Paraphrasing in Science Writing

quotation copies an authors exact wording from a source A summary gives an overview of the original ideas and is shorter than the original A paraphrase restates all the original material in different words and is (usually) about as long as the original

No matter which method you choose to incorporate information from your research, YOU MUST CITE YOUR SOURCE!

Many disciplines (humanities) have high acceptance for direct quotations because of regard for the authors craft in phrasing his/her words Direct quotations are seldom used in the sciences, though, because those disciplines place more value on data, results, and ideas than on how those pieces of information are expressed

However, highly technical language can be extremely difficult to paraphrase This is due to the already-precise nature of science writing and Precise connotations or meanings in fieldspecific jargon For example, the word affinity means something much more precise in chemistry than it does in the lay context

1) When researching, avoid writing notes in complete sentences Using short phrases for notes will force you to put ideas into your own words when you write 2) Be sure you fully understand the context of the information first Review several paragraphs before and after the text you are paraphrasing

3) Determine the main ideas of the text you want to paraphrase or summarize Include only the ideas or concepts that are immediately relevant to your purpose 4) Identify key words or phrases that would be difficult to find synonyms for 5) Bearing those main ideas and keywords in mind, explain the concept in your own words This may take several tries to get right

6) Cite your sources! 7) Check for the following: No exact wording without quotation marks Same sentence structure with changed words Same paragraph structure, even if sentences and wording are different Each piece of information has a citation, including any images, tables, or other graphics youve used

In-text citations in ASA are very similar to APA Emphasis is placed on author and year of publication Example: (Davis and Friel 2004) When quoting or paraphrasing, a page number is also necessary Example: (Davis and Friel 2004:671) Note that there is no space after the year!

Idea Focus
Recent studies indicate that there is little to no discernible link between family structure and the onset of sexual activity in adolescents (Davis and Friel 2004).

Author Focus
Davis and Friel (2004) found that the important factors in adolescent girls sexual initiation have more to do with motherdaughter relationships than family structure.

The good, the bad, and the plagiarized

Improper paraphrase: Davis and Friel examined patterns of partnership for sexually active teens, as well as sexual initiation, in order to determine if the structure and context of families are important after the teens original decision to have sex (2004:679).

Proper Paraphrase Davis and Friel (2004) looked at several factors in teens family lives in order to find out which ones had the most impact on adolescents sexual choices.