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EGR 150 & 151 Engineering Design I & II

Course Guide

Introduction

Discoveries and the creation of new knowledge are the building blocks of what is known in the sciences.  Thousands of students and researchers from around the world participate in scientific research, experiments, and publishing within many fields.  Countless innovations and new developments are the results of these efforts. 

Scholarly and Popular Sources

How to tell the difference between scholarly and popular sources:

General Structure of Scholarly Arcles

For the convenience of readers, scholarly articles written within many STEM or medical/ health science fields have evolved to follow an IMRAD format (or something close to it).

"Research papers follow the well-known IMRD format — an abstract followed by the

I

 Introduction

  • Background, rationale, and purpose of article.
M

 Methods / Methodology

  • Study design, measurement instruments, and rationale for their use.
R

 Results

  • Describes the outcomes of the study without repeating the methodology.

A

 Analysis

  • Some publications shown an analysis of the data and the results of the methods used.
D

 Discussion

  • Presents the principles, relationships, and generalizations shown by the study;
  • Explains how results support (or refute) previous research;
  • Considers theoretical implications of the results;
  • Provides conclusions of the study.

They have multiple cross references and tables as well as supplementary material, such as data sets, lab protocols and gene sequences. All those characteristics  can make them dense and complex. Being able to effectively understanding them is a matter of practice."

"Reading a scientific paper should not be done in a linear way (from beginning to end); instead, it should be done strategically and with a critical mindset, questioning your understanding and the findings. Sometimes you will have to go backwards and forwards, take notes and have multiples tabs opened in your browser."

LibGuides in Engineering