communication

– Editor-in-Chief (Auburn University)– Pierson & Pierson, v. 40, n. 4, pp. 200-304.

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Documents

Facing "Publish or Perish" in English John Y. Hung Visiting Professor NTUST Taiwan Professor Auburn University USA 1